A number of videos have been making the rounds this week, so I figured I’d consolidate. Starting with Facebooking Aaron Sorkin’s sharp dialogue:
Tag: David Letterman
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Ford does Letterman
I’m not all that high on Roger Michell’s “Morning Glory” or Harrison Ford’s gravelly-voiced portrayal of a curmudgeonly news man, but I enjoyed his sit-down with David Letterman last night. Part two after the jump. (Mike Ryan, meanwhile, charts the actor’s response to “Star Wars” questions throughout the years at Movieline.)
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Phoenix “apologizes” as Letterman plays it straight
Joaquin Phoenix made his return to The Late Show last night following his performance art appearance a year and a half ago which made plenty of headlines. With the reality of “I’m Still Here” out in the open, it made for a “how could you not know” session. Letterman was reportedly in on the gag but the interview played out like he didn’t know and only assumed it was all just a put-on. In any case, it’s kind of the closing chapter in a saga that has irritated and amused many. Here’s the full appearance:
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Teasing Phoenix’s return to Letterman
Now that the cat’s out of the bag on “I’m Still Here,” all eyes are on The Late Show tonight where Joaquin Phoenix parks it on David Letterman’s chair one more time. Courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, here’s a rather, well, nothing teaser clip of tonight’s appearance, which would have wrapped filming I guess about five ours ago:
Once the entire appearance is available I’ll try to track down an embed and post it up.
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‘Avatar’ on late night
Sigourney Weaver stopped by The Ed Sullivan Theater last night to talk “Avatar” with David Letterman. My jaw dropped when she explains that the Weta guys spend 47 hours of manpower per each 1/24th of a second in translating the data received from the motion-capture sensors. Wow.
Check out the clip below, and after the jump, Conan O’Brien has a bit of fun with the Na’vi language.
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Baldwin on Letterman
This is from the holiday episode, which aired 12/23. Early in the interview they touch on the Oscar hosting gig and later, of course, there’s “It’s Complicated” talk. And a great story mid-way through about when Baldwin met Burt Lancaster in an elevator. Hilarious stuff. Here’s part one, part two after the jump.
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Carey Mulligan on Letterman
I love that Paul and the band played “Hot For Teacher” as she walked out. She handled herself well, I thought. But, let’s face it — it’s difficult not to think of Letterman’s scandal given the plot of the film. Speaking of which, I think Letterman totally spoils the film toward the end (and a little in the beginning). Tom O’Neil has just posted an assessment of the appearance and Mulligan’s place in the race.
Anyway, here it is — Carey Mulligan’s first talk show appearance ever:
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O’Brien’s first shot at ‘The Tonight Show’ — How’d he do?
In his first shot at hosting “The Tonight Show,” I think it’s safe to say Conan O’Brien has tamed things down from his “Late Night” antics of old.Tapping comedian Will Ferrell and musical guest Pearl Jam as introductory guests might be seen as indication of a “hipper” or younger direction, but came off as rather safe in hindsight. The crowd got a “string dance” routine but only briefly and as merely a wink and a nudge. And the overall atmosphere of the show was somewhat stiff, O’Brien appearing nervous to maintain a straight man’s routine throughout while seemingly longing for his 12:30 element.
Of course, I’m not criticizing. It will take O’Brien some time to warm to the gig and, perhaps, his new audience to him. But what worked really worked.
The cold open was probably the obvious play, but the commitment to a cross-country, Forrest-Gump-like sprint from Manhattan to Universal City was full, spirited and lots of fun. The studio tram tour bit felt a little too old Conan for the time slot and might have been better saved for later down the line, but it’d be a hoot if “Cir-cle! Cir-cle!” became an unintended tradition with studio audiences. And that stage is something to behold. Absolutely gorgeous.
You can check out the cold open below or at the new “Tonight Show” website (with other goodies, of course).
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Jay Leno’s closes a chapter on ‘The Tonight Show’
I’ve been pretty hard on Jay Leno over the years. In the late night wars, he’s had neither the comedic inventiveness nor (certainly) the journalistic capacity to become must-watch TV like David Letterman and, to a lesser extent, Conan O’Brien. Even the sober Tom Snyder proved a more intriguing watch for me when he was still on CBS so many years ago.All of that said, I’m a bit saddened that Leno’s final episode as host of “The Tonight Show” is being recorded right now for telecast later this evening. As much as I may have preferred other late night personalities over the years, the fact remains Leno’s regular guy brand of humor carried the torch magnificently for the past 17 years. The circumstances surrounding how he landed the gig will always be suspect, but Letterman went off and became his own man, paving the way for O’Brien to make a name for himself at 12:30 and, as of Monday night, finally take up the reigns on “The Tonight Show” himself. I wrote briefly about O’Brien’s final “Late Night” show back in February.
O’Brien’s transition to the show was covered in-depth in an insightful New York Times Magazine piece last weekend by staffer Lynn Hirschberg. Early passages have me worried, such as writing staff ideas centered around O’Brien as an outsider in Los Angeles (his new show will be taped daily on the Universal lot). Those will only go so far, perhaps better suited to a guest host than the new face of NBC late night, and the show will need to settle into a more purposeful position sooner rather than later.
Of course, the subtext of Hirschberg’s article is that O’Brien, like his soon-to-be time-slot competition Letterman, doesn’t have the chummy, next-door neighbor demeanor that Leno has. Therefore, the 50-year-old enterprise could be in jeopardy of losing viewership. His brand of self-deprecation struck a chord with his dorm room demographic, to be sure, but the higher brow isn’t what Leno aimed for and might not be what the “Tonight Show” audience wants. The ratings will ultimately tell the tale, but in recent years, I have found myself out-growing O’Brien’s antics. I wish him the best as he takes up the reins on Monday, but I wonder if a network desire to stay fresh will put a flagship built on it’s heritage in slight peril.
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Stewart and Letterman dish the Oscar hosting gig
Thanks to Gold Derby for pointing us to this YouTube clip of Jon Stewart on The Late Show wondering why the heck they were ever asked to host the Oscars.
Stewart: “The problem with having us host it, if I may, is that at some level, deep in our hearts, we think it’s stupid.”
Letterman: “That’s exactly right.”
Brilliant. Have a look:
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Conan bids farewell to ‘Late Night’
I told myself all week to make sure I caught Conan O’Brien’s last show on Late Night yesterday, and, no big surprise, I totally forgot. I told myself it was probably just as well since for many, many years the show fell out of favor with me. I was a huge fan in the Andy Richter years back in my high school days, but somehow when Richter left, after maybe a year or so, Conan began to seem stale to me. I don’t know why, I don’t know if it was growing up, whatever, but it stopped connecting.I’ve been revisiting the show lately, mostly in the way of reminiscence since I knew the clock was ticking. And luckily enough, given this day and age, I was able to track down the final episode here. I kind of thought it would be same old, hollow, etc., and to some extent, it was slightly underwhelming for a farewell show. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was a bit choked up watching this 15-year-old chapter of the late night comedy tour come to an end.
I particularly liked O’Brien’s acknowledgment of late night king (in my opinion) David Letterman, who everyone know deserved “The Tonight Show” long ago. Here’s what the exiting “Late Night” host had to say of his soon-to-be 11:30 competition:
David Letterman invented this late night show. He is, I believe, one of the most brilliant broadcasters for all time. I have a terrific amount of respect for him and what he did. He set the bar absurdly high. Living in his shadow has been both a burden and an inspiration.
The White Stripes performed a solemn ditty and Will Ferrell made an appearance. Andy Richter, of course, came out for a trip down memory lane, but it’s all over now.
O’Brien begins his stint hosting “The Tonight Show” June 1.
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Is this a new strategy?
I’ve been flipping back and forth between Leno and Letterman and so far I’ve seen four Oscar TV spots: two for “The Reader,” one for “Slumdog Millionaire” and one for “The Wrestler.” Instead of the usual 30 second trailers, there is interview footage edited in. Rourke from “The Wrestler,” Boyle from “Slumdog” and besting the lot, Daldry, Winslet AND Hare (dropping the names of Pollack and Minghella) for “The Reader.”
Is this a new strategy? I can’t seem to recall late night television buys in recent Oscar past, but I certainly don’t recall commercials such as this, bringing the talent out in the open so formally. It’s kind of brilliant, really. Now instead of watching Amy Adams giggle about how unprepared she is for her wedding, you’ll be treated to other interviews during the advertising break that you weren’t expecting at all.
Adams is a good call for this moment, especially being in a race some perceive as wide open and others say is ripe for her taking. But all things considered, Rourke could have brought it all home with an appearance here instead of in late December for the film’s release.
Or does it all…really not matter?
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Citizen Dave
We don’t get into television much around these parts. I don’t have the heart, really, what with “24” sucking the life out of me, “Heroes” spiraling out of control and “Friday Night Lights” and “Entourage” gone for the moment. “Lost” helps soothe the irritation, but we certainly don’t talk late night very much.But for a long while now, it seems David Letterman has been the only late night destination worth a damn. I lost my patience for Conan O’Brien years ago (seriously, it’s painful to watch him struggle to keep up when he has, say, Jim Carrey on…and the old shtick doesn’t cut it anymore), while Jay Leno is and always has been the worst interviewer in the racket. Why 10pm? Just retire?
Anyway, with that in mind, I thoroughly enjoyed this Chicago Tribune piece from Steve Johnson, spotlighting Letterman’s “remarkable transformation” from a goofy laugh hound to a meaningful figment of America’s social conscience. Here’s a taste:
Since his 2000 heart surgery, he has taken on President Bush and candidate John McCain, global warming and Bill O’Reilly, Rush Limbaugh and the lack of national leadership. His first broadcast after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks was an almost oracular expression of what a nation was feeling and the best thing any broadcaster found to say in that dark period.
He even turned a post-jail visit by Paris Hilton political, in a sense, using her appearance as cultural critique, a riotous dismantling of the notion of unearned celebrity and blind adherence to promotional agendas.