Weird without writers
January 8, 2008
BY DOUG ELFMAN Television Critic
Jon Stewart dropped a little bombshell on "The Daily Show" last night. He said he offered to give his striking writers what they want, but the Writers Guild of America turned him down.
"Let's say you're on basic cable, but you'll do it, and you've gotten your company [Comedy Central] to say OK, even though they clearly think you're insane. Why would you turn something like that down?''
Stewart, in a reserved-peeved tone, joked that he's a casualty of the strike between the "arbitrary" WGA and a small group of greedy studio execs.
"Individuals have to be sacrificed at that altar, and they feel sometimes sad inside," he said sort of bitterly.
Later, a spokeswoman for the Writers Guild told me that WGA reps, who hadn't seen the show, preferred not to comment.
DeadlineHollywoodDaily.com is reporting the problem might be that Comedy Central is owned by Viacom, which has been stonewalling the WGA. That may mean the WGA doesn't feel comfortable entering into an agreement with a subsidiary of a company that's been playing very tough.
These were the first "Daily" and "Colbert" shows since the strike started two months ago. They were weird.
After all, here are the two most important satirists of the 21st century operating without the writers who make them funnier and more influential. With a presentation of moral fiber, the hosts have reshaped political debates and become icons for snarkellectuals, kids and alternative thinkers.
But suddenly, they were riding their high horses across the picket line.
Usually, they explain everything. Monday, neither explained the behind-the-scenes movements that made this happen.
Stewart did offer a lot of words of support to his fellow union writers. He referred to the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers as "NAMBLA."
He pointed out his writers aren't getting real money from Viacom when the company sells "The Daily Show" on iTunes for $1.99 an episode.
But he jibed both sides by pointing out that the last time TV shows went on break was after 9/11 -- and that was only for a week.
"If my math is correct, the writers' strike is now nine times worse than Sept. 11," he said.
Stewart was OK. But he was at a loss for better words most of the time. And even though writer-hosts aren't supposed to be preparing jokes during the strike, he clearly did:
"It doesn't look like they hired new American Gladiators. It looks like they just unfroze the old ones."
Colbert -- in character, as usual, as a rightwing loon -- looked more comfortable.
He cracked that Barack Obama won't do his show during the strike, but that Obama has said he'll meet with the leaders of Syria and Iran to try to defuse war.
"Syria and Iran? He won't talk to me? But he will talk to Mahmoud?" Colbert said. "Barack Obama is saying Stephen Colbert is worse than a terrorist."
Well, Colbert is nowhere near being a terrorist. But he and Stewart did seem just slightly scabby.
BY DOUG ELFMAN Television Critic
Jon Stewart dropped a little bombshell on "The Daily Show" last night. He said he offered to give his striking writers what they want, but the Writers Guild of America turned him down.
"Let's say you're on basic cable, but you'll do it, and you've gotten your company [Comedy Central] to say OK, even though they clearly think you're insane. Why would you turn something like that down?''
Stewart, in a reserved-peeved tone, joked that he's a casualty of the strike between the "arbitrary" WGA and a small group of greedy studio execs.
"Individuals have to be sacrificed at that altar, and they feel sometimes sad inside," he said sort of bitterly.
Later, a spokeswoman for the Writers Guild told me that WGA reps, who hadn't seen the show, preferred not to comment.
DeadlineHollywoodDaily.com is reporting the problem might be that Comedy Central is owned by Viacom, which has been stonewalling the WGA. That may mean the WGA doesn't feel comfortable entering into an agreement with a subsidiary of a company that's been playing very tough.
These were the first "Daily" and "Colbert" shows since the strike started two months ago. They were weird.
After all, here are the two most important satirists of the 21st century operating without the writers who make them funnier and more influential. With a presentation of moral fiber, the hosts have reshaped political debates and become icons for snarkellectuals, kids and alternative thinkers.
But suddenly, they were riding their high horses across the picket line.
Usually, they explain everything. Monday, neither explained the behind-the-scenes movements that made this happen.
Stewart did offer a lot of words of support to his fellow union writers. He referred to the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers as "NAMBLA."
He pointed out his writers aren't getting real money from Viacom when the company sells "The Daily Show" on iTunes for $1.99 an episode.
But he jibed both sides by pointing out that the last time TV shows went on break was after 9/11 -- and that was only for a week.
"If my math is correct, the writers' strike is now nine times worse than Sept. 11," he said.
Stewart was OK. But he was at a loss for better words most of the time. And even though writer-hosts aren't supposed to be preparing jokes during the strike, he clearly did:
"It doesn't look like they hired new American Gladiators. It looks like they just unfroze the old ones."
Colbert -- in character, as usual, as a rightwing loon -- looked more comfortable.
He cracked that Barack Obama won't do his show during the strike, but that Obama has said he'll meet with the leaders of Syria and Iran to try to defuse war.
"Syria and Iran? He won't talk to me? But he will talk to Mahmoud?" Colbert said. "Barack Obama is saying Stephen Colbert is worse than a terrorist."
Well, Colbert is nowhere near being a terrorist. But he and Stewart did seem just slightly scabby.
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