TCB Debriefing 12/5/23: Norman Lear, Kyle Ayers, Last Week Tonight, Jesse David Fox, Jackie Fabulous, Taskmasters
1. R.I.P. Norman Lear. Rather than write a whole screed about how much of a legend to comedy, television, and representation he is, we’ll just say that he’s much more deserving of The Mark Twain Prize for Humor, an award that’s supposed to honor people in comedy who have effectively changed the dialogue that Americans have with each other, than the majority of the recipients. Yes, he was not a performer, but the landscape of comedy and American sitcoms are wholly influenced by Lear.
2. Kyle Ayers is brilliant and hilarious and also suffers from Trigeminal Neuraligia AKA “Suicide Disease”. Ayers deserves all the support we can muster, especially because calling the American Health Care system a joke is being nice. Please support his GoFundMe here.
3. In the biggest no brainer ever, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is renewed for three seasons through 2026.
4. Vulture/Good One’s Jesse David Fox explains explaining comedy on Seth Meyers, despite some folks thinking that comedians are just making it all on up the spot and not hard working artisans. Please watch and enjoy here. Also, go get his book Comedy Book-How Comedy Conquered Culture-and the Magic That Makes It Work for further explanation of how exactly comedians do the magic that they do.
5. The amazing, effervescent Jackie Fabulous is going on tour. Please go get tix at jackiefabulous.com.
6. Brendon Walsh and Brian Keith Etheridge (South Park) and Johnny Ryan have an animated series, Taskmasters, that incorporates prank calls that just got a script commitment at Fox (Deadline). Fingers crossed that this turns into a green light as Walsh is the living king of prank calls.
7. We’ll leave you with this: Tickets to a cool comedy show count as a great holiday gift.