comedy – News Stories About comedy - Page 13

MOVIE REVIEW

Aug 13, 2008 11:00 AM CDT

Tropic Thunder Declares Comedy War

No targets are safe in Ben Stiller's gross-out war comedy

(Newser) - The action comedy Tropic Thunder, a send-up of Vietnam War movies, crosses some lines—intentionally. In fact, Peter Hartlaub writes in the San Francisco Chronicle, "if you're not offended by at least one aspect of this film, then you're probably not getting out enough." But it has a...

'The World
Just Got a
Little Less
Funny'

Appreciation

Aug 9, 2008 1:30 PM CDT

'The World Just Got a Little Less Funny'

Friends lament comedian's loss

(Newser) - Hollywood has woken up to a world without Bernie Mac, who died early today from complications of pneumonia. Here’s what the stars who knew him are saying, reports E!:

George Clooney: “The world just got a little less funny. He will be missed dearly.”
Chris Rock: “

...

Comedian Bernie
Mac Dies at 50

Aug 9, 2008 9:27 AM CDT

Comedian Bernie Mac Dies at 50

Standup comic moved on to film, TV

(Newser) - Comedian and actor Bernie Mac has died at 50 of pneumonia after a week’s hospitalization in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reports. Mac suffered from sarcoidosis, an unusual autoimmune disease that causes inflammation in the lungs. Born Bernard Jeffrey McCullough, the comedian was a late bloomer, achieving fame in his...

Studios Bet Big on R-Rated Comedies

Aug 5, 2008 8:45 PM CDT

Studios Bet Big on R-Rated Comedies

Risqué humor draws smaller crowds, but stars can cut loose

(Newser) - Movie studios are gambling on R-rated comedies more than ever as audiences open up to raunchier humor and stars push to showcase their talent in a less restricted setting, the AP reports. PG-13 flicks almost always draw bigger crowds, but R-rated features like Sex and the City, Wedding Crashers, and...

Scruffy Rogen
Rising Star of
'Comedy Mafia'

glossies

Aug 5, 2008 11:05 AM CDT

Scruffy Rogen Rising Star of 'Comedy Mafia'

Pineapple Express may rocket scruffy actor to big bucks

(Newser) - Seth Rogen's comedy career stumbled for years, but Pineapple Express may catapult him into full-fledged movie stardom, Alex Pappademas writes in GQ. Films like Knocked Up established Rogen as a hilarious "bromantic" lead, and the action-comedy Pineapple, which he co-wrote, proves the scruffy stoner can hold his own with...

Cheech & Chong Light Up Again

Jul 30, 2008 5:23 PM CDT

Cheech & Chong Light Up Again

Legendary stoners plan comeback tour after 25 years

(Newser) - Legendary comedy duo and pot enthusiasts Cheech and Chong are teaming up for their first tour in more than 25 years, E! reports. Since making nearly 20 pot-infused albums and films in the 1970s and early '80s, Cheech has worked as a character actor and Chong appeared on That '70s ...

Comedy Legend Skewers Left in Slapstick Carol

Jul 23, 2008 2:15 PM CDT

Comedy Legend Skewers Left in Slapstick Carol

Naked Gun director lampoons Michael Moore in new flick

(Newser) - They're calling it “a spoof of A Christmas Carol and contemporary American culture,” from the director that brought you Naked Gun and Airplane! But what the press release doesn't say is that the director is David Zucker, a self-proclaimed “9/11 Republican,” and that American Carol is...

Late-Night
Takes it Easy
on Obama

ANALYSIS

Jul 15, 2008 7:16 AM CDT

Late-Night Takes it Easy on Obama

From racism to favoritism, comedians explain lack of jokes

(Newser) - John McCain has been skewered by late-night comics throughout the presidential campaign, but Barack Obama has escaped relatively unscathed. As this week's New Yorker cover flare-up made clear, satirists are struggling to find an angle on the Democratic nominee. The New York Times speaks to half a dozen late-night hosts...

Kimmel, Silverman Split Up

Jul 14, 2008 5:15 PM CDT

Kimmel, Silverman Split Up

No comment from Damon, Affleck

(Newser) - After 5 years together, Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman have broken up, reps for the newly minted ex-couple confirmed to Vanity Fair today. "Jimmy and Sarah have and will have no further comment," said a joint statement. Confessions of involvement with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck apparently didn't...

Bernie Mac's
Act Too Salty
for Obama

Jul 12, 2008 4:12 PM CDT

Bernie Mac's Act Too Salty for Obama

Comedian earns rebuke for his racy jokes at fundraiser

(Newser) - Bernie Mac landed in hot water for making off-color jokes about women while introducing Barack Obama at a Chicago fundraiser yesterday, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. His last quip—which had the word "ho's" in it—drew complaints from a heckler. When Obama came on, he chided the comedian playfully....

Friends Film Not Happening

Jul 4, 2008 5:20 PM CDT

Friends Film Not Happening

'No truth' to rumors sitcom cast, excited over Sex and the City success, would reunite

(Newser) - Media reports of a coming Friends movie are false, the BBC reports. Warner Brothers' publicity director said there was “no truth” to stories of a film project that have circulated since the Sex and the City film became a blockbuster. Publicists for stars Mathew Perry and Courteney Cox say...

Obama's Race
a Gift . . . for Comedians

Jun 27, 2008 6:38 PM CDT

Obama's Race a Gift . . . for Comedians

Standups, talk-show hosts go where politicians fear to tread

(Newser) - In this election, at least one group is unafraid to play the race card: comedians. Entertainers may be the only ones who can talk candidly about the subject, the San Jose Mercury News reports. And boy, are they. “I'm voting for Barack Obama," said one comedian. "I...

Seinfeld: Death Was a Laughing Matter for Carlin

Appreciation

Jun 24, 2008 7:44 AM CDT

Seinfeld: Death Was a Laughing Matter for Carlin

Even when he dies, Jerry'll still wrestle with 'Carlin already did it'

(Newser) - Nine days ago death was just another thing to joke about for George Carlin, writes Jerry Seinfeld in the New York Times. The comics were talking about the deaths of Tim Russert and Bo Diddley, and Carlin said, “I feel safe for a while. There will probably be a...

'Genius' Carlin
Broke Boundaries

appreciation

Jun 23, 2008 7:51 AM CDT

'Genius' Carlin Broke Boundaries

Irreverent sense of humor led to legal troubles

(Newser) - George Carlin was an anti-establishment legend who constantly pushed the boundaries of free speech and comedy, writes Keith St. Clair for the AP. No doubt, his “Seven Words You Should Never Say on Television”—he was arrested for uttering them in 1972, and they eventually led to a...

70s Comic Icon
George Carlin Dies

Jun 23, 2008 3:59 AM CDT

70s Comic Icon George Carlin Dies

Funnyman, 71, was known for pushing limits

(Newser) - Provocative comedian George Carlin died yesterday of heart failure in a Santa Monica hospital at the age of 71, Reuters reports. The counterculture hero, who long battled heart and drug problems, had been admitted earlier in the day complaining of chest pains. He was known for boundary-stretching, drug-referencing routines. One...

Ventriloquists
Speak Up for
Themselves

Jun 20, 2008 3:03 PM CDT

Ventriloquists Speak Up for Themselves

Well, maybe not. But the form is seeing more success these days

(Newser) - Ventriloquism has been on the outs since the '70s, but its fortunes are starting to turn, the Wall Street Journal reports. Symbolizing the resurgence of the vaudeville favorite is Terry Fator, a winner of NBC’s America’s Got Talent competition, who recently picked up a yearlong headlining gig at...

Get Smart Not So Clever

movie review

Jun 20, 2008 12:15 PM CDT

Get Smart Not So Clever

Film struggles to balance action and comedy

(Newser) - The film version of the 1960s TV spy parody Get Smart can’t decide if it's an action flick or a comedy, and it shows. It’s “an action comedy that represents the worst of both worlds,” Mick LaSalle writes in the San Francisco Chronicle—“as funny...

Love Guru Is Beyond Help

movie review

Jun 20, 2008 8:40 AM CDT

Love Guru Is Beyond Help

Critics spurn sophomoric Mike Myers comedy

(Newser) - Love isn't the right word to describe how most critics feel about The Love Guru, Mike Myers' first live-action comedy in 5 years. Myers stars as a self-help guru paid to revive the love life of a hockey player, but his mugging isn't enough to salvage "a collection of...

Deepak Chopra: 'Catch God With His Pants Down'

Opinion

Jun 18, 2008 2:24 PM CDT

Deepak Chopra: 'Catch God With His Pants Down'

Lighten up about religion, says new-age fan of 'Love Guru'

(Newser) - Real-life new-age guru Deepak Chopra is a big fan of Mike Myers' movie, The Love Guru, and writes that laughing at God is exactly what we need right about now. "More comedies should cross the line between vulgar lampoon and reckless disrespect. Let's catch God with his pants down—...

Is Franken
Too Vulgar
for Politics?

OPINION

Jun 18, 2008 6:51 AM CDT

Is Franken Too Vulgar for Politics?

Pundit thinks funnyman-turned-politician's 'satire' reinforces system's failures

(Newser) - Al Franken was cracking tasteless jokes for decades before entering politics, but it may be his opponent in the Minnesota Senate race who'll be accused of coarsening debate if he dares to brings them up, Michael Gerson writes in the Washington Post. Franken calls his work "provocative, touching, and...