Conan O'Brien's Can't Stop

[RS]

Anyone have watched this yet? My take- the documentary reveals him to me a narcissistic jerk. While I agree he got "screwed" by NBC, this movie shows him to a bitter, self-absorbed whiner. I get that signing autographs is a drag, but his contempt for his unusually fan is appalling. You can't ask for nonstop attention and gripe when you get it. Also, he is a so a wannabe musician but in reality is a an amateur who has the gall to pretend and charge people like he is one.

[Stinsok]

He's just not "Branson" good.

[sloasdaylight]

[fmoore200]

That all may be true, but I consider the time he spent as producer for the Simpson's in the early '90's to be that shows best period.

And for that I salute conan

[hover]

Funny, I thought the ONLY part of it I didn't like was when he dissed Margaret Cho, and I think that was a gag.... yeah he came off kinda prude-ish at times, but it could be anybody, I don;t think he was *complaining*.

I just watched it today too.

[McHaven]

Conan had never done anything like that tour before. I just watched this last night. Yes, it was kind of upsetting about how he treated fans by the end, but I see that as the stress of touring getting to him. It is something entirely new for him, taking him away from his family, and everything he's known for 20 years. All he wants is some privacy and peace, but he just can't get it on that tour schedule. I think by the end he realizes he bit off more than he could chew, and that the people that organized it all (producers, etc) are hardly ever around to be responsible for the mess.

So what if Conan isn't a great musician? He plays well enough, enjoys it, and his fans enjoy it as well.

[DigMe]

Originally Posted by hover

Funny, I thought the ONLY part of it I didn't like was when he dissed Margaret Cho, and I think that was a gag.... yeah he came off kinda prude-ish at times, but it could be anybody, I don;t think he was *complaining*.

I just watched it today too.

I havent seen the doc but I support Margaret Cho disses. She's possibly one of the least funny big name comedians of the past 20 years.

bc

[fmoore200]

Originally Posted by DigMe

I havent seen the doc but I support Margaret Cho disses. She's possibly one of the least funny big name comedians of the past 20 years.

bc

Ellen?

[hover]

Originally Posted by DigMe

I havent seen the doc but I support Margaret Cho disses. She's possibly one of the least funny big name comedians of the past 20 years.

bc

Oh, absolutely. Agreed. I just thought it came off a bit staged.

[superbassman2000]

Originally Posted by hover

Oh, absolutely. Agreed. I just thought it came off a bit staged.

I agree too. And maybe i'm biased but I didn't think he looked bad on his off stage antics, it seemed like he was just goofing around because there was a camera on him. I see that with a lot of comedians-a lot of funny people are funny all the time, and Conan seemed like he was just playing a character to me.

[RS]

Originally Posted by fmoore200

That all may be true, but I consider the time he spent as producer for the Simpson's in the early '90's to be that shows best period.

And for that I salute conan

I can agree with that.

[Funky Ghost]

I tried watching this on Netflix last night. I stopped after about 30 minutes. I'm not a huge fan in the first place. I'll admit that from the top. SOME things he does are "ok" but I think the skits on his show are superior to him namely Triumph the Comic Dog. His bitchfest was a bit much to take. Deadpan deliveries always work best with a foil unless you're Steven Wright. Without his foil he falls flatter than a week old open soda. I didn't even so much as smile in 30 minutes.

[Strat-Mangler]

I think that a *lot* of people who've watched the documentary don't exactly "get" his sense of humor.

His entire staff has often said that when he gets in, he'll play the role of a pushy a-hole who berates and insults everybody on purpose, no matter how well they do. They understand it isn't real and they're in on the joke. Why else do you think ex-interns like Jack McBrayer whose been on the receiving end of Conan's barbs for years and years (redneck jokes and the like) keep going back to his show and even went to visit him during his tour?

A lot of people can get an askew viewpoint if they're not "in" on the joke. I'm sure that if a camera was pointed at you with your best friends and I saw the whole thing without context that there could be a risk of me misinterpreting something that was said or done.

I agree the stress of the tour really took its toll on him towards the end. I don't think he was being mean as much as he was accommodating in a rush-like manner. He kept being ping-ponged from place to place even between shows with almost no rest. It's easy to judge, but I doubt that most people would react positively to that sort of day-to-day grind. Eventually, you just want to chill.

Let's not forget his voice also took a major beating.

As for the musician bit, he doesn't fancy himself a musician. He knows he's an amateur and simply takes advantage of the platform he's on to have some personal fun (i.e. play) from time to time. What he's charging for is the comedy ; not the music.

[MatticusMania]

Originally Posted by RS

Anyone have watched this yet? My take- the documentary reveals him to me a narcissistic jerk. While I agree he got "screwed" by NBC, this movie shows him to a bitter, self-absorbed whiner. I get that signing autographs is a drag, but his contempt for his unusually fan is appalling. You can't ask for nonstop attention and gripe when you get it. Also, he is a so a wannabe musician but in reality is a an amateur who has the gall to pretend and charge people like he is one.

Is English not your first language? I can hardly make sense of this...

[Funky Ghost]

Originally Posted by Strat-Mangler

I think that a *lot* of people who've watched the documentary don't exactly "get" his sense of humor.

His entire staff has often said that when he gets in, he'll play the role of a pushy a-hole who berates and insults everybody on purpose, no matter how well they do. They understand it isn't real and they're in on the joke. Why else do you think ex-interns like Jack McBrayer whose been on the receiving end of Conan's barbs for years and years (redneck jokes and the like) keep going back to his show and even went to visit him during his tour?


Because they got paid.


A lot of people can get an askew viewpoint if they're not "in" on the joke. I'm sure that if a camera was pointed at you with your best friends and I saw the whole thing without context that there could be a risk of me misinterpreting something that was said or done.

Inside jokes are not suitable for an audience in most circumstances. If they are not in the "know", then it's a comedic fail. If by misinterpret you mean not find it funny, well, that's his fault.

I agree the stress of the tour really took its toll on him towards the end. I don't think he was being mean as much as he was accommodating in a rush-like manner. He kept being ping-ponged from place to place even between shows with almost no rest. It's easy to judge, but I doubt that most people would react positively to that sort of day-to-day grind. Eventually, you just want to chill.

Actually in the 30 minutes I watched his people looked pretty ragged and uncomfortable as hell. The assistant even went so far as to say she felt demeaned by being made to talk into a banana. It was uncomfortable watching that bit because it wasn't funny to begin with and then he forced it on everyone and it became less so. It smacked of "look at the power I wield I'm still "tha man" even though I'm no longer employed."

Maybe people wouldn't react positively to the situation he's in, but then, we also wouldn't try to convince people that it's funny either and try to make a buck off of it.

Let's not forget his voice also took a major beating.

As for the musician bit, he doesn't fancy himself a musician. He knows he's an amateur and simply takes advantage of the platform he's on to have some personal fun (i.e. play) from time to time. What he's charging for is the comedy ; not the music.

I never got that far. . .

When the cameras are rolling, it's funny time, if you're a comedian. No need for background, or context. Be funny. That's it. His context was well established in the first 5 minutes. I'm pissed at how I was treated. I can't put anything on TV for x months. I'm doing this show instead.

Someone else did that too. HE, however, killed it. Dave Shappelle.

I have a well developed funny bone. He didn't tickle it in the 30 minutes I endured ( tried to let him entertain me ).

Blanket statements about "you ( folks ) just don't get his humor" kinda grate a bit. There is a reason he never even sniffed prime time TV. It has everything to do with the majority of the watching audience not finding him funny. If they did, he'd have been in the best time slot available and he would have been a cash cow.

[Strat-Mangler]

Sorry, but I don't buy it.

No matter how open-minded anybody can be, in the end, humor is entirely subjective. I don't mind/care that you don't find him funny, but find it very strange that you forced yourself to watch something of his if you weren't already a fan.

There are a lot of comedians and bands that people LOVE that I just can't stand. there's no way in hell that I'd subject myself to watching a documentary on any of these people if I already knew I didn't enjoy their brand of work.

He is funny to loads of people. You're not one of them and that's fine. It's not "his fault" that you didn't think some of his shtick wasn't funny. That's ridiculous to an insane level.

And yes, loads of situations need some context. Don Rickles without context can sound malicious. Louis CK without context can sound bitter and mean-spirited. Are they in real-life? No. Hence why their jokes are funny ; because the audience understands that they're not being serious.

Dave Chappele's show was overblown and I hated most of it, but his Inside The Actor's Studio spot was a revelation and I urge anybody who hasn't seen it to watch it.

Being at the top doesn't have anything to do with talent, but rather circumstances and/or access. Otherwise, the most talented musicians would outsell all the boy bands, overproduced autotune crap that's spewing out of every radio station. If you don't "get" that, there's not much to talk about.

Somebody limiting their view of the world by judging how wide the audience is to determine how good somebody really is at their work isn't somebody I believe I can have a conversation with in regards to something so subjective as what is considered funny.

My 2 cents.

[macaroni tony]

Originally Posted by Strat-Mangler

Dave Chappele's show was overblown and I hated most of it, but his Inside The Actor's Studio spot was a revelation and I urge anybody who hasn't seen it to watch it.

That's it. If you're ever in SoCal, we're fightin. Be prepared young man

[XtheDeadPawn]

Tell me when you get your own Tonight show and tell me when you get it taken away from you AND tell me when you start your own sold out in advance comedy tour.

Those who do do those who can't hate on the people living their dreams.

[RS]

Originally Posted by MatticusMania

Is English not your first language? I can hardly make sense of this...

Beer is a hell of a drug.

Still, I'll contend my drunken rant was more cogent than 90% of what is routinely posted on TB OT.

[vbsurfer3001]

I'm with Coco