Posted by
Sean on Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:36:29 PM
I count myself among the shrinking number people who actually still watch David Letterman. Having missed last night's show, I was glad to see the replay of a brief segment on O'Reilley and H & C, in which former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw set the record straight on a few things.
On the terrible state of the nation, Letterman contended “everything...has gone so lousy in the last eight years” so “things are horrible in ways they shouldn't be horrible.” Brokaw pointed to his book about 1968, and delivered a friendly lecture:
Let me remind you that forty years ago this year, Doctor King was killed, Bobby Kennedy was killed, we had the Chicago riots, 16,000 people were killed in Vietnam, Lyndon Johnson decided not to run for re-election, the Kerner Commission said we are two societies -- one white, one black, separate and unequal -- we had urban riots and in the fall we had as cantankerous and as contentious and in many way as mentally violent an election as we've ever had...
Similarly assuming the present is the worst ever, Letterman complained: “People are all talking about, 'okay we're going to change the emissions by 2035, by 2020.' That's too late. I mean, it's a hundred degrees now!” Letterman pleaded: “It's got to come from the government. They have to lead us.” Brokaw agreed, but then made the host uncomfortable:
BROKAW: The government has to lead and those of us who drive -- uhh uhh -- big carbon-emitting vehicles or fly in airplanes that have only two passengers on them-
LETTERMAN: Alright, alright, that's fine Tom.
If you watch Letterman regularly, it is apparent that he suffers badly from Bush Derangement Syndrome. Also obvious is the completely dishonest and transparent pass he gives Obama. I watch a little bit of Letterman nearly every night, and I have yet to see anything ridiculing Obama. McCain and his age? Hillary and her pantsuits? All fair game. But Obama alluding to not just 50 -- but 57 states? Not a peep. In fact, there is an ever-growing list of material Letterman's writers could use to make jokes about Obama -- John Fund documents a few in WSJ -- but so far, the Letterman staff refuse. Does Letterman do this because he is in the tank for Obama? That would make him disingenuous to his trade as a comic, and not very funny. Does he do it because Obama is African American? That means the host is racist -- and really, really not funny. So what's the deal?
Good for Tom Brokaw standing up to this overpaid, over-the-hill has-been. Letterman is a crybaby millionaire who felt he was simply entitled to host "The Tonight Show." When NBC wisely chose the more deserving, hard-working, appreciative, and likable Jay Leno -- Letterman threw a tantrum, played the victim, and sought justice at CBS. Unfortunately for Letterman, Leno proved his superiority, as his dedication and tenacity lead to consistently dominant ratings. Letterman's bitterness about all of it often seems just under the surface. Though occasionally still funny, today's Letterman is mostly just a pseudo-intellectual tool for the left, Dick Cavett wannabe loser. His self-deprication is forced and contrived. More obvious is his belief that America somehow owes him better ratings, that he's the real heir to the late-night throne, and that his show is relevant. Dave is as phoney as the applause-on-cue TV phoniness he built a career mocking. Once cutting-edge, Letterman is now a tired act.