• Blue Notes

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Laugh ... or else

posted by Rick Blue at 13h22

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Craig Ferguson

Craig Ferguson is a funny guy. If you are a night owl, you might already know this. The Scottish comedian has become the very popular new host of the CBS TV's Late Late Show.

I remember him when he first came to Just for Laughs many years ago as “Bing Hitler.” He had chosen that name because it was a combination of the two most famous names he could think of.  He was funny then, too. But I am sure he made the right choice going back to his real name before taking a run at American television.

Last week, I took my 90-year-old mother to see them videotape his show at CBS studios in Los Angeles. She is a fan. And it was a welcome comic relief from the relentless politics on the radio and TV that seems to be the only other entertainment for people her age.

The staff at the show were very nice to her and treated her with respect. But it was strange to see how they treated the other 115 members of the audience. 

They were surrounded by security personnel and practically frog marched in and out of a series of waiting areas. After being screened and wanded, they were made to stand on lines painted on the floor. They were pumped up by two warm-up comedians who instructed them in no uncertain terms how they should react to what they were about to see.  And they were told that they had to laugh, and laugh hard and loud. And whoop and clap.

Now call me an old-fashioned guy, but I thought people were only supposed to laugh naturally because something was funny.  As a performer, I have to face a cold crowd every time and somehow win them over. That’s my job. I cannot imagine hiring a couple of guys to berate my audience into obedient submission before each performance.

But maybe that's why I'm still in Montreal.

This is Hollywood. And there is much more at stake. But if you ever wondered why American television audiences go nuts whenever anyone says or does almost anything this is why – they have been instructed to behave that way relentlessly for a good two hours before the show.

And more is the pity. Because Craig doesn’t need it. He is funny anyway. He works the camera like no other host. It is very funny to see him do it in the same room. He literally crawls all over it. But I had to thaw myself out after all the pre-show authoritarianism before I could laugh.

Craig is made for TV. I think you will hear much more from him over the coming years. He is truly unique entertainer.

And a gentleman. He came over to my mother sitting on the side of the stage in her wheelchair not once but twice. It made her day.

When visiting LA I recommend you try to take in a television taping. After all, that's what culture is down here.