![[dr. bob]](/dr-bob-sm.gif)
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 16 of 16. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by pseudoname on October 11, 2006, at 23:13:01
Did anybody just see David Letterman tonight (Wed)? He had an audience bit where he stands in the aisle and asks dumb current event questions with dumb jokes attached. He picked this really shy-seeming guy who was obviously very uncomfortable on TV, and when Dave said, "Are you ready to play the quiz?" the guy said, "I think I'll pass" and sat down. Not snotty, just very uneasy, like a deer in the headlights. Letterman handed him a gift certificate prize anyway but started ripping into him, making the situation much worse. The poor guy was just trying to mind his own business, but the camera kept zooming in on him in his seat with Letterman snarling zingers at him, and he looked like he was about to burst into tears. In the middle of quizzing the next contestant, Dave turned around and spat at him, "You're disgusting!"
WTH?! This multimultimulti millionaire media god has NO business ruining some ordinary bloke's day like that! WHAT A JERK! Carson would not have done that.
Posted by Declan on October 12, 2006, at 3:37:04
In reply to Letterman bothered me, posted by pseudoname on October 11, 2006, at 23:13:01
Hi there
You see this more and more, don't you think? The shamelessness and humiliation, the vulgar categories of winners and losers, the privatisation of anything that moves, the assault on the common good, the obscene salaries of CEOs who justify it by sacking the lowest paid, the assault on the vulnerable......it's all connected. For times like these disgust is a rational response.
Declan
Posted by Phillipa on October 12, 2006, at 11:13:06
In reply to Letterman bothered me, posted by pseudoname on October 11, 2006, at 23:13:01
No I don't watch him. I can't believe he did that. You're right Carson would have just gone on to someone else. The poor man how embarassed he must have been. Love Phillipa
Posted by jlynne on October 12, 2006, at 11:47:12
In reply to Letterman bothered me, posted by pseudoname on October 11, 2006, at 23:13:01
The guy was an actor, sweetie:) (I was watching, too) Dave has been using actors in the audience lately . . . something new he started recently.
. . . jlynne
Posted by pseudoname on October 12, 2006, at 16:00:49
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me » pseudoname, posted by jlynne on October 12, 2006, at 11:47:12
Hi, jlynne
> The guy was an actor, sweetie:)
I guess we'll have to disagree about that. I'll tell you why I'm sticking to my story: (1) Dave gave all 3 participants restaurant gift certificates; why would he do that with actors? (2) there wasn't much point to it as a skit; (3) that was no act on the part of the humiliated guy, alas. (4) The other participants gave no sign of being actors nor did I see anything in their exchanges they would need to be actors for; they read their answers off Dave's cards. (5) The page had to come running from off to the left down the aisle apparently before she was ready to give Dave the remaining gift certificates when the guy sat down unexpectedly. (6) There was (to me) nothing witty or prepared about Letterman's response, which at first seemed genuinely surprised then turned just mean.
Letterman does use staff & actors occasionally, you're quite right, but not as far as I can see for the "real" audience bits with prizes and predictable lines and answers written on the cards he's holding.
I wish the guy had been an actor, though. He'd be brilliant. Thanks anyway. (Sweetie) ;-)
Posted by 10derHeart on October 12, 2006, at 16:23:11
In reply to Letterman bothered me, posted by pseudoname on October 11, 2006, at 23:13:01
well, I didn't see it, don't care to watch him too much either, so I'm unable to share any opinion as to actor vs. actual audience member....but
who cares!? (and pn, before you think I've been drinking from the rude and uncivil well...;-))
meaning...in *either* case, if it was real, that's just sad and outrageous, and if it was staged....why is that entertaining?
why stage a bit about embarrassment and humiliation of a person?
not funny, not entertaining, not necessary
ps - PN - great to see all your posts, missed you, I haven't been around so much or consistently myself...
Posted by pseudoname on October 12, 2006, at 16:51:44
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me » pseudoname, posted by 10derHeart on October 12, 2006, at 16:23:11
> meaning...in *either* case, if it was real, that's just sad and outrageous, and if it was staged....why is that entertaining?
Well, that's quite true, TH.
> ps - PN - great to see all your posts, missed you, I haven't been around so much or consistently myself...
Thanks! I've noticed you're not posting much, but I love it when you do.
Posted by Declan on October 12, 2006, at 18:42:15
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me » pseudoname, posted by 10derHeart on October 12, 2006, at 16:23:11
I didn't see the Letterman show but I've watched enough Ricki Lake and the one who's worse with my kids. What is it with this society that the main new form of entertainment, reality TV and so on, is about humiliation. That this standard of stuff should coexist with cultural arrogance beggars belief.
It implies (it doesn't need to imply) invincible ignorance.
Posted by Jost on October 12, 2006, at 21:59:07
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me, posted by Declan on October 12, 2006, at 18:42:15
That bit, or whatever it was, even if staged, doesn't sound the least funny. I don't watch Letterman, but he's always had that cynical side. It bothers me. Just not necessary.
I'd be surprised if anything on these shows isn't pretty scripted, or prepared for in some form. Even when it seems as if it's not. Aren' they pretaped, too? So they must have liked it, I'd think.
Jost
Posted by pseudoname on October 13, 2006, at 10:57:08
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me, posted by Jost on October 12, 2006, at 21:59:07
Hi, Jost.
> I'd be surprised if anything on these shows isn't pretty scripted, or prepared for in some form.
Yeah, as JLynne says, they even do use actors in the audience at times. That ‘Tonight Show’ memoir I just posted about in Books talked about how prepared & pre-screened even the seemingly spontaneous bits of these shows are. When Johnny Carson played "Stump the Band" with audience members, for instance, staffers had interviewed the people waiting in line to get into the show to find ones who had obscure songs in their memories, gave them aisle seats, and then Johnny was given cards describing who to pick & what to ask them about. (Although in those days, the author insists, the band really was kept in the dark beforehand.)
That might be why Dave was upset at the guy for backing out of doing the bit. He had probably been screened by staffers before the show and more-or-less agreed to do it. But Letterman couldn't say, "But you agreed beforehand…!" because that would give away the illusion of spontaneity, so Dave ended up just appearing inexplicably nasty.
And you're right, it was very scripted. Even if (as I insist) they were real audience members, they read their answers to Dave's current events questions off the 5x8 cards Dave had in his hands. That might be another reason Dave resented being thrown off by the guy: there was no risk of a wrong answer; all he had more to do was 2 seconds of reading.
> Aren't they pretaped, too? So they must have liked it, I'd think.
I was disappointed at how much the studio audience seemed to like Dave's nasty reaction, too. They laughed a lot. :(
> I don't watch Letterman, but he's always had that cynical side. It bothers me. Just not necessary.
Ever see Colin Ferguson? He's warm & human and seems to like everybody. Even when he's cracking jokes about celebrities, he's often self-deprecating. ("That guy is giving us alcoholics a bad name!") I said in books I'd like to have Ferguson for a therapist. :-)
Posted by pseudoname on October 13, 2006, at 12:11:17
In reply to Colin Ferguson, anyone? » Jost, posted by pseudoname on October 13, 2006, at 10:57:08
Posted by Jost on October 13, 2006, at 22:55:14
In reply to eek! I mean CRAIG Freguson… (nm), posted by pseudoname on October 13, 2006, at 12:11:17
I haven't. But, if I'm up (which I am, although I shouldn't be), I'll look for him!
thanks, Jost
Posted by 10derHeart on October 14, 2006, at 14:43:57
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me » 10derHeart, posted by pseudoname on October 12, 2006, at 16:51:44
>>but I love it when you do.
you do!?[10der trying to find the 'off' switch for the "Automatically-Discount-All-Positive-Comments-0-Meter"...
there...think I may have found it...][deep breath]
wow, PN, thank you. You just made my day/weekend/week!!! :-)
Posted by 10derHeart on October 14, 2006, at 14:46:52
In reply to eek! I mean CRAIG Freguson… (nm), posted by pseudoname on October 13, 2006, at 12:11:17
I *adore* Craig Ferguson!!Seems so warm and real.
Could listen to that accent all night, too...
Posted by pseudoname on October 14, 2006, at 15:04:50
In reply to Re: Letterman bothered me » pseudoname, posted by 10derHeart on October 14, 2006, at 14:43:57
> >>but I love it when you do.
> you do!?Oh, yeah. It's from the time we spent together in Toronto, even though it wasn't very many hours total, I really liked connecting with you. IMHO, FWIW, you're cool.
> [10der trying to find the 'off' switch for the "Automatically-Discount-All-Positive-Comments-0-Meter"...
> there...think I may have found it...]Arr, arr, arr. It's right under the hypothalamus; not easily accessible. ;-)
Posted by 10derHeart on October 14, 2006, at 22:53:01
In reply to trying to find the 'off' switch… » 10derHeart, posted by pseudoname on October 14, 2006, at 15:04:50
This is the end of the thread.
Psycho-Babble Social | Extras | FAQ
Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.org
Script revised: February 4, 2008
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/cgi-bin/pb/mget.pl
Copyright 2006-17 Robert Hsiung.
Owned and operated by Dr. Bob LLC and not the University of Chicago.