Tina Fey on The Huffington Post

The 35 Funniest People Of The '00s (PHOTOS)

2009-12-10T07:59:02Z

Whatever we call the past 9 years -- the Naughts, the Aughts, the 2000s -- we can all agree it's been tumultuous at best. The only way we've stayed sane is by watching these people mock it all. Of course, there are some surprises on the list: Folks who made us laugh without trying, but they're no less laughable than those who make a career of comedy.

Frank Rich: Sarah Palin, The Pit Bull In The China Shop

2009-11-22T01:12:15Z

AT last the American right and left have one issue they unequivocally agree on: You don't actually have to read Sarah Palin's book to have an opinion about it.

Tina Fey Does Sarah Palin At Ad Council Dinner (VIDEO)

2009-11-20T17:39:12Z

While hosting the Ad Council Annual Dinner Wednesday night, "30 Rock" creator Tina Fey brought back her famous impersonation of former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

"Mrs. Palin and I continue to have so much in common," she said. "They recently made a porn movie about Sarah and then this same porn actress, Lisa Ann, played me in a parody of '30 Rock' ... And weirdly of the three of us, Lisa Ann knows the most about foreign policy."

"I feel like Sarah Palin right now," she said later, gesturing at her teleprompters. "It's not that hard." She went into her Palin voice, saying, "We'll begin with an issue that's so critical to the future opportunity ..." When the audience laughed, she added, "I'm gonna be doing that 'till I'm dead."

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Wendy Sachs: Sarah Palin: I Missed You

2009-11-20T17:14:10Z

I missed Sarah Palin. I'm glad she's back. Seeing her frosted, teased coif, (albeit less brassy and pouffy than before) makes me nostalgic for the election when we were all exploding with hope and optimism and Tina Fey's hilarious Saturday Night Live sketches.

Newsweek gave us a much needed break this week from the tedium of the health care debate, Swine Flu hysteria and rocketing unemployment figures, with its cover showing a sparkling Sarah sporting shorts and running shoes. Sarah slammed the Newsweek cover as sexist. And I just wondered why she agreed to pose in short shorts, even if it was intended only for Runner's World. But for a woman who has had five kids, her legs did look great.

I think it's both curious and telling that at the same time Twilight mania sweeps the nation, Sarah Palin, voguing her rogue, kicks off her book tour turning out thousands. Is there something deeper going on in our national psyche when our fascination with sexy, blood thirsty, teenage vampires coincides with a thirst for more Sarah - herself an attractive, biting character with her own hunky squeeze and a complicated life story? To the McCain camp, Sarah has shown her fangs this week as she hits the battleground states touting her book and blasting McCain operatives for holding back the true Sarah.

The real Sarah told Oprah this week that when she was vetted, she was much more concerned about the fallout she would receive from having gotten a "D" on a college transcript than with having a pregnant teenage daughter.

But clearly now, Skin-a-Moose Sarah has found her calling and knows her audience. While the naysayers nitpick the facts of her book - a book apparently more revisionist history than historical record - the people sleeping out in Michigan for the chance to shake Sarah's hand probably don't give two hoots about all of the pesky campaign details. They see Sarah as one of them. And that's her charm.

"Michigan and Alaska have a lot in common. We love the outdoors and have lots of snow and hockey moms," Sarah told an enormous crowd waiting outside a book signing on Wednesday.

"She means what she says and says what she means," a woman told NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell as she waited hours to meet Sarah.

Many of us were never quite sure what Sarah said or exactly what she meant because an eloquent communicator she was not. But big chunks of America don't necessarily covet intellectual giants or smooth orators as much as they do God fearing, good ol' regular folk. And to them, Sarah is not just a victim but a survivor.

It is her Only-in-America, Made-for-TV storyline, where Sarah's teenage daughter gets pregnant and the baby daddy poses for Playgirl that makes her, dare we say it, relatable.

Sarah told Oprah and writes in her book, that she believes that she and Todd would have been a breath of fresh air to Washington D.C. because gosh darn it, they are the real Joe Six Packs. While many Republicans may want Sarah to just disappear and others hope that her stratospheric star continues to rise and she strengthens the base, I'm just hoping that Sarah does have coffee with Hillary as Sarah suggested. They can exchange biographies, swap campaign horror stories and chat about the surreal phenomenon that is Twilight.

Ian Gurvitz: The Audacity of Dopes

2009-11-18T14:17:32Z

Once upon a time in America there was at least a tangential relationship between fame and talent. Actors could act. Writers could write. Singers could sing. Of course, there were always freaky novelty acts, but they were in the sideshow, not the main arena. But now we live in the world of "reality stars" -- individuals with little discernible talent beyond a hunger for self-promotion so insatiable that they allow cameras into their private lives to document their personal failings, which then gets fobbed off as entertainment to a voyeuristic public. Infamy has become the new fame. Reality shows the venue for aspiring media monsters to strut the stuff they imagine they've got. A place for Gosselins and Kardashians to wallow in their 15 minutes and, once there, claim it as a right of entitlement.

But now, out of the west, or northwest to be precise, has come a relatively new phenomenon: the reality politician - Sarah Palin. A novelty act governor who was plucked from obscurity and placed on the national stage. A campaign gimmick. A Hail Mary pass by a veteran politician so desperate to win he would try to fob off a grinning dumb belle as a Vice Presidential candidate. Someone who proved not just in those few short months, but since, that she would never let her ignorance get in the way of her ambition.

Thankfully, it didn't work. But now ... she's back ... with, well, it's words on paper between two covers so I guess technically one has to describe it as a book. One that it seems should have been titled Profiles in Carnage because apparently her failure to catapult McCain to the White House was everyone else's fault. Steve Schmidt. Nicole Wallace. Tina Fey. The SNL writers. Charlie Gibson. The liberal media. The AP. Apparently, all these people conspired to make her look stupid. It had nothing to do with her justification for her foreign policy experience being that Russian jets flew over her state. A response so inane that if a junior high school student on the debate team offered it up, she'd be laughed out of the auditorium. And the infamous Katie Couric "What do you read" gotcha question? Even your average idiot on the street trying to appear intelligent could've name-dropped the New York Times and Wall Street Journal and no one would have been the wiser. These weren't "gotcha" questions. These were softballs to anyone running for national office. And her answers were not up to par. But she thought they were. And that is frightening.

Ultimately, no one did more damage to Sarah Palin than Sarah Palin. She was handed a national platform on which she could dazzle the country with her brilliance. And she winked, smirked, and crapped all over it. Forget that she's a woman. Forget that she's from a more obscure state. Forget that she's got a voice that sounds like a dolphin with a sinus condition. She could've opened her mouth and demonstrated her intelligence and grasp of issues both domestic and international. And people would have rightfully taken notice and been impressed. And if a question momentarily stumped her, she could have honestly copped to a lack of familiarity with the issue along with the intention to look into it, and people would have forgiven her lack of knowledge and possibly even appreciated some refreshing candor from a politician. Instead, we got cutesy evasions. "I'll check into it and get back to ya." "Hockey mom" jokes, "bridge to nowhere" lies, and "pallin' around with terrorists" inflammatory accusations. "Pallin' around?" This is the appropriate level of discourse for a presidential election?

And what have we been treated to since, when given a chance to comment on policy? Health care? "Death panels!" Economic crisis? "Socialism!" She can commission a dozen ghost-written books and it will never change the simple fact that she is not capable of participating in a substantive discussion on vital issues because that requires having knowledge, thoughts, and ideas. Not just talking points, surface slogans, jingoistic nonsense, and fake, folksy cracker barrel chatter. She's the anti-Susan Boyle. She's physically appealing. But she can't fucking sing.

And, yet, despite her ridiculous campaign performance and subsequent lack of ability to stand up and take responsibility for her own shortcomings, once again we have to endure the interviews, and the endless news reports about the interviews, during her battleground state book tour, along with the Republican cheerleader chant of "underestimate her at your peril." Yes, we know, Mr. Gingrich -- everyone thought Reagan was an idiot, too. But just because she's shrewd doesn't mean she's smart. You can't teach intelligence. And the talking points of the week will eventually sound hollow when there's no legitimate thought behind them. If there were a God who was paying special attention to Sarah ... there isn't ... but if there were, His message to her would be to finish her smirkathon, sell some books, and then take that shit back to Alaska. Bad news for the moose. Good news for the rest of us.

And I would be relieved. Not that Mittens and Huck don't cause me to wake up with 3 a.m. flop sweat, but this woman scares me. She is, as Carl Bernstein so accurately described her, "an ignorant demagogue." But when so many people are out of work, they get desperate. And desperation is the demagogue's fertilizer. So, as much as I miss laughing at Tina Fey's deadly accurate lampooning of her --a performance as satirically brilliant as Dan Aykroyd's Nixon -- I would happily forgo seeing it again to keep Palin off the national and world stage. We have serious problems that need to be solved by serious people. Not politics answer to Kate Gosselin.

Tina Fey-Sarah Palin 2009? Will The "30 Rock" Star Reprise Her "SNL" Role After Palin Chats With Oprah?

2009-11-16T16:35:58Z

You betcha! Sarah Palin is back in the spotlight with the release of her new book "Going Rogue" and her appearance on "Oprah" today, but we here on the comedy page are most curious about whether or not this resurgence will warrant an appearance from the already-overworked Tina Fey on this week's "Saturday Night Live."

On "Oprah" today Palin referred to Katie Couric as "the perky one," called Levi Johnston "Ricky Hollywood," and talked 2012. She also addressed her meeting with Tina Fey on the set of "SNL" saying the pair standing next to each other confused Fey's baby:

"So yes, I meet Tina Fey, and she was funny. She said, 'Oh don't worry, they'll put makeup on me. I'll look different in a couple of hours.' She's holding her baby, Alice, and Alice is looking back and forth between the two of us, and I'm saying, 'We're confusing your child.'"

But is this enough to bring Fey out of "SNL" retirement? In addition to raising Alice and writing her own show, she stars in "30 Rock," is doing press for her upcoming film "Date Night," and is working on other film projects.

We can only hope she bites the bullet, but in the mean-time enjoy her last turn as Palin in the 2008-2009 season.

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Sarah Palin "Going Rogue": The Wit & Wisdom (Or Lack Thereof)

2009-11-14T11:29:27Z

Sarah Palin's soon-to-be-released Going Rogue, obtained by Huffington Post on Friday, consists mainly of her life story, her political philosophy, her attacks on the McCain campaign and her love-hate relationship with the media.

But within its pages are plenty of her home-spun expressions and evidence of her unique sense of humor (or lack of it in some cases).

Palinisms:

If any vegans came over for dinner, I could whip them up a salad, then explain my philosophy on being a carnivore: If God had not intended for us to eat animals, how come He made them out of meat?

I love meat. I eat pork chops, thick bacon burgers, and the seared fatty edges of a medium-well-done steak. But I especially love moose and caribou. I always remind people from outside our state that there's plenty of room for all Alaska's animals -- right next to the mashed potatoes.

Government was growing as fast as fireweed in July...

In Alaska, we joke that we have two seasons: construction and winter.

I don't like to hear people complain: I am the first to say, 'Buck up or stay in the truck.'

Upon her resignation, Palin's dad quipped: "Sarah's not retreating; she's reloading!"

Sarah's Schtick:

A group of left-wing bloggers had been yakking about porn pictures and videos of me that they threatened would soon be released to the public.

"And those sexy videos were supposedly shot between which pregnancies?" I asked.

That day in sunny Texas when the divorce rumors were rampant in the tabloids, I watched Todd, tanned and shirtless, take the baby from my arms and walk him back to the ranch house so Trig could nap while I made calls. Seeing Todd's blue eyes smiling, I chuckled.

Dang, I thought. Divorce Todd? Have you seen Todd?

Palin goes into detail about her appearance on "Saturday Night Live" including how her own skit suggestions were rejected, her kind words for Tina Fey, why she refused to shake hands with Oliver Stone and the rap that her daughter loves to repeat to this day.

And she describes how her moment with Fey almost didn't happen -- "Word came back that Lorne [Michaels] was leery of letting Tina and me share the same stage because Tina's liberal politics might cause her to ad-lib something snarky that would stick like a burr...."

"I looked at the script. It wasn't all that funny. SNL writers had taken the campaign's 'Drill, baby drill" mantra and turned it into a risque double entendre about Todd and me. I thought, Nah. C'mon, New York talent, we can do better than that...

The campaign's Fey fears turned out to be overblown. Instead, when I met her, she was friendly and gracious. Fresh-faced, very petite and wearing jeans, Tina was standing near the wings holding her adorable little girl, Alice, who was about three.

'Don't worry!" Tina said when I walked up. "They'll put makeup on me!"

Then I noticed Alice turning her head back and forth, first to Tina, then to me, then to Tina again.

I smiled: "We're confusing your daughter."...

She told me that her husband's parents were GOP loyalists. I enjoyed meeting them later when they came backstage at a rally....

She also refused to shake the hand of Oliver Stone, who made a cameo on that show, due to his support for Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez.

Palin's ideas for a skit with Alec Baldwin were turned down several times. Her suggestions were: "Hey, Baldwin, weren't you supposed to leave the country after the last election?" 'Hey Alec, I saw Stephen at a fund-raiser last week and asked him when he was going to knock some sense into you.

Yet her daughter Piper liked the "Weekend Update" skit with Amy Poehler's rap:

To this day, I still hear Piper rapping around the house: You say Obama, I say Ayers! Obama... Ayers! Obama... Ayers!

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Catie Lazarus: Top 10 Reasons This Woman Can't Write for Late Night Comedy Shows

2009-11-12T20:07:00Z

In the New York Times, Bill Carter writes ,"very few women make it inside the writing rooms for late-night television hosts, despite that women make up a larger proportion of their audience than men. There are no female writers on the new “The Jay Leno Show,” none on “Late Show with David Letterman,” none on “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien.”"

Based on his article and Nell Scovell's personal account in Vanity Fair, I have come to understand why the odds are stacked against my wedging my paw in the door. I still have hope (also known as delusion).

The Top 10 Reasons This Woman Can't Write for Late Night Comedy Variety Shows

10) I will be overcome by desire for my male comedy writing peers
and superiors, who are known for their off-white, pasty skin and muscle tonus
minimus, akin to albino, soft shell turtles.

9) My lady sensibility is limited to menstruation
(hilarious), babies (adorable), and unicorns mating
(adorably hilarious).

8) Due to my genetic make-up, I am physically incapable to
handle the job, considering the heavy manual labor required in touch typing.

7) The number one rule of comedy is fitting in and I sometimes buck the uniform of orthopedic New Balance sneakers,
hoodies, jeans, and t-shirts, with ironic catchphrases like, "Pro-Cashmere. Pro-Cotton.
Pro-Choice."

6) The only requests I get as
a female comedy writer are to discuss sexism in comedy, instead of political satire about how Sarah Palin is so sick she
gives swine flu or scripts like Crones:
The Musical! or commercials, maybe, Femedy: A bubble gum
birth control for tweens who don't want to ovulate. Period.

5) Late-night comedy requires a male point-of-view, and girls,
even ones closer to menopause than teething, can only express themselves in
glittery pink (which, fyi, typing in does
not fund cancer research).

4) As a lady, I automatically cost less, and in a business where money talks, how will I be taken seriously? I mean funnily.

3) I didn't graduate from Harvard so I lack the cultural capital to craft the erudite, intellectual fodder
typical of late-night comedies, like the masturbating bear or gift
wrapped genitalia.

2) Hollywood would have to make major changes to catch up with
medicine, law, even engineering, in its hiring practices, and we all know how open television is to change. It only took 30 years (and millions of dollars) before CNN let Native
American Lou Dobbs quit. (I mean, leave to spend time with his family.)

1) I'd have to be funny and learn
how to play Dungeons and Dragons.

A-List Celebs Line Up For Concert For Autism

2009-11-12T12:15:56Z

What do Jerry Seinfeld, Bruce Springsteen and Donald Trump have in common? They, along with a bunch of other A-List celebrities are making appearances at the Autism Speaks Concert For Autism on November 17 at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

This year's star-studded event will feature comedian Jerry Seinfeld, with a special appearance by "The Boss", Bruce Springsteen. The evening will be hosted by NBC's Meet the Press moderator, David Gregory, on November 17, at world famous landmark Carnegie Hall. Your participation in this global cause will benefit the families and individuals who live with autism every day by supporting research, awareness and family services initiatives.

We love celebrities supporting a good cause and this one has no dearth of them: Jamie Foxx, Ellen DeGeneres, Tina Fey, Conan O'Brien, Seth Rogen, Martha Stewart, Katie Couric, Meredith Vieira, Glenn Close, Celine Dion, Will Ferrell, Edie Falco, Troy Aikman, and Harry Smith are a few of the many committee members supporting the event.

Larry King even twittered about the event earlier today.

Read more about the event at Autismspeaks.org or see if you can snag a few last minute tickets by e-mailing ConcertforAutism@AutismSpeaks.org. The site has some great information about autism and how it affects children and families.

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Glynnis MacNicol: Top Ten Outrageous Sarah Palin Stories Oprah Will Have To Address

2009-10-21T13:12:10Z

As reported yesterday, Sarah Palin will make her Oprah debut on November 16, one day before her already best-selling book Going Rogue is released to the public. We, also noted yesterday that the lack of Oprah's presence during the 2008 political season (she removed herself after publicly declaring support for Barack Obama) was particularly felt after Sarah Palin entered the race and it became clear she was perhaps not equipped for the role of vice president. That said, it's clear that Palin is hoping to relaunch her political career with the release of her memoir this November so no time like the present!

Palin has done only a handful of interviews since she and McCain lost the election last November, most recently appearing on the Today show in June with Matt Lauer to respond to David Letterman's late night joke about her daughter. But it's been a while since she's been on the hot seat (read: Katie Couric) and there's certainly plenty to talk about! In an effort to help Oprah prepare for her interview we've compiled a top ten list of of outrageous questions about Sarah Palin that will need to be addressed.

Baby Daddy Levi In The Centerfold

1. Oh Levi. In the last few months, while Sarah Palin was locked away furiously writing her memoir, Levi Johnston, father to Palin's grandson Trip, has been enjoying most of the Palin spotlight. Johnston has taken his 15 minutes of fame as an opportunity to bare all: first in a long piece in October's Vanity Fair and now, in the more literal sense of bare, as an upcoming Playgirl centerfold (maybe).

Who's Your Mommy: Palin and the Trig Birthers

2. Calling Andrew Sullivan and the Sarah Palin birthers! Ever since Palin stepped into the national spotlight in August 2008 there has been persistent speculation as to whether she is truly the mother of her youngest son Trig or whether the baby actually belongs her daughter Bristol and Palin's merely claimed to be his parent as some sort of cover-up. Levi hit on the sensitive subject again in his first-person VF piece. It remains to be seen if Palin mentions it in her memoir, but if she's considering another run for public office it's absolutely fair game for Oprah. Below, a typical birther vid.

>>>NEXT: The Couric Interviews, Hungry Like An Aerial Wolf, 'And Her Tina Fey Glasses!

Tina Fey, 24-Year-Old Virgin: I 'Couldn't Give It Away'

2009-10-15T18:50:49Z

Tina Fey may be one of the most popular girls around these days, but as she reminisced to David Letterman Wednesday, she was a virgin until she met her husband when she was 24.

As Dave read a list of people who stayed virgins from a tabloid, like Brooke Shields (22) and Adriana Lima (27), Fey's name came up as having been 24.

"[I] Couldn't give it away," Fey sighed. "That's just good, Christian values, or, being homely."

She also talked about wearing fake hair for her Bazaar cover shoot.

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Beverly Wettenstein: No Women Featured in NY Comedy Festival! No Joke!

2009-10-11T13:38:57Z

We're With The Banned: Cracking The Crass Ceiling

The New York Comedy Festival ad features ten men and no women.

Broadly speaking, comedy is, obviously, still a male-dominated bastion within the entertainment business. The Primetime Emmy Awards showed that women writers on a comedy or variety series are a rare and endangered species. Only seven of the 81 writers were women. There are no women writers on Leno (of 19), Letterman (of 14), and O'Brien (of 16). Colbert has two women of 14 writers. The Daily Show has one of 16. Samantha Bee is a busy worker bee and a "correspondent." "Saturday Night Live" has five women of 22 writers.

LOL: Larry Summers School for the Advancement of Women

Historically, some men have difficulty accepting women comedians. The Larry Summers School for the Advancement of Women should hire Tom Shales, Christopher Hitchens and Jerry Lewis, to teach "Why Women Aren't Funny." The three wise men opined as much in the Washington Post, Vanity Fair and at the Aspen Comedy Festival, respectively.

Shales, Washington Post TV critic, wrote that ex-SNL "Michaela Watkins may have been just too classically pretty to be hilarious." Lewis told the Aspen audience in 2000, "I don't like any female comedians" and couldn't think of one who was good. He only viewed women as baby-making machines.

SNL announced two new women for the 35th season to much press attention: Jenny Slate and Nasim Pedrad. Just hours later it was reported that Casey Wilson and Michaela Watkins were gone. Does SNL have a female quota? Is their comedy calculus: addition = attrition? The two new women are "featured performers," rather than full repertory players.

Kristin Wiig was SNL's MVP Iron Man last season, earning the most screen time of any cast member, with 124 sketch appearances. She is currently the only official woman cast member.
Plus, she has seven feature films in development. And she is beautiful. Please explain, Mr. Shales.

Having joined as a staff writer in 1997, Tina Fey's term as SNL's first woman head writer (1999-2006), coincided with the most women cast members in regular performing roles in its history: Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph and Rachel Dratch. Much to her credit, Fey teamed with Poehler, to create the groundbreaking "Weekend Update" all-women anchor team in 2004. The dynamic duo proved they were not "Mean Girls" and sparked no cat-fight messages in the media. When Fey started on "Update," there hadn't been a woman anchor since Jane Curtin in the late 1970s and she was not afraid to promote her BFF Poehler. In fact, the two newest women are troupers from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, co-founded by Poehler.

Kudos to Fey and Poehler for empowering women, following decades of male-dominated sketch comedy. Fey and Poehler know that women succeed when they are responsible for their own material. They play comedic roles, perform standup and write and direct films and TV shows. Fey's "30 Rock" was nominated for a record 22 Emmy awards. She was named the AP Entertainer of the Year in 2008 for the greatest impact on culture and entertainment. Poehler is the lead star on "Parks & Recreation."

Timing is everything in comedy and in life. SNL mirrors the advances of women in society. In 2002 Ana Gasteyer was their first on-air pregnancy. The TV management "suits" have matured since the 1950's when the word "pregnant" was forbidden and Lucille Ball was asked to hide behind furniture, which she refused to do. The fact that nine-months pregnant Poehler posed as Hillary Clinton was a non-issue. Her absence and baby's birth were announced on "Update."

Now that SNL has accepted the pregnant pause, perhaps they may consider hiring a Black woman to play Michelle Obama and other women newsmakers and celebrities? Do they think it adds to the levity to dress men in drag or is there a women shortage? I don't communicate with Eleanor Roosevelt very often. But I do think of her and her personal equal opportunity employment act when I see a man playing a woman on SNL. Upon learning that women reporters were not admitted to the National Press Club where newsmakers spoke, Roosevelt held regular news conferences exclusively for women reporters and photographers, thus creating jobs for women. You go, girl!

Actually, in the first season in 1975, the original SNL cast was equal with three women (Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman and Gilda Radner) and three men (John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd and Garrett Morris) and Chevy Chase was promoted to "Update" anchor from writer. By 1993, the ratio was three women to eight men. Janeane Garafalo quit halfway through the '94-'95 season because of the male writers who "didn't write for women."

Chicago's Second City improv-sketch troupe, an SNL talent feeder incubator, only allowed two women on a six-person improv team into the '90s. Fey and Poehler are alumnae.

This is Wanda Sykes' banner year. Her HBO special just aired and "The Wanda Sykes Show" will debut in November, at 11 PM, against SNL. Sykes was the featured entertainer this year at the White House Correspondents Association dinner. This annual event honoring the president is a prestigious gig with the nation's dignitaries.

Traditionally, even though women were fully-accredited White House reporters and members of the association, they were barred from attending the dinner. Prompted by Helen Thomas, for the first time in 50 years, women were finally admitted in 1962 when President John F. Kennedy agreed not to attend unless the women did. Thomas was inducted as the first woman WHCA president in 1975.

The old boys club network is alive and, well, begrudgingly coming into the 21st century at The Friars, the premiere club for professional comedians and entertainers. Founded in 1904, Liza Minnelli was admitted as the first official woman member in 1988. This followed the Supreme Court upholding a New York City statute that barred discrimination at large private clubs. Previously, women couldn't join or enter the Townhouse before 4 PM to attend the notorious stag roasts.

Sally Jessy Raphael was the first officer (Prior) in 1999. Previously, women were honored but could not join. Sophie Tucker was the first woman roasted, in 1953; followed by Martha Raye, 1954 and Lucille Ball, 1961.

Joy Behar was the first woman Roastmaster, at a tribute for Danny Aiello in 1997. Rita Rudner was the first woman performer at a Roast for Chevy Chase in 1980. Phyllis Diller, dressed as a man in a suit, wig and mustache, attended the 1983 Sid Caesar Roast, because women were not allowed. She was outed at the end of the event and honored at her own roast in 1985. Diller was the first woman inducted into the California Friars Wall of Fame in 2001. Last year, at the behest of Behar, the Friars named one of its chambers for a woman, Lucille Ball. Currently, women comprise 20 percent of the Friars membership.

Women need to showcase their talent to survive and succeed in the comedy business. Barbara Walters first saw Joy Behar at a benefit for Milton Berle's 89th birthday at the Waldorf Astoria. Walters then invited her to audition for The View. Behar just debuted her nightly talk show on HLN. Her co-hosts on The View include comediennes Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd, who stars in her own show on Lifetime. Goldberg was the first woman and fourth honoree to win the Kennedy Center's Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2001; Lily Tomlin won in 2003.

More Than Chick Shtick: "Seinfeld" Without Elaine? Get Out!

Imagine Seinfeld without Elaine. Get out! Actually, Elaine was not in the first show but executives insisted they add a woman to the cast by the second episode. Would an all-male cast have become the same audience success story without her? Not!

Liz Lemon told Oprah on 30 Rock that she hates her feet. Nora Ephron told the world that she hates her neck. It took Elle Woods' life experience in Legally Blonde to solve the murder case. Her Harvard Law colleagues didn't have a clue about women's hair treatments. Chris Rock parlayed that message into a feature film. Maybe the sexes can learn to live together and better understand each other through humor and women comedians?

One of the challenges for women comics is that society expects good girls to be well-behaved and to act lady-like. Comedians have to be aggressive and take control of the audience. The boys who were the class clowns and spent more time in the principal's office than the library are now making big bucks for their antics. Not to pooh pooh Winnie-the-Pooh, but the first new authorized female character believes that everyone should follow the correct etiquette. Lottie the Otter will be more like Martha Stewart than Martha Raye.

It's easier for women to get to the moon than to get a network late-night talk show. Conan O'Brien and Craig Ferguson had no experience as late-night talk show hosts when they were given their shows. Ferguson had not performed stand-up for ten years and had a strong Scottish brogue. O'Brien was an unknown SNL comedy writer with little performing experience. Joan Rivers was the first and only permanent host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. When Rivers learned that she wasn't on the list to replace Carson, she accepted the offer to host her own late night talk show to launch the Fox Network in 1986. She was fired six months later.

The talk show format is a cheap alternative to scripted TV and yields self-contained YouTube-friendly takeout promos. As viewers migrate away from appointment network TV, cable should create new opportunities for women. But the old boy network ways persist. The Daily Show was co-created by Lizz Winstead and Madeline Smithberg in 1995. Winstead was also the head writer. Then host Craig Kilborn made an offensive remark about her in Esquire in 1998. He was suspended for a week. She left the show soon after. Chelsea Handler has her own late night talk show on E!

Only two women comedians were listed on the Forbes "100 Celebrity" list: Ellen DeGeneres, Power Rank #40, $35 Million Pay and Tina Fey, #86, $7 Million Pay.

She Who Laughs, Lasts: "50/50 in 2020"

Last month more than 200 women met to hear a panel address and outline a "50/50 in 2020" initiative to advance women in the theater business. Three sponsors are taking the lead: the League of Professional Theatre Women, the New Perspectives Theatre Company and the Women's Project.

In 2007 Oxygen presented the "50 Funniest Women Alive." There are women who are ready, willing and able to perform at comedy festivals. They can turn the world on with their smile... and spunk.

Stand Up For Women In Comedy! Parody and Parity Proposals

1. Action! Organize a meeting during the New York Comedy Festival, November 4-8, to focus on "The State of Women in Comedy Today," to become part of the media coverage and raise public support. Since there is no professional organization for women comedians, create one or develop a Comedy subcommittee of the "50/50 by 2020" project or another industry-related association.

2. Produce a counter "Funny Femme Festival" during the New York Comedy Festival to showcase talented women comedians, become part of the media coverage and raise public support.

3. Distribute this treatise and contact the New York Comedy Festival.

4. Submit your comments and suggestions here.

5. Stay tuned. Watch this space for announcements and progress reports. Thank you.

See Beverly Wettenstein's PBS interview on youtube.com.

See Beverly Wettenstein's Letter in the NY Daily News, Sept. 4, 09
nydailynews.com/opinions/

See Beverly Wettenstein's Letter in the NY Times Science Times, July 21, 09

_________________________________________________________________________

"Celebrate Women Every Day!"

October 13

B. 1901 Edith S. Sampson First Black woman elected judge, in Illinois, 1962.
First Black woman named UN delegate.

1905 English suffragists Christabel Pankhurst and Annie Kenney arrested.
Women over 30 got the vote 12 years later; all women in 1928.

B. 1925 Margaret Thatcher First woman Prime Minister in England and Europe, 1979-1991.

B. 1969 Nancy Kerrigan Olympic silver medalist, 1964; Oksana Baiul, 16, won gold medal.

1986 Rita Levi-Montalcini earned Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Source: Beverly Wettenstein's "Women in History and Making History Today
- 365-Days-A-Year Database"

Tina Fey Shuns Botox, Workouts

2009-10-07T13:22:09Z

At 39, Tina Fey is more stylish and sexy than her '30 Rock' character Liz Lemon, who she says is based on an old version of herself--but that's not the result of Botox or yoga. Fey covers the November issue of Harper's Bazaar and inside she poses for a pretty photo shoot and gives some funny interview:

On the perils of Botox:
"You can point any kind of laser at my face, but I don't think Botox is for me. I think it is bad. People who have too much, they look like their faces are full of candles -- a shiny, shiny face."

On her own vanities:
"I have the camera frame me from the waist up...If there is a shot that is bad, I can take it out. That is why L.A. is so bad, because they can take your picture from any side. That is why people in L.A. maintain 360 degree fitness. I don't have that kind of time."

On her maintenance routine:
"I like to delude myself that I'm in the old-Hollywood mode. I just tailor my clothes well and try to keep my skin clear. While it would be great to work out an hour a day, there is something inherently sort of selfish about it. I can't do it."

You can read the whole Harper's Bazaar interview here.

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Bare Back At The Emmys: Who Has The Hottest Rear View? (PHOTOS, POLL)

2009-09-21T15:16:05Z

Skin was in at the Emmys this year and many stars showed some from behind. Whether they went entirely bareback like Padma or just opted for a reverse scoop neck, these ladies were smiling for the cameras over their shoulders. Who pulled off the bare look best? You decide.

PHOTOS:

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Tina Fey On Miley Cyrus: "Working The Pole Is A Rite Of Passage" (VIDEO)

2009-09-21T15:00:31Z

Tina Fey proved she's just as funny off-camera when she had the whole room in stitches during her post-Emmys press conference. The reporter perhaps thought he was throwing Fey a curveball by asking her about Miley Cyrus' stripper pole dance and young women "sexualizing themselves." Fey batted it right back:

Fey: I only saw it on the internet. I can't believe I have an opinion about this. I thought she was just hanging onto the pole to not fall off the ice cream cart. It didn't seem dirty to me. It seemed like a technical safety device.

Questioner: So how do you feel about young woman, teenagers, sexualizing themselves.

Fey: I think working the pole is a rite of passage in Western culture that we can expect all our daughters to pass.

Another hilarious moment comes at the end when Fey accidentally gives out co-star Jane Krakowski real hotel room number.

WATCH:

Send us tips! Write us at tv@huffingtonpost.com if you see any newsworthy or notable TV moments. Read more about our media monitoring project here and click here to join the Media Monitors team.

EMMY PREVIEW: Mad Men, 30 Rock Aim To Repeat Wins

2009-09-20T08:48:53Z

LOS ANGELES — "Mad Men" aimed to repeat Emmy history Sunday, while "Family Guy" tried to make it.

The first basic cable show to win a top series honor, "Mad Men" had the chance for a second consecutive best-drama trophy. Potential trailblazer "Family Guy" was the first animated series to vie for the best comedy award since a 1961 bid by "The Flintstones."

Tina Fey Wins Emmy For Palin Impersonation

2009-09-14T09:56:52Z

LOS ANGELES — Is Tina Fey an Emmy winner? You betcha. Fey received an Emmy Award on Saturday for her impersonation of Republican vice presidential contender Sarah Palin on "Saturday Night Live."

Accepting her trophy for best guest actress in a comedy, Fey thanked "SNL" producer Lorne Michaels and her parents, "who are lifelong Republicans, for their patience."

Tina Fey Wins Emmy For Sarah Palin Impressions On SNL

2009-09-12T23:24:01Z

Alex Leo: Tom Shales Is So Right, Beautiful Women Are Terrible At Comedy

2009-09-08T20:34:32Z

"Two new women who will have the status of featured players -- Jenny Slate and Iranian-born Nasim Pedrad -- will join the cast [of 'Saturday Night Live'], not as replacements for anybody, Michaels says, although cute Casey Wilson and glamorous Michaela Watkins have concurrently left. Watkins may have been just too classically pretty to be hilarious."

- Tom Shales, Washington Post

As I was home alone, skimming blogs, being fat and ugly, I came across Julie Klausner's post on Tom Shales's recent take on "SNL"'s hirings and firings. It was hard to read, not because of the content, but because the boil on my left cheek has started to obscure my vision. As a woman in comedy, I understood his point: Being "classically pretty" works against you. I mulled this idea as I wiped ice cream from my mole hair, "This must be why Marilyn Monroe was so terrible in 'Some Like It Hot,'" I thought, rubbing my hump, "and why Tina Fey never made anything of herself after SNL."

I picked up a copy of the "Washington Post" and was relieved that the newsprint that rubbed off on my hands covered my psoria-eczematic wounds, but couldn't find any further thoughts on his brilliant theory. So I again returned to my cave and searched on the Internet, finding this:

"I thought Ms Watkins looked like a model; very elegant, quite quite pretty. It seemed like maybe comedy is too messy a business for someone like her. I couldn't see her letting herself get messed up for laughs -- not that there's much slapstick any more, it's just that comedy is by its nature indecorous, if there is such a word."

How true! The only reason I find messiness comfortable is because I live a troll-like existence using debris and refuse to shield me from the taunts of the outside world. How Lorne would love me! It's not as if beauty works to a comedienne's advantage. Sarah Silverman, Aisha Tyler, Chelsea Handler, Amy Sedaris, and Kristen Wiig are all gorgeous and massive disappointments. Maybe "Saturday Night Live" will pay me double now that my goitre is almost the size of my head.

Jon Chattman: The Agorafabulous Life of Sara Benincasa

2009-09-08T18:44:49Z

She's a comedienne, writer, radio talk show, and as far as I know, the only person to interview anyone in a bathtub (well, her bathtub anyway). She's Sara Benincasa, and she's about to become a household name. You've already seen her as a citizen journalist for the 2008 MTV Choose or Lose Street Team, Huffington Post's humor site 23/6, and Nerve.com to name a few (the aforementioned "Tub Talk with Sara B." aired there). She has also staged two acclaimed shows "Family Hour with Auntie Sara" and "Agorafabulous" in NYC, and chats up sex on Cosmo Radio's "Get in Bed" (Sirius 111/XM162) every night from 8 p.m. - 11 p.m. She's currently touring with fellow comic Margaret Cho, and in November, will host a mustache benefit in Westchester County in November. Yes, I said a mustache benefit. I spoke with Benincasa late last month, and covered everything from that fuzzy fad to her rise among the comedic ranks.

Were you a funny kid?
I was "funny" in that I spent vast quantities of time alone in my room writing long-winded prose. I also looked funny.

How'd you get your start?
I got my start in the general vicinity of my mother's undercarriage. Twenty-five years later, I started doing stand-up and sketch comedy.

What did you go to school for? Do you have deep journalism roots? You've reported for MTV and have the talk show on SiriusXM.
I started out as a print journalism major at Emerson College. Thank God I didn't stick with that major, what with print being dead and all. Instead I dropped out and finished at Warren Wilson College with a far more marketable creative writing degree. And I have a masters' degree in teaching English language and literature to secondary school students. That one is from Columbia University's Teachers College.

I was a journalism major. Sigh. Anyway, what was it like doing a Sarah Palin impression at a time all anyone was talking about was Tina Fey's impersonation of Sarah Palin?
See, I found actually during that time that people were talking about many, many things other than Tina Fey's impersonation of Sarah Palin. For example, my landlord talked often about the weather, at least to me. My father talked often about golf, to everyone. On the streets, I would hear people discuss love, sex, money, history, crime, race and many other things. It was a fertile time for discussion of things not related to comedic impersonations of little-known governors of far-flung states.

We began doing our Palin videos weeks before SNL had its fall premiere, so by the time it rolled around we had a strong online following and a weirdly rabid fan base. We also had a healthy batch of haters. And we continued to get great press throughout the campaign. But I will note that we were not the first folks to get a Palin impression out there. This dude in drag got a video up the day before we did. Our hats are off to him. It was an honor to be mentioned in articles and on television alongside Tina Fey. She's excellent and she was a writer at SNL during my wayward adolescence and early adulthood. She was eventually the head writer. I suspected that she was awesome, and then my friend Donald Glover, who used to write for her on 30 Rock, confirmed that this was true.

What do you really make of Sarah Palin?
I think she is a fascinating character, but it's important to recognize that if she holds real political office again, she'll hold real power to affect the lives of her constituents. Thus, liberals and ashamed conservatives can't simply dismiss her as a sideshow act or as an aberration. I actually had a bit of fondness for her until she made those absurd death panel remarks. She really is rather intellectually empty, but personal magnetism wins out over brainpower. If given the chance, plenty of stupid people would be delighted to vote her into federal office. So would plenty of smart people who hold views with which I happen to disagree.

Shifting gears, how'd your play Agorafabulous come about?
Well, I dealt with agoraphobia and panic attacks for many years. When I began doing comedy, I mostly just talked about sex, but eventually I realized that the comics who I most admire are the ones who talk about their own flaws and foibles. I found that listening to some of these folks talk about their pain and heartache helped me to feel more hopeful.

After all, if they could overcome their demons, perhaps I could learn to live with mine. And is about dealing with mental illness at a young age, and it's also a love letter to my parents and best friends for helping me out.

How serious was the condition?
I'd say my condition was intense but ultimately manageable due in large part to privilege. Because my parents were insured and made a sizable income, they were able to purchase the best possible care for their ailing daughter. And because they were highly educated, and because my father works in the health care industry, they knew which questions to ask. Had I been born in another time period, or had I not enjoyed access to such resources, my story might have ended quite differently.

Getting to your act, do you think men are intimidated by you because you talk about sex so frankly?
If they are, they're weak, and I wouldn't want to shtup them anyway. According to the pervs who contact me via the Internets, it is a turn-on to hear a woman speak frankly about sex.

What's the most taboo subject you've ever discussed on your radio show?
Anal sex, or, as we call it on-air, "the back door."

Speaking of taboo subjects... Mustaches. Why would you host a mustache contest in Westchester?
Obviously, the answer is "my friend asked me to." Another answer, also obvious, is "because my coke dealer lives in Westchester."

What is your ultimate goal in life? A sitcom? Well, not a sitcom in the
classic sense but in an "Office" handycam kind of way, perhaps? I would take a sitcom in the classic sense any day of the week. Every day of the week. As long as that sitcom is Two and a Half Men.

Lastly, ask yourself a question and answer it please.
Sara, why should people come to see you host the mustache contest? Because I am fairly certain there is nothing better to do that night, anywhere in the world. Unless Two and a Half Men is on.

Read more: Westchester, Comedienne, Alaska, Agorafabulous, Mustache, Panic Attacks, Agoraphobia, Sara Benincasa, Sketch, Sarah Palin, 30 Rock, Sex, Radio, Two-and-a-Half Men, Cosmo, Snl, Auntie Sara, Tina Fey, Comedy, Talk Show Host, Siriusxm, Comedy News

Scott Mendelson: Kudos to Smart Career Choices: Megan Fox to Host the Season Premiere of SNL

2009-08-25T10:02:49Z

According to Life and Style, Megan Fox is set to host the season premiere of Saturday Night Live. As someone who feels that she's been unfairly maligned in the media for bluntly acknowledging basic truths about how females are treated in Hollywood, I'm glad to see she's branching out just a bit. Potential typecasting victims Jon Hamm and Zach Efron scored major (deserved) huzzahs for their hosting gigs last year, so it'll be fun to see if Fox can rise above the sometimes spotty writing. And because I know that the Jennifer's Body star gives a flying rat's ass about what I have to say has to say, here are some quick tips to increase the likelihood of a successful show:

1) Do not play yourself. You're doing this partially to prove that you can act when given the opportunity, and part of acting is playing other people. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson pretty much began his eventual movie career by offering this simple instruction for his first SNL hosting gig: "No wrestling sketches". He was willing to wear a tutu, he was willing to make a complete fool of himself, but he refused to basically play himself in any wrestling sketches. He's now one of the very best reoccurring hosts. Point being, do not do what's expected of you.

2) If at all possible, avoid the question-and answer opening monologue. Unless you're Christopher Walken, this isn't going to be funny. It will be badly costumed cast members asking the most obvious, unfunny questions leaving you to give lame, scripted answers. Once again, unless you're Chris Walken, you cannot do this and maintain dignity. And if you're forced to do this bit, please make sure that every question isn't some horny nerd propositioning you for sex. It won't be funny and it will show the usual lack of imagination that cripple these opening bits.

3) If you must do a Transformers sketch, wait till the second half of the show. Normally I'd say avoid a Transformers sketch in general. But Efron used his High School Musical character as a springboard for a bloody hysterical sketch about plummeting educational standards, so I can't veto the idea completely. But hold off any sketches based around Transformers or Jennifer's Body until after Weekend Update. If the show up to that point is funny, then the audience won't care about a one-off miss. If you're already tanking, then it won't matter either way.

4) It's your show. At the end of the day, you can't blame the writers if the hosting gig tanks. You have one advantage: no one expects you to be funny. Maybe it's because of the 'attractive women aren't funny' stereotype, or maybe it's because you're best known for your physical attributes, but you now have the same trump card that made hosting gigs by John Malkovich or Patrick Stewart into winners. Because of who you are, every joke that scores is now twice as funny because you're the one you made it. Make sure that the sketches are written around you, or that you're a supporting player in the ones that work. Don't be labeled a Nancy Kerrigan or Paris Hilton by having the sketches be written around you, giving you little to do and say. Be in a position to take the credit for a hit or a miss. And you're going to take some critical hits regardless, simply because pundits and gossip columnists won't want to admit it if the young actress that they spent all summer calling a whore and an idiot turns out to be intelligent and witty.

So good luck kid. I may hate your movies, I'm not all that attracted to you, and I have no idea if you can actually act, but your candor in interviews and the resulting blowback by the gossip world and entertainment press has earned my grudging respect. And, of course, if you can get Tina Fey to come back and participate in a sketch involving videotaped car washes, well, then you'll be my hero (and if you can get Seth Meyers to participate, my wife will highly approve).

Scott Mendelson

Read more: Television, Megan Fox, Zac Efron, Jon Hamm, Transformers, Christopher Walken, The Rock, Saturday Night Live, Tina Fey, News, Movies, Entertainment News

Stephen Viscusi: Part Two: Will Barbara Walters Tap Sarah Palin to Replace Elisabeth Hasselbeck on The View ?

2009-07-30T17:59:38Z
Last month, just after Vice-Presidential candidate and former Governor Sarah Palin, resigned, I wrote a column suggesting her next career move. As a headhunter, I had suggested that Barbara Walters hire Palin as a "temp" co-host to replace Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who is about to take a maternity leave.

Remember how your first job out of college was being a "temp"? Well, in today's economy, temping no longer means you're just a "guy (or gal) Friday". I strongly recommend that anyone at any level, consider a temp assignment, because even a temporary job can lead to a full-time career.

My prediction remains that Walters, who, along with ABC, produces The View, and together are shrewd enough TV executives to notice what Palin did for NBC's ratings on SNL and will want the "Palin Pudding" to help bolster The View's own ratings. Here is a continuation to that Palin column -- I start by receiving my imaginary phone call from Sarah Palin:

The person on the other end of the line says "Stephen Viscusi? This is Sarah Palin. I just finished reading your book Bulletproof Your Job and I am calling you for some career advice."

I immediately think it's my other imaginary celebrity friend, Tina Fey, playing a joke on me.

"Tina, I know that's you, what's up? Still trying to get more dough from NBC?" "No, this really is Sarah Palin. I just resigned from office as Governor of Alaska, and I read your column in the Huffington Post about Barbara Walters calling me to temporarily replace Elisabeth Hasselbeck, on ABC's The View. How did you know?"

I suddenly realize that it's not Tina Fey, but it is really the former governor.

I remark that while most American's are losing their jobs and worse yet, can't even find new ones, how lucky she must be to be able to afford to quit a job without having another.

"Your husband must make more money than I thought as a fisherman," I say. I explain to former Governor Palin that I am Catholic and that Jesus was a fisherman, and he never seemed that wealthy.

I ask former Governor Palin, "What do you know that Jesus didn't?"

I push the former governor about quitting a job at a time when so many Americans are desperate for work. She tells me that she feels bad for those who are unemployed and that she hopes President Obama gets "the Department of Work" on the problem right away. Hmmm...

Back to the point of Palin's call to me...the former governor tells me her goal is to get her own T.V. show, something like The Rachel Ray Show. You know, some kind of talk show, but Palin wants to have her show indoors and outdoors, maybe have some fishing segments, talk about being a hockey mom, and just be Sarah.

I tell Palin what I everyone today. Take what you can today. A "temp" job is better than no job at all. I feel a sense of irony in explaining this to a woman who just quit a perfectly great job (with great benefits) to become a temp. I instruct her to, "Go in as a temp. Be cooperative with your coworkers -- in this case the three comedians and Barbara Walters -- and then, just see what happens."

I then say to Palin, "Look, if you don't take the temp job, I bet Walters will hire former Miss California, Carrie Prejean, to fill in for Hasselbeck. Sarah, I'm still not convinced that catching fish will pay all your legal bills or your mortgage. After all, Jesus never seemed to make a decent living that way."

Everyone should know "temping" or working on a per-project basis, is the best way to get your foot in the door, which can lead to a permanent job.

Finally, Palin tells me that Walters offers to even make a baby corner in Palin's dressing room for her newest baby, Trig Paxson Van Palin, and will even put a new hockey stick on the wall. (What kind of baby name is that btw?)

Sarah remembers out loud about another temping gig in showbiz that she did recently, when she appeared on NBC's Saturday Night Live. She figures if she can handle Alec Baldwin, Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels that night, than the other three co-hosts would be a piece of cake.

Our conversation concludes with me asking, "Sarah, does this help?" I can almost see that famous wink over the phone, and she oh-so charismatically replies, "Yes, and stay tuned!"

I have some imagination...right?

________________________________________
You're always welcome to write me with your career dilemmas, and I'll answer you on this column.

Follow me on Twitter @ Workplace Guru and add me on Facebook or email me at: stephen@viscusi.com.

Disclaimer: The scenarios and events portrayed in this article are products of the author's imagination.
© Stephen Viscusi. All rights reserved. Article can be duplicated in part of full without author's permission.
________________________________________

Stephen Viscusi is the author of two books about jobs and the workplace. Charles Gibson from ABC's World News calls Viscusi, "America's Workplace Guru".

Viscusi is a TV broadcast journalist on jobs, a headhunter and resume spin doctor. His latest book, Bulletproof Your Job: 4 Simple Strategies to Ride Out the Rough Times and Come Out On Top at Work (HarperCollins) has been published around the globe in at least 9 languages including Chinese, Korean, Spanish and Portuguese.

Viscusi is also the founder of www.BulletproofYourResume.com.

Viscusi's headhunting and workplace advice is usually considered counter-intuitive to the conventional wisdom. Viscusi is not a career or life coach. To the contrary, his current book, Bulletproof Your Job has been described as the New Millennium's The Art of War, by Sun Tzu, and that's how Viscusi sees the workplace. He's your workplace General.

Each week, in the Huffington Post, Stephen Viscusi volunteers his headhunting career advice to the world. Some, like in this week's column aren't even asking and in other week, some have.

His disciples can be celebrities, politico, world leaders, heads of industry, and some are just ordinary people who write him for advice. It's like Tony Robbins advising Al Gore or Deepak Chopra advising Michael Jackson (wait, scratch that one).

Even you can get your own advice by writing to Stephen at stephen@viscusi.com, Facebook him or Twitter him at WorkplaceGuru.
Read more: Career Advice, The View, Tina Fey SNL, Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Bulletproof-Your-Resume, Bulletproof Your Job, Tina Fey Sarah Palin, Barbara Walters, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Sarah Palin, Palin-Governor-Alaska, Quit-Job, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Careers, Saturday Night Live, Abc, Tina Fey, Entertainment News

Gershon Hepner: "If Sarah Palin Looked Like Golda"

2009-07-29T12:07:43Z
If Sarah Palin looked like Golda,
older and Alaska-colder,
would she be warming cockles
of our hearts in her debacles?
To have a race within your pocket
you do not need to be a rocket
scientist, but if you whine,
and do not reach the finish line,
the voters aren't inclined to give
you their support as Tel-Aviv
once gave to Golda. Sarah Palin,
weepin', gnashin' teeth and wailin',
cranky, crass and somewhat screechy,
prim, unpresidential, preachy,
aware electors will not choose her
is acting like a most sore loser,
by casting blame left, right and center
on every media tormentor,
collecting grievances like rent
while hoping to be President,
encouraging eviction of
the voters who don't send her love.
It's problematic. Why does Sarah--
compared with Golda clearly fairer--
do this, abandoning Alaska?
Perhaps we'll find out if we ask her,
but since most probably we can't,
just let her whine some more, and rant:
like dead fish that can't swim, she'll molder,
far more forgettable than Golda.
Of course if she were half as smart
as Tina Fey, she'd win my heart,
but since she isn't, hope, not glory,
is her republican sad story.

Inspired by an observation made by Mike Murphy, a former John McCain strategist of Sarah Palin commenting on her resignation from the position of Governor of Alaska and her rants about what she called "American apologetics". Mike Murphy's comment was cited by cited by Maureen Dowd ("Sarah Grabs the Grievance Bag From Hillary," NYT, July 29, 2009).

Read more: Tel-Aviv, Alaska, Golda Meir, Mike Murphy, Tina Fey, Republicans, Sarah Palin, Politics News

Marc Singer: "Ryan Seacrest Superhero" Newswitness News (Video)

2009-07-21T14:51:40Z
If you've ever watched Fox News (or CBS) and muttered to yourself, "Hey, a monkey could do a better job of delivering the news" well you're about to get what you asked for.

Inspired by The Daily Show, SNL, and Alf we are proud to present Newswitness News -- the only two minute news show about politics and pop culture that's hosted by a monkey. A fucking smart monkey.

This episode of Newswitness News features insightful commentary on Ryan Seacrest, CNN, and poor people.

Read more: Video, Newswitness News, Michael Jackson, Ebay, Ryan Seacrest, Superheroes, Monkey Cartoon, Anderson Cooper, Superman, Michael-Jackson-Diprivan, Spiderman, Barack Obama, Text Messaging, Texting, Animation, Gay Rights, Michael Jackson Death, Cnn, Auschwitz, Monkey, Monkeys, Gay Marriage, Gay Issues, Aquaman, Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, John Stewart, David Letterman, Comedy News

Ed Martin: 2009 Emmy Nominations: Not So Bad (For a Change)

2009-07-17T18:40:41Z
The annual announcement of the Primetime Emmy Award nominations is generally one of the most contentious events of the year for anyone who works in, writes about or cares about television. Nomination Day usually falls right in the middle of the annual July Television Critics Association tour, so for the last few years it has begun with me sitting alone in a Los Angeles hotel room processing the honors and oversights, then getting increasingly aggravated by the latter, and then heading off to one of the hotel's ballrooms to exchange my thoughts with dozens of similarly disgusted critics. But with the summer TCA pushed to a later start date this year (July 28), I'm alone at my desk with the nomination list -- and, much to my surprise, I'm not nearly as upset as I normally get.

Maybe it's because there are now six nominees in each acting category and seven in the categories of Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Comedy Series. Maybe it's the many delightful surprises in the mix (see below). Maybe it's the overriding fact that there is so much terrific television to be enjoyed these days (if one can afford to purchase it) that all the good work can't possibly be acknowledged in one swoop.

There may be some oversights, and some of them may be whoppers, but as I scan the lists of nominees in each category it occurs to me that there are few (if any) that do not deserve to be included. Still, it wouldn't be Nomination Day without some significant griping, so let's get it out of the way. I'm not surprised that the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has once again failed to honor two of television's top dramas, Friday Night Lights and Battlestar Galactica. I gave up hope that it would do so a long time ago. What it has against these two extraordinary shows will always be a mystery. The very idea that BSG stars Edward James Olmos and Mary McDonnell raised the bar for dramatic television acting for four seasons without once being acknowledged is appalling. Similarly, the realization that Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, Adrianne Palicki, Jesse Plemons, Taylor Kitsch and Gaius Charles can work the wonders that they do on FNL without benefit of Academy recognition is so disheartening it hurts.

My other big gripe is the Academy's failure to find room for The Shield among the nominees for Outstanding Drama Series and series star Michael Chiklis among those for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Because Chiklis won an Emmy for the long-ago first season of this show I might be okay with these oversights had Walton Goggins copped a nom for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. With all due respect to the six actors nominated in this category, Goggins didn't simply deserve a nomination here, he deserved the damned award itself.

As always, the real Emmy excitement is located in the Drama and Comedy Series categories. So here are my thoughts, pro and con, beginning with the Drama:

Moving past the egregious snubs of Friday Night Lights, Battlestar Galactica and The Shield, the seven series nominated for Outstanding Drama Series are all good choices. The big surprise here is that HBO didn't muscle True Blood into the mix. Wait until next year.

As distressed as I am by the exclusion of Walton Goggins among the nominees for Outstanding Supporting Actor, I'm thrilled to see Aaron Paul of Breaking Bad on the list. He was galvanizing this season and I hope he takes home the award.

I find it strange that William Shatner and Christian Clemenson of Boston Legal were recognized in this category while series star James Spader was passed over for Outstanding Lead Actor. Spader has three Emmys for his work as Atty. Alan Shore and his work was just as fine this season as in previous years (as was that of Shatner and Clemenson, both previous winners). I'm not sure Simon Baker of The Mentalist deserved a nod over Spader . For that matter, I would have bumped Baker in favor of Denis Leary of Rescue Me or the aforementioned Michael Chiklis.

It's nice to see Big Love score a nomination as Outstanding Drama Series, but I wish that the eternally mesmerizing Chloe Sevigny had landed on the Outstanding Lead Actress list. I would have chosen her over Sally Field of Brothers & Sisters and Mariska Hargitay of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, just as I would have picked January Jones over her Mad Men co-star Elisabeth Moss and Mary McDonnell of BSG over Holly Hunter of Saving Grace. All that said, this category is basically a two-woman contest between Glenn Close of Damages and Kyra Sedgwick of The Closer. I'm predicting Close but I'm rooting for Sedgwick.

I have no complaints with the nominees for Supporting Actress, but I wish Katherine Heigl was on the list with her Grey's Anatomy co-stars Sandra Oh and Chandra Wilson. That said, Heigl already has an Emmy and the other two ladies do not, so unless Dianne Wiest of In Treatment makes it two for two, maybe Oh or Wilson will finally receive some long overdue love from Emmy voters.

Moving on to the Comedy categories:

The biggest shock of all is the Academy's failure to nominate The Big Bang Theory as Outstanding Comedy Series, without question the funniest sitcom on television. What a strange category this has turned out to be: Entourage had a wildly uneven season and The Office seems to be on the decline, but they were both nominated. Family Guy landed here while the superior The Simpsons and South Park are sitting on the Outstanding Animated Series list. The weirdness that is HBO's Flight of the Conchords was recognized, but IFC's similarly funky Z-Rock was not. Weeds and 30 Rock both deserve their nods, but I find it odd that How I Met Your Mother scored a nom over its Monday night line-up mates Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory. Lastly, it would have been nice if the Academy had found the collective heart to nominate the one-of-a-kind wonder that was Pushing Daisies.

Strangely, I'm 100 percent good with the nominees for Outstanding Lead Actress, even if poor America Ferrera was left in the dust for the suddenly (and unfairly) not-hot Ugly Betty. Among the Lead Actors, I would have gone with James Roday of Psych and Lee Pace of Pushing Daisies over Jemaine Clement of Flight of the Conchords, Charlie Sheen of Two and a Half Men or the already much-honored Tony Shalhoub of Monk. But this category is another two-person race, between Jim Parsons of The Big Bang Theory and Alec Baldwin of 30 Rock. I'm pulling for Parsons.

With three-time winner Jeremy Piven of Entourage surprisingly off the list (what's that about?) there is a new sense of excitement around the competition for Outstanding Supporting Actor. It will be a huge night for Emmy host Neil Patrick Harris if he finally receives a much-deserved award for his consistently fine work in How I Met Your Mother. I used to root for Piven's co-star Kevin Dillon, but I think he had an off year. (Still, if he wins, I'm good.) I wish room had been made for Michael Urie of Ugly Betty. Urie is always on when Betty is having an off-episode.

As for the Outstanding Supporting Actress category, I'll be happy to see any one of the six women nominated receive a much-deserved award. There were no significant oversights here, though I'm surprised that Jean Smart of Samantha Who?, the winner this category last year, didn't make the cut.

Read more: Entourage, Neil Patrick Harris, Weeds, Pushing Daisies, Breaking Bad, Damages, Jon Hamm, The Big Bang Theory, True Blood, Flight of the Conchords, Made Men, Tina Fey, Lost, How I Met Your Mother, Entertainment News