Tim Slagle publishes on both Big Hollywood and Big Government.
He is a political satirist who has apperaed on national comedy and televison news shows, most recently on Fox News Redeye, and the Bob and Tom Show.
He is part of Jerry's Kidders, a comedy news roundtable every Saturday morning at 11AM Central on WGN AM 720 Chicago, The Voice of Chicago. He is also heard in heavy rotation on the XM/Sirius satellite radio network.
He has had articles published on Townhall.com, and is a contributing editor for Liberty Magazine. He produced ”The Mudslingers Ball,” a short run TV series for KSTP-TV Minneapolis/St. Paul.
His first cd, “Europa,” was released in October of 2006 on Stand Up! Records and is available on iTunes and Amazon.
He can also be seen at comedy clubs, political functions and fundraisers nationwide. For more information, visit www.timslagle.com.
Tim Slagle
Late Night Wimps Still Won’t Mock Obama
by Tim SlagleWhat a bountiful two weeks of comedy material we had. Our elegant man in the White House thought the capital of Canada was Iowa and proved that they don’t teach Industrial History at Harvard. There was also this photo… And so I thought it was about time to check in again with the Late Night hosts.
Monday marked the debut of Jimmy Fallon’s “green” talk show. According to USA Today he has recycled carpet, used seats and bamboo floors. I wonder if he also lights the stage with CFLs, limits guests to one square of toilet paper, serves warm tap water and vegan treats, and takes the subway to work? But enough of the negative. I thought I should check in and see if Late Night’s newest host has decided that it’s okay to make fun of the President. (Fallon also claims to have three bloggers on staff, so if you three are as sharp as I hope, Welcome To Big Hollywood!) This Monday I reviewed Jimmy Fallon, David Letterman, Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Craig Ferguson, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert. (more…)
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The Dangers of Political Correctness
by Tim SlagleClint Eastwood, the iconic, American actor who was robbed last Sunday, came out against political correctness. In an interview with the Daily Express he said, “People have lost their sense of humour. In former times we constantly made jokes about different races. You can only tell them today with one hand over your mouth or you will be insulted as a racist.”
Clint Eastwood is one of the last real men in Hollywood. I can’t see any of his lesser heirs to the cinematic throne willing to make such a bold statement. (Aside from the misspelling –I don’t think an American like Clint would have ever pronounced it ”humour.”) Clint is pointing out something important ”free speech” advocates are unwilling to broach: Political Correctness is Dangerous. (more…)
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Let’s Call It ‘Untraditional Marriage’
by Tim Slagle
Sean Penn scolded opponents of something he called “Gay Marriage.” Apparently, he thinks gay marriage was made illegal in California. Certainly Sean, a lifelong resident of Hollywood, should recognize that gay marriage is perfectly legal and has roots all the way back to Cole Porter and Rock Hudson, both of whom are gay men who married (and wasn’t Penn married to Madonna?).
What’s not legal is same-sex marriage. (more…)
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Update: Still No Late Night Obama Humor
by Tim SlagleIn the short span between my last review and today, we’ve seen the President sign a stimulus package so full of pork that Obama’s father would have been forbidden to touch it, along with a bump on the head, a scripted and sputtering press conference, and a contradiction from someone who actually understands how business works. Obama also appeared onstage in the theatre where Lincoln was shot, alongside a Lincoln impersonator (ouch).
Certainly there’s some topics ripe for ridicule. So what are the Late Nights talking about? I thought it was time for another review, so I fired up the DVR Tuesday night and watched David Letterman, Jay Leno, Craig Ferguson, Conan O’Brien and Jimmy Kimmel. (Jon Stewart, and Stephen Cobert both have the week off.) (more…)
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Broadway Street With Two Left Sides: ‘Avenue Q’
by Tim SlagleMy friend Jane Shaffmaster gave me a call. Jane’s loved musicals since she was young enough to play the lead in “Annie” and spends a greater percentage of her annual income on Broadway than most heavy-duty Christians tithe every year. She was perusing the latest news on Playbill and was quite dismayed that political satire wasn’t affected by The Change. Like most on our side, Jane is fairly good humored about Republicans being the butt of jokes, but she expects those jokes to be distributed evenly across partisan lines. A play called “Avenue Q” was rewriting its script to reflect the new administration but like most satirists*, they refuse to mock the new President.
“Avenue Q” is a puppet show for adults. A song called “For Now” has the puppets reassure each other that most things in life are temporary, like hair and sex. Until recently, one of those temporary things was “George Bush.” Knowing that Obama was to be shortly inaugurated, the producers and writers were perplexed for a replacement. I know it should be obvious to everyone else, but Broadway producers don’t think like you and I. So they threw a contest to decide a better verse. (more…)
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Some Racism is ‘Racist,’ Some Not So Much
by Tim SlagleIt’s all over the news how Miley Cyrus and her friends had their pictures taken doing something a lot of teenagers do: making funny faces for the camera. Some claim they were trying to look Asian and making fun of the boy in the photo who actually is Asian. Miley apologized more than once, but that hasn’t stopped the litigation.
Margaret Cho, a comic who became famous by exaggerating the Asian accent of her mother (and has never been one to shy away from publicity) expressed great outrage. She actually penned a song about Miley in protest.
Strangely enough, it turns out that perhaps Margaret tossed the first volley across the racial divide. According to Wikipedia and other sources, Margaret was once a member of the band called ”White Trash Debutantes.” So it’s okay for Margaret to call herself a “White Trash Debutante” but wrong for an actual White Trash Debutant to make an Asian face?
A line in Margaret’s song asks: “Why isn’t racism against Asians taboo? ” Here’s a better question: “Why isn’t racism against Southern Whites taboo?”
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Leftists: Read Your Book, Win A Grammy
by Tim SlagleNowhere is Hollywood bias more blatant than at awards shows. The nominations and prizes provide a remarkable window into the political leanings of the industry. The snub of Clint Eastwood for Best Actor in “Gran Torino” is symptomatic of that overwhelming bias. Usually when a legendary actor yet to win a performance Oscar plays what could be his last role, he’s a shoe-in. Yet, Eastwood’s fine work was ignored, probably due to the film’s political bias.
For a number of years now, the Grammy award for “Best Spoken Word Album” has been the most political. It has nothing to do with recording or performance quality and has degenerated down to the “political statement we most admire.” (more…)
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After Two Weeks, Still No Late Night Obama Humor
by Tim SlagleSo I get a call from my old buddy Louis. Apparently there was a video of Nancy Pelosi on YouTube, and he wondered whether anybody at the Late Night shows would notice. Pelosi claimed that without the stimulus package, America would lose 500 million jobs a month. Wow, that’s two hundred million more jobs, than America has people. Apparently the illegal immigration problem is a lot worse than anybody thought. But it seemed a great excuse to check back on America’s premiere satirists and see if they’re doing their jobs. Since we’re now two weeks into the new administration, I reviewed David Letterman, Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Craig Ferguson, Conan O’Brien, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert.
The Pelosi video never made the mainstream press, but it did make YouTube. Today, the Internet is a great place for comedians to find set ups. The Christian Bale video was such a hit on TMZ that six out of seven Late Night shows used it for jokes last night (Ferguson abstaining), as was the story of Sheyla Hershey, the woman with the 38KK breasts (Ferguson, Letterman, Conan and Leno all bagged this one). Letterman was so smitten with those pumpkins he used them as an excuse to tell another George Bush joke (Texas now has the world’s three biggest boobs). (more…)
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Scientology Incorporated
by Tim SlagleSo it’s after a gig*, and I’m sitting at the bar with another comic, and a couple of girls who thought we were the funniest guys they had ever met. Things are heating up, but I’m starting to feel a little apprehensive because it’s just too easy. When I don’t have to work at something, I always start to wonder if there’s something wrong. Either I’m about to be robbed, or there’s a flaw I haven’t noticed.
The conversation turns to Scientology. There had recently been a expose in Time magazine (and astute readers can now speculate on how long ago this was). “It’s a really evil institution,” I start, “Kind of a cross between the Mafia and Oral Roberts with just a dash of the Manson Family.”
The girl who had been getting all my attention chuckled condescendingly, “Well, I read that Kirstie Alley is a Scientologist, and I don’t think Kirstie Alley would belong to anything like that!” (more…)
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Last Night’s Late Night Fairness Check
by Tim SlagleI was curious. Obama jokes on Late Night TV, have been as rare as a smoking lounge in an airport. I wondered how the shows would do. (Certainly the writers know that their bias has been detected.) Would they turn their comedy knives against Obama with the same wild abandon they used on the previous President? The short answer: Maybe.
The only no-show of the night was David Letterman, who opted for a re-run. Jay Leno, Jimmy Kimmel, Conan O’Brien, Craig Ferguson, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert all weighed in last night with attempts at presidential humor. (more…)
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MTV: Against Inaugural Balls Until They Were For Them
by Tim SlagleI just noticed that MTV is planning a big Inaugural Ball for this evening. This is a big surprise to me, because back in 2001, MTV claimed they were no longer interested in throwing Inaugural Balls. ”Rock the Vote” claimed they were going to change their political focus, and would no longer be hosting Balls. I couldn’t remember the exact excuse MTV made for not throwing one back in 2001. There hasn’t been an MTV Inaugural Ball in Twelve years!
A little snooping around led me to this article from the New York Times; something everyone here should have a look at. It goes to the very heart of what is being done on Big Hollywood. Apparently the official reason why there was no 2001 MTV Ball was: (more…)
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Fakin’ Palin: Why Republicans Need To Wield A Little Humor
by Tim SlagleWhy can’t I be like Tina Fey?
I’m just as smart, and almost as pretty. And I like working politics into my comedy. Yet there she was Sunday night, bowing before the adoring foreign press in a summer dress, while I’m at home, packing long underwear for a road trip into the heartland. While she’s polishing her new Golden Globes, I’ll be working a whiskey soaked nightclub, in a town too small to have a AAA ball club. So much for the road less traveled. And they say that it’s the Republicans, who are in it for the money.
Does anyone really think Tina Fey’s performance on ‘30 Rock’ is that award worthy? Nobody ever watches it, unless they lost the remote, after ‘The Office’ is over. She didn’t get the awards for ‘30 Rock,’ she got them because there isn’t an award for the Best Impersonation of a Republican Candidate. Or: Comedienne Most Responsible for an Obama Victory. Tina Fey is the darling of the Left right now, not as much for her comedic skills, as for putting a stop to the Sarah Palin phenomenon.
There was a huge groundswell when Sarah hit the national scene. She energized the Party in a way John McCain only dreamed of. Here was our Obama: a young, good looking enigmatic speaker, untainted by Washington. There’s something mighty attractive about a girl more familiar with moosemeat than pork. She looked great in flannel and jeans, and unlike all the other candidates, her outdoor gear had all the tags removed long ago. For a while it looked like she might run away with the grand prize.
But then Tina Fey came on the air one night, with her hair in an up-do, and talking like she was in Fargo. And it was over. It is still amazing to me, that an impression of a candidate could have such an impact, but I know it did. John Ziegler proved it, in his now famous Zogby Poll. The majority of Obama voters actually thought Sarah Palin really said she could see Russia from her house.
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