It’s kind of easy these days to forget that Jon Stewart was not the original host of The Daily Show. Well, by the end of this year, he won’t be the host at all anymore.
From 1999 to 2015 (!) Stewart helmed what turned into a massively influential show that blurred the lines of comedy and entertainment on the one hand, politics and hard news on the other hand, and a real look at actual culture on the other other hand. Sometimes it seemed like Stewart was the only one asking hard questions of public figures, as he was lampooning the soft-pitch reporters who took what those same officials were spoon-feeding the “real” media. He skewered the media more than politicians, to my recollection, and if it seemed like he picked on Fox and Friends a whole lot, the problem was that Fox and Friends delivered him such a rich multiplicity of targets. In what I consider a particularly fine act of public service which a comedian could have rendered the body politic, Stewart’s appearance on CNN’s excerable shoutfest Crossfire may not have killed that show, but his direct accusation to the hosts that they were affirmatively harming the country delivered the coup de gras, and in so doing steered actual political debate shows away from people shouting over one another back towards people talking to one another (I don’t claim it’s perfect yet by a damn sight). Stewart was a good example, too: in some ways, a Daily Show interview with Stewart was the best and fairest place for people, even those who didn’t have opinions that melded nicely with Stewart’s liberal persona, to give air to their thoughts: virtually every guest, people ranging from sitting Presidents to standup comedians, was given ample time to speak for themselves in their own words. He broke Stephen Colbert, Steve Carrell, John Oliver, and Aasif Mandvi into the big-time. Larry Wilmore is on his way now. And along the way, Stewart never lost sight of what his show was really about: finding humor in a sometimes bleak world.
He’s going to be a tough act for someone to follow.
Burt Likko is the pseudonym of an attorney in Southern California. His interests include Constitutional law with a special interest in law relating to the concept of separation of church and state, cooking, good wine, and bad science fiction movies. Follow his sporadic Tweets at @burtlikko, and his Flipboard at Burt Likko.
Yes he will. I enjoyed his show when I watched it. I always thought his interviews of figures of note were miles ahead of the rest of the domestic “media”. I’d prefer my media to be overtly hostile and aggressive to most politicians, but that’s not how it’s done here in the states. You either suck up or do what John did. Kudos.Report
First Sully now this. I’m gonna turn to drink.Report
Way ahead of you!
What are we talking about?Report
All eras must come to an end eventually. We usually just hope not to be around to see it.Report
I went out dancing with some old friends on Saturday. I was ready to leave before everyone else (I’m one of the oldest of these old friends, plus I’ve been to this club/night before, so it wasn’t as novel for me) but the DJ kept playing tracks that at least one person in our party liked, so we’d stay, then someone else liked the next one, and so on.
I put my foot down when it looked like if we weren’t careful, we’d be there at closing time.
You never want to be there when the lights come on. Those people don’t look like you thought they did anymore – and neither do you.Report
True Lee. I don’t know how I expected some old queen twenty some years my senior to outlast me but for some reason I did.Report
In the partner dance community, we usually dance with the lights at least somewhat on. It save from disllusionment.Report
Also it saves from injury!Report
This is brilliant: https://twitter.com/Arbys/status/565331219744047105Report
Is it a sign of age that it feels like John Stewart took over the Daily Show just yesterday? I can still remember 5 questions and Craig Kilborne.Report
http://www.theonion.com/articles/craig-kilborn-ready-to-return-to-the-daily-show,5725/Report
He broke Stephen Colbert, Steve Carrell, John Oliver, and Aasif Mandvi into the big-time. Larry Wilmore is on his way now.
And smaller launches for Corddry, Riggle and others. TDS probably helped promote more comedians from the minors up to the big(ger) leagues than SNL over the same period.
I think it was time (maybe past time) for Stewart to hang it up; I’d fallen out of regular TDS viewing for a while; it felt tired to me, and I thought Colbert’s show handily eclipsed it (and even Colbert knew to hang his show up before Jon did).
But that doesn’t diminish what TDS was or accomplished with Stewart at the helm.Report
I watched Colbert’s Correspondents’ Dinner speech from ’06 yesterday, and briefly had hope for the world again.Report
Hope and luck and faith seem to go together in my book.
I have ’em, but I wouldn’t trust ’em without a ten foot pole.Report
*sigh* I foresee more improvisational comedy in my future.
Granted, it’s GOOD improv comedy, but still…
“I just got fired from a TV Show, and it’s the nicest thing anyone’s done for me.”Report
I probably have the same reaction to John Stewart as others here have toward Megan McArdle. That said, Stewart served a real purpose.Report
But she’s not funny intentionally.Report
Well, at least one of them is funny.Report
Well, you know, I remember back when we thought that Craig Kilbourne would be a hard act to follow…
Nah, just kidding. Nobody ever thought that!
I will say that when I saw the title to this post my first thought was “Ah crap, who’s quitting the site now?!”Report
Seeing as I am who I am, I have to say it – It’s a pet peeve that I have on record for close to a decade… I don’t know if Burt was being meta or was spell-corrected, or what, but…
It’s “coup de grace”. “Gras” is the same word from “Mardi Gras” or “Fat Tuesday”. “Coup de Gras”, or “cut of fat” is something from Alton Brown’s playbook. The merciful dispatching of an honorable enemy has an “s” sound at the end.
Thanks for indulging me. I”m OCD and had to vent…Report
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