TV
Moonbase 8 Is a Charming But Weightless Astronaut Comedy: Review
The Pitch: NASA’s astronauts are the best of the best, lifelong professionals who dedicate their intellect and resolve to boldly going where no man has gone before. Before they can do that, though, they have to go through extensive training in the Arizona desert, simulating life on the moon in all its isolation and resource scarcity. For Cap (John C. Reilly), Rook (Tim Heidecker), and Skip (Fred Armisen), it’s a responsibility they take with the utmost seriousness; unfortunately, they might not be the best people for the job. The Wrong Stuff: Space-themed comedies are all the rage this year, between HBO’s droll Avenue 5 and Netflix’s execrable Space Force. Moonbase 8 sits somewhere between these two on the scale, funnier than the latter and less incisive than the f...
R.I.P. Alex Trebek, Jeopardy! Host Dead at 80
Alex Trebek, the host of Jeopardy! for more than three decades, has died at the age of 80 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. In a statement, a spokesperson for Jeopardy! said Trebek passed away peacefully at home early this morning (November 8th), surrounded by family and friends.” Born in Sudbury, Ontario, on July 22nd, 1940, to chef George Edward Trebek and Lucille Lagacé, George Alexander “Alex” Trebek wore his Canadian heritage as a badge of honor, staying in the country throughout his formative years and receiving a degree in philosophy from the University of Ottawa. Trebek’s aptitude for on-camera work was apparent early into his post-graduate career. In 1961, the year of his graduation, he began to work for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, headquartered in Ottawa....
Stand-Up Comedy Is Bringing a Much-Needed Edge to SNL
One of the stranger modern-day quirks of Saturday Night Live is how the show still draws some of its talent from the stand-up scene. This wasn’t necessarily the case for most of the aughts, but in the last few years, the late-night program has reverted to its ’90s strategy of throwing stand-up comedians in with all of the veteran improvisers and writers-turned-performers. Despite this tradition and its variety-show bona fides, Saturday Night Live isn’t especially built for stand-up. Instead, performers who want to flex those muscles traditionally have to head to Weekend Update, where Pete Davidson and Leslie Jones have found a stage in recent years. This season, though, a whopping four of the six hosts so far have been stand-up comedians, and their performances are subtly toying with the s...
Alex Trebek Continued Filming New Episodes of Jeopardy! Up Until His Death
Even as he neared death following an intensive battle with pancreatic cancer, Alex Trebek continued to film new episodes of Jeopardy!. In announcing his death on Sunday, Jeopardy! producers revealed that Trebek had been taping in the studio as recently as October 29th, and new episodes with him as host will air through December 25th. “Working beside him for the past year and a half as he heroically continued to host Jeopardy! was an incredible honor,” said the show’s executive producer, Mike Richards, in a statement. “His belief in the importance of the show and his willingness to push himself to perform at the highest level was the most inspiring demonstration of courage I have ever seen.” For his part, Trebek said working on Jeopardy! gave him the succor that treatment som...
Dave Chappelle: “You Have No Problem Wearing Them at the Klan Rally, Wear Them to Walmart Too”
Nearly four years to the day of his first time hosting Saturday Night Live, Dave Chappelle returned to Studio 8H to once again headline the sketch comedy show’s post-election episode. As to be expected, the comedian’s opening monologue proved to be the highlight of the evening. Chappelle began his monologue by noting how the events of the day had him reminiscing about his great-grandfather — a former slave who taught himself how to read and who then committed himself to a life of education, civil rights, and religion. “It was a pretty amazing story my great-grandfather had, and I thought about him all day because I wish I could see him now,” Chappelle remarked. “And I wish he could see me. Because I wonder what he would say.” In particular, Chappelle predicted how his great-grandfathe...
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductions Lose Luster Without Live Element: Review
It’s been a strange year for the music industry. Case in point: we’re finally watching the 2020 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions in November, it’s all being done remotely by tape, and there are no musical performances. Nothing about this is normal, of course, and fans will surely miss the who’s who of rock royalty that can usually be seen rubbing shoulders at the ceremony, not to mention the opportunity to see our heroes climb on stage together — sometimes for the first time in years — to accept hardware and even take a stab at performing our favorite songs. Obviously, the raging COVID-19 pandemic made a normal induction ceremony impossible, and those who produced or took part in Saturday’s telecast deserve credit for finding a way to safely honor the best of the music industry. <i...
Al Roker Diagnosed with Prostate Cancer
Al Roker, who’s been a steadfast presence on NBC for more than 40 years, has revealed his diagnosis of prostate cancer. During a November 6th segment on The Today Show, Roker told viewers he would be taking time off for treatment. The veteran broadcaster said he learned of the diagnosis after “a routine checkup in September,” and is set to undergo surgery at New York City’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center next week. “It’s a good news-bad news kind of thing,” Roker said of his prognosis. “Good news is we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little aggressive, so I’m going to be taking some time off to take care of this.” With his usual openness and candor, Roker interviewed his own doctor, who spoke about the difficult decision to “remove the prostrate,” in light of th...
Chappelle’s Show Episode Left off Netflix, HBO Max Due to Ron Jeremy Cameo
At the top of the month, all three seasons of Chappelle’s Show made their way to Netflix and HBO Max. However, fans of Dave Chappelle’s legendary sketch program quickly noticed that one of the show’s 28 episodes was missing. According to The Daily Beast, Season 2’s sixth episode, “The Internet & Moment in the Life of Lil Jon”, was indeed left off of the streaming services because of a cameo from former adult film star Ron Jeremy. The episode in question finds Chappelle envisioning what the Internet would be like if it were a physical location like a mall. After raiding the “Free Downloads” store for music, he meets Jeremy, who invites him into the world of pornography. The trouble is that Jeremy, who moonlights as a standup comic and reality TV presence, was recently charged with over ...
The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special Trailer Has Baby Yoda, Shirtless Kylo Ren, and Everyone Else: Watch
Four decades after the wonderful disaster that was the Star Wars Holiday Special, Lucasfilm is taking another crack at bringing the seasonal spirit to a galaxy far, far away — this time with LEGO. On November 17th, the LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special will premiere on Disney+, and as the new trailer reveals, just about everyone is coming to the party. The animated event is centered around Rey, who on her way to a Life Day celebration with the other sequel trilogy characters, ends up finding a key to time itself. As she and BB-8 spiral back through the galaxy’s past, she runs into the New Hope version of her master, Luke Skywalker himself. When her grandfather, Emperor Palpatine, and his apprentice, Darth Vader, catch wind of the time-travel key, they set their sights on altering the fut...
What’s Streaming on Netflix in November 2020
Netflix is bringing the royalty in November 2020. The highly anticipated fourth season of The Crown premieres mid-month to much hype. Oscar winner Olivia Colman returns as Queen Elizabeth, only this time she’ll duke it out with Gillian Anderson’s portrayal of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. That’s not all! America’s own queen Dolly Parton is bringing her holiday special Christmas on the Square to the streaming giant on November 22nd. So, expect to spend Thanksgiving down in Tennessee for a little country get-together. Elsewhere, there’s the hilarious new sketch comedy series Aunty Donna’s Big Ol’ House of Fun, Shawn Mendes’ world tour documentary, Ron Howard’s star-studded Hillbilly Elegy, and, yes, Kurt Russell’s return in The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two. Editors’ Picks In term...
Lori Loughlin Is a “Wreck” After First Days in Prison: Report
On October 30th, Lori Loughlin began serving a two-month prison sentence for her part in the largest college admissions scandal in American history. So far, it’s not going well — according to Us Weekly, the former star of Full House is said to be a total “wreck.” Loughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli pleaded guilty to paying $500,000 in bribes to get their daughters accepted into the University of Southern California. The 56-year-old actress prepared to serve her time by hiring a prison coach and learning martial arts, but it doesn’t seem to have helped. According to one source, “Lori really went into prison strong, she had her faith and the support of her family, but the first few days and road ahead are daunting.” Another source who called her a “wreck” explained Loug...
Julian Casablancas Gifted John Mulaney His Trench Coat and Accidentally Left His Sunglasses in Them
John Mulaney returned to host Saturday Night Live on Halloween this past weekend, and he walked away with perhaps the coolest Julian Casablancas costume. Well, sort of. The Strokes served as the evening’s musical guest, and after wrapping up the episode, the frontman gifted Mulaney the same hip trench coat he wore during the band’s performance. The stand-up comedian relayed the fashion anecdote during a lengthy and super entertaining interview on Late Night with Seth Meyers that aired on Monday. He also wore the coat for the entire duration — that’s over 20 minutes! — of their chat. As Mulaney told it, it all started when he noticed Casablancas sporting a neat Knicks jacket while shooting SNL promos. “I said, ‘That’s a really cool jacket, I gotta get that jacket,’...
