I can’t speak for anyone else but I like Comedy Central. It’s the only channel that I can be fairly certain that whatever’s on will be tolerable enough to bear watching. I do wish they had more content to rotate, yes, but I think they do a reasonably good job. Most limited-theme channels do have a lot of repeated or similar content - hell, the History Channel is pretty much always WWII documentaries, and Discovery seems to play mostly true crime shows these days.
I guess maybe I do enjoy SNL and Conan reruns… I hardly ever have a chance to watch them at their regular times. Not to mention, of course, the Daily Show, South Park, and Insomniac, and even Who’s Line is it Anyway shows from the UK.
If you get Trio, they show old Late Night shows at 10 pm. They’ve had a couple of marathons–one on Thanksgiving weekend and another just recently. It was fantastic!
That’s more than you can say for MTV and Sci-Fi channel. Even the History channel seems to be more into technology and engineering than actual histoyr (and what they do have is pretty bad).
And I watch their Conan. I don’t like him enough to stay up late, or set my VCR, but more than enough to tune in on early evenings when I’m not doing anything better.
Really, my only complaint about SNL is they tend to rerun the same SNL’s at the same time slots. When I go home on lunch break, I tend to turn on the tv and watch Comedy Central. They only show the same 10 episodes or so from around 1989-90. Over. And over. And over. :-\
This is a pretty minor gripe, though. Still kicks the crap out of most other cable channels.
Two things:
-I second the “At least they are not showing anything from the Charlie Rocket years”, but I would like to see his impersonation of Reagan where he drops the f-bomb.
-Bring back Kids in the Hall, maybe reruns of The State or Viva Variety!, (or even MST3K) but for the love of all that is holy, do NOT give the Bert Fershners their own show.
Maybe we can get these repeated on the new Straight Dope Comedy Channel? I second The State and SCTV (especially the episodes featuring Bob & Doug McKenzie)
Oh my holy god. Homebrew remembers The Bert Fershners, too! I’m not alone! That Mp3 of “Tube Tops” wasn’t made by elves! The Fershners are really real! It’s been confirmed! Ha!
Do you remember the half-hour special they had on CC five or six years ago? I’d kick a dozen puppies for a tape of that. Funny, funny guys.
Mojo, Rocket dropped the F-bomb during a Dallas parody that ran the length of the show. Or at least that’s what he said in the new SNL book I got for Christmas.
Ahhh “The New Show” Steve Martin’s Billie Jean still runs thru my head and brings a smile. And to date I will place my hand on my head and imitate the hair-standing-on-end bit that was The Frightened Family. And Okra Cola! The drink that turns your mouth green!
It all comes down to dearth of material. Of all forms of public entertainment, comedy is the hardest, the most demanding, the most utterly draining of forms. Take, for instance, those endless recyclings of stand-up comics, some of whom are moderately entertaining. Most of them are at least three years old, some older, and 90% of the people you are watching have given up worshipping the Bitch Goddess and gone on to day jobs.
Being funny is damn hard work, and few people really have the knack for it. When you see a “new comic”, “fresh” off the circuit, he does his very best half hours worth of material. He’s a hit! Great! Except he’s shot his wad, that half hour probably took a couple years worth of honing and refining. He doesn’t have a second half hour of quality stuff. And unless he gets back in your face right now with stuff just as good that you haven’t heard, you will forget him.
SNL is on forever because its packaged, ready to go. Got “comedy” stamped on the box, so they know. “Need another hour of comedy!” “Here’s one! Says so right here”.
While you’re looking for things that CC ought to show, I nominate Codco’s TV show, which is one of the most outrageous sketch comedy programs ever made. (The only reason I ever saw Kids in the Hall, at first, was that CBC had the good sense to schedule it immediately after Codco on Thursday nights. At first, I just watched it “because it was there”, but it seemed kind of pale and watered down next to Codco. Of course, KITH got better, and Codco eventually sort of lost momentum – especially after Andy Jones left the show after perceived censorship issues.)
I’ve heard it argued that Codco is “too Canadian” to appeal to an international audience. Only if Monty Python is “too British,” I say.
The joy that comes of seeing King Edward VIII and Wallace Simpson have their butler pump martinis up their asses while they mull over the whole abdication thing is universal. “Shall I insert the spigot directly into your mouth, madame?” “No, I prefer a rectal tube, actually.” “Yes, rectally, I think.”
The faux documentary James Joyce Ruined My Life is the smartest bit of literary humour I’ve ever seen.