Comic Relief: %@*!!$$ New Orleans

Cafe Society
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First off, any relief for NOLA is good for me, beloved second hometown, and all aid is absolutely so needed now.

But, man, did anyone else see the HBO Comedy Relief Special last night? I was at an out of town conference, and, in that hotel situ, TV is like candy to me, dont see it much otherwise…So, the Comedy Relief Special to raise money for NOLA…nice. Robin Williams, a bit too distracting hyper, but, still, good bits, Go Ahead; Whoopi Goldberg, apt at keeping her two cohorts together and introducing bro and sister entertainers with aplomb: Billy Crystal, doing what he does best as an MC…

But, wow, it really was a bleepfest from the TBS broadcast I was allowed in the hotel room. Couldn’t get HBO. Every other word was bleeped, to the point that Whoopie noted it halfway through the broadcast. I was disapointed because there were so many comedians I wanted to hear that were bleeped…TBS. For this broadcast, they just seemed to builld on it for laughs.

I guess my ?is, is that the norm for HBO. I’m OK with it, no problem with obscenity at all. But, this show was really delighting in all the bleeps. What have I missed, and, where can I view the whole dang event sans censor?

Also: New Orleans Needs Help Now!!
http://www.comicrelief.org/this_years_show/default.htm

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About the only thing you missed was a lot of “f*cks”. Even Ray Romano chimed in with a couple of f-bombs.

I didn’t think the show was that good overall. I would imagine Dane Cook’s monologue was one big bleep. That gets tiring after a while.

And what possessed TBS to simulcast this event anyway?

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I haven’t lived in New Orleans in years, but I started performing while I lived there and am currently in regular contact with New Orleans performers who moved back to the city as soon as they could so they could get things moving again.

I know musicians and comics activly involved in reviving the entertainment community so that when the much needed tourists creep back into the city to spend money that the city desperately needs, those visitors are actually welcomed with the kind of entertainment they’ve come to expect from New Orleans.

The performers living in New Orleans, working hard to breath life back into the city, were not happy with Comic Relief- if those I spoke to are at all representative.

The big gripe is that the City of New Orleans is currently capable of supporting an event like this. Voodoo Fest, just three weeks ago, was a huge success. Comic Relief could have been held in New Orleans- and if the goal is to help New Orleans then why not???

The show was scheduled as a part of the Las Vegas Comedy Festival, something that all the A-List celebrity comics would have been at anyway. It didn’t take any real effort on their part to do a set for free at a highly publicized event being aired to millions of viewers.

It could have easily been scheduled not to conflict with the LV Comedy Fest and the show could have been put on in New Orleans. Performance spaces are available, the hotels are there and in need of paying guests, the restaurants are there and in need of patrons.

It’s not like the show would not have had to rely only on locals to buy tickets. Lots of people traveled to New orleans for Voodoo Fest. Publicized well enough and people would have travelled to New Orleans and bought tickets for Comic Relief- not that ticket sales even represent the bulk of the money raised.
The second gripe is the lack of New Orleans performers on the bill. Not that the local talent were just wishing for their big break, they’d have been happy to see celebrities, who may no longer live in New Orleans but, who at least have a New Orleans background. New Orleans talent was ignored.

And while at it, why the hell not a little local talent? There certainly were comics on the bill who are not “famous”. There were plenty of major celebs to attract attention to the show. If there are going to be a few unknowns on the bill anyway, why not unknowns who are actually from New Orleans?
Sure, New Orleanians are happy for anything that brings attention to the fact that they are still very much in need. Yes money raised from this event will make it to New Orleans in some way or another eventually, if a little diluted. But the event was not put on with any New Orleans spirit. Why not celebrate the city your claiming to want to help?

Not really what the OP was looking for, but when I saw the Thread title **Comic Relief: %@!!$$ New Orleans ** the first thing I though of was "Comic Relief: %@!!$$ New Orleans, indeed".

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I wondered about why the event was in Las Vegas as well. I would have thought that bringing the venue to New Orleans would have boosted the economy for the businesses and residents that have returned to the area.

Overall, I’ll give them an “E” for effort.

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Maybe that was the point. You get a lot more A-Lister when you make it easy for them to be there. Not sure why it’s important that they make an effort.

Just because people travel for the Voodoo Fest doesn’t mean they’ll travel for Comic Relief.

Still, holding it in NO would be a direct boost to the economy. But maybe being able to have more A-Listers compensates for that.

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bienville Thanks for that post. I know a lot of NOLA artists as well, some who’ve come back, some who won’t for awhile. Family there, too.

Yep, I thought it was pretty piss poor in the lack of NOLA artists, too. They did have a live feed to the Quarter, but it was pretty sad. They had the local Radiators as a band, but didn’t let them play beyond a very few notes. The audience was cordoned off and sitting down. No real NOLA players whupping things up.

Billy Crystal did a long soliloquy, as a Black blues musician character. I’m not sure what to think of it. On the one hand, it was well-written, and meant to tug at heartstrings, and he pulled it off beter than most actors could have. On the Other, it was obnoxious to have him puff out his lips and be a cartoon Blues Guy. What pissed me off most was when the Preservation Jazz Band came on stage to back him up, and there was no buildup to who they were; a scant thanks at the end of the show. The rescued dog (Bless him) got more stage attention.

Guess it’s just Hollywoodish-ish-ness. I’m glad that money was raised, and can see the logistics of doing it in Las vegas, but, shit, if you so amazingly creative, be creative in a real useful sense.