His mainstream career is finished for the time being, but he is talented enough that I think he will still have a strong niche following.
Its too bad he blew all his money, because now his daughters are the ones who are going to suffer from his new life of poverty.
Maybe you’re being sarcastic, but I’m pretty sure dude is still loaded.
He has mentioned blowing all his money repeatedly in the past both in stand up and interviews.
Maybe he squirreled away a couple million, which for any financially responsible person would be more than enough to get them through the last 30 years of their life. But CK talks a lot about blowing his money as fast as it comes in.
Richards only retired because he genuinely felt bad about what he did. I seen him on Jerry’s Comedians in Cars show. Jerry was trying to convince Richards to get back out there, and Richards was basically like: “Nope. Don’t deserve that privilege anymore”.
What CK is doing is way worse in my opinion.
…comedians go back and do sets at clubs all the time. Even comedians who have acclaimed TV shows and stand-up specials and have been a revered talent for ten years. Its how they test new material. Its how they refine their acts.
You said “an attempt at a comeback”, not a “comeback.” There is a distinction. And it is an attempt at a comeback. I think he’s finished as well. But I don’t think Louis thinks that he is.
I mean, Dennis “feral rat colony in a human skin suit” Miller still exists and makes a tidy living doing live shows, so “finished” is a matter of perspective, really.
Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock still do sets in small New York clubs to hone their material for the tours where they actually make their money. Louis would be doing these clubs anyway even in nothing had happened.
He was also a pioneer in selling his specials directly to the audience. He can 4 wall theaters and comedy clubs around the nation and sell his specials directly to his audience. As long as his fans stick with him he can still make a good living doing stand up. I think people who liked him when he was joking about pedophilia and dropping n bombs on Chris Rock’s show will forgive him for lese majeste against the Stoneman Douglas students.
I was a huge fan of his for many years, purchased his specials, and saw him live four or five times. I’m no longer a fan, but it’s not because of these latest jokes, it’s because he violated the consent of women on multiple occasions and doesn’t appear to feel any need to make full amends to those women, or to make society better with regards to sexual assault and abuse, before he tries to resurrect his public career. I don’t particularly care that much about these latest jokes aside from them demonstrating that he feels no need for serious and significant contrition and betterment after admitting to doing such awful things.
Yeah, he’s lost a big chunk of his fan base. He’ll never Have the artistic status he once had. Some of his bro base will stay with him because they’re horrible, but the days when networks and studios give him big projects are over.
One problem he faces right now is that every thing he does is being scrutinized. Normally, a comic works on new material in small venues. And new material is by nature rough and unfinished. He traditionally tried to set himself the challenge of making jokes work from really tough subjects. But that takes working and reworking the material until you get it right, or abandon it. In the past, he could do this away from the prying eyes and ears of the public. But now he doesn’t have that luxury. Sucks to be him.
I mean, he’s still richer than most sexual predators (and most non-sexual predators, for that matter).
I don’t think the takes that he’s transitioning into an alt-right comedian are correct. His latest hour, IMO, was mostly well crafted an in-line with the rest of his career.
His bit about identification was bad and unwarranted but a very small part of the set. I don’t really have a problem with school shooting jokes, and I think his jokes were a bit more self aware than commentators are giving him credit more. The humor, IMO, was more about how clueless CK is and how sad it is that kids are put in the position to testify in front of congress. “You’re only famous because you pushed a fat kid in front of you” was just feeding that. Kinda like Bill Burr’s bit about how victims of domestic violence probably did something to get hit.
Still think Louis’ “comeback” is way too soon and without any real penance/coming to terms with his past behavior.
I strongly suspect CKs real view on the last few years* would engender much more outrage then we’ve seen lately. Whether its this or the Rock stuff. What’s mildly amusing is the stuff he said with Rock is being overshadowed by what came out a couple of years ago and this latest mess.
*I suspect it would go something like this:
“What do I have to show penance for? I’ve said I’m sorry. What do you want me to do? You want me to eat shit on live TV? You want me to swallow a spoon full of human shit for each person I’ve wronged? Cause that’s a lot of shit. I’m a bad person. I’m a fucked up person. I’ve never claimed otherwise. Does that mean I don’t have a right to try and earn a living? I don’t have a right anymore to have an opinion on anything? You want me to grovel to the internet mob who preface every fucking comment on me with ‘well-off white man’? I’m white. I can’t help that.Sorry I’m not Danny Trejo or Snoop Dog or Don King. Maybe i should have murdered someone instead of jacking off. Just kidding Danny. Don’t machete me.”
Given that the whole masturbating in front of people thing was a topic of his humor that everyone figured was just random musing about nothing in particular, and ended up being something that he actually practiced, I’d be concerned about any other sexual musings the man might be throwing into his act.
Eh, maybe. Nobody is owed a high profile comedy career. It’s my understanding that his attempt at rehabilitation is to privately apologize and publicly call the accusations lies until it wasn’t working anymore. Then an op-ed. Maybe he’s behind the scenes promoting shows or projects of people he wronged, I dunno. I suppose if he did that, making a show of it would make it ring hollow and seem self serving.
Regarding Louie being a fucked up person, that’s true, but I definitely think he tended to portray himself as actually decent. He has a rape bit that I thought was fantastic. It’s pretty simple: https://youtu.be/TLUy1viw3ro?t=155
That bit only works if you think Louie is fundamentally decent because it’s playing on the absurdity of what he is saying. He’s not going to get the benefit of the doubt now. A good person saying shitty things to poke fun at the shitty things is funny. A shitty person saying shitty things isn’t.
Kanye West, Bill Burr to some extent perhaps.
Ironically both are in interracial marriages.
…yeah ok that’s not irony.
In Louis C.K.'s standup set from a night or two ago, he seemingly defended his behavior by “joking”, “Well, yeah, I like to jerk off and I don’t like to be alone, so what?”
Clearly a contrite, humbled, chastened man, not an arrogant, self-pitying piece of shit.
alt-right? lol…
I don’t think Louie is becoming an alt-right comedian, but I worry his fan base is becoming alt-right. I spend some time on a louis ck forum, have for years, and his fan base has changed quite a bit compared to a few years ago. Now I see a lot more angry incels. Some of them seem to celebrate CK’s behavior.
It sucks. He is now a lightning rod for people fighting over issues unrelated to his comedy. He’d probably be better off going back into hiding for a few years.
What he did was wrong, but he actually came forward about it, which earns him a few points in my book.
However he only came forward after denying the rumors for years, and after letting his manager threaten his victims for him.