O'Brien and New Jersey Mayor Turn Conflict into Comedy

Talk show host Conan O'Brien and Newark Mayor Cory Booker called it a truce on "The Tonight Show."
The dispute began last month when O’Brien joked that the mayor’s health plan for residents consisted of “a bus ticket out of Newark.”
Many politicians respond angrily when a comedian insults them or their constituency. Most recently, David Letterman and Sarah Palin had a war of words over a joke aimed at Palin's daughter.
However, Booker took a different route and responded with a little joke of his own.

Smart move. Reacting with a timely and humorous response shows that the mayor knows how to laugh, but that he also has the guts to defend his city.
Booker appeared on O'Brien's show on October 12.
“Many jokes are made about Newark by comedians,” O’Brien said on Friday’s show. “You honed in on me like a cruise missile. Why me, Mayor Booker?”
“When there’s a herd going after you, you have to sort of look at the weakest gazelle,” Booker joked.
O'Brien and Booker worked off one another like a comic duo.
Attempting to make peace, Conan introduced an oversized Newark Joke Jar, in which he can insert $500 whenever he makes a joke about Newark.
"You can rest assured that the money’s safe because the jar isn’t in Newark!" he cracked, before immediately going to dump cash in the oversized Jar, referring to Newark's high crime rates.
After the commercial break, things got a little more serious, and Booker got a chance to discuss many of his crime reduction initiatives in Newark. Conan concluded by donating, with the help of NBC, $100,000 to Booker’s Newark Now charity.
When it became clear that O'Brien was about to say that he would be making a donation to Booker's charity, I never expected him to give the actual figure. He seemed uncomfortable saying that he was personally giving $50,000.
"It was a joke," said Conan. "And, man, was it expensive."
I think it is refreshing to see a politician with a sense of humor.
So do you think Booker's response was appropriate or do you think he should have responded in a different manner?
See you tomorrow night!

No Joke: David Letterman Affair

The David Letterman affair is not a joke.

Or maybe it is to him.

Talk show host David Letterman apologized on-air to his wife and his staff for having relationships with his female co-workers on The Late Show.
This hot topic in the media of Letterman's hypocrisy about sex in the workplace has apparently boosted his ratings.
I find it despairing that one can be "rewarded" for immoral behavior in this modern society.

Letterman said he has been subjected to "being browbeaten and humiliated" by reporters since his revelations.

He claims to being the victim amidst all of the scandal.What about his staff? What about his wife?

Analysts say they don't expect Letterman's personal behavior to prompt his fans to abandon him.

His apologies attested to another big night in the ratings. The Nielsen Co.'s measurement of the nation's 56 biggest markets gave Letterman's show a 4.2 rating, higher than any rival to an NBC prime-time show.

After years of mocking public figures for their sexual indiscretions, Letterman faces scrutiny for his own behavior.
In June, Letterman had a feud with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin over jokes made at the expense of her teenage daughter.
"There is irony here," commentator Michelle Malkin said on the Fox News morning show "Fox & Friends."
"It's hard not to have a smidge of schadenfreude for somebody who's shown contempt for women in public, in his monologues continuously and repeatedly, especially over the campaign, and how he's treated Sarah Palin and her family."

Letterman has straddled the line between remorse and humor ever since he revealed that he was the victim of an extortion plot by a CBS News employee, who threatened to expose his sexual affairs.

Although Letterman offered a sincere apology concerning his affair, he is dealing with the affair like he deals with all serious subjects: humor.

During one of his recent opening monologues, Letterman noted the cool fall weather.
"It's chilly outside my house; chilly INSIDE my house," he said.
Later on the show, guest Steve Martin gave Letterman his kidding consolation. "It proves that you're a human being. And we weren't really that sure before."
Martin Short, making an unannounced appearance, playfully sat on Martin's lap.

"You spend one more minute on his lap, you're gonna get blackmailed," Letterman joked.
So what do you think? Is Dave dealing with the situation in the right manner?
See you tomorrow night!

Kanye's Apologetic Appearance

Although it was "The Jay Leno Show's" big prime-time debut on September 14 , Kanye West undoubtedly stole some of the limelight from the host as he announced that he will be taking time off for reflection.


Only one day after the singer interrupted 19-year-old country superstar Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards, a repentant West made an appearance on Leno's new show to deliver an apology. West interrupted Swift as she accepted a best female video award for "You Belong With Me," arguing that Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" video was more deserving.

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Beyoncé, the gracious and humble woman she is, called Swift back on stage when she won video of the year, noting that she has had her share of award-show moments.
Before the MTV Video Music Awards even came to an end, West had already issued an all-caps apology to Swift and her mother on his blog.

"It was rude, period," West said on Leno.
West posted a second apology to Swift on his blog on Monday, and told Leno he wanted to apologize to the country music star in person.

West had already been scheduled to perform on Leno's first prime-time show on NBC, but after the surging controversy, West asked for time to talk. And everyone wanted to hear what West had to say.
Leno was quick to reference the West incident with one of his first monologue jokes, saying that President Barack Obama had invited West and Swift for a “root beer summit.”
"Without Kanye West and his conveniently-timed controversy from the MTV Video Music Awards, NBC's Jay Leno Show premiere Monday would have been even more of a cut-rate, snooze-inducing, rehashed bore," wrote Robert Blanco of USA Today.
The debut of the 10 p.m. comedy show was seen by 18.4 million viewers. That's 9.2 million more viewers than Conan O'Brien's debut of the "Tonight Show," and 6.5 million more viewers than Leno's final "Tonight Show" last May.
I guess we will have to stick around to see if West's career will tank, and if Leno's show will remain a hit.

See you tomorrow night!