Ç I AM REALLY REALLY HAPPY ABOUT THIS, MANU | Main | SON OF RAMBOW È
May 21, 2008
LEWIS BLACK NEEDS A NAP
I've always been struck dumb by the lingering public adoration of stand-up comics. For every good one, there are a hundred wretched ones. For every genuine funny storyteller like Bill Cosby, there's a talentless shock-schlock hack like Carlos Mencia. Even though sometimes you get the biting intelligence of Bill Hicks, you may have to endure the phenomenally awful Dane Cook. My favorite stand-up comic ever is Mitch Hedberg, who failed to make Comedy Central's idiotic 100 Greatest Standups List. I liked Hedberg for the same reason I like Jerry Seinfeld: he seemed bemused by the idea of making jokes, surprised that people found his observations funny, and not necessarily in love with the idea of himself. There wasn't much of a persona to either of those guys. Unlike number 51 on that inane list, Lewis Black.
Stand-up comics everywhere have found a target rife for controversial attacks: religion. David Cross sold CDs by laying into people who he has obviously never met, or wants to meet, lest it keeps him from ridiculing them (and I still love ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT and MR. SHOW all the same). Cross assumes a logic about religion and then attacks that. It is uninformed at best which, I suppose, is why it's kind of funny. Well, Lewis (no relation) has now released a book that takes on organized religion. I've never liked Black's schtick. It's arrogant and loud, and he likes to think he's got savage intelligence when all he's doing is taking obvious pot-shots at straw-men. He comes off as a guy who doesn't like people, and finds all their ideas stupid, for no good reason. He seems mean, which I'm sure he would take as a compliment. Whenever he comes on THE DAILY SHOW, I want to turn him off.
I haven't read it, but I will now sum up the entire book in one sentence.
"IIf you're a Christian, 'm smarter than you because I don't believe in God. Idiot."
If I'm wrong, let me know.
There was a Halloween episode of the Simpsons where, for a number of reasons involving Y2K, a rocket full of of annoying celebrities is shot to the sun. I often find myself thinking about who I would choose to put on this rocket. Lewis Black, come on board. Dane Cook, step to the back. Stephen A. Smith, there's no meal on this flight, so you're going to have to find something else to do with your big stupid mouth. All of you American Idol jerks, you can have the three seats together.
I have few doubts that Lewis Black is, at heart, a sad person whose vitriol comes from a deep-seated misery and hatred that even his success hasn't mollified. He likes Sam Harris, an atheist who has made a living attacking a religion he knows nothing about the history of. There are people who call him, as they are calling Harris, brave for expressing his contrarian views , but I don't think so: I think he is an opportunistic coward trying to make money.
| By Andytown | 02:04 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://memphisblogs.org/mt/mt-tb.cgi/537
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference LEWIS BLACK NEEDS A NAP: