March 3, 2003
HUMORLESS:
COMIC TURN: Dennis Miller scales the Rushmore of wrong-headedness (BARRY CRIMMINS, Boston Phoenix)I have received several e-mails about Dennis Miller spewing hatred on The Tonight Show a few days ago. From what I’m told, he expressed great contempt for the French and total disdain for the well-being of innocents in Iraq. I believe the letters because I have seen him express similar Jurassic views on other programs. We thought he had bottomed out when he became the sportscasting equivalent of William Shatner/lounge singer, but it now appears he won’t be happy until he gets a show on the Fox News Channel.I used to write for Miller in 1992, when he had a syndicated talk show. During the program’s one season, Miller went from endorsing Jerry Brown to becoming a big Ross Perot supporter. A political impulse-buyer, his ideological cannon was never lashed very securely to the deck. Over the years, the cannon somehow became lodged on the starboard side of the vessel. Each time Miller receives a paycheck, he seems to take it to a bank further to the right of the last one. And now, more than a decade since I wrote my last joke for the man, I can only watch in stupefaction as this once hip and inside comic completes his transformation into a lout whose act sounds as if it were ghostwritten by George Jessel. Actually, that’s not fair ... to George Jessel.
Dennis Miller was always decent to me. He gave me a chance, and I appreciated it, but he has become so obstinately wrong of late that I am left with no choice but to comment.
One thing that has long differentiated Mr. Miller from fellow comics is not his politics but that he's funny. That is, as we've long argued, because his comedy is and has been fundamentally conservative. All that's happened now is that his personal politics have caught up to his schtick. Posted by Orrin Judd at March 3, 2003 11:15 AM
Barry said it in the last paragrah: "I am left..."
Posted by: genecis at March 3, 2003 2:37 PMIf Mr. Crimmins were smart and/or funny, he'd use this forum to write a funny article and win a few fans. He seems to think that in the comic world, people rise due to their gravity.
You didn't quote the most vicious parts of the article:
He has actually become so vile that he is not even suitable company in Hollywood. . . . he’d better watch himself — he could be headed toward a 21st-century version of Hitler’s "Night of the Long Knives."
Haven't read the article but the excerpt seems to imply that Crimmons thinks Miller is just wrong. Ironically, most of red state America agrees with Miller, not Crimmons, and that only in loony left enterntainment circles is this a bad thing for Miller.
Posted by: AWW at March 3, 2003 3:40 PMBarry: "Dennis Miller was always decent to me. He gave me a chance, and I appreciated it, but ..."
Let this be a lesson to you folks ... when you help out a DIMocRAT / Liberal, you're asking for the ultimate in lack of loyalty.
First, you are right, OJ, Dennis Miller happens to be one of the funniest comics around. His latest show on HBO was fantastic. I don't understand why it was cancelled.
The guy who "wrote his jokes" ten years ago, where is he now, who is he now, who was he ever?
He sounds jealous and mad, and frankly, completely irrelevant.
Orrin,
I agree with PJ--you missed the best part of the article. But I'm glad that Mr. Crimmins is keeping an eye out for next mass purging of stand-up comics.
I guess I missed the last one, but it does explain what happened to Gallagher and Rodney Allen Rippey...
Ed
You can see why Miller no longer employs Mr. Crimmins here
.
pj:
Wow! This guy sucks.
I'm a conservative/libertarian and everything, but I feel like the more conservative these guys become, the less funny they become. That goes for both Millers, Dennis and Larry.
Maybe they'll get back to being funny once they've gotten accustomed to being conservative.
Thanks for the link PJ. It doesn't say much for Miller that he gave this guy a chance. Where's the funny? He's tomato-throwing bad.
Posted by: NKR at March 4, 2003 2:15 AMI worked with Crimmins a few times
in the 80s. I actually witnessed, at a gig
in Martha's Vineyard, Crimmins berate a
guy in the front row because the guy was
drinking Coors. As we all know, Coors is
non-union. He's a self-righteous windbag
who lost sight of what's funny loooong ago.