Last Comic Standing '04 (Episode 2)

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on June 10th, 2004

Who made it in from the second group of 20?


Timm Young
Marina Franklin
Monte Hoffman
John Heffron
Gary Gullman
Kerry Louise
Dan Adhoot
Dan Naturman
Tammy Pescatelli
Jay London

Random impressions:

The most shocked people in the building: Tom Cotter, Will Durst, Jim Wiggins, Frank Santorelli.

You know, a long time ago, comics usta start out in strip clubs. Thing is, back then, they were COMICS! How badly does NBC want ratings that they would put a stripper on the first two shows, just so you can do a “profile” and show her sleazing on a pole in a strip club. That spot could’ve been taken by someone who can actually do comedy. We understand how television works, but this is low.

Hmmm… Let’s see… I wanna stock a “reality” house with comics… but I don’t want them to skew too old… so… I got it! I’ll whack the 40 comics into two groups of 20, I’ll only take half of each of each group and I’ll put all the old ones into the first group! that way, I’m guaranteed that those pesky 20-year+ pros won’t be dominating the house! It’s pure genius!

Sad to hear that Tammy Pescatelli’s dad is in the hospital. We met him once and he’s a swell guy. Hope he had a speedy recovery.

Kerry Louise made it to Vegas. Hubby Tom Cotter did not. Just last month, Louise washed out in the first round of the the Boston Comedy Competition, Cotter won the whole thing. Fickle beasts, these competitions!

We predicted that Gary Gullman would make it to the house. He’s going to Vegas. The final tally: Five of the nine we predicted would end up in the house are at least going to Vegas. Perhaps after Vegas, we’ll predict who goes all the way! Stay tuned!

Wait for the fireworks in Vegas.!

Who made it in from the first group of 20?

Sue Costello
Jessica Kirson
Todd Glass
DC Benny
Kathleen Madigan
Corey Holcomb
Jim Norton
Bonnie McFarlane
Ant
Alonzo Bodden

We predicted that Santorelli, Ramey, Francisco and Durst would make it into the house. All of them are gone! We did, however, predict that Glass, Madigan, McFarlane and Bodden would make it into the house. So, we’re not doing that bad. We’re going to watch the second group now. We heard Jay Mohr interviewed on a local television station the other day. He said that a 20-year veteran “wets his pants.” Of course, he didn’t mean literally. But we’re anxious to see who he was referring to.

There’s a lot of anger out there concerning this here reality show. It seems everybody’s got an opinion. We got a chuckle out of one website (that seems to be obsessed with L.C.S.) and their descriptions: “Ralphie May— morbidly obese with a hint of hip-hop flavor, Tere Joyce— a whacked out emotional mess with a crazy look” and “Sean Kent— Southerner with cancer.” (Keep in mind, we’re dealing with a website that uses the phrases “developmental deal” and “executively produced.”)

As we reported this past winter on this very Like We Care page, there was some controversy surrounding LCS. It seems that the celebrity judges at the Las Vegas portion of this season’s L.C.S. were frosted that their votes for whom they felt were the strongest comics (and whom they thought deserved to go to The House) were overrided by the producers of the show.

From MSNBC.com, March 8, 2004:

NBC executives insisted that (Drew) Carey, (Brett) Butler and two other judges– Anthony Clark of the sitcom “Yes, Dear” and Tess Drake, a finalist from last summer’s “Last Comic” were not the only ones involved in the final “casting” process.

NBC said it was up to network brass and producers to decide who made the cut, weighing the opinions of the celebrity panel as just one factor. An NBC spokeswoman said a disclaimer to that effect airs as part of the show’s credits.

And this, from the Drew Carey fan site, LiveDrew.com:

“It’s not about who’s funniest,” Carey continued. “They were casting it. The producers can change the outcome of the show whenever they wish. Why would they have a contest and judges if they were just going to cast it anyway? I thought the whole thing stunk, and I’m mad they had my name associated with it… I’ve got a certain amount of integrity in this business and I’m not going to be compromised… You can’t use me and my reputation. Do it with someone else’s reputation… You can’t have a contest and then have this loop hole… I’m talking to protect myself. I don’t care if (the producers) are mad at me, if NBC is mad at me. I’ve got nothing to lose… It just seems like such a travesty.”

Stay tuned for more commentary tonight!