20stew395.jpgOscar ratings were dramatically down this year. This despite all the George Clooney pimping, the red dresses, and Sean Penn’s new arm candy. While the writers’ strike is rumored to be the primary culprit of ABC’s bad fortune in a year that was ripe with downer nominees, some fault needs to be shifted to the downright lack of charisma of the show’s host, Jon Stewart. Considering I had to wait till 10:50 PM before there was one comment that made me chuckle and that it’s all but erased from my memory, it can’t bode well for Stewart’s wittiness. Yeah, yeah, writers’ strike and there were 5 writers that had pitch in to write the telecast this year and they had fast turnaround given time restrictions, but isn’t Stewart a comedian after all? If Tina Fey can pull off of the more memorable SNL episodes to hit the tube in a long time, can’t Stewart work some magic? I always thought Stewart was a little bit of a whiny sissy anyways, but maybe he lacks that bitch is the new black factor after all…

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beth

16 Comments

  • froylein… “same procedure every year..” do u mean like in passover seders and Day of Atonement ceremonies? ooops… nope.. u mean the Oscars. sorry, my mistake

  • Larry, things get drab when the cover starts losing content people can relate to. There are people who cannot relate to religious customs / ceremonies just as there are people to who those customs / ceremonies are meaningful. The Oscars used to be the film award event, now there seems to be some kind of film award event or another every weekend.

  • Yes… I am still trying to get a tv network or cable niche station to broadcast my annual DARYL AWARDS ceremony, in which we give a statue to the best Jewish films of the year. Our clip segment in 2008 will be historial uses of binoculars and yiddish accents in English language films

  • I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, hosting the Oscars is a thankless job. There’s no way to do a 3-4-hour broadcast where so much of the content is boring and do it in a way that’s new and exciting. Ellen, Chris Rock, Stewart, even Billy Crystal…these are very highly-skilled, funny people. But the Oscars are an institution, and institutions aren’t good with change or innovation, generally speaking.

    And given the months of “will they have an Oscars or won’t they” because of the writers’ strike, I think Jon did a fine job. Who can forget the failed campaign of Gaydolph Titler? (Within an hour of the broadcast, there was already a t-shirt, courtesy of Bangitout.)

    BTW, you know something else Jewish people like? Jon Stewart.

  • Gaydolph Titler was ridiculous.

    Speaking of something else Jewish people like? Being self-depricating to the point of self-loathing!

  • The writers strike was probably a factor in Stewart’s heart not being in the production. We’re all talented when we really want to be, and very capable of being unimpressive and boring when we hate whoever is wicked enough to be watching our evil show, when it does seem wrong.

  • Yoseph! First of all, Mazal Tov! Mazal Tov!! I can’t even begin to address what you are writing here. Go take care of your new baby and her Mom. Who cares about Jon Stewart??? What’s an Oscar compared to a new baby girl?

  • Stewart did fine. Who watches the Oscars for the host, anyway? When he brought Marketa Irglova back out to say her thanks, though… *sigh*.
    I say funny, self-deprecating, intelligent sweetheart with integrity, you say whiny sissy. Whatever. What do you get out of calling successful people ugly names anyway, beth?

  • oooh girl, don’t be dissing Jon Stewart on any blog Esther is involved with or you will find yourself writing little stories about Amy Winehouse on some blog that is even more obscure than Jewlicious.

  • don’t be dissing Jon Stewart on any blog Esther is involved with or you will find yourself writing little stories about Amy Winehouse on some blog that is even more obscure than Jewlicious.

    Ouch! And I might i add, “YUCK!”

    Is that your attempt at humor Chutzpah or are you really that bitter about Tom?

  • Bitter is the new black.

    (Come on…everything write here is meant only with love and respect (almost), even when I’m just venting bitchy hostile rage)

  • I actually have that exact one … all the pins are in one spot and my Ex still managed to knock-up his wife.