Has Dennis Miller lost his mind? (1 Viewer)

[MickeS]

After seeing him in his last two appearances on "The Tonight Show", I'm beginning to wonder. He keeps spouting anti-Arabic hate rhetoric, thinly disguised as "comedy". Not many people in the audience laughed, but he kept going anyway.

I've never liked him that much (he always seemed too nervous and insecure, for some reason), but at least he gave me some chuckles on his HBO show. This stuff was just embarrassing.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Probably just bitter about losing the MNF gig and his show on Showtime.

 

[Michael Reuben]

The last season of his HBO show was seriously marred by this new direction in Miller's presentation, to the point where I stopped watching. Anger can be a great source of comic inspiration, but Miller's is just coming out raw and unmediated.

(Patman, that's HBO, not Showtime. )

M.

 

[Patrick Sun]

You can tell I didn't make it a priority to watch Dennis Miller's show...

 

[Michael Reuben]

I'm shocked. Deeply shocked.

M.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Anyone got smelling salt?

 

[Moe Maishlish]

He keeps spouting anti-Arabic hate rhetoric, thinly disguised as "comedy".

And this is a new thing for stand-up comedians?!?

I'm not referring to anti-Arabic rhetoric in specific, but most stand-up comedians incorporate their social prejedices into their material for laughs. It appeals to the underbelly of humanity for cheap laughs at someone's expense.

I can't say that Dennis Miller ecorporates these points-of-view into his material any differently that 90% of the comedians out there today.

Look at George Carlin and his take of socio-policital critique in his routine. How about Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and Bernie Mac, and their material on African-American culture?

It's easy to single out a single one of these guys and criticize them for their methods, but we should take a moment to think of what the rest of the profession does before blasting one for the sins of the many.

Moe.

 

[Karl_Luph]

I've never have cared for this guy's humor.Ever. Never could see what everybody else thought he was funny. Just my 2 cents worth...

 

[Michael Reuben]

Look at George Carlin and his take of socio-policital critique in his routine. How about Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, and Bernie Mac, and their material on African-American culture?

The difference is that those guys are funny. Miller has ceased to be. And I say that as someone who watched every single episode of his HBO show.

M.

 

[Karl_Luph]

You're correct Michael. A real comedian is not only funny, but entertaining. Of course being funny looking can help too. Dennis Miller lacks all of these. I thought Monday Night Football producers were idoits for having him on there . What were they thinking?

 

[Jodee]

I have always loved Dennis Miller and found him hilarious, but in the last year or so I have found him to become a lot more reactionary in his political leanings and not very light-hearted and funny.

I really noticed it when he guested on Politically Incorrect last year and was a real ass. He was making fun of a guest who expressed concern about civil liberties and he kept joking about "a little thing called the Constitution". I couldn't believe it.

The old Dennis Miller would have been agreeing with him and sticking up for personal freedoms.

It was really bizarre.

 

[MickeS]

The main difference is that they joke about themselves, and about the things in their culture that they find funny, interesting, appalling or whatever, and they do it with a sense of love for the people they make jokes about. I realize that Usama Bin laden jokes don't need to show love for the man , but Jay Leno pulls them off without coming across as a hater of all things non-American, and he has made some really funny jokes about the middle east and what goes on there.

Miller's comments on the last few "Tonight Show" appearances have been about how stupid everyone else is, and not a lot of funny observations. He did make a few jokes I think (I remember one from last year where he said something about what the first thing the Founding Fathers would have done had a jet crashed into the White House would have been "apart from wondering, 'Who the hell just invented the jet?'"?), but mostly it was just a bunch of desperately unfunny remarks about why the US should wipe out every Arab and how dumb the Germans and the French are. This can be done in a funny way (Robin William's "French impersonations" in his HBO special recently were damn funny... "life is shit!" ), but when it seems to be based on some kind of seething hatred, it's not so funny.

I'm guessing he's headed for AM radio?

/Mike

 

[Ashley Seymour]

He keeps spouting anti-Arabic hate rhetoric, thinly disguised as "comedy".

I saw the two episodes and was also surprised at the level he took his jokes. But why do criticisms of terrorists get equated with anti-Arabic hate rhetoric. It is not much reported in the papers, but single males from Arab countries are finding it hard to get into America for any reason. You don't need to turn the military or the police on them. Just turn the bureaucrats loose and none will ever get in. I don't think Miller had anything to do with this.

I am not a fan of Dennis Miller's comedy and I thought his rants would turn off people. But I did not feel a strong anti-Arabic hate message though.

Dana Carvey was on Leno last night and was ripping on politicians. How many people are so sensitive about their party that they feel uncomfortable when he starts making jokes about someone they have voted for?

A commedian makes fun of things that are silly. If he/she doesn't get a laugh, then they realize they have missed the pulse of the audience. I used to love Andrew Dice Clay. He picked the wrong venue for his jokes and was not a social comic and enough people let him know it.

 

[MickeS]

The main problem I had with Miller was that he wasn't funny.

The second problem was that he, to me at least, didn't single out terrorists as the butt of his jokes, but anyone who opposes the White House policy in general, and Arabs in particular. I like comedy that kicks upwards, not downwards.

/Mike

 

[Jeff Pryor]

Personally, I think Dennis Miller is a comic genius. He never ceases to make me laugh my ass off. With so many bland comedians out there today, he's like a cool breeze on a hot day.

 

[Dan B]

I'm with Jeff. Like Lenny Bruce or George Carlin, he's not afraid to offend or push your buttons a bit. Insulting people is the basis of a lot of great comedy...whether it's subtle or not-so-subtle It makes us think about our own prejudices and stereotypes and laugh at our own faults.

George Carlin is not funny sometimes, and Lenny Bruce was offensive at times...but like these guys, I think Dennis Miller is a great "comedian".

Seriously though...I'm not putting Dennis on the same level as those guys, just saying that he has some of their qualities.

 

[MickeS]

I see wher'e you're coming from guys, and I agree with you. But have you seen Miller's recent work? It's just not funny. And Miller is not out to make us think about our own prejudices or laugh at our own faults, at least not lately: he's embracing the stereotypes and wants us to ridicule and persecute those who are not like us. That's not what Bruce and Carlin were/are about... IMO.

 

[Jeff Jacobson]

I don't find Martin Lawrence funny. He's just annoying.

 

[Chris Knox]

Although I haven't seen his stuff lately, I have always thought that Dennis Miller was a comedy God! The thing I love the most about him is the fact that most of his jokes you may not get, but there is someone out there who is laughing themselves to death. He is extremely intelligent and his comedy style is not for everyone.

Like the episode from the Simpsons. "It's the Dennis Miller quotient." (referring to a joke about DOS that few people would understand).

Chris

 

[Jeff Pryor]

I've seen Miller's latest stuff and I still think he's funny. And what's even funnier is when he's on the Tonight Show and totally takes the spotlight from Jay, though I'm not dissing Jay (I think he's halarious, too). It's just nice to have 2 monologues in one show.