Barack Obama, Make Me Laugh! (New York Times)

"We're hoping he picks an idiot as vice president."

-- Mike Sweeney, head writer for Conan O’Brien on “Late Night,” telling New York Times journalist Bill Carter his fondest wish for Barack Obama in "Want Obama in a Punch Line? First, Find a Joke."


Copyright 2008 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!

Rob Kutner, APOCALYPSE HOW author, THE DAILY SHOW writer: Mr. Media Interview

Lots of people talk about the impending End of Days, but how many actually tell you how to prepare for what may come after the end?

Oh, really? That many?

Hmmm.

Okay, how many make you laugh in the telling?

Gotcha there, didn’t I?

In his new book, Apocalypse How, Rob Kutner dishes out handy tips on everything from foraging for food to fooling around with mutants in a post-now world.

I’m not yet sure how Kutner comes by his encyclopedic, post-apocalyptic knowledge but the humor, he comes by honestly: he’s a four-time Emmy-award winning staff writer for Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and a contributor to Stewart’s book, America (The Book).

He also is a former writer for "Dennis Miller Live" on HBO. And his wife, Sheryl Zohn, writes for "Penn & Teller: Bullshit!" on Showtime.

You can LISTEN to the Mr. Media interview with ROB KUTNER by clicking the BlogTalkRadio.com audio player below!

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Copyright 2008 Bob Andelman. Click here for copyright permissions!

Ouch. Bad Timing! (TV Guide)

"Top that, Russert!"

-- The last line of a TV Guide "Cheer" (from Cheers & Jeers) for Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show" interview with former Bush spokesman Scott McClellan. Apparently the just published June 23 edition of the magazine went to bed before "Meet The Press" host Tim Russert died suddenly on June 13.

You Said It! (St. Petersburg Times)

"Eventually, you start to find your own voice, and each correspondent kind of settles into a niche. It's an organic thing that I try not to analyze too much, because I worry that it will go away."

-- Aasif Mandvi, a correspondent on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," discussing his role on the Comedy Central show in an interview with Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times.

It's All About Me (Playboy)

"'The Daily Show' gained credibility because I left. The only bright side of leaving was I hated everyone involved with the show - (Stephen) Colbert in particular. He seems to be very intelligent on TV, but trust me, it's all smoke and mirrors. Everything is written for him. His scripts need to be spelled out phonetically. I just got tired of carrying him. He has no idea what he's talking about. He can hardly spell his own name."

-- Steve Carell, former correspondent on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show," remembering the good times on that show in the June 2008 Playboy Interview conducted by Eric Spitznagel. Carell, who currently appears in "The Office," stars in the summer film Get Smart.

The Spoils of Fame

"The truth is, you put a cantaloupe on television and some chick is going to be, 'I gotta get that cantaloupe inside of me!'"

-- Jon Stewart, host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show," calling in to the Tampa Bay area morning radio program "The Cowhead Show." The host, Cowhead, asked Stewart if the quality of groupies seeking sexual favors from him was any better now that he's a TV star versus just being a stand-up comedian.

See If You Can Guess What I Am Now

"Twenty-thousand troops. We have 135,000 troops there now. That’s only a 15 percent increase. That’s not a surge; that’s a gratuity. That’s a tip. And that’s not even a good tip. That’s a lousy one."

-- Jon Stewart, host of "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central, talking about... Oh, why bother? You know what he's talking about.