radishcake January 6, 2016 Share January 6, 2016 Jerry goes up to the country with Steve Martin in a beautiful but delicate 1954 Siata 8v and come back to the city in something else altogether. In between they converse about confidence, quitting and the best opening lines. Link to comment
zxy556575 January 7, 2016 Share January 7, 2016 We could all pretty much see the car breakdown coming, right? I liked that the producers were ready with a selection of backup vehicles, although Steve probably picked the Mustang because it looked the least rickety. The conversation pretty much stuck to comedy, but I wonder why there were so many clips of Steve's act. Did Jerry think a lot of young people might not be familiar with him? And btw, I know I laughed myself sick in the 70s, but I disagree with Jerry that Steve's comedy holds up well. The clips just seem silly now, not humorous. Maybe slapstick standup is past its prime? I wouldn't laugh now at Howie Mandel putting a rubber glove over his head, either. Since the interview stayed pretty serious, I would have liked to hear Steve's thoughts on how his musical and writing talents compared to his comedy routines. Also acting, I suppose. Do they all require the same amount of practice and dedication? He's been focusing on music in the last decade and hasn't even acted much -- was that a deliberate choice? Eh. This really isn't that kind of show and it's not fair of me to expect an in-depth interview in the time they have, but Steve is such an intelligent, interesting person that I thought the episode begged for a little more. Now I want to read Steve's book, just not enough to pay for it. Library reserve, here I come. 1 Link to comment
tenativelyyours January 7, 2016 Share January 7, 2016 The journey from standup to his sort of renaissance elder statesman would have been interesting to touch on more, I agree. I like it when the conversation manages to touch on the particular journey and compare it to what is either generally known or perceived of the world of comedy. The exploration of common ground at the same time magnifying what makes that individual unique is what makes this show work for me. It is why I found the inclusion of Obama fun, charming and cool. This one was a bit of a letdown for me, after that season opening episode. I liked the personal insight Martin gave, don't get me wrong. But I like when there is much more on the dynamics that define that person professionally as well and thought this one lacked what it could have delivered and in many ways I think, for me at least, it should have. Link to comment
zxy556575 January 8, 2016 Share January 8, 2016 Also, if Jerry's trying to affect a scruffy, unshaven look, I'm here to say it doesn't work so well with a gray beard. Or maybe the shooting took so long with the car breaking down and all that his 5 o'clock shadow came in. Link to comment
rmontro March 13, 2018 Share March 13, 2018 (edited) On 1/7/2016 at 1:09 PM, Lord Donia said: The conversation pretty much stuck to comedy, but I wonder why there were so many clips of Steve's act. Did Jerry think a lot of young people might not be familiar with him? And btw, I know I laughed myself sick in the 70s, but I disagree with Jerry that Steve's comedy holds up well. The clips just seem silly now, not humorous. Maybe slapstick standup is past its prime? I found the clips kind of distracting also, partly because this show doesn't usually show such clips. It was a departure from the format. I guess it was because Steve Martin reached a level of success and mania with his standup act that has seldom been seen before or since. It was a truly unique historical moment. Anyway, I agree the clips of his act seemed a little goofy. But one of the things they say repeatedly on this show is that comedy doesn't change. We don't laugh at Howie Mandell blowing up a rubber glove with his nose now because we've seen it before. The same is probably true of Steve's act. It might well get over today, if we hadn't seen it before. A lot of it was silliness, but that act was more about the attitude behind the silliness that was going on, that's where the humor came from. By the way, I read Steve Martin's book about how he built his standup act, and I found it fascinating. I would highly recommend it. Edited March 13, 2018 by rmontro 2 Link to comment
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