“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” and “In Bed with Joan” Take New Approaches to Celebrity Chat - Ed Martin Watercooler Video

Huluamp8217s Larry King has some formidable competition in the arena of online celebrity chat in one case from a comedian and television personality who has migrated to the Web in the other from a legendary comedienne who in a career spanning more than 60 years is currently enjoying unprecedented success in multiple mediaIf you canamp8217t get enough of old cars or scenic tours of pleasant locations or casual conversation among famous people or the enduringly popular Jerry Seinfeld whose already classic sitcom amp8220Seinfeldamp8221 sits high atop most critics list of the ten best television series of all time then the Web series amp8220Comedians in Cars Getting Coffeeamp8221 is the show to watch Itamp8217s available on the increasingly irresistible streaming site Crackle and on its own site ComediansinCarsGettingCoffeecom It has become a media sensation in recent months and while I think it has been somewhat overpraised millions of people have found something to like about it and Iamp8217ve no doubt millions more likely willActor and writer Larry David who cocreated the longrunning and crazily lucrative amp8220Seinfeldamp8221 with Jerry summed it up perfectly when he appeared in the first episode of amp8220CiCGCamp8221 and told his old pal amp8220You have finally made a show about nothingamp8221 amp8220Seinfeldamp8221 was famously described throughout its nineseason run as amp8220a show about nothingamp8221 even though it proved to be really something creating four unforgettable primary characters along with dozens of recurring ones that permeated popular culture They were people viewers could tirelessly laugh at or with or both as they obsessed over the minutia of their livesamp8220CiCGCamp8221 which is literally a documentarystyle show about Jerry Seinfeld picking up famous friends in different snazzy cars Seinfeld is an auto aficionado and collector and driving them to restaurants or coffee shops engaging them in conversation along the way and at their destination There is nothing more to it than that But itamp8217s beautifully filmed briskly edited and scored in such a pleasing way that combined with loving shots of expensive cars most of us have never seen and a real feel for whatever area they are driven through including New York City Los Angeles and bucolic New Milford CT amp8220CiCGCamp8221 sometimes begins to feel like something special after allMaybe its primary appeal lies in having the opportunity to spend time with favorite funny folks in a way we havenamp8217t necessarily seen them before In the first two seasons of the show Seinfeldamp8217s guests included Mel Brooks Carl Reiner David Letterman Chris Rock Don Rickles Ricky Gervais and Sarah Silverman The show needs more female guests I hope Jerry takes a road trip to Baltimore where his former costar Julia LouisDreyfus shoots her hot HBO series amp8220Veepamp8221 and takes her for a spin around the Inner HarborThe first episode of season three is the longestrunning installment yet clocking about 22 minutes which makes it feel like a halfhour episode of a traditional TV series without commercials That makes me wonder if the plan is to make all future episodes of the show that length and make it more appealing for television syndication And that has me thinking such a move would be a mistake not because amp8220CiCGCamp8221 wouldnamp8217t work on television as we know it it seems a natural for the Travel Channel or Esquire or Comedy Central but because 22 minutes of this particular content starts to feel like a drag at least when all 22 are devoted to the same guest star I much preferred the approximately 15minute running time of earlier episodes which better served the abbreviated conversations Seinfeld has with his guests Of course putting together two shorter installments in one syndicated episode wouldnamp8217t be a bad ideaBy the way Seinfeldamp8217s guest on his expanded season three opener is the always watchable Louis CK who I could listen to for hours because even on his best laidback behavior one can always sense the allconsuming agitation and general sense of disgust sitting just below the surface that he would like to let out as he so winningly does in the hilarious comedy club segments on his FX series amp8220Louieamp8221 The episode also features a leisurely ride up the Hudson River in Louisamp8217 boat which makes for a nice change of pace even if Seinfeld didnamp8217t intend for the show to be a travelogueAnother very watchable celebrity interview Web series is amp8220In Bed with Joanamp8221 which appears to have been with us for quite a while though I only recently discovered it Leave it to the remarkable Rivers to not simply keep up with things but to keep ahead of them and to find the time to shoot a Web series while also starring in her weekly hourlong E show amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 one of TVamp8217 funniest show thanks entirely to her and her WE reality series amp8220Joan ampamp Melissa Joan Knows Bestamp8221 not to mention making all those appearances on QVC and maintaining a whirlwind comedy club schedule that would exhaust a person half her ageThe title of Riversamp8217 Web chat show is as onthenose as amp8220CiCGCamp8221 Rivers sits on a bed in a New York apartment that is meant to be hers maybe it is and coaxes her guests to climb on with her and talk for a few minutes She proves to be a very good interviewer though that should come as no surprise at least to those of us familiar with her work in the amp821680s and amp821690s as the onetime permanent guest host of NBCamp8217s amp8220The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carsonamp8221 the host of nightly latenight talk show that was intended as a flagship program for Fox when the network launched and later as host of a daytime talk show for which Rivers was honored with a Daytime Emmy Award She does interviews on amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 too Small wonder one of her most famous opening lines is amp8220Can we talkamp8221amp160Check us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentaries

Click to Make Your 2025 Contribution to Support the MediaVillage Education Foundation

“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” and “In Bed with Joan” Take New Approaches to Celebrity Chat - Ed Martin Watercooler Video

Author

Publish date

Channel

Ed Martin

Empowering Women in Media: Insights from Industry Leaders (Video) - By E.B. Moss

More Videos:

Click to Make Your 2025 Contribution to Support the MediaVillage Education Foundation

“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” and “In Bed with Joan” Take New Approaches to Celebrity Chat - Ed Martin Watercooler Video

Enjoying This Commentary? There's More to Love

Ed Martin

Empowering Women in Media: Insights from Industry Leaders (Video) - By E.B. Moss

The payment was successful

Cookies