NBC Sets Summer Premiere Dates for Hollywood Game Night, Welcome to Sweden, Last Comic Standing and More
Last Comic Standing
- 2003-2015
- 9 seasons
- NBC
- Comedy, Game Show, Reality
America's most compelling comedy competition is back this summer when NBC's Emmy Award-nominated series "Last Comic Standing" returns with new judge Norm Macdonald alongside current judges and comedy icons Roseanne Barr and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Comedy Central roast veteran Anthony Jeselnik will join the fun as the new host of the eight-episode season.
- 2003-2015
- 9 seasons
- NBC
- Comedy, Game Show, Reality
America's most compelling comedy competition is back this summer when NBC's Emmy Award-nominated series "Last Comic Standing" returns with new judge Norm Macdonald alongside current judges and comedy icons Roseanne Barr and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Comedy Central roast veteran Anthony Jeselnik will join the fun as the new host of the eight-episode season.
Exclusive: Watch Jay Leno Share His Best Comedy Advice on Last Comic Standing
Whether you're a fan or not, there's no denying Jay Leno is a comedy legend. On Thursday's Last Comic Standing, contestants are surprised with a trip to Vegas to pick Leno's brain for tips and tricks to make it in stand-up.
Top Videos: America's Surprise Birthday Party, Pippa Middleton on Today, Hotwives of Orlando
This week, Pippa Middleton gave her first televised interview on theToday show, and Funny or Die threw a surprise birthday party for America in honor of the Fourth of July. Jimmy Kimmel exposed bandwagon fans who were rooting for the U.S. in the World Cup, and also rewrote the lyrics to Trey Songz' "Na Na" so that old people could understand them. Chris Rock hosted the BET Awards, where he showed a video of himself interviewing white people at a monster truck rally about the show. Also, Showtime debuted the trailer for Season 2 of Masters of Sex, and Hulu geared up for the premiere of its original series The Hotwives of Orlando.
NBC Revamps Last Comic Standing with a New Host and Judges
Last Comic Standing will return for an eighth season with a new host and set of judges. The stand-up comic competition will premiere Thursday, May 22 at 9/8c on NBC, with...
StandUp in Stilettos Sneak Peek: Check Out Kerri Louise's Husband Impersonation
All husbands sound alike, according to Kerri Louise, the Last Comic Standing alum who makes her debut on StandUp in Stilettos this week. Apparently, once you're married, your former cute and lovely boyfriend turns into a giant oaf who can't find a single thing in the house — and Louise's impersonation of said husband is as hilarious as it sounds. Check out a sneak peek of this week's Stilettos, hosted by The Office's Kate Flannery:
StandUp in Stilettos Video: Alycia Cooper Takes on Hilarious Names
How do you pronounce the name La-a? That's the kind of comedy Alycia Cooper (America's Got Talent, Last Comic Standing) brings to this week's StandUp in Stilettos. For the record, you wouldn't even be able to guess how that name is pronounced. We've got a hilarious first look at this week's comedy hour, which also features Kira Soltanovich and Jessica Kirson, followed by Wendy Liebman, Ms. Pat and Erin Foley...
VIDEO: StandUp in Stilettos Brings the Funny
StandUp in Stilettos continues to bring the funny. On this week's comedy hour, veteran comedian and actress Carol Leifer takes the stage to discuss females in the workplace. Leifer famously worked...
Brett Butler on Addiction, Charlie Sheen and Working with Chuck Lorre
Charlie Sheen may think that he's winning, but Brett Butler knows he's fighting a losing battle. It was 13 years ago that ABC and producers Carsey-Werner opted to pull the plug on Butler's hit sitcom, Grace Under Fire, after deciding that her addiction to painkillers left her in no condition to continue working. Now living on a farm in Georgia and celebrating 12 years of sobriety, Butler says she's still aghast at the events that led to her show's...
Report: Greg Giraldo Dies at 44 Following Drug Overdose
Comedian and Last Comic Standing judge Greg Giraldo died Wednesday following a drug overdose, TMZ reported. He was 44. "Greg was one of the most talented comedians of our time...
Tonight's TV Hot List: Monday, Aug. 9, 2010
Bachelor Pad8/7c ABC OK, romance fans, Ali chose Roberto. So now what? The Bachelor won't be back until January, but ABC and the producers are tweaking the franchise with this six-week elimination contest, in which past Bachelor and Bachelorette contenders (19 to begin with) live together in a Malibu beach house, where they'll face challenges (a game of Twister tonight). Chris Harrison intimated recently that guys and gals might get intimate, but there's also Survivor-style warfare: They'll vote each other off the show until there's only one left, who'll win $250,000.Read on for previews of the Teen Choice Awards, Last Comic Standing, Dating in the Dark, Secret Life of the American Teenager and American Pickers.
Craig Robinson's Five Tips for Being Funny
He's not just the host of Last Comic Standing (Monday, 9/8c, NBC), he's also a comic who knows stand-up. So we grilled the Office star for a primer on making 'em laugh. ...
Ratings: True Blood Roars Back Strong
True Blood's new season is off to a strong start.The HBO vampire drama's Season 3 premiere on Sunday drew 5.1 million viewers, a 38 percent increase over the Season 2 debut and a 19 percent improvement over the Season 2 average. Including numbers for the Sunday night encore broadcast, the show drew a total of 6.4 million viewers...
Ratings: Tony Awards Lag Behind NBA Finals
Basketball beat Broadway. The National Basketball Association finals on ABC attracted a bigger audience than CBS' telecast of the 64th annual Tony Awards. Despite familiar faces such as winners Scarlett Johansson and Catherine Zeta-Jones, as well as performers like Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison, this year's Tonys averaged 7 million viewers and a 1.2 rating in the 18-to-49 demo, an 8 percent dip from last year's ceremony. ABC easily won the night thanks to...
Tonight's TV Hot List: Monday, June 7, 2010
Cake Boss9/8c TLCPeppermint, birthdays and polar bears, oh my! Buddy makes a cake for the Coney Island Polar Bear Club, where he's invited to take a swim with the furry creatures. On top of that, Buddy's youngest son wants an ice-cream cake for his birthday.Read on for previews of Last Comic Standing, Neighbors From Hell, Persons Unknown, Nurse Jackie, the 2010 Hip Hop Honors, The Bachelorette and Lie to Me.
How Craig Robinson Landed Hip Hop Honors Hosting Gig: "I Kidnapped Tracy Morgan"
As a comedian, Craig Robinson knows how to work a crowd. But he says he isn't sure why VH1 chose him to host this year's Hip Hop Honors. "I kidnapped Tracy Morgan," the Office star joked to TVGuide.com. "I don't know how I got chosen [but] it was so much fun; one of the best experiences in my career." Meet the new host of Last Comic Standing
America's Got Talent and Last Comic Standing Get Return Dates
Aspiring performers, get your audition tapes ready! America's Got Talent and Last Comic Standing are coming back. America's Got Talent will kick off its fifth season on June 1 at 8/7c followed by the show's move to Wednesdays on June 2 at 9/8c. The talent competition welcomes new judge...
Obama and McCain Make Comic Trip
The last two presidential candidates standing will appear on Last Comic Standing when the NBC reality competition airs its season finale.Senators John McCain and Barack Obama each pretaped mock "campaign ads" poking fun at themselves. McCain lets himself be dissed as not funny but "funny-looking" (always comedy gold), while Obama jokes about his... bowling.[Crickets.]Yeah. Last Comic Standing airs Thursday at 8 pm/ET. — Matt Mitovich
Ratings for Betty, Grey's, Dance and More
Thursday's few highlights:• Ugly Betty wrapped up its season with an audience of 8.75 million total viewers, a 250K week-to-week gain. • Fox's So You Think You Can Dance returned to 8.6 million viewers, down 600 thou from its Season 3 kick-off.• Grey's Anatomy surged a mil in its final week, but still was off a few mil from its year-ago season-ender.• Last Comic Standing (5.9 mil) was down 14 percent from last season's premiere.Related:• Cheers & Jeers: Lindsay Lohan Gets Ugly• Recap blog: So You Think You Can Dance
Exclusive: Last Comic Hires Office Workers
There will be plenty of familiar faces when Last Comic Standing returns to NBC this spring. And, no, we don't mean comedian-turned-reality TV host Bill Bellamy. The show once again will scour the country to find funnymen and women in open casting calls. But this time, producers will replace regular judges with a revolving door of celebrity talent scouts. "I'm going to be nice and pregnant, so entertain me," quips Angela Kinsey, who will whittle down Los Angeles-area wannabes with The Office costar Oscar Nunez. "I tend to really love comedians who weave the fabric of their lives into their stand-up, because I think real life is always better than anything you can write!" Auditions for Season 6 will kick off on Jan. 29 at the Hollywood Improv.For more information, log on to NBC.com/LastComicStanding. — Dana Meltzer Zepeda
America Gets More Talent and Standing Comics
NBC has granted early pickups to both America's Got Talent and Last Comic Standing, which currently are wrapping their second and fifth seasons, respectively.With an average audience of 12.1 million total viewers, AGT is this summer's most-watched program — even besting Hasselhoff's "hamburger" video — while LCS recently gave the Peacock a six-month time-period high in key demos.
Ratings: ABC's Next Best Is Third Best
On this Wedneday night:• The Next Best Thing (6.12 million total viewers) plunged more than two mil to place behind Deal and SYTYCD in the 8 pm hour. ABC lead-out American Inventor (6.27 mil) in turn sank 1.5 mil.• Hidden Palms (1.48 mil) was down a bleached blonde hair. Lead-out One Tree Hill wrapped its season with 2.5 mil, a 400K bump. Now, let's do the time warp!• SYTYCD averaged 8.88 mil over its two-hour run, a 1.3 mil drop from last Wednesday.• The season premiere of Last Comic Standing had 6.89 million watching.• Traveler (4.13 mil) waved goodbye to 24 percent of last week's audience.
Funny Money: Last Comic Ups the Stakes
NBC's Last Comic Standing on June 13 uncorks its fifth season with a number of tweaks. Last year's zombie-like Anthony Clark has been replaced as host with Bill Bellamy, while LCS talent scouts Kathleen Madigan, Alonzo Bodden and Ant will scour the entire English-speaking world — not just the U.S. — to find the winner. Other adjustments include a $250,000 grand prize (up from the previous $50K pittance), viewers being able to vote during the head-to-head competitions, and the absence of 24-hour surveillance. Still, executive producer Peter Engel reserves the right to pop up now and again with a camera crew. "And whenever I [do]," he says, "you know it's not good." Too true: the last time he appeared on screen was a cameo in USA High. — Reporting by Raven Snook
How NBC Will Spend Our Summer Vacation: Getting Real
Whoever said the reality-TV craze was over obviously hasn't talked to the suits at NBC. This summer, the Peacock will be feathering its nest with three returning reality shows and yet another new one. First up is America's Got Talent, which kicks off on May 29 with incoming ringleader Jerry Springer (sans bodyguards... I assume). Next, the fifth cycle of Last Comic Standing premieres June 13, with Bill Bellamy as host. Frosh date-a-thon Age of Love, fronted by Mark Consuelos (aka Mr. Kelly Ripa), bows June 18. And last but not least, The Biggest Loser hits the treadmills in late summer, with Days of our Lives' minx Alison Sweeney presiding over the weighting game.
The Last Word on Last Comic Standing
The laughter finally died on Last Comic Standing when self-declared spastic stand-up Josh Blue was named the winner. Still, everyone involved with the show is smiling, as the fourth edition of NBC's comedic contest has earned solid ratings and has already been renewed for a fifth round, to air in the summer of 2007. Blue himself is elated (if still stunned) about his victory. (Even competitor Ty Barnett is fine with his runner-up status.) TVGuide.com called the competitive cutups to joke around about their respective runs. First, Josh.... TVGuide.com: Let me begin by posing a question I'm sure no one else has had the guts to ask you. How's it feel to be the Last Comic Standing? Josh Blue: It's beyond words. It hasn't sunk in yet really. TVGuide.com: Ty was con
Last Comic: Meet the Five Left Standing
They say dying is easy, comedy is hard. But dying while doing comedy? This quintet of Last Comic Standing cutups wouldn't know, since they've all aced their sets so far. The five funny finalists from the NBC series (new episodes air Tuesdays at 9 pm/ET) took time out to joke around with TV Guide before yukking their way toward the season finale, airing Aug. 8. Name: Chris Porter Hometown: Kansas City, Mo. Age: 27Years in the biz: Eight Brand of comedy: Rock and roll On getting into stand-up: "I went to see my friend at an open-mike night and was like, I'm funnier than half these people. A month later I tried it, and it was like crack — I wanted to do it all the time."On how the show has changed his life: "
THIS 'N' THAT
Casting for Season 6 of The Apprentice, the first edition to be set in Southern California, begins March 10. For a complete list of tryout locations and an application, click this NBC.com link.... Late Night with Conan O'Brien is dedicating its March 10 show to the host's recent visit to Finland — including his meeting with his "look-alike," President Tarja Halonen.... Yes, Dear's Anthony Clark has been tapped to host this summer's edition of NBC's Last Comic Standing.
Last Comic's Next Move
A whole week after John Heffron won the coveted Last Comic Standing title, success still hasn't spoiled the manic funnyman. But make no mistake — he's ready for a diva trip! As his tongue-in-cheek interview with TV Guide Online suggests, he could get mighty comfortable sitting in the lap of luxury — provided that a certain competitor isn't around to, ahem, bug him.TV Guide Online: You're a bundle of energy on stage. Can that possibly be good for the health of someone as laid-back as you are?John Heffron: Well, I don't have a lot of time to run or do the Stairmaster, so this is my way of getting my heart rate up for 20 minutes a day. TVGO: Speaking of things that are good for your heart... Tammy Pescatelli called you "a walking Everybody Loves Raymond." Guess she's guaranteed to be the first LCS alum on your sitcom.Heffron: [Laughs] Yeah. Sometimes I get compared [to Ray Romano], but in
Comic Tammy: Too Stereotypical?
Forget everything you think you know about Last Comic Standing runner-up Tammy Pescatelli. Although the funny lady appeared to be the joke-off's shrewdest manipulator and most gleeful backstabber, she's really a down-to-earth sweetheart who'd sooner dish out lasagna than insults. Or so she insisted when TV Guide Online recently caught up with her. We're inclined to believe her, too; the straight shooter wouldn't even cop to the competitor for whom she's rooting in tonight's finale (airing at 9 pm/ET on NBC). Um, there are also those Mafia ties at which she's always hinting. TV Guide Online: Since being eliminated, have you met any interesting new fans?Tammy Pescatelli: Yeah, Garry Marshall [the Pretty Woman and Runaway Bride director]. I mean, you just go, "You've got to be kidding me. I grew up on your shows [like Happy Days and The Odd Couple]! Everything you've ever touched, I enjoyed." So that's huge for me. I was i
Comic Flirt's Last Chance
Although stand-up guy Corey Holcomb was eliminated from Last Comic Standing seven days ago, he'll have a chance to get back into the competition in tonight's wild-card episode (9 pm/ET on NBC). But for a real cliffhanger, TV Guide Online turns to the self-aggrandizing lady-killer's personal life: Will his significant other give him a chance to get back in her good graces after she sees this interview? Read on, and draw your own conclusions. TV Guide Online: In your final head-to-head with Alonzo and John, you came down pretty hard on the fairer sex. Do you think maybe that cost you the female vote?Corey Holcomb: Nah, I don't think so. On The Apollo Comedy Hour, [the emcee] just walks over [to the contestants] and says, "Clap if you like this guy. Clap if you like that guy." I just think that system works better than [Comic's computerized] voting. It's not like the audience is voting if somebody comes back [after a commercial break] with a v
Comic Ant Bugs Out!
In last week's episode of Last Comic Standing, flamboyant funnyman Ant's hopes of winning the title were, ahem, squashed. (Cheap humor, yes, but we're on a budget, folks!) Not only that, but the former Unhappily Ever After costar had been portrayed as the most conniving queen bee since Joan Collins doffed her Dynasty shoulder pads. Yet, as TV Guide Online chatted him up just prior to this week's show (airing tonight at 9 pm/ET on NBC), we realized that he was the one Ant with whom we'd prefer to picnic than nitpick. Read on and decide for yourself: Doesn't he seem like the sort of fellow who's less likely to stab you in the back than to pat you on it? TV Guide Online: Ant, to this day, I can't figure out why you were so scheming. Your final set was killer; you've got the goods!Ant: You thought I was scheming? I wouldn't call it scheming. I would call it having a great time and living the reality [TV] experience — the strong sur
Did Comic Shatter Todd Glass?
Dramatic headline, eh? But in a word, the answer is... no. Being booted from the Last Comic Standing madhouse last week didn't start Todd Glass thinking about switching to a career in Ginsu-knife sales. (He'd be good at it, though!) As another joker packs his or her bags in tonight's episode (9 pm/ET on Fox), TV Guide Online catches up with the funnyman who turns out to be — no kidding — as sensitive as he is silly. TV Guide Online: Let's begin with the end — were you glad that in your head-to-head with Tammy Pescatelli, the vote was so close, or were you like, "Damn those five extra people who picked her!"?Todd Glass: I have a joke where I go, "I laughed so hard, I punched you in the uterus." My brother goes, "That probably lost you five women right there; I'm glad you like that joke so much that it was worth losing for!" When you think about it, there's probably some truth to that. But I was happy that it was close. It was better than
Fallen Comic Laughs Last
On last week's Last Comic Standing, Bonnie McFarlane became the first funny person given the boot from the finalists' ha-ha hacienda. But, when talking with TV Guide Online, the California girl sounded more relieved than bereaved. Has she told so many jokes that the punch lines have left her punch-drunk? In anticipation of tonight's episode (airing at 9 pm/ET on NBC), you can read on and decide for yourself. TV Guide Online: I'll make this as quick as possible.Bonnie McFarlane: I hope so. I've got things to do. I've got rice and beans with my name on it! TVGO: Mmm... beans. On an unrelated note, John Heffron seemed to be really sweating during your head-to-head. Were you as surprised as I was that he wasn't eliminated instead of you?McFarlane: Not really. I thought I had a pretty good set, but then they took me to my dressing room — you're not allowed to watch the other person's set. But I heard the laughter. It really was
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