Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner


I should admit this instantly. I own William Shatner´s most recent album "Has Been." I have a few of the tracks ripped onto MP3 for my own portable entertainment. The only "Star Trek" I enjoyed was when William Shatner was in command of the starship Enterprise. That ´Shat´ may have been heavily maligned over the years for his method of acting (or overacting). His career has been filled with ups and downs. On television, Shatner has found fame beyond Star Trek and is known for his performance as "TJ Hooker" and Denny Crane on "Boston Legal." Where he has succeeded in television, he has not been that prolific in film. Aside from his wonderful and recent voice talent work on "Over the Hedge," the Shat has been found in such box office duds as "Miss Congeniality," and "Dodgeball." Shatner has also found great success in writing and written more than a few successful novels, including his TekWar series.

With his longevity and forays into various media, Shatner has had a long and successful career. However, with his first musical album one of the truly comedic missteps in the history of the world and his notorious overacting and stopping every sentence after three words, William Shatner is the perfect target for Comedy Central´s long running "Roast" series. Arriving on DVD is the "Extended and Uncensored!" version of his Comedy Central Roast, "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner." I´ve never sat down and watched any of these roasts, but had always assumed it was a collection of friends and past colleagues gathering to roast the show´s target. This made the inclusion of Nichelle Nichols and George Takei obvious choices and for a brief moment when I had Farrah Fawcett confused with Heather Locklear, had figured her a logical choice as well. Then, I remembered that Fawcett was not on "TJ Hooker" and the two had not worked together. My belief was proved wrong.

Fawcett wasn´t the only roaster that didn´t have a connection with Bill Shatner. Greg Giraldo, Lisa Lampanelli, Artie Lange, Jeffrey Ross and Pat Oswalt are comedians I had very little familiarity with. I knew Artie Lange to some degree, but was very unfamiliar with the remaining names in that list. At least Andy Dick, Kevin Pollak, Betty White and roastmaster Jason Alexander were familiar faces. Phoning in their roasts were far more familiar names Clint Howard, Sandra Bullock, Sarah Silverman and Ben Stiller. It turns out that the Comedy Central roasts are not quite friends and colleagues of the roastee, but comedians that simply show up to insult the principal guest. I was also wrong in assuming that the show´s headliner was the only one getting roasted. Everybody roasts everybody. Nobody is safe. I had this ´Roast´ thing figured out entirely wrong.

A Comedy Central Roast is not for the weak at heart, or those with virgin ears. Goddamn this is a cruel and mean spirited, yet awfully damn funny show. And if the swear words you read in that previous sentence were offensive to you, then you should not even consider picking up this title, because some of the absolute most offensive material you will ever hear will come from the lips of the roasters and roastee. I really must praise George Takei for being a good sport. For a man that has made his homosexuality public knowledge, he is constantly attacked in the roast, but is not afraid to dish it out. I have a couple homosexual friends and they would not have had the fortitude to take it like Mr. Sulu did. Betty White gets it for her age and I think everybody admits to masturbating to Farrah Fawcett´s poster. Lisa Lampanelli is simply lewd and crude. She is funny, but I´ve never seen a mouth on a woman like Lampanelli. Of course, her sex life with black men and her physical girth have roasters stating she´ll win a horse race. Why does Andy Dick lick everybody?

I admit it. I laughed my ass off during the "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner." This was horribly not politically correct and so foul mouthed, homophobic and cruel that I almost felt dirty enjoying it. Fortunately, the roasters seemed to enjoy themselves as well and this does provide a forum for anybody to say what they want and get away with it. The show plays like a game where everybody understands the rules and nobody has their feelings hurt. The insults fly fast and furiously and it is pretty awfully funny. Clint Howard´s bit is very funny and Andy Dick continues to frighten me. Carrie Fisher, Jerri Ryan and a few other familiar faces are in the audience. When the Shat finally takes the stand, he too delivers a few very good insults and even an F-bomb. His insults were some of the better ones and whether or not he wrote them, this seventy-five year old man shows he can take it and dish it. The "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner" was a surprisingly good time and my already high level of respect for Bill Shatner has only gone higher. Now, I need to go find a copy of the Pamela Anderson Roast.

I should admit this instantly. I own William Shatner´s most recent album "Has Been." I have a few of the tracks ripped onto MP3 for my own portable entertainment. The only "Star Trek" I enjoyed was when William Shatner was in command of the starship Enterprise. That ´Shat´ may have been heavily maligned over the years for his method of acting (or overacting). His career has been filled with ups and downs. On television, Shatner has found fame beyond Star Trek and is known for his performance as "TJ Hooker" and Denny Crane on "Boston Legal." Where he has succeeded in television, he has not been that prolific in film. Aside from his wonderful and recent voice talent work on "Over the Hedge," the Shat has been found in such box office duds as "Miss Congeniality," and "Dodgeball." Shatner has also found great success in writing and written more than a few successful novels, including his TekWar series.

With his longevity and forays into various media, Shatner has had a long and successful career. However, with his first musical album one of the truly comedic missteps in the history of the world and his notorious overacting and stopping every sentence after three words, William Shatner is the perfect target for Comedy Central´s long running "Roast" series. Arriving on DVD is the "Extended and Uncensored!" version of his Comedy Central Roast, "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner." I´ve never sat down and watched any of these roasts, but had always assumed it was a collection of friends and past colleagues gathering to roast the show´s target. This made the inclusion of Nichelle Nichols and George Takei obvious choices and for a brief moment when I had Farrah Fawcett confused with Heather Locklear, had figured her a logical choice as well. Then, I remembered that Fawcett was not on "TJ Hooker" and the two had not worked together. My belief was proved wrong.

Fawcett wasn´t the only roaster that didn´t have a connection with Bill Shatner. Greg Giraldo, Lisa Lampanelli, Artie Lange, Jeffrey Ross and Pat Oswalt are comedians I had very little familiarity with. I knew Artie Lange to some degree, but was very unfamiliar with the remaining names in that list. At least Andy Dick, Kevin Pollak, Betty White and roastmaster Jason Alexander were familiar faces. Phoning in their roasts were far more familiar names Clint Howard, Sandra Bullock, Sarah Silverman and Ben Stiller. It turns out that the Comedy Central roasts are not quite friends and colleagues of the roastee, but comedians that simply show up to insult the principal guest. I was also wrong in assuming that the show´s headliner was the only one getting roasted. Everybody roasts everybody. Nobody is safe. I had this ´Roast´ thing figured out entirely wrong.

A Comedy Central Roast is not for the weak at heart, or those with virgin ears. Goddamn this is a cruel and mean spirited, yet awfully damn funny show. And if the swear words you read in that previous sentence were offensive to you, then you should not even consider picking up this title, because some of the absolute most offensive material you will ever hear will come from the lips of the roasters and roastee. I really must praise George Takei for being a good sport. For a man that has made his homosexuality public knowledge, he is constantly attacked in the roast, but is not afraid to dish it out. I have a couple homosexual friends and they would not have had the fortitude to take it like Mr. Sulu did. Betty White gets it for her age and I think everybody admits to masturbating to Farrah Fawcett´s poster. Lisa Lampanelli is simply lewd and crude. She is funny, but I´ve never seen a mouth on a woman like Lampanelli. Of course, her sex life with black men and her physical girth have roasters stating she´ll win a horse race. Why does Andy Dick lick everybody?

I admit it. I laughed my ass off during the "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner." This was horribly not politically correct and so foul mouthed, homophobic and cruel that I almost felt dirty enjoying it. Fortunately, the roasters seemed to enjoy themselves as well and this does provide a forum for anybody to say what they want and get away with it. The show plays like a game where everybody understands the rules and nobody has their feelings hurt. The insults fly fast and furiously and it is pretty awfully funny. Clint Howard´s bit is very funny and Andy Dick continues to frighten me. Carrie Fisher, Jerri Ryan and a few other familiar faces are in the audience. When the Shat finally takes the stand, he too delivers a few very good insults and even an F-bomb. His insults were some of the better ones and whether or not he wrote them, this seventy-five year old man shows he can take it and dish it. The "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner" was a surprisingly good time and my already high level of respect for Bill Shatner has only gone higher. Now, I need to go find a copy of the Pamela Anderson Roast.

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