Like — I would guess — many folks who browse this blog, I’m a big fan of The Daily Show…again. Never missed it during Jon Stewart’s original stint behind the desk…watched unsteadily during the Trevor Noah years and the period after he departed when it went to Host of the Week. Since Mr. Stewart returned for Monday hosting, I’ve never missed a Monday and I’ve begun watching close-to-religiously Tuesday through Thursday. The writing is really sharp and I’ve come to like the other correspondents, especially Jordan Klepper, Desi Lydic and Michael Kosta.
I’m impressed with the versatility some of them show when they do their split-screen bits. One person — that night’s anchor — is in the studio set on the left. Another person is on the right in front of a green screen into which has been inserted a background of the location from which that correspondent is pretending to report.
It’s a classic comedy parlay: The serious person — the straight man, even if it’s a lady — and the funny/nutty person. It’s Abbott on the left, Costello on the right. Or Steve Rossi on the left, Marty Allen on the right. Or Rowan and Martin or others we could name. And most funny people who can field one position can’t do the other. I used to cite Bob and Ray as that rare team that could effortlessly swap roles but some of the folks now on The Daily Show are pretty good at it.
Sometimes, it’s Desi Lydic on the left side of the screen trying to make sense of the insane stuff Jordan Klepper is reporting from the right side of the screen…
And sometimes, it’s Jordan Klepper trying to make sense of what Desi Lyric is reporting…
Michael Kosta is also pretty good at working both sides of the screen. One of these days, they may try doing some sort of pre-tape that enables him to be on both sides at the same time. This should be known in the trade as a “Marco Rubio.”
Being able to work both sides of the comedy equation was one of the skills that kept Johnny Carson on the air for forever and a half. It’s a skill that a lot of other talk show hosts have lacked…or sometimes, they simply don’t want to let someone else get the laughs. And it’s one of the first things they teach in improv classes: You’re not failing if the audience is laughing at that someone else on the stage says or does. Often, you’re the reason. “Who’s on First?” would never have worked without Bud Abbott.
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