By Libby Molyneaux
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
L.A.’s best-dressed comic (sorry, Paul F. Tompkins) brings his chat show to the cozy confines of Largo for more smart talk with guests Drew Carey, David Palmer and Greg Behrendt.
As a talk-show host, are you more like Oprah or Arsenio?
I combine the zest for living of Kelly Ripa with the ad-libbing of a young Carson Daly.
You’ve had some big names at your Largo show: Drew Carey, Jack Black, Sarah Silverman, Kathy Griffin. Who’s the biggest asshole you’ve ever interviewed?
Stars are people too, with their own ups and downs. Garrison Keillor was more of a cock than an ass.
How do you get all these big stars? Do they think they’re going to be on TV?
They need the street cred. They leave their cosseted, cloistered lives of indolence and mayhem for the real of Fairfax Avenue.
What celeb would you most love to get on your show?
Hillary Clinton, our next and greatest president. My favorite author is Cormac McCarthy. I have loved him since right before Oprah did.
Whose success are you most jealous of?
Fergie, because when I wear a Catholic schoolgirl skirt and sing nursery rhymes no one cares.
You’re a dapper fellow. Do you prefer your guests also be well dressed?
Thank you, Mr. Weekly. This is Hollywood, only me and agents wear a suit. The guests are free to wear whatever they think makes them seem younger and more interesting.
Why call it a “chat show”? This is America. Do you want people to think you’re British?
Because we actually chat. I converse, I do not interrogate. It is the Anti-Leno. Everyone says whatever they like. Hopefully comedy finds a purchase. This is not America, it’s Hollywood.
They say comedy comes from pain — is this the case with you?
Fuck you! Sorry. I need to be alone.
If you could never leave one particular block in L.A., where would it be?
San Francisco.
Who do people say you look like?
Marcello Mastroianni.
Do you think you’re as good looking as Greg Behrendt?
After a few, yes.
