July '10 Entertainment—Kid Cary's The Boss Asked Me... Column

SHARE |

Another Mark Twain, or Maybe Mort Saul?
T

hroughout our history there have been exceptionally insightful Americans, able to mix reality with humor, with their clever social satire, they put a mirror to our culture, our country, and us.

Mark Twain was born in 1835, just sixty years after America’s birth, and he lived until April 1910. At his death, he was called the greatest American humorist of his age.

Will Rogers, also born in the nineteen century, 1879, was widely regarded as the twentieth century’s great American humorist and philosopher, he died August 1935.

Lenny Bruce, born in the twentieth century, 1925, was for a short time in the 1950’s, a very controversial stand-up comedian. His comedy was about us, he satirized the times and morays of his age, and he died August 1966.

Mort Saul, I love Mort Saul, I love his comedy, and he is still alive at 83. I grew up with Mort Saul, he was my Mark Twain, Will Rogers, and Lenny Bruce. He taught me much more about politics than my schoolteachers. More over, the absurdity of politics, and the foolishness of life in a world I was raised in.

The Boss asked to go see the stand-up act of a man I always thought of as astute, and intelligent, Bill Maher, 54, born in NYC in 1956. He began as a stand-up, but is mostly known for his television shows, ABC Politically Incorrect, HBO Real Time, and many appearances on TV talk shows. Unfortunately, at times he comes across like an arrogant putz.

Most REAL Americans hate LIBERALS. Bill Maher is liberal, and he makes no bones about it. Throughout history, isn’t it the liberal mind that pushes the bounders of humor, art, and philosophy? A conservative by nature is happy with the status quo. Liberals are the court jesters, how many funny conservatives do you know? Rush Limbaugh is sometimes funny, but his humor is cruel and vindictive. Don’t say Ann Coulter is funny, I saw her act, and she is very not funny.

Enough about my politics, Bill Maher is very, very funny. For over an hour and a half he bombarded you with facts, fiction, and humor. He was clever, intelligent, and very, very funny. Did I say he was very, very funny?

His act is not conservative bashing or a liberal “white washing” of our history or our politicos. Liberals may cheer at the things he has to say, and conservatives may cringe, but he has a point of view. My buddy Teddy is a conservative, he says we are all living in a boring Baroque Period, and he is eager for a new Renaissance.

For me, Bill Maher is a Renaissance; he did more in 90 minutes to explain, enlighten and criticize, our culture, country, and the world we live in, than anyone has in a very long time.