Louie (Louis C.K.'s show on FX)

Really like the Onion interview esp. this section:

AVC: On the show you play a divorced father named Louie C.K. On what level are you playing yourself?

LCK: Well I’m playing me, but I’m not depicting my real life. I’m not reenacting moments that I’ve lived, but I’m playing myself. I’m projecting myself into these situations that I write for the show. That’s the best way to describe it, I think. Also, I do let myself make mistakes on the show that are mistakes I wouldn’t make, because it’s just more interesting.

AVC: Like what?

LCK: There’s an episode I have with Nick DiPaolo where we have this political argument. He’s very conservative. I’m somewhat liberal. To make that a more interesting argument to have, I called him a Nazi. So he’s Himmler, and he hates minorities. I don’t believe anything I said. As a liberal, I think that flawed liberals are more funny, so that’s what I’m being on the show. On the other side of it, there’s a gay father on the show, a gay guy who has a kid in my class, and I shot a scene the other day where I’m trying to relate to him, and I’m not doing it well, because I’m uncomfortable. So I’m trying too hard to get along with this gay guy, and it’s not working because I’m trying too hard. I’m having trouble relating to a gay guy. That doesn’t exist at all in my life. There’s a lot of gay fathers at my kids’ school, and they’re friends of mine. I don’t think of gay people as a separate category of persons. I don’t go, “Oh my God, it’s a gay guy. What do I say?” But to me it’s a funny thought, a guy that would do that. And I could understand somebody feeling that way, so it’s an interesting thing to reveal. That awkwardness, even with the willingness to be one with everybody, that if people are new to you, it makes you feel awkward and makes you feel stupid when you try. Instead of just walking up to somebody and saying, “Hi” because they’re a person, thinking, “Oh it’s a gay guy, better say the right thing.” That’s a very stupid thing, and I wouldn’t do it, but I’m willing to do it as myself on television, because it’s a worthwhile thing to explore.
I think I do that a lot onstage during my stand-up too. I’ll take points of view and positions and stuff and stories about myself that aren’t true, but they’re worth revealing, and I’d rather reveal them as myself than criticize other people. I’d rather take on the stupid behavior to reveal it, even though it’s in other people I’ve seen it in. Because for one thing, you’re kind of infallible when you’re using yourself. You’re not attacking anybody. And also, it helps me relate to it better. Rather than depicting somebody like “There’s that character over there being a piece of shit.” These straw-dog moments like in West Wing, where they make conservatives just stand there and get pummeled. [Laughs.] It’s almost more interesting for me to play the guy I’m putting down—not putting down, but revealing, because I don’t think any of these behaviors come from a bad place. I think they just come from confusion. I think most homophobia and racism is just from fear and cultural pollution and lack of experience—and selfishness and stuff. A lot of the stuff I do onstage lately, I talk about what a piece of shit I am. I’m better than the guy I’m talking about, but I think it’s a valid way to reveal these things.

Amazing finale, loved the last bit of stand-up and the final shot.

And his conversation w/ Pamela Adlon, and the airport bathroom bit, and the Gervais appearance...

That was all just brilliant. I watched it w/my dad (a retired minister whose brother has just converted to Catholicism) and he was like "hoooo boy"

<3 the comparison of the Old Testament God to a shitty girlfriend

Gervais is really horrible on this show, but I have so little patience for him period.
Last two eps were good, lotta fun, but not high points.
We should maybe poll? But I'm pretty sure that the donut shop high school threat episode is as good as it got.

Yeah, no doubt - that was the most unique and consistently great episode. Even the shows with really good bits were usually middled with a crappy short or dud stand-up section.

Gervais really grated on me at first, but for some reason his second appearance being even more over the top kinda worked for me? I'm not sure why, maybe it was one of those "so bad, but it just wouldn't end so it turned the other way" kind of things.

i love gervais on this

I'm sick of Ricky Gervais in general, but I really like him on this because the show does kind of explore how wearing it would be to have someone like that as a friend.

Last two eps were good, lotta fun, but not high points.

I really loved the ending, because it's the first time I've seen him take advantage in this show of the fact that he isn't like a regular dad. He doesn't have to get up at a certain time of the day and commute to work, so if his kids really want to go and get pancakes at 5am and then (presumably) go back to bed and sleep all day, that's fine with him because it doesn't really throw his day out. It was also the first time that the lack of contact with other people in the city worked in his favour. Nobody cares that he has his kids out in their pyjamas at that hour of the day, so they can just have their breakfast in peace. I thought there was something really touching about that scene.

I just realized I'm a couple of eps behind, awesome

Xp. He was smiling, for once...

So so so great. I just love how he scratches right down to what's real, in a way that just seems effortless.

a fave moment is when he's happily singing a jingle in the bodega that goes "oh i'm shittin on hitler's face and pissin' in his mouth..."
also:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-55wC5dEnc

am listening to a bootleg mp3 of his new standup set and... hahahahahaha omg. he actually gets a couple of kinison-level rants going in places, it's pretty impressive. the best thing is just his eye for tiny details though. tiny, tiny details that somehow spin out into, i dunno, the pros and cons of cow-fucking.

o man is the season over already?

;_;

enjoy your Mad Men, lolmerica

seeing him on sunday, can't wait

wish he was coming to Portland. I saw him about 2 years ago and it was great. He did material I've never heard him do before or since. I think he really tries out a ton of new material all the time, so every show is unique.

i just watched this whole show in one evening. :o so good. my fav comedy show since arrested development. wonderfully unique.

i'm actually going to watch it all again right away

im going to see him stand up in november, p psyched

am listening to a bootleg mp3 of his new standup set and... hahahahahaha omg. he actually gets a couple of kinison-level rants going in places, it's pretty impressive. the best thing is just his eye for tiny details though. tiny, tiny details that somehow spin out into, i dunno, the pros and cons of cow-fucking.

― progressive cuts (Tracer Hand), Wednesday, September 15, 2010 2:16 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark

ysi/leo?

^^

wish he was coming to Portland.

He is in November. I have tickets even!

Sweet! Hope it's not sold out yet.

Was last time I checked (yesterday). The Seattle show had seats left.

Yep sold out unless you want to shell out $100+. Oh well, that's what I get for not paying attention to this stuff.

Don't forget about his special airing on Epix tonight! You can get a free invite to watch it at epixhd.com, in the US at least (not sure about other countries).

http://www.epixhd.com/louis-ck-hilarious/

Where do you go to get the invite?

nm, figured it out

I just came back from seeing him perform. He was funny and I'm sorry it had to end when it did. For some reason, he didn't do any material about cow fucking, even though he was in Wisconsin. He did say that he'd picked Milwaukee to film his last special in because he liked our attitude, which was cool and something I hadn't even known before. Thanks for the link, Jouster!

I have my invite, good to go!

For some reason, the link crapped out on me after an hour of play. Thankfully, there are other ways of getting the show online as of today...

he was so good last night

He did say that he'd picked Milwaukee to film his last special in because he liked our attitude, which was cool

ha, he was nothing but derisive towards madison ("i flew in an opener with my own money because you are a tertiary market with no funny people", "if it wasn't for work i would never, ever come here", etc.). his opener kind of sucked btw.

or sorry, it was something like "why would i come to madison in the middle of my life if it wasn't for money".

madison can't take a joke either, apparantly

i didn't say it wasn't funny! i was laughing along with the rest of the theater.

assumed it was general schtick though - apparently he differentiates between places in wisconsin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTzyudfuUtk

dude's youtube channel has like a dozen short films i haven't seen!

yeah this one is classic for all time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTXYwBqXbcA

Louie: the new The Wire

http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=lucky_louie

Haha, great title.

The notion that white people carry an inherent privilege is, of course, a lefty one.

Those damn lefties and their crazy, unfounded notions.

my eyebrow arched a bit at that sentence

saw him do some standup, damn this motherfucker funny

I was rewatching Louie the other day - some dodgy bits here and there, but there's nothing else remotely like it.

gf and i saw louie doin' the standup a couple weeks back. seriously amazing times, would/will see again.