I admit with some sheepishness that I would watch the hell out of this show, at least the first episode. Kind of like driving past a car crash, you don’t want to look but you’re sort of compelled.
2. Hate, hate, hate to say this, but I think that Roy should pull this post, think about the overlap between his vision here and the reality of Dr. Phil, and then make appropriate edits and repost. Roy has long proven he can out-satire reality and I don't that he managed to here.
See, my problem is that he missed the BLEEDINGLY OBVIOUS Kirsty Alley guest star opportunity (as her Cheers character, now a QAnon enthusiast/Groyper mom, maybe?). We’re all little Tartikoffs over here, Roy.
"1. Who gives a fuck about Frazier?" Paramount/Viacom executives, who are reviving a whole bunch of well-known IPs the company owns (Criminal Minds, Real World, Rod Rules, Rugrats).
Well, not to be that guy, but their judgment is automatically suspect. How long will it be on the air before he does some Roseanne shit and they have to pull it? Never mind cancel culture, the real reason conservatives can't get work in Hollywood is they can't stop being assholes, and the market for that is less than you may think.
correct. i commented to another post about the cancel culture in a sarcastic (gasp!) manner, but the obvious fact of their assholery seems to escape them. fancy that!
I don't really agree. I had no idea Kelsey Grammer had repellent political opinions until I had enjoyed several seasons of 'Frasier.' He wisely never ground his ax on his show, and I suspect he won't this time, either.
I never caught the show, so unfortunately there’s no substrate for the satire to stick to. I have approximately the same problem with memes that rely on a familiarity with “Seinfeld,” since I appear to be one of only a couple of thousand people in North America who have not sat through an episode. Over the years I have had occasion to reflect that to my nephews and nieces, and latterly to their children, 𝘐’𝘮 the cultural illiterate.
My incredible gaps in what movies I saw growing up, compared to other people my age, is astonishing. I’ve decided to wear it as a badge of honor. In my (admittedly biased) mind it’s at least a more interesting variation of the people who sniff superiorly that they don’t even own a TV.
heh. i don't own a tv, but i don't feel superior about it. i occasionally watch briefly in other homes and think, 'why subject myself to this?' this blog and others of discriminating taste, plus an old movie subscription, manage to fill my time adequately.
I used to feel that way until learning that every human being has incredible, often inexplicable, gaps in cultural knowledge and experience, especially since viewership fragmentation has completely dispensed with nationally shared moments like walking on the moon, the Beatles on Ed Sullivan and the 'Beverly Hillbillies.' But as I get older, I've learned one should never, ever be proud of being ignorant of anything. For instance I eschewed 'Seinfeld' for years because I hated the laugh tracks, until finally the sheer talent of the acting and writing wore me down and I'm glad it did. For moral inspiration, check out 'Green Eggs and Ham,' if that's not too obscure a reference.
(Bebe, his former agent, is now serving a twenty-years-to-life sentence after literally stabbing one too many clients in the back over increased fees.)
Roy’s Frasier revival would be more on-topic than what I first imagined: the journeys of Scottish botanist John Fraser in the 18th century Appalachian mountains, discovering the iconic Fraser fir.
as so often happens with these vignettes, i find myself thinking, 'this is probably satire, and not simply a studio preview.' but if have to say that if this were pitched to some hollyweird mogul, there's a fair-to-good chance of it being made as presented here. it helps that i don't own a tv, and have never seen an episode of Frasier, because... Kelsey Grammer.
This is the age-old issue of problematic art. Grammer is a privlileged dick, and Frasier is a pretentious nice guy, and the show bats above average as pretty funny, so it's a choose-your-own-adventure thing. But reboots are big because established popular characters and storylines are money in the bank, and one thing studios really like is money in the bank.
this is exactly right, with the added advantage that Grammer won't be able to whine (yeah, right) about the cancel culture keeping him from putting food on his family (h/t dubya)
The old conundrum: How much of a performer or artist's personal foibles and flaws (to say the least) must one acknowledge or use as an excuse to ignore their art? Or can you enjoy, without guilt, an asshole's work?
in this divisive age, it's increasingly difficult for me to separate the artist and his life outside of art. i don't need the artist in full; i require that he keep his failings hidden from me in their rawest form. i appreciate that much great work has been produced from these flaws, but let me please enjoy the finished product. don't hide your light under that bushel basket, but please keep the darkness there. most greatness seems to be in a tightly focused field, and outside of that we're all too human in a lowest common denominator sort of way.
I've thought a lot about this and let me offer my self-serving proposal: Human accomplishment, like time, can only be added to, not subtracted. Right and wrong, good and bad don't cancel each other out; they co-exist -- for you, me, Louis CK, Thomas Jefferson and Pablo Picasso.
He helped screw up our state (not that we needed the help) by promoting Megan’s Law, that asinine “victim’s rights” vanity project pushed by a California billionaire.
Maybe instead of trading the car in for a sedan while the patrolman lurks watching, she trades it for a Winnebago, skips the Bates Motel, and roams America’s back roads SOLVING CRIMES. (This fall on NBC! Right after Supertrain!)
I could actually see Kelsey Grammer going for this. The guy is talented and I liked Frasier (and Sideshow Bob), but his politics and privilege are repellent.
Brian Blessed as pseudo-Rasputin was a master stroke. If only Rik Mayall were around to play Bulldog’s brother Flash. [makes obscene gesture] “WOOF!”
I recently rewatched "I, Claudius" and Blessed was magnificent as Augustus. Show still holds up IMO, and John Hurt's Caligula was as fabulous as I remembered it. Now I have to check out "Toast of London". (Sounds a lot like "Slings and Arrows" which is on Acorn if you have it -- enjoyable and each season gets better.)
When I first caught 𝘐, 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘶𝘴 in the mid-seventies, I was coming off a two- or three-year romp through Roman history and associated literature, including the Robert Graves novels, and was dismayed at first with Blessed’s portrayal of Augustus—he seemed physically all wrong for the part—but of course he soon won me over.
There was an earlier English series, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘳𝘴, that covered more-or-less the same period and personalia, and is also well worth watching. The hero of the production (Claudius himself appears as a cynical sot), its moral center and the repository of sober, selfless integrity was—wait for it—
I actually own Slings and Arrows. I think I would run off with Paul Gross if he weren't so damn married! Have you seen Luke Kirby's (Jack Crew) turn as Lennie Bruce in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel?
You might like the podcast series "I, Podius" in which an old hand at the series (John Hodgman) discusses it with a new watcher (Elliott Kalan). For "Rocky Horror Show" fans: in Episode 7 they interview "Magnolia", Patricia Quinn, who also played the memirable Livilla.
Ok, I got more than a third of the way in until I realized: Roy has done it again; created a convincing narrative about a weird reboot of Frasier. Well, Frasier is indeed apparently returning via streaming and I would really love it if your imaginative and hilarious narrative was the real one. (I am also a long time fan of the booming voice of Brian Blessed and his larger than life presence.) We can always hope that it will the turn the way you have written but, alas, I doubt it.
Then again, you could always pitch your narrative to Kelsey Grammar and see how he responds. That would be funny in and of itself.
"Assisted by Bulldog and his brother Niles, who has converted to Sufism and become a theocon (and divorced by Daphne, who has moved to Portland to join Rose City Antifa)"
I'm glad I missed Frazier the first time around. I will say I have a great idea for a sitcom called "Tucker" in which a TV fascist has a midlife crisis, gets a divorce, and moves to San Diego or someplace to live with his younger brother Buckley and their dad, a former ambassador to the Seychelles.
I liked Frazier but this "Tucker" sounds great. I'm greenlighting it. Oh can this Tucker also be the heir to some fortune absurdly made -- like, say, the instant mashed potatoes empire, or they ran a monopoly on fondue sets until Carter's libtard Supreme Court broke it up in '79? Or his great-grandad figured out how to stamp the wattage on lightbulbs without breaking the glass and so from 1940 till whenever we stopped buying lightbulbs (2006?), the family got a royalty on every bulb sold ... or maybe Tucker's heir to the flugelbinder empire. You know, flugelbinders, the plastic wrap around the ends of a shoelace that keep it from fraying for a little while? I dunno, could be anything that makes this Tucker a billionaire with no real worries but also makes him instantly both comical and annoying -- could be ANYthing, even TV dinners if that's not *too* stupid, Oh and also, let's have it so he's not even *related* to anyone who founded this empire. Let's say his goofball dad just married into the rich family while on a divorcee bender. I think there's a lot of fun delusionality and depravity to mine here and I'm excited about this project.
"Kid, I like your style. With smarts like that, kid, you'll go far in this town. I also don't remember what town this is."
I admit with some sheepishness that I would watch the hell out of this show, at least the first episode. Kind of like driving past a car crash, you don’t want to look but you’re sort of compelled.
1. Who gives a fuck about Frazier?
2. Hate, hate, hate to say this, but I think that Roy should pull this post, think about the overlap between his vision here and the reality of Dr. Phil, and then make appropriate edits and repost. Roy has long proven he can out-satire reality and I don't that he managed to here.
See, my problem is that he missed the BLEEDINGLY OBVIOUS Kirsty Alley guest star opportunity (as her Cheers character, now a QAnon enthusiast/Groyper mom, maybe?). We’re all little Tartikoffs over here, Roy.
All constructive criticism welcome! Even this!
"Tartikoff" shows your age, dude.
Well, that’s about when I stopped watching network teevee, just like any red-blooded pretentious American leftist...
All constructive criticism welcome!
"1. Who gives a fuck about Frazier?" Paramount/Viacom executives, who are reviving a whole bunch of well-known IPs the company owns (Criminal Minds, Real World, Rod Rules, Rugrats).
Well, not to be that guy, but their judgment is automatically suspect. How long will it be on the air before he does some Roseanne shit and they have to pull it? Never mind cancel culture, the real reason conservatives can't get work in Hollywood is they can't stop being assholes, and the market for that is less than you may think.
correct. i commented to another post about the cancel culture in a sarcastic (gasp!) manner, but the obvious fact of their assholery seems to escape them. fancy that!
I don't really agree. I had no idea Kelsey Grammer had repellent political opinions until I had enjoyed several seasons of 'Frasier.' He wisely never ground his ax on his show, and I suspect he won't this time, either.
I wish they’d actually make some of the shows suggested humorously in MST3K. “Jim Henson’s Last Picture Show Babies”!
I stand corrected. I should have excepted IP necrophiliacs.
Can the Real World be considered intellectual property?
I never caught the show, so unfortunately there’s no substrate for the satire to stick to. I have approximately the same problem with memes that rely on a familiarity with “Seinfeld,” since I appear to be one of only a couple of thousand people in North America who have not sat through an episode. Over the years I have had occasion to reflect that to my nephews and nieces, and latterly to their children, 𝘐’𝘮 the cultural illiterate.
My incredible gaps in what movies I saw growing up, compared to other people my age, is astonishing. I’ve decided to wear it as a badge of honor. In my (admittedly biased) mind it’s at least a more interesting variation of the people who sniff superiorly that they don’t even own a TV.
heh. i don't own a tv, but i don't feel superior about it. i occasionally watch briefly in other homes and think, 'why subject myself to this?' this blog and others of discriminating taste, plus an old movie subscription, manage to fill my time adequately.
I used to feel that way until learning that every human being has incredible, often inexplicable, gaps in cultural knowledge and experience, especially since viewership fragmentation has completely dispensed with nationally shared moments like walking on the moon, the Beatles on Ed Sullivan and the 'Beverly Hillbillies.' But as I get older, I've learned one should never, ever be proud of being ignorant of anything. For instance I eschewed 'Seinfeld' for years because I hated the laugh tracks, until finally the sheer talent of the acting and writing wore me down and I'm glad it did. For moral inspiration, check out 'Green Eggs and Ham,' if that's not too obscure a reference.
I think you took my quip way more seriously than I intended it.
I've seen 1½ episodes of "Seinfeld": I could admire it as machinery but found none of it funny.
If you’re going to insult the show, at least spell it right.
Joe was a boxer, remember?
(Bebe, his former agent, is now serving a twenty-years-to-life sentence after literally stabbing one too many clients in the back over increased fees.)
Roy’s Frasier revival would be more on-topic than what I first imagined: the journeys of Scottish botanist John Fraser in the 18th century Appalachian mountains, discovering the iconic Fraser fir.
Okay, that I would watch. Sign me the hell up. Are you listening, Discovery Plus? We want to watch people explore nature, not exploit it.
But is there a Fraser crane?
In general, keeping Fraiser in a coma sounds like sound plotting, like, say, “General Hospital”..
So when this bombs, they can pitch a reboot of that: “Genital Hospital “.
as so often happens with these vignettes, i find myself thinking, 'this is probably satire, and not simply a studio preview.' but if have to say that if this were pitched to some hollyweird mogul, there's a fair-to-good chance of it being made as presented here. it helps that i don't own a tv, and have never seen an episode of Frasier, because... Kelsey Grammer.
I've seen less than a dozen episodes of Cheers!
This is the age-old issue of problematic art. Grammer is a privlileged dick, and Frasier is a pretentious nice guy, and the show bats above average as pretty funny, so it's a choose-your-own-adventure thing. But reboots are big because established popular characters and storylines are money in the bank, and one thing studios really like is money in the bank.
this is exactly right, with the added advantage that Grammer won't be able to whine (yeah, right) about the cancel culture keeping him from putting food on his family (h/t dubya)
The old conundrum: How much of a performer or artist's personal foibles and flaws (to say the least) must one acknowledge or use as an excuse to ignore their art? Or can you enjoy, without guilt, an asshole's work?
in this divisive age, it's increasingly difficult for me to separate the artist and his life outside of art. i don't need the artist in full; i require that he keep his failings hidden from me in their rawest form. i appreciate that much great work has been produced from these flaws, but let me please enjoy the finished product. don't hide your light under that bushel basket, but please keep the darkness there. most greatness seems to be in a tightly focused field, and outside of that we're all too human in a lowest common denominator sort of way.
I've thought a lot about this and let me offer my self-serving proposal: Human accomplishment, like time, can only be added to, not subtracted. Right and wrong, good and bad don't cancel each other out; they co-exist -- for you, me, Louis CK, Thomas Jefferson and Pablo Picasso.
I 100% guarantee this would be better than what we actually get.
Given that Kelsey Grammer is a Rightwing crank in real life, this should require no actual acting on his part.
Not that any previous appearances if his generated any real acting on his part.
He helped screw up our state (not that we needed the help) by promoting Megan’s Law, that asinine “victim’s rights” vanity project pushed by a California billionaire.
Roz has meanwhile gone on the lam with money she fleeced out of Frasier while he was unconscious.
Shades of Psycho?
Only in this version I’m betting on Roz to survive.
And suffer her hilarious fate?
Maybe instead of trading the car in for a sedan while the patrolman lurks watching, she trades it for a Winnebago, skips the Bates Motel, and roams America’s back roads SOLVING CRIMES. (This fall on NBC! Right after Supertrain!)
All on stolen money! A true Republican at heart!
I could actually see Kelsey Grammer going for this. The guy is talented and I liked Frasier (and Sideshow Bob), but his politics and privilege are repellent.
Brian Blessed as pseudo-Rasputin was a master stroke. If only Rik Mayall were around to play Bulldog’s brother Flash. [makes obscene gesture] “WOOF!”
I just saw Blessed guesting on an episode of my new obsession, Toast of London.
I recently rewatched "I, Claudius" and Blessed was magnificent as Augustus. Show still holds up IMO, and John Hurt's Caligula was as fabulous as I remembered it. Now I have to check out "Toast of London". (Sounds a lot like "Slings and Arrows" which is on Acorn if you have it -- enjoyable and each season gets better.)
Also: It was a hoot when he hosted "Have I Got News for You". Here's a compilation of best bits.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlPRA-2OgtE
When I first caught 𝘐, 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘶𝘴 in the mid-seventies, I was coming off a two- or three-year romp through Roman history and associated literature, including the Robert Graves novels, and was dismayed at first with Blessed’s portrayal of Augustus—he seemed physically all wrong for the part—but of course he soon won me over.
There was an earlier English series, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘦𝘴𝘢𝘳𝘴, that covered more-or-less the same period and personalia, and is also well worth watching. The hero of the production (Claudius himself appears as a cynical sot), its moral center and the repository of sober, selfless integrity was—wait for it—
Tiberius.
I Clavdivs
I actually own Slings and Arrows. I think I would run off with Paul Gross if he weren't so damn married! Have you seen Luke Kirby's (Jack Crew) turn as Lennie Bruce in the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel?
Haven't seen it but I imagine he'd make a great Lenny Bruce.
This is pretty terrific -
https://youtu.be/PrqBWT_HVTc
Tom Goodman as Claudius and Jacobi as Augustus.
Jacoby does an audiobook version of both I, Claudius and Claudius the God.
I swear, the TV series changed my life.
You might like the podcast series "I, Podius" in which an old hand at the series (John Hodgman) discusses it with a new watcher (Elliott Kalan). For "Rocky Horror Show" fans: in Episode 7 they interview "Magnolia", Patricia Quinn, who also played the memirable Livilla.
Alas, I didn't realize Mayall had died. He was an absolutely brilliant and creative comedian.
You'll like this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_X_7TrcHGM
Ok, I got more than a third of the way in until I realized: Roy has done it again; created a convincing narrative about a weird reboot of Frasier. Well, Frasier is indeed apparently returning via streaming and I would really love it if your imaginative and hilarious narrative was the real one. (I am also a long time fan of the booming voice of Brian Blessed and his larger than life presence.) We can always hope that it will the turn the way you have written but, alas, I doubt it.
Then again, you could always pitch your narrative to Kelsey Grammar and see how he responds. That would be funny in and of itself.
"Assisted by Bulldog and his brother Niles, who has converted to Sufism and become a theocon (and divorced by Daphne, who has moved to Portland to join Rose City Antifa)"
I spit my coffee on that one!
Nah—Greek Orthodoxy, and he now goes by 'Athos'.
I'm afraid the actual show will inevitably be much less entertaining than this sounds
I'm glad I missed Frazier the first time around. I will say I have a great idea for a sitcom called "Tucker" in which a TV fascist has a midlife crisis, gets a divorce, and moves to San Diego or someplace to live with his younger brother Buckley and their dad, a former ambassador to the Seychelles.
I liked Frazier but this "Tucker" sounds great. I'm greenlighting it. Oh can this Tucker also be the heir to some fortune absurdly made -- like, say, the instant mashed potatoes empire, or they ran a monopoly on fondue sets until Carter's libtard Supreme Court broke it up in '79? Or his great-grandad figured out how to stamp the wattage on lightbulbs without breaking the glass and so from 1940 till whenever we stopped buying lightbulbs (2006?), the family got a royalty on every bulb sold ... or maybe Tucker's heir to the flugelbinder empire. You know, flugelbinders, the plastic wrap around the ends of a shoelace that keep it from fraying for a little while? I dunno, could be anything that makes this Tucker a billionaire with no real worries but also makes him instantly both comical and annoying -- could be ANYthing, even TV dinners if that's not *too* stupid, Oh and also, let's have it so he's not even *related* to anyone who founded this empire. Let's say his goofball dad just married into the rich family while on a divorcee bender. I think there's a lot of fun delusionality and depravity to mine here and I'm excited about this project.
I know right. I think I'll go with the TV dinners, frankly that's the funniest
Those are called aglets, not flugelbinders here in the US
"Two Morally Bankrupt Guys"
—'I watch it for that one actor whose clothes are all two sizes too small. "
Super extra points for including Brian Blessed.