The Decline of the American Empire

I got a sneak peek of a TV special that's airing tonight (Mar. 20) on the CBC and thought I'd pass it along to you, in case you're interested. It's essentially a Just For Laughs gala, only with a theme. The almost comically-accented John Oliver (he always sounds to me like Dick Van Dyke trying to do Cockney in Mary Poppins) hosts an hour of political stand-ups whose sights are aimed at our imperialist neighbour to the immediate south. Thus the title of this blog post and the title of said TV special. Oliver brings out, in order, former What's So Funny? guests Alonzo Bodden and Marc Maron, followed by Mark Critch, Greg Proops, and Colin Quinn. It was filmed last summer in Montréal.

Canadians, with our ingrained inferiority complex, love to take potshots at America so it's nice to see an international group effort here, including four of their own. There are, naturally, some pointed barbs, but comics being what they are, there are plenty of others saved for Canadians, British, French and Chinese, so don't feel too bad about the Yanks.

My sneak peek was the full special, but you can get a sampling of what's to come on the JFL website. Follow this link; it'll take you there.