It's called Uhh Yeah Dude and is comprised of Jonathan Larroquette and Seth Romatelli, two guys from "HollywUYD" who discuss popular and weird news in a hilarious way. I'm a journalism major, but I hate sorting through all the news sites and papers sometimes so it's refreshing that these guys make it fun.

Their tagline is "A weekly roundup of America through the eyes of two American Americans." Check it out in the itunes store under podcasts or visit their site to subscribe. They also have a You Tube channel with videos of their broadcasts.

While you're in podcast world you have to listen to the most popular comedy channel, The Ricky Gervais Podcast. Ricky Gervais, Steve Merchant relentlessly mock Karl Pilkington and his outlandish ideas. If you're a fan of The Office, (UK or US) or you know....comedy, you will love it.

First email (received today), first reply:

No, I don't take any drugs when writing. Legally, but not technically. My last post, the Razorlight one was written when the malt whiskey got the better of me. So yes, drugs, technically, alcohol and all that, but therefore not illegally, at least in the UK. My Achtung Baby, fly one? Was written on green tea. My apologies if that would somehow be a disappointing answer.

Second reply, to many emails (though mainly from the same four people. Well, I assume four, may be just the one. Isn't it time, you let me know who you are, btw? Pictures will do. Only kidding. As you know, I don't really do comments unless I have met you in person. Thanks for reading me and to bother to send emails): 

Andy Kaufman. Why? Well. I know A's and mine obsession with Andy Kaufman has to stop right here, right now. But it's like alcohol. The first glass-a-beer/wine/cognac/whiskey your peers/parents give/grant you tastes terrible. Then it gets better and better. /And/. Better. Until you gotta stop. But there is something very intimate, very private, very bonding when a girl and a boy, a woman and a man, two lovers, both 'get' something, get into something, or in this case, 'get' someone, get into someone, a performer, who by no means is a comedian, by no means can make you laugh out loud, but can make you both smile, can make you both feel good about yourself. Can make you look at each other and she will be thinking, "You may be older, you may be an arsehole, but I'm loving this".  While he thinks, "I have no idea how to handle you, no idea about your idea of foreplay but let's watch some Kaufman movies coz Kaufman will soon turn this youtube/video/DVD session into an almighty, fantastic shag-fest."

It's not about sex for her. It isn't for him. At all.

So, then we show these videos to our friends. And they don't laugh. They don't find it funny. Which is cool. Which is fine.

They don't find it sexy.

Their problem.

But they don't smile. 

In my blog. My problem.

Once into him, Kaufman will become obsessive. 

And, no, to directly answer one of your questions, it's not about us, clever people, against them, philistines. Those who get it and those who don't. Has nothing to do with it. It's an intimate, private, bonding thing we have.

If you haven't done so before, and shame on you if you haven't, check youtube. 

But for you, four people, or one person:

Here's my Andy Kaufman selection:

Here's the almighty Mighty Mouse:

Here's him doing political incorrectness when Ricky Gervais still was a toddler:

Here's him being brilliant a performer:

Here's him being just, I dunno, too brilliant?

To love you, until your eyes run dry ...

(You've heard it here before)

(Sue me)

Dir. David Koepp; Writ. David Koepp, John Kamps; Star. Ricky Gervais, Greg Kinnear, Tea Leoni.

Ricky Gervais plays Pinkus, an anti-social dentist. He doesn't like people. Then, he dies; he is resuscitated; and he can see dead people. Ghosts pester him till he learns to appreciate people. He helps them find closure. He falls for a Ghost's, Kinnear's, wife, Tea Leoni.

Gervais is funny, but his character Pinkus never becomes likable. I'm not a big fan of Kinnear. Leoni is awesome, very cute and quirky.

Ghost Town didn't really take off the ground for me. It was ok, nothing special.

B

Released in the US: September 19, 2008

DVD Release: Unknown

Running Time: One hour, forty-two minutes

All-time Domestic Box Office Chart #3132

Anytime you want to see a comedy, Ricky Gervais is never a bad bet.  For those who may not know him by name, he's had many roles in the field of comedy including David on The Office (the British version) and Andy Millman on the Extras, which aired in the US on HBO, where he made famous the line, "Is he havin' a laugh?" (That line permeated other roles as well, such as Ferdy the Fence in Stardust) and is well known by Gervais fans.  His brand of comedy is often shown through execution of dialogue, which involves both careful timing and choice of words.  His co-stars, Tea Leoni and Greg Kinnear added to the comedic quality of Ghost Town that made it a successful film.

!!! spoiler alert !!! spoiler alert !!! spoiler alert !!! spoiler alert !!! spoiler alert !!!

Specific elements of comedy that enriched the film was Bertram Pincus' (Ricky Gervais) gag reflex.  During a commercial break for Primeval, a television show that airs on BBC America, an interview with Gervais was shown where he said that his character had a gag reflex simply to set him apart from leading male roles in other movies, that it was a rather odd, yet small quirk that added a sense of novelty to the character development...it also leaves room for humor.  One of the elements of Ghost Town beyond humor that I enjoyed was the way the ghosts moved on.  The stereotypical tractor-beam of light from the heavens was replaced with a simple fade from a nearby light source.  One ghost fades with a lightpost, another fades with a motorcycle head lamp (so on and so forth).  I also liked how it's not the ghosts who have unfinished business, it's those who are left behind.  What didn't I like about this movie that I give it four stars instead of five?  Pincus dies and comes back too many times.

You can explore the universe looking for somebody who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself,
and you will not find that person anywhere.

This weekend I saw Ghost Town which was very funny and was a great story. Ricky Gervais does an excellent job of being witty and sarcastic without being heavy handed. I think he is hilarious. It was exactly what I wanted it to be. Funny and heartwarming.
I also saw Burn After Reading. The Coen Brothers do such a good job of creating characters. Everyone was saying Brad was super funny in this movie, which he is but George Clooney was fantastic. It looks like Clooney lost a bunch of weight for this movie. And of course Tilda, Frances and Malkovich were phenomenal as well. I'm sure a film like this isn't one where people point out how great a job the costume designer did, but I'm going to. Clooney's jeans that were worn just too high up at the waist that tapered in at the bottom were amazing for his character, as was his thick gold chain. Brad Pitt's shorts and the way they had him wearing ill fitting suits were perfect for his gym-rat character. Brad is a great actor but I think we're all at the point where we feel we know Brad a little too well to have him be believable in that sort of a role at this point, but I got over it. They created such an interesting story about how it would really play out if some regular joes got a hold of classified information and how all of the characters would really behave. I actually think the scenes with J.K. Simmons who plays the C.I.A superior are genius. The Coen Brothers display insight into true human nature in this movie.

SNL was really funny this weekend. Andy Samberg did a great sketch called Mark Wahlberg talks to animals.

Ricky Gervais (pictured above in a photo by Ray Burmiston), the star and co-creator of the UK version of The Office who is now appearing in the feature filn Ghost Town with Greg Kinnear, performed in a pop band called Seona Dancing in the early 1980s. Wearing his hair in a David Bowie Let's Dance style, Gervais and fellow Seona Dancing member Bill Macrae made several recordings and appeared on a few television programs in the UK.

In an interview that took place in February of this year on the UK television talk show Richard & Judy, Gervais discussed his pop music past in Seona Dancing. A clip of the band is shown as well. Check it out:

Let me know which is your favourite!

**New Video** for PDC 2008

Shoe Circus-Seinfeld Vista Ad 1

New Family-Seinfeld Vista Ad 2

I'm A PC 1

I'm A PC 2

I'm A PC - Steve Ballmer

Bill Gates-Last Day Video Diary - This one is truly brilliant! I think this is my fave video of the lot..

Microsoft UK did a set of 4 videos called "The Office Values" which featured Ricky Gervais as David Brent, here they are:

The Office Values 1

The Office Values 2

The Office Values 3

The Office Values 4

This video was taken 100% seriously by some people out there and used as another excuse to have a pop at Microsoft, but I'm pretty sure it's tongue is very firmly in it's cheek:

Vista SP1

This video is from the Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) 2008, which was over in Houston.  I was there this year but I only thought to record this after it had happened (typical!) and this is the only clip I can find on Youtube:

Alison "A Fresh" Watson

Bit of trivia for you, I very nearly accidentally tripped up Alison Watson over in Houston at the expo! I wonder what I'd be doing now if that had happened?!

Thought I'd add the EBS Pimp My Infrastructure vid here too

Kate Moss recebe o tratamento Goldfinger. Ou algo parecido. (Pink is the New Blog)

O namoro de Drew Barrymore e Chuck Bass foi só uma pegadinha. (PopSugar)

Pelo menos uma vez as Pussycat Dolls não parecem travecos. Eles estão bem gostosas. (Popoholic)

Simon Pegg contra Ricky Gervais: Lutem! (Defamer)

Mais sobre o noivado de Jessica Simpson e Tony Romo. (IDLYITW)

Carrie Underwood pode estar namorando Travis Stork. (Just Jared)

A prisão de Heather Locklear por dirigir embriagada está ficando cada vez mais confusa. (Socialite Life)

O seio de Britney Spears faz um garoto feliz. (CityRag)

Sério. Quem permitiu que a Paris Hilton gravasse mais um álbum? (Hollywood Rag)

Currently, I am on page 130-something. It can be dense and slow going, and yet still absorbing. In fact, it's often exciting, even exhilerating. I realize that probably sounds pretty geeky, but its true. There is so much going on, and I'm sure that I'm only grasping about 10% of it, but still its worth it for what I am absorbing.

In some ways it is a manic experience, reading DFW's prose, especially the prose in this novel. It seems as if you can feel the author's intensity via his words. Although, I have to admit that in the evening, after a full day of work, the size of that book can be daunting, and I look for ways to avoid reading it. Such as getting interested in reading his short stories, particularly from Girl with Curious Hair, his first collection. Plus, working at a library I am often seduced by new books coming in.

And just yesterday, I started a new novel, Revolutonary Road, by Richard Yates. I've been meaning to read this one for years. I've always heard it was very good. Apparently, a lot of writers are fans of it, but it isn't necessarily widely popular. Written in the early 60s, it is set in the mid-50s and is concerned with a young married couple who seemed to be frustrated by the banality of 50s suburban life. I've started this novel a couple of times but never got far. Not sure why. This time is different. I'm getting into. I wonder how much of that has to be do with being married now and living in a suburb. What inspired me to pick it up again? They're making a movie out of it. I was surprised. Saw the preview last weekend when Colleen and I went to see Ghost Town, with Ricky Gervais, a movie that is better than it appears based on the trailers. Anyhoo... RR is going to star Leo Cap and Kate Winslet. And yeah, my first reaction was: is this a good idea, putthing these two in a movie togther after Titanic? Apparently somebody thought so. I'm pretty confident that Winslet will give a good performance. If anything queers this film, it will be Leo. It will be interesting to see how he plays the role of a married man that works a humdrum job and struggles to keep his life together.

My point: despite the fatigue of daily life and other enticing reading distraction, I am making progress on Infinite Jest.

Saturday Night Live premiered this video May 17, 2008, but is currently placed on Hulu's top SNL videos.

Ricky Gervais explains where the inspiration for where The Office came from: a Japanese show where the characters act and gesture exactly like the characters from the American show. "But this show is completely different from the show you know and love," jokes Gervais.

You might recognize some similarities from the Season 1, Episode 1 of The Office.

The spoof stars Kristen Wiig, Steve Carell, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, and Kenan Thompson.

Lo que puede que sepas o no es que no se trata de una idea original. 'The Office' se estrenó en Estados Unidos en 2005, pero es un remake de otra 'The Office' datada de 2001 y procedente del Reino Unido.

Nunca he llegado a ver la original, lo tengo en mi lista de to-do's. Pero por lo que sé el remake americano no tiene nada que envidiarle porque le supera 5 temporadas a 3. Y que dure...

Ricky Gervais, el nombre que titula este post es el creador de la serie original y también el protagonista principal. Igualmente, colabora en la versión estadounidense como productor y escritor ocasional. El caso es que el año pasado ganó un Emmy por la versión americana de la serie pero no pudo asistir a la ceremonia. Así que fue Steve Carell, el protagonista del remake, quien lo recogió en su nombre. Sin embargo en la gala de este año que se celebró la semana pasada Ricky fue uno de los presentadores, así que aprovechó para reclamar lo que es suyo. En este enlace puedes ver lo que pasó.

I wish it was true. After all those years, I'd even watch the Oscars. Not the award giving part though.

See the whole hilarious scene from the Emmys below:

Actually, the last one we didn't really watch all the way through. We got it from Netflix and the disc was so banged up it wouldn't finish playing. So we're looking forward to watching the second half.

Perhaps it is only a coincidence that the shows that pour all of their energy into 13 episodes tend to have a better quality standard. Or perhaps it's a sign that their producers have more focus and not the marathoners pace of the network guys.

In addition to the quality being condensed into tighter scripts and story  arcs, The limited nature of the shooting schedule means that actors who might not normally commit to a 22 episode run, will make time for smaller more curated shows. For example, Dame Judy Dench appeared for 13 seasons in a comedy series called As Time Goes By, while simultaneously doing her best work as a film actress. 67 episodes in 13 years, thats a breeze on a tight schedule. You would never ever expect to see Meryl Streep play a regular character on The New Adventures of Old Christine. It is a good show, but it would never attract her because of the 22 episode commitment.

I am not saying that all of the shows that produce under these conditions are great. I am only saying that if the effort were put into 10 to 12 solid episodes per season, we might have a higher quality product than we are used to.

Another effect would be that different shows could run at different times of year on a revolving basis and we would have time to miss that show while it was in hiatus. Writers would not be forced spread their resources out over 22 episodes or by putting their talents only into the episodes that run during the sweeps rating period. It certainly would not be boring. A Fall and a Spring season might make for a lively and entertaining change of pace.

Since the success of The Office and Extras, their star and creator Ricky Gervais has been bombarded by film scripts from Hollywood casting him as the lead.  He rejected them all until Ghost Town came along.
 
This supernatural romantic comedy (if such a film genre didn't exist before it does now) may well be destined to become a classic.  Written by David Koepp and John Kamps, and directed by David Koepp, it has shades of It's a Wonderful Life about it but also an edginess and moments of pure comedy genius that only Gervais can provide.
 
He plays a lonely, socially awkward and misanthropic dentist, Bertram Pincus, who dies for seven minutes during a colonoscopy; he opted to have general anesthesia.  As a result, he starts to see dead people.
 
Apparently ghosts cannot be laid to rest until the unfinished business they have has been finalized.  As a consequence, Gervais is hounded by dead people one of whom, Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear) wants him to stop his widow, Gwen (Tea Leoni) from marrying someone he thinks is wrong for her.  In exchange, Frank promises Bertram that he will stop all the other dead people from hounding him.
 
Bertram agrees but in the process falls in love with Gwen.  With another writer and director, the film could have descended into saccharine mush.  True, the comedy slackens off a little but it is replaced with pathos, which serves to heighten the comedy when it returns to the fore.
 
And that comedy is the stuff that Gervais is renowned for -- acerbic and cringe making when he has to extricate himself from a faux pas.  According to the Baltimore Sun, 85 percent of Ghost Town came from the script by Koepp and Kamps, 15 percent came from two days of re-writes with Gervais and countless on-set improvisations.
 
The result of all of that is an opening barrage of laughs, the Gervais brand of humor goes down well with Americans, containing memorable moments such as the interplay with his surgeon (Kristen Wiig); preparing to meet with Gwen for the first time and trying out different ways with his hair; explaining how teeth cannot be self-righteous; and Chinese names.
 
Needless to say, the path to true love does not run smoothly and even seems destined to fail until Bertram suddenly comes to realize that people aren't so bad after all and he eschews the selfishness and self-centered attitude that has consumed him all of his life.
 
The film reminds us all that it is only by giving that we can hope to receive.  If that sounds terribly sentimental and the kind of thing to make you gag, just remember the vehicle for that sentiment is Gervais.
 
He told the Baltimore Sun: "They had to be real emotions, everyday emotions people identified with.  There is a difference between sweet and delightful and warm, and saccharine, manipulative, awful.  The latter is Hollywood Route One.  It is a fine line and I think we managed to stay on the right side of it."
 
Gervais is absolutely right.  Ghost Town is a refreshing and poignant comedy, and one not to be missed.

GHOST TOWN is the kind of intelligent human and heartfelt comedy that Hollywood knows how to make, but all too often passes over in favor of dreck like DUDE WHERE"S MY CAR?  Ricky Gervais is Dr. Bernard Pincus, a dentist that nightmares are made of.  He's selfish, egotistical, boorish, tactless, and uninterested in his patients.  He won't even attend a small gathering in honor of his partner becoming a father.

Dr. Pincus, however is not just a doctor, he's also a patient.  As the movie begins, Dr. Pincus has to go through the awful preparations for a colonoscopy.  I can tell you, from having watched my parents prepare for these, that it's not pretty.  It's also the kind of funny situation that makes GHOST TOWN a pleasure to watch.  I think every adult over the age of 50 was laughing with recognition at how Dr. Pincus tried to down the prep meds, and wait for them to kick in.

Happily, the procedure is successful.  At least that's what Dr. pincus believes, anyway.  He leaves the hospital, and talks to a nurse that he believes works there.  Only thing is, this nurse doesn't work at that hospital or any other hospital, for that matter.  She's a ghost.  And she's not the only one walking the streets of NYC.  Soon, Pincus is being followed by construction workers, elderly couples, police officers killed in the line of duty, a nude man, and a gentleman in a tuxedo named Frank (Greg Kinnear), who wants Pincus to help him with his widow, Gwen (Tea Leone).

It seems that Frank doesn't want his wife to get remarried to her boyfriend Richard (Billy Campbell).  Frank is convinced that Richard is up to no good.  Pincus, however doesn't want ANYTHING to do with Frank, or any of the other ghosts that now follow, pester, and generally make Pincus look insane.  But Frank and the other ghosts aren't about to give up.  Soon, Pincus finds himself wooing Gwen, and trying to drive a wedge between Gwen and Richard.  What Pincus soon discovers, however, is that he loves Gwen.  Frank, however, tries to discourage the relationship, because he sees the worst parts of himself in Pincus.  Things get even worse when Pincus tries to tell Gwen that everything he's learned about her and Frank is coming directly from Frank.  Pincus soon learns that he needs to start being less self-absorbed, and more in tune with the needs of others.  It's a hard lesson for anyone like Pincus to learn, but luckily for the audience, it's a lesson taught with a lot of laughs and heart, and Gervais pulls off a very funny and believable performance, and it's a great touch that Pincus has a sensitive gag reflex which becomes a funny running joke (notice I didn't say running "gag"?).

I was reminded of HEART AND SOULS while watching this.  In my mind GHOST TOWN is the perfect companion piece.  It's like HEART AND SOULS multiplied by two.  I just hope that Hollywood realizes that there is STILL an audience out there for this kind of intelligent  fun-filled comedy.  I, for one, hope the DVD will come with a blooper reel, because I swear there were scenes that had to be hard to get through without breaking up.

I know Mike already wrote a review for this movie, and there's little I can tell you, that he hasn't already, but I just got back from seeing Ghost Town, and I've been compelled to write a review for it. So, here's another review. I hope you enjoy it.

Last week, I had plans to see Ghost Town at the theater in my town, I had the whole thing planned since Monday, well when Friday rolled around, I called the theater to see if it was playing, and they said it wasn't. So, I checked the theaters in the nearest towns, and they also said no. Finally, I found out it was playing in the town an hour's drive away from my town. And today, a week later, after an hour of being on the road just to get to the theater, I've finally got to see Ghost Town. And let me tell you, it was absolutely worth it.

One thing I loved about Ghost Town was because it was different. It's realistic, the characters act like real people. Bertram Pincus is kind of awkard, and he rambles a bit, which I really love. In most movies, the characters say these ridiculous lines that you would never say, and they pronounce every word with perfect enunciation. Which is not the case with Ghost Town; people act like real people, which is I think is pretty cool.

Ghost Town is a nice change of pace from raunchy comedies, that are so poorly written that a second-grader could write them, and that are so crude you'd blush your face off you saw it with your family. Ghost Town is hilarious without being unbelievably crude. I was laughing throughout the whole thing.

It also has an excellent cast featuring, Greg Kinnear, Tea Leoni, and Ricky Gervais. Ricky Gervais delivers his lines very believably, so much, that you nearly forget he's acting. Greg is great, as well, he portrays his character extremely well, he's that guy you know who's a jerk, but for some reason you like. Kristen Wiig is hilarious in her minor role.

Ghost Town follows the story of Bertram Pincus(Gervais), a standoffish dentist, who goes to the hospital for a minor opperation, and dies "for a little bit," but is brought back to life and awakes seeing ghosts. Bertram is particularly haunted by Frank(Kinnear), a ghost who tells Bertram that if he helps him he won't bother him. Bertram reluctantly agrees to help Frank try to break up Gwen (his widow) and her fiancee. All is fine until Bertram begins to fall for Gwen(Tea Leoni).

I highly recomend seeing Ghost Town. It is witty, and charming. It's a good comedy to see with the family. It's a horse of a different color, which is why I think it's so wonderful.

Ghost Town is rated PG-13, which I think is an accurate rating. There is a little language, which you might not want your children to hear, so if you don't want your kids to hear the F-bomb, you probably shouldn't see it.