Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

Happy indictment week to all who celebrate!

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

Hot air and ill-informed banter

No one could have predicted…

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Second rate reporter says what?

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

You are here: Home / Popular Culture / News Radio

News Radio

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Someone mentioned News Radio the other day in the comments, and I decided to borrow the first two seasons from a friend and re-watch it (plus there are some I missed, I am sure). At any rate, I have always loved the show, but I had forgotten just how funny and how good the show was. I just finished episode three, Smoking, and the scene where they snap on Andy Dick’s character Matthew is so funny i watched it four times and have tears streaming down my face.

Such a good show. And Jimmy James has my nod as one of the greatest all-time sitcom characters.

Reader Interactions

47Comments

  3. 3.

    Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse

    Hmmph. Crackle won’t show it to me.

    Luckily, you can start watching the full episode on YouTube here.

  4. 4.

    SGEW

    Man, I loved that show. Loved loved loved.

    One genius detail often overlooked when talking about News Radio was its reliance on the actors’ own timing during long multi-camera takes: very Vaudeville, very Honeymooners. A rather bold move nowadays* in such an ensemble-based characterization-heavy sitcom, but it was (almost) always very well pulled off.

    Of course, Dave Foley was, in my opinion, the under-appreciated genius of The Kids in the Hall, so it was hardly a surprise to me.

    *Ok, obviously not "nowadays," but thinking about how long ago Hartman died makes me feel really old.

  5. 5.

    Mike

    Netflix has NewsRadio; I saw the first two seasons on direct download, though you might need to wait for the DVDs these days.

    Funny show, though pretty uneven. My favorites are the ones where Dave Foley veers from straight man to demented lunatic.

    And a young Khandi Alexander? Oh my God…

  7. 7.

    John Cole

    And a young Khandi Alexander

    No doubt.

    Another one of my all time favorites was when Jimmy James faked travelling around the world in a hot air balloon.

  10. 10.

    amorphous

    @Polish the Guillotines: News Radio, Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure, every character he ever did on SNL, and I just learned he was going to do Zapp Branigan? That would have put him over the top. I can’t think of a single person in my lifetime who has ever made me laugh so hard so consistently.

    @SGEW:

    I see what you did there.

  12. 12.

    Comrade Stuck

    Am currently lost in BSG season one (half way thru) . Get 4 episodes with each netflix disc. It is great, absolutely great. I suspect Sarah Palin is a Cylon, fairly frackin sure.

  13. 13.

    J.D. Rhoades

    My favorite Jimmy James line was from the pilot and went something like :

    JIMMY: Now admit it, you don’t know if I’m a genius or if I’m just making this up as I go along.

    DAVE: Well…

    JIMMY: And you never will.

  15. 15.

    Mnemosyne

    For some reason, that sandwich monologue by Phil Hartman is the one that sticks in my mind. "Good times, good times."

  17. 17.

    Ninerdave

    And Jimmy James has my nod as one of the greatest all-time sitcom characters.

    Hell ya. News Radio is one of my all time favorite shows. Writing was excellent, cast was stellar.

    Super Karate Monkey Death Car was hands down my favorite episode.

  18. 18.

    Ronnie Pudding

    O, Vicki Lewis, where have you gone?

    My favorite bits: Beth’s definitions of cute, beautiful, sexy, etc.; the visual set-ups (Matthew attacking the accountant behind the glass); the cameos (e.g., Jon Stewart, David Cross); "…and gay construction worker"; the Wichita Lineman jokes.

  19. 19.

    lovedog

    man, this warms my heart. I’ve long thought this was the great overlooked comedy show. And watching the 1st 4 seasons over the past few months via netflix has only strengthened my love. keep going. they’re all good. the show rarely hits the zen perfection of SEINFELD but wow does it delight.

  20. 20.

    Adolphus

    I can’t believe that the guy who plays Jimmy James is the same guy who played the red-stapler guy in Office Space.

    And lets not forget Stephen Root’s memorable comedy turn in Dodge Ball and his many wonderful voices on King of the Hill.

  22. 22.

    patrick

    Steven Root (Jimmy James) is one of my favorite comedic actors. He has done a lot of great work, in addition to Jimmy James, I loved his depiction of the blind radio station manager in "O Brother, Where Art Thou?".

  24. 24.

    Victor Von Doom

    Remember: If this office is a rockin’, don’t come a knockin’

    Of the efficiency expert, played by the actress from Gilmore Girls. "Mathew, I don’t have time to explain, but it is very important that you do not strip nude in front of the efficiency expert!"

    The poker game – with the spy camera hidden in the Boba Fett action figure.

    Bruce Wayne is Batman. shhhh!

    Oh, man – too many lines and memories. I lost the first few seasons on DVD when returning a rental car a few years ago – I need ot get the complete set now!

  26. 26.

    Nicole

    Frak yeah BSG was good tonight.

    I also loved Stephen Root’s 3 episode arc on "True Blood." (I know, I know, but I can’t help it; I like the show)

  28. 28.

    Steeplejack

    D’oh! That should be "check out his matrimonial negotiations . . ." Stupid HTML comment editor thing.

  29. 29.

    YellowJournalism

    One of my favorite episodes was the one where Dave dressed in drag, which was a great throwback to his Kids in the Hall days. He made such a pretty girl.

    God, I miss Phil Hartman. It’s just not the same watching the Simpsons be represented by "old Gill" in court. And Rainier Wolfcastle is no Troy McClure.

  30. 30.

    Incertus

    I don’t think Stephen Root has ever been bad in anything he’s done. He might have been in some bad stuff–can’t recall anything–but he’s always been great. And if he were about twenty years younger, he’d be perfect as Ignatius Reilly from A Confederacy of Dunces.

  32. 32.

    Studly Pantload

    @ mcd410x: BSG rocked tonight!

    Well, alrighty, lookin’ forward out here on the left coast. Thanks in part to this damnable blog, I’ve lately become a devotee’ of the toasters and skin jobs hour. (I like how the camera work and grittiness makes me feel like I’m watching Hill Street Blues in Space.)

    @ Smudgemo: Maura Tierney is way-sexy.

    Yep, she is chock full of teh hawt. And it takes a lot to get me to notice Hollywood gals; I don’t crush on the celebs easy.

  33. 33.

    Incertus

    @mcd410x: They’re redeeming themselves for the bullshit they’ve pulled for the last season and a half, that’s for sure. No more of this "long pause serves as intensity" crap.

  35. 35.

    Marlowe

    News Radio was pretty good for a while, but as I recall it’s quality dropped precipitously with the loss of Phil Hartman. While some shows hit a peak and taper off gradually (such as the gradual, but continuous, decline of Cheers after the departure of Shelley Long following the fifth season) others deteriorate so suddenly it’s like turning off a light switch. A good example of this was Cybill, which was incredibly good early on, but went south suddenly (and, probably not coincidentally, concomittantly with Cybill Shepard’s successful demands for more creative control).

  37. 37.

    anonymous37

    Season 4 was the best, with season 3 coming in second place.

    Single best episode (well, the one which made me laugh hardest): Public Domain. This is the one with … you know, if you haven’t seen it, I don’t want to ruin even a second of it for you.

    Best Phil Hartman subplot and moment: French Diplomacy and its culmination in the scene where he screams at Maura Tierney.

  38. 38.

    Mouse Tolliver

    I loved this show, but could never watch during its run because NBC kept changing its time slot. I never knew what night it was on.

    Favorite Jimmy James moment — when he gave a reading of his book — which he had translated from English to Japanese and then back into English again.

  39. 39.

    Comrade Baron Elmo

    If you like Khandi Alexander, you must must MUST see her in the HBO miniseries The Corner (David Simon’s television project preceding The Wire), where she has a starring role as Fran, a divorced mother and drug addict who is desperately trying to clean up her act. I watched News Radio regularly, yet still didn’t recognize her in The Corner — she’s that good. I’m pissed to this day that she didn’t get an Emmy.

  40. 40.

    Andy K

    @Marlowe

    but as I recall it’s quality dropped precipitously with the loss of Phil Hartman

    Yeah, Lovitz didn’t quite fit the bill…but the Johnny Jones arcs were pretty funny.

  45. 45.

    MNPundit

    I think I have all the seasons courtesy my GF, and I have to say that I like season 4 the best. That and Lauren Graham was a little zaftig in her outfits and it really turned me on since I was a 15 year old boy at the time.

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