View From the Phlipside - Ricky Gervais

My name is Jay Phillippi and I've spent my life in and around the media.  TV, radio, the movies and more.  I love them, and I hate them and I always have an opinion.  Call this the View from the Phlipside.
Last week's Golden Globes award program ended pretty much exactly as anyone paying attention should have it expected it to end.  And yet we've had to endure a week of people weeping and wailing and gnashing their teeth over the antics of show host Ricky Gervais.  Color me unsympathetic.

Gervais was rude and insulting to pretty much anyone he could be rude and insulting to, including his supposed employers the Hollywood Foreign Press Association who award the Golden Globes.  So let's review just a little bit.

This was Ricky's second year as host.  There was some mild flap last year especially around the fact that Ricky appeared to do a lot of the show with an alcoholic drink in one hand.  His routine was decidedly more restrained last year but still Ricky Gervais.

That may be the most important factor in all this - we are talking about Ricky Gervais.  A stand up comedian who made his bones by being, well, rude, mean, and inappropriate.  His most famous character is David Brent in the original UK version of "The Office".  The same character is called Michael Scott in the American version but they both maintain Gervais' original persona.  One that is rude and inappropriate.

Then add in a couple more factors.  For this year's broadcast Ricky made sure that he wouldn't have to work from a script.  Now that's just a sound idea since most hosts make it sound like they are in fact reading from a script.  But it also means that Ricky can just be Ricky.  See previous points.  Finally in at least one pre-show interview Gervais said, mostly tongue in cheek I think, that he wanted to do the show in such a way so that he'd never be invited back again.

In the end I guess my question is just what exactly did they expect?  Should we really be all solicitous over the bent feelings of a few Hollywood stars?  He did what good comedy does, points out the flaws of those too likely to take themselves too seriously.  Was some of it uncomfortable?  Absolutely.  In questionable taste?  By some standards sure.  But then Hollywood rarely worries about good taste when it comes to making money or generating a little sizzle.

And that's something Ricky Gervais did very, very well.  He took a second tier awards show and got it some major attention.  The Foreign Press Association should do so well with their hosts EVERY year.  Instead some members are threatening to ban any future movie of his from consideration for the awards.  I'm sure Ricky is crushed.

Call that the View From the Phlipside.

"The View From the Phlipside" airs on WRFA-LP Jamestown NY.  You can listen to WRFA online HERE
Copyright - Jay Phillippi 2010