Search - The Best of The Tonight Show - Stand-Up Comedians (2 Discs) on DVD

Classic late-night standup is good, but not great.

K. Tryniszewski | Milwaukee, WI | 03/08/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"It should be known that, at twenty-six years old, I was not around/not old enough to stay up late to watch any of these clips live. That being said, I love stand-up comedy of all eras and I know that a lot of greats had made their marks on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.



The DVD promises "classic routines," but what it really should have said is "first time on televsion for some comedians." Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne Barr, Brett Butler, Steven Wright, and Drew Carey are among those making their TV debuts. As a sort of historical document, this is kind of cool. But as far as bringing the funny goes, some of these routines are lacking -- most notably in Seinfeld's case. It's easy to see that he got way better through the years.



The rest of the set is fairly uneven; George Carlin is off his game here (though that just may be the restraints of broadcast TV), but Gallagher's routine was one of the most enjoyable even without his Sledge-o-Matic. It really varied from one comedian to the next. It was also apparent that the less-well-known comedians (Ronnie Shakes?) were less known for a reason.



This two-disc set isn't really as bad as I make it seem. There were some surprises from comedians that I wasn't really familiar with (as in I haven't heard their material) like Louie Anderson and Garry Shandling. Rodney Dangerfield was hilarious as usual. It's just that the shortcomings of the DVD are so obvious: first-time apperances that weren't very good, unknown and unfunny comics, etc.



I would recommend this DVD for fans of older comedy because there are some gems to be found here, but at the same time tell them not to expect a whole lot from the set otherwise.



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