Lily Tomlin brings evening of classics to San Diego
January 27th, 2010 by Scott Marks
At 7:45 p.m., fifteen minutes after the scheduled start of Lily Tomlin’s show on Wednesday at the Balboa Theatre, the packed house began stomping their feet and clapping in unison, restless and eager for the star to take to the stage and entertain them as she has been doing for the past 40 years.
The mere sight of a prop man placing two water bottles onstage brought about thunderous applause. Within minutes the houselights dimmed and the crowd was treated to a brief video retrospective, most of it taken from the 1981 television special “Lily: Sold Out.”
The stage bill, which heralded “An Evening of Classic Lily Tomlin,” lived up to its title. Between the video and her live performance, virtually all of the seventy-year old comedian’s vast array of comic incarnations were represented.
Baby-boomers weaned on Rowan and Martin’s “Laugh In” can’t help but remember her two quintessential creations: Ernestine, the surly, chortling telephone operator, and the precocious six-year old Edith Ann whose first name always ends with a Bronx cheer. While little Edith hasn’t aged a day, Ernestine is no longer in the employ of Ma Bell. She now works for an insurance company, where her job is denying people health care coverage.
Tomlin was one of the first female comics to appear in drag and both of her male embodiments were represented in the clip reel. Fans will surely remember the chain-smoking Vegas lounge lizard Tommy Velour, but only diehards will recall Pervis Hawkins, the black rhythm-and-blues soul singer patterned after Luther Vandross.
When the actress and champion monologist took to the stage, her coltish deportment instantly sliced forty years off her age. In her best Susie the Sorority Girl affectation, Tomlin regaled the audience with a tailor made cheer that blessed the weather in America’s finest city and lamented the Chargers failure to make it to this year’s Super Bowl. She appeared to take it personally. After all, Tomlin does share the same initials as a certain All Pro running back.
Tomlin never aims for cheap, smutty laughs. The closest she came to working blue was a flashback to the squeaky clean fifties when a “certain word” spray painted on an overpass would be altered overnight to read “Buick.”
The show opened with a solid set of observations aimed at poking holes through life’s endless stream of contradictions. For Tomlin, “No matter how cynical you become it’s never enough.” She later asked, “Why is it that when we talk to God we’re said to be praying, but when God talks to us we’re schizophrenic?”
This last aside formed a perfect segue to Trudi, the semi-coherent street person, and from then on it was an evening of Lily’s greatest hits. Why not? If Mick Jagger can still take to the stage and wail about his inability to “get no satisfaction,” why shouldn’t Tomlin be able to rekindle her past glories?
Judith Beasley — the uptight suburbanite for whom sexual freedom means the freedom not to have sex — was there. So was Madame Lupe, the world’s oldest living beauty expert. The moment Tomlin parked herself center stage and pulled her knees up to her chest, the audience knew it was time for the bratty musings of Edith Ann, Tomlin’s forerunner to Pee-Wee Herman.
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Tags: An Evening of Classic Lily Tomlin, Balboa Theatre, Comedy, Edith Ann, Ernestine, LAUGH-IN, Lily Tomlin, Lily Tomlin review, Lily Tomlin San Diego, Monologist, Pervis Hawkins, review Lily Tomlin, Scott Marks, SDNN, Sister Boogie Woogie, Standup comedian, Tommy VelourFiled Under Reviews, Uncategorized
Screen Actor’s Guild Awards recap
January 24th, 2010 by Scott Marks
Betty White is beginning to look like a molten girl.
Is Alec Baldwin’s date brother Billy? At least he didn’t bring that meshuggina Stephen.
When did Anna Paquin grow up? G-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r!
Am I the only one who thinks Tina Fey is Will Ferrell with a vagina? She has yet to make me laugh.
Has Joan Allen had some work done on her face?
Speak of the devil. They open the comedy clips with Ferrell. How can they mix movies and TV? Nothing is letterboxed and they show a colorized clip of “Disorder in the Court?!?!?” No Buster Keaton, but Tyler Perry is referenced. F#&*ers! At least they had the decency to include the barbell gag from “The Nutty Professor.”
I don’t care how hot Sofia Veraga is. If the best clip they can choose from “Modern Family” is a bunch of people falling in a swimming pool, count me out.
GABBY & MO! GABBY & MO! GABBY & MO! She should whip out a frying pan and brain her. I prefer Gabby’s green dress that she wore on the Golden Globes. She looked like a pool table with a head.
Christoph Waltz beat out Matt Damon? Fraud at polls!!! He actually thanked the projectionist in his acceptance speech. Never heard that before. We continue to salute Col. Landa!
Chris O’Donnell is still alive? Must be working on TV.
SAG president Ken Howard has a William Shatner going.
I dig that low cut dress Betty White is wearing. Did Dorothy Gale dump a bucket of water on Betty? Man, did she shrink. Never knew Betty was born in Oak Park. Big points for including a clip of Del Moore. Bring back reruns of “The Pet Set!” Where’s the clip of Betty giving Allen Ludden a Pittsburgh platter? When Betty White confessed to “having a couple” of actors they immediately cut to Morgan Freeman. Draw your own conclusuons.
Continue reading Screen Actor’s Guild Awards recap
Tags: betty white, INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, Mo'Nique, sag awards, screen actors guild awardsFiled Under Rants, Uncategorized
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