NEW YORK 鈥� For one week each May, some of television鈥檚 best-known comics take on a new role as the little devils perched on the shoulders of their bosses.
Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert and Conan O鈥橞rien delivered withering jokes at the expense of their industry this past week before advertisers gathered in venues like Radio City Music Hall and Carnegie Hall to hear what broadcast networks have in store for next season.
The executives can鈥檛 talk about declining ratings or a lack of ideas, boardroom battles or new series that will disappear after an episode or two. They鈥檙e paid to project confidence at what are elaborate sales presentations with billions of dollars at stake.
It鈥檚 left to the comics to acknowledge what people are thinking but not saying.
For instance, the fate of network chief Leslie Moonves due to a power struggle was on many minds but few lips at CBS鈥� show. Moonves made people exhale with a brief aside 鈥� 鈥淪o, how鈥檚 your week been?鈥� 鈥� but Colbert mined it for comedy.
鈥淭his year CBS has the most exciting legal dramas,鈥� he said. 鈥淎lso some great TV shows.鈥�
Kimmel is the gold standard for these performances, rarely seen publicly. He鈥檚 been appearing at ABC presentations since 2002, and his profane, lacerating stand-up routine is anticipated more than the sneak peeks of new shows. He knows the business cold, and spares no one.
No ABC executive was going to talk about the stinging loss of Shonda Rhimes, the creative force behind shows like 鈥淕rey鈥檚 Anatomy鈥� and 鈥淪candal,鈥� to a new deal at Netflix. Kimmel did.
鈥淚 can honestly say, on behalf of everyone here at ABC who worked with her for so long, we hope she rots in hell,鈥� he said.
ABC is saying goodbye to Shondaland and 鈥済oing headfirst into Roseanne-istan with no plan,鈥� he said. He relished mocking the title of a new ABC show, 鈥淲hiskey Cavalier.鈥�
He鈥檚 not all self-deprecatory. Kimmel zeroes in on the weaknesses of rivals; Moonves has been particularly annoyed through the years at Kimmel jokes about an older CBS audience.
鈥淔ox needs help,鈥� the comic said. 鈥淭hey cancelled 鈥橪ucifer鈥� and 鈥橳he Exorcist.鈥� They can鈥檛 even make a deal with the devil.鈥�
Kimmel added some expletives to a joke about NBC stacking its three Dick Wolf dramas set in Chicago 鈥� a subject Meyers took up more gently at NBC鈥檚 presentation, with a quip about the actors鈥� lack of Chicago accents.
Meyers is newer to the game, and he usually lacks Kimmel鈥檚 bite. Much like on his late-night show, Meyers has been coming into his own, though. Joking about Bill Cosby and Matt Lauer is a lot braver at an NBC event than at ABC.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not surprising for NBC to be dramatic,鈥� Meyers said. 鈥淲e are home to the No. 1 drama on television, a show that each week gives us twists and turns, heartbreaking reveals and, this season, the departure of a once-beloved character. I鈥檓 talking, of course, about 鈥橳his is the Today Show.鈥濃��
Colbert works this gig with a handicap. CBS in the Moonves era is an unabashed booster of network television. The boss is more apt to puncture his rivals鈥� business claims than programming decisions. It was safer for Colbert to target President Trump.
He did note that with CBS鈥� reboots of 鈥淢urphy Brown,鈥� 鈥滿acGyver鈥� and 鈥滿agnum P.I.,鈥� the network is guaranteed to be No. 1 in 2018 and 1988.
Pairing O鈥橞rien with the comedically overmatched Anderson Cooper and Shaquille O鈥橬eal was an inspired decision at Turner鈥檚 presentation.
He told Cooper that CNN was no match for Trump. 鈥淗e鈥檚 like King Kong to your little biplane,鈥� O鈥橞rien said.
Kimmel remains the ultimate truth-teller, however.
听
