Whither Geoff Peterson and Secretariat?

April 29, 2014 6:57 AM

Craig Ferguson is moving on. "The CBS latenight host also is resigned to the fact that few people will believe his assertion that he began thinking about ending his run on the show as long as two years ago, but he re-upped after CBS persuaded him to stick around a little longer. Early this year, he began laying the groundwork for his exit, before he had any idea that Letterman was preparing to announce his plan to retire in 2015."

The Peabody winning show has been featured many times on the Blue.

posted by kmz (95 comments total)

I don't think this was a surprise to anyone especially given that "Ferguson’s last contract included a clause that calls for him to see an eight-figure payout if he was not chosen as Letterman’s successor? Ferguson paused, and then cited words of advice from a seasoned Scottish comedian, Johnny Beattie, who befriended him years ago.

“He told me, ‘There’s two things we never discuss: Wages and ages.’ So I think I’m gonna stick to that.”, which has been widely reported since the day Letterman put in his notice.

I rarely get to watch it, but Ferguson was one of the few late night hosts I actually liked.
posted by efalk at 7:03 AM on April 29, 2014 [17 favorites]

For such a wonderfully goofy oddball, he comes across as a class act.
posted by TedW at 7:04 AM on April 29, 2014 [10 favorites]

Sad news. I'm going to miss that gay robot and that fake horse (and Craig, too, of course). But maybe this will help me get to bed in the p.m. instead of the a.m. for once.
posted by Maladroid at 7:04 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

I rarely get to watch it, but Ferguson was one of the few late night hosts I actually liked.

Same here. Craig is on way past my bedtime, and I rarely have time to catch-up online. But, I've never been disappointed whenever I do manage to catch a show.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:06 AM on April 29, 2014 [5 favorites]

I liked that his interviews were often not fluff, like the Stephen Fry appearances that covered so much ground.

I loved his autobiography, and I can't wait to see what he does next.

Man, Letterman exerts such strong "gravity" that no one in late-night television can escape his influence. It'll be interesting to see what things develop when he's gone.
posted by wenestvedt at 7:06 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

I get that he's leaving, what I don't understand is this Celebrity Name Game business. Big gay robots don't play party games, Craig.
posted by Think_Long at 7:10 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

one of the things that happened, and why letterman is a factor, is that with letterman stepping down, for the first time ferguson was negotiating with cbs instead of world wide pants.

i'm super sad to see him go - he's my favorite - but it seemed pretty inevitable.

is it crass to make my list of who i'd like to see in his spot?
w kamau bell
aisha tyler
jane lynch

i wonder if colbert will be part of the conversation...we might see one of the former daily show correspondents in the spot - maybe aasif mandvi?
posted by nadawi at 7:13 AM on April 29, 2014 [4 favorites]

I'll take him at his word that he had no ambition to take over the Letterman slot, but that was still some crafty negotiating to get that "Prince of Wales" clause in his last contract, especially when he wanted to leave earlier than CBS wants him to stay to begin with-- "Here's 10+ million dollars because we weren't going to offer you a job you didn't want anyway. Oh, BTdubs, could you stick around and collect a paycheck for another few months? We haven't found your replacement yet."
posted by KingEdRa at 7:15 AM on April 29, 2014 [17 favorites]

Back in 2007, when Britney Spears was in the news for all the wrong reasons, Ferguson referenced his own struggles with addiction, and said he wouldn't do any jokes about her, because 'comedy should have a certain amount of joy in it' and it should be about attacking powerful 'blowhards' like politicians and Donald Trump and not the vulnerable.

Have such deep respect for him, for that. And for the way he's handed tragedies since then, such as the Boston Marathon bombing and the Aurora shooting. I wish him well.
posted by zarq at 7:18 AM on April 29, 2014 [122 favorites]

He once had The Damned on, which were there all ready to do their glam-gloom "Best Of's" from the '80s - I mean just terrible goth-night warhorses like "Grimly Fiendish" - they were in their '80s goth outfits or in their "I'm retired from all this, really" outfits.

Instead, Craig talked about their groundbreaking work as a punk act in the '70s, and made them do "New Rose" and "Neat Neat Neat." They fucking killed it.
posted by Slap*Happy at 7:20 AM on April 29, 2014 [15 favorites]

His book, American On Purpose, is one of the best celebrity autobiographies I've ever read, and one of the few that made me believe it wrote it himself. It's a really good book. He's always seemed to me like a good dude, and I hope his next thing is a good thing.
posted by Linda_Holmes at 7:28 AM on April 29, 2014 [20 favorites]

Seconding American On Purpose . Great read (and I don't typically go for the autobiographies). He really seems to have a joy and love of the country even when it is at its worst. My aunt and I loved watching him and I'm sad that he didn't get something he very honestly deserves.

His sincerity came off as very honest and not as though he was just doing it for a paycheck.
posted by Twain Device at 7:30 AM on April 29, 2014

I'm going to miss Sid.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 7:33 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I love his accent. He reads his own book for the audiobook version, and it's glorious.
posted by wenestvedt at 7:33 AM on April 29, 2014 [6 favorites]

Craig Ferguson is the best, the very best. He was always hands-down the best interviewer among the late night pack.

It'll be interesting to see who or what they replace him with...
posted by Sticherbeast at 7:35 AM on April 29, 2014 [4 favorites]

Well, [oohlala]. I'm going to miss that [sacrebleu]er.
posted by Etrigan at 7:35 AM on April 29, 2014 [35 favorites]

.
posted by humanfont at 7:36 AM on April 29, 2014

*crikey*
posted by deezil at 7:38 AM on April 29, 2014

Time for the 13th Doctor/Xth Master) already?

(Search your hearts, you know it to be true).
posted by Mezentian at 7:45 AM on April 29, 2014 [43 favorites]

Craig Ferguson's whole reign has come during my exile from television, and it's one of the few things I can say I'm genuinely sad I missed.
posted by JHarris at 7:50 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

His eulogies for both his father (part 1, 2) and mother will just make you love him even more.

He's a total class act, and his show is like nothing else on American TV.
posted by jbickers at 7:50 AM on April 29, 2014 [13 favorites]

Mezentian, I legit swooned when I read your comment. How great would it be to see Capaldi & Ferguson hamming it up as The Doctor & The Master?
posted by KingEdRa at 7:50 AM on April 29, 2014 [9 favorites]

I remember seeing his stand up act in the late 80s (supporting Harry Enfield I think)

"People are trying to stop terrorism by searching people for guns when they go to the airport. This is completely wrong. They should have a big box of guns and as you go on everyone should be given their own gun. So then if a terrorist stands up during the flight and says 'take this plane to Tehran' EVERYONE else would just stand up and say 'F*** OFF - we're going to Majorca!'"
posted by DanCall at 7:51 AM on April 29, 2014 [8 favorites]

I'm actually delighted that he's stepping down. I really enjoy him and the clips of his show that I've seen, but I'm never awake to watch the real thing. Now he's free to do new, interesting things that aren't on in the middle of the night.
posted by gladly at 7:54 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

"When we ring the bell twice?"
"Still German."

Oh, this is going to be a rough transition. My wife won't take it well. I mean, he chatted with Eve Alice about predestination on late night television. He's the best.
posted by jwhite1979 at 7:54 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

Craig Ferguson's whole reign has come during my exile from television, and it's one of the few things I can say I'm genuinely sad I missed.

To the best of my knowledge he has never been on local TV, but yay 21C.
All but one of this episodes that I have seen have been joy.
Except the last one.
I could almost tell he was bored. Now, maybe it was an off night, but this FPP is no surprise.
posted by Mezentian at 7:54 AM on April 29, 2014

I figured this was coming when I heard that CBS offered John Oliver the show last year. I was sad about the announcement, though I only occasionally popped in to youtube to watch any of the show. But maybe this will be an opportunity for him to work on some bigger projects like another film and a new hour of standup and another novel. Still, I liked knowing that if I had a few minutes to kill and didn't know what to watch, he'd be there.

LLS is the only TV show I've ever been in the audience for, and i certainly would have forgiven him if he'd disappeared during resets and treated us as a faceless mass, but he was kind and interactive and grateful. I think he might actually be a genuinely nice guy, and I hope he does some cool stuff next.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:02 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

Part of me is super excited at the prospect of what we have coming in the next few months. I mean, he's never seemed to care that much about what CBS wants him to do, but now they have even less sway over him.
posted by kmz at 8:08 AM on April 29, 2014

Because there will likely never be another opportunity, I invite you to sit back and enjoy Craig Ferguson's Istanbul (Not Constantinople), one of the most delightful things I've ever seen on any late-night show.
posted by General Tonic at 8:09 AM on April 29, 2014 [31 favorites]

one of the most delightful things I've ever seen on any late-night show.

Delight. That's the word I've been looking for. LLS is pure, unfiltered delight. Letterman is irony, Fallon is frenetic, Kimmel is bro-y, Leno was shmoozy, Conan is weird (in a good way), but Craigyferg is so patently delighted that he's even alive, much less employed, much less employed in a field that lets him do whatever the fuck he wants, night after night -- well, it's hard not to get caught up in that.
posted by Etrigan at 8:13 AM on April 29, 2014 [42 favorites]

I don't think I would have known that Craig Ferguson had a late night show had it not been for Metafilter's love affair with him. I've enjoyed his earnest monologues (e.g., addiction, eulogies, etc.) but, man, those opening musical numbers are painful to watch.
posted by BurntHombre at 8:16 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I'm not much for network television anymore, but he was my dad's favorite. Hopefully he's moving on to something equally as silly.
posted by GameDesignerBen at 8:16 AM on April 29, 2014

Part of me is super excited at the prospect of what we have coming in the next few months. I mean, he's never seemed to care that much about what CBS wants him to do, but now they have even less sway over him.
posted by kmz

Some of the best humor comes out that way. Letterman's daytime talkshow was infamous for the bits they did after their cancellation but before production ended.

I'm a bit sad that CraigyFerg is leaving the air, but better on his own terms, and while he can still fake interest.
posted by ZeusHumms at 8:20 AM on April 29, 2014

In my perfect world there would be a Conan O'Brien/Craig Ferguson late night lineup. Two solid hours of oddball goofiness and interesting interviews to watch/nod off to.

I've really tried to like Jimmy Fallon, but he just falls flat for me. Not sure about Colbert (but hopeful).
posted by CosmicRayCharles at 8:32 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

man, those opening musical numbers are painful to watch.

[facepalm] That's the whole point!

I'm glad Craig gets to open the cage door and move on; he has to have been bored out of his friggin' mind for ages, not just pretending to be bored as part of the shtick.
posted by FelliniBlank at 8:34 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I never watched the show (no cable and too late), but Ferguson won me over with the Doctor Who cold open. The line about "the triumph of intellect and romance over brute force and cynicism" captured why I love Who at its best.

I'll be very interested in seeing what he does next, and if it's something I can watch (ie not another daily format kind of thing), I'll certainly give it a shot.
posted by immlass at 8:40 AM on April 29, 2014 [8 favorites]

Was Ferguson the late night host who said that prospective interview guests would have to be interesting to be booked? I vaguely remember him banning someone for being too vapid, but that might not have been him.
posted by zarq at 8:50 AM on April 29, 2014

well, next he'll be doing celebrity name game. i hope he has other plans for after that which will let his voice come through a bit more.
posted by nadawi at 8:51 AM on April 29, 2014

well, next he'll be doing celebrity name game

Said in the voice of Lou Grant, ""A quizzzzzzzmaster?"
posted by TWinbrook8 at 9:05 AM on April 29, 2014

The text of his 2011 Playboy interview is on tumblr: (SFW)

FERGUSON: I’m not afraid of someone knowing something I don’t, because a lot of people do. Probably most people know something I don’t. Maybe it’s a product of age, but I care less about whether people think I’m smart or not. If smart people think you’re smart, that’s great. If dumb people think you’re smart, what’s the fucking point? Why should I care what they think? Why should I care what most people think? There’s no endorsement in numbers as far as I’m concerned. Millions of people thought the earth was flat, and it isn’t. So when it comes to validation from the mob, I just don’t care.

...

FERGUSON: I used to have a terrible fear of flying. To combat that, I took flying lessons. I became a pilot, bought a small airplane and flew it around for a bit. I wasn’t flying it enough, so I sold it. That’s a fear I confronted by running straight at it.

PLAYBOY: And you didn’t conquer it?

FERGUSON: Oh no, not at all. If you get me on the right day, I still have the same fear of flying I had before I became a pilot. Which is insane.

PLAYBOY: So the experiment didn’t work?

FERGUSON: No, the experiment always works. There’s no such thing as an experiment that doesn’t work. There are only results, but results may vary. Here’s what I learned: When I’m flying the plane, I’m fine. When you’re flying the plane, I’m not as good. So the experiment yielded results. What I’m afraid of is not, in fact, flying. It’s you. [laughs]

posted by zarq at 9:09 AM on April 29, 2014 [81 favorites]

Here’s what I learned: When I’m flying the plane, I’m fine. When you’re flying the plane, I’m not as good.

The worst flyer I ever had to sit by on a commercial flight (for ten goddamn hours) was an Air Force fighter pilot. He just couldn't handle hearing and feeling all the little indicators that us normal people don't even notice, without having his hands on the controls. On the plus side, he knew this about himself and bought me all the drinks I wanted to drown out his constant gasps and mutters and twitches.
posted by Etrigan at 9:13 AM on April 29, 2014 [10 favorites]

but, man, those opening musical numbers are painful to watch.

Interesting. When did you first realize that you hated fun?
posted by Horace Rumpole at 9:16 AM on April 29, 2014 [28 favorites]

i was also really impressed with how he handled getting shingles. his doctor basically told him hie was a crazy man and would not be able to get through it without pain meds - ferguson knew himself well enough to know that no matter how badly it hurt, he couldn't chance losing control of his sobriety for even a moment, so he refused. i think often about what kind of willpower that takes.
posted by nadawi at 9:18 AM on April 29, 2014 [5 favorites]

I became a committed fan once he had Claire Danes on, found out her father-in-law was a moral philosopher during the interview, and then completely derailed the interview by asking questions about her father-in-law and moral philosophy. When he proceeded to book the father-in-law a couple of weeks later, I was completely hooked.
posted by tew at 9:31 AM on April 29, 2014 [43 favorites]

I often wondered what I would take when offered the choice of mouth organ or awkward pause, now I'll never get a chance to know my true answer.

Unless I do something that can get me booked on the show between now and when it ends... Hmmm.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 9:34 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I think that would require at least seventeen schnitzengruben.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 9:35 AM on April 29, 2014 [7 favorites]

I often wondered what I would take when offered the choice of mouth organ or awkward pause, now I'll never get a chance to know my true answer.

Always, always, always take the awkward pause. You know why?
posted by Etrigan at 9:41 AM on April 29, 2014 [3 favorites]

 
posted by yaymukund at 9:42 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

(...wait for it…)
posted by wenestvedt at 10:02 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

My brain cannot accept that Geoff Peterson is not voiced by George Takei. Wiki tells me it's Josh Robert Thompson, but it just can't be. It just can't. Come on!

I'm going to miss Craig, though I haven't watched him in a few years, since (to me) late night shows don't time-shift well.

Oh, and I also vote for Aisha Tyler, who is already a CBS personality/interviewer. Or Samantha Bee??
posted by MoxieProxy at 10:12 AM on April 29, 2014

General Tonic: Because there will likely never be another opportunity, I invite you to sit back and enjoy Craig Ferguson's Istanbul (Not Constantinople), one of the most delightful things I've ever seen on any late-night show.

Halp the recommended videos have caught me and I've fallen into a Craig Ferguson hole
posted by Pronoiac at 10:15 AM on April 29, 2014 [8 favorites]

but, man, those opening musical numbers are painful to watch.

Interesting. When did you first realize that you hated fun?

Or: So how long have you been a member of Al Qaeda?
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:15 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I kind of want him to host a UK-style comedy panel show, because we should have those, and who better to host? QI US with Craig Ferguson? Yes, please.
posted by jason_steakums at 10:18 AM on April 29, 2014 [23 favorites]

LLS is the only TV show I've ever been in the audience for, and i certainly would have forgiven him if he'd disappeared during resets and treated us as a faceless mass, but he was kind and interactive and grateful. I think he might actually be a genuinely nice guy, and I hope he does some cool stuff next.

I got to attend when Billy Connolly was a guest, and there's nothing like those two for a laugh.

Also nothing like standing in line and seeing the Big Yin dressed in all black, striding past you in the corridor.

Speaking of Connolly, there was a Guardian story yesterday about him coping with his medical struggles, even incorporating them into his act.
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:19 AM on April 29, 2014

QI US with Craig Ferguson? Yes, please.

OMG.
posted by dnash at 10:20 AM on April 29, 2014 [6 favorites]

Craig tells it like it is: How do you make a woman happy in her marriage?
posted by FelliniBlank at 10:43 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

Ferguson also wrote a surprisingly good novel, Between the Bridge and the River, so if he'd kindly consider doing more of that, then yes please.
posted by Flexagon at 10:55 AM on April 29, 2014

I have a deep respect for Craig. I think he's a wonderful human and he really does bring out the best in people.

However, while I know his schtick for being a little bit pervy is quite innocent, it does begin to grate the more you watch him.

A classic example was when he applied it to Alice Eve when she was a guest and she was really taken aback that he was trying that with her given that he knows her father, actor Trevor Eve, and had obviously know her since she was young. Even assuming - on the off-chance - that it was them playing to the audience, it still left me a little uncomfortable.

Despite this, everyone should have someone like Craig in their life.
posted by urbanwhaleshark at 11:10 AM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

So, this is sad news. Like everyone else, I have such an abiding appreciation for Craig Ferguson. I had forgotten that he was on the Drew Carey Show (which is funny because when he first started hosting, that was how I knew him, of course). Wiki tells me he was Confidence in the Red Dwarf episode of Confidence and Paranoia, and at first I was like, what? no... Then I found a different clip and realized it WAS him.

And if you haven't heard his band with Peter Capaldi (Capaldi singing, and IIRC, Ferguson doing the drumming), I literally just learned about it the other day, and well, it's pretty good.

I don't watch Dr. Who, but if there was a cameo of him on that show w/Capaldi as doctor, that'd be awesome :)

As far as replacements, that's going to be hard. Tom Snyder had such an earnest and honest sense of relation with people, that when he interviewed them, it was so fucking genuine. I don't think I would have expected it from Craig Ferguson but he clearly was able to carry the torch with his own unique take.

I don't see Samantha Bee doing it, no offense. W Kamau Bell? There's something about him that I'm not keen on and I don't know why, he seems nice enough and I agree with many of his politics, and I love his style, so I don't know why I don't like him as much as I would think I would.

Aisha Taylor? I could see it, she could carry off earnest very well. There definitely needs to be a sense of earnestness, I think, for the Late Late Show. I mean, obviously, all hosts have to have some earnestness, but there is still something that needs a certain level of intellect and gentility that a lot of late night hosts don't seem to have. Ferguson had it in spades. He was certainly more "funny" and "modern", more late night host as we expect post-Letterman/Conan...

Actually... You know what? Think back to the old late shows, think about Steve Allen, and I think that's something that has that sense. Class Act. That's what we need, and I think you really have to find someone like that. That term has certainly been bandied about with Ferguson, so I think it's appropriate.

LLS = Class Act Host.
posted by symbioid at 11:32 AM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

So Eric Andres off the table huh?
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:12 PM on April 29, 2014 [3 favorites]

That would be... amazing.
posted by kmz at 12:17 PM on April 29, 2014

There's talk about Neil Patrick Harris. Yeah, another white dude, but hey, a gay white dude.
posted by in278s at 12:21 PM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I am really, really going to miss him. I adore the Late Late Show and I have a frankly embarrassing celebrity crush on Craig Ferguson. He's given me a lot of joy over the past ten years I've watched his show, and I'm really going to miss the TV-equivalent of hanging out with Craig and Geoff Peterson for an hour.
posted by yasaman at 12:23 PM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

W Kamau Bell? There's something about him that I'm not keen on and I don't know why, he seems nice enough and I agree with many of his politics, and I love his style, so I don't know why I don't like him as much as I would think I would.

I don't know the guy, but I don't see him wanting the gig enough to take it unless they threw piles of money at him, and they won't throw piles of money at him. Even if he could do it the way Craiggers does it, that's not activist enough for Bell. He wants his shows to mean something, not just be an entertaining way for movie stars to plug their next thing.
posted by Etrigan at 12:25 PM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

So, what happens to Geoff and Secretariat?

I love Geoff the gay skeleton robot more than words can express.
posted by spinifex23 at 12:31 PM on April 29, 2014

I am finding myself actively worried about Geoff and Secretariat. I clearly have far too much free time, but...still. The thought of Geoff in, like, a closet somewhere really upsets me.
posted by Lyn Never at 12:34 PM on April 29, 2014 [9 favorites]

There's talk about Neil Patrick Harris. Yeah, another white dude, but hey, a gay white dude.

I dunno, if CBS's current pool of potential hosts is solely actors who have appeared in Company (Colbert, Harris), then I've gotta go with the divine Raul Esparza.
posted by FelliniBlank at 12:54 PM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

handler is still being mentioned and would explain her calling it quits on her show.
posted by nadawi at 12:56 PM on April 29, 2014

Geoff will never be shoved back in the closet.
posted by spinifex23 at 12:56 PM on April 29, 2014 [4 favorites]

JULIE KLAUSNER 4 LLS
posted by pxe2000 at 12:58 PM on April 29, 2014

The thought of Geoff in, like, a closet somewhere really upsets me.

[shudder] Or we'll see bits of him poking out of trashbins during random Mythbusters episodes.
posted by FelliniBlank at 1:00 PM on April 29, 2014

It's a strange feeling when a beloved host of a 5-days-a-week program leaves their show. A sort of guilt because you know how much you loved their program but honestly rarely viewed it for any number of reasons because there would always be a new one tomorrow, mixed with a bittersweet gratitude for what they did do to entertain and make your life a little brighter. And a mourning for the show that was and for all it might have been. I feel bad that I didn't watch Ferguson as often as I should, knowing how damn good the show was. Now that I know there is a defined and finite number of chances to ever watch a new episode again I want to say that I'll watch every one of them and be grateful for the chance.

But shit, I'll probably just fall asleep watching Golden Girls reruns before midnight like most evenings.
posted by mediocre at 1:12 PM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

If Julie Klausner got the Late Late Show, would that mean that Ted Leo and the Pharmacists would be the house band? Because I could get behind that.

The LLS is way past my bedtime, but Craig Ferguson always seemed like a good egg. It'll be interesting to see what they do with the timeslot. I'm wondering if there's any chance that they won't do a talk show at all.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 1:27 PM on April 29, 2014

It would be interesting if he landed on Netflix's new cable channel.
posted by rhizome at 1:30 PM on April 29, 2014

Halp the recommended videos have caught me and I've fallen into a Craig Ferguson hole



Is that code?
posted by stenseng at 1:33 PM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

If MST3K reboots, they might have a spot for Geoff.
posted by TedW at 1:37 PM on April 29, 2014 [4 favorites]

What the hell, man?
posted by DaddyNewt at 2:39 PM on April 29, 2014 [5 favorites]

Great. Now how am I supposed to get ready for bed?
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 4:10 PM on April 29, 2014

I wish Craig was on at a time where I wouldn't be all messed up for work to watch him. That said, um....can't say I have even a flicker of interest about watching Celebrity Name Game, which sounds like a comedown somehow.

But that said, the dude is awesome and what I have seen of his show is delightful and this is sad.
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:29 PM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

Nooooooo, I love his show!
posted by sarcasticah at 5:53 PM on April 29, 2014

I figured this was coming when I heard that CBS offered John Oliver the show last year.

My strong suspicion is that while Oliver was flattered, he wasn't willing to take the job at Ferguson's expense because of a certain amount of respect for his comedy elders. Ferguson was a significant presence on the stand-up scene in Britain in the late 80s and early 90s -- including that bit part in Red Dwarf -- until those addiction problems led to tabloid exposés and put paid to his TV career in the motherland.

His revival in the US -- first with the deliberately terrible English accent on The Drew Carey Show, then in remaking the Late Late Show around his own personality -- has been fun to watch. The 12:30 shows sometimes feel like they get the hand-me-down guests that weren't 11:30 grade, but he's always been a generous interviewer and as a result, gets the best out of his interviewees.

Perhaps there's a job in the offing soon for ceremonial president of Scotland.
posted by holgate at 5:56 PM on April 29, 2014

I just watched that clip of Craig Ferguson interviewing Peter Capaldi on his show, and they look and act alike, mannerisms and facial expressions. I can't tell if one of them is intentionally imitating the other or not.
posted by davejay at 6:03 PM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

I'm kind of in the same camp as a lot of people here; I really came to admire Craig Ferguson after seeing somewhere north of a half dozen episodes -- including the monologue about his father and the full episode with Stephen Fry -- but even that wasn't enough to actually make me sit and watch a talk show on anything remotely like a regular basis. But I'm well aware I've missed something.
posted by George_Spiggott at 8:01 PM on April 29, 2014

I'm well aware I've missed something.

There's not a small amount on YouTube, and CBS has started to put out official stuff to accompany it. The British guests are the ones I've tended to seek out (Eddie Izzard was on last week, and they re-enacted radar), especially people his age or who remember his days as Bing Hitler, and there's obviously a massive amount of respect for him.
posted by holgate at 9:38 PM on April 29, 2014

His gleeful puppet revues still rank among my most dearly beloved things to ever grace late-night television. In memoriam, here's an updated version of my original 2010 FPP with all the links fixed (again):

It's a great day for America, everybody

After David Letterman signs off and the Worldwide Pants production logo fades, viewing audiences are oftentimes treated to a cold open of an empty talk show set... one that quickly becomes the impromptu dance floor for a shameless Scot making an absolute giddy fool of himself while lip-syncing pop songs alongside a menagerie of puppets (and a couple of scantily-costumed stagehands). Now on YouTube for your viewing pleasure, the complete collection of Craig Ferguson's Late Late Show musical numbers: "Say Hey (I Love You)" by Michael Franti and Spearhead - "White Lines" by Duran Duran - "Wonderful Night" by Fatboy Slim - "Istanbul" by They Might Be Giants - "Oops!...I Did It Again" by Britney Spears - "MMMBop" by Hanson - "In the Navy" by Village People - "Fireball" by Don Spencer - "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz - "The Lonely Goatherd" from The Sound of Music - "She Taught Me How To Yodel" by Frank Ifield - "Fire" by The Crazy World of Arthur Brown - "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head"

More (non-musical) Late Late Show puppet intros: Dragon (and the world's worst ventriloquist) - Shark - Giraffe - Pig - Unicorn - Snail - Craig (don't watch this one if you want to sleep tonight.)

See also "Wavy the Waving Alligator" , the show's signature puppet: Accent - Joe Wilson - Wavy and Charles - Wavy and Lauren Graham (as Nadine the Kitten) - Interviewing Kristen Bell on the 1000th episode

Like the puppets? You can buy some of your own from Folkmanis Puppets (scroll down), the show's official supplier.

Other interesting moments: "If you don't vote, you're a moron." - The history of apartheid in South Africa (followed by an interview with Desmond Tutu -- Ferguson's favorite guest ) - Bastille Day - Bob Barker and his posse destroy the set - The show's full theme song (written and recorded by Ferguson himself)

Craig Ferguson previously on Mefi: Eulogizing his father - Discussing the poisonousness of celebrity voyeurism and his own battle with alcoholism - Hosting the 2008 White House Correspondents Dinner - Explaining the logic behind the Jonas Brothers - Calling out a Mefite for suggesting his audience was a laugh track (original video)

posted by Rhaomi at 9:46 PM on April 29, 2014 [27 favorites]

Craig Ferguson completely won me over the time he introduced Geoff Peterson with a Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band number.

And the version of the theme during his week in Paris is a lovely thing. Tomorrow's just your future yesterday.
posted by Spatch at 10:25 PM on April 29, 2014 [2 favorites]

I will miss him in that gig immensely, but I think he's right that it's time to move on, even if it'll make me really (and surprisingly, to me, as I think about it) melancholy to see him go.

Not sad for him (hello massive payout), but for me. He's become a part of my Friday early evening ritual in the last few years, when I catch up with his shows with a few beers.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 10:50 PM on April 29, 2014 [1 favorite]

Balls.
posted by homunculus at 1:55 AM on April 30, 2014 [6 favorites]

handler is still being mentioned and would explain her calling it quits on her show.

The A.V. Club reports Handler is out but it's still wild-speculation time, so who really can say yet.
posted by psoas at 1:32 PM on May 1, 2014

yeah, i saw that. i'm liking aisha tyler more and more for it.
posted by nadawi at 3:28 PM on May 1, 2014

According to Geoff Peterson, he's going to be converted into a leaf blower.
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 4:59 PM on May 1, 2014

I predict that Craig Ferguson will host the Late Late show next year. The suits will realize that the replacement options come with limited upside possibilities and Ferguson has known audience and be well positioned to handle the Colbert bump in ratings from the lead in.
posted by humanfont at 5:35 PM on May 1, 2014

Highly unlikely.

He's (reportedly) gotten a payout in the 8-10 million dollar range as a windfall for not getting Letterman's job, crazily enough. He's clearly been having less fun these days, and he's been honest about it, and that's been abundantly clear to anyone paying attention. Nobody's forcing him out. He's just done, after a nice round decade of doing it, and good on him for not pumping a dry well like every other greedy fucker out there.

Assmöde can't last forever.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 2:05 AM on May 2, 2014 [1 favorite]

Assmöde can't last forever.

You take that back.
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 1:55 PM on May 2, 2014 [2 favorites]

Mediate speculates that Joel McHale will replace Ferguson, based on a selfie with the president of CBS and a tweet from Norm Macdonald.
posted by riruro at 4:51 PM on May 14, 2014 [1 favorite]