I was a fan of Chris Elliott as soon as I saw him on Late Night with David Letterman in the late 80's. All of his recurring characters cracked me up - The Guy Under the Seats, The Regulator Guy, The Conspiracy Guy, Marlon Brando, etc...all were excellent. But it wasn't until Get A Life that he became one of my all time favorite people on earth.
Chris Elliott's performance as not quite normal mentally, thirty year old paperboy living with his parents was nothing short of genius. It was very odd show though and I am not too surprised that it didn't attract more viewers (although it did beat Seinfeld in rating during the first season), and it definitely didn't help that Fox kept changing the day and time that it was on. Still, it holds very fond memories for me and I wish dearly for the complete series to have an official DVD release.
Following the cancellation of Get a Life, the world was treated to Cabin Boy...which I found wonderful but most others seemed to hate. Again, the oddball comedy was just a little to strange for most people. Since that time, Chris Elliot has been all over the place with guest appearances and small parts in hundreds of movies although most people seem to remember him best as Woogie in There's Something about Mary or the cameraman in Groundhog Day. Each time I saw him, it filled my heart with a little joy but yet I was always left unsatisfied. Most rolls just didn't have enough Chris Elliottness in them - the extremely goofy, oddball, strange humor that I loved from Late Night, Get a Life, and Cabin Boy. However, certain looks and gestures would still make me crack up in remembrance.
Hopefully that is all about to change. Hopefully, that empty spot in my soul for that special, bearded, bald guy will be filled with [adult swim]'s new show - Eagleheart. It looks like a Walker, Texas Ranger spoof and man do the teasers hit me in the right spot. It has been a long time since Chris has been the lead in a comedy show and I think he is a great fit for [adult swim]. I hope it is a long run. Check out the teaser's below and be sure to check out the show on Feb. 03, 2011 at Midnight/11pm central. I'll be watching.
4 comments:
Get a Life was amazing. Much like Arrested Development, it was a show that Fox clearly did not understand. I'm still amazed that Married With Children (although far more familiar) lasted as long as it did...
Cabin Boy is a seriously underrated movie. I proudly own it on DVD! "These pipes... ARE CLEAN!"
Hell, Elliott was funny on Everybody Loves Raymond - stole every episode he was in.
I agree Elliott always outshines in nearly everything and I have watched many shows and movies that I normally wouldn't watch just for him. [shudder] Murphy Brown [shudder] I am really looking forward to Eagleheart, and I just realized that it is produced by Conan O'Brien...even better.
I miss Arrested Development...so many awesome and funny people. My favorite was when Tobias decided to become the world's first Analyst/Therapist and made cards that said "Analrapist" that makes me laugh every time I think about it.
Hot Dog Boy is Invincible!
I can still see Steve doing the Chris Elliott dance to perfection when I close my eyes. A thing of beauty.
I have danced this dance many times...although not as well as Steve. He could get the facial expressions perfect too.
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