Craig Ferguson

Craig Ferguson is one of the funniest and most talented personalities in late night television.  Although his humor often veers towards the crude he is still a joy to watch for a number of reasons.

Firstly, Ferguson has the simple patriotism of an immigrant.  He became a naturalized American citizen in 2008 and he frequently refers to the event with obvious pride.  Benjamin Franklin's "Join or Die" political cartoon is tatooed on his right forearm.  From 2007 to 2010 he hosted the Boston Pops Fourth of July concert and fireworks show.  But what I especially like is that he opens every show with the line "It's a great day for America," regardless of what is actually happening in the news.  It's an expression of indomitable optimism.

Secondly, his comedy is inventive and absurd.  He does a few impressions well, notably Michael Caine, Sean Connery and Prince Charles.  But his chief talents lie in always doing the unexpected and in making the hackneyed fresh.  Even his recurring gags never seem to get old.  His sidekicks include an effeminate robot skeleton named Geoffrey Peterson (who has his own twitter account) and a pantomime horse named Secretariat who makes an appearance in most every show, running out on stage and then off again while Craig and the studio audience dance to the horse's theme music.  Every show begins with a cold opening that might feature Craig talking to camera, subjecting audience members to a mock interrogation or a musical number involving puppets like this one.

But Ferguson's chief asset is that he doesn't take sides or play favorites when it comes to political humor.  He will make fun of any politician regardless of party or ideology.  In this respect he contrasts sharply with his boss, David Letterman.  Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants, owns Ferguson's show.  Ferguson is the comedian Letterman used to be, taking no prisoners and respecting no persons.  Letterman, like many left-wing comedians, has a blind spot when it comes to left-wing politicians, particularly President Obama.  Ferguson is under no such handicap.