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Watch Mindy Kaling Gossip with Conan About Meeting Bill Clinton

Judy Berman — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:30:17 +0000

A few weeks ago, we witnessed a holiday miracle: Bill Clinton and Mindy Kaling appeared together on Today to talk about books. They seemed to get along — but we didn’t know quite how big of an impression Kaling made on the former president until last night, when she told Conan O’Brien about their fateful meeting. She discussed how embarrassing it was to recommend Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook when he was shouting out Marcus Aurelius and the way all her friends seem to have a crush on Clinton, which got Kaling thinking about her own chances. “I’m kind of Bill Clinton’s type,” she told O’Brien. “I was thinking of Monica Lewinsky, and if he was gonna, like, throw away a marriage, I was thinking, ‘I have a good shot at this.’ I’m kind of peppy and psyched, and I’m a little chunky.” (Note to Mindy: Girl, you are not “chunky.”) As it turns out, Kaling left the set before Clinton and later learned that he was disappointed because he’d wanted to say goodbye to her.

[via Splitsider]

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

Caroline Stanley — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 02:00:14 +0000

Today at Flavorpill, we celebrated National Trivia Day with 119 amazing facts courtesy of our friends at Mental Floss. We got a behind-the-scenes look at Conan O’Brien’s daily life. We enjoyed this fantastic Joker-by-Seuss mashup from DeviantArt member DrFaustusAu. We got incredibly excited watching Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein cover Salt-N-Pepa’s “Push It” during the San Francisco stop of their current Portlandia tour. We tried to decide on our favorite color in the new Nicki Minaj for OPI collection. We reimagined Game of Thrones as a buddy comedy. We wished that all of our dreams were as pleasant as this photogenic Finnish baby’s look to be. We tried to identify all of the movies featured in Stephen Wildish’s 1990s Film Alphabet. We met a multimedia artist who says that Lady Gaga’s recent holiday display at Barneys ripped off her work. We discovered that Catherine the Great may have invented the roller coaster. We found out a lot of things that we didn’t already know about Stephen Colbert thanks to this fascinating New York Times Magazine profile. And finally, we listened to a bunch of rappers spell out their names for us.

10 Comical Superhero Alter Egos from TV

Jennifer Lewis — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:30:47 +0000

There’s something particularly enjoyable about the awkward superhero equivalents of our favorite, otherwise unheroic TV characters. These alter egos’ bizarre get-ups and peculiar antics are often so far removed from their shows’ realities that we can’t help but chuckle. But, then again — why wouldn’t Conan O’Brien’s tall, beefy superhero cartoon use an oven mitt and a jai alai glove to save a school bus? And of course Jack Donaghy’s animated superhero self would use his powers to taunt a nine-year-old Brian Williams. Regardless of the strange “gifts” these TV characters might instill in their fictional superhuman equivalents, we’d still feel safe with Super Ray or the occasional Quailman patrolling our neighborhood. Check out some makeshift masks, capes, kitchenware, and tighty-whiteys after the jump.

The Flaming C, Conan

What do you get when you throw some fishnets, loafers, old-man socks, and a belt with a BlackBerry pocket on a redhead with super powers? That’s right, a Conan O’Brien superhero. Otherwise known as “The Flaming C,” this alter ego has appeared in a series of awesome cartoon shorts on Conan’s show and has even teased us with false promises of a feature film. Alas, that will never happen, but seriously — how enticing is that trailer?

10 Hilarious Speeches by Pop Culture Icons

Alison Nastasi — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 22:00:08 +0000

Last night, Will Ferrell was the 14th funny person to receive the prestigious Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor award. He follows in the footsteps of giants like George Carlin, Tina Fey, and Steve Martin. Audiences enjoyed a retrospective of his career, as well as tributes from a comedian all-star cast, but it was Ferrell’s acceptance speech that won everyone over with his trademark deadpan style. When the Anchorman actor thanked his wife Viveca Paulin for her support, he of course added, “We have a wonderful life together but I do have to say … sometimes you get a little lippy. You’ve got a big mouth and you like to run it.” Who else brought the funny during speech time? Click through for a look back at ten hilarious speeches.

Steve Carell at the 2006 Golden Globes

Most “wife jokes” are awful, but The Office comedian Steve Carell did it the right way by including his SNL-starring wife in his 2006 Golden Globes acceptance speech for Best Actor in a TV series. The 40-Year-Old Virgin actor read a note “written” by his wife Nancy. Cute and funny.

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds In Our Office

Caroline Stanley — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 21:30:58 +0000

Today at Flavorpill, we remembered Buddy Holly on what would have been the music icon’s 75th birthday. We decided that Jeff Tweedy and the Black Eyed Peas absolutely do not mix. We read a few letters penned by a young Ernest Hemingway. We got misty while watching Jimmy Kimmel’s emotional tribute to his recently-deceased Uncle Frank. We felt kind of sorry for Doc Brown. We couldn’t wait to see Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist cover the South Bank of the Thames in strangers’ undies. We decided that Conan might be on to something big with his new famous authors on ziplines segment. We found it hard to believe that Chrissie Hynde is 60 years old today. We were scared of how real the fake pandemic virus from Contagion could be. We thought that this looked like a fun office to work in. We were impressed by Harry Potter’s resume. And finally, we were totally charmed by “Laughs,” the latest short film from the people behind “Words,” “Moments,” “Rewords,” and “Symmetry.”

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

Caroline Stanley — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 20:49:26 +0000

Today at Flavorpill, read about Peter Terzian’s experiences as a “park ranger” at John F. Kennedy’s birthplace in Brookline, Massachusetts. We found out what butter-laden, delicious desserts Paula Deen will be serving at her Fourth of July picnic. We explored the current golden age of all-female tribute bands, from Sheagles and Blonde Jovi to AC/DShe and Cheap Chick. We found it hard to believe that Independence Day is 15 years old. We tried to match the grunt with the tennis pro. We memorized Weird Al’s lyrics to Conan’s theme song. We decided that Entertainment Weekly’s new cover — which features Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter back when he was 11 — makes us feel incredibly ancient. We listened to what Dan Savage had to say about monogamy. We were surprised to learn that Shaggy’s real name is Norville Rogers (did Scooby know?). And finally, we enjoyed these clever responses to the 20 craziest job interview questions, a list which includes, “How many cocktail umbrellas are there in a given time in the United States?”

Required Viewing: Great Documentaries About Comedians

Jason Bailey — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 17:30:44 +0000

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop, Rodman Flender’s intimate documentary account of the comedian’s 30-city “Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour,” goes into limited release tomorrow. Aside from being uproariously funny (with O’Brien at his spontaneous, reactive best), it is also a fascinating account of a superstar comedian’s life on the road: the rehearsals, the travel, the meet-and-greets, the stress. Of course, Flender isn’t the first documentarian to take a close look at the business of stand-up, or the complex psychology of the working comedian; we’ve assembled just a few of the best documentaries about comics after the jump.

Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth

In spite of its Oscar nomination for Best Documentary (and the star power of Robert DeNiro, who narrates), this excellent narrative of the groundbreaking comic’s life is still MIA on home video; that’s a shame, because it is one of the more penetrating and insightful profiles of Bruce out there. Writer/director Robert B. Weide (executive producer and frequent director of Curb Your Enthusiasm) goes into Bruce’s legal woes and historical importance with the expected detail; however, he also loads up the picture with clips of Bruce doing what he did best — being funny. The comic is so often bathed in the glow of First Amendment crusader that he doesn’t get proper credit for the brilliance of his bits. Weide’s is a thorough, complex, and multi-faceted profile; if you can find it, check it out.

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds In Our Office

Caroline Stanley — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:00:51 +0000

Today at Flavorpill, we celebrated the summer solstice with Murakami’s adorable Google Doodle. We looked at Bon Iver’s new album by the numbers. We found some filthy jokes hiding in these ancient works of art. We had some of our lingering questions about Columbia House’s mail-order music club (namely, was it legal?) answered by our friends at Mental Floss. We were strangely excited to hear that Conan O’Brien will appear as a background extra in an upcoming episode of How I Met Your Mother. We went inside of the Momofuku Kitchen Lab, a top secret location where David Chang performs his culinary experiments. We learned about the origin of the Good Humor bar. We watched the worlds of Peanuts and Doctor Who visually collide. And finally, we wondered if that Wet Hot American Summer prequel that David Wain’s still talking about is such a good idea. Outside of the salaries issue, we think it would be almost impossible to replicate the magic that made the comedy a cult classic.

Video of the Day: The Sarah Palin History Network

Caroline Stanley — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 19:00:02 +0000

Regardless of how frightening you may find her political aspirations (and we’re sure that it’s about to get a whole lot scarier), you have to admit that Sarah Palin is comedy gold — just ask Tina Fey. Inspired by her most recent verbal gaffe — a wackadoodle version of Paul Revere’s ride that she still stands by as historically accurate, mind you — Conan O’Brien and his team have put together a hilarious skit entitled “The Sarah Palin History Network.” Click through to check out a signing of the Declaration of Independence that includes a cameo by both Hitler and R2D2.

Also worth a look: Stephen Colbert’s “historic reenactment” based on Palin’s version of Paul Revere’s ride.

Flavorpill’s 12 Most Anticipated Summer Movies

Jason Bailey — Wed, 25 May 2011 18:00:34 +0000

If you really love movies, if you truly cherish them as an art form, then holy cow is the summer movie season depressing. For three months — or four, or six (Fast Five’s ad line was “Summer Begins April 29,” which goes to show that posters for Vin Diesel movies are no substitute for calendars) — we’re fed a steady diet of sequels, remakes, “reboots,” comic book adaptations, gross-out comedies, mindless blow-shit-up movies, sequels to remakes, sequels to reboots, sequels to comic book adaptations, sequels to gross-out comedies, and sequels to mindless blow-shit-up movies.

Let’s take a look at some of the big summer blockbusters — you know, the ones that you’ll see on every billboard and TV commercial break and fast-food franchise collector’s cup. We have Cars 2, the sequel to the one Pixar movie that nobody really liked; Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the second crack (after Tim Burton’s 2001 botch job) at resurrecting a series that, to date, has boasted exactly one good film (the first); Zookeeper, another vehicle for the increasingly questionable talents of Kevin James, produced by Adam Sandler’s sludge factory (it’s from the director of Click!); The Hangover Part II, the closest thing to a shot-for-shot remake since Van Sant’s Psycho; and The Smurfs, which capitalizes on a generation’s nostalgic memories of a terrible Saturday morning cartoon by combining live action with creepy CG, a la Yogi Bear, Scooby Doo, and Alvin and the Chipmunks. And then there’s Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the latest installment of the most insidiously, aggressively stupid franchise in movie history. Most of these will gross giant boatloads of money, and we’ll get more of them, because that’s what we like! Pass the giant sody pop!

But, all that said, there is also a wonderful thing called “counterprogramming,” in which smaller distributors look at this vast, dumb wasteland and say, “Hey, maybe the grown-ups would like to go to the movies this summer too!” And they put their little character-based dramedy or documentary or whatever out the same weekend, in the interest of choice. (At least, for those who live in “select cities.”) And, lest the snobbery becomes too pungent, it is worth noting that on occasion, the folks making those big summer blockbusters decide to use the unlimited resources at their disposal to make a decent popcorn movie with good actors that doesn’t insult the intelligence of their audience (don’t forget, the Bourne movies, the Nolan Batmans, and the last few Pixar titles were all summer releases). So, with that in mind, join us below to look at a dozen summer movies that might not be terrible (or that we’ve seen, and can happily confirm are not).

The Tree of Life (May 27)

Terrence Malick’s Cannes Film Festival winner opens this weekend, opposite The Hangover Part II and Kung Fu Panda 2 — if that’s not counter-programming, we don’t know what is. The meticulous filmmaker’s pictures tend to divide audiences sharply; his devotees are diehard, while casual moviegoers tend to find his poetic mediations on Life, Nature, Death, etc. borderline impenetrable. Look at that trailer, though. Wow.