Comedian Lewis Black performed for a sold out audience at Page Auditorium Thursday night. A regular correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Black was typically caustic in his scathing political and social commentary.
Comedian Lewis Black gave a rousing, profanity-laced performance Thursday night in Page Auditorium to a sold-out crowd. A regular correspondent on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Black was typically caustic in his scathing political and social commentary.
“I thought it was a great success. We had a sold-old crowd and Lewis did a great job,” said Kevin Parker, president of the Duke University Union, the organization that brought Black to campus.
Black’s visit to Duke was a homecoming of sorts, as he attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as an undergraduate. He often escaped the “oppressive preppiness” of UNC by visiting the gothic wonderland several times a week.
The comedian began his set with events at the beginning of the calendar year. “For the first time in my lifetime, this entire country stopped and focused as one,” he said. “We could see where all our problems were coming from. I am speaking, of course, of Janet Jackson’s breast.”
Derisively referring to the MTV-produced Super Bowl halftime show as the “most important cultural show of the year,” Black argued that Americans were as desperate to see her breast as they were to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. He also pointed out the irony with America’s “revulsion” at the faux-pas while network news continuously replayed the moment. “Oh, let’s look at that nipple again! It’s 5:02 and we haven’t seen it since 5 o’clock,” he joked.
Black returned to the issue of sex and society throughout the night. “The idea of gays marrying each other made our president crazy. [President George W. Bush] found it so intolerable he wanted a constitutional amendment,” Black said, adding that he thought it was ludicrous. “It’s a borderline psychotic idea. Code Orange! People who are in love getting married—that’s the real threat to America.”
Having a field day covering the recent Republican National Convention, Black appealed to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to make up a better story of why he became a Republican other than that he was “inspired” by Richard Nixon. “If you are going to make up a story, make it a happy story,” Black said.
But his attacks were not limited to one side of the political spectrum. Not only did he mock Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry’s daughters for their “pathetic” hamster stories, he painted a grim picture of current politics. “The Democrats blow—they have no ideas. The Republicans suck—they have bad ideas,” said Black, describing the political contest as an uninspired bit of insanity.
Black added that he could not understand how people could get excited at all about Kerry or Bush. “If you need to join a team that badly, join a bowling league,” Black said. “Bush has done everything in his power to say ‘Don’t vote for me,’ while Kerry has done everything in his power to say ‘I don’t wanna win.’”
But despite the angst-filled ranting that compromised much of the show, Black ended on a relatively positive note. He implored Duke students to vote. “You have to vote,” he said. “You may never have to do it again, but you have to do it this time.”
Black also encouraged students to pursue their ambitions. “If you want to have a dung beetle circus, go for it. If you want to be a heart surgeon, don’t listen to the s---heads who tell you otherwise,” said Black. “But if you flunk organic chemistry, you might want to rethink the dung beetle idea.”
Lewis was greeted with a standing ovation from the enthusiastic crowd. “I thought it was awesome, it was really really funny,” junior Christine Leas said.
Black reciprocated Duke’s affection. “I thought the crowd was great. I am thrilled that they liked me,” he said. “Although I am a little scared for them that they did.”
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