Nikki Glaser Says Political Jokes “Weren’t Funny” for This Year’s GG
The comic, who just hosted the GG awards show for the second year in a row, also shared the jokes that didn’t make the cut with radio host Howard Stern.
Glaser once again earned positove (but also mixed) reviews for her charming performance, striking a tight balance between roasting Hollywood stars.
She was able to move the show along for a boozy in-house audience, appeasing the Globes producers and network executives, and playing to a home television audience. Speaking with Stern on post-GG Monday for an episode that aired Tuesday, Glaser shared why gags about the current political climate were absent from the show.
Even mentioning the name of the sitting president seemed to be too political, Glaser told Stern. A joke about her arriving after a gig at the newly renamed Trump Kennedy Center to the awards venue, the “Trump Beverly Hilton,” was killed, she revealed.
“It was like, you just don’t say that guy’s name right now,” Glaser told Stern. “I just want to give it space.”
That “Trump Beverly Hilton” joke wasn’t actually written by her, but was sent by Steve Martin ahead of the show. But afterward, Martin reached out to her to tell her not to use the gag for the same reason she explained — it just wasn’t funny in a tone that worked for Sunday’s gala, she said Martin told her.
“The award for most editing goes to CBS News. Yes. CBS News: America’s newest place to ‘see B.S.’ news,” Glaser quipped.
In the friendly, candid and lengthy sit-down, Glaser discussed her career and relationship, cosmetic surgery procedures she’s undergone and her decision not to have children. She also discussed her plans to write a movie from mega-producer Judd Apatow — who, Glaser said, was her babysitting client over 15 years ago. (Apatow shared a similar story from the Globes stage.)
“I remember thinking, ‘this person’s probably never gonna see you as anything other than a nanny,’ or whatever you came in as,” she said. “I don’t feel like he looks at me that way, and he really respects the process I go through to work on these award shows. He has the same kind of work ethic and obsession with getting it right and having a real respect for these performances.”
Glaser closed out the interview with what seems like it may become a tradition if she is to host the awards show again: sharing with Stern the jokes that were killed from her monologue. Below are some of her sharp gags that didn’t make the cut on Sunday’s show.
- “Chase Infiniti is nominated for best actress tonight, and Chase Infinity is her real name. And this is true, if you apply now, you can earn 5 percent cash back on all travel bookings through her through the end of the year. So get on that.”
- “Chase Infiniti Pain is actually her real name. Chase Infiniti Pain, which is also how Sean Penn gets an erection.”
- “Some people have stage names like Hacks star Jean Smart, whose real name is Corduroy Dumbass.”
- “Brad Pitt is nominated for his role in F1 tonight. See, that’s what I love about Hollywood. When a man turns 60, he gets to play a racecar driver. Meanwhile, after 35, every role for a woman is a tired mom who hates her life. And Brad, you were so good enough when I was almost convinced that you’ve driven yourself somewhere in the last 30 years. But Brad did a lot of his own driving in the movie. And Brad, I don’t want to embarrass you, but your blinker was on the whole time there.”
Glaser is currently doing a residency in Las Vegas at the Venetian Hotel and Casino with David Spade.
