‘Real Time with Bill Maher’ returns to HBO amid writer’s strike
“Real Time with Ball Maher” returns, but without New Rules and the opening monologue amid the Writers Guild of America strike.
PMC – The Hollywood Reporter, Video Elephant
Comedian, political commentator, and most recently podcaster Bill Maher brings his “WTF Tour” to El Paso on Sunday.
His show begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Plaza Theater. Tickets range from $35 to $130 plus fees and can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com.
Maher is an extremely versatile comedian with a long career spanning over 25 years on American television. These days, he does everything from television appearances on HBO’s His Real Time to live shows and podcasts. He is planning to publish a new book soon.
Here’s a Q&A about Maher’s upcoming shows and current projects.
Q: Can you touch on issues that are close to El Pasoans as a border community??
A: Immigration is a big issue right now, and I think it’s interesting that (Donald) Trump somehow does better every time he runs. You would think the opposite would be true for immigrants. And we need to find out why. I think part of the reason for that is that leftists are sometimes very negative about their own country, and many are seen as looking down on America. And people who worked hard to come to this country and know that it’s where they wanted to be and that it offers a better life than the country they came from, that it’s always I don’t like hearing devastation.
And Republicans pretend to be against immigration. It’s an invasion, etc. But they’re not actually against it. They like it because it’s cheap labor. So there’s a lot of hypocrisy to be made fun of.
Q: What do you think about the cancel culture that currently exists?
A: That’s one of the main issues…I’ve always valued freedom of speech. That’s why I’m so concerned about cancel culture. Related to what we just talked about, Republicans are notorious for forcing voters to vote against their own economic interests, such as on immigration issues. However, it appears that the Democratic Party won the election because it lost on social issues.
People don’t like walking on eggshells and are worried about being canceled and so on. One of the fun things about performances these days is that they draw politically mixed audiences, people who don’t like negativity and hyper-partisanship on either side.
Some people say, “You’ve become more conservative than I am.” I haven’t changed at all. they have changed. And even though I realize that there’s a ridiculous amount of cancel culture on the left right now, hostility to free speech, identity politics and hypersensitivity, victim culture and pointless white self-hatred, it makes me It doesn’t make you a Republican. That alone makes me an honest broker who notices a change.
Q: Do you think cancel culture will become a trend or here to stay?
answer: That’s a good question. I keep expecting a backlash, and many people are expecting a backlash, but it never seems to happen. Sensitivity seems to increase with each generation. I remember when Millennials were the new generation, they were more moderate than other generations, and they were like, “Oh, when Gen Z comes along.” I know people predicted there would be a backlash, but no, it got worse. Gen Z has microaggressions and safe spaces and cry rooms. It all comes from the way our parents raise us.
And what’s the advice? It seems to me that some people are able to come out of the most horrible events and survive, while others just do something very trivial and are gone forever, with no rhyme or reason. I don’t understand.
Q: Please tell us about your new book, “What This Comedian Said Will Shock You.” This is my first book in over 10 years. The book will be published worldwide on May 21st.
answer: Books aren’t really my hobby. I’ve published books before, but this one is special to me. The other books were related to the show and were interesting.
This is really funny, but it’s a compilation of all the edits, and it’s the part that I do at the end of the show. It’s a 10 minute piece every week. It’s funny, but it’s making a serious point about something, and hopefully saying something that no one is really saying.
I’ve gone over everything I’ve done over the years, re-edited it, and collected it in a meaningful way. This is like an encyclopedia of everything I’ve said on TV.
This book covers everything, so for anyone who is curious about what I believe, what views I have on things, or just wants to know where I’m coming from. will serve as a kind of bible.
more: Bill Maher, Ralph Barbosa and other comedians come to El Paso
Q: You’ve joined the trend of podcasters. Enjoying “Club Random with Bill Maher” at an on-site bar in Los Angeles?
A: Well, I resisted it for a long time. Now that I’ve been doing this for several years, it’s incredibly fun for me. It’s very different from my TV show “Real Time.” Because that’s the show that I’ve been working on all week, and I’m working very hard to make it a polished piece.
This is a program for people who want to catch up on this week’s news. Podcasts are completely different. It’s not about politics. That’s one thing. Show business is full of people who would never be suitable for “real time.” But with podcasts, anyone can do it. It’s for people who want to sit and have a drink with me at my club.
We can always smoke weed, but that’s an amazing change in my life and the lives of everyone in this country where marijuana has become popular. Back in the ’90s, when Politically Incorrect was on the air, I was one of those people trying to make people understand that it shouldn’t be illegal.
Now you can smoke it freely on national television and no one cares. It’s legal in many states, I know Texas isn’t one of them, but this is a really amazing change.
And of course, what I try to do on the podcast is, when you see me talking to Quentin Tarantino or William Shatner or that week’s guest, I want you to know what it feels like to be a fly on the wall. It’s a complete reproduction.
María Cortés González can be reached at 915-546-6150. [email protected], @EPTMaria on Twitter. eptmariacg on TikTok.