Day Three of Love in the Time Of Tod Goldberg…
Variety reports that movie producer Joe Roth has inked a deal to develop sitcoms for CBS:
"My sole purpose in starting this company is to quickly" work on launching comedies, Roth told Daily Variety. "That’s what’s missing from TV right now. The networks have plenty of dramas, and I couldn’t develop a reality show if my life depended on it. I’ve always found the best strategy in business is to focus on one thing."
There are plenty of sitcoms on TV, just not enough funny ones.
The last movie I walked out of and actually asked for my money back on (vs. just sneaking into something else) was the Roth "laffer" Anger Management, which nominally starred Adam Sandler and Jack Nicholson. I say nominally because neither actually did a whit of acting in it. It was just drivel. Anyway, after walking out on the movie I became interested in finding out the root of my hatred of this film and found, to my surprise, that it might be Roth himself. Of all the movies I’ve walked out of in my 33 years, a total less than 30, Roth has at least five: Nightbreed, Low Down Dirty Shame, The Jerky Boys, Daddy Day Care and the aforementioned Anger Management. On the upside, I did love Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds In Paradise.
Gee, I liked ANGER MANAGEMENT. (The Bernstein scene on the Brooklyn Bridge is priceless.) But now you’ve gone and ruined it by saying Joe Roth produced it. Now I’m going to be looking for bits from THE JERKY BOYS and DADDY DAYCARE in it. (Did he do PLUTO NASH, too? Eddie Murphy should sue someone for that bomb!)
Seriously, though, it does sound like Roth rubs you the wrong way. Now if PHILLIP Roth did a comedy…
Oh. Wait. They mangled PORTNOY’S COMPLAINT into the original AMERICAN PIE. (Come on. Where do you think they got the apple pie scene from?)