MovieChat Forums > The Larry Sanders Show (1992) Discussion > Things that couldn't happen in today's l...

Things that couldn't happen in today's late night landscape


I am plowing through the series now that it's on HBOGo and am up to the first few eps of Season 4, and was thinking how if Larry Sanders was produced today (the actual talk show), how the fallout and consequences from some of the stuff that happened would be totally different. The biggest one to me is Larry and Artie cutting Tim Miller in "The Performance Artist". The show would be radioactive to most celebrities for a while if something like that happened today.

Also, of course, Larry abruptly quitting would be huge. If that happened today, he probably wouldn't be welcomed back and the whole thing would give Bill Carter another Late Shift book.

Lastly, it goes without saying, when Hank guest hosts and calls his writer a retard, #firekingsley would be a trending hashtag the next day (and yes the show didn't air but there'd be a leak of the video to TMZ or what have you). Of course almost any story that came out about Hank would make him unhireable.

Anyway those are my thoughts off the top of my head. Any other "this show couldn't happen now" scenes I'm not thinking of?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItMJtA8vfpw

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In response to controversy over a joke, Jack Paar, the second host of "The Tonight Show" (after Steve Allen), spontaneously quit the show on-air in February of 1960, much like Larry Sanders. Similar to Sanders, he returned about a month later. He stayed another two years before permanently leaving in March of 1962, and being replaced by Johnny Carson.

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When Hank tried to get his assistant to pose nude in Playboy just so that he would get some PR was really cringey.

Also when Hank told Drew Barrymore to lift her top.

When the head writer suddenly turns gay would probably be frowned on since everything seems to be about identity these days.

There were a few instances of anti-Asian stereotyping such as the Connie Chung line.

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