Dear Dick Clark...

One of America's finest forms of entertainment. I hope the masses don't find out.

 

that's one thought on this thread i'll support.

 

Agreed, shottie ...

 

I don't care how bad how Dick Clark gets. I would rather watch him take a shit than that idiot twatwaffle Ryan Seacrest.

 

Well-put.

 

Carson Daly has earned his shot.























Aim for the head.

 

Carson Daly has been a cumsicle ever since I heard him use the word "rad" back in '97 or '98.

 

Carson Daly is painful to watch, and he wrecked a lot of goodwill by going back so quickly without WGA blessing. And his New Year's Eve show, while it had good guests, still had him on it. (Full disclosure: I watched it because it was on several TVs at a restaurant party)

Dick has earned his right to stay on TV. He sounds an awful lot better than he did that first year. And in an industry where we're all too eager to turn people off because they're not young and beautiful, it's a blessing to see Dick. I grew up watching Bandstand and Pyramid.

I do wish he would have gone on Letterman to talk about the effects of a stroke. Letterman appeared on Pyramid many times when he was up and coming. But if he doesn't want to, there's not much you can do I guess.

 

To look at a man attempting to carry on with his normal life -- which is what hosting New Year's Eve has been for Dick Clark -- and come away only with feelings of discomfort and pain makes me feel more sorry for those folks than a stroke victim.

You're blowing a wonderful opportunity by blinding yourself by the surface here. Sure, Clark's speech and appearance can make you stir in your seat a bit.
But if you get over the selfishness that can come by looking at the surface, Clark can inspire you.

He doesn't give a shit what he looks or sounds like -- he just cares about doing the best damn job he can. And there are millions of people suffering in the world who would surely be INSPIRED by such an appearance. It makes them feel better about their own plight, illness or fate in life.

I know when I watched him with my family, it brought more smiles than it did grimaces. I had a relative die who had suffered for a long time and I watched that person slowly deteriorate. I learned then how real life -- and strength -- is recognizing just how much bullshit gets stripped away in those situations.

How praying for someone to swallow so she doesn't need a tube can feel like the most important moment of your life. How age and illness can take away everything we think is important and replace it with gratitude over the simplest things we take for granted. If you've never experienced any of that, you'll just roll your eyes. If you have, you might nod your head and understand.

I'm not a saint, by any means. I'll admit I was certainly uncomfortable watching Clark and part of me wondered if he should be on. But that was my problem, not his.

Someone suggested Clark find his dignity by quitting.
I would say he's discovered a deeper level of it than most of us ever will.

And I would also remind those who can't bear the thought of watching someone struggle to speak or offer an awkward appearance that someone you care about -- or you yourself -- could one day be in that exact same position.

And rather than complain about Clark's presence then, I'd imagine you'd lament the absence of someone who could connect you with the rest of the world and make you feel like you didn't belong shoved out of everyone's way.

 

Two more disparate back-to-back posts you will never find...

 

Right. But they won't be doing it on national TV when no one can understand what they're saying and people won't be calling them "Frankenstein."