Oldies At Aspen Comedy Arts Fest

Posted by Grace Lichtenstein Mar 4, 2007

While snowbound by a blizzard in Aspen, Colorado's premier ski town this week and forced to endure the fantastic snow conditions, I took advantage of the 10 percent senior discount at on-mountain Aspen restaurants such as Bonnie's and the Sundeck. But that was only part of the fun. I caught a number of acts at the 13th annual HBO Comedy Arts Festival.

The event has become a huge success, thanks in no small part to HBO participation and appearances by such cutting-edge political humorists as Andy Borowitz, he of the popular Borowitz Report blog, who hosted an installment of the live and sometimes serious, sometimes hilarious storytelling show The Moth, and Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert, whose appearance at the St. Regis Ballroom was the Main Show (sold out, natch) at the St. Regis Ballroom Friday night. Colbert was honored as the Festival's 2006 'Man of the Year.'

Interesting that among the fuzzy-cheeked younger stars of stand-up and comedy movies at the festival was greybeard George Carlin, celebrating 50 years in show business. I wasn't able to score tickets for his show, but the buzz was -- sadly -- not great about his act. Friends told me numerous audience members actually walked out on Carlin. Meanwhile, Don Rickles, Mr Insult, got lots of laffs as he too was strutting 50 years' worth of his stuff at another performance.A surprise guest at his show: Bob Newhart, yet another senior citizen humorist.

And rounding out the old guys' threesome was Jonathan Winters, who, at the ripe age of 80, was the subject of a 'dadamentary' produced by Jim Pasternak called Certifiably Jonathan that premiered at the Comedy Fest. It appearances by such funny folks as Robin Williams and Sara Silverman.

All in all, a winning combination of outdoors -- skiing Aspen/Snowmass still lures the mega-rich and famous as well as aging snow bunnies like myself... and indoors -- it would have been too much to have stand-up comics freeze their butts off trying to make jokes performing outside.

I hope the rumors that the Comedy Arts Festival, which has become central to the zeitgeist of pop culture, will move next year to another locale with a more moderate climate for pasty-faced younger humor fans aren't true. After all, aside from all its other attractions, the Aspen area was the longtime home of the late, great, mordantly funny gonzo journalist Hunter Thompson until his death last year at age 67.