Jon Stewart on The Daily Show. Courtesy Comedy Central
Jon Stewart on The Daily Show. Courtesy Comedy Central

A fond reflection of Jon Stewart’s time on the Daily Show



For those public figures who have been hauled over the scorching satirical coals of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart can't vacate the Comedy Central premises soon enough.

But for the rest of us, after his final show – which airs on Friday, August 7, on OSN First Comedy HD, the night after its United States broadcast – our weeknights just won’t be the same. What will we do without our fearless lefty crusader, whose wit and penetrating, insightful intelligence helped us to grasp the issues of the day, and who mocked the mighty and the pompous as few others have.

Stewart is no lightweight – “I’m not going to censor myself to comfort your ignorance” – and he’s burnt miles of bridges, creating scores of enemies along the way after taking over the show from Craig Kilborn in 1999.

"Despite the 19 and counting Emmy Awards," says media critic Alex Strachan of tvworthwatching.com, "and despite The Daily Show's longevity – more than 2,600 episodes, spread over 16 years – Stewart struck some of his critics as being glib, condescending and insufferably smug on occasion.

"For a show billed as a 'fake news' programme, The Daily Show took itself really seriously on occasion."

Of his sniping match with Crossfire co-hosts Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala – which spurred CNN to cancel their programme, Stewart says: "They said I wasn't being funny. And I said to them: 'I know that, but tomorrow I will go back to being funny, and your show will still blow.'"

Love him or loathe him, the 52-year-old's evolution from stand-up comedian to a genuine and influential voice in critiquing media and politics has been a thrilling ride – as he and a string of Daily Show correspondents, including the cool Canuck duo Samantha Bee and Jason Jones, merrily flayed trends, pop culture, current events, politics, sports, entertainment and the media.

In fact, The Daily Show has proven a breeding ground for comic talent, turning many of its correspondents into stars, including Stephen Colbert, Steve Carrell, Ed Helms, ­Olivia Munn, Rachel Harris, Rob Corddry and, most recently, the white-hot Brit wit John Oliver, whose own news satire, Last Week Tonight, on HBO has ­become a social-media ­sensation.

So how is it all going to end for Stewart?

To his credit, he has let his ­producers dangle a big juicy carrot in front of the “notables whom Stewart’s given grief over the past 17 years” – the chance to appear on the grand finale to tell Stewart exactly what they think of him, in what will, no doubt, be a torrent of bleeped-out expletives.

A frequent target of Stewart, the US Republican presidential contender Donald Trump, surely got his invite – in fact, he says the producers begged him to appear, though they deny this. Fox News's Bill O'Reilly, no stranger to Stewart's jabs, and a regular sparring partner on the show, is a good sport who is also likely to appear.

In the run-up to that last hurrah, it has been announced that the guests for this week’s other three shows will be actor-­comedian pals of Stewart: Amy Schumer (Tuesday); Denis Leary (Wednesday); and Louis C K (Thursday).

“We’re going to have a ball,” says Stewart. “I can’t wait to show my appreciation for all the support and enthusiasm that you guys have given the show all these years.”

But when the cheering and backslapping is done, what’s next for Stewart?

His post-Daily Show plans might include more film­making – his directorial debut, last year's Rosewater, about Iranian-­Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari's imprisonment in Iran in 2009, was well-received by critics – but his comic roots run deeper: "I'd love to return to stand-up," he says.

In addition, after 16 years of brutal days, working 9am to 9pm, Stewart says he is also ­feeling the pull of family life, and a desire to spend more time with his wife, Tracey Lynn McShane, and their children, Nathan, 11, and Maggie, 9.

“I need more flexibility,” he says. “I’ve got maybe four or five more years with [my children] before they really don’t want ­anything to do with me.”

Trevor Noah, a young South African comedian, who recently became a ­contributor to the show, will take over The Daily Show on ­September 28.

Top moments of the show

• 9/11 monologue: After the World Trade Centre attacks in 2001, Stewart's teary-eyed opening monologue touched the soul of the nation: "I wanted to tell you why I grieve – but why I don't despair."

• Jim Cramer jolted: When CNBC's frantic Mad Money host and stock-picker Jim Cramer accused The Daily Show of hurting his feelings during the 2008 financial crisis, Stewart told him: "The problem isn't being wrong, it's being all over the place."

• Crossfire cratered: "What you do is not honest. What you do is partisan hackery. You have a responsibility to the public discourse, and you fail miserably," Stewart told CNN Crossfire hosts Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala. CNN cancelled the show.

• Being Glenn Beck: When Fox News hired Glenn Beck to leap about the screen with a chalkboard like a drama queen, Stewart channelled Beck with scribbles and gibberish, but occasionally conceded the "straw man, ­slippery-slope dumb guy might have a point".

• Indecision 2000: Early in his tenure, Stewart had a field day with the American divide over presidential candidates George W Bush and Al Gore, which culminated in the famously drawn-out "hanging chads" recount in Florida during the 2000 election.

• CNN skewered: Stewart's long-­running, epic rants against his perceived ­shortcomings of CNN – "the most-busted name in news" – began 16 years ago. In fact, Stewart's constant mockery and derision of CNN is one of his most cherished late-night rituals.

• Bush vs Bush: With devious and masterful editing of news clips, Stewart hilariously arranged stinging foot-in-mouth debates between Texas governor George W Bush and his later self, US president George W Bush.

• Guantanamo Baywatch: Nothing trumps a snide puppet show, especially when Stewart brings out Gitmo – essentially an Elmo puppet with a beard – to talk about his life as an illegally detained terrorist who dines on lobster, baby back ribs and a mojito.

BP oil spill When the colossal BP oil spill poured into the Gulf of Mexico for 87 days in 2010, Stewart gushed as he ­counted up the days and dissected President Obama's address to the nation in a segment he called The Strife ­Aquatic.

The grand finale of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart airs at 10pm on Friday on OSN First ­Comedy HD

artslife@thenational.ae

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

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Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher:  Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5

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The Abu Dhabi Awards explained:

What are the awards? They honour anyone who has made a contribution to life in Abu Dhabi.

Are they open to only Emiratis? The awards are open to anyone, regardless of age or nationality, living anywhere in the world.

When do nominations close? The process concludes on December 31.

How do I nominate someone? Through the website.

When is the ceremony? The awards event will take place early next year.

The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol

Power: 154bhp

Torque: 250Nm

Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option 

Price: From Dh79,600

On sale: Now

Most match wins on clay

Guillermo Vilas - 659

Manuel Orantes - 501

Thomas Muster - 422

Rafael Nadal - 399 *

Jose Higueras - 378

Eddie Dibbs - 370

Ilie Nastase - 338

Carlos Moya - 337

Ivan Lendl - 329

Andres Gomez - 322

Karwaan

Producer: Ronnie Screwvala

Director: Akarsh Khurana

Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar

Rating: 4/5

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

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Moon Music

Artist: Coldplay

Label: Parlophone/Atlantic

Number of tracks: 10

Rating: 3/5

Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?

Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.

They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.

“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.

He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.

THE BIO

Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13 

Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier

Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife 

What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents. 

Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.

Napoleon
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Thank You for Banking with Us

Director: Laila Abbas

Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum

Rating: 4/5

Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

The Facility’s Versatility

Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
 
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
 
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
 
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
 
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
 
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket

Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest

Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.

Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.

Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.

Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.

Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.

Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia

THE SPECS

Engine: 3-litre V6

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 424hp

Torque: 580 Nm

Price: From Dh399,000

On sale: Now

Walls

Louis Tomlinson

3 out of 5 stars

(Syco Music/Arista Records)