Gawker
When Times reporter Jennifer 8. Lee worked out of the Washington, DC bureau, she became famous for hosting a blizzard of parties that upended the beltway social scene and no doubt required a tremendous supply of energy on Lee's part. The writer put no less work into her appearance on Comedy Central's Colbert Report to promote her book on Chinese food. To prepare for the five-minute appearance with tricky, tongue-in-cheek host Stephen Colbert, Lee consulted with at least four buddies — Daily Show writer Rachel Axler, Lee friend "Dana," an unnamed Random House editor and Lee friend "Alexis." Their overwhelming advice? Don't try to be funny, and for the most part Lee didn't. But she did study some talking points, presented along with video of her on the show after the jump.
My friend Alexis (a huge Colbert fan) sent me an e-mail predicting how Colbert might respond to my argument that Chinese food is more American than apple pie given how much we eat apple pie versus Chinese food, and how I should recover from that.
Colbert : "I eat apple pie every morning - with a jack and coke - and a bald eagle egg omlette."
Jenny: Well, there are exceptions - and you are clearly an exceptional American - for most would say Chinese food.
Other things he might do:
* Introduce the idea that the Chinese are taking over the world, starting with the restaurants. ("If that happens, I'm hedged. I speak Chinese, what about you?" or "That might happen. I suggest that your kids learn to speak Chinese. My mom's a tutor.")
* Bring up any comment about the fact that fortune cookies were copied from the Japanese by the Chinese ("We don't feel so bad about it, they've been copying us for centuries.").
* Of course, ask about the middle number as initial. ("The Chinese love the number 8. The Beijing Olympics are starting at 8 p.m. on August 8, 2008. They really wanted this Olympics.")
Lee's friend was right about the apple pie thing. All the studying seemed to leave Lee looking just a tad over-prepared and stiff, but it's hard to fault her when she kept the discussion focused on her book and scored the requisite-but-never-guarnteed book plug from the host at the end.
Huffington Post: Preparing For "The Colbert Report"
Comments
Okay, I don't want to sound like a smartypants, but I am, and I have had to flog a book on a couple of shows back in the day, and I give this a C+. Either the book isn't interesting or she didn't use her airtime well. His job is to be funny and Colberty and her job is to give that little sparky thing that is special about her book. She was great setting him up but lousy for herself. She should have been a Chinese Margaret Cho or had one concise para about the book that she slammed in between his jokes. It was like bad American-Chinese food. It looked the same and kinda all ran together.
This is why Asians are at the top of the bell curve, because they'll prepare for TV appearances as if they were the LSATs.
Now as a white guy, I'd have been lucky if I had remembered to write down the address for the studio.
She is as smooth as General Tso's chicken coming out the other end
@oneninesevenfour: A great start would be knowing where the smart people are on the bell curve!
Any other Canadians having problems viewing this video (and all the others on Colbert's site)?
This alarming new "trend" in geoelitist webcasting can suck a dick. I haz an irked.
If I'm ever on Colbert I'll follow 8's lead and be freakin' adorable.
@semiserious: Really???? This, to me, was just another example of why -- under no circumstances -- would i appear on this show.
@Hez: I don't want you to get all tin foil hat but what would be worse than the rise of the Euro? That would be a prosperous vibrant, connected Canada. If you are not the quaint, lumbering country to the north: we are lost.
Wait, she said Chinese food in America is on par with Chinese toys: lots of fat, grease, and it's fried.
What toy do you speak of, Jennifer?
@Helman: Well, I'd go on a show whose main audiance is stoned college kids if I had written a book about munchies, and my proposal for "Funyuns: A Social History" is getting buzz.
@belltolls: If you're not vigilant, we'll rebrand ourselves as the land of wicked pot, homo weddings and batshit crazy WikiFuckers.
@Hez: Yikes Hez! I am in Seattle for the next two months on business and I can see Blaine from the Space Needle!
@belltolls: Dude, you're close enough to walk over!
First and foremost, you do NOT have to be a college kid to be stoned. Many professors are stoned, as well they should be.
S.C. is funny as hell, as is J.S.
Show some respect, Funyuns rock, especially when you look through each one and declare which of your girlfriends diaphrams resemble the one you are going to eat next....LOL
Girls can be so mean.
@Hez: Homo weddings? I'm in!
Is she any relation to Jennifer 7. Lee?
does number Jennifer 8. Lee come with fried rice or wonton soup?
You know, at first it was catchy and all that, but c'mon Jen, you gotta be pushin 30 now--drop the "8".
Ok now it can be told: The 8 stands for "I will eggr8ol for C8lbert!"
Mc Donald's to add egg rolls and fried rice to menu.
Is Jennifer a disciple of lil Hilfiger?
Incidentally, Jennifer will be reading next Thursday at 7pm at the Asian American Writers' Workshop at 16 West 32nd Street (10th Fl), along with Chitrita Banerji: [aaww.org]
@Ummwhat:
the McRoll n' Rice combo would be win.
@Hez: I thought we already had rebranded ourselves as such? No? Just B.C.?
Also - she recommended a restaurant in Richmond as the best Chinese food outside of China. The restaurant is going bankrupt so hopefully it'll give them a boost.
@belltolls: Rent a car and come on up! It's only a 2 hour drive.
Wow. So this is what it feels like to see your own name on Gawker. This must be how Julia Allison feels every morning...
Frankly, I'm a little underwhelmed. Although I think I may start going by "Lee friend 'Alexis.'"
I thought she did all right with Colbert, she probably should have relaxed a little more, she did seem a bit: "sitting up straight I'm on TV" kinda tense. Her name always stood out and I always thought her writing was very good. I learned about the number 8 good lore story from an article about her, follow up on the NY Times getting queries on her middle name.
She's over 30. A couple of years back she had a series of 30th bday parties in a couple of cities, I think: NYC, DC and Boston--each in the local Chinatown. I think the invite with was posted here on Gawker as an item.
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