The Future of Craig and Dave
The New York Times expert on late night television, Bill Carter reports in his blog that CBS is close to signing David Letterman for another two year contract extension which would keep him at the network into 2014.  If Dave signs the deal and stays on, it would allow him to host late night television shows for 32 years (11 on NBC and 21 on CBS), surpassing the 30-year mark attained by his idol, Johnny Carson.  Carter also notes in his article that discussions are continuing with Craig Ferguson, whose contract time frame mirrors Letterman’s.  Carter points out that while Craig has a clause in his contract that would allow him to take over for Dave upon his retirement, our favorite Scot may not necessarily decide to do so.  Carter says negotiations currently under way with Craig may include not only a salary increase but a request for a bigger production budget for the Late Late Show.  Among the media outlets picking up on Carter’s post Thursday were The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Gothamist.com, the Wall Street Journal, the Huffington Post, TV.com, TVGuide.com and Deadline.com.  The conventional wisdom is that Craig, recently remarried and enjoying family life in Los Angeles, is in a good place right now.  Another two years of doing the show and touring with stand up shows would seem to be the logical path.  On the other hand, Craig is known for zigging when other zag.  We’ll keep you posted.

Posing on Set

The Huffington Post reports on Mercedes Masohn‘s appearance on the Late Late Show, where she talked about her co-star on The Finder, Michael Clarke Duncan.



Lots of Craig Fergusons
From our “other Craig Fergusons” file, there is a former professional ice hockey player with the same name who was active in the 1990s and early 2000s.


A Dark Comedy Club
The Green Bay Press Gazette interviews comedienne Kathleen Madigan, who talks about appearing on the Late Late Show, comparing it to a comedy club atmosphere.



The People’s Choice
Jimmy Fallon took home the People’s Choice Award for late night host Wednesday night and in his acceptance video, included a fun mention of Craig Ferguson:

Video courtesy: PeoplesChoice

Tonight’s Guests
Thursday on the Late Late Show, Craig chats with his old show business pal, actor Hugh Laurie.  Friday, it’s the return of actress Kristen Bell, along with comedian Louie Anderson.

Tour Ahead
Craig Ferguson kicks off his 2012 live stand up comedy tour with a nine-day run through the Southeast and Midwest, January 20th through the 28th. Tickets are available for all shows, with details on our Live Comedy Tour page. It does not appear that the crew at the Late Late Show have been stockpiling many shows this month, so we’ll likely get a visit from the re-run fairy January 23rd-27th, before resuming all-new episodes for the February television ratings period. We’ll post the details as soon as we get the word.  In the meantime, guests are already being lined up for February, as we note at the bottom of today’s news.


Men Don’t Grow Out of That
The Huffington Post and OK Magazine enjoyed Sophia Bush and Craig’s chat about girls kissing girls.

Lots of Other Craig Fergusons
From our “there are lots of other Craig Fergusons out there” file, the RSA’s @bgrhubarb spotted a new and different Craig Ferguson in a Minnesota local TV station story about a bar owner facing trouble with the law for an unusual reason.


Sheep or Creepy Dog Made out of Cotton?
Craig thinks back and remembers meeting a young Texan named George.

Video courtesy: RoQu3tO

Tonight’s Guests
Wednesday on the Late Late Show, Craig was scheduled to have a single guest, actor/musician Adam Goldberg.  However, the show’s website recently included actress Mercedes Masohn as a last-minute addition.  On Thursday, again the listings show just one guest, the grumpy but lovable Dr. House himself, actor Hugh Laurie.

Guest Update

The future guest list has been updated to include Don Cheadle, Andrea Riseborough, Ringo Starr, Brad Goreski, David Milch and Rachel Bilson.  You can see the latest listings on our Guests page.

Just Keep Swimming
Craig Fergusonspent his morning in the dentist’s office, tweeting while he waited:

At the dentist this morning to have a cavity filled. #notcode #ack // Acording to the tabloids in my dentist’s waiting room we can expect a result in the OJ trial any day now.

Howie Time
The Huffington Post zeros in on Craig and Howie talking about Howard Stern becoming a judge on American’s Got Talent and how there are now two Howards on the show.

Controlling Robots

The RSA’s @celtickisses75 noticed on DiscoverMagazine.com that science is moving forward with the ability to control robots using only thoughts.  This takes “guess what’s in my box” to a whole new level.



Craig and Caine
Since Craig was probably dealing with Novocaine today, we thought it would be fun to see “Craig Ferguson” interview “Michael Caine” on the “Late Late Show.”

Video courtesy: RoQu3tO

Tonight’s Guests
Tuesday on the Late Late Show, Craig talks with fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi and actress Sophia Bush. Wednesday, actor/musician Adam Goldberg is Craig’s guest.

Fun with Germophobes
Craig Ferguson tweeted Monday that he’s looking to have a little fun with guest Howie Mandel, who openly and self-deprecatingly jokes about his well-known aversion to handshakes and other contact:
[stextbox id=”custom”]Adorable shaved Canadian @howiemmandel on the show tonight. I shall taunt him with pretend sneeziness. #notreally. #thatsnotcool. #maybe

For his part, Howie tweeted:
@howiemmandel: Watch me on @CraigyFerg tonight. I broke every rule. Am I in trouble ?

And Craig responded: What rules?

Howie replied: 16 thru k
[/stextbox]
We’ll have to watch and see!

The Queen as The Doctor
Helen Mirren has expressed interest in being the next Doctor Who.  The story has been picked up by TheMarySue.com, Bust Magazine, The Daily What and the Daily Star.  Thanks to the RSA’s @LoveAllThingsUK for the heads up.

Time Hasn’t Run Out

Fans of the Fox series 24 will be excited hear that a movie is in the works.



Craig’s Version of 24
Take a look at the comparison between what happens between 7 and 8am on an episode of 24, and in Craig’s life:

Tonight’s Guests
Monday on the Late Late Show, Craig playfully annoys TV host Howie Mandel and we hear the music by Randy Houser.  On Tuesday, it’s fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi and actress Sophia Bush.

Coming To Your Town
Craig Ferguson‘s 2012 live stand up comedy tour kicks off in less than two weeks in Shreveport, Louisiana on January 20th.  Tickets are on sale for all of Craig’s January shows.  You can get specifics about locations, dates, times, directions and links to tickets on our Live Comedy Tour page.

Brave at the Table

The website ComingSoon.net posted a new still frame from the upcoming Disney/Pixar animated feature film Brave, featuring the voice of Craig Ferguson and in theaters this summer.


Houser on the Show
The website CountryMusicTattletale.com has a story about country singer Randy Houser‘s upcoming appearance on the Late Late Show.

The Benny Hill Sketch
Craig says he looks a little bit like Harry Potter in this early sketch.

Video courtesy: RoQu3tO

This Week’s Guests

Monday on the Late Late Show, Craig’s guests are TV host Howie Mandel and country singer Randy Houser.  Tuesday on the show, watch for fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi and actress Sophia Bush.  Wednesday, actor/musician Adam Goldberg returns to the show.  Actor Hugh Laurie is in the studio on Thursday.  And on Friday, favorites Kristen Bell and comedian Louie Anderson are Craig’s guests.

Tweety Time
Craig Ferguson enjoys stalking Twitter from time to time and replied to a fan on Saturday:

“@Freundlydude: My goal this year is to have @BenFolds @IamStevenT or @CraigyFerg to RT one of my tweets #goals” Jeez. Aim higher.

He also offered up a round of “True or Not True”:

The sun baby from teletubbies grew up to be the ginger dude on Homeland. #TrueOrNotTrue //
Not true. The sun baby from teletubbies was actually @IMKristenBell #TrueOrNotTrue

Shorty Awards
The annual Shorty Awards are up and running.  In the contest, which honors the best in social media, people and companies can be nominated in any of dozens of existing categories or make up their own.  Craig could be nominated in many different ways but perhaps the most good would come from nominating him in a single category and focusing effort on that.  It appears he has been nominated for the #comedian category, which makes sense.  As of this writing, Craig is currently tied for 30th place in that category but it’s very early, and a big robot skeleton effort could propel him to the top and make him a finalist.  The nomination period runs through February 17th.  Be sure to read the rules closely (there must be a proper hashtag and a reason for your nomination and don’t start up a bunch of accounts to vote; they’ll catch on), so that your nominating tweet gets counted!  And remember, you can only vote once (repeat votes are discarded) so the goal is to get as many people as possible to nominate Craig.

Who Review

The website Anglotopia,net has a big new post talking about upcoming Doctor Who conventions and notes that Craig is a fan of the long-running series.


Skeleton Antics
In Seattle, a commuter is in trouble not only for speeding but for using a mock skeleton to look like a passenger, in order to use the carpool lane. The story from Seattle’s KING-TV ends with a note that the skeleton will remain in the closet. [Make up your own Geoff Peterson joke here.] Thanks to the RSA’s @doxieone1 for the heads up on this story.

This Weekend

Saturday, January 7th is Orthodox Christmas and Nanakusa (the Festival of the Seven Herbs) in Japan.  It is also the birthday of Katie Couric and Nicolas Cage, not to mention Dustin Diamond from Saved By The Bell.  Sunday, January 8th is the anniversary of the first State of the Union address, the Battle of New Orleans and is the birthday of physicist Stephen Hawking, Monty Python actor Graham Chapman, Tweetmail jingle inspiration David Bowie and the King… Elvis Presley.

Video courtesy: iheart3elvis