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The Hero Of Color City
Hero Of Color CityIt’s been more than four years since Craig Ferguson walked into a recording studio and recorded his voice for an animated film called The Hero of Color City. We’ve been telling you about it since 2010, in the hope that it would see the light of day. And this week, it was announced the film will premiere on October 3rd. The film follows a group of crayons who visit Color City each night while their owner sleeps. When one crayon is left behind, she awakens two unfinished drawings: King Scrawl, a huge monster, and Gnat, Scrawl’s flying sidekick, voiced by Craig. Scrawl tries to claim Color City’s colors for himself, and it’s up to the crayons to save the day. Christina Ricci, Arsenio Hall and Rosie Perez are among the voice cast. Be sure to check out the trailer below.

Capaldi’s ComicCapaldi Sees Comic
The RSA’s @IKnowJoJo had a chance to visit the set of Doctor Who this week, and met up again with star Peter Capaldi. She showed him the cover of her Craigy Who and Mr. Timey Pants comic book, and told him that Craig was his companion in the story. She reports he laughed and seemed pleased by the idea. Read more of her story on her Kickstarter site.

The Late Late Late Show
07 NCAA on CBSDVR Reminder: Due to the NCAA basketball tournament on CBS, the Thursday and Friday episodes of The Late Late Show will be on later than usual, perhaps an hour or more. The time will vary from night to night, depending on when the last game ends. When CBS basketball coverage wraps up for the night, it will be followed by your late local news, then The Late Show with David Letterman, followed by Craig. Expect delays on Thursday and Friday, March 20 and 21, Thursday and Friday, March 27 and 28, and Monday, April 7. Please note that the episodes for the next two Thursdays and Fridays will be “encore presentations” (reruns). You can see the full schedule on our Guests page.

Color City Trailer
Enjoy the trailer to the upcoming animated feature film The Hero Of Color City.

Video courtesy: JoBlo Movie Trailers

Host SwapCraig and Drew on TPIR
Craig Ferguson tweeted a link to USA Today on Monday, reporting what we’ve been telling you about for several weeks now: He will host a special episode of The Price Is Right and Drew Carey will host a special episode of The Late Late Show on April Fool’s Day. Craig tweeted:

I guess the news is out @DrewFromTV. Carey, Ferguson swap jobs on April Fools’ http://usat.ly/1iXgjWb  via @usatoday

Craig taped his episode of TPIR back in February, and Drew is taping his version of the LLS on March 21st.

Craig Gets Awards Show Gig
Osbourne GreenbergCraig Ferguson doesn’t present at many awards shows, but this year, he’s making an exception. The Grammys runs a project called the MusiCares MAP Fund, which provides members of the music community access to addiction recovery treatment. On May 12th, Craig will present the MusiCares From the Heart Award to Jeff Greenberg, owner/CEO of the Village studios, for his dedication to the mission and goals of the organization. Also receiving an award that night will be musician Ozzy Osbourne, for his commitment to helping other addicts with the addiction recovery process. A benefit concert follows the awards presentation, with all proceeds benefiting the Fund, featuring Keb’ Mo’ and Metallica. There will also be a performance by Osbourne and his touring band with special guest Slash on guitar.

Shiver Me Timbers
In this monologue from 2006, Craig sets sail with pirates.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson

Film VotingJosh in Nowhere Girl sl
Each year, IndieWire.com asks for votes for “Project of the Year” in the independent film community. Among this year’s 12 nominees is Nowhere Girl, starring The Late Late Show‘s Josh Robert Thompson. You can cast your vote on the IndieWire website, which describes the film this way:

“Nowhere Girl” is a funny and heartfelt film about how falling in love can be exhilarating but also a bit crazy. After Tyler meets Katy he finally starts to shake off the lingering effects of a bad break-up and she inspires him to do more and be more in life.  At first his friends think this is a wonderful change, but cracks in this new relationship start to show and some of his friends begin thinking it’s unhealthy. But just what is “unhealthy” when it comes to a relationship and just who gets to decide these things?

Still Odd After All These Years
Thomas Lennon FelixCan two divorced men share an apartment without driving each other crazy? We’ll soon find out. A CBS reboot of the classic sitcom The Odd Couple is in the works, starring Matthew Perry as slob Oscar Madison and just announced this week, Late Late Show favorite Thomas Lennon as the fastidious Felix Unger, reports TVLine.com.

Taking Stock
In this monologue from 2006, Craig complains about the stock market.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson

One of the Girls
Craig HIC SelfieLast week, Craig Ferguson tweeted a selfie with the cast of TVLand’s Hot In Cleveland, saying “I’m just one of the girls here.” Little did anyone know just how much he meant it. Late on Friday evening, the folks from the show tweeted a pair of photos from the set with Craig in costume:

Craig HIC CostumeDon’t get all dolled up just for us !

Craig HIC Costume SceneImpressive !

We’re guessing there is a Mrs. Doubtfire joke in a script somewhere on that set. Hot In Cleveland premieres its fifth season on March 26th.

Fun With Authors
05 Dennis LehaneAs many fans of The Late Late Show have pointed out, part of what makes the show different is Craig’s enthusiasm for interviewing authors, along with the usual parade of Hollywood celebrities. Back in 2010, the website LibraryLoveFest.com appreciated Craig’s conversations with Dennis Lehane and Lawrence Block.

Host SwapCraig on TPIR s
We’ve had a couple of questions about the “host swap” episodes of The Price Is Right and the LLS. Back in February, Craig taped an episode as guest host of TPIR that will air on April 1. On March 21, Drew Carey will tape an episode as guest host of the LLS, that we believe will also air on April 1. We are awaiting official confirmation of that. Drew will do his taping while Craig is away on tour in Canada, and as we understand it, the idea is simply to swap the shows’ hosts as an April Fools prank. Stay tuned!

Being Somebody Else
In this monologue from 2006, Craig talks about how lots of people want to be somebody else.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson

Building a Television ShowCraig in Scotland (1b) sl
In 2012, around the time Craig Ferguson was putting together five episodes of The Late Late Show in Scotland, he sat down with one of the country’s premier television critics, David Bianculli. In what could be the most in-depth and detailed interview of the LLS host we’ve ever seen, Bianculli asks Craig about both the art and science of creating a television show. Craig’s answers are direct and give some insight into his process. It’s evident just how much he cares about doing it well.

Praise for the LLS
02 Craig Ferguson (55)A year ago this week, writer Colin McGuire wrote a vigorous defense of Craig and The Late Late Show for PopMatters.com, calling the show “as bizarre as it is addicting.”


Say No To Pranks
In this monologue from 2006, Craig talks about his dislike for pranks.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson

Not Like Any Other Late-Night Show02-Craig-Ferguson-66 sl
Back in 2008, not long after Craig Ferguson became an American citizen, television critic Frazier Moore interviewed Craig and wrote a detailed article explaining why The Late Late Show was “an hour unlike other talk shows.” Six years later, the LLS is still not like any other late-night show.

The Audience Experience
LSS AudienceLast summer, a talk show fan went on a Los Angeles vacation that included being in the audience of two episodes of Conan, one of The Tonight Show and two of The Late Late Show. He wrote a detailed story about his experience at the LLS tapings.

Board Games
In this monologue from 2006, Craig encourages you to sit back, relax and play board games.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson

Craig’s Tour
Since 2006, in addition to his work hosting The Late Late Show and his many other projects, Craig Ferguson has been touring the U.S. and Canada as a stand up comedian. To date, by our estimate, he has appeared on stage in 36 states, plus Washington, DC. So that got us to thinking: Where has Craig been and where could he go to expand his horizons? Here are some ideas:

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Where has Craig performed from 2006-2014?
CANADA

Craig has made a big commitment to Canada in the past couple of years, performing in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Nova Scotia. Craig makes regular appearances in Montreal and Toronto and his shows north of the border routinely sell out.

NORTHEAST
He has done several shows in and around New York, including Carnegie Hall and Radio City Music Hall, plus venues in nearby New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island. He has appeared in Boston several times, once in New Hampshire (he’ll be back this month) and will add Maine as well.

MID ATLANTIC
Craig in DCCraig has done shows in Virginia, North Carolina and Washington, DC which attracted audience members from Maryland, West Virginia and South Carolina.


SOUTHEAST

In the Southeast, he has performed in Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, and has done multiple shows across Florida. He is also fond of Nashville, Tennessee that brought in fans from Kentucky and Arkansas.

MIDWEST
In the Midwest, he has appeared in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Missouri, along with Iowa, Nebraska Missouri and Kansas, performing in a wide variety of venues and drawing great crowds.


SOUTHERN PLAINS
In the South Central region, he makes regular appearances in Oklahoma, and last year made sure he reached Austin and Dallas in Texas. He’s very likely to include them in future tours, with nice venues and appreciative audiences.


MOUNTAIN WEST
The Mountain West gets a treat from time to time when Craig is working up new material and spends some time in Denver, which brings in fans from all over the country to see him perform in a small venue. He also appears each year in Las Vegas, and recently appeared in Arizona and New Mexico.

WEST COAST
And in the West, Craig has appeared in several cities across California from San Diego to Sacramento, plus stops in Oregon and Washington.


Craig has performed in the states in blue at least once in the past few years.
Craig Map March 2014

Where Could He Go Next?

While we understand it is less likely the Craig would appear in states with lower populations, we still believe he can draw fans to fill a mid-sized auditorium. By focusing on regional centers, the shows would do well and it would give Craig reason to visit more of the heartland of his adopted country. We think there are a handful of ideas that would make sense:

1. Fargo, NDFargo ND
Although we’d advise going in the summer, Fargo is a bustling regional center that would deliver a full house of Craig fans. There are several colleges in the area and Craig would draw an audience from across North Dakota and northern Minnesota.

2. Sioux Falls, SDSioux Falls SD
Another northern plains college town, Sioux Falls would have no trouble providing a nice crowd to see Craig if he made the trip. People from South Dakota, Nebraska and western Iowa frequently visit “The Sioux” to shop and find entertainment, so they’d be lining up around the block.

3. Louisville, KYLouisville KY
He could spend a half hour on stage trying to pronounce the name of the town like the locals, and then he could do a show. Craig enjoys the audiences in the area, and it’s high time he poked fun at Kentucky’s largest city in person.

4. Little Rock, ARLittle Rock AR
People would travel from Missouri, Tennessee and Louisiana to see Craig if he appeared in Arkansas. Another big college town, with an Air Force base and more, there are lots of late-night fans in the Rock.

5. Salt Lake City, UT
Craig had to cancel a planned stop in SLC in 2011 due to a scheduling conflict with the premiere of Winnie The Pooh in LA. It would be great to see that date back on the calendar and bring in fans not only from Utah but from Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

6. Anchorage/Honolulu
Crowds in Alaska and Hawaii would be thrilled to have a big name like Craig appearing at a theater near them. And if Craig brought along a camera crew, they could have fun recording segments for future Late Late Show episodes. Imagine an Ariel Tweto interview in Alaska or an Evangeline Lilly interview in Hawaii. It’s a stretch but we think he’d enjoy it!

Have we missed an obvious choice for a future live stand up show? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Late-Night’s Dark Horse
02 Craig Ferguson (72)
Back in 2008, W Magazine did a feature story about Craig, whom they described as the “dark horse of late-night TV,” and that was even before he had “not a real horse” on the show every night.


Pictures and Writing
In this monologue from 2006, Craig talks about early-career pictures and writing, including a mention of his then-new novel, Between The Bridge And The River.

Video courtesy: FrankGerbertson