It’s been a month since Norm MacDonald died, and I was listening to this lengthy interview with him this morning. I had listened to this interview before, but this time I listened to it differently, because I know now what no one at the time of the interview knew, which was that Norm was dying of cancer. It’s fascinating listening to it, because around the middle of the interview, he speaks warmly of Richard Farnsworth, who died of cancer yet never had told anyone about it. A little later on, Norm mentions off-handedly that maybe something is going on in his life that no one knows about. He didn’t do this in a “I am dropping clues, see if you can figure it out” kind of way. It was so subtle, that there was absolutely no implication. But, hearing it now, it all makes sense.

Good morning, everyone. Let’s clean the palate with a little humor before we do the chart thing later. I watched the latest Chapelle special last night, The Closer. Perhaps you’ve seen some of the reviews. There’s been a lot of hand-wringing and pearl clutching about its content, and a particularly fey review I read from NPR was quite offended. Well, having watched it from end to end, I’m here to tell you it’s as intelligent and superbly-performed as anything he’s ever done. I highly recommend it. The man is absolutely brilliant.