Steve Martin has a bit of fun at the expense of New York's 92nd Street Y last night - with all the "fun" stemming from an incident last week when Steve Martin was the speaker of the night. Expecting laughs - paying audience members got a lesson on art - and they were none too pleased. Last night on his appearance on "The Colbert Report" - Steve Martin was grilled by hot Stephen Colbert... on art.
Meanwhile,New York's 92nd Street Ysays it is refunding tickets to those disappointed to hear actor and author Steve Martin discuss art rather than perform comedy.Art critic Deborah Solomon interviewed Martin Monday night in front of an audience of about 900 people, many of whom were unhappy to hear him talk about his new book, "An Object of Beauty," which is set in the art world, Salon.com said.
"We acknowledge that last night's event with Steve Martin did not meet the standard of excellence that you have come to expect from 92nd St. Y," the Y's executive director Sol Adler said in an e-mail to ticket-holders Tuesday.
"We planned for a more comprehensive discussion and we, too, were disappointed with the evening," the message continued. "We will be mailing you a $50 certificate for each ticket you purchased to last night's event. The gift certificate can be used toward future 92Y events, pending availability."
About Steve MartinStephen Glenn "Steve" Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, playwright, producer, musician and composer.Martin was born in Waco, Texas, and raised in Southern California, where his early influences were working at Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm and working magic and comedy acts at these and other smaller venues in the area. His ascent to fame picked up when he became a writer for the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, and later became a frequent guest on The Tonight Show.In the 1970s, Martin performed his offbeat, absurdist comedy routines before packed houses on national tours. Since the 1980s, having branched away from stand-up comedy, he has become a successful actor, playwright, pianist, banjo player, and juggler, eventually earning Emmy, Grammy, and American Comedy awards.About Stephen ColbertStephen Tyrone Colbert (born on May 13, 1964) is an American political satirist, writer, comedian and television host. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an actor, but became interested in improvisational theatre when he met famed Second City director Del Close while attending Northwestern University. He first performed professionally as an understudy for Steve Carell at Second City Chicago; among his troupe mates were comedians Paul Dinello and Amy Sedaris, with whom he developed the critically acclaimed sketch comedy series Exit 57.
Colbert also wrote and performed on the short-lived Dana Carvey Show before collaborating with Sedaris and Dinello again on the cult television series Strangers with Candy. He gained considerable attention for his role on the latter as closeted, gay history teacher Chuck Noblet. It was his work as a correspondent on Comedy Central's news-parody series The Daily Show, however, that first introduced him to a wide audience.In 2005, he left The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to host a spin-off series, The Colbert Report. Following The Daily Show's news-parody concept, The Colbert Report is a parody of personality-driven political opinion shows such as The O'Reilly Factor. Since its debut, the series has established itself as one of Comedy Central's highest-rated series, earning Colbert three Emmy nominations and an invitation to perform as featured entertainer at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in 2006. Colbert was named one of Time's 100 most influential people in 2006. His book, I Am America (And So Can You!), was No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller List.
Source: UPI
