Jon Stewart brings the satire to the DNC

'The Daily Show' comes to town, and as usual, nothing's sacred

By Mike Pearson, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 27, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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Jon Stewart entertained a packed crowd Monday in DU's Newman Center during a taping of Comedy Central's The Daily Show.

Does landing the Democratic National Convention mean you've finally made it as an au courant American city?

Nope. A weeklong residency by Comedy Central's The Daily Show With Jon Stewart (9 p.m. weekdays) is probably a better barometer of a city's hip quotient.

By that measure, Denver is the bee's knees this week, as The Daily Show tapes four shows at the University of Denver's Newman Center, exploiting the satirical potential of the convention and its delegates.

A measure of Stewart's popularity is the sheer diversity of the 270 people who packed the small DU theater Tuesday night for the first taping: an audience that was neither old nor young but a vibrant - and very vocal - mixture of both.

One factor in the show's appeal is that it's a cruder version of a real newscast. A little profanity and irreverence make a nice punctuation mark.

Tuesday's show wasn't scheduled to tape until 5 p.m., but by 9 a.m. three people were already in line. By 10 a.m., that number had tripled, and by 2 p.m., several hundred eager fans stood in the sweltering heat waiting for admission.

The lucky ones peeled off to get water or food and actually ran into Stewart as he strolled the campus (probably trying to adjust to the elevation). He was gracious as he posed for cell-phone pictures.

DU's Byron Theatre was transformed into a replica of The Daily Show's New York studio, complete with American-flag motifs, hanging monitors and a festive set that used a collage of the Mile High city as its backdrop.

So what if creative license had the show's producers situating Denver International Airport's nippled main terminal adjacent to the Pepsi Center? It's just showbiz.

Stewart and company came out swinging, riffing on the state's reputation for beer production and the Barack Obama phobia that Hillary Clinton supporters are afflicted with. One of the show's funniest skits found cast member John Oliver interviewing a therapist who treated Clinton supporters by using play dolls to work out their aggression.

There was no shortage of commentary on Michelle Obama's Monday-night speech, and a special sense of irritation toward the younger Obama daughter, who kept babbling at the video image of her father.

The show also featured an interview with Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, said to have been on Obama's short list for vice president.

Stewart regulars John Oliver and John Riggle played big roles. Look for other cast regulars to appear throughout the week.

The show always ends with a "Moment of Zen," but Tuesday's moment came before the tape ever rolled. Stewart came out and took questions from the audience and displayed both wit (he was a standup comic, after all) and warmth. He reminded the audience of his and his staff's New York roots and called Denverites "suspiciously friendly."

Some of that winning personality comes through on-screen. The remainder belongs to those who attend tapings of his show.

Tickets for this week's tapings are hard to come by; for information, go to RockyMountain

News.com/extras.

Next week, Stewart and company move to Minneapolis for the Republican confab.

pearsonm@RockyMountainNews.com

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