Hey, didja hear the one about the NBC reality show that's being called crooked and dishonest?
It's no joke. Though usually we have to wait until after a reality series has premiered for the scandals to begin, that's not the case with NBC's next edition of the talent search series Last Comic Standing.
Comedian and TV star Drew Carey, during an appearance over the weekend at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, accused NBC and Last Comic Standing II's producers of shady behavior. Carey, who, along with former Grace Under Fire star Brett Butler and Yes, Dear star Anthony Clark, served as a judge in a preliminary round of Last Comic Standing II, said the show's producers ignored the judges' votes for which contestants should advance to the top 10 and instead cast their own choices.
The show, which averaged a little more than 8 million viewers each week for NBC last summer and is scheduled to hit airwaves again this June, taped a semifinal round on Feb. 26 in Las Vegas. Carey and his fellow funny types were asked to help whittle 20 contenders down to 10 finalists, who will live together and compete weekly until all but one is voted out of the contest.
But Carey says he and the judges were shocked when the top 10 were announced. After comparing notes, the judges realized that their favorite contestant, who had also gotten a standing ovation from the audience, wasn't among the finalists. Meanwhile, a contestant who had, according to Carey, flopped during the competition, moved into the final round.
"Brett walked out and Anthony ripped his mike off in disgust," Carey told Variety. "No one could believe it. As far as I knew, we'd be judges to see who would go into the house. Turns out we're not." The Hollywood Reporter quoted Carey saying the talent contest "was crooked and dishonest."
"It was like somebody at NBC cast the show ahead of the event in Vegas. And they had 1,100 in the audience [for the semifinals competition] who saw how blatantly it was cast. If this happened on Survivor or any other reality TV show, it would be a major scandal."
Carey told the Los Angeles Times that an openly gay comic named Ant was apparently chosen because his sexual orientation made him a better fit than Carey's preferred wisecracker, Dan Naturman.
Butler, via her official Website, groused: "As panel judges, we can say that (a) we were both surprised and disappointed at the results and (b) we had NOTHING to do with them."
Last Comic Standing, hosted by gagmeister Jay Mohr, is the comic version of American Idol, with the winner, as chosen by the viewing audience, receiving a talent deal with NBC. Last summer's premiere contest helped launch the careers of winner Dat Phan and runner-up and frequent Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn guest Ralphie May.
But, according to Carey, based on a disclaimer he was told about after he made a fuss about the judges' lack of input in the Las Vegas semifinal competition, even the audience voting during the broadcasted rounds of competition may not be the final arbiter of who wins the comedy crown.
Carey said producers pointed out to him that a brief disclaimer, which runs among the end credits of the show, leaves the final decision on all matters, including voting and casting, up to producers.
"It's not about who's funniest," Carey told Variety. "They were casting it. The producers can change the outcome of the show whenever they wish. Why would they have a contest and judges if they were just going to cast it anyway?"
Carey was traveling and unavailable for further comment Monday, but his publicist said the comic stood by his comments.
It's probably safe to say that Carey, who also told Variety that he consulted his attorney in the matter, probably won't be among the show's celeb judges in the future. "I thought the whole thing stunk, and I'm mad they had my name associated with it," he said. "I've got a certain amount of integrity in this business and I'm not going to be compromised. You can't use me and my reputation. Do it with someone else's reputation."
NBC's response to the brouhaha? The network essentially confirmed Carey's claim about the disclaimer, minus the crooked and dishonest bits, natch.
"The casting decisions were made by NBC and NBC Studios in consultation with talent scouts and we appreciate their valuable input," the network said in a statement. "Now that the 10 participants have been selected, the program will begin. As was the case last season, during the show, the comic elimination decisions will now be made by audiences who watch the comics perform, without any input from NBC, NBC Studios or anyone else associated with the program."
So let the search for the next Dat Phan begin.