So Artie Lange went on sportscaster Joe Buck's new show, "Joe Buck Live", and created some controversy by acting like a jack-ass last night. I for one am a confused on a few levels by all the controversy it created  and one question I have is why every thinks it was a train wreck?  The segment shown below and the additional segment that can be watched over at Deadspin, were both hilarious, awkward, and quality television. (BOTH VIDEOS HAVE NSFW LANGUAGE)

Sure, the topic the three actors were there to discuss was how sports and celebrity are intertwined and related and the topic was never explored but it was still entertaining.  The second reason is what in blue blazes did the producers think they were getting themselves into when they booked Artie Lange? He is an outspoken, vulgar, and often hilarious comedian that has no restraint especially now that he has been mixing it up with Howard Stern on uncensored radio for years.  You put him on live uncensored television with a weak host and Lange will take over, just like he did.  (MORE AFTER THE JUMP)

Now the one thing that was disappointing is we didn't get to hear Paul Rudd's thoughts on the actual topic as Rudd is always funny and slick.  The other guest, Jason Sudeikis was very quiet throughout the interview which was disappointing as well since he is one of the few bright spots on an otherwise giant stinking turd that is called Saturday Night Live these days. The one time Sudeikis did pipe up was in the overtime section you can see at Deadspin when Lange attacks Sudeikis for toiling away at SNL and Sudeikis has a nice crack about Artie living inside Howard Sterns' ass.  You could actually tell that Rudd and Sudeikis would love for Artie to shut the hell up, even though they had no way to shut him up.  Rudd seemed the most uncomfortable which likely was a result of his close and long standing relationship with Joe Buck.  Nobody wants to see a close friend shrink into misery before your eyes.

I also find it amusing that if you told anyone yesterday afternoon that the big news from "Joe Buck Live's" premier wasn't the much hyped Brett Favre interview but rather Artie Lange; most people would have said, who the hell is Artie Lange?  Some might say Artie Lange the fat guy from Howard Stern? Or the big drunk drug addict that was in Dirty Work? Regardless the producers of the show booked Lange for a reason, they knew how off the wall Lange could be and they used him as a back-up plan in case the Favre and OchoCinco interviews failed to stir anything up.  If Favre had dropped a bombshell about how much he hates Ted Thompson and the Packers, or that he was playing for revenge nobody would be talking about the final segment with Artie Lange.  Once again mass media trys to spin that it is spontanous and unopridictible when reality is it's controlled and calculated. HBO and Joe Buck have set himself up for higher ratings next week, not to mention all the publicity the two viral videos' will draw and of course we can't forget the potential re-match between Artie Lange and Joe Buck that is sure to occur in the near future.  Artie Lange said on Howard Stern that the producers egged him on, in fact his exact quote was a bit more vulgar:

"And Ross Greenburg, you mother f-cker, you came up to me and said, ‘If [fellow panelists] Paul [Rudd] and Jason [Sudeikis] get boring, you go nuts.' So go f-ck yourself, I don't care how important you are in this business."

The saddest part is I am just as guilty as everyone else; I was entertained, I'm spreading viral marketing for his show (to all 4 people who might read this, (thanks dad)), and more importantly for Mr. Buck; I will be watching his show in the future.  My TIVO will be set for Lang vs. Buck II.

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