Bill Maher’s book tour came to Bill Maher’s TV show

What happens when a TV host known for talking to writers ends up having a new book of his own to promote? “For years I’ve been interviewing authors here in our one-on-one interview spot,” Bill Maher explained at the start of this week’s Real Time with Bill MaherThis time, however, Maher himself was sitting in the interviewer’s chair and was apparently there to promote his new book. What this comedian said will shock you.

This time, the questions were asked by Jiminy Glick, Martin Short’s comedic alter ego who has a long history with Maher. (Maher was the first guest on the first episode of Primetime Glick in 2001.) And the choice of Glick was interesting; Maher obviously could have invited someone to interview him in a more direct way. With Glick, however, the results were more like a roast than anything else — and for a show that often portrays Maher as the wisest person in the room, it was a big change.

At the beginning of the interview, Glick made a little reference to Maher and Bill Burr not getting along. Then he corrected his mistake: “The combination of weed and cheap cologne battling for supremacy should have given it away.”

“My cologne is not cheap,” Maher replied.

Glick’s barbs continued, including, “I’m used to interviewing celebrities! This is a nice change of pace,” and “Your smile is like an email from grandma: all in all caps.” Later in the interview, Glick poked fun at some of Maher’s comments about COVID. “I love getting my medical advice from a club act,” Glick said.

There were a few moments when Maher answered more traditional questions, but even then Glick’s responses were designed to be a punchline in themselves. At one point, Maher very sincerely replied that he was grateful that people were reading the book, only to burst out laughing when Glick nodded off.

At the end of the interview, Maher was laughing so hard he cried. “I need to get out more Kleenex,” he said. And he got a good-natured dig at Glick in return. “When I first thought about becoming a comedian, there was a show from Canada called SCTV”, said Maher. “Almost everyone in that cast was a genius. Almost.”

Starting an episode of your show by subjecting yourself to a series of comedic insults was an interesting choice, although one would assume the real strength lies in getting Martin Short to reprise a long-running role. And Maher herself seemed to love the experience, saying at the end of the interview, “That was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”

And then he turned to the episode’s panelists with an intimidating request: “Do it like this, guys.”

Other notable moments from the episode:

• Maher on the contrast between the two presidential candidates of the major parties: “That is the difference between Trump and Biden: It is an embarrassing video for Biden if he not talk.”
• That night’s panelists included former Governor Andrew Cuomo and former Representative Adam Kinzinger. Maher suggested that both may seek re-election, comparing them to a sportscaster who has his eye on the coaching job: “He’s in the booth now, but he’s waiting for the coaching job. That’s what happened to the guy with the Lakers.”
• It was a bit surprising to see Cuomo back on the show after he and Maher had a heated exchange last fall.
• Maher on Donald Trump’s proposal not to tax tips: “I guess that will go down well at the Spearmint Rhino.”
• Maher on the 10 Commandments and the prohibitions they contain: “It’s a stupid list from the Bronze Age. Rape, slavery or child abuse are not on it.”
• Maher about the film The Apprenticewho currently has no distributor in the US: “Find a way to release this film.”
• In New Rules, Maher spoke about generational conflict and the radicalization of baby boomers. “If you’re my age, you’ve seen friends and relatives drift down the Facebook rabbit hole or get sucked into the vortex of Fox News and never come back the same,” he said. “Transformed from a normal human being into someone hoarding seeds of survival.”
• Another memorable line from the same section: “We’ve met the Russian troll bot army, and it’s your Aunt Bonnie.”