Jimmy Kimmel did better than I'd expected at the White House Correspondents Dinner last night, especially in the first half of his act. I got the feeling after about twenty minutes that he was wishing he'd been a bit more ruthless in editing out some of the weaker gags which were bunched up just where you don't want to have them: Near the end. I'll watch it again in a few days and I expect to like it more.
Another problem he had was following Obama, who scored big comedically and maybe to some extent, politically. I'm not sure who supplied his material, though I seem to recall hearing that his speech last year had been cobbled together by the staff of The Daily Show. I don't think we should judge our elected officials by how well they can do stand-up but it doesn't hurt when they do it well.
I am informed by many, by the way, that Jon Stewart performed at the dinner in 1997. Obviously, he's been asked to return. Obviously, he said no. I'd be curious to know why.