Friends (and Strangers) Roast William Shatner
The celebrity roast is an odd event: a performer reaches such a high level of success that his friends -- and a few total strangers that are only famous for insulting people -- take turns making digs at said celeb and anyone else in attendance.
So was the scene last night when William Shatner, best known as Captain James T. Kirk from "Star Trek," was the guest of honor at the "Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner." Jason Alexander served as the evening's Roast Master with Andy Dick, Farrah Fawcett, Greg Giraldo, Lisa Lampanelli, Artie Lange, Nichelle Nichols, Patton Oswalt, Jeffrey Ross, George Takei, Betty White and Fred Willard serving as roasters.
Jeffrey Ross gave cameras a sneak peek at his material on his way into the show: "He went from 'T.J. Hooker' to P.F. Chang's ... Is he on 'Boston Legal' or Boston Market?"
Shatner may have been the man of honor, but everyone was a target last night -- especially George Takei, who recently came out of the closet. But the line of the night (that we can actually repeat) goes to Lisa Lampanelli: "Betty White is so old, that on the first game show she ever did, the grand prize was fire."
Comedy Central will air the roast this Sunday at 10PM.