You may find it hard to believe, but all of those hard-hitting Comedy Central reports from Baghdad have been done using a green screen. Yep, completely fake. I know, it was a huge surprise to me too. Well now you are going to see the real thing, as Daily Show correspondent Rob Riggle went to the Iraqi capital and other parts of Iraq last week to film segments and entertain the troops.
From Yahoo News:
Correspondent Rob Riggle, who has combat experience as a major in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, spent five days in Iraq last week with "Daily Show" writer Kevin Bleyer and field producer Glenn Clements. They went with a USO sketch comedy tour known as "Operation Feel the Heat" -- armed with small, handheld cameras -- and also brought back video that will be used for "Daily Show" about the troops and their lives in Iraq.
Although "Daily Show" spends time on topics related to Iraq and often has one of its correspondents appear against a greenscreen that simulates the Middle Eastern country, it's the first time the show has gone the extra step and visited Iraq.
Riggle, Clements and Bleyer visited several bases -- including Balad Air Force Base near Baghdad and two forward operating bases -- over five days. They performed with other comedians in 120-degree heat on makeshift stages, including a basketball court, then in between shot short videos for "Daily Show."
I never knew Riggle was in the Marines before, though when you look at him, I guess he has that jarhead look to him. As an actual Marine, he knows what he is doing there especially when it comes to interacting with fellow troops. "Actual" networks found out about the news late last week, probably making them wonder how wide the credibility gap is between them and the Daily Show. I would hate for them to realize it, but that gap has already been closed.
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