Rosie O’Donnell is back big time.
Her first night guest hosting Jimmy Kimmel Live was a grand slam homerun.
Rosie is a natural at stand up and live performance and she knows how to keep a talk show moving and entertaining.
That’s what came through tonight as she arrived on stage in a festooned pink jacket with her gray locks shining. She made only a slight acknowledgment of Donald Trump at the top of the show before launching into material from her hit off Broadway show, “Common Knowledge.” She did call him “the Mango Mussolini,” drawing big laughs. At one point she taunted him not using his name. She said to the camera, “I know you’re watching!”
The audience ate up her stories of moving to Ireland with her autistic child and getting away from Trump and the looming threat of things like Project 25.
If nothing else, Rosie’s move to Ireland was a big step in her renaissance. She’s returned to the US fresh as a daisy, totally revived, and funnier than ever. The live Kimmel audience could not have been more delighted. Plus, they went home with copies of Madonna’s new album, “Confessions II,” a nice touch since the two women have been best friends for decades.
Rosie’s interviews with Hannah Waddingham and Ana Gasteyer were just the right speed — upbeat and well researched. Rosie knows how to lay back and let a guest tell their stories but still maintain obvious interest in the conversation. She knows how to steer them to a point.
A nice touch: a separate taped moment remembering Hayden Panettiere, who died overnight. Hayden, Rosie recalled, had been a charming child on her original talk show.
So the week has begun, with Rosie, again, heckling Trump a little but not enough to make the hour about him. That shows a lot of restraint. We’ll see how long she can keep that up. But really, it’s a great relief to have Rosie back on TV.
