by Lefty For Pres
54th Street Entrance
Getting tickets
The automated system works great, but make sure when you put in your e-mail address that you use all lower case letters, it won’t accept it any other way.
You should get an e-mail response right away (check your spam!) - you need to respond to this e-mail to confirm your request (it’s just a link to click).
About 2 weeks before the show date, you will get reminder e-mail about the show, and if you can’t make it, there is a link to cancel your tickets. They caution you if you don’t show up at all you will be blocked from attending future shows.
It also says to print out the e-mail and bring it with you, but I have yet to have anyone collect it. It’s a helpful thing to have since it has the address and phone number of the studio.
The day of the show they will send you another reminder. You do not need to print this one out. I usually don’t even see this e-mail until I get home after the taping!
If the show is on break, the only reminder you may get is the one on the day of the show (at about noon), I
know one taping I never received the 2 week reminder even with the automated system.
Stand-by Tickets
If you would like to try to get in on stand-by, the line is around the corner on 52nd street by the stables. My
own feeling is - the nicer the weather, the less likely you are to get in on standby. I would get there by two,
the latest, they don’t take names like Mark does at The Colbert Report, so you just have to wait it out and
wish for the best. Your other hope is that someone on line has an extra ticket, not so easy to find out since
you are way the fuck around the corner out of sight of the lucky buggers who have tickets.
Getting There
The studio is located on the west side of NYC, 733 11th Ave., between 51st and 52nd street.
Most people will need to take the subway from somewhere in NYC, the A, C, and E lines stop at 50th and
8th avenue, this is the closest subway stop to the studio.
(The subway is $2 a trip, you need to buy a metrocard - don’t buy one from a guy at a turnstile - it’s a scam,
buy it from the machine or the booth)
Outside the studio
Line up right by the double doors (the ones with the "Abandon News" sign.)
Abandon All News
The nicer the weather, the better the guest, the earlier the line will start, but getting there before 2 or 3 pm is for the die hard, must-have-ticket #101-at-all-costs-type (aka - Lefty )
They set the queue up around 3 pm, it doubles back to the beginning, and at some point they will rope it off and continue it around the corner.
If you are at the beginning of the line, get used to being asked if it is the end of the line. (That or people will just stand in front of you, assuming you are at the back - but the security people are pretty good at pointing their asses to the real end of the line. Feel free to let them know they are in the wrong place.)
They start checking people in at 4:30, depending on weather (if it is an extreme weather condition they will start letting people in early, but maybe only by half an hour or so). This is also the time they tell the VIP’s to show up (VIP’s are people who had tickets to a previous show, but didn’t get in because they were at the end of the line, and the show is always overbooked. - It’s a vicious cycle) There are up to 50 VIP’s. I think there are other ways to get VIP tickets, sometimes they auction them off, and they seem to be doing something with the Make A Wish foundation.
If you have stood out somehow, or for some reason they remember you, even though they do not have a stated 6 month policy like The Colbert Report, they will pull you aside and very kindly ask you not to come back for 4 months, and if you do, you and your guests will not be allowed in.
They check your name against a list, if you are bringing less than the number of people you have tickets for - it doesn’t seem to be an issue. I’ve never had them check my ID, however, if you look underage, depending on who is checking you in, they will check your ID.
VIP’s get pink tickets; regular ticket holders get yellow tickets. They are just laminated pieces of paper - hold on to them - they will be collected as you go into the studio.
The Daily Show - 101
(Trust me - the damn thing is yellow)
You will be permitted to use the restrooms. As you go through the double doors there is a stair to your right,
go down the stair and for God’s sake flush and wash your damn hands
The Waiting Room
They let the VIP’s into the waiting area first, then as many people as the room can hold from the regular ticket line. Take EVERYTHING out of your pocket, you will be going through a metal detector, and if you make it beep, you get a second pass, after which they will wand you. There is also a bag check, and they look through every pocket and if there is something you aren’t to have, they will put it in a baggie with your ID, lock it in a small safe and you can retrieve it after the show. They also don’t allow posters.
I believe in bad weather, the remainder of the line that doesn’t fit in the waiting room is allowed to wait in the downstairs area by the restrooms.
Throughout the check in process and prior to entering the studio while in the waiting room you will be reminded about the "Do’s" and "Don’ts" of attending a taping (DO ask Jon a question, DO participate by applause and such, DON’T ask Jon to sign anything or to shake his hand or anything like that - The big DON’T is NO RECORDING DEVICES OF ANY KIND. You can take photos inside the waiting room, but in the studio THEY WILL CONFISCATE ANY RECORDING DEVICES. (I’ve seen it happen!)
This time in the waiting room is another opportunity to use the restrooms; you will not be allowed to leave the studio to use them.
The VIP’s are roped off in front of the doors into the studio, at some point, usually around 6-ish, depending on how rehearsal went and if there are a lot of rewrites, they will give you the speech again and start letting the VIP’s into the studio.
Next they will start taking in the regular ticket holders, previously, they just took away the rope line and let people start going in, but now they ask that the people who have been waiting the longest be allowed to enter the studio first.
Stay with your group if you want to sit with them, otherwise you will not be able to move after you are
seated. It gets fairly crowded in the small room.
The Studio
As you enter the studio, you give your ticket to someone at the door, walk down a few steps and tell someone else how many people are in your group and they will direct you where to sit. Even though you can only request 4 tickets if there is more than 4 of you they can sit you together, I’ve asked for as many as 6 seats together and they have accommodated us.
There are 3 main banks of seats in front of the set, and one smaller bank of seats off to the left of the desk that they use for the VIP’s. There really are no bad seats, the closer to the floor you are, the more likely the cameras will obstruct your view, but they move around a lot and there are monitors all over the place that you can watch.
Make sure your cell phones are OFF and anything you have with you is fully under your chair; also do not have ANYTHING in your hands. Not even a piece of paper.
They play some music and then the warm-up guy comes out, usually Paul Mecurio. In the past he’s been quite rude and obnoxious, but as of late he’s toned it down considerably, I don’t think he’s said "fuck you" to anyone the last 2 times I’ve been there. His job is to get everyone riled up, so he’ll have you standing and cheering, if you don’t stand he will call you out. He also will call on you if you have your arms crossed or otherwise look less than enthused.
When Jon comes out he will greet you and ask if anyone has any questions.
So jump right in, Jon is friendly and easy to talk to, there’s no reason to be shy. Don’t feel you need to
entertain him with an especially witty question, just ask whatever it is you want to know.
Some of the most common topics are:
You can bring him a gift; I have brought him Cheetos, dog treats and a cookie. Ok, the dog treats were really for a dog at the studio. I recommend that if you want to bring him food, make sure it is sealed - just my own thoughts, but if I were them - I would just ditch any opened or homemade foods (you never know). Jon is very appreciative of the attention, I know for a fact the cheetos were enjoyed by the interns, which is fine with me.
So then they film the show. After this many years, there is rarely the need for a re-shoot, so if it happens, consider yourself lucky. You also have about a 50% chance of seeing a Toss, as they have decided to cut the Tosses to only twice a week, usually Monday and Wednesday, but that is subject to change. The treat to seeing the Toss is the "pre-toss" banter between Jon and Stephen, it can be funnier than the actual Toss.
The large screen to the left of the desk is used as the green screen for any correspondent segment, but if there is more than one correspondent at the same time they can pull down an additional green screen in front of the podium to the right of the desk. I was there one taping where they had three of the correspondents out at once.
If a correspondent is going to sit at the desk with Jon, that round globe turns somehow so they don’t bang their knees into it.
After the show, Jon will thank you for attending and then you get to leave, which is about 7 or 7:15 the
latest...
After the show
Don’t even THINK about looking for Jon after the show, no one is really sure where he exits the building.
Reportedly he is quite private and at whatever point he leaves, does it quite unnoticed.
Click here for ticket information
Any questions?