Ricky Gervais Delivers at 68th Golden Globes

Ricky Gervais ended the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards by thanking everybody, including God for making him an atheist. This was the last in a string of no-holds-barred jokes that define his comedy and separate him from any other award show host.

Gervais began the program with a barrage of jokes that took shots at as many people as he possibly could in such a short time. He ripped Charlie Sheen for his partying with prostitutes, the Hollywood Foreign Press for accepting bribes, the actresses in Sex and the City 2 for being old, the cast & crew of The Tourist for making a bad movie, and he graphically pantomimed Hugh Hefner and his young fiancé engaging in unsatisfactory sexual activity. Toward the end of the speech, he implied John Travolta and Tom Cruise were not only Scientologists but gay as well. Shortly after his opening monologue, he took a shot at Mel Gibson's much-reported anti-Semitism.

During most of Gervais' jabs, the crowd in the room seemed uncomfortable and were perhaps at times afraid to laugh at the irreverent humor and boundary-pushing jokes, but for the rest of us at home, he delivered exactly what we expected. He was funny and he was willing to say anything.

Overall, Ricky Gervais did a good job as host, even though there seemed to be some very long gaps between his appearances during the show. He looks like he has lost some weight, he wore a smart three-piece suit, and the Golden Globes ended on time. Despite his promise to create enough mischief during the ceremony to ensure he would not be invited back next year, I suspect he will be welcomed back with open arms.