Nate Berkus gave GQ a list of ten essentials “that keep him firing on all cylinders.” The list included “ties worth stealing,” “my lived-in jeans,” New Balance running shoes, and In-N-Out burgers. The list did not include “an audience,” though perhaps it should have: His new daytime program The Nate Berkus Show, produced with the blessing of big mama Oprah, is flailing after seeing a strong launch a month ago. With 1.2 million viewers, it’s ranked behind Nancy Grace’s new syndicated judge show Swift Justice, which grabs 2 million. Are we looking at the first Oprah protege casualty? That Berkus seems more at ease selling his wares on HSN (below) than he does his own talk show (above) isn’t promising. Watching his celebrity interviews … I feel awkward for him.
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How Come Nobody Is Watching Nate Berkus’ Daytime Talk Show? (Because It’s Bad)
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Michael
I have to agree. His interview style seems very “forced” versus how he usually comes across on other shows and HSN where he seems very “casual”. Perhaps he is just nervous and he will find his “groove” soon! : )
Ivad Enuffofya
No what is bad is that you nasty, bitchy, repuglican qweerty queens have got nothing better to do than run people down. Give the guy a chance for God’s sake! Try talking about the issues rather than the bile you keeps spewing!
hf2hvit
@Ivad Enuffofya:
SOMEBODY CALL THAT QUEEN A WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMBULANCE!
Trelin
I actually try to watch his show…I feel like a lot of his show is the same, day to day. He does a lot of “what is your stuff worth” segments. I find that quite boring…because I’ll never find that stuff, and most of it is worth close to nothing. I do feel like he DOES have a sense of humor, but the show tries to muffle it for fear of offending the 35+ age mothers watching…I do like him though…I think he does have a good presence, his adorable smile and fantastic ideas for decorating…I will keep watching
One small suggestion…change up the cords…he’s wearing them A LOT
Ivad Enuffofya
@hf2hvit: Takes a queen to know one! Like I give a fuck! You clearly are part of the problem and work for qweerty. No one gives a shit. Booo Hooo. So irrelevant its SCAREEEEEEEEEEEEEE !
iDavid
If he would bring on some interesting hot guys once or twice (min) a week, instead of stay at home mom types ad nauseum, his ratings would sky rocket.
He runs the most estrogen suffocated show on television.
iDavid
As that cute little ‘ol lady said in that burger ad on tv, “where’s the beef?”
rf
this isn’t the first Oprah protege casualty. Gayle King had a tv talk show for about 5 minutes 5 years ago. unless you’re not counting girlfriends as proteges.
JoeyO'H
I’ve given Nate’s show a shot. But I’m not going to devote my time to something that is just… subpar. The show is boring and as much as I adore Nate and his interior skills, his lack of interviewing skills are unwatchable.
You need to wear sunglasses while watching since the set is sooo white, there is nothing warm and inviting. Maybe the time slot is a bad one since Martha was moved to the Hallmark channel from the very same 2pm slot. Good luck Nate!
ousslander
He’s cute and always looks stoned but a bit of a bore.@Ivad Enuffofya: yes, because on any gay-left blog they do nothing but talk nice and throw flowers and kisses instead of stones. Queerty being right wing his hysterical.
Tom
He is slightly ONLY slightly better than Whatever with Alexis and Jennifer. If you want to see horrible interviewing tune into the hallmark channel
Gurlzz
Not everyone is meant to be the star. Nate makes a better sidekick than a lead.
Nate isn’t the first failure for Oprah. Gayle King is referenced above, but she also failed with her first network, Oxygen. Oprah, Marcy Carsey, Tom Werner and Gerri Laybourne were the founders and pulled out after a couple years when they couldn’t make it a success. They sold it to NBC/Universal.
Ivad Enuffofya
Qweerty is a bunch of jealous republican queens with a laptop and nothing better to do than bitch those who are at least trying to make a difference. Woe betide anyone who says anything against them cos ya gonna blocked and your comments hidden. THIS SITE IS SO OVER ITS FUNNY!
Joe
I have watched NATE BERKUS”s show a few times and IT IS AWKWARD!!! have anyone NOTICED how he FAKE SMILES/LAUGHS /POSES before each commericial break!?!?! lol
Rick
I have watched every show so far and like any new program, it seems to be struggling a bit. Naturally, Nate is adorable (even his guests say the same thing on air) but at times, I do feel like he is lecturing and shouting at us a little. That is simply because he is a NOT a veteran host and has not found his groove yet. I could care less that the blogs are saying that The Nate Show does not know what it wants to be…why does it have to be the same, boring content for every show? I think it’s refreshing that he has a few ‘name’ guests and plain folks as well…all eventually getting around to talking design. I understand that in TV, it’s truly about $$ and ratings, but who really cares that Nancy (vile) Grace is leading the pack? Give Nate a while longer and see how his show does. PLEASE. I do agree though, that there really have been no male guests or appearances and this is awkward. Nate certainly has to know that he has a gay following and while we can easily spot his gays in the audience, his main target is the stay-at-home mommies. That’s OK, but there should be some visible testosterone on this show.
Ultimately, let’s give this guy a break and see how the show fares in the near future. You have to give Oprah and the TV decision-makers their due, to give the truly first out gay man his own national show. That is a major accomplishment…but now it’s up to Nate and his producers to give us good shows and continue to make us proud.
Samtaro
why does everyone keep saying he is the first openly gay man to host an tv show? andy cohen on “watch what happens live” has been on bravo for several seasons now. unlike nate, andy cohen actually isn’t afraid to reference his homosexuality. i find that nate comes off as completely asexual, which is probably more the networks doing than his, but i dont see him so much as an “openly gay” man as a guy who may be gay in his personal life but on tv simply targets middle age housewives and never mentions any personal details that aren’t related to design. also, Joe, yes the fake smiles/poses before every commercial and every 5 minutes are so annoying! enough already! we get it, ur happy to have ur own show, but PLEASE stop with the artificial smiles and just start being real!
Ken Hemminger
I find the show sometimes does the same old, same old. They always seem to do a declutter episode or this past week there were about three different fashion segments per day(all women’s fashions). It seems like the demographic is very much geared towards the 25-50 upper middle class women that adore him way too much. When they pan the audience, it seems like the guys are there as benchwarmers. I like the guy, it seems like if we met, he is capable of an intelligent conversation and very grounded as well as an excellent listener. I do agree with what the media says and it bounces from segment to segment alot. Also, on the gay talk show host thing, wasn’t there a show with Tammi Faye Baker and a guy named Jim years ago? It wasn’t very good and didn’t last long. The guy co-host from that show was very feminine. Also, Andy Cohen from the Bravo network and Housewives francise has been on for a long time and is very out. Nate is the first gay host to have his daytime show solo. I believe that Oprah has to be given alot of credit for that happening.
khemminger
I do find Nate very likeable, cute and very personable. The design advice is excellent, but I am also looking for something else besides fashion, hair, makeup advice. There just has to be that spark that keeps me there for an hour. That makes me want to watch him some more. I guess I get past the cute, gay interior designer thing and am looking for something else.
sharon ghilarducci
nate needs some time to find his way. same was true w/rachel ray. people want decorating ideas, resonable as well as high end. he has introduced me to several products i wasnt aware of and i enjoy the show for many reasons other than the branding. let’s give the guy a chance, we dont need another game show,reality show or soap opera in the afternoons.
Aunt Esther
It isn’t a gay or straight thing. I’m as liberal and gay-friendly as they come and he is really struggling. He’s good at what he does with regard to design, but as a host, he is awkward and bad at it. He doesn’t have the chops to carry his own show. Period.