Leave it to Canadian comedic actor Martin Short to open up the Toronto Film Festival with some laughs.
Short was the emcee at Wednesday night’s Ambi Charity Gala at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, a white-tie affair filled with A-list guests. The event was co-chaired by Hollywood royalty and real-life royalty: actor James Franco and Prince Albert of Monaco.
The Maya & Marty star walked onstage to start the festivities dressed as Donald Trump (the costume had a passing resemblance to Short’s other notable costume, Jiminy Glick, which he donned later on).
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“It’s an honour to be here tonight,” Short said at the outset. “Actually, it’s more than an honour. It’s a tax deduction. I’m Martin Short and I’m on a Canadian stamp, but tonight is not about me.”
He then began to riff on U.S. politics and how the climate, both political and environmental, has changed since last year’s gala, at which he was also the host.
“Last year’s theme was climate change,” he joked. “And it’s fascinating that at this point with all of the scientific studies, 70 per cent believe that climate change is real. And the other 30 per cent believe we need to build a wall across the Mexican border.
“You know, when the planet gets this hot, people get delirious, which explains the millions of Trump supporters. By the way, Donald Trump — that’s not a hairdo, that’s a wind advisory. Although he is doing great things — like his Orange Lives Matter movement.”
Then Short began to riff on Franco, who, despite being co-chair, was nowhere to be found at the start of Wednesday’s gala. Vanity Fair reports that his publicist claimed that he was in the city, but was “stuck in traffic.”
“I love James Franco,” Short said in his trademark acerbic tone. “I think we all love James Franco. And I’m not just speaking from the heart, I’m also speaking from the teleprompter when I say that I’m such a James Franco fan. James is one of the most riveting actors of the generation. Not my generation, or even his generation. But I’m sure there’s one generation out there that finds him that. James always, to me, lights up the screen. No, sorry, James Franco always lights up… on the screen. And I don’t know much but I know James’s body of work will be celebrated years after we’re all gone because two things are timeless: the art of James Franco and community college.”
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Ouch. Franco showed up fashionably late (hours after his scheduled arrival), and took the jokes in stride.
Other celebrities at the gala included Danny Glover, Mike Tyson, Pamela Anderson, Billy Baldwin, and Paul Sorvino.
The event was Ambi Group’s second annual gala. The Group, which is a film-distribution company based in Beverly Hills, Calif., sought to raise funds for Toronto’s Children’s Aid Foundation and Regent Park UforChange.
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