By RegoPark
Contributing Writer

Did you know that you can get a free download of C-SPAN segments for up to two years? While you visit the site archives for Drudge’s recent appearance on the 25th Anniversary of Viewer Call-Ins, also check out his recent (annual) appearances on Washington Journal.

But let’s just say you want the good stuff, the really good stuff. And there’s a really good reason to pay for it. I just got my hands on two DVDs from the channel’s 1998 archives. If ever you have a chance to view a rerun of Matt Drudge’s speech before the National Press Club, watch it. Turn on, tune in, drop out of whatever you’re into, because this is C-SPAN’s Greatest Hit(s) right here.

I mentioned before that a transcript was available online, but you simply don’t get the feel of the scene from the text.

Folks, this is a hoot. If I can laugh myself silly after glazing over more Drudgiana than I care to think of, and after reading the text of the speech several times, then all I can say is that this is good TV. Not fake talk-show theatrics, but the real, raw stuff. Take a fidgety young Drudge with a penchant for scintillating facial expressions and pair him with a soft-spoken club chairman who’s not real thrilled about having to host him. Watch said speaker make teasing faces at his friends during his introduction, dramatically remove his hat, smooth his receding hair and don a pair of specs, which he lowers on his nose to read his notes. Add an audience, mix, and stir.

Now that’s entertainment.