• This might be controversial but I am a very fairweather Weird Al fan. I didn’t know if I totally got it growing up. Like is “Like A Surgeon” or “Eat It” really that funny or very easy parody? The later stuff like “Word Crimes” (“Blurred Lines” parody) was definitely a bit more sophisticated but I had never really paid all that much attention. Either way, I was intrigued when I saw he was playing Forest Hills Stadium (an old tennis stadium located in deep Queens; you should definitely seek it out if you haven’t been) this past weekend so I went with Anna E. Paone and met up with Adam Suzan and Joe Gorman. I am happy to admit all my notions of Weird Al being easy parody have been washed away. He’s just fun and you can’t be mad at that. The guy’s fans ranged in age from four (literally the kid sitting next to us) to the elderly. Fun just transcends demographic. Also, what makes him so funny, to me at least, is just how much effort he puts into these silly parodies parading around the stage with insane bravado. He really sells his music/bits no matter how inane it is (the best joke was when the crowd sang along with him and he yelled, “DO IT BETTER” at us). The true highlight of the show for me though was “The Saga Begins,” a “Star Wars” parody of “American Pie.” It felt like a childhood memory I hadn’t experienced being re-lived.
• I’ve said it before but Matt Vita is onto something special with his two-minute stand up competition show at the PIT. So smart to run a show this way with so many comics competing. There’s never any pressure about booking people because you NEED to book people. You have gamed the system. As for this second installment of the show, it was just as fun as the first. Midway through the show, Matt brought me up with the line, “He’s probably going to write about this…” and here we are. I had a fun set doing tried and true material (two minutes of it) and seeing Rachel Lenihan and Dan Wickes both compete to win the coveted body shot. They both really brought it but at the end of the day, Lenihan took it. Major kudos also to the woman who brought her infant daughter and 12-year-old son onstage. She didn’t advance but it was probably wise because her kids needed to go to sleep.
• Caught quite a few major mass media comedy things this week ranging from the spectacular blockbuster “Spider Man: Far From Home” (can’t believe Marvel is making the best studio comedies but it does make sense; why not get all the best comedy people in a superhero movie?) to “An American Werewolf in London” (it’s streaming on Amazon and definitely holds up if you haven’t seen it, nice mixture of funny and horror; the last shot is really chilling) to “Punching The Clown” (2010 movie starring Henry Phillips, an indie I had always wanted to see and more than lives up to the hype. A bit where people in a company go to great lengths to find out where the bagels at the meeting were from was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen). Speaking of movies, you can also hear me and Anna on Frank Terranova’s podcast talking about our favorite movies, Frank’s film school experience as well as ours, his screenplays and tangents about Sally Field. Got the link in the comments if you’re interested. Also, one last thing! I watched Episode Three of “Bring the Funny” and was pumped to see New York improv/sketch master Adrian Frimpong advance to the next round. His group’s (Kids These Days is their name) sketch was very, very funny and the third beat defied all expectations. You can check that link in the comments too.
• Very sad to have found out this week that Jay Welch’s Karma Mic at 6 PM on Sundays has been discontinued. The mic was a true institution and the only one hosted by the same host (the best host in New York I always say and fully believe) from when I first moved here in August 2013. Genuinely feels like the end of an era. I laughed so hard at that mic my body has hurt from Jay’s riffs. The mic really was a master class in learning how a host can mine riff lines from the slightest observation from one’s set. Often, the riffs were much funnier than the jokes onstage. It’s a true shame that it’s over but I’m very happy I got to experience it. On a happier note, Derek Kalteux (½ of the now defunct musical comedy group The Greys that always blew my mind) runs an energetic new monthly mic at Cherry Bar called Cherry Bomb. It really feels more like a show than a mic. Don’t want to promote this too much because it felt so good with just a few people last night but the people should know. Also, it should be pointed out that the lights went out MID-MIC last night and everyone used their phone lights to light the stage. All comedy should be done that way. Yes, it drains the battery out of our iPhones but feels magical.
• I’ve said it many, many times and I don’t mean this ironically. “A Night at the Roxbury” is my favorite movie of all time. So, my family got me his headline grabbing autobiography for my birthday. It’s a good, fast read. Kattan tells a lot of behind the scenes stories I hadn’t heard about (being forced into a relationship with Amy Heckerling which we don’t know if it’s true is the most well known one but it’s way crazier hearing about his neck being broken on the SNL set) as well as stories about being romantically involved with Jennifer Coolidge, Zooey Deschanel and the woman who inspired Maroon 5’s “Songs About Jane” (It was Jane). I don’t know how much I believe and a lot of the jokes in it are VERY flat but worth a read. Couldn’t put it down most nights.
• Late to chime in here but major props to Isabel Hagen, Jordan Jensen, Napoleon Emill, Shapel Lacey, Chanel Ali, Jay Jurden, Kevin Iso and Dan Licata for getting into the Just for Laughs Festival! It is really cool to see people you’ve done comedy with make the next step in their careers. It’s kind of gross to write this because it seems like I’m doing it to associate myself with these people that did something really cool but I truly mean it. Comics rarely praise one another and this is something that should be cherished and remembered as much as possible as sappy as that sounds. Kill it in Montreal, everyone. I look forward to late night sets and big news from all of you in the near future.
• The big news in comedy this weekend was that James Davis doxxed Dina for what I thought was a very funny and ultimately harmless joke. It was clear she meant no ill will and if comics are doing this to comics, there has to be a better way. It was amazing to see the outpouring of support for Dina this weekend from everyone and I hope going forward, people actually speak to one another (or even just DM) rather than do something as gross as that. Everyone has every right to be offended but no one should doxx anyone. This is coming from the guy that read the Chris Kattan book and saw Weird Al in the same week.
I’m headed to Portland for the week this Saturday and I am booked on some very cool shows out there. Notes to follow next Wednesday
