• Well, it’s that time of quarantine (quarantime?) where you realize, ‘Damn, I might actually read all of Comedy Stray Notes.” Since that’s the case, let me make sure this is a FIRE edition. Oh no, I’m losing you! I promise not to refer to anything else as FIRE. OK. Here goes:
The biggest thing I’m noticing on Twitter these days is an insane amount of parallel thought. It makes sense- we’re all living parallel lives doing the same stuff. In fact, just this week I saw I wrote pretty much the same joke as Jessica Kirson and Ilana Glazer. Yes, I did that annoying thing where I posted a screenshot of my Tweet in the comments with the caption “Honestly same” or something equally irritating. I can’t help myself. A comic did the same to me and I deleted my Tweet. It happens. No need to have pride over one joke when you could just write another. Either way! This confluence of thoughts inspired me to write a sketch called, “Joke Police.” It’s 2:36 and stars Anna Paone as a young woman who writes an innocuous Tweet without realizing the joke already belongs to a famous comic. I play the “Comedy Police” coming to take her to Joke Jail. I’m embarrassingly very proud of this and think it’s some of my “best creative work.” If you want to see, the link is in the comments. I stayed up until 6:30 one morning editing this.
• Continued writing profiles on medium.com/@aprofileaboutyou this week about some of my favorite comics. This week, I wrote about the NY native/influencer Steph Nonyabiz, zine creator/“The Room” fanatic/friend Danny Rathbun, “Harry Potter” superfan/Twitter extraordinaire Justin Smith and comic/puppeteer/empath machine Fred Chong Rutherford. All were incredibly rewarding experiences and I love learning more about my peers than I ever knew before.
If you’re confused about this “profile writing enterprise,” let me explain in greater detail:
I have wanted someone to write a New Yorker-style article about me since I started comedy. I love reading them, they’re a sign you’ve “made it” and I’m a raging narcissist. It was just a dream though. I never thought anyone at Vulture would ever call me up and be like, “Hey, we think you’re right for Follow Friday” (although Splitsider did interview me in 2012 about a webseries I created- link in comments!). So, while we’re quarantined I figured I would create a site that would do a number of things like A.) Showcase a comic exactly how they’d like to be showcased (they get final edit), B.) Create a bit of industry heat/PR for them- this is a great sample to show potential agents and managers C.) You’re proud of all your accomplishments but feel weird writing about them in an earnest, celebratory way and want someone else to do it while D.) Getting it done for cheap. When all is said and done, I make about $5/hour working on these profiles but I don’t mind at all. It’s a joy.
• Moving on. Here’s a quick snapshot of comedy things that happened this week on the internet and in person:
- Got to be a guest on my friend Danny Braff’s Instagram Live show “Walking Bits.” Every day, Danny has a friend on for an hour to run bits and talk about life. It forces Braff to go on a walk which is an ingenious idea for a little IG Live show during quarantine. If you want to watch/participate, follow Danny on IG at https://www.instagram.com/dannybraff/
- My aunt-in-law Carole Harris gifted me the coolest comedy present I’ve ever received. It’s a miniature stool, mic stand and microphone. It was an incredible surprise and I’m smiling just looking at it on my desk. If you want a better idea of what it looks like, there’s a photo in the comments.
- Did a little Pete Holmes-inspired comedy contest on Twitter (https://twitter.com/MattLevy51/status/1252631453692760064) where I asked, “What’s the hardest you’ve ever laughed?” like he does at the end of every episode of his podcast. Got a ton of fantastic responses (you can find the actual Tweet with all the answers in the comments) but here were the winners:
Anna Paone wrote, “Watching Crashing!”
Hattie Hayes wrote, “Matt Storrs and I went on a date somewhere that offered a “4D movie experience” with moving seats, water sprayers, the works.
Later, sitting on a park bench & the sprinklers went off. We got, as you may imagine, soaked. He looked at me and deadpanned, ‘It’s a 4D experience.’”
Genevieve Rice wrote, “My husband & I cracked up at this video: https://twitter.com/rynprry/status/1252032055585787908?s=20 And our one-year-old daughter started laughing, too. You could say she was just imitating us, but I like to think that even at 12 mos, she knows needing to buy lawn fertilizer during a pandemic is ridiculous (more on Genevieve later).
Jason Planitzer wrote, “Me & @thepacketman imagined this dad character who would ask his son an obvious question and then interrupt him before he could answer. For some reason we found this line incredibly funny...Dad - What'd I tell you about shittin' in the river? ...I SAID DON'T DO IT!! I think we were performing this line to each other for 2 straight hours and we couldn't breathe. We were laughing so hard. This was inspired by some rat-tailed kid we saw walking down the street who had clearly been shitting in the river.
Lee Valentin wrote, “Was watching comedy near W4 with Stewie Vill. Before the show starts, a disabled audience member struggled mightily getting to his seat. He had the crutches with the arm braces and definitely looked like he couldn’t walk w/o help. He settles in, the show starts & about the fourth comic in the comic was bombing so badly, the gentleman gets up and walks out the venue leaving his crutches behind. Ppl with him, surprised, gather themselves, scoop up his crutches and run out behind him. Stewie and I look at each other amazed and in disbelief. We leave the club in tears. I would love to bomb so badly that I Keyser Soze an audience member. That’s God-level bombing. We laughed about it from W4 to 175th St
- Got a little viral action with a Tweet that read, “Damn, just got nostalgic for the ‘Tiger King’ era of quarantine” (here’s the link https://twitter.com/MattLevy51/status/1254997494767005696 even though you just read the Tweet). Thought of it in one second. Wrote it at my sink. A big account likes the Tweet and BOOM! it snowballs. This time, musician Chelsea Cutler saw it, liked it and 1500 people I don’t know like it. It’s exhilarating and an empty feeling. I mostly just look forward to writing about it here.
- My AZ friend and fellow editor at Right This Minute Todd Hunt put on a “Long Distance Face Off” competition style comedy show last night. It was a fantastic time. Six comics faced off (the winner was Kubari Eady, the runner up SallyAnn Hall, and the other participants were myself, Garri Madera, Jaron Young and Brian Kim) and in between head to head comic showdowns where votes were tallied there was music by my favorite musician Youceff Kabbal AKA YUS and Tommy Sklut. This was such a fun and fast-paced show; every Zoom show should follow this template and Todd pulled it off effortlessly. Excited to see future editions.
- Rebecca Trent put on a Creek Thanksgiving this past Thursday. It felt like old times for the first time in a long time. Lupe Rodriguez-Goodman was there working crazy hard as always (we applauded him when he came out), Colin Digarbo and Lizzy Cassidy were riffing outside like it was a late Tuesday night mic, Robert Dean shared how much of a Tony Zaret fan he is with me and Anna (more on this in a sec) and Maddy Smith and Andrew Schiavone (it was his birthday!) joined in the action too. Obviously, this was all from a safe distance but still felt like a great throwback to just early March. On top of that, the Thanksgiving meal was top notch. The stuffing was maybe the best I’ve ever had and pumpkin pie came with a massive side of whipped cream. Really hoping another holiday meal from the Creek is on the horizon.
• Quick props to people killing it on the web:
- As mentioned before, Tony Zaret. Anna regularly calls him her “favorite comedian” and it doesn’t even bother me. His videos are a mixture of absurd and bizarrely wholesome that never tires. They all star Tony with his signature cadence (incorrect usage of words and the last word being spoken with an intensity and volume that does not match the rest of the sentence are favorites in our apartment), usually end in a silly twist and sometimes he even speaks Mandarin. Cameos from Ronald McDonald and Big Chungus abound. It’s glorious. You can find said glorious content at: https://www.instagram.com/tonyzaret/
- When I first got acquainted in the AZ stand up scene, it was apparent that one person was the unspoken leader of comedy in the greater Phoenix area. That person was Genevieve Rice (mentioned earlier!). She ran The Snark Show (a show where after performing, comics would get roasted by comics sitting behind them as well as the audience who texted the host roast jokes- such a smart idea) and was a limitless resource to what the local community had to offer. She was incredibly generous with information but it shouldn’t be lost that she was one of the funniest comics there too. I read her consistently hilarious Twitter every day and you should too. Follow her at https://twitter.com/genevieverice if you aren’t already.
- The best viral Tweet I saw this week was easily Colin Burgess’ Rube Goldberg joke. This is a brilliant one-minute video and I watched it twice because I couldn’t believe just how funny it was. You can watch it by clicking’ this link: https://twitter.com/Colinoscopy/status/1255890780641689601
• A lot of great stuff to still watch. In fact, I have a doc with over 200 movies I still need to see. Here’s what I caught this week:
“Lil Rel: Live at Crenshaw” (2019): This is the best special I’ve ever seen. Shot in a sunlit gymnasium, Lil Rel touches on funerals and the family politics surrounding them in a way that is instantly familiar and hysterical. I have never laughed out loud watching a special...ever. I recommended this to my Dad and he wasn’t a fan but if you like stand up YOU MUST SEE THIS (Streaming on HBO).
“A Woman Under The Influence” (1974): Not...comedy. Still a movie that’s always been on my movie watching bucket list since I’d never seen any Cassavettes. This one is rough, long and features an incomparable performance by Gena Rowlands (you may know her as the older Rachel McAdams with dementia in “The Notebook” MAJOR SPOILER FOR THAT MOVIE, SORRY) as the wife who is gaslit into thinking she’s insane by everyone around her who may be worse than she is. It’s a tough watch but ultimately very rewarding. If you want a movie about mental illness that doesn’t shy away from the gory details and helped spawn the indie film movement (the director toured the movie around the country himself since he didn’t get a proper release and ended up receiving Oscar nominations), CHECK IT ON OUT (You have to pay $3.99 to see it on Amazon).
“ A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence” (2014): I’d seen director Swedish Roy Andersson’s “Songs From The Second Floor” before this and knew what I was getting into. He does one thing and he does it really well. Andersson shoots tableaus (single shots for scenes that all play out in one take) to hilarious effect. This movie did that perfectly allowing these scenes to take place in different eras with different characters crisscrossing from lead actor in one short piece to being an extra in another without a mention of this. I’d described this film as peak Woody Allen dialogue (it’s subtitled and in Swedish) mixed with Wes Anderson precision. It clocks in at roughly 100 minutes and is an absolute joy. Not to mention that Andersson gets the best horse performances this side I’ve ever seen (I’ve never seen “Seabiscuit”). I CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS ENOUGH (Streaming on Amazon’s Magnolia Selects which you can get a free seven-day trial of).
“Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis” (2008): Anna told me this is the highest grossing film in French history, she’d loved it in the past and I was down to give it a try. It’s a pleasant flick! Simple story of a man who has to move to a different region for a job (Anna described it as the redneck region of France). He’s reluctant at first but grows to love his coworkers and townspeople. There are very, very French jokes (a lot of it is about the dialect in this town where they add “sh” to the end of every word) but it’s a winning studio comedy that I’m surprised hasn’t been remade for the States. Not bad but IF YOU LOVE FRENCH CULTURE, THIS IS FOR YOU (Streaming on Amazon for $4.00).
“Ceremony” (2011): Henry Winkler’s son directed this indie and man, I’d seen it on so many underrated comedy lists that it bugged me I hadn’t seen it. It’s fine. Kinda like off-brand Wes Anderson. The protagonist gaslights his childhood friend into going on a road trip where he tries to win back an old flame of his (played by Uma Thurman; she’s MUCH older than the lead) who is getting married that weekend. It all plays out over a weekend and is a bit unpleasant but the soundtrack is fantastic and actually paints a self-obsessed writer as a jerk instead of a hero. I honestly liked it. IF YOU’RE HAVING WES ANDERSON WITHDRAWALS, WHY NOT? (Streaming on the same Amazon’s Magnolia Selects).
“Dave” (2020): I did not like the pilot of this show about Lil Dicky. Felt like an unnecessary retread of “Atlanta.” I gave up on it and moved on with my life. Then quarantine happened. I started watching again. I’m so glad I did. This might be my new all-time favorite show (edging out “Stella”). In this ten-episode season, things really pick up at Episode Four. In that one, Dave’s roommate starts representing him. It’s at this moment, the show becomes relatable. Everyone that’s ever done comedy has talked to family and friends who want to help them monetize their creative hobby but I’d never seen this exchange used for comedic fodder. Comedy about family and friends is usually about “You can use this joke” not “You should be making money.” I was sold after this episode. The next episode was about mental illness and it genuinely made me cry at 8:30 in the morning one Saturday. Justin Bieber makes a hilarious cameo in the seventh episode. Won’t spill anything about the finale but it’s maybe the best episode of any show I’ve ever seen. I LOVE THIS SHOW SO MUCH. PLEASE WATCH AND HIT ME UP ABOUT IT (Streaming on Hulu via FX).
• Got some nice comedy reading in too. Here’s just a few things I found (all SNL-related):
• In 1993, SPIN Magazine (music mag if ya didn’t know, you Gen Z’er), let the cast of SNL edit the magazine. There’s an amazing interview with Lorne where he talks about how everyone wants to be famous at 20 but isn’t ready and how success ruins people (he also drops the N word?!). There’s also Adam Sandler interviewing Prince. Dan Aykroyd talks to David Spade. Tim Meadows chats with Dinosaur Jr’s J. Mascis. I couldn’t believe this little obscure piece of pop culture exists. If this interests you at all, the link is in the comments.
• One of my favorite comedy writers Dennis Perrin wrote a beautiful profile on forgotten 1980s SNL cast member Gary Kroeger. He was on the show with Eddie Murphy, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and left show business after his stint on the show to pursue politics and spend time with his family. It’s a fast and moving read and Gary has since been in an episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” The link is in the comments and will make you smile.
• Vulture randomly wrote a profile on one of the cast members with the shortest tenures in SNL history: Dan Vitale. He was part of the wild 1985-86 season and spills all the tea (sorry) in this article about shooting with Madonna in the first episode of the season and working with a young Robert Downey Jr., Randy Quaid and Joan Cusack (it was a strange cast). Link is in the comments again!
I don’t have much in the way of comedy stuff planned for the next seven days. Who knows what happens this week? All I know is we got “The Last Dance” tonight and we’ll never know what happened with Kim Jong Un.
Oh! One last thing. Soundcloud wouldn’t let me put my new mashup on their platform because it samples “Hey Jude.” A little frustrating since I put another one up with Daft Punk samples that they didn’t have any issue with. Either way, if you want to listen, hit me up and I’ll share on Google Drive. I’m quite proud of it. IT’S FIRE
Happy belated Hanukkah
01.) Joke Police: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiqDepYvdm4&list=PLoBsCsHJsKMrx6cuZ4Se8CQ_QBfOUcJ5U
02.) Splitsider article about my webseries “Lady and the Damp:” https://www.vulture.com/2012/09/this-week-in-web-videos-lady-and-the-damp.html
03.) Carole Microphone, mic stand and stool miniatures can be seen on Facebook.
04.) SPIN SNL Takeover: https://www.spin.com/featured/1993-snl-takeover-saturday-night-live-issue/
05.) Dennis Perrin’s Gary Kroeger piece: https://dennisperrinblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/27/gary-kroeger-is-still-smiling/
06.) Vulture’s Dan Vitale profile https://www.vulture.com/2020/04/dan-vitale-snl-interview.html
