• Phase one of reopening New York City is underway and comedy’s presence is already being felt. The day before it officially opened, last Sunday, June 7, Michael Che and friends put on a secret show organized by comedy superhero Rebecca Trent in a Long Island City parking lot. There was a cryptic Instagram post about him trying out new material and it was close to my apartment. I texted a few folks and headed over early in an attempt to find a socially distant spot. When the show began at 4, the entire lot was full of fans. My pal, Jason Planitzer and I retreated to the back across the street. This was a free show and no one knew what to expect. Out came Cipha Sounds. It was a bit hard to hear what he said; comedy outside is not easy especially when it’s your first set in months. Petey DeAbreu followed. His mic went out; David Piccolomini was running sound and stepped in to save the day. Comics showed face; I saw Geo Perez, Robert Dean, Pat Barry and a few others. It felt like nothing had changed. Rosebud Baker went third and went for a tighter structure than the playful Cipha and Petey. It worked. Nimesh Patel went fourth and he set up the lot perfectly for Che’s headlining set. He came out in a pink hoodie on a hot day and he cut through the silence. What once seemed loud; felt intimate even if children and cars whizzed in front of my eyeline. His jokes weren’t playful about quarantine; he spoke about police brutality and mental illness in the Black community. It felt urgent, meticulous and essential. We all needed this; folks skipped protests to be there. He made sure it felt as much like a rallying cry as it did a show.
At the end, Che brought up Big Jay Oakerson and Joe DeRosa. This led to Che’s incredible burn: Big Jay is so White, he frosted his tips this week (excuse me, I’m paraphrasing).
Who knows how long this type of show is the new normal? Either way, this one felt historic. Like a comedy Woodstock almost. I’ll never forget it.
Also, pro note, comics: quarantine material is pretty much done already. I could feel it watching the crowd. Prepare your bits accordingly.
• Was that show the first show back, really? Well, no. As everyone is aware, Dave Chappelle released a new special on YouTube under Netflix’s umbrella. He shot it the day before. Chappelle’s was a different beast. He didn’t necessarily want or need laughs; he wanted to share. I’m so glad he did. For 27 minutes, Dave talks about the unjust murder of George Floyd and his relation to police. It was more than comedy. It was commentary that we needed. Chappelle apologizes at the beginning for this special not being as “refined as his other work.” I disagree. I think it’s the sharpest of all his specials. There’s not a wasted second. He even gets in a quick aside about his Azaelia Banks troubles these past few months. The link is in the comments but you should have seen this already.
• Anna E. Paone and I were asked to perform on West Side Comedy Club’s Wednesday show this week in their variation on the “Newlyweds” game against Madelein Smith and her husband. For those not familiar with the concept of Newlyweds, basically, you answer questions about yourself and your partner guesses what you wrote. It’s a fun concept and the show was moving along at a nice clip (even though some of my bits were admittedly falling a little flat) with my family watching when out of nowhere, the show was Zoom bombed. Slurs were said repeatedly, users were frantically muted and the show never regained its steady footing. Anna and I stayed on and answered more questions; somehow nothing felt as funny after hearing hate speech. Still, a great show worthy of your time. Look up Steve if you’re interested in the show; it runs weekly on Wednesday for the foreseeable future.
• Completed four profiles this week. If you’re looking for pieces on up-and-coming New York comedians, please check out the new stories on the charming straight shooter Neassa Hunt, variety show hosting Artie Brennan, gregarious Steve Becker and SongPop Live host Blaze Mancillas. They’re all 5-8 minute reads. Perfect for your daily commute from your bedroom to your living room.
• A few quick shout outs to fellow comedians writing this week:
- First, Ben Katzner’s Insider article is a spectacle to behold. Titled “I'm a Black man who lived near the spot George Floyd was killed. There's no more room for 'Minnesota nice' in conversations about racism” it delivers on that powerful headline in a personal, affecting way. Ben is a gifted writer, a friend and a voice that needs to be heard. Read this on your commute back to your bedroom from your living room. The link is in the comments. Take your time. Trust me. This one is special.
- Traveling comic and former NYer Dwight Simmons started a Medium series called “Racism on the Road.” It blends familiar comedy stories of being a working comic in a new town and its hardships that come with audiences, staff and managers being insufferable to the talent. The series is another special read. My White privilege was challenged reading about how different Dwight’s experiences were. Another highly recommended read. Link below.
• Saw a few films and listened to a slew of podcasts this week. Will keep this brief:
- “King of Staten Island” (2020): Yes, I was eagerly anticipating this film for way too long. I unapologetically love Apatow. Could care more or less about Pete. Still, I think this was Judd’s best movie yet. A few scenes fall a little flat that feel like sentimental first draft screenplay tropes but for the most part, the movie is simultaneously silly and heavy all at once. Kudos to Dave Sirus. You did something truly personal and unique. Great turns by Bill Burr, Moises Arias (kid stole the damn movie), Derek Gaines, Liza Treyger, Steve Buscemi, Mike Vecchione, Robert Smigel (!), Jessica Kirson and so many others. Pete had me tearing up like a damn fool a few times on my couch. IT’S EXPENSIVE BUT SO WORTH IT (Streaming on Amazon for $20; yes, I know).
- “Ma” (2019): Mixed reviews last year. We all remember this one- you know, Octavia Spencer invites the cool high schoolers to her basement to party until things get dark. An intriguing premise that reminded me of my Mom’s favorite book “The Pigman” by Paul Zindel. I actually loved it. Octavia gives a hell of a performance (the movie is directed by Tate Taylor who also did “The Help” and “Get On Up” the Chadwick Boseman James Brown biopic. Octavia is in all of them; she’s the DeNiro to his Scorcese) and the movie is really about so many things all at once- race in predominantly white schools, popular kids having to own up to their regrettable actions, grudges and generational differences. Hate on it all you want. I thought it was gripping and an excellent addition to the BlumHouse horror canon. Also, Allison Janney has a meaningless cameo. Anna and I were baffled by this. If anyone has any intel on how this happened, please let us know. Finally, to be fair, the third act of this fairly tight film was a bit of a bummer because it became an out and out horror movie abandoning the commentary and goodwill it had built up being a smart thriller but I would still EASILY RECOMMEND (Streaming on HBOGo until the end of June 2020).
- “Murder by Death” (1976): Hadn’t even heard of this comedy classic. It’s essentially the template for “Clue” that came a decade later. Murdery mystery party where the murder hasn’t taken place yet in theis case. The cast is a murderer’s row (ENJOY DAT PUN) made up of Alec Guinness (a year before Obi-Wan playing a blind butler), Peter Sellers (playing a horribly offensive Asian stereotype that feels like it really inspired Mike Myers), Maggie Smith, Peter Falk and Truman Capote who really can’t act and coasts on his personality. Many a sight and visual gag abound; my favorite was the doorbell that was a famous Fay Wray scream. So many jokes reminded me of future comedies but especially “Wayne’s World” with the crazy finale here. THIS IS A GOOD FAMILY WATCH (Streaming on Amazon for $4.00).
- Jerry Seinfeld was on WTF this week. Felt like it went a little under the radar. This was Maron’s first interview he conducted since Lynn Shelton passed and the conversation was soulful and earnest that didn’t feel like Jerry worship at all. The collective prickliness made it a great listen. Maron criticized Jerry’s 2002 documentary “Comedian” (I honestly think it’s sublime), Jerry told stories about his father writing jokes down in WWII to tell his fellow soldiers, their days at Catch a Rising Star in the 70s and 80s and Marc cried talking about Jerry’s “Comedians in Cars” Shandling episode which the unfeeling Seinfeld didn’t really know what to do with this. The whole thing was like this; it felt like listening to a new comic (in this case, Maron) talking to a comedy vet (Seinfeld). Brought me right back to that awkwardness of talking to a comic you know of but they don’t really know you. Amazing pod.
- Listened almost exclusively to Jesse David Fox’s “Good One” podcast. I think I’m going to try to listen to all of them. Fox is doing something special with these. He really researches his subjects and their material. Here’s a few I heard these past seven days:
Judd Apatow: In addition to this pod, I read interviews of Judd’s in The Ringer and the NYT. He’s doing that media blitz and some of the stories get told over and over but here are the highlights- Amy Schumer recommended Pete for “Trainwreck” which led to him getting hired at SNL, Apatow wants to make “Hangover 4,” and he doesn’t think his movies should be shorter. I love his movies but I heartily disagree.
Hannah Gadsby: She made an excellent point in her interview- comics are wasting their free speech opportunity onstage on dick jokes. So true. Hard punchlines are important but so is having a message. Gadsby also said she “wants to handle her recession of relevance well” meaning she’s a big deal now but wants to make she behaves herself when that goes away. I loved that.
Kristen Schaal: Still haven’t seen her special but it was fun learning she opened for Chappelle and hearing her talk about her process developing alt comedy and feeling ostracized from the mainstream club comedy scene. No matter how high up you go, you’re going to feel weird.
Jim Gaffigan: This was the very first episode of the series. Kinda went in one ear and out the other. The host and guest had a nice rapport talking about a joke where Gaffigan complained about all newscasters having to be attractive but it didn’t stick. I think they discussed how “Hot Pockets” has stayed in the cultural consciousness? I couldn’t tell you.
Neal Brennan: He discusses a bit from “Half Baked.” Fun chat and my favorite nugget of comedy history I was unaware of was in the early Aughts, Chappelle would perform at Carolines doing short sets and then showing videos from “Chappelle’s Show” to gauge how funny they were for an audience. The jokes worked.
Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider: Former SNL headwriters chat about their “My Hungry Guys” Totino’s Super Bowl commercial trilogy. They were very funny and it’s horrific learning about hours at SNL- shooting pre-taped sketches until 8 AM on Saturday morning sounds awful. They imparted great wisdom as well. They said, “Make sure to “Write fake commercials about stuff you want because those brands will send you stuff.”
Patton Oswalt: This was the best of the bunch. He discusses grief over the passing of his wife, how there’s a “short novel on the back of cereal boxes, the in-joke about “GNDN” in “Star Wars” being an acronym for “Go nowhere, do nothing,” how he edited a joke from being about the Grateful Dead to Phish so audiences would connect, forgetting a tag he came up with for a joke on a podcast and not doing it in his special and then it ate at him the rest of the interview, how he wants to be like John Waters and sit back and become an ambassador that wants to see comedy get better while supporting new acts. Finally, he dropped the knowledge that Lenny Bruce worked strip clubs that he received from Jerry Stiller while on set with him on “King of Queens.” Could have listened to Patton all day.
- The Ringer had a great oral history on the two-season wonder show “Wonder Showzen.” I had all but forgotten the show but after reading, I can’t wait to revisit. The show’s punk rock, DIY ethos inspired the hell out of me. Great read if you need even more longform content in your life. I always do. Link is nearby.
• Finally, I wanted to pay respects to comic, Carolines server and friend Ken Monreal who passed away this week at the tender age of 51. I started at Carolines in January and Ken was the first server who greeted me on a daily basis; he was the type that regularly went out of his way to make everyone feel at ease. He had a warm, generous laugh and was one half of the comedy musical act Jimmy Swaggers with his comedy partner and friend Bryan Hurt. In fact, they were slated to play Carolines in mid-May. We had them booked for May 16. Everyone was incredibly excited; we all loved Ken and his comedy (the group is well known for the song “Big Dick” which is linked below). We still love Ken. Ken, it was an honor knowing you. I already miss you. We all do.
Comedy resources:
01.) Dave Chappelle’s special: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tR6mKcBbT4
02.) A Profile About You: https://medium.com/@aprofileaboutyou
03.) Ben Katzner’s editorial: https://www.insider.com/theres-no-room-for-minnesota-nice-in-conversations-about-racism-2020-6?utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=topbar&fbclid=IwAR1Vy4zrtMgCKuoPWJiVk2gwlV_MQAh2xqcH0hMyEfWDuXE94Ukd5N3_vpw
04.) Dwight Simmons’ Medium series: https://medium.com/@Unwellspoken
05.) Seinfeld on WTF: http://www.wtfpod.com/podcast/episode-1129-jerry-seinfeld
06.) Good One podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/good-one-a-podcast-about-jokes/id1203393721
07.) Wonder Showzen piece: https://www.theringer.com/tv/2020/6/9/21284446/wonder-showzen-mtv-anniversary-oral-history-clarence-beat-kids
08.) Ken Monreal’s “Big Dick” video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QppKPMtWx-o
