The Definitive Guide to Comedy
It's the Fifth of May, which is supposed to celebrate Mexico's improbable war victory over the French in 1862 (when the French still had a good reputation for war), but a lot of people think it's about drinking cheap Mexican beer and tequila. And with Arizona cracking down on Mexican …
The just-completed 2010 Tribeca Film Festival included stand-up comedian Ahmed Ahmed's documentary, Just Like Us, which took American comedy to the Middle East to show how Arabs have a sense of humor, too. I talked to Ahmed and you can see our chat here about breaking down the walls and stereotypes …
When a comedian shows up in a suit and tie, at least in this century, you don't expect the jokes coming out of his mouth to make you question his and your morality. That's one misdirect. But Ryan Stout, in his half-hour Comedy Central Presents, staged something even more devilish …
Funny thing about gossip: They rely on spies instead of attending actual events that are open to the press and reporting on them. I had to laugh when I saw this New York Daily News gossip item about James Franco, which alleged that Franco's reps got in the way of …
Someone told me the other day that Portland's Bridgetown Comedy Festival was so much fun, he wondered why more cities don't also have their own fests so we can do this year-round across the country? Well, we're closer to that point than he thinks. In fact, we have times during …
When an SUV loaded with explosives shut down Times Square on Saturday night, Iranian-American comedian Maz Jobrani was headlining a few blocks north at Carolines on Broadway. He sent out a notice to his Twitter followers early Sunday morning: "1 show left in NY Sun nt. Times Square was closed …
When you have a very big, high-profile gig coming up, you want to practice your routines and hone them so they'll really pop when it's showtime. You'll likely want to show off your best new material, or the best of your old stuff. That's how most stand-up comedians prepare for …
Running around the city, but here's a brief glimpse inside the panel discussion that followed Sunday's Tribeca Film Festival screening of Saturday Night, James Franco's documentary look behind the scenes of a week in the life of SNL. Dave Karger of Entertainment Weekly wondered if cast members had a grand …
Conan O'Brien's first legitimate TV interview since departing NBC and The Tonight Show just aired on 60 Minutes, and if you had watched the teaser clips CBS produced in the past few days, then you knew what to expect. Particularly since O'Brien contractually cannot be completely open about his feelings …
Remember a few years ago when Stephen Colbert took to the podium at the White House Correspondents Dinner and figuratively eviscerated both President George W. Bush and the media right to their faces with hard-hitting satire? Yeah, as if that's going to happen again any time soon. Which is what …