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Recent News

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Amber Ruffin and Larry Wilmore Are Getting Their Own Weekly Late Night Shows on Peacock
August 11, 2020
News
amber ruffin, amber ruffin show, Larry wilmore, late night, peacock

As part of Peacock’s programming announcement yesterday, Peacock will expand on NBC’s late night offerings of Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon with another duo, exclusively for their streaming service, Peacock.

Amber Ruffin, one of the Internet’s favorite parts of Late Night with Seth Meyers, is getting her very own weekly late night show, giving her take on the news with The Amber Ruffin Show. Also, Larry Wilmore will get to take top billing as a host once again (after his tenure at The Nightly Show at Comedy Central ended in 2016) and have his yet-to-be-titled show focus more on conversation about pressing topics with high profile guests (i.e. the most intriguing part of The Nightly Show). This move by Peacock does make late night a little more diverse with two less slots occupied by cis-straight-white-men.

The pairing of Wilmore and Ruffin for the late night offerings at Peacock might be a good call. Both late night series are set to premiere in September and will undoubtedly be thrown immediately into late night’s mandatory coverage of the 2020 Election. We can’t wait to see what they’ll be bringing to the late night table that will set them apart.

Pick of the Day: Eliot Glazer’s Haunting Renditions 8/26
August 11, 2020
News
eliot glazer, haunting renditions, musical comedy

Truly, one of the funniest and most elegant things you’ll ever get to see and hear is Eliot Glazer doing exquisite, ornate arrangements of songs that are considered some of the most overplayed, trashiest pop songs in the entire musical canon for his show, Haunting Renditions. Glazer has done his takes on Britney, Ashlee Simpson, and more as a web series and a live show and is bringing back for a live-stream edition via Dynasty Typewriter.

Really, no matter how you get to witness Eliot’s grand covers of infamous Top 40 hits, it’s absolutely worth catching.

This virtual edition of Eliot Glazer’s Haunting Renditions is set for Wed. Aug. 26th at 6PM PT/9PM ET.

Tickets are going for (all ticket types allow access to the livestream) : $5 General Admission, $10 Generous Admission, Pay What You Can. Go get them here. A portion of ticket proceeds will go towards the Marsha P. Johnson Institute 

Feel Free to Ask Us Anything During Our Weekly Office Hours @thecomedybureau
August 10, 2020
News
jake kroeger, office hours

Since there continues to be no telling when things are going to get back to normal or any sense of normality, especially when it comes to comedy, we are pretty much stuck with connecting online if we want to gather in large groups.

As such, we’ve started up a weekly TCB Office Hours (though it’s really just an hour) where TCB Founder and Director Jake Kroeger will go live on Instagram Live @thecomedybureau to answer any and all questions comedy or comedy adjacent. Well, really, he’ll entertain almost any question as quarantine/lockdown is killing him and desperately misses connecting with any and all in and around comedy.

You can ask about when live comedy is coming back or his favorites in comedy or take a guess about how many accessories he currently owns or even if he got to such a nihilistic point in quarantine that he stuffed several chili peppers in a giant chili pepper for a sort of unholy Chile Relleno.

Tune in, have comedy inquiries, some hot takes on whatever hat Jake’s wearing, or just give hearts in the margins on Saturdays at 2PM PT/5PM ET @thecomedybureau on IG Live

Please Enjoy Ross Bryant’s Satirical Rap About Going to “Stores” During COVID-19
August 10, 2020
News
music video, musical comedy, pandemic shopping, reopening, ross bryant, satire

For some, the desire to live the life they had in February is so great that they are willing to ignore the reality of COVID-19, especially in America and dash to a store to shop in person whether it’s safe or not.

Ross Bryant, a brilliant a musical comedian and improviser from Improvised Shakespeare Company and Baby Wants Candy, dedicates this banger STORES to those folks via doing an entire rap song from their ridiculous perspective.

Please enjoy how they satirically get sent up in the song and video here.

Please Enjoy the Trailer for Beth Stelling’s HBO Max Special “Girl Daddy”
August 10, 2020
News
beth stelling, comedy special, conan, hbo max, stand up, team coco

Starting soon, HBO Max will start their roll out of their stand-up specials, continuing HBO’s expansion into the streaming space. Several months ago, Conan and HBO had struck a deal to produce a handful of comedy specials exclusively for the streaming service. They got to taping some of them, and then, the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, interrupting any and all production.

Thankfully, the always splendid and delightful Beth Stelling got her special Girl Daddy in the can before all of that happened and will thusly be releasing her special next week on Thurs. Aug. 20th at HBO Max. A trailer for Girl Daddy was just posted today and shows off more of Beth’s signature undeniable warmth and sharp wit.

Give it a watch here, while you wait for next week to start streaming (you can and should also go watch/listen to everything else Beth’s done in the meantime; it’ll really make your day).

 

Trailer is here for my @hbomax special Girl Daddy pic.twitter.com/LCuVAQ1cp5

— Beth Stelling (@BethStelling) August 10, 2020

Pick of the Day: Cabernet Cabaret with Catherine Cohen 8/12
August 10, 2020
News
blair socci, cabernet cabaret, catherine cohen, Chris Murphy, Meg Stalter, palehound, Sydnee Washington

At the outset of quarantine, one of the instant live-stream hits was Cabernet Cabaret with Catherine Cohen. Her transition of her subversively whimsical weekly comedy variety show to an IG Live show was successful with a weekly audience that dwarfed the actual live-in person crowd at Club Cumming.

Cohen took a hiatus for her show over the last several weeks as the current cultural uprising took hold across the world. Now, she’s back this week and has shifted Cabernet Cabaret to YouTube. She still has another stellar line-up of Meg Stalter, Chris Murphy, Sydnee Washington, and Blair Socci, with music from Palehound for any and all in virtual attendance this Wed., Aug. 12th 5PM PT/8PM ET.

Tickets for the return of Cabernet Cabaret are $5-$10 and profits will go to supporting the performers and the show as well as the Marsha P. Johnson Institute. Go get them here.

AMC Signs Cameron Esposito, Jena Friedman, and Naomi Ekperigin To Develop True Crime Content
August 7, 2020
News
cameron esposito, naomi ekperigin

It may have seemed like an unlikely blend only a few years ago, but the mixture of comedy and true crime has been enormously successful, especially when you see the rise of shows such as My Favorite Murder and Last Podcast on the Left. Off of their own individual popularity, both podcasts were able to launch their very own networks and tour the entire globe on a regular basis.

AMC is now looking to tap into the vein, wisely so we think, and has just signed comedians Cameron Esposito, Jena Friedman, and Naomi Ekperigin (truly, some of our all time favorites working right now) to talent deals where they will bring their fantastic, unique comedic voices fully into the true crime realm.

It’s not hard to see where the three intersect with true crime in their comedy and how this could really bring something special to AMC and perhaps better foray into comedy if they choose to give them series on AMC’s very own network. Just watch this set from Naomi, Jena’s true crime set on Conan and/or Soft Focus, and Cameron’s special Rape Jokes and you’ll see for yourself. All three already deserved their own shows, but having them develop projects with their comedic sensibilities and different experiences and perspectives on true crime really ought to be something to watch out for.

Of course, we’ll keep you very well posted as to what their projects might become as soon as we hear about them.

 

PEN15’s Season 2 Trailer Is Here and Promises More Pitch Perfect Teen Awkwardness
August 7, 2020
News
anna konkle, hulu, maya erskine, pen15, season 2, trailer

PEN15‘s first season was such a marvel, especially with the already crowded field of prestige coming-of-age dramedy in TV/film. It really can’t be overstated how magnificent Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle playing the teenage versions of themselves amongst real teenagers and really making that work seamlessly.

So, with so much critical acclaim and a fervent fan base, the second season has been pretty hotly anticipated since the credits rolled for the first season’s finale (maybe even earlier?). Luckily for us all, the second season of PEN15 is not too far away with a release date set for Fri. Sept. 18th on Hulu and there’s a trailer to remind you how wonderfully weird and great this show is.

Please enjoy it here.

Pick of the Day: The Official Friends Reunion with Tig, Kyle and David 8/11
August 7, 2020
News
david huntsberger, kyle dunnigan, tig notaro

The very funny trio of Tig Notaro, Kyle Dunnigan, and David Huntsberger were once known and beloved as the podcast Professor Blastoff. Since then, all three have gone to their own comedy paths including Tig Notaro: Live, @kyledunnigan, and Huntsberger’s own late night show.

Without any real idea of when they can get back to a lot of what they used to do/make their bread and butter on, they’ve opted to have a “friends reunion” of a kind via a live-stream. It has been years since this has happened and it’s a rare present for Professor Blastoff fans or comedy fans in general.

The Official Friends Reunion with Tig, Kyle and David is set for Tues. Aug. 11th at 6PM PT/9PM ET. Tickets are $13.50 (portion of ticket sales will go to COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund) and you can and should get them here.

 

Please Enjoy Jamel Johnson Weighing in on Various Neighborhood Black Lives Matter Posters
August 6, 2020
News
art critic, art criticism, blm, conan, jamel johnson, team coco

Jamel Johnson has been one of a handful of comedians that have found a way for to make comedy work for them under quarantine. Johnson, pretty much at the start of lockdown, recorded and released a great stand-up special without an audience.

Johnson continues to pull off bits and shenanigans, the latest being a bit for Team Coco.

While Johnson isn’t technically a professional art critic and is very clearly wearing a wig, him going around LA and giving his hot takes on various Black Lives Matters posters and “art” is worth him saying he is an art critic and all of us believing that is his real hair.

Please enjoy Johnson’s neighborhood BLM art tour here

Please Enjoy Trailer for Paula Pell and John Lutz’s Mystery Comedy “Mapleworth Murders”
August 6, 2020
News
annie mumolo, Ben Warheit, d'arcy carden, drew tarver, fred armisen, ike barinholtz, jack mcbrayer, James Anderson, john lutz, mapleworth murders, Marry Holland, maya rudolph, pam murphy, patton oswalt, paula pell, quibi, tim meadows

Quibi really did snatch up quite a bit of content when amassing their war chest before their launch a few months ago. Even though so many folks that opted in for a free trial didn’t stick around after said free trial ended, Quibi can still stand tall with some recent Emmy nominations and still having shows up their sleeve that might just catch your eye once they roll them out.

One of those series is coming very soon, Mon. Aug. 10th in fact, from Paula Pell and John Lutz called Mapleworth Murders. From the trailer, the series not only trails murderers in a humble, sleepy town, but also calls into question why (as with so many similar mystery/crime shows) have so many murderers in one place. Mapleworth Murders boasts quite the ensemble cast with Maya Rudolph, Fred Armisen, D’Arcy Carden, Tim Meadows, Patton Oswalt, Jack McBrayer, Pam Murphy, Ben Warheit, Annie Mumolo, Ike Barinholtz, Marry Holland, James Anderson, and Drew Tarver.

Whether or not you’ve got or still have Quibi, you can certainly enjoy Pell and Lutz’s joyful send-up of Murder She Wrote with its official trailer here.

Pick of the Day: Maria Bamford: Help Me, Help You, Help Me! 9/26
August 6, 2020
News
maria bamford, stand up comedy

Maria Bamford gave us all a gift at the beginning of lockdown by performing on Zoom almost daily. While she doesn’t perform daily or weekly on a live-stream, Maria is still performing when she can and is absolutely still one of the best comedians to watch right in these bleak times.

Thankfully, you’ll have another chance to watch Bamford next month.

She is virtually headlining once more Sat. Sept. 26th at 7PM PT/10PM ET. Get tickets at RushTix.com for $15 right here.

Sam Jay Makes One Hell of an Hour Special Debut with “3 In The Morning”
August 5, 2020
News
comedy special, netflix, sam jay, stand up comedy

When it comes to doing your first hour special as a comedian, it’s not uncommon to do a greatest hits, perhaps, play it a little safe and wandering through well-trodden territory with material that has been tested with success over and over.

That is not what Sam Jay did with her very first hour special on Netflix, 3 In The Morning. Sam made one of the boldest, self-assured hour debuts that we can remember ever seeing. On her album Donna’s Daughter and her 15 min. special on Netflix’s Comedy Line-up, Jay showed her penchant for being an unfiltered and succinct hysterical truth teller.

There’s plenty of that from the get go in 3 in the Morning in talking about the love of her life and gender roles for lesbians. Jay takes even bigger risks, and does so confidently later on. There is plenty of tension, some of which she even calls out, when it comes to discussing trans people and airing her grievances with the #MeToo movement in the latter half of the special, but she forcefully snaps said tension with quite the punch at the end. Jay’s confidence from wire-to-wire is commanding and keeps you fixated on her and stories and bits, no matter how dark they might get. Jay’s a rare talent for how she pulls off running, not walking, on a comedy tight rope.

Sam Jay: 3 in The Morning is now streaming on Netflix and you can go stream it right now if you haven’t already.

Pick of the Day: Helltrap Nightmare & DSA LA for Nithya Present: A Campaign Comedy Fundraiser
August 5, 2020
News
Camirin Farmer, demi adejuyigbe, dsa la, jamel johnson, joel kim booster, john early, kate berlant, mitra jouhari, Mood Killer, nithya raman, The Shrimp Boys

The upcoming November election is not only a chance to get Trump out of the White House, but a chance to also change so many other elected offices for the better including at the municipal level.

Nithya Raman is running as one of the most progressive and forward-thinking candidates for Los Angeles City Council. She has a chance to unseat incumbent David Ryu for District 4 in LA and has laid out a comprehensive, thoughtful platform that speaks to the most critical issues for Angelenos and aims to actually take action.

So, there will be a big comedy live-stream fundraiser for Nithya presided by everyone’s favorite horror comedy troupe, Helltrap Nightmare. You better bet that there’s a marvelous line-up for the show that already has John Early, Kate Berlant, Demi Adejuyigbe, Mitra Jouhari, Joel Kim Booster, Jamel Johnson, Camirin Farmer, The Shrimp Boys, and Mood Killer.

Right now, you can (and very much should) RSVP here for admission to Helltrap Nightmare & DSA LA for Nithya Present: A Campaign Comedy Fundraiser for this Sat. Aug. 8th at 8PM PT/11PM ET. Also, you can support Nithya for the City directly here.

The Comedy Bureau Field Report Ep. 19: Sam Varela & Thinking of Everyone
August 5, 2020
News, The Comedy Bureau Field Report
comedy quarantine, ellen, eric andre, joan rivers, picture this, uk comedy

Prolific indie comedy producer Sam Varela is this week’s guest on TCB Field Report. Before quarantine, Sam produced so many wonderful comedy shows in LA and NYC. In quarantine, she immediately transitioned to building up the nightly IG Live stand-up show @comedyquarantine and doing a virtual edition of Picture This!, the live animated comedy show.  Sam zooms with TCB’s Jake Kroeger to talk keeping comedy going in this pandemic as well as inclusion and accessibility for everyone in that regard. Also, they gives takes on a petition for Eric Andre to host Ellen, unreleased Joan Rivers material that’s going to be released, and the UK’s recovery plans for comedy.

Please follow the shows that Sam produces @comedyquarantine & @picturethiscomedy as well as sign-up for newsletter that will keep you up-to-date on those shows and more at nakedcomedy.org.

The Comedy Bureau @thecomedybureau across platforms and please, please support TCB via GoFundMe, Patreon, or on Venmo (@jakekroeger).
Produced by Jake Kroeger
Music by Brian Granillo
Artwork by Andrew Delman and KT

Pick of the Day: Aesthetical Relations 8/6
August 4, 2020
News
aesthetical relations, angelo castoria, art + comedy, christina catherine martinez, courtney pauroso, experimental comedy, jamel johnson, talk show

We were truly taken by Christina Catherine Martinez’s first foray into the IG Live space with her comedy/art talk/experimental comedy show Aesthetical Relations. We’re still taken by the audacity of the opening, which has us still ruminating on its audacity and how she cleverly pushed the boundaries of the aesthetics of the Gram (in addition to have all sorts of weird and wonderful treats with offbeat characters, high art/literary folks, and niche, but thoroughly satisfying bits).

So, we wouldn’t dare let ourselves go without specifically telling you about the very next Aesthetical Relations that Christina would be exhibiting, which just happens to be this Thursday, Aug. 6th at 7PM PT/10PM ET over @xtina_catherine on Instagram. Very, very special guests include the hysterical Jamel Johnson (who possibly made the first legit comedy special in quarantine), Dr. Angelo Castoria, and clowning/character sensation Courtney Pauroso.

Until that time, please enjoy Christina’s personal announcement for this edition of Aesthetical Relations.

View this post on Instagram

These people are going to be on Aesthetical Relations this Thursday and I don’t trust any of them ♥️ . . 8.6.2020 7PM Pacific on my IG Live @xtina_catherine

A post shared by Christina Catherine Martinez (@xtina_catherine) on Aug 4, 2020 at 8:50am PDT

Please Enjoy Adam Cayton-Holland’s New Album “Semblance of Normalcy”
August 4, 2020
News
adam cayton holland, comedy album, comedy central, semblance of normalcy, stand up, stand up comedy

When it comes to the blending the “high” and “low” for comedic effect, there are few that are quite as good at it in all of comedy right now as one Adam Cayton-Holland. In fact, he gets more refined and more delightfully salty with every hour that he puts out.

His latest hour, the brand new album Semblance of Normalcy, showcases his painterly attention to detail with grand, sweeping tales from what starts as normal, everyday minutia. Then, Adam expertly mines the perfect moments, the perfect diction, and the perfect twist to spin one hell of a story whether it be about or birdwatching or drinking a Guinness in Ireland. We definitely found ourselves fully immersed into all the worlds of all of his bits and stories throughout the hour, which was a very welcome break from the current reality.

Adam Cayton Holland’s Semblance of Normalcy is out now from Comedy Central Records and be got or streamed wherever you get your favorite comedy albums.

Channel 101 Is Taking Submissions for 5 Minute TV Pilots Again
August 4, 2020
News
channel 101, open call, submissions

The mighty indie short form TV institution known as Channel 101 (pretty much the birthplace of Rick & Morty FYI) has kept themselves going throughout lockdown, despite not being able to have their renowned monthly screenings. They’ve screened entire series from their archives, taken up audio pilots, and even done micro versions of a normal Channel 101 program via Twitch.

Now, with several months having passed in quarantine, they’re now ready to take on doing a full-length, virtual Channel 101, which means that they’ll be accepting brand new 5 minute or less pilots to enter the Channel 101 fray.

The deadline to submit is by Aug. 25th at submissions@channel101.com. The screening will take place only a few days later on Sat. Aug. 29th. Find out more about Channel 101 at channel101.com .

View this post on Instagram

With the power of the internet we're BACK! Channel 101 will have it's first live stream screening Saturday, August 29th on our twitch channel (twitch.tv/channel101official) Submit your 5min or less pilot to submissions@channel101.com by August 25th and check out the current Prime Time line up at channel101.com

A post shared by Channel 101 (@channel101official) on Aug 3, 2020 at 5:24am PDT

Watch Trailer for Wyatt Cenac’s Sci-Fi Puppet Project “Yellowbellies”
August 3, 2020
News
wyatt cenac, yellowbellies

It may be a thin silver lining, but the emptying out of the archive for so many beloved artists during lockdown has been an unprecedented look into what they had up their sleeve that they were hoping to make into a TV series or a movie.

One such project is Yellowbellies from Wyatt Cenac. It’s a reimagined world of sci-fi in the vein of Star Trek that 1) focuses on the lower ranking people on the ship and their trials in having to deal with a problematically cavalier captain and 2) uses brightly colored, splendid looking puppets. It’s something we’re definitely on board and was making its way through development hell, but then got stifled there.

So, thankfully, Cenac took it upon himself to produce a trailer for Yellowbellies to show the general public what could have been (may be what still could be if the right network pays attention?). You can and should very much enjoy said trailer here. Then, if you dig like we do, spread the word so perhaps it becomes a real show?

View this post on Instagram

A little story about an idea and how it evolves over time. Almost two decades ago, I was watching an episode of Star Trek, where Scotty gets “possessed” and murders a coworker. The whole time, all I could think was “what’s happening for the rest of the crew right now? Scotty’s back at work because he’s Kirk’s friend, but he still murdered Karen.” Watching a lot of those episodes, it was hard not to wonder what the rest of the crew thinks about this militarized “peace mission” that seems to mostly consist of the captain hooking up with space ladies, while everyone else dies. A part of me thought it’d be cool to take old Star Trek episodes and add new footage of these crew members reacting to Kirk’s bad managerial skills. There was an episode of Deep Space Nine that had done a similar thing. I tried pitching the idea, which at the time was called “Redshirts,” to CBS and was told no. Stubbornly, I thought the idea could work and kept trying. The lives of the crew on a starship is an idea that a lot of people have wanted to explore. In the 70’s Buck Henry made “Quark.” @robmcelhenney, @glennhowerton and @charliedayofficial had a pilot called “Boldly Going Nowhere.” Then John Scalzi wrote a book called “Redshirts,” which got optioned for a miniseries and I was like “shit, I’ve got to figure out something to make this idea feel different… puppets.” Puppets and focusing on what makes the idealized 1960’s future of a Star Trek-like world so ridiculous to me: white supremacy still exists for Earthlings. A white guy with green blood is second in command while Uhura and Sulu just answer the phone and chauffeur. This became “Yellowbellies.” I pitched it around again and while networks liked it, they were afraid of puppets. My response was always, “people were afraid of prime time animation for a long time too.” Eventually it sold to a network but shortly after selling it, the network stopped development on all new projects. womp womp Sometimes you have an idea that you can’t let go of and so you say, “fuck it, I’ll spend my own money just to make the damned thing to see if it works.” So that’s what this is. A trailer for an idea that never quite made it to TV.

A post shared by Wyatt Cenac (@wyattcenac) on Aug 3, 2020 at 10:15am PDT

Comedy Central and Edinburgh Fringe Have Made “Comedy Central at The Comedy Store”, a Series of Specials w/Virtual Audience
August 3, 2020
News
Christopher Bliss, comedy central, comedy central at the comedy store, edinburgh fringe, Fatiha El-Ghorri, Helen Bauer, jamali maddix, Jamie D’Souza, Joanne McNally, Kuan-Wen, Leo Reich, Thanyia Moore, Travis Jay, Wayne Mazadza

(via THR)

Since The Edinburgh Fringe, the massive annual performing arts festival that takes over all of Edinburgh is cancelled for this year, the festival could not just stay dormant until next year or whenever they could have thousands upon thousands of shows take over the city for all of August.

So, they’ve partnered with Comedy Central to produce a collection of stand-up comedy specials from favorite performers that they would have presumably been a big hit at the Edinburgh Fringe this year were there no pandemic to deal with. It will be called Comedy Central at The Comedy Store (unrelated to The Comedy Store in LA) and feature host Jamali Maddix and the likes of “up-and-coming” talents Joanne McNally, Thanyia Moore, Leo Reich, Helen Bauer, Travis Jay, Fatiha El-Ghorri, Christopher Bliss, Wayne Mazadza, Jamie D’Souza and Kuan-Wen.

The “episodes” are seven minutes and feature a virtual audience, which might make for a new precedent in making stand-up comedy for TV while the COVID-19 health crisis still exists. Previous to this announcement, the shortest specials produced at a network level were Netflix’s 15 minute specials in the still horribly titled The Comedy Line-Up. Virtual audiences are seemingly going to have figure into any sort of live comedy productions as well and we’re curious to see if they were able to dress it up in anyway like Super Secret Comedy has done with their wall of Zoom audience members.

Comedy Central at the Comedy Store will stream during the week on Comedy Central International’s social media starting Aug. 17th.

Pick of the Day: Help Save Live Comedy (in the UK), Sundays in August
August 3, 2020
News
benefit show, save live comedy, uk comedy

We’re at the top of August in 2020 and what lies ahead for live performance including live comedy still is very uncertain. In short, those are things, amongst so many things, that need help to survive all around the world.

So, for live comedy in the UK, there will be a big, three day benefit live-stream as part of UK initiative Save Live Comedy (a big portion that will be performing at the Clapham Grand, though likely w/o any audience) featuring over 40 wonderful UK comedians. That’ll include:

LIVE ON STAGE:
Rachel Parris / Fern Brady / Thanyia Moore / Marcus Brigstock / Sindhu Vee / Josh Jones / / Eleanor Tiernan / Rich Wilson / Yuriko Kotani / Garrett Millerick / Nigel Ng / Charlie Partridge/ Kerry Godliman / Dane Baptiste / Jessica Fostekew / Kwame Asante / Helen Bauer/Carl Donnelly / Rosie Jones / Don Biswas / Mawaan Rizwan / Holly Burn / Ed Byrne / Jen Brister / Kane Brown / Lost Voice Guy / Sikisa Bostwick-Barnes / Sarah Keyworth / Catherine Bohart / The Scummy Mummies / Glenn Wool / Tony Law / Huge Davies / Desiree Burch / James Acaster / Tim Vine / Felicity Ward

VIA SATELLITE LINK UP:
Bethany Black / London Hughes / Myra Dubois / Luisa Omeilan / Nish Kumar / Aisling Bea / Sue Gives A Fuck / Mick Ferry / Sarah Callaghan / Lucy Baker (Shesus & The Sisters)

MUSIC: Lorraine Bowen / Diane Chorley

HOSTED BY AL MURRAY and JAYDE ADAMS

There have been a handful of benefit events for live comedy in the U.S. as well as Mike Birbiglia’s Tip Your Waitstaff and it would be nice to see live comedy get support all around. This Save Live Comedy Online Fundraiser is set for Sundays in August including Aug. 9th, 16th, and 23rd on or around 11AM PT/2PM ET and can be streamed for free if you RSVP, but is selling “virtual front row” tickets for £9.99 and accepting donations on top of that. Get/reserve tickets here, here, and here respectively.

 

Tons of Unreleased Joan Rivers Material To Be Released in 2021
July 31, 2020
News
comedy album, joan rivers, posthumous, stand up comedy

(via Variety)

Of all the forces to be reckoned with in comedy, late comedy legend Joan Rivers was one of the most renowned, if not the most renowned. Rivers carved out an empire with her comedy, seemingly with her own will and determination, and kept it going right until she passed away in 2014.

Comedy Dynamics has collected “hundreds of hours of content from the Joan Rivers Estate, with plans to release a box set and digital albums.”

There’s no specific date announced yet and exactly how many hundreds of hours that Comedy Dynamics has or how much of it they’ll plan to release has yet to be determined, but it ought to be a treasure trove of not only following Rivers’ through decades and decades of comedy, but also seeing how comedy itself shifted as reflected through Rivers (someone who adapted as much as she could throughout the entirety of her very, very lengthy career).

In fact, this release might cover more time than any other comedy release in history including the multi-decade, multi-album The Chronicles of Federman. Whenever 2021 comes around, we’ll get to follow the Joan Rivers rabbit hole as deep as it probably goes.

Epix’s Stand-Up Series “Unprotected Sets” Being Adapted Into a Podcast
July 30, 2020
News
epix, podcast, unprotected sets

(via Deadline)

Whatever rules we all had for everything at the beginning of 2020 are most certainly thrown far, far out the window. With TV, there seems to be a new precedent set new every day and that certainly includes the planned transformation of a TV series into a podcast as is the case with Unprotected Sets.

With Wanda Sykes attached as EP, this was Epix’s stand-up comedy showcase series that highlighted names that you ought to know as they were coming up through the ranks in comedy. Now, as the challenges of going into TV and film production in a pandemic are challenging in a way that no one here in America has had to deal with before, Epix has indeed opted to make the series into a 12 ep. podcast audio series.

There have been a handful of stand-up comedy podcasts as well as an entire channel or two on SIRIUS XM dedicated to stand-up comedy, but we’ll be highly curious to see how this audio series fares having formerly been a TV show. There’s currently no word on the line-up or exactly how it will be produced (i.e. over Zoom or something over live-stream method or socially distanced, outside in person or, maybe, just include best of clips from pre-pandemic times of their chosen comedians).

You won’t have to wait long to find out as the audio only version of Unprotected Sets will launch next week, Wed. Aug. 5th.

Pick of the Day: Dumb People Town 8/15
July 30, 2020
News
daniel van kirk, jim gaffigan, nowhere comedy club, sklar brothers

The Sklar Brothers and Daniel Van Kirk are returning to the Nowhere Comedy Club for another virtually live edition of Dumb People Town. The beloved podcast has kept going throughout quarantine covering the troubling rise of the denizens that are the namesake of the show.

Of course, every live edition of the podcast is special as there is beginning invocation of the patron saint of Dumb People Town, Jan Flato and very special guests, which, this time around, will be none other than the quintessential American Dad of Comedy, Jim Gaffigan.

This latest edition of Dumb People Town is set for Sat. Aug. 15th at 6:30PM PT/9:30PM ET. Tickets are going for $20-$40 and you can and should go get them here.

Desus & Mero Are Going on Virtual Book Tour for “God-Level Knowledge Darts: Life Lessons from the Bronx”
July 30, 2020
News
book tour, desus and mero, god level knowledge darts, virtual tour

Most of the world may still be very much in lockdown, but that’s not going to stop the likes of Desus & Mero, who still are a very, very fresh breath of air in late night with their Showtime series (big Emmys snub if you ask us), from spreading the word about their upcoming book, God-Level Knowledge Darts: Life Lessons from the Bronx. 

Through August and September, Desus and Mero will be virtually hopping around the U.S. (well, hosted virtually on Zoom by different venues around the country) talking about their book that will hopefully impart their street smarts honed in the Bronx to life in general. If you buy a ticket, you’ll automatically be signed-up for a pre-order for God-Level Knowledge Darts: Life Lessons from the Bronx. There’s a chance to spend $20 more for a VIP meet-and-greet too.

You can take a gander of their schedule below and get tickets here.

corona can't stop the show! the brand is doing a VIRTUAL book tour/experience coming to a region near you. For more info hit https://t.co/BEdxGu7zng pic.twitter.com/2yKvVqPQHU

— Desus Nice (@desusnice) July 29, 2020

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