1. Sam Jay both has a brand new HBO special, Salute Me or Shoot Me, streaming now and tour dates announced for her Me & You tour going all the way through to spring 2024 all around the U.S. Jay’s special is a hysterically, unflinching exploration into Sam’s journey of what being deeply in love, taken on a traditional male roles, and sharing some black people’s deep held, secret thoughts of what they think of white people. As you’d expect and enjoy, Sam leaves no stone unturned, but does so with irresistible confidence and charm. So, go see the special ASAP and get tickets to her shows near you right here.
2. Heads up to LA, The Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs is taking submissions for a whole new round of artists grants. They don’t have a comedy specific one (yet), per se, but there are broad categories that you might qualify for. Find out more details and apply here.
3. As the WGA Strike has ended, it’s sweet to hear that something didn’t get canceled for a change. Instead, SpongeBob Squarepants got renewed by Nickelodeon, making it reach a 25th year on TV (Deadline).
4. Maria Bamford is so many amazing things and one of those things will now include a New York Times Bestseller with her astounding, newly released memoir, Sure, I’ll Join Your Cult. Go get your copy ASAP here.
5. As of tonight, all of late night returns including Late Night with Seth Meyers, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live, and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (as well as Last Week Tonight, which returned last night). We’re not going to lie; it’ll be nice to hear a topical joke delivered in a button up shirt and maybe a blazer.
6. If you’ve been looking for an Estonian, heavy metal, kung fu, monk action comedy, your movie is here in Ranier Sarnet’s Invisible Fight. No, this isn’t a fake trailer for a bit, it’s a real movie and we hope we can see it stateside soon. Take your first gander and behold Invisible Fight here.
7. We’ll leave you with this: Perhaps, for shows that aren’t stand-up or clown, venues should have a sign that it’s safe for shy audience members to sit in the front row and won’t be talked to/the fourth wall won’t be broken?