the comic's comic

Review: Laffapalooza 2008, with Tracy Morgan, Jamie Foxx and more

Tracy Morgan hosted Laffapalooza 2008, which airs tonight on TBS, but taped last weekend at The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas, with Sheryl Underwood, Earthquake, Corey Holcomb, Mark Curry and Lavell Crawford performing. They sat me in the front row, which made it difficult to take notes, though on the bright side, there's a fair chance you'll see me during the telecast. Here's what I can tell you:

Jamie Foxx started Laffapalooza in Atlanta a few years back, but he managed to show up in the audience at Caesars Palace for the taping (sadly, he did not perform). Foxx literally stopped the show when he and his entourage entered the ballroom. Audience members as well as Morgan shouted their approval for the Oscar-winning man behind the plans. Later during taping, Foxx's sister arrived from the other side with our own group of friends in tow.

Before taping even began, Morgan showed he was ready to go off the script (literally, as he had a teleprompter that beckoned him throughout to get back on message), but all in good fun. He welcomed Eva, third-season winner of America's Next Top Model, who sat up front with her boyfriend, Lance Gross from Tyler Perry's House of Payne. Morgan also had fun with the Vegas audience. "We're in a financial crisis, you're at the casino...trying to win your house back!" Morgan also had a Michelle Obama moment while the cameras presumably were not rolling, when he said that at 40 years old, "For the first time in my life, I'm proud to be an American." Morgan was talking not only about the fact that America had elected Barack Obama president, but also referenced how much the world has turned on America during the Bush Administration. Heady stuff for a guy who has a public image of being crazy and/or aloof.

What else?

Sgt. Benari Poulten, home for the holidays

How many comedians also are military veterans? Rob Riggle served in the Marine Corps before becoming an SNL featured player and Daily Show correspondent. And then there's Benari Poulten, make that Sgt. First Class Benari Poulten of the Army Reserves. When living in New York City, Poulten is part of the Shoot the Messenger production, writing and performing crew, helping to skewer the morning TV news machine, and also spending a few days here and there serving our nation. Until Poulten got called for active duty. After a farewell party in late September, Poulten shipped off for training in Alabama, and is expected to spend 2009 in Baghdad helping serve the Army's communications functions out of Iraq. As Poulten and I joked then, Shoot the Messenger's mocking misinformation probably already would be good training for military disinformation. Don't worry, U.S. Army, those were my joking words, not his.

Poulten says his friends and comedians should still be able to follow him through his military service through Facebook. Ah, the modern war. When Veterans Day rolled around, I thought of Poulten and reached out to him online. Turns out he got to spend Thanksgiving weekend home with his family, and you'll also be able to see and hear him live tonight in Boston, at Mottley's Comedy Club, opening for Jon Fisch.

Here is what else Poulten had to tell me about his life in active service:

Just got done with three days of Iraqi culture training where we’ve gotten outstanding instruction from an Iraqi woman who now works for DoD (Department of Defense).   I’ve learned such helpful Iraqi phrases as “tasharafna”, meaning “I’m pleased to meet you.”  Or “Shukran il musaa’atek”, “Thank you for your help.”  And “Thib slaaHak tara armee,”  “Drop your weapon or I will shoot.”

The Skinny: Fat-Free News, comedy on MySpace

If there ever was a day or a time to get some "fat-free news" and think "skinny," then this would be that day, wouldn't it? You've just gobble-gobbled your way through who knows how many pounds of Thanksgiving feasting (it's who knows how many if you remember not to step on a scale), and the next four weeks of holiday seasoning will not help your waistline any. So time for a laugh. And here are comedians Natasha Leggero and Nadine Rajabi with their relatively new weekly series on MySpace, The Skinny: Fat-Free News. Become their MySpace friends, and watch their videos here. Here is this week's episode (new chats show up on Thursdays) discussing the latest headlines. Enjoy:

The Skinny Ep.8 - "Green Cadillac"

Amy Poehler and friends present "Smart Girls at the Party"

Amy Poehler and her funny hubby Will Arnett are celebrating their first Thanksgiving and holiday season as parents with newborn son Archie. But Poehler already has proven her maternal instincts and her sense of humor can co-exist admirably, thanks to a new series she filmed with her friends called Smart Girls at the Party. It's also a great way to get your Poehler fix as you wait until 2009 for her to re-emerge on the NBC Office spin-off that's not a spin-off.

In Smart Girls at the Party, Poehler joins up with her friends, Meredith Walker (former senior producer for Nickelodeon’s Nick News, and former head of talent at SNL) and Amy Miles (recording artist and performer and host of PBS children’s show LOMAX: Hound of Music) to interview young girls with talent and confidence, giving them a boost at the age in which children may need it most. They'll have a new episode each week, and eight in all, presented by ON Networks and distributed online through several partners, including iTunes, DailyMotion and more.

Here's an episode with Cameron, a 10-year-old writer. Poehler takes her Weekend Update anchor persona and puts it to sincerely serious and funny work, channelling her inner Charlie Rose. Enjoy:

Face to Bush: The exit interviews

Here's another thing to be thankful for this holiday season, tis the end of an unmistakably mistake-ridden era in American politics as President George W. Bush prepares to leave the White House. Bob Odenkirk directs this series of exit interviews with W. called "Face to Bush" on Atom.com, with James Adomian as the lamest of lame ducks and Stephanie Courtney as your host, Mary McQueegle. You may recognize Courtney, a Groundlings company mainstager, as the cashier Flo in a popular TV ad for Progressive auto insurance (among other ad gigs, as well as a recurring role in the ad shows of ad shows, Mad Men). As for Adomian, he has auditioned in the past year for SNL, and if he doesn't get called up there, some other shrewd producer and creator of a future TV sketch show will find room for him and his many character studies. Here is the interview in which W. weighs whether he was the "Worst President Ever":

Face to Bush: Worst President Ever

Atom.com: Funny Videos | Atom Originals | Farewell Dubya

Amazon.com's Black Friday specials

Do your part to jumpstart the American economy by buying something, perhaps your favorite comedian's CD, DVD, book or, well, just about anything you and a loved one could want this holiday season at Amazon.com. Today is "Black Friday," don't you know. Plus, I literally get pennies from each purchase you make. So...Start shopping!

Giving thanks to family, friends, readers

Just a quick note on this Thanksgiving morning to express my dearest thanks and gratitude to all of you who have supported me in the past year. When I left my day job a few days before Thanksgiving 2007, I did not know quite what to expect, and certainly could not have predicted the year that was. From the highs of meeting and in some cases becoming friend, critic and counsel to some of your favorite comedians, to the lows of seeing my entire life savings dwindle down to zero, and all of the adventures and misadventures in between, I have much to be thankful for today. Thank you to the comedians who have opened up your lives to me, becoming not only regular subjects in The Comic's Comic, but also regular readers of it. Thank you to the comedians across the country and around the world who have found the site, whether through word of mouth or Google alerts, and who have come back to read about others in the industry. Thank you to the readers and comedy fans who have come here looking for more in-depth information about the comedians you love to laugh with, and leaving your opinions in the comments or emailing me with your questions to pass along. Thank you to my friends who still have not laughed me out of my decision to launch The Comic's Comic and my passionate belief that the funny business deserves serious news coverage as much as any other performing art. And I owe much more than thanks to my parents, who have stood by me and my cause, even though my economic plight is not likely to receive a government bailout. I couldn't do this without you.

Thank you for reading and supporting The Comic's Comic. I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving.

More video from Ellen's Even Bigger Really Big Show on TBS

Here are some additional clips from Ellen DeGeneres and her variety show, Ellen's Even Bigger Really Big Show, which taped last week at Caesars Palace and airs this Saturday, Nov. 29, at 9 p.m. Eastern/Pacific.

Introducing Abby Elliott

Abby Elliott, the 21-year-old newbie on the cast of Saturday Night Live, hasn't gotten much airtime in her first two weeks -- vomiting in an SNL Digital Short, carrying a clapboard to set up the Beyonce-Justin Timberlake dance sketch, a line in last week's Thanksgiving dinner sketch -- but that's to be expected, right? So we need to get to know Elliott better, and Fred Armisen sat down with Elliott after last weekend's SNL. I'm not sure this helps, but you can watch it on NBC, or watch it here via Hulu:

Video: SNL #34.5 Josh Brolin in "Fart Face"

Here is a newly surfaced video from Saturday Night Live featuring a recent blast from the past, with Bill Hader, Will Forte and guest host Josh Brolin having fun in an office setting calling each other "Fart Face." Is it silly? Yes. Is it sophomoric? Maybe. Is there another layer to the dialogue upon additional viewing? That's for you to say. Watch it on NBC, or watch it here on Hulu:

Introducing Michaela Watkins

Want to see and hear a little more from one of the new Saturday Night Live cast members, Michaela Watkins? Sure you do! Here is Watkins, backstage with Fred Armisen after last weekend's show. If you cannot see Hulu (you foreigners, you), then try NBC's SNL site.

Andy Kindler: The Comic's Comic interview

When I met Andy Kindler in Montreal this summer after his "State of the Industry" address, Kindler paused when he heard I'd named my site The Comic's Comic. Because, after all, when you think of the proverbial "comic's comic," don't you think of Kindler?

Earlier: Watch our Montreal meeting on video.

We talked again earlier this month, and Kindler pointed out that that video shows up among the top Google hits for Kindler. Huzzah!

So I tried posing the question to him that I had posited earlier.

"Posited…what is this, some egghead Website?!" Kindler replied. "Is this for physicists? What are you trying to pull here? You're messing with the comedy demographic."

A full minute or two of riffing ensued before we got back to our inquiry: How would Kindler define a comic's comic (or, if you're that kind of person, a comedian's comedian).

"I would think that anyone who's called a comic's comic is someone who is doing stuff, that is not, they say it's inside baseball. I have this joke about the book 'Ball Four,' but a lot of people didn't like it because it was too inside baseball."

Zing!

Kindler and I laugh. This happens a lot.

"The other comics would, maybe because of their familiarity with comedy might laugh more at something than the typical audience member. But I've out comic comic'd The Comic's Comic. I'll reference a comic that nobody remembers in the 80s but me," he said. "It's hard to put a definition on it, because different people are called a comic's comic for different reasons," he says. "For me it's because I deconstruct stuff, like I just do a thing like a sound effect of the airplane pilot voice…so I take that joke, 'this is your pilot speaking if you look out on the right side of the plane, it's 1989 and someone is doing a McNugget joke, and if you look out at the left side of the plane it's 1984 and someone is doing a ridiculous Jack Nicholson impression."

Tell me more about your gig as a correspondent on Late Show with David Letterman. How often do you get to do that?

"I've been doing, like, I want to say six, seven times a year, but more this year, because I did three days in a row at the Republican National Convention. We did like a live satellite remote which was really fun. That was the first time I had done a live satellite. Nailed it! A delay doesn't affect my comedy."

Cheech & Chong: Reunited & Roasted

Before I get to my review of Cheech & Chong: Roasted, the TV show that'll air on TBS at 10 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 30 -- and the TV taping over the weekend at Caesars Palace was a mess from start to finish thanks to production snafus, delays, and some awful attempts at roasting -- let's meet our roast victims, Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, the pioneering stoner comics of the 1970s who have reunited after many years apart.

So yes, they're happy to be together again and touring with a live show. But what about the roast, which is sure to test the TBS editing crew?

Things I learned from watching the TV taping of Cheech & Chong: Roasted...

Andrew Dice Clay rocks and rolls Las Vegas

The first time I ever heard Andrew "Dice" Clay, his words were spoken by a teenager -- one of my high-school classmates was cracking up the lunch table with Dice's ribald versions of our childhood nursery rhymes. It was the late 1980s, and Dice quickly rose to the top of the comedy kingdom, playing sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden. A lot has changed since then. But the Dice man is back on the road, working clubs and performing stand-up. When I met up with him before his show Saturday night in Vegas for The Comedy Festival, I wasn't sure what to expect. He still has a big ego. Can you blame him? Or, rather, would you want him to be less assured of himself? In this brief interview, he tells me why he's still in the game after two decades of ups and downs.

That said, I could not help but wonder if his jacket had had a run-in with the Bedazzler. A couple of minutes later, the crowd in the Palace Ballroom began chanting for their headliner. "Dice! Dice! Dice!" And off he went, into the fray once more...

2008 Seattle Comedy Competition: Finalists

Here are your five finalists for the 2008 Seattle Comedy Competition, in alphabetical order:

Lars Callieou, Edmonton, Alberta
Nate Jackson, Lacey, WA
Todd Johnson, Boise, ID
Justin Rupple, Issaquah, WA
Tommy Savitt, Los Angeles, CA

They already have earned at least $1,250 each, with the winner on Nov. 30 earning $5,000 and a record deal with Uproar Entertainment. Murv Seymour just barely missed the cut. Follow along on the Seattle Comedy Competition site.

SNL #34.9 with Tim McGraw, Ludacris and T-Pain

While I was off in Las Vegas for a comedy fest, staying at the Monte Carlo resort and casino, the kids at Saturday Night Live put on a James Bond sketch in a casino in Monte Carlo. Coincidence? So nice to see The Comic's Comic is still in your hearts and minds, SNL. But are you in ours? Let's get to recapping to find out if SNL still has the buzz come Monday morning...(videos available for viewing either on Hulu or the SNL NBC site)...

Our cold open is definitely most cold, as C-SPAN is covering the Congressional hearing on bailing out the auto industry. More wonky than funny. Unless you're one of the reps (Barney Frank, Carolyn Maloney, Walter Jones, Gregory Meeks, Peter King) or one of the Big Three auto CEOS, because you got to see yourselves portrayed by Fred Armisen, Casey Wilson, Bill Hader, Kenan Thompson, Bobby Moynihan, Will Forte, Darrell Hammond and Jason Sudeikis, respectively. No video up on Hulu, because really, they're doing you a favor. Detroit needs to make "gayer cars"? Roll the credits, already!

Country music star Tim McGraw is our host, and sporting his black cowboy hat, he says that in this era of change, "anything is possible," including putting him on the same show with Ludacris and T-Pain. So McGraw has a message for the hip-hop fans tuning in, explaining how country music isn't all that different, after all, and singing a verse or two.

Instead of an ad spoof, we get a spoof of an ad spoof, as Kristen Wiig attempts to become the spokeswoman for her new product, Clear-Rite. It's a clear retainer that's better than clear braces. Just ask Armisen's character. Or her good friend, played by newbie Michaela Watkins. Or her boyfriend, played by McGraw. Lots of lip action from Wiig. Not quite as twitchy as some of her other "crazy" character roles, but certainly funny in an awkward way. Watch it:

Bill Hader nails Dateline NBC's creepy anchor/reporter Keith Morrison in a preview for a potential episode, with victims played by Wiig, Sudeikis and Wilson, and McGraw. Watch it:

It's Thanksgiving week, so time to talk turkeys. Or rather, time for the turkeys to speak for themselves and run for cover! Armisen, Samberg, McGraw, Sudeikis, Wiig, Thompson and Watkins get dressed up for dinner. Sure, funny to look at. But they play it a bit too straight. Needs more gobble gobble! Watch it:

Tracy Morgan keeps it real in Las Vegas

For someone who has built his public persona and career comeback in show business around the notion that he's slightly crazy, Tracy Morgan offstage can be quite sincere. People love him on NBC's 30 Rock, he just headlined the Apollo Theatre earlier this month for the New York Comedy Festival and now hosted Laffapalooza for The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas. Laffapalooza airs Saturday, Nov. 30 on TBS. I'll have more to say about the show tomorrow. In the meantime, watch this clip in which Morgan reflects on where his career and his comedy are at right now. Afterward, you all need to slow down and study!

Dane Cook at The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas

I don't know if you can imagine a calm and controlled stand-up performance from Dane Cook, but you could have seen one last night if you were among the 4,000 in attendance for Cook's headlining slot at The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas. The wordplay and raunchy storytelling was still there. But that physicality wasn't. What gives? Maybe he's getting more mature and confident. Maybe he is more appreciative for his comedy fans after hitting bumps in the road to movie stardom. Well, why don't you let Cook tell you how he feels about his life and career now. He spoke with The Comic's Comic late last night after his Caesars Palace gig (which also featured longtime friends Al Del Bene and Robert Kelly as his opening support acts), and talked about looking back -- the deaths of both of his parents combined with the peak of his stand-up career made for "an impossible time" in his life -- and "looking forward to looking forward." What's next, Dancing with the Stars? Hmmm.

David Alan Grier explains Chocolate News

Fun fact: Do you know where David Alan Grier was last night when his stand-up performance was set to begin at Caesars Palace for The Comedy Festival? Festival staff didn't know. They caught up with him in his hotel room, where he was fast asleep! Good thing the show before his in the Palace Ballroom -- a TBS TV taping for the Cheech & Chong roast -- went an hour long, eh? That gave Grier just enough time to make his gig. Afterward, Grier talked with me about his new Comedy Central sketch show, Chocolate News. He says the comparisons to Chappelle's Show aren't really valid, though he understands why they'd say that. Grier's initial pitch? Take Bryant Gumbel's Real Sports, add In Living Color, subtract Wayans brothers. Watch and learn:

Related: If you're in New York City on Dec. 12-13, you can see Grier perform stand-up at Comix. The weekend before that (Dec. 4-7, 2008), he'll be at the Improv in Louisville.

Kids in the Hall: Their Vegas debut!

At the end of their rousing live performance last night, the Kids in the Hall told the crowd at Caesars Palace for The Comedy Festival that not only had they witnessed the Kids' "first show in about three months," but also their Vegas debut. "You got to see us shake the rust off," they quipped.

Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney and Scott Thompson certainly didn't seem rusty last night, though, hamming their way through more than an hour of new sketches they have shared with North American audiences over the past year. That includes the return of the Chicken Lady, Buddy Cole, and an encore with the head crusher that entertained despite technical difficulties with McKinney's video camera. After two decades, the Kids may have gotten older, but they're still full of energy and comedic chemistry. And as I learned after the show, they get as much of a kick -- if not more of one -- out of their live gigs as they did with their TV show during the 1990s. You can see that in their live act, too. They're not a sketch troupe attempting to duplicate or reenact their popular TV sketches. They're five guys actively writing new material that works live, and also willing to ad-lib, riff, giggle and make you feel as though you're part of something special. Which you are.