the comic's comic

Still unsure about Justin Bieber? Mark Douglas, Carolyn Castiglia break him down via music video

Seems like everyone has Bieber Fever, but few people who are tween girls know exactly why that is. Why is that, anyhow? Well, if you cannot knock Justin Bieber off of Twitter's trending topics, you might as well join him, right? That's what Mark Douglas and Barely Political have done in their new music video that breaks down what this Bieber Fever is all about, and of course, the 16-year-old Canadian boy's voice is provided by a lady, comedian Carolyn Castiglia. So watch this video, and then you'll know all you'll need to know about Justin Bieber:

Ted Alexandro tells you how to deliver cop jokes at "Catchphrase Academy"

What do the kids at Barely Political do when they're not unleashed Obama Girl on the masses? Well, turns out they're still making videos, and this new one casts Ted Alexandro as a hacky stand-up comedian (in real life, he is unhacky and very funny) brought in to teach the cop (Barely Political's Mark Douglas) how to deliver proper jokes and catchphrases when making arrests. It's a veritable "Catchprhase Academy"! No. That's the title. Catchphrase Academy. Also, I own that same shirt Alexandro is wearing, but in a different size and for different ironic purposes. OK. Roll it!

Recent additions to The Laugh Track

Now that I'm showcasing funny videos and pictures and such over at The Laugh Track, you'd think I'd go ahead and find some way to tell you about them over here. Without further hesitation...

• Tommy Johnagin impressed David Letterman with his recent stand-up set, which aired last Friday.
• Eugene Mirman has something to tell you about the do's and the do-not's (but not the donuts) of marketing.
• Ben Schwartz got rejected by Olympic gold medalist Nastia Liukin, but it was all in good fun to promote the ESPYs for ESPN. And that reminded me of the uproarious time that was the "Worst. Heckle. Ever." show that Derrick Comedy and several other UCB players and improvisers subjected Schwartz to during last summer's Del Close Marathon. Congrats on your Emmy nominations, Ben!
• The 40th anniversary of mankind landing on the Moon happened on Monday, and how did the Barely Political crew celebrate it? With a fake rap about a busty Moon girl. Music and lyrics from Mark Douglas.
• Daniel Tosh's Tosh.0 last week featured a mashup of white girls impersonating Bill Cosby, which made me curious about other kids trying to be like Cos. Apparently, it's all about the pudding.
• Jack McBrayer got nominated last week for a couple of Emmys, too, and yet that same day, he unveiled a new Funny or Die video that had him being very angry, from far away. Fortunately, it looked like it was just a phase.
• And Paula Poundstone has been asking people to check out her pitch for her very own cooking show. Involves wigs. More importantly, perhaps: She's in a dress?! Rare footage, indeed.

Obama Girl vs. McCain Girl: Candidate Olympics

Before I got a chance to upload my own video, I spotted this new entry on Dailymotion from the Barely Political team, and apparently, comedian/musician Mark Douglas now gets to play commentator with Obama Girl (and McCain Girl)? Really. Wow.

Obama Girl and McCain Girl Olympic Face Off
Uploaded by BarelyPolitical

Naughty Town's "lost" hit: "She's Nine!"

This is the most important music video that you may ever watch that has ever come out of the 1980s glam metal band tradition. It comes from a band called Naughty Town. This song is so spot-on that you could play it on the radio today (yes, today, Wednesday, April 16, 2008) and rock fans would call in to their DJs and say I like it, play it again, please? And no one would know the difference. Kudos, also, on the video execution. Clean. Crisp. Huzzah! So, what are we waiting for? Roll it! Then email it to everyone you know and play it again and again...

Credits: Bryan Olsen and Mark Douglas wrote it. Tiffany Graeff directed it. Barry Rothbart edited it. Naughty Town are: Bryan Olsen (singer) Mark Douglas (guitarist) Dan Siegal (drummer) Roger Hailes (bassist/dancer) Andres du Bouchet played the judge and Kimmy Gatewood was nine.

Music video: Political Sex Scandals

I heard Mark Douglas perform this song acoustically last night at the Drink at Work show at Ochi's Lounge, which was fun and all, but I wish he'd mentioned this music video. What's it like to work with Obama Girl, Mark??? Enjoy. (It's also on the YouTube here)