GENE WILDER is one of the most BELOVED COMEDIC ACTORS of his or any other generation, due in no small part to the AUTHENTIC HUMANITY he imparted on his CHARACTERS.  to me he represents an often OVERLOOKED ASPECT of MASCULINITY that is secure in showcasing EMPATHY and COMPASSION unto others and acknowledging the UNDERLYING VULNERABILITY that in essence defines the COLLECTIVE HUMAN CONDITION we all share.  REMEMBERING GENE WILDER (HEALTH POINT, 2023) is a recent lovingly created documentary about his life from FRIENDS, PEERS and LOVED ONES still affected by his MEMORY almost a decade after his passing in 2016 from COMPLICATIONS associated with LATE-STAGE ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE (a DIAGNOSIS he kept HIDDEN from his FANS out of LOVE and not wanting to impart any further MELANCHOLY on the world).

and that core PEOPLE-PLEASING TRAIT is the through-line of both his CHARACTERS and his LIFE as argued in this film.  after his MOTHER returned home from the hospital after recovering from a HEART ATTACK, a PHYSICIAN told a YOUNG JEROME SILBERMAN (WILDER's given birth name) not to argue with his MOTHER as such may literally kill her.  from then on WILDER internalized his EMOTIONS and developed a certain COMPASSIONATE GENTLENESS and AFFECTIONATE QUALITY throughout his LIFE.  in the theater he could stretch out and showcase a FULL-RANGE of EMOTIONS, but offstage his CARING NATURE defined him.  enough anyway that his LATE CO-STAR on a BROADWAY, ANNE BANCROFT, suggested him as PERFECT for a PART being written by her THEN-BOYFRIEND MEL BROOKS that would later materialize in the LEGENDARY BLACK COMEDY THE PRODUCERS (EMBASSY, 1968). 

the rest is history.  

i dont believe this film is a HAGIOGRAPHY of WILDER, but it definitely has an in memoriam feel to it rather some HARD-HITTING EXPOSE on his LIFE and CAREER.  take for instance his WORKING RELATIONSHIP with BROOKS, which produced some TRANSCENDENT COMEDIES for the ages in the AFOREMENTIONED THE PRODUCERS as well as BLAZING SADDLES (WARNER BROS, 1974) and YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (20TH CENTURY-FOX, 1974).  according to WRITER PATRICK MCMILLIGAN in his EXTENSIVE MEL BROOKS: FUNNY MAN (HARPER, 2019) BIOGRAPHY, WILDER felt that BROOKS had taken PUBLIC CREDIT for what was essentially his SCRIPT and chose never to work with him thereafter, effectively ending their WORKING RELATIONSHIP.  that WHOLE TOPIC is never broached or even suggested in REMEMBERING GENE WILDER, which makes sense given its AFFECTIONATE, NOSTALGIC and decidedly ROSE-TINTED TONE.  normally i would see such as a DETRIMENT to the QUALITY or OBJECTIVITY of the film, but given the PERSPECTIVE of this film, it is DIFFICULT to fault such an OMISSION.  WILDER himself seemed to possess a certain NAIVE AUTHENTICITY that gave him the ability to tap into a CHILDLIKE AMORALITY both in his CHARACTERS and in his interviews that affected his audience and rendered such MISGIVINGS as holistically relatively UNIMPORTANT in the long arc of LIFE.

my favorite part of this film are the TESTIMONIALS by CO-STARS who speak of his COMPASSION and GENEROSITY as an ACTOR, giving them CREATIVE SUPPORT and SPACE in what is normally quite a BRUTAL and INTENSE BUSINESS where MARQUEE STAR PERFORMERS are pampered and normally have little to no TIME or MIND-SPACE for the needs of others.  WILDER apparently treated his CO-WORKERS, regardless of their title, role or function, as EQUALS, or at least  such was attested in this documentary by FORMER CHILD ACTOR PETER OSTRUM who played CHARLIE BUCKET in WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY (PARAMOUNT, 1971) and BURTON GILLIAM who played LYLE of TAGGART'S OUTLAWS in BLAZING SADDLES among others.  OSTRUM, the PRODUCT of a WELL-REGARDED regional theatre program in CLEVELAND, was adjusting to the new TECHNICAL CONSTRAINTS of filmmaking and attests that WILDER was nothing if not SUPPORTIVE and exceedingly PATIENT with him to the point that he looks back at such, his only film, decades later as a POSITIVE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCE.  as is widely known, such is sadly not the case with most CHILD ACTORS.

the film likewise talks about the TRAGEDY surrounding his PERSONAL LIFE, first with his flowering if not COMPLICATED RELATIONSHIP with third WIFE GILDA RADNER that was cut short by her all-too BRIEF BATTLE that culminated with her DEATH from OVARIAN CANCER at 42 and later his own TERMINAL BOUT with ALZHEIMER'S after finding LOVE and HAPPINESS again with fourth WIFE KAREN BOYER.  what is presented is a LIFE brimming with the TRUE SURVIVALIST's capacity to choose and embrace CONNECTION and INTIMACY even after taking absolutely DEVASTATING PERSONAL LOSSES while soberly acknowledging whole-heartedly the DUAL NATURE of being ALIVE and PRESENT.  i can remember witnessing an EMOTIONALLY MOVING later life 2005 appearance on THE LATE SHOW WITH CONAN O'BRIEN promoting his UPCOMING memoir KISS ME LIKE A STRANGER: MY SEARCH FOR LOVE AND ART (ST. MARTIN'S GRIFFITH, 2006), where despite looking OLDER and noticeably FRAIL, WILDER appeared UNFAZED about his VANITY and reacted with COMPASSION and SENSITIVITY to a YOUNG O'BRIEN and provided EARNEST WISDOM on a living a FULL LIFE WELL-LIVED sans jokes with a sense of GENUINE HUMILITY.  when at one point he even held O'BRIEN's hand, you could sense how genuinely moved the COMIC HOST was at the EMPATHETIC GESTURE.  usually the FORMAT itself is less about establishing a sense of CONNECTION and more about presenting a PUBLIC FRONT or PERSONA in order to promote CORPORATE CONSUMERIST ENDS.  this was something RARE and DIFFERENT entirely.

and to me that is the WILDER i take in as an ADMIRER from afar.  he seemed more like a BODDHISTAVA, more concerned with the plight of others than a COMEDY GENIUS for the ages.  and to that end he represents a DIFFERENT, more ENLIGHTENED kind of MASCULINITY then the SHALLOW, VAIN boasting and EMPTY BOMBAST of today's TOXIC and thoroughly INSECURE variety.  his is one defined by concern for others, COMPASSION, COMMUNITY-BUILDING, and the INTENTION of making us collectively laugh as a TEMPORARY RESPITE from the ENDURING PAIN OF LIVING. 

that is GENE WILDER i take with me.

ive recently been on a RED DWARF (BBC2, 1988-1999) kick.  was introduced to this zany BRITISH SCI-FI-themed SITCOM back when i was in middle school through my FATHER.  havent the FOGGIEST how he learned of it.  regardless, my family had a PAL series of videotapes we got in ENGLAND one summer.  the CONCEIT of the SERIES centers around a LOWLY MINING SPACESHIP TECHNICIAN named DAVE LISTER (CRAIG CHARLES) who mistakenly gets put in SUSPENDED ANIMATION for three million years, only to awake learning he is the last human alive and that the only other "BEINGS" with him onboard are a HOLOGRAM of his annoyingly JOYLESS, GUTLESS and DELUSIONAL former BUNKMATE ARNOLD RIMMER (CHRIS BARRIE), a DROID named KRYTEN (DAVID ROSS) and the exceedingly VAIN HUMANOID descendent of his former PET CAT named CAT (DANNY JOHN-JULES).

what shines in this SERIES beyond the PERFORMANCES is the quality of the WRITING, which like MONTY PYTHON adroitly oscillates between LOW BROW and HIGH BROW COMEDY in a typically DROLL MANNER that only the BRITISH can seemingly pull off.  LISTER is an EFFECTIVE EVERYMAN put in beyond RIDICULOUS SITUATIONS and finds the HUMOR, not horror, of the opportunity of his UNIQUE PREDICAMENT.  RIMMER is the REAL STAR of the SHOW with his BOTTOMLESS NARCISSISM and quirky PERENNIAL INABILITY to see beyond his own SELFISH INTERESTS, NEEDS and DESIRES for STATUS and RESPECT, achieving neither.  again, sounds like the basis for a terrorizing PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER but instead its the basis for one of the truly TRANSCENDENT SCRIPTED COMEDIES of all-time.  not only that, but the SCI-FI CONCEITS of INDIVIDUAL EPISODES were rooted in LEGITIMATE and then-CURRENT UNDERSTANDINGS of THEORETICAL PHYSICS and the manner in which TIME, SPACE and REALITY play out in an EXPANDING UNIVERSE governed by GENERAL RELATIVITY.  the fact that one minute the PLOT demands that its viewers grasp the CONCEPT of SPACE-TIME while seamlessly transitioning such into an EXTENDED JOKE about CONSTIPATION is basically my reasoning for returning to RED DWARF again and again.  for better or worse the BRITISH, unlike their AMERICAN COUSINS, assume some modicum of INTELLIGENCE in their audience. 

definitely worth checking out to the UNINITIATED.  guarantee you will not be disappointed.

when the COMEDY MUSIC duo FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS arrived on HBO in the late 2000s with their POIGNANT take on the isolating underclass IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE in URBAN AMERICA, youd think such would not be FERTILE GROUND for a generationally-great NAMESAKE COMEDY SERIES.  but youd be wrong.  part of what made that SERIES so ASTOUNDING was the QUALITY of the WRITING, which was done by SERIES stars BRET MCKENZIE and JEMAINE CLEMENT with the assistance of VETERAN COMEDY WRITER JAMES BOBIN (who previously helped develop and direct DA ALI G SHOW).  another aspect was the QUALITY of the ACTING, which largely had the two leads playing it straight as two WELL-INTENTIONED and HAPLESS NEW ZEALAND outsiders looking for paying gigs around the TRI-STATE AREA as WORKING MUSICIANS in QUEENS as they encounter and deal with a NEVER-ENDING onslaught of CRAZY NEW YORKERS (played notably by RHYS DARBY, ARJ BARKER, KRISTEN SCHAAL and RACHEL BLANCHARD among others).

but the true point of differentiation was their CATCHY SONGS and how that SPECIFIC MATERIAL honed on stage for years as part of their REAL-LIFE ANTI-FOLK LIVE ACT transitioned so SEAMLESSLY into MUSICAL ASIDES on television with seemingly AUTHENTIC NARRATIVE INTEGRITY.  part of the charm of the show would be watching how the band randomly integrated a 60s PASTICHE track of FRENCH POP with elementary beginner's phrases throughout (nonsensically entitled "FOUX DE FA FA"), complete with a matching SEPIATONE MUSIC VIDEO, to help explain their MUTUAL JOY and GOOD FORTUNE at both securing POTENTIAL ROMANTIC PARTNERS.  oddly the MUSIC works outside of its CINEMATIC ALLUSIONS with the series, but the majority of fans will be reliving the GLORY of such with these often CHARMING, QUIRKY and downright INVENTIVE PARODY TRACKS that touch on everything from DAVID BOWIE ("BOWIE"), SERGE GAINSBOURG ("A KISS IS NOT A CONTRACT"), BARRY WHITE ("BUSINESS TIME") and PET SHOP BOYS ("INNER CITY PRESSURE") sendups, GANGSTA RAP ("HIPHOPOPOTAMUS VS RHYMENOCEROS"), PSYCHEDELIC ROCK ("THE PRINCE OF PARTIES"), DANCEHALL ("BOOM"), all too EARNEST cop show THEME SONGS ("MUTHA'UCKAS") and POST-APOCALYPTIC robot PAEANS to defeating and eradicating mankind ("ROBOTS"). 

the FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS (SUB POP, 2008) ALBUM release covers TRACKS from the first of the two seasons.  and they work both as an ALBUM and as an INTEGRAL aspect of the TELEVISION SERIES because at their CORE they have REAL HEART.  i can remember during the period of its original airing attending school in MANHATTAN at COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY and running seemingly ceaselessly around the city completing my two semesters of student teaching in THE BRONX and BROOKLYN.  in many ways i felt like the SERIES and the MUSIC translated that FRANTIC pace of LIFE in the city and the POWER of potential of RANDOM INTERACTIONS that all such URBAN dwellers innately understand.  and the CONFUSION and seeming ISOLATION that ironically can also come with such a dynamic.  when i listen to these PARODY SONGS, that is the CULTURAL MILIEU i am immediately  transported back into and it is BITTERSWEET.  and that sense of AMBIVALENCE towards LIFE in general i feel is PALPABLE throughout the MUSIC and the SERIES itself.  i dont think it is a FORM of HIPSTER DETACHMENT at all, but a feeling of distance that comes when confronted with a lifestyle so OVERWHELMING, ALL-ENCOMPASSING and CONFRONTATIONAL.  that is what makes my friends in the city such UNIQUE animals i guess.

i love this album and consider it ESSENTIAL.  forget about the fact that the SONGS are genuinely FUNNY, since their HEART, PASSION and TUNEFULNESS will last long after the JOKE is over.

over the past week i practically binge watched all four seasons of the BRITISH period COMEDY series BLACK ADDER (BBC1, 1983-1989) starring ROWAN ATKINSON as well as a list of TOP-NOTCH CHARACTER ACTOS including everyone from TONY ROBINSON, HUGH LAURIE, STEPHEN FRY, MIRANDA RICHARDSON and IAN MCINNERNY.  the BASIC conceit of the series is that each of the four seasons take place during a DIFFERENT era in BRITISH HISTORY with the "BLACK ADDER" and what are presumed to be his DESCENDANTS being the only RECURRING CHARACTERS, of sorts.  the eras are roughly the FEUDAL MIDDLE AGES, the ELIZABETHAN ERA, the NAPOLEANIC ERA and WORLD WAR I. 

with the exception of the first series, the BLACK ADDER FIGURE is an OVER-EDUCATED and intellectually CURIOUS SERVANT of the ROYAL MONARCHY / ARISTOCRACY who despite his NUMEROUS attempts and INGENIOUS plans is largely the VICTIM to the whims of HISTORY.  in the first series he is the DIMWITTED and seemingly always PLOTTING spare heir of a FEUDAL king attempting to leverage his RANK and INFLUENCE to grasp at POWER.  in totality, the series is a HUMOROUS lambasting of both the COURT CULTURE and FALSE PIETY surrounding AUTHORITY, as well as the coordinated system of SUPPLICANTS and SYCOPHANTS that enable such to flourish UNABATED.   in the first three series the MONARCHY as an INSTITUTION is the OBVIOUS target of much of the IRE behind the HUMOR, but in the final season it is the BRITISH ARISTOCRACY and the COMMISSIONED OFFICER base that come from their RANKS that serve as the subject of some of the most BITING and AFFECTING critiques of the series.  this supposedly ELEVATED class of URBANE INTELLECTUALS and WELL-TO-DOS were cut off from reality so thoroughly, as ADROITLY portrayed by FRY, that the PEDESTRIAN INSANITY of knowingly sending a SUBSERVIENT OFFICER to their NEEDLESS DEATH in trenches for was deemed an HONORABLE STATE OF AFFAIRS as it didnt challenge the STATUS QUO.  this INNATE DOCILITY with regards to AUTHORITY and POWER and how such mercilessly intertwines with FORCED FEELINGS of NATIONAL IDENTITY comes off as distinctly BRITISH in nature.  that one should feel honored to DIE for their CROWN and COUNTRY, however SENSELESS and WANTON the circumstances.

it is that SPECIFIC relationship between the POWERFUL and the POWERLESS that makes each BLACK ADDER series such a COMPELLING viewing.  none more so than the closing scene of the final season which is one of the most emotionally AFFECTING and HONEST televised moments i have ever witnessed with how it handled the HORRORS OF WAR.  and the UTTER FINALITY of the closing of a long lineage of BLACK ADDERS for no CONCEIVABLE MILITARY ADVANTAGE.  just BLIND CRUELTY and SAVAGE INHUMANITY at the hands of an UNCARING HIERARCHY concerned more with APPEARANCES than the ACTUAL lives of REAL PEOPLE.  its all just so damning of BRITISH CULTURE and the supposed HUMANISTIC VALUES they attest to exhibiting as a VIRTUOUS BEACON to the rest of the world.  COMPLETE BULLOCKS indeed.

undoubtedly this is one of my FAVORITE television series ever.  ESSENTIAL viewing no doubt.

society moves fast and and of the mainstays of my childhood that seemingly has evaporated from our NATIONAL COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS is the CULTURAL POWER of the TIE-IN MOVIE SOUNDTRACK.  it kind of makes sense why, given that PROMINENT artists were financially incentivized to part with a PROMISING B-SIDE to uplift a CULTURAL ARTIFACT for an UNPROVEN PROPERTY.  i mean, the OBVIOUS RISK is that the FILM might suck and now you are permanently associated with it.  just makes you look like a PHONY SELL-OUT, or at least that was the MINDSET at the time.  also over time these SOUNDTRACKS had little to no connection to the FILM at hand, instead they acted more as a side REVENUE STREAM than a SYNERGISTIC ART PIECE in and of itself.  in the age of SINGLE DOWNLOAD SALES and DIGITAL STREAMS, the concept of a MOVIE SOUNDTRACK album is a TOTAL ANACHRONISM and a CULTURAL VEHICLE that has little VALUE.

or maybe not.

one of my FAVORITE FILMS growing up was WAYNE'S WORLD (PARAMOUNT, 1992), based on the PROMINENT MIKE MYERS and DANA CARVEY fronted RECURRING SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE SKETCH which featured two ENTHUSIASTIC yet DIMWITTED HARD ROCK music fans hosting a UHF TELEVISION SHOW from a suburban ILLINOIS basement.  in terms of music, this FILM very much excelled in how it utilized the CATALOGUES of QUEEN, ALICE COOPER, THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE and even GARY WRIGHT in featured scenes that forever transformed their relationship to the public.  such included the ICONIC multi-part, group lip-syncing of QUEEN's epic "BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY" from the COMPRESSED hatchback confines of a 1976 AMC PACER, or the LUSTY hip-gyrations of GARTH to HENDRIX's "FOXY LADY" or even the OTHERWORLDLY daydreamed imaginations of WAYNE toward his beloved to the LIGHT, INTOXICATING sounds of "DREAMWEAVER."  all these songs were absolutely INTEGRAL to the INTERNAL WORLD OF THE FILM.  even live tracks from the film like "FEED MY FRANKENSTEIN" and "BALLROOM BLITZ" served their purpose as exemplars of the POWER of ROCK N ROLL as a performance in a live setting.

i choose to see the WAYNE'S WORLD SOUNDTRACK in retrospect as not so much as a CALCULATED cash-in vehicle to meant to supplement the FILM's earnings, but as an extension of the experience of the PROJECT itself.  other PROMINENT examples of similarly devised SOUNDTRACKS that truly extend the FILM EXPERIENCE includes those of THE BIG LEBOWSKI (GRAMERCY, 1998), TRAINSPOTTING (POLYGRAM, 1996), PULP FICTION (MIRAMAX, 1994), O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU? (TOUCHSTONE, 2000), LOST HIGHWAY (OCTOBER, 1997) and even the recent GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (MARVEL, 2014-2023) trilogy of decidedly NOSTALGIC "MIXTAPE" series.  my guess to why such has died as a culturally VIABLE vehicle is that with the advent of MP3s, SOCIAL MEDIA and OMNIPRESENT STREAMING, music just doesnt live on the same PEDESTAL for most people as it once did.  i still see it that way, i have a radio show and a blog where i regularly celebrate and write about such, but i am aware of my OUTLIER STATUS.

the CULTURE moved on.  but i still feel that the WAYNE'S WORLD SOUNDTRACK is an ESSENTIAL release from a relatively recent but utterly BYGONE era.

i was a LATE NIGHT WITH CONAN O'BRIEN (NBC, 1993-2009) fan starting back in middle school in the late 1990s.  i can remember distinctly bring with me and routinely wearing an embroidered, navy blue LATE NIGHT t-shirt upon entering my freshman year at a NEW ENGLAND boarding school a few years later.  it was like my armor going into what very much felt like a HOSTILE environment.  despite his INCREDIBLE INTELLIGENCE and ACADEMIC pedigree, there was something very DOWN-TO-EARTH and WORKMAN-LIKE about the HUMOR of CONAN O'BRIEN the COMEDIAN.  you got the sense that he thought long and hard and WORDSMITH and workshopped his lines like a CRAFTSMAN with his team and really valued his AUDIENCE.  i never felt pandered to.  as a person he seemed to be speaking from a perspective of SELF-DEPRECATION and even SELF-DOUBT, as if the AUDIENCES reciprocal response and continuing the loop empowered him to take bigger chances down-the-line.  unlike some of his LATE NIGHT peers how were not nearly as CLEVER, INFORMED or INTELLIGENT but certainly acted that way, O'BRIEN seemed the absolute inverse. 

his COMEDY was about INCLUSION and HUMILITY.

which is why when he lost THE TONIGHT SHOW in 2010 after only seven months the outpouring of support, not only from prominent ACTORS, MUSICIANS and fellow COMEDIANS in the immediate ENTERTAINMENT COMMUNITY but more importantly from AUDIENCES nationally, was so INCREDIBLE.  he resonated as an UNDERDOG PUBLIC FIGURE that got completely got screwed by a consortium of malignant corporate figures in JAY LENO, JEFF ZUCKER and other FACELESS NBC UNIVERSAL executives.  the documentary CONAN O'BRIEN CAN'T STOP (MAGNOLIA, 2011) follows the aftermath of that loss and how O'BRIEN freshly barred from being on television for six months per the terms of his separation agreement from NBC decided to concoct a national theater tour with his WRITERS and BACKING BAND.

SPOILER ALERT: the outpouring of support was OVERWHELMING and the concert series went very well in spite of O'BRIEN being burnt out at times.  what made the documentary INTERESTING is how a live performance in front of a live AUDIENCE in a theater setting compares to that of television.  television studios are FRIGID black boxes with ample lighting setups all focused on optimizing the viewer experience at home, not the in-studio AUDIENCE.  if anything, the in-studio AUDIENCE is just a prop, as group LAUGHTER cues television AUDIENCES on how to react.  seeing O'BRIEN improvise and work a live CROWD in-between prepared bits throughout the documentary gives you an incite into him as an ASTUTE ENTERTAINER that can seamlessly interact with his AUDIENCE.  that GENUINE interaction between ARTIST and AUDIENCE sans the medium of television is very much the crux of this film.  by the end O'BRIEN realizes the very real ALLURE of the road and the ADMIRATION and how draining such can be over a long stretch.  he seems ready to turn the page and be with his FAMILY as he turns the subsequent chapter with his team of WRITERS and BACKING BAND as he began his next cable talk show series CONAN (TBS, 2010-2021).

all that anger was seemingly sublimated and those whose livelihoods were caught in the crossfire had made the journey with him.  it is arguable that next to DAVID LETTERMAN and JOHN STEWART, O'BRIEN is one of the most BELOVED and RESPECTED talk show figures ever.  all three share a common ethos of HONESTY, RESPECT and AUTHENTICITY that is shared by their teams and AUDIENCES alike.  this film provides the EXPERIENCE of living and working with that sense of DIGNITY and DECENCY in action.  i loved this film.  would consider it ESSENTIAL and absolutely worth checking out.

you always got the feeling with COMEDIC LEGEND DON RICKLES that his ABRASIVE shtick wasnt entirely MEAN-SPIRITED, but rather counterintuitively WHOLESOME and done with some semblance of LOVE and EMPATHY.  it was as if poking fun at a CELEBRITY or a NO-NAME paying customer was an act of intimacy as if to suggest that we are all stronger than we give often ourselves credit for.  that our INDIVIDUAL INSECURITIES and INTERNAL SELF-DOUBTS can be transcended, even when provoked upon in a public setting.  at least that was the just i got from reading his consciously unimaginatively titled memoir RICKLES' BOOK (SIMON & SCHUSTER, 2007).

i say this because the whole book is a testament to his LOVE of FAMILY and FRIENDS.  first and foremost, as the only son of two WORKING-CLASS LITHUANIAN JEWISH immigrants, RICKLES pays tributes to his PARENTS MAX and ETTA and the childhood he had in JACKSON HEIGHTS.  his FATHER PASSED AWAY PRE-FAME and his MOTHER was the driving force of his career, tirelessly networking and advocating on his behalf and her support knew no limits.  then there is his WIFE BARBARA and the FAMILY they created.  probably the most INTRIGUING RELATIONSHIPS presented here to fans of RICKLES would be those of FRANK SINATRA, BOB NEWHART, JOHNNY CARSON, ED SULLIVAN, BOB HOPE and DEAN MARTIN.  its a UNIQUE perspective on a generation of COMEDY that is pretty removed from today's ELEVATED sense of CULTURAL BOUNDARIES and QUOTE UNQUOTE GOOD TASTE.  two generations ago during the postwar period when LAS VEGAS was in full swing and the country had yet to become divided by RELEVANT and LONG-POSTPONED debates over RACIAL and GENDER EQUALITY, this cohort of COMEDIANS reigned UNOBSTRUCTED with the world as their oyster.  and they seemingly did it with a sense of CLASS and TASTE that makes their COMEDY somewhat EVERGREEN in nature.

i cant say that such is the same for the INSULT COMEDY that came in the wake of RICKLES in the likes of later generations of COMEDIANS in ANDREW DICE CLAY, SAM KINISON, ANTHONY JESELNIK, GREG GERALDO, BILL BURR, JIM NORTON, COLIN QUINN and ROBERT SMIGEL (i.e. TRIUMPH THE INSULT COMIC DOG) who seemed more concerned with TRANSGRESSIVE SHOCK tactics than projecting any PALPABLE sense of empathy and COMMUNITY.  to me that is the SINGULAR GENIUS and UNIQUE SPIRIT of the COMEDY of RICKLES, that through shared LAUGHTER at our own individual expense came a more familiar feeling of COMMUNITY.  his INSULT COMEDY was INCLUSIVE rather than the more BRASH and ABRASIVE variant we see to day which feels more DIVISIVE and AGGRESSIVE, as if peeling off this layer of one's PERSONA would reveal a more SINISTER, SUBTERRANEAN agenda.  almost like a form of WAR or CHARACTER ASSASSINATION.  you look at those two cohorts of COMEDIC GENERATIONS and you can see where we have traversed as a CULTURE.  not to say that such is NEGATIVE, since one may be more HONEST and AUTHENTIC than the other, but it is INTRIGUING nonetheless to consider.

RICKLES' BOOK is pretty plainly written for a MASS AUDIENCE and does its job of position RICKLES in terms he appreciates relative to his FRIENDS and FAMILY, but i am interested in the book that really dives into his backstory and how his personal narrative intertwined with the changing tides of AMERICAN COMEDY and POPULAR CULTURE throughout his long career.  especially during the 1960s.  understandably such was effectively glossed over here since such was not the purpose of this book.  but that is the narrative i hope to read someday.  this book is perfectly SERVICEABLE but not recommended unless you are a true HARDCORE RICKLES fanatic.

sometimes you come across something so WONDERFUL that it makes you temporarily forget about what a TOXIC CESSPOOL the internet actually is.  such is the ACE VANE YOUTUBE channel which showcases wildly OVERDUBBED takes on CLASSIC saturday morning CARTOONS from yesteryear such as the SUPER FRIENDS (ABC, 1973-85) and the SHORT-LIVED THE ALL-NEW SUPERFRIENDS HOUR (ABC, 1978) and CHALLENGE OF THE SUPER FRIENDS (ABC, 1978) among many others.  instead of talking about JUSTICE LEAGUE stuff related to saving the world and promoting HUMANISTIC VALUES, ACE VANE turns such into EXTANDED ADULT SWIM-inspired VULGAR RANTS on CRUDE DESCRIPTIONS of SEXUAL ACTS, WANTON VIOLENCE, PETTY insular RIVALRIES and his favorite topic: INSUFFERABLE INANITY.

i learned about ACE VANE this week after he put out an ANIMATION that made the rounds clowning FORMER THE SOURCE owner and ALLEGED rapper BENZINO and his recent BOTCHED interview on the DRINK CHAMPS YOUTUBE channel in which he drunkenly cried over his NEVER-ENDING decades-long beef with LEGENDARY rapper EMINEM.  going further into his catalogue i found a COMEDIC goldmine that i am still very much making my way through.  i dont know how this dude doesnt have a show already on cable because this stuff made me LAUGH so hard my stomach hurt.  its all so CLEVERLY WRITTEN and just so incredibly MEAN-SPIRITED.  definitely worth checking out.

PRINCETON NOBLE PRIZE-winning psychologist DANIEL KAHNEMAN (who INTRIGUINGLY won his award in ECONOMICS) is the famous for his innovation in the field of COGNITIVE BIAS and PROSPECT THEORY.   central to these theorems is the concept that our brain works on a two-tier system that is based on our physical movements. if stationary humans are capable of DEEP CONCENTRATION and the ability to CALCULATE and STRATEGIZE.  when in motion and involved in significant physical exertion this capacity is neutralized.  dont believe me?  multiply 234 times 81 in your head sitting down and again while jogging.  its a pretty INCREDIBLE phenomena.

and that two-tiered system is all i can think of when watching former SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE COMEDIAN KEVIN NEALON interview other COMEDIANS on GO-PRO shot hikes in canyons and parks in an around the LOS ANGELES region.  its one thing to get a participants views when they are WELL-NOURISHED, CALM and COMFORTABLE and another when they TIRED, SWEATY and DEHYDRATED.  NEALON himself was always one who shined in highly IMPROVISATIONAL COMEDY that was COLLABORATIVE and ENSEMBLE-based, so these interviews are GOOD-NATURED and meant to gain insight into what his peers find ABSURD and worthy of sending-up and mocking for our collective enjoyment.  COMEDY is a very specific to the individual and can often be an isolating pursuit, not unlike having to take on an imposing unending nature trail, so i appreciate NEALON traversing the same ground and using the opportunity to learn about how COMEDIC WRITERS  and PERFORMERS  tick.  especially under some physical hardship.  over the past couple years there have been countless participants, but some notable ones include SARAH SILVERMAN, TIFFANY HADISH, CONAN O'BRIEN, BOB ODENKIRK, OWEN WILSON, DANA CARVEY, JUDY GREER and JACK BLACK.

definitely worth checking out.

there comes a point at times where PARODY is so cutting and on the nose that it becomes in effect INDISTINGUISHABLE at times from the subject of which it is serving up.   such feels that way in retrospect when considering SPINAL TAP's actual debut (as opposed to FICTIONAL discography from the film) in SPINAL TAP (POLYDOR, 1984), the soundtrack to the LEGENDARY ROB REINER-directed MOCKUMENTARY film THIS IS SPINAL TAP (EMBASSY, 1984). 

it is not a coincidence that ROCK AND ROLL royalty from SLASH (GUNS N' ROSES) and JOE PERRY (AEROSMITH) to STING (THE POLICE), ROB HALFORD (JUDAS PRIEST), EDDIE VAN HALEN (VAN HALEN) and OZZY OSBOURNE (BLACK SABBATH) have admitted to having a difficult time watching this film starring the generationally gifted IMPROVISATIONAL comedy team of CHRISTOPHER GUEST (lead guitarist NIGEL TUFNEL), MICHAEL MCKEAN (singer and rhythm guitarist DAVID ST. HUBBINS) and HARRY SHEARER (bassist DEREK SMALLS).  to them it was an accurate depiction of their actual lives.  much of the actual film was based on the reported real-life experiences of bands ranging from YES, LED ZEPPELIN, DEF LEPPARD, BLACK SABBATH, URIAH HEEP, STATUS QUO, THE ROLLING STONES, VAN HALEN, THE BAND and FRANK ZAPPA among many others.  the cumulative effect was that even a much later musician like KURT COBAIN (NIRVANA) was rumored to have been vocally hyper-aware of that thin line separating PARODY and REAL-LIFE so expertly depicted in the film.  like others, that dynamic was a real-world trap and occupational hazard.

the songs themselves absolutely hold up decades later.  besides the WELL-KNOWN tracks that PARODY the inane lyricism ("TONIGHT I'M GONNA ROCK YOU TONIGHT"), macho posturing / rampant mysogyny ("SEX FARM" and "BIG BOTTOM") and outlandish iconography ("STONEHENGE" and "ROCK N ROLL CREATURE") of 1970s METAL (BLACK SABBATH, RAINBOW, DIO) and PROGRESSIVE ROCK (RUSH, KING CRIMSON, GENTLE GIANT), there are also those less CELEBRATED tracks that PARODY earlier phases of 1960s ROCK AND ROLL history such as LAUREL CANYON-inspired FOLK ROCK ("LISTEN TO THE FLOWER PEOPLE") and the BRITISH INVASION ("GIMME SOME MONEY").  the fact that they depict the inherent RIDICULOUSNESS of each stage so convincingly is really quite a creative achievement.  its also the reason that generations of musicians love this FICTIONAL band, as evidenced by the LEGENDARY LIVE EARTH performance at WEMBLEY STADIUM in 2007 when over 18 musicians (from bands ranging from the BEASTIE BOYS, METALLICA, FOO FIGHTERS, BLOC PARTY, MADONNA's backing band and so on) came on stage to slap bass with DEREK SMALLS on, of course, a very MEMORABLE and INSPIRED self-effacing CHEEKY rendition of "BIG BOTTOM."

the GUEST, MCKEAN and SHEARER comedic triumvirate have gone on to make other loosely IMPROVISATIONAL films, some even with a musical flourish like the FOLK send-up A MIGHTY WIND (WARNER BROS, 2003), but in my humble opinion the only other MOCKUMENTARY film that comes close to SPINAL TAP in terms of the quality of the music and PARODY is the much earlier NEIL INNES (BONZO DOG DOOH-DAH BAND) and ERIC IDLE (MONTY PYTHON) led THE RUTLES: ALL YOU NEED IS CASH (NBC, 1978) TELEVISED (and GEORGE HARRISON approved) send-up of THE BEATLES cultural phenomenon.  now if only i could find a RUTLES cassette tape...

regardless, SPINAL TAP is a CLASSIC album with music culled from a CLASSIC comedy.  it all holds up decades down the line and is essentially required viewing and listening in my opinion.   definitely worth checking out for the uninitiated.  should also mention there is a rumored sequel in the works for 2024 for the 40th anniversary of the original film.  why not?  the dreaded cash-in sequel of an established intellectual property seems like as good an opportunity for RIDICULE and PARODY as any other these days.

its difficult to downplay the cultural impact of THE NATIONAL LAMPOON on MODERN HUMOR.  what are now considered heralded comedic institutions such as SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (NBC, 1975-present), ANIMAL HOUSE (UNIVERSAL, 1978), CADDYSHACK (WARNER BROS, 1980) and even THE SIMPSONS (FOX, 1989-present), were built on the collective INSPIRED work of generations of WRITERS (PJ O'ROURKE, MICHAEL O'DONOGHUE, GEORGE W.S. TROW, ANNE BEATS, SEAN KELLY, MIKE REISS, AL JEAN, TONY HENDRA), ARTISTS (SAM GROSS, CHARLES RODRIGUES, M.K. BROWN, RICK MEYEROWITZ, BRUCE MCCALL, GAHAN WILSON) and COMEDIANS (JOHN BELUSHI, GILDA RADNER, BILL MURRAY, HAROLD RAMIS, CHEVY CHASE) famously associated with the publication.  the publication, which was started by two preternaturally GIFTED HARVARD undergrads DOUGLAS KENNEY and HENRY BEARD in 1970, grew to be unrivaled in its INTELLIGENT deconstruction of cultural and political events, while simultaneously producing some of the RAUNCHIEST, borderline OBSCENE material meant to probe and titillate at the same time.  its beyond INTERESTING that they had both poles so expertly covered during a period of such cultural and political turmoil in the UNITED STATES with the VIETNAM WAR sill very much in effect as well as the aftermath of the FEMINIST, ENVIRONMENTALIST and CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS from the previous decade.

i feel i understand why the DRUNK, STONED, BRILLIANT, DEAD: THE STORY OF THE NATIONAL LAMPOON (NETFLIX, 2015) documentary came out when it did almost a decade ago.  the SAD reality is that those involved with THE NATIONAL LAMPOON are dying of old age.  in fact numerous PROMINENT WRITERS interviewed for this film have passed away just in the past three years.  in many ways this film is meant as a testament to their legacy in-their-own-words a la recent efforts to the same effect by other INFLUENTIAL upstart and/or legacy publications like MAD, CURVE, PLAYBOY, BIG BROTHER and CREEM.  not to mention the surviving members of MONTY PYTHON, who are a comedic universe and institution unto themselves to rival that of THE NATIONAL LAMPOON.  one aspect of this retrospective lens a work in this film that i found COMPELLING was how the HUMOR itself wasnt examined that deeply, i.e. all the SEX-CRAZED stuff from an obvious MALE GAZE perspective that would absolutely not play in recent decades.  it feels that such an examination is meant for another film by another party as DRUNK, STONED, BRILLIANT, DEAD seems more concerned with faithfully explaining their mindset as they saw it.  not how such somewhat RETROGRADE comedic tropes would fit into our current more INCLUSIVE era.  given how influential films like ANIMAL HOUSE and CADDYSHACK have been on subsequent decades of comedic films, a cottage industry unto itself, that examination would be fruitful if pursued elsewhere no doubt.

i appreciate this film for what it is: a timely reminder of the legacy of a major publication that helped mold AMERICAN HUMOR.  interview participants beyond the surviving WRITERS, ARTISTS and COMEDIANS included numerous ACTORS (KEVIN BACON, TIM MATHESON, BEVERLEY D'ANGELO, JOHN GOODMAN, BILLY BOB THORNTON & MEAT LOAF) and DIRECTORS (JUDD APATOW & IVAN REITMAN).  its an INSANE story but i still feel this film was a bit of a hagiography and a bit of a MISSED OPPORTUNITY to examine how their comedic perspective was reshaped, morphed or completely discarded down the line by subsequent HUMORISTS, COMEDIANS and WRITERS since the publication went under in 1998.

there were several points while reading CELEBRATED actor/director/comedian SETH ROGEN's IDIOSYNCRATIC memoir YEARBOOK (CROWN, 2021) that made me laugh so hard i needed to put the book away and calm down for fear of fainting.  not that i think his ambition or objective with this memoir was to HUMOROUS per se, more that it presented a COHESIVE WORLDVIEW throughout various anecdotal happenings in his life; from discovering drugs and pornography in CANADA to dealing with NICOLAS CAGE during meetings with an inexplicably forced BAHAMANIAN accent.  that and other MEMORABLE stories revolving around RIDICULOUS encounters with the likes of KANYE WEST, GEORGE LUCAS, TOM CRUISE, his grandparents, SACHA BARON COHEN, STEVE WOZNIAK, EDDIE GRIFFIN, JERRY SEINFELD and KIM JONG UN among many others.

whether dealing with anti-semitism or making sense of an absolutely INSANE situation (with or without the added variable of drug intoxication) the through line the connects all of these disparate anecdotal essays is ROGEN's VOICE.  it is readily apparent that he is a TALENTED writer and that one can effortlessly imagine him narrating this memoir as the combined CADENCE, RHYTHM and SARCASTIC TONE of his well-publicized public PERSONA is so effectively captured throughout these narratives.  one can only imagine that reading one his scripts would be a similarly hilarious experience.  you also get the sense that ROGEN at his core is an INCLUSIVE soul whose motivation is to entertain while diving headfirst into the absurd and find nuggets of TRUTH and HUMOR, rather than to trade on the character assassination of people.  even the celebrities he mentions in these anecdotal stories are mentioned, at times, due to the excessive lengths to which their ACTIONS and BELIEFS have led them astray from anything resembling a normal REALITY.  ROGEN in this sense is VIRGIL leading us on a curated tour through the various levels of WARPED realities encountered amidst HOLLYWOOD power players as well as the CONVOLUTED and INEFFABLE process by which the sausage of moviemaking is conducted.  for whatever reason (maybe his nuanced marijuana advocacy or public support of sex workers) ROGEN's public PERSONA would have him pegged as BUFFOONISH or an unreliable narrator, but within YEARBOOK he is a CONSIDERED, ARTICULATE, CREDIBLE and DELIBERATE voice of reason in a sideshow circus profession that is often too FARCICAL to be believed.

whether or not you are fan of his films like SUPERBAD (COLUMBIA, 2007), PINEAPPLE EXPRESS (COLUMBIA, 2008), THE INTERVIEW (COLUMBIA, 2014) or THIS IS THE END (SONY, 2013), his writing on the last season of THE ALI G SHOW (HBO, 2004) or his notable acting roles in KNOCKED UP (UNIVERSAL, 2007), DONNIE DARKO (UNITED ARTISTS, 2001), STEVE JOBS (UNIVERSAL, 2015) or ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO (WEINSTEIN COMPANY, 2008), YEARBOOK is well worth checking out as it unveils the CREATIVE mindset and HUMOROUS perspectives of an ENGAGING comedy mind.  that and its one of the funniest things ive read in a long time.

to call BILL HICKS a COMEDIAN is a bit REDUCTIVE.  its also misleading because his work at its peak functioned on an entirely different plane of consciousness than mere jokes and cheap laughs.  i liken him more to a PROPHET.  or even an ORACLE marking the cultural path for humanity to evolve as a species.  if that all sounds a bit HOIGHTY TOIGHTY and PRETENTIOUS, its probably because to his legions of fans, HICKS was a ONE-ONE-ONE. a true AMERICAN original.

AMERICAN: THE BILL HICKS STORY (VARIANCE, 2009), is a documentary that attempts to uncover and inform the viewer regarding the personal experiences and motivations that informed his legendary CONTRARIAN and CONSCIOUS-EXPANDING stand-up routines.  this is done through archival footage of HICKS, as well as more recent interviews with his peers and collaborators and most of his surviving family at the time of production.

HICKS grew up and went to school for the most part in HOUSTON, where his parents settled after a few years of peripatetic existence around the AMERICAN SOUTH when he was very young.  his family was part of the SOUTHERN BAPTIST church and he was raised in an EVANGELICAL community.  after a brief dalliance with the idea of becoming a veterinarian, HICKS discovered COMEDY while watching JOHNNY CARSON on television and subsequently thereafter reading a book about WOODY ALLEN. HICKS being the force of nature that he was, he very much took concept of being a COMEDIAN to heart and self-taught himself as well as local friend DWIGHT SLADE to write and perform at school.  this led to them trying out and becoming regulars at the recently built COMIX ANNEX in nearby HOUSTON as teenagers.  SLADE's family didnt like this and moved to OREGON abruptly, leaving HICKS to find his voice in isolation.

a failed stint in HOLLYWOOD where he couldnt get off the ground as a scriptwriter and a bought of alcoholism after returning to HOUSTON later, HICKS took his drug intake to the extreme and somehow walked it back.  that sense of SELF-DISCOVERY and SELF-KNOWLEDGE gained through experience, both physical and chemical (as well as a healthy sprinkling of EASTERN PHILOSOPHY), informed his new material that transcended the form.  this is the period of his career for which he is much CELEBRATED and has become something of a CULTURAL ICON and FOLK HERO for his acolytes, including ALTERNATIVE METAL band TOOL whose album AENIMA is an extended MEDITATION of sorts on the METAPHYSICAL CONCEPTS in HICKS' routines regarding the NATURE OF REALITY and the COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS being the manifestation of a single expression, a single vibration.  that WE ARE ALL GOD and that we are all of each other.

HICKS in his later years was causticly POLITICAL in his STAND-UP, being unnerved by the televised wanton death of the first GULF WAR and the ATF's alleged overreach in firing first on the nearby WACO BRANCH DAVIDIAN compound headed cult leader DAVID KORESH.  for HICKS, who had recently been diagnosed with late-stage PANCREATIC CANCER and had a failed appearance on LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN (of which his brilliant turn was excised from broadcast due to supposed "standards and practices" by LETTERMAN himself), the two examples of government overreach for him translated to an infringement on FREEDOM.  we armed IRAQ during their war with IRAN and then turned on them when they got in the way of our oil interests.  footage shows that the fire that took out the BRANCH DAVIDIAN compound originated with the ATF contrary to reports at the time.  for HICKS, this all meant that if you were POLITICAL and monetarily WEAK, you had no voice or rights worth defending in the UNITED STATES.

in the years since its difficult to not see our current predicament with CLIMATE CHANGE, ANTI-INTELLECTUALISM and POLITICAL CORRUPTION in a HICKSIAN light.  in the aftermath of the 2008 economic meltdown, homeowners got screwed and thrown on the street while powerful banks restored despite their insatiable GREED being the root of the disaster.  and dont get me started on the second GULF WAR in the aftermath of 9/11.  the continued prescience of his ideas regarding the AMERICAN culture and politics is remarkable to say the least.  but his insight into the sad VANITY and stale MYOPIA at the heart of the AMERICAN DREAM is the dagger that continues to pierce the veil of our collective national SELF-DELUSION.  the ILLUSION that we are a force for good in the world, that we are somehow EXCEPTIONAL or WORTHY of the power and influence we've nurtured through the past two centuries.  for me, his pointing out and evisceration of that extended FALLACY for what it is, a DELUSION, is what cements his cultural legacy as a COMEDIAN of the first order and modern MORAL PHILOSOPHER in my humble estimation.  he is someone i continually check in on and reacquaint myself with his ideas, as they are always relevant to my identity as a QUESTIONING and INQUISITIVE AMERICAN.

seriously, i should have known better reading anything by NORM MACDONALD.

this "memoir" ironically entitled BASED ON A TRUE STORY: NOT A MEMOIR (RANDOM HOUSE, 2016). comes from none other than MACDONALD, a man whose job description is to DEFY EXPECTATION.  can't say it is not an accurate title, since being "based on true story" is an admittance of sorts that what you are about to enter is not entirely factual, true or based in any demonstrative reality that humans encounter on a daily basis.

the world of this "memoir" is one that allows MACDONALD to go on a series of inane trips and encounters that have NOTHING TO DO WITH ANYTHING.  things like going on a drug fueled bender in LAS VEGAS gambling away life savings to hopefully garner funds for a ranch in MONTANA while reminiscing about how you once took a MAKE-A-WISH patient to CANADA to help him fulfill his dream of stabbing a baby seal between the eyes.  and so on.  only interspersed between this seemingly random INSANITY are brief asides about SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, meeting CHRIS FARLEY, hosting WEEKEND UPDATE and his film DIRTY WORK (MGM, 1998).  and how did he go about securing the much heralded WEEKEND UPDATE gig you may ask?  through peddling opiates to show producer LORNE MICHAELS, of course.

reading this book is akin to listening to MACDONALD's legendary "moth" joke (embedded below from a celebrated CONAN appearance).  in fact, the joke is included in BASED ON A TRUE STORY as being said by a doctor at a hospital before getting into a fight with MACDONALD.  

this non-memoir is in essence an ENDURANCE TEST.  all premise and no punch line or paint.  but maybe that is the joke.  the joke is on me for spending time and energy to read it expecting anything.  and that is why i love MACDONALD.  just the fact that he would write a memoir that defied all expectations of the genre.  talk about playing the long game.  well played sir, well played. 

​you are still missed.

RIP NORM MACDONALD

ive been rewatching CONAN O'BRIEN clips for months now and basically rediscovering the COMEDY GENIUS that is comedy writer BRIAN STACK in the process.  i just gradually came to realize that he was at the heart of many of my favorite sketches that are absolutely RIDICULOUS.  over his 18 years following CONAN on all three of his shows iterations, STACK created and played on so many great sketches like "THE INTERRUPTER," "STEVE ST. HELENS," "JOE GALLIANO," "THE FANTASTIC GUY," "THE SLIPNUTZ," "THE GHOST CROONER, "INAPPROPRIATE RESPONSE CHANNEL," "TWO GUYS FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION," "BULLET-PROOF LEGS," "WIKIBEAR," "HANNIGAN THE SALESMAN" and "FRANKENSTEIN WASTES A MINUTE OF OUR TIME" among many others.

what makes STACK so funny is his unflappable FEARLESSNESS and ability to fully commit to being irredeemably ABSURD, no matter how JUVENILE or BRILLIANT the material is.  if im having a bad day,  my go to move for the longest time was to watch anything NORM MACDONALD-related.  that still stands but now trying to find classic STACK sketches on CONAN is close behind.  STACK has been writing for fellow SECOND CITY alumni STEPHEN COLBERT on his LATE SHOW program on CBS since taking over for comedy legend DAVID LETTERMAN in 2015 and is celebrated for his voice over reoccurring sketches like "GOD," "CARTOON DONALD TRUMP" and "THE GHOST OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN."

if you are not familiar with his work, definitely check out some of the clips below from both CONAN and COLBERT.  BRIAN STACK is most definitely worth it.

touring is an activity that often gets romanticized in the public consciousness since it reeks of personal freedom and the seemingly endless enticing possibilities that come with a constant change in scenery.  the REALITY is much different, as witnessed in NEW YORK CITY comedian TODD BARRY's tour memoir THANK YOU FOR COMING TO HATTIESBURG: ONE COMEDIAN'S TOUR OF NOT-QUITE-THE-BIGGEST CITIES IN THE WORLD (SIMON & SCHUSTER, 2017) which effectively journals his time on the road at small secondary and tertiary stateside markets. 

this memoir is less about his craft as a writer and comedian and more about trying to not get ripped off by small-time promotors, enduring multiple connecting flights and combatting BOREDOM on tour by seeking quality COFFEE and FOOD, as well as small museums and eccentric roadside attractions.  the nearest comparison i could relate to this memoir is HENRY ROLLINS' similarly constructed GET IN THE VAN: ON THE ROAD WITH BLACK FLAG (review linked HERE) which follows the personal hardships of a life on the road with no guard rails or safety nets.  BLACK FLAG at the time was trailblazing a new path and establishing a network of nontraditional venues and communities and ROLLINS account gets into the MINUTIAE of what said travails meant on a day-to-day basis.  it also gets at the PERSONAL TOLL of such an extreme NOMADIC existence, which is similarly relayed in BARRY's less extreme memoir. 

you really get the sense in THANK YOU FOR COMING TO HATTIESBURG, that the sheer REPETITION of the experience is what leads to all these cycles of experiencing new physical situations, such as commenting on the quality of hotel accommodations, backstage green rooms, bathroom cleanliness, venue layout and REFRESHMENTS available on site.  i imagine once you have your jokes down and your routine polished, the routine physical details of your predictable  day-to-day existence are what take over, which is the opposite of the romanticization of being on the road for a living. 

which is the point.

but i think BARRY is doing a service in promoting and, in essence, glorifying these small venues in out-of-the-way cities and towns in his memoir.  it shows that meaningful ART and CULTURE can happen anywhere, even ASBURY PARK or rural MISSISSIPPI.  kind of ironic it took a NEW YORKER to make that point.  THANK YOU FOR COMING TO HATTIESBURG is definitely a quirky yet thoroughly enjoyable look at life on the road and as a solitary entertainer.  i dont know how standup comedians do it, i would be absolutely petrified having to walk into new surroundings and attempt to make a room full of strangers laugh.  respect.

i first became aware of AMY POEHLER via her short-lived cable show UPRIGHT CITIZENS BRIGADE (COMEDY CENTRAL, 1998-2000).  in essence i was such a big fan of MR. SHOW (HBO, 1995-1998) after the fact that i went back in search anything similar from that period which led me to shows like THE STATE (MTV, 1993-1995) and KIDS IN THE HALL (CBC, 1989-1995).  i was made aware of her again when i discovered the UCB THEATER in NYC when a friend from graduate school and his improv group did a show there in the late 2000s.

her memoir YES PLEASE (HARPERCOLLINS, 2018) is a playfully sarcastic take on being a woman in COMEDY.  she tackles everything from WRITING, DIVORCE, MOTHERHOOD, CHILDHOOD, THE ART OF IMPROVISATION, CREATIVITY,  DOUBLE STANDARDS, WRITING ROOMS, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, SECOND CITY,  TOXIC MASCULINITY, FORGIVENESS, OWNING YOUR MISTAKES, WHITE PRIVILEGE and the like with poise, dignity and more than a little self-flagellation.  she comes across as someone cognizant of greater forces that affect her psychological and emotional well-being and seems somewhat on top of combating such with humor and grace.

for me the most interesting aspects of this book revolve less around her career and more around her personal and professional relationships.  reading about how she interacts with COLLABORATORS, FAMILY and even her EX-HUSBAND really gives you a sense of the impossible complexity of maintaining the balance of a career and family life.  you also get the sense that while she seeks outside affirmation and the "pudding" of winning awards, she similarly gets equal gratification from devising up some group hijinks among the nominees to combat the misogynistic trope and bad optics of woman battling each other.  awards are dumb and ultimately meaningless compared to the work itself and the collaboration between partners and ultimately the shared communication with an audience.  that interaction seems to be the heart of this book, POEHLER's efforts to communicate the COMMON HUMANITY of her characters, whether on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (NBC, cast member, 2001-2008) or PARKS AND RECREATION (NBC, 2009-2015) among her previously mentioned projects.

my only gripe with this book is how she seems to routinely quote and lionize LOUIS C.K. as some sort of zen master who has a pithy quote for every difficult life situation.  obviously that didn't age so well and is a little awkward to read,  yet entirely understandable given their past collaborations pre-scandal.

what did age well is everything related to frequent collaborator and "wifey" TINA FEY, who as a writer and producer seems to utilize her platform(s) to promote women (and men) that she feels deserving of the opportunity.  i think ultimately that is the model that POEHLER wants for her legacy as evidenced by her grassroots involvement with IMPROVISATIONAL COMEDY and the UCB THEATERS in both NYC and LOS ANGELES (along with their associated training centers).  IMPROVISATION by definition is the giving of oneself to the premise of an absurd collective identity that only works with total commitment.  seems as fitting a metaphor as any other for her efforts.

its funny how that concept of "paying it forward" never gets brought up with all the biographies i've read concerning male artists and musicians.  must be a guy thing, i guess?

DESUS & MERO is some of the funniest shit i have seen in years.

i know DESUS NICE & THE KID MERO represent a different voice in comedy and bring a much needed urban perspective to late night, but forget all that.  they are just hands down funnier than the competition.  and their takedowns of industry goons (cough, cough, DJ ENVY) are both savage and legendary.

in a perfect world these guys would have a network show, but sadly we dont live in that world. thus JIMMY FALLON.  until then i have to hand it to SHOWTIME for outbidding VICELAND to bring these guys over.

their show is definitely worth checking out.  you're welcome.

i cant recall when i became aware of the classic BRITISH comedy show YES MINISTER (BBC, 1980-84) but the premise of the show still feels relevant today in a political climate full of commonly used conspiracy terminology like the deep state and fake news.  

the premise deals with a lowly minster newly sworn in to a minor department in the BRITISH bureaucracy.  idealistic, wet behind the ears and naive to the machinations of government he is routinely put in ever more dire situations by his aide.  every statement he makes is taken and interpreted in a manner that makes the minister look weak, uninformed and daft.  as the aide and other "backbenchers" of the civil service are present and unchanging throughout all administrations, the show gives off the impression that it is really they that hold the reigns of power, not public officials.  the main aide to the MP, expertly played by SIR NIGEL HAWTHORNE, is as ruthless and linguistically manipulative a character as SHAKESPEARE's IAGO.

comedy-wise it is a much smarter version of any BUGS BUNNY / ELMER FUDD cartoon, often lampooning the OXBRIDGE and ETON/HARROW/RADLEY crowd and their pretensions of incontestable refined sophistication and intelligence.  the fact that an aide and an anonymous sea of civil servants could upend this dunce is almost a victory for common BRITAINS.

obviously now in the age of TRUMP this who premise is reversed, these civil servants seen at best as obstructionists to the will of the people and at worst an enemy within.

beyond interesting, and deeply hilarious, example of BRITISH comedy made even more timely in our current climate.  whats even more biting is the fact that the follow-up series was YES PRIME MINISTER (BBC, 1986-88) as the blabbering idiot of an MP, deftly played by PAUL EDDINGTON, moved up the food chain, kinda like our resident idiot.

years ago i spent a week the summer before i started graduate school at childhood friend's place in MONTREAL.  what a gorgeous enchanted city, especially during the summertime.  i'd never been to CANADA, only made fun of it my entire waking life at that point.  besides eating smoked meat late night at the famous SCHWARTZ'S DELI and hanging out with my friend's peers and acquaintances, what i remember most fondly is watching this reality show KENNY VS. SPENNY (CBC, 2003-2010) on repeat.

it blew my mind.

first off, i hate REALITY TV as a matter of principal.  i just feel that they are mindless dribble and the worst kind of voyeurism since they elevate attention-seeking cretins hungry for 10 minutes of celebrity.  but this was different.  the show is basically two friends (KENNY HOTZ and SPENCER RICE) that have a competition each week.  they agree on a challenge and then the person that loses said competition gets humiliated by the other at the end of the show.  KENNY is basically the devil incarnate, always trying to find loopholes to the rules and taking advantage of his friend SPENCER, who is likewise a stand-up yet gullible figure. some of these competitions are brutal, such as:

• WHO CAN STAY NAKED THE LONGEST?
• WHO CAN KISS MORE WOMEN?
• WHO CAN MAKE A BETTER PORNO?
• WHO CAN SELL MORE BIBLES?
• WHO DO GAY GUYS LIKE MORE?
• WHO CAN WEAR A DEAD OCTOPUS ON THEIR HEAD THE LONGEST?
• WHO CAN LIFT MORE WEIGHT WITH THEIR GENITALS?
• FIRST GUY TO GET A BONER LOSES.
• WHO CAN WIN A TEN MILE RACE?
• WHO CAN BE TIED TO A GOAT THE LONGEST?
• WHO CAN COMMIT THE MOST CRIMES?
• WHO CAN BONE MORE WOMEN?
• WHO'S THE BETTER JEW?

this show was on network television (CBC no less) and it was easily, scripted or not (i still dont know), the most mean-spirited thing i have seen on television to date.  for the DEAD OCTOPUS episode KENNY slips SPENCER LSD and convinces him that he is being chased, resulting in SPENCER lying in a fetal position crying for help.  for the KISSING THE MOST WOMEN episode KENNY decides to kiss SPENCER's sister in front of him.  for the 10 MILE RACE episode KENNY knew SPENCER was more athletic so he got him away from the track where they were to race at a predetermined time by having SPENCER's mom convince her son that she got cancer and needed him at the hospital.  the cruelty is absolutely boundless on this show, which blew me away because its CANADIAN.  out of 80+ episodes i must have watched 50 over a few days.  i was obsessed.

it was a weird trip because at some point on television there was a televised debate for some public office where one candidate said to the other that he "disagreed intensely based on firm principles."  it was so CANADIAN because they didn't demean one another.  fast forward a few nights of watching KENNY VS SPENNY and my opinion of CANADIANS has permanently shifted.  plus deep down i know im more SPENCER than KENNY, sadly.

im telling you, this is the most debased, depraved, irredeemably cruel show i've ever watched.  I TOTALLY RECOMMEND IT.