Boo! You Suck!
November 29, 2006 · Print This Article
Today’s episode is all about hecklers. Those charming comedy club patrons that just can’t see themselves enjoying the show, unless they’re the center of attention.
Brian tries to figure out what compels people to pay money to make an ass of themselves. Is it jealousy? Drunkeness? Or an overall sense of self loathing. Brian also tries to disect the art of dealaing with a heckler. As Kenny Rodgers once said, “You gotta know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, and know when to make some tasty rotisserie chicken”.
Finally, we revisit Michael “But I have a black friend” Richards a week after N-Day. Have you heard the lame apologys? Does anyone think his actions were justified? And will you ever to be able to watch Seinfeld again without racial slurs popping into your head.
Email: brianmcomedy@gmail.com
Give the show a call: 206-600-4325
for some odd reason I LOVE hecklers. IF you watch “Bill Bellamy’s ‘Who’s Got Jokes’” (saturday nights on TVone) they bring amatuer comedians for competition and they plant hecklers in the crowd and judge their reactions. Its a great way to see how to react to hecklers. Most cant handle it but every once in awhile you get those “types” of comedians that play the crowd very well. Alot of people cant handle it. one of my favorite comedian (D.L. Hughley) loves to engage the crowd and has built his career on hecklers.
You know what I just don’t understand is people laughing and cheering and reciting those stupid nursery rhymes at those shows. I love live comedy, but I’d never pay to see a comedy perform OLD material. I think they’re called punchlines for a reason…they’re supposed to hit and suprise you. I’m always dumdfounded when you see a comedian with an album or dvd or whatever and some clown is yelling out requests from the audience to perform jokes they KNOW. The diceman’s following was just maniacal. I remember a couple of clowns in high school dropping the “get the phuc outta the country” nonsense.
That’s a great point. Some comics have bits that people just can’t get enough of. It becomes almost like a band not playing their biggest hit. I’ve seen Chris Rock live twice, and both times retards were in the back screaming, “Do the toss salad man”, like it was freebird.
Bonna, along the same lines as Hughley I think you have to mention Steve Harvey as an example of someone who is exceptionally good at working with the crowd. I think the original Kings of Comedy DVD when he is talking to the guy in the leather jacket who leaves for the bathroom during his set was the best example I’ve ever seen of being able to bring the audience into the set but keeping control of the situation.
patch, for most comedians I agree with you, but for some comedians the joke is in the delivery. Chris Rock is actually the best example in my mind. It’s not necessarily the jokes he tells, I mean there were a lot of comedians doing Marion Barry jokes back when he put out his first albums, but the way he delivered them was genius. Even though I’ve heard them both at least a half dozen times I can still listen to Born Suspect or Bring the Pain and laugh out loud consistently.
I totally agree with Brandon, delivery is 85 percent of the joke. The minor inflections and even physical gestures.
A great example is Robin Harris with his joke about the Piccolo player in the Compton church (my second favorite joke ever). The way it is told is as important as what is actually said. Robin Harris was a funny ass man. I discvered him when I was in 6th grade. It began my corruption to the degenerate I am now.
But BMo, on you request for show topics, how about comedians who are more noted for characters rather than their own “comedic stylings”. Examples would be Mike Myers(Waynes World), Dana Carvey(that damn turtle man detective shit he did), Sasha Baron Cohen (Ali G./Borat) and even Andy Kaufman (Tony Clifton).
Might be interesting, might not
Brian,
I forget whether it was on this last episode or the one before that when you were talking about impressionists, but I would love to hear your take on Darrell Hammond. Dude’s been on SNL for something like 11 years and I still find him to be one of the most consistently funny people on the show, and most of what he does is impressions. Has he been stuck on SNL because that is the only real forum out there right now for impressionists? Other big talents like Tracy Morgan, Tina Fey, etc. didn’t seem to have nearly as long a run on SNL before they went on to movies and TV (and in my opinion the Tracy Morgan show was one of the most underrated sitcoms in the past few years, I thought it was way funnier than crap like Two and a Half Men). Meanwhile the only television roles I’ve seen Hammond in were as some evil bastard on Law and Order. Is SNL the be-all-end-all for impressionists?
I like Snappy’s topic suggestion. I would include Jim Carrey in that group too, along with Chris Farley and Gilda Radner, maybe?
Now that I mention Farley and Radner… maybe a “gone too soon” series, with them and Belushi, Hicks, Hedberg?
SAlly’s topic is a must! Gone too soon. Yeah, great topic.
Man, Hicks and Hedberg were great.
Speaking of which, BMo, stay off the black tar heroin, we need you around for a long time to come. I don’t want to be telling my grandkids, “you know that bootleg mp3 your listening to? Well, I used to hear him on the podcast. That was a show on the internet. He would just laugh and tell jokes, and read the e-mail. ‘ole BMo is what we called him, it wasn’t until years later he became known as “the godfather of comedy”. I still remember when the assless chaps bit began. Yeah, good times, good times, until that fateful night in the motel on the side of highway 10.
Yeah, turns out all they found in the room was his cold dead body, a half empty schlitz malt liquor, a green apple, a blowup doll tied off at the head (with only the head inflated) and reruns of happy days playing on repeat. Guess we will never know what “really” got him”
and that would be the end of the tale.
Keep up the great work.
Speaking of Hicks…..isn’t he the biggest rock star comedian ever?
Where was he in the November shows?
Loving the podcast show all the way from the UK!
Sorry to be a posting whore, but Danny DeVito is my hero.
Apparantly he and pal George Clooney were out drinking all night last night, and Danny appeared on the View this morning drunk. He had not slept since the two were out, and apparantly wasn’t too worried about speaking his mind.
This is excerpted from an article;
When photogs told George Clooney about Danny’s performance, he shot back, “The guy’s a pro.” Apparently, he missed Danny’s “lively” performance on the gabfest. After admitting he’d been out with George Clooney all night, DeVito said, “I knew it was the last seven limoncellos that was going to get me.”
During the ABC broadcast, DeVito, 62, had slurred his words, told rambling stories and at one point sat on Rosie O’Donnell’s lap. “Danny DeVito is not an alcoholic. He’s just a guy who had too many to drink with his friends,” pal O’Donnell said. “He was here, he was enjoying himself, he had a wonderful night out, and he was a little drunk.”
“I slept in the [White House’s] Lincoln Bedroom with Rhea,” he said. “We went in and we made it our business to really wreck the joint. I mean, every place in that bedroom was …” “Utilized?” O’Donnell said. “Utilized!” DeVito said. “I didn’t go [to the White House] after, you know, numb nuts,” DeVito said, alluding to President Bush. ABC censors bleeped the phrase “numb nuts,” but it was clear from reading DeVito’s lips that was what he said.
I learned two things from this;
1. Never go to an interview drunk and overly tired.
2. Danny DeVitto hangs out with George Clooney. Who knew.
Here is the vid of DeVitto;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B8MFKs6qpU
Here is a comedy related news article;
Jody Kerns wins top comedian prize at Visani
By BRIAN GLEASON
Staff Writer
Jody Kerns topped nine other comics to win the 24th Carnival Comedy Challenge at Visani restaurant’s Comedy Zone Wednesday night and earn a career-changing gig on the popular cruise line.
Kerns wept as her name was announced by Comedy Challenge executive producer Al Ernst, a former Carnival Cruise Lines entertainer of the year, who created the contest three years ago.
“I have been so sick,” Kerns said after the performance, dabbing a tissue at her nose and eyes in a quiet room away from the main hall at Visani. “I had no hopes. I hope I have broken a barrier here tonight.”
The Virginia comic won over the crowd with her twangy delivery of “mostly true” stories about mammograms, aging and marriage. She laughed at most of her jokes along with the audience of more than 200 people, who whooped and cheered when her victory over finalists Chris Georgeous and Michael Allen was announced.
She recalled her “Momma” telling her why the hair on her legs didn’t grow as quickly now the she’s older.
“Momma said, ‘That’s just nature’s way of giving you more time to work on your mustache,’” Kerns quipped.
“I’m very happily married,” she told a mostly older audience, including a healthy number of women Kerns’ age, “because my husband allows me to date.”
Kerr got into comedy late in life, but was always the “class clown” growing up, she said after the show. After her husband’s employer, Proctor-Silex, transferred him from Ohio to Richmond, Va, the couple received tickets to a local comedy club where nationally known comedian Paula Poundstone performed.
“I said, ‘You know, I think I can do this,’” Kerns recalled saying. “My husband thought it was a nice little hobby. Then I started going out on the road and he didn’t think much of the hobby.”
Now Kerns has a chance to take her act on the high seas on one of Carnival’s 22 cruise liners. Ernst said she will have to demonstrate two 25-minute acts, one aimed at families and one for an adults-only audience, to Carnival’s entertainment director. How well she performs in her first ocean-going gig will determine how far her victory will take her.
“If Jody goes out there and does a great job, she’ll have more gigs,” Ernst said.
“I’ve waited all my life for this,” Kerns said.
She already has an invitation to return to Visani, said owner Mark Ascuitto, who served as one of the judges.
Another winner of the evening was Visani itself. Ernst, who will be performing at the Comedy Zone tonight, Friday and Saturday, who said the restaurant/club’s distinctive décor and castlelike exterior “classes up our industry.” He congratulated the audience for breaking the Comedy Challenge record for the number of ballots cast.
The best part about the DeVito story is the “anchors” at Fox news saying that DeVito should be criticized the same way Michael Richards and Mel Gibson were. They should just change their name to the Fascist Channel.
I have to disagree with you Nick. When I say rock star I’m refering to comics who get to be so big they’re treated like rock stars, ie, selling out arenas, people waiting in line for hours, etc. Hicks was probably thte most underrated comic of that time. He was brilliantly funny but never really found mass appeal. At least that’s my opinion.
Ahh, I thought you were talking about appeal and image….I came into this a bit late, Hicks certainly had the rock star lifestyle and content but not the success until after his death. He loved music and is adored by many musicians (e.g. Tool, Radiohead)
Although I’m sure he can fit into many categories in the future……
….I think in his death he is treated like a rock star such as Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix, etc, etc and is so iconic and still bringing out good records!
Keep up the good work, loving the podcast!
That Artie Lang Clip is so F’ing funny!
A few words on hecklers: Comedians, unfortunately, invite it on themselves sometimes. The only scene in Tourgasm that I liked was when Dane Cook told Jay Adams not to tell the crowd that the joke he just told them was new material that he was working on because it would ruin the illusion that he was just having a natural conversation with them. Stand up is an art, you want to suck the audience in and make it an intimate experience. Sometimes it gets too intimate and an audience member thinks that you are engaged in a two way conversation. Mostly, these people aren’t regulars to the comedy club, but I’m not sure it can be avoided. The other type of heckler that wants to throw insults is just an asshole and, as we all should agree, assholes are unavoidable as well.