Reviews: Cringe Humor Show, Bill Burr Live, Paul Mooney Class at the Learning Annex, STAGE TIME

DVDs
Chondra Pierce - A
Piece of My Mind

Live Comedy from the
Laff House: Make
Room for Comedy

Redneck Comedy
Roundup 2 - Bill
Engvall, Jeff Foxworthy
and Ron Shock.

Southern Gents of
Comedy - Ron White,
Vic Henley, Steve
McGrew and Otis Lee
Crenshaw

Laffapalooza #6 -
Jamie Foxx, JB
Smoove, Gerald Kelly
and Wil Sylvince

Laffapalooza #7 - Rob
Stapleton, Loni Love,
Jo Koy and James
Hannah

Laffapalooza #8 -
Rodney Perry, Tony
Roberts, Earthquake

Paul Mooney -
Analyzing White
America

Russell Peters - Two
Concerts...On Ticket

Dave Attell - Insomiac
Tour Uncensored -
Dave Attell, Dane
Cook, Greg Giraldo and
Sean Rouse

Mike Epps -
Inappropriate Behavior

Jeff Cesario - You Can
Get a Hooker
Tomorrow Night

Kims of Comedy -
Steve Byrne, Bobby
Lee, Kevin Shea and
Dr. Ken

Alonzo Bodden - Tall,
Dark & Funny

Jim Gaffigan - Beyond
the Pale

CDs
Don Rickles - Speaks

Jackie Mason - The
World According to Me

Jake Johannsen - Jake
This Dot Com

Brad Montague -
Double Live

Eric Schwartz - Wimp
Pimp

Kathleen Madigan - In
Other Words

Drew Hastings - I'm
Just Like You

Jesse Joyce - Joyce to
the World

Marc Maron - Not Sold
Out

Mike Birbiglia - Two
Drink Mike

Tom Rhodes - Hot
Sweet Ass

Jimmy Shubert -
Pandemonium

Ron White - You Can't
Fix Stupid

Books
Oliver Double - Getting
the Joke: The Inner
Workings of Stand-Up
Comedy

Ed Driscoll - Spilled
Gravy: Advice on Love,
Life, and Acceptance
from a Man Uniquely
Unqualified to Give It

Brad Stine - Live From
Middle America: Rants
from a Red-State
Comedian

Sandi C. Shore - Sandi
Shore's Secrets to
Stand-Up Success: A
Complete Step-by-Step
Workbook

Judy Brown - The
Comedy Thesaurus

Movies
March 24
Health Inspector -
Larry the Cable Guy
and Bruce Bruce star in
the comedy with
support from Lisa
Lampanelli.

April 7
The Benchwarmers -
David Spade stars with
screenwriter/comedian,
Nick Swardson, Craig
Kilborn, Norm
MacDonald and Adam
Sandler in a comedy
about a three-player
baseball team that
challenges Little
League teams.

Phat Girlz - Mo'Nique
and Godfrey star in the
comedy about love and
acceptance.

April 14
Scary Movie 4 - DeRay
Davis co-stars in the
spoof comedy with
Anna Farris and Regina
Hall.

The Wild - Eddie Izzard
lends his voice in the
animated feature.

May 19
Over the Hedge - Garry
Shandling, Wanda
Sykes and Omid Djalili
lend their voices in the
animated movie
starring Bruce Willis,
who replaces Jim
Carrey as the lead
character.

May 26
Little Men - Keenan
Ivory Wayans directs
his younger brothers,
Shawn and Marlon
Wayans in a comedy
that co-stars Tracy
Morgan, Gary Owen
and John Witherspoon.

June 16
Wordplay - Jon Stewart
shares his passion for
crossword puzzles in
this documentary
featuring Bill Clinton,
Bob Dole and Ken
Burns.

June 23
Click - Adam Sandler
stars in the comedy
about a man who finds
a universal remote.

It has been a good year for Bill Burr. The
unmistakably Boston-bred comic has gotten plenty
of exposure with his own HBO special, and a regular
stint co-hosting the Opie and Anthony radio show in
Jim Norton’s absence.

It was no surprise to see him hop on the Stress
Factory’s stage with a confident swagger and receive
roaring cheers and whistles from newly-made fans.
He immediately called out a fan that had gotten a
bit too friendly before he went up, and riffed for five
minutes with the audience howling.

Bill’s ability to be funny off the cuff (precisely the
skill that has put him in such demand on the radio)
never ceases to amaze me, nor does his ability to
deliver new material to his regular fans. Since I last
saw him, he’s managed to turn over an entire set,
and dished out tons of fresh material, and nearly
every bit of it was dynamite.

Bill has the naturally funny delivery and observational material that comics like Brian
Regan are known for, but has that sarcastic bite that East Coasters love so dearly.
Never shy to get a few scowls, Bill complained about women come after men’s time
“like psycho robots that never run out of batteries,” with a hauntingly realistic
impression of said automatons to cement the visual. And, as always, his “girlfriend”
voice is one of the funniest characters this side of Richard Pryor.

But what really makes the material work is how original, yet genuinely insightful the
foul-mouthed redhead can be. From his dissection of Barbra Walters’s uncomfortable
attempts to relate to Kanye West to his sympathy for animals that savage humans, Bill
is always spot-on. Never one to disappoint, Bill’s the kind of guy worth seeing again
and again, and if recent history is any indication, we can expect to see a lot more from
Mr. Burr.

Nearly 40 comedians and sketch comedy writers attended
the first-ever Comedy Writing Boot Camp with Paul Mooney
class at the Learning Annex this past winter. The class
quickly filled without any promotion. I discovered the class
after browsing the Annex website. On February 7th,
students arrived early at Ripley Grier Studios to see the
legendary comedian, who wrote for Saturday Night Live, In
Living Color, Sanford and Son and most notably, the late
Richard Pryor.

At 6:45pm, Mooney saunters into the classroom, introduces himself and takes a seat
at the desk. He pulls out a pen and writing pad and promptly gives the class their
instructions: Students will do three minutes of stand up and receive feedback. This
caused some confusion for at least one third of the class who attended under the
assumption that it was a sketch writing class. At the time that I registered (three weeks
prior), it was boldly noted in the class description: Come prepared with 2-3 minutes of
material. Students will be selected at random to perform and receive a professional critique!
One week before the class, the Annex sent an email saying that Mooney was asking
“students to bring 2-3 written comedy skits to class."

Mooney began with the first row of comics,
giving each student a chance to perform.
Some of the students were excited to
perform but anxious about the type of
critique he would give. After the second
student’s performance, it was clear that
his feedback was just as funny and
brutally honest as he is onstage. “You got
big titties,” he says to Nikki Chawla, a
school teacher.

"I’m just going to be real with you. The
men are going to love you for them and
women [in the audience] will hate you for
them. You’re going to have to find a way
to upstage them.” Like his in stand up,
Mooney often intersperes his critique with
history references, and in this case, he

discusses the origin of Little Black Sambo, an offensive story about a Sikh Indian. He
concludes his feedback with encouraging advice to “use what you got”, citing his
protégé, comedian Sandra Bernhard as an example.

Another student, Josh Potter ended his blue collar set talking about moving his Puerto
Rican girlfriend out of the ghetto. Before he could return to his seat, Mooney blurts:
“On the real, I know your girlfriend is black. I know a nigger lover when I see one.”

The class erupts with laughter, which sparks a mini Q&A session as students ask
Mooney about the latest in entertainment news. “The movie was too long,” he says
about the Oscar-winning film Brokeback Mountain. “You sit there and you think, ‘When
are they going to fuck?’” “What about Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt?" someone asks.
“They’re going to sell the baby on Ebay.”

At least 25 students performed within the two and half hour session. I’ve studied with
comedy instructors - some good, some not, but it’s rare to receive instruction from a
comedy legend. And not every comic can be a teacher either, but Mooney was a
natural. His critique was painfully accurate and nurturing at once.

Paul Mooney's Comedy Writing Bootcamp Class is an invaluable experience; it gave
students the opportunity to receive instruction and learn comedy history from a
comedian who has over 40 years experience. Although it wasn't marketed properly,
it is one of the best comedy courses offered in the past five years.

What did you like/dislike about the class? What did you learn?

Amy Patrick: Hearing Paul Mooney speak was a treat. It was
also informative to hear him speak about other comics. I was
surprised that it was more of a critique program and not a
lecture with a few examples critiqued.

Anonymous: Let me start by saying when I saw the Comedy
Writing Bootcamp with Paul Mooney, I couldn't sign up fast
enough! I moved from Ohio to NYC to pursue comedy.

I've performed all over the city...I enjoy comedy. I understand comedy. I love comedy.
It's my passion. That being said I was very disappointed with the class.

The reason I signed up was because I thought it would be Paul Mooney talking the art
of writing comedy. I mean, the class was called "Comedy Writing Bootcamp with Paul
Mooney," not "Three Minutes with Paul Mooney." Don't get it wrong, it was great to have
his feedback but, that's not what I signed up for. The class had nothing to do with
writing comedy...The thing is you've probably never tried to write and perform comedy
so, I can't expect you to be able to relate to what a great opportunity it would be to
learn from one of the greatest comedic minds of our time. But, should be able to relate
to not getting what you've paid for...

Josh Potter: I liked that he was very honest and upfront with everyone. I didn't like
that there wasn't a strict time limit enforced. I would definitely take the class again.

David Lewis: What I liked about the class was that Paul actually paid attention to want
the comics had to say. What I didn't like was that people didn't respect the three min
set time. I learned there are a lot of comics out there that really need coaching. I feel
that you cant be taught how to be funny either you have it or you don't.

Muhasin Muhammed: I liked that he gave each and every person the opportunity to
perform and receive a critique. He took the time to give everyone feedback that was
specific to their needs. The only thing I would like to have changed was I would rather
have listened to him talk more instead of listening to people who didn't bother to
prepare, going beyond their allotted performance time...

I realized that I shave off a lot of elements from my act due to fear of forgetting that
takes away some of my impact...This class helped me in a lot of ways, but most
importantly, it showed me the value of being able to look at your work as a critic in a
constructive manner, because that is what enables you to create the most
powerful act.

The Cringe Humor Show is fast becoming
one of New York City's top comedy shows
that consistently delivers non-stop
laughs, featuring some of the funniest
rising stars such as Jim Norton, Patrice O’
Neal, Bill Burr, Laurie Kilmartin and Robert
Kelly. Created and founded by Dokka
Productions’ principal, Masavia Greer in
2004, the show emerged as the main
attraction at The Laugh Lounge thanks in
part to the ever-growing legion of Jim
Norton and Opie & Anthony fans.

Following the success of two comedy roasts for Jim Norton and Patrice O’Neal, the show
established itself as a top draw at the 2nd Annual New York Underground Comedy
Festival. After a year and half stretch at The Laugh Lounge, CH webmaster and
producer, Patrick Milligan engineered a deal that would take the show to Times Square.
Last November, The Cringe Humor Show made its debut at The Laugh Factory. Colin
Quinn, Bonnie McFarlane, Rich Vos, Jason Good, Nathaniel Bryan and Mark Anthony
Ramirez played to the near capacity room of mostly O&A fans mixed with tourists.

Some of the highlights include:

Bonnie McFarlane on marriage: “Women still want to get married even with the wife-
killing epidemic. Remember when they used to just beat us in the good old days?”

Jim Norton on the celebrity poker shows: "Poker is a hit show…I want to see the losers
drink a gallon of gasoline and blow an AIDS patient. Let me see your poker face now…"

Vos closed the show with a 45-minute set that ended with a hilarious cell phone
conversation with McFarlane, who was waiting outside. He annihilated, despite offending
a few with his racial bits. The show was a staggering success and a stellar example of
comics pushing the envelope and challenging their audiences to laugh at topics that
make them uncomfortable.

Perhaps Greer and Milligan have perfected the recipe for producing a successful comedy
show: You create a well-defined niche (Cringe style comedy) add funny comics, develop
a loyal fan base and networking system (CH website, O&A fan sites) and secure a
venue (the spacious, upscale Laugh Factory), in a convenient location (Times Square),
which comes with a bonus: it attracts tourists.

However, what is most appealing about the show is that you don’t have to be a
“Cringe” or O&A fan to enjoy it. It’s insanely funny, entertaining and a guaranteed
good time. There are no dull, unwatchable acts to send you to the restroom. You walk
in the door knowing that you are going to laugh your ass off for the next two hours with
a full bladder.

The Cringe Humor Show continues to expand with its all-star, multifarious lineups that
include new faces such as Billy Bingo, Mike Cotayo and Chris McDevitt.
Its next great leap: a debut at Caroline’s July 12.

Nathaniel Bryan reflects on his humble
beginnings: "I’m originally from the
suburbs. We have a small black
community we like to refer as Carl."

Rich Vos snaps on Colin Quinn: "He was
coming from the [Comedy] Cellar and he
had two shows cancelled on the way." Vos
on Al Sharpton and race: "I was in Florida
when they handcuffed the five year-old
black girl. Isn’t school supposed to
prepare you for the future? The only way
Al Sharpton is going to get to the white
house is with a lantern."