by Klaus Kinski

Pete Holmes @ Rock n ROFL 2008 (more by Elizabeth Weinberg)

In the Klaus Kinski Hall of Fame of Comedians Your Man Klaus Loves Endlessly Even Though They've Left NYC for Greener Pastures, Pete Holmes has his own gallery dedicated to his honor. Bear in mind that this hall of fame only exists in the meaty gore-locker between my ears so visitors are not permitted. But it is a very prestigious place to be, youbetcha. As a matter of fact, when our fearless leader BV asked me to curate a comedy line-up for the premier installment of our epic but short-lived Brooklyn Vegan and Klaus Kinski Present Rock n' ROFL, Pete was the first person I asked and first to commit to the bill. Back in those days, you could catch Pete practically any night of the week here in NYC. Nowadays he is in LA and, by Cod, he's thriving. From his website:

Pete Holmes is a comedian. Maybe you saw his half-hour Comedy Central Presents. Or on Conan. Or Jimmy Fallon. Or maybe you saw him on VH1. Or heard him as the e*trade baby or on Comedy Central's Ugly Americans. Pete was named one of Variety's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2011. Pete also draws cartoons for The New Yorker, wrote for NBC's "Outsourced" and currently writes for FOX's "I Hate My Teenage Daughter." He is a regular on CollegeHumor.com and makes videos with FrontPage Films.

That blurb fails to mention that he has his own podcast called You Made it Weird which is one of the best, most entertaining podcasts in a comedy world that is practically choking to death on half assed, shitty, so-called comedy podcasts. THEREFORE, I am thrilled to fits to tell you that not only is Pete coming back to NYC for a show, but that show will be a live podcast of You Made it Weird!! The show will take place on Saturday April 7th at 10:00pm at the Gramercy Theater. Guests will include Jim Gaffigan, Michael Ian Black, and the great Matt McCarthy!! You can get regular tickets or VIP tickets. But considering Gaffigan sells out some of the largest theaters in the country ON HIS OWN, I think the theater will be a madhouse. My advice to you? Spend the extra $$$ and get a VIP ticket so you get early entry (and a signed poster) and, thus, a great seat. Regular seats are only $12 which is a preposterous bargain, bro. This show is going to be a blast, and I promise it will sell out so get on this. More Pete dates below...

Oh, and speaking of live podcasts taking place at the Gramercy Theater, get a load of this; Klaus fave Doug Benson will be bringing his I Love Movies podcast to the Gramercy on June 11th at 8:00pm. I haven't a clue who Doug's guests will be, but I've been to his Doug Loves Movies live shows before and let me tell ya, he brings line-ups worth 8 times the price of admission.

I also noticed in the dates below that Doug is recording a live album in Bellevue WA. on 4/20 which totally reminded me that Brooklyn-based comedy hero Eugene Mirman will bring his normally Brooklyn-Based comedy festival The Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival to Seattle Washington from March 29th - March 31st, 2012!! Such good news for Seattle-based BV readers! You are in for SUCH a treat! You'll be getting:

* Invite Them Up, 3/29 at The Crocodile Hosted by Bobby Tisdale w/ Eugene Mirman, Ron Funches and more TBA!
*Star Talk Live, 3/30 at the Neptune Hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson w/ Paul F. Tompkins, Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman and special guests!
*Talent Show, 3/31 at The Crocodile Hosted by Elna Baker and Kevin Townley with Eugene Mirman, Bobby Tisdale and more TBA!
*Pretty Good Friends, 3/31 at the Neptune With Bobcat Goldthwait, Todd Barry, Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman, Kurt Braunohler and more TBA!

Wow!

Tour dates below...

Continue reading "Pete Holmes touring, recording a podcast in NYC; Doug Benson too; Eugene Mirman Fest coming to Washington"

Pat Kiernan

Demtetri Martin has added a third show at NYU which is on sale now. It doesn't appear to also be a taping (just a rehearsal), and happens towards the end of his tour and three days before his other two NYC shows which are tapings.

That same week, astrophysicist Neil de Grasse Tyson returns to the Bell House along with Eugene Mirman for another edition of Star Talk Live! Tickets just went on sale.

NY1's Pat Kiernan hosts trivia at the Bell House on February 27 (which is one day before Stephen Tobolowsky appears at the venue).

Meanwhile, you have ONLY THREE MORE CHANCES to see Daniel Kitson at St. Ann's.

Watch "Shit Pat Kiernan says" below...

Continue reading "Demetri Martin adds 3rd NYC show; Neil de Grasse Tyson & Pat Kiernan returning to the Bell House; Kitson done soon"

Though it doesn't say it on their website, Mike Birbiglia promises that he's performing "Sleepwalk With Me" at Comic Strip Live tonight (12/12).

UPDATE: Mike's show starts at 8:30 and tickets go on sale at noon.

I don't know what time it starts and ends, but if it's done early enough you can then head to UCB West for this week's edition of Whiplash with Leo Allen and guests.

Alternatively, you can spend your Monday night with Kurt and Kristen in Brooklyn at Littlefield. Their guests at Hot Tub this week include Michael Showalter.

Head back to UCB West on Wednesday after work for a live WFMU broadcast of "7 Second Delay" with guests Lou Reed and Suzanne Vega.

UPDATE: Lou Reed is also making an appearance at Book Court tonight.

In other "live" comedy news, tickets are on sale for Star Talk Live at The Bell House on Sunday, December 18th. The lineup includdes Neil de Grasse Tyson, Eugene Mirman, and John Hodgman.

One night after that is the Hot Tub Holiday edition at Littlefield with Kurt, Kristen, Jon Glaser, Hannibal Buress, Adam the Real Man, and musical guest River City Extension.

Speaking of Hannibal Buress, he opened two shows for Aziz Ansari at the Bell House on Saturday night. We posted pictures.

Speaking of the Bell House, Rocket from the Tombs plays there tonight!

by Klaus Kinski

Chris Hardwick, Adam Savage, Matt Mira & Jonah Ray at Largo in LA

On August 16, 2011 at 8:18 PM, a whistle-blower came forward and called me out on something that I've been hoping would go unnoticed during my tenure as an esteemed, beloved, respected, deified, reviled, BV contributor; my grammar sux. So now I am back at school, bonin' up my wordliness. But with all this classwork and homework, I only have time for a quickie post thingy for you fine folks. So here goes. Tickets for the partially Kickstarter-funded 2011 Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival went on sale a while back and, as expected, ticket sales were rather brisk (brisque?). As a matter of fact, a few shows sold out faster than I could say "It's IT'S not ITS?" The shows that sold out fast were An Evening Of Science featuring StarTalk Live with Neil deGrasse Tyson plus Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman and Scott Adsit on Thursday September 15th and The Archer Variety Hour and Panel featuring Jon Benjamin, Aisha Tyler, Adam Reed, Jessica Walter, Matt Thompson, Amber Nash, and Lucky Yates which happens on Saturday September 17th. Both shows are happening at the Bell House. HOWEVER, according to delightful tweet by the Bell House Bot, tickets for those shows will go back on sale today, Tuesday September 13 at noon! Get those F5 buttons ready people! Full updated fest lineup below.

In other sold out Bell House comedy news, once the smoke clears from the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival, the great Marc Maron will be in the House on Monday September 19th for a live taping of his better-than-most-other-podcasts podcast WTF with Marc Maron. Yeah, it's sold out, but so were those Eugene Fest shows... so you never know.

Oh, and speaking of live podcast tapings, The Gramercy Theater, who has a new booker in their ranks, has some pretty f-ing awesome podcast tapings coming up. On Friday October 14th, comedian Chris Hardwick brings The Nerdist podcast to the Gramercy with guests Jonah Ray and Matt Mira. In case you want to know, Jonah Ray is one of my favorite LA-based comedians in the business and it's a fucking honor to have him gracing our city with his tall, bespeckled, full head of hair having self. Do you like apples? Jonah is amazing. How d'ya like dem fackin apples? Tickets went on sale back on August 26th and the demand was so great that the added a show later that evening, happening at 10:30pm. It's going to be so awesome. Trust me. Hummus breath.

And speaking of the Gramercy Theater and live tapings, Klaus favorite Doug Benson will have a whopping TWO LIVE PODCAST TAPINGS at the Gramercy on Sunday October 23rd. He kicks things off at 4:20pm with The Benson Interruption. If you haven't seen an Interruption, you are missing out on some of the funniest shit ever. Doug invites his comedy friends to the stage and, while they attempt to do stand-up, he interrupts them. It. Is. The. Best. Tickets are on sale as I type this, so get on that shit Tout de suite. Later that evening, at 8:00pm, Doug brings his legendary Doug Loves Movies podcast to the Gramercy stage. At this point in the evening, I can tell you that Doug and his yet-to-be-announced panelists will be feeling prettttttty loose. As a person who has seen these shows live in the past, I must insist you dust the cobwebs off your wallet and check these suckers out. It may be the best Saturday October 23rd in your miserable lives. And after the shows, go home and buy Doug Benson's new CD Potty Mouth. The package features a CD AND a DVD. Schwing. Welp, I guess I gotta hit the books. Smell ya later.

Continue reading "Nerdist, Doug Benson & Marc Maron keep taping podcasts in NYC, Eugene Mirman fest coming soon (tix back on sale today)"

by Klaus Kinski

Kristen Schaal & Eugene Mirman (more by David Andrako)

When the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival reared it's beautiful head for the first time in 2008, the sheer magnitude of the thing was really and truly mind-blowing; 10 epic shows, 4 nights, 2 venues. And for reasons which I can't fully explain because I don't quite understand them myself, I thought the festival would be a one-off thing. The whole thing had a slight whiff of irony, like it was lampooning the very concept of a comedy festival. Then the sucker was back in 2009 with a similar formula; 10 epic shows, 4 nights, 2 venues, and loads of shiver-inducing top-shelf talent. "Huh," I thought, "Maybe this really is something I can look forward to as an annual event." Then, BAM, Fall 2010 comes around and with it The 2010 Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival. That time around, the festival included The Rock Shop as a third venue (note: did you get your 8/27 Ted Leo tix yet?) and featured yet another magnificent roster of talent.

Well folks, it's nearly Fall 2011 and I have some really bad news for the humorless, hummus-eating commenters out there and really GREAT news for everyone else; The Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival is BACK and will take over the Bell House and Union Hall from September 15-18, 2011. And as with previous years, the 2011 Fest is sure to blow the toupee or merkin right off your body. Expect appearances from H. Jon Benjamin, Kristen Schaal, Jon Glaser as Bobby Tisdale, Aisha Tyler, Matt Thompson, Adam Reed, Jessica Walters, Jon Hodgman, Ira Glass and way way way way way more. Brace yourself, the whole schedule with ticket info is below. Check out the coverage and news from past fests to get an idea how truly remarkable they have been.

Hey. If you think I'm done talking about Eugene Mirman, you are so fucking wrong bro. Because there is another important aspect of the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival that I've mentioned before but absolutely bears repeating; The Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival Kickstarter page. No, Eugene didn't have a DIY venue packed with $40K worth of stuff that he forgot to insure that was subsequently robbed. The Festival costs a lot of money to produce, and the talent and people behind the scenes bust their asses to make it work for little or no money. The purpose of the Kickstarter is to amass a solid kitty (a pool of money, especially one to which a number of people have contributed for a designated purpose) that Festival organizers can use to produce a series of shows that will knock your socks off. Ticket costs can only cover so much. I donated because I am not an idiot who thinks this money is going to line some doofus' pockets; I donated because I know everyone who sees these shows will end up reaping the rewards of our collective generosity. Currently at 81%, The Kickstarter Campaign ends on AUGUST 17th, which is like so soon, so please donate and make this an amazing festival for EVERYONE.

In other Mirman-related news, be advised that there is a Pretty Good Friends 5 Year Anniversary Show happening at The Bell House on Sunday, August 21 at 7:30pm featuring the great David Cross, AD Miles, and more. Tickets are $15 and are currently on sale. Get em while they last. And if you find yourself in riot stricken London at some point between October 5th and October 15th, catch one of many Pretty Good Friends shows happening at the Soho Theater. Tickets are on sale. Don't be a pratt, wanker. Shag baby! Oh, behave! Don't give me that codswallop!

Mirman Fest schedule below...

Continue reading "Eugene Mirman Comedy Fest 2011 -- lineup & tix"

photos by David Andrako

Like those who chose to spend their Friday night at an outdoor Long Island amphitheater watching Weezer & Flaming Lips, and those caught in the long line outside House of Vans, the people who decided on the free They Might Be Giants music & comedy show at Williamsburg Waterfront got wet. Visual proof continues (more about this show later), below...

Continue reading "comedy, rain & music @ Williamsburg Waterfront in pics (They Might Be Giants, Eugene Mirman, Kristen Schaal & more)"