Valentijn

Fox Buys Liberal Redneck Comedy Starring Trae Crowder

Fox has given a script commitment plus penalty to a half-hour single-camera comedy starring comedian Trae Crowder, best known for his stage persona the Liberal Redneck. Inspired by Crowder’s personal life, the untitled project hails from Warner Bros. TV and Rob Thomas’ studio-based Spondoolie Productions.

The comedy will be written by Crowder and John Enbom, who co-created cult Starz comedy series Party Down with Thomas, Dan Etheridge and Paul Rudd. In the Trae Crowder project, worlds collide when Trae, based on Crowder’s Liberal Redneck character, returns to his conservative Tennessee hometown to start a job at an energy research facility with his California-born wife in tow. Enbom executive produces with Thomas and his frequent collaborators Etheridge and Danielle Stokdyk. Crowder co-executive produces.

Crowder became a breakout star with his Liberal Redneck videos, which have gone viral on Facebook since launching in May, generating more than 60 million views and landing Crowder a weekly correspondent feature with the New York Daily News. Crowder, who grew up in trailer parks in rural Tennessee, saw his video criticizing the North Carolina “bathroom bill” exploding with more than 26 million views on Facebook. He has been profiled on ABC’s Nightline and CNN’sTonight with Don Lemon; he was a season-finale guest on HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher; and he also got the attention of WBTV, which signed him in a development deal that resulted in the Fox comedy project. You can watch a video of Trae/The Liberal Redneck taking on Trump back in June below the post.

Crowder, along with his comedy touring partners, Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester, co-authored The Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Draggin’ Dixie Outta the Dark, published last month by Atria Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The trio of political satirists and stand-up comedians are touring nationally in clubs and theaters as the wellRED comedy tour. Crowder is repped by Arsonhouse Entertainment, Super Artist Agency and attorney Bradley Garrett.

Thomas is the writer/executive producer behind one of the highest-profile projects at the CW this season, a series based on The Lost Boys movie. He, along with Stokdyk and Dan Etheridge, also executive produces drama project Criminal Magic at the CW. Thomas is repped by UTA and attorney Jeanne Newman.

http://deadline.com/2016/12/fox-buys-comedy-liberal-redneck-comedian-trae-crowder-1201863081/

YouTube Sex-Advice Gurus Hodgetwins Make Their Move to the Stand-Up Stage

FROM LA WEEKLY:

Screen Shot 2016-11-16 at 2.34.23 PM

 

Forget the muscles and goods looks, the Hodgetwins have the ultimate advantage over other up-and-coming comedians: each other.

The comedic chemistry between Virginia-bred twin brothers Keith and Kevin Hodge is undeniable — after all, they’ve shared a womb. In nearly every YouTube video they post, they unintentionally break character and make each other laugh, a dynamic that worked for The Carol Burnett Show‘s Harvey Korman and Tim Conway, and Jimmy Fallon and, well, nearly every cast member on Saturday Night Live.

Behind the raised eyebrows and comical seductive voices telling you to “bust all kinds of nuts,” “cream-pie her” and “go balls deep and leave them nuts hanging out” are two family men, both 42, married (for over 15 years) with children.

“My youngest my son [age 10] seen the videos,” Keith said during a recent phone interview. “He’s a good kid — he doesn’t go to school and cuss people out and beat people up and talk about sex. He knows better. The stuff he comes home from school and tells me is like, ‘Wow, that kid told you that stuff in school?!’ I really don’t see it no worse than other stuff on YouTube. If he comes across my stuff and laughs at it, it’s fine too.”

The twins receive around 100 emails a day from men and women asking for professional — but not licensed — advice on sex, life and love. Keith selects the questions he and his brother answer on their askhodgetwins YouTube channel.

 

“There’s nothing planned,” Keith says. “I’ll read an email and we’ll answer the questions. Everything’s off the cuff. It’s all improv. I have my perspective on something and then Kevin has his perspective.”

“Keith’s running it,” Kevin chimes in. “I have no idea what’s going on. I just show up and he’s got emails and I just go with it.”

The twins lived in and around Los Angeles for 17 years before moving back to their home state of Virginia, where they currently live in townhouses next door to one another. The longest amount of time they’ve been apart is 10 hours.

“Our wives get kind of jealous because we spend so much time together,” Keith says. “I was like, ‘Why you getting jealous for?! It’s not like he’s sucking me off.’”

The twins pursued YouTube full-time after they were fired from AAA in Costa Mesa for recording videos in the conference room.

“Yeah, that was not a good time. Times were tough,” Keith says. “We were making $15 per month on YouTube then.”

Success came after the twins started their fitness channel, Twin Muscle, where they make “all kinds of gains” and eat whateva dafuk they wanna eat. The twins currently maintain multiple YouTube channels including hodgetwins, where they share reactions to current events and news stories, and fastingtwins, their vlog channel.

“People really get a kick outta the way we express ourselves and the verbiage that we use. I think it’s how we deliver it,” Keith says. “We get emails from people all the time saying ‘I talk like you guys 24/7 and I think my girlfriend is going to dump me because of it.’”

“Our main goal now is to legitimize ourselves as stand-up comedians and actors,” Kevin explains. “Right now a lot of people know us just as YouTube personalities, so we want to kind of change that. When people think of us I want them to say, ‘Oh, those are those stand-up comedians’ Or ‘those are those actors in those funny movies.’ That’s our major goal.”

Inspired by Richard Pryor and Bill Burr, the Hodgetwins’ comedy set has a narrative format infused with jokes based on outlandish personal stories of their relationships, past job experiences and growing up poor.

You can catch the Hodgetwins on their No Filter Tour, but you’ll have to head to Oxnard’s Levity Live since their two-night engagement at the Hollywood Improv is sold out. And if you need to find a date to bring to the show, keep reading — we asked the twins about picking up girls in Los Angeles, the secret to a long marriage, and who started using the phrase “sugar walls.”

Kevin: Walk down the street.

Keith: (Laughs)

Kevin: There’s a ton of them out there, you’re bound to grab one of them. Go out to the grocery store or go out for a long walk.

Well maybe that’s possible for you guys, but what about an average-looking guy?

Kevin: I would say the best place to pick up a girl is your job because you see them every day. That would be my first guess.

Kevin: Yeah.

Kevin: My second one I would say … Shit, I don’t know. Job … The gym …

Keith: The gym?!

Kevin: Yeah, meet girls at the gym.

Keith: How many girls you met at the gym?

Kevin: I met all kinds of girls at the gym. All kinds.

Keith: I would say second is the grocery store. Women just laying there.

Kevin: No, they ain’t.

Keith: You catch them off guard while they’re trying to buy some cantaloupes and bananas and you be like, “Hey, how’s it going? My name’s Keith … what’s yours? This store’s got some nice bananas down here …”

Besides to your comedy show, where do you recommend bringing a first date?

Keith: Where’s that one place we went with Billy Blanks? That place in L.A. Fuck, I forget where it’s at. What’s it called?

Kevin: Universal Studios?!

Kevin: Yeah, Universal Studios.

Keith: What’s so good about that place?

Kevin: It’s a happening place, man.

Keith: Maaaan …

Kevin: Where would you go? To the damn movie theater? (Dramatic pause) I would say Universal studios.

(Both laugh)

Kevin: Where would you go? To the zoo? That zoo sucks.

Keith: I dunno man. I’m real bad with that. I’ve been married for 15 years. I would just take them to my spot. That was the main place I was going to take you when I first met your ass. Watch a little TV and then get up and make my move.

(Both laugh)

Kevin, you’ve also been married for over 15 years. What’s the secret to a long marriage?

Kevin: Insanity.

(Both laugh)

Kevin: I would say the key to a long marriage is just communication to work things out ’cause you have a lot of ups and downs. It’s just a matter of sitting down and y’know getting through things. I would say communication and compromise. (Laughs).

OK, I have to know: who started using the term “sugar walls” [as slang for vagina]?

Keith: Kevin started that shit. He used to have some fuckchick called Sugar Walls. Sugar Walls 1, Sugar Walls 2, Sugar Walls 3 …

(Both laugh)

You guys should tour with Sheena Easton. She could open for you.

Keith: I know. (Laughs)

Or make a music video with her — that would be hilarious.

Keith: Damn good idea.

Oxnard Levity Live, 591 Collection Blvd., Oxnard; Thu., Nov. 17, 8 p.m.; $25. oxnard.levitylive.com. Hollywood Improv, 8162 Melrose, Hollywood; Fri., Nov. 18, 8 p.m. & Sat., Nov. 19, 10 p.m.; sold out. hollywood.improv.com.

‘Real Time With Bill Maher’ Will Be Livestreamed On YouTube Tonight

From Deadline:

The season finale of HBO’s Real Time With Bill Maher will be livestreamed on the program’s YouTube channel tonight. The episode comes a week after Maher’s interview with Barack Obama and the pre-election episode that saw the downcast comedian worried over the possibility of a Trump victory.

Both the livestream (YouTube.com/RealTime) and the HBO airing begin at 10 PM ET (tape-delayed PT). Tonight’s episode will be available on YouTube after the livestream.

Tonight’s guests are Former Atty. Gen. Eric Holder, singer John Legend, comedian Trae Crowder, political commentator David Axelrod, political correspondent Ana Marie Cox and New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman.

Tonight’s episode will be Maher’s last of the year. Real Time returns for its 15th season in January 2017.

HBO also announced that Sunday’s season finale of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (11:00-11:30 p.m. ET/PT) will be available in its entirety on YouTube.com/LastWeekTonight following its HBO debut.

http://deadline.com/2016/11/real-time-with-bill-maher-livestreamed-youtube-tonight-1201853226/

Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan and Corey Forrester on ABC Nightline News

See the video here: http://abcn.ws/2ewSQlG

 
Screen Shot 2016-08-17 at 10.40.15 AM

WellRED Comedy Tour Coming to Pasadena

Article: http://bit.ly/2cpzmgM 

The Ice House Comedy Club welcomes The WellRED Comedy Tour on October 1. WellRED consists of comedy and writing partners and self proclaimed “Liberal Rednecks” Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester, whose blog Our Sunday Best “confronts outdated traditions and intolerant attitudes, tackling everything people think they know about the South-the good, the bad, the glorious, and the shameful.” ‘There’s a New South and they’re coming to claim it.’

Recently earning national attention (or notoriety, depending on your viewpoint) for his “Liberal Redneck” series of viral videos, Trae Crowder has been performing his particular brand of Southern-fried intellectual comedy in the Southeast and beyond for the past six years. Trae is also a writer and is currently a member of NBC Universal’s Talent Infusion Program after being invited to their prestigious Late Night Writer’s Workshop in 2015.

Hailing from rural East Tennessee, Drew Morgan draws on his experiences as a small-town son of a preacher man who has lived in Africa, Australia, Miami, Boston, and (currently) New York City. Weaving his stories together with observations on culture, religion, and identity, he’s like Mark Twain on acid, or maybe just a confused Southerner pretending to have it all together together. He is a good dancer.

Corey Ryan Forrester has been writing and performing standup comedy since the age of sixteen – before he could legally work in a comedy club. His North Georgia roots have given Corey an affinity for Southern wit and storytelling. He may often wear a PBR hat, but don’t assume there is anything blue collar about him. CoFo has thoughts on everything from race to religion, politics and gender. He loves women and cheese. All dairy, actually.

WellRED Comedy Tour is on Saturday, October 1 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets at $25. To purchase tickets, contact (626) 577-1894 or visitwww.icehousecomedy.com.

learn more about Trae, Drew and Corey, please visit www.wellredcomedy.com.

There is a two-drink minimum and patrons must be at least 18 to attend. The Ice House is located at 24 N. Mentor Ave. in Pasadena. For more info or to purchase tickets, call (626) 577-1894 or visit www.icehousecomedy.com.

Jimmy Shubert to Record Comedy Special at Flappers Comedy Club

Comedian and actor Jimmy Shubert (LAST COMIC STANDING, 2 BROKE GIRLS, KING OF QUEENS) will showcase his trademark pop culture humor on January 29 and 30 at Flappers Comedy Club and Restaurant in Burbank, including a live taping of his new comedy special on January 30. Show tickets are $20, and are available atwww.flapperscomedy.com.

Shubert fans will adore witnessing the behind-the-scenes excitement of his new live TV taping for Netflix. Recording on Saturday, January 30 at 8:00 PM and 10:00 PM, the audience will be able to participate in comedy history in the making.

Shubert combines the outlook of a modern-day Archie Bunker with an utterly real world sensibility to create signature observations about Yelp, airport security, relationships, and the dumbing down of America. His television credits include “Monk,” “Back in the Game,” ” 2 Broke Girls,” “Just Shoot Me,” “Heist,” “The Loop,” “ER,” “Reno 911,” “Rude Awakenings,” “Angel,” “Lucky,” and “New Car Smell.”

An accomplished actor and comedian, Shubert made the top 10 of the 2014 season of “Last Comic Standing.” Headlining top comedy clubs, casinos, and theaters nationwide, his one-hour standup special has won him award recognition. His full-contact comedy has led him to headlining the Comedy Store in Hollywood, the Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas, as well as appearing for five years on “King of Queens,” and on several episodes of “Entourage.”

It was Shubert’s scene-stealing performance as the lollipop-sucking strip club bouncer in GO, directed by Doug Liman(SWINGERS), that jumpstarted his film career in 1999. Since that auspicious debut, he has landed roles in such films such as THE ITALIAN JOB starring Charlize Theron, Ed Norton, and Mark Walhberg, and MR & MRS SMITH, starringBrad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

 

The Smartest Man in Glasgow

The Smartest Man in Glasgow

Proops joins festival line-up

Greg Proops is coming to the Glasgow International Comedy Festival to record an episode of his Smartest Man In The World podcast at Saint Luke’s Friday 18 March 20.00.

‘Here he is, though, in front of a live audience each week, bravely recording some of the boldest comedy on the podcasting fronteir right now.’ (Rolling Stone Magazine

It’s just Greg Proops and you. There’s no fan fare. Proops take centre stage at a small table and chair setup with a single microphone. Then he’s off. An hour of great two-way conversation into the lecture-style format of a one-way conversation. 

Be there and experience joy for once in your life.

 

Just Added! Colin Mochrie & Brad Sherwood: Two Man Group at SF SketchFest

Armed with nothing but their sharp wit, comedians Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood take to the live stage to create hilarious and original scenes in their two-man show. Known by TV audiences for their work on “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” Colin & Brad improvise new material every night from audience suggestions and participation. Interactive in every sense of the word, Colin & Brad will take the audience on a comedic high-wire act… just like a live version of Whose Line! Get ready for a night of non-stop laughter for all ages!

http://sfsketchfest.com/x/just-added-colin-mochrie-brad-sherwood-two-man-group/

Greg Proops Releases “In the Ball Park” Album

Whether it comes to wit, verve, his command of the English language, and his seemingly inexhaustable knowledge of the world, Greg Proops never lets up.

On his sixth record, In The Ball Park, Proops not only shows he can keep up with the changing times in comedy, but can thrive in it on his own terms. You’ll notice on this album, just like much of his discography, that Greg still shifts gears flawlessly between topics, ranging from gun control to white pants to baseball, jokes, jokes within jokes, etc. without needing to take a breath. 

You can see what we’re saying when you listen to this track.

In The Ball Park comes out on this Fri. Nov. 27th, but you can and should pre-order it now oniTunes or on vinyl from AST Records.

Full Article at: http://www.thecomedybureau.com/post/133955515165/greg-proops-in-the-ball-park

Steve Simeone’s Nostalgia StandUp Spans Generations

By: P.F. Wilson 

“Most comedians find humor in what’s wrong with the world,” says comic Steve Simeone. “I’m pointing out what’s right with the world, and that’s through childhood memories.”

Simeone tried being serious, working in corporate America, as he puts it. “It wasn’t for me,” he says. “I scrapped that, told my parents I was going to law school, and moved back in with them.” He wound up with an internship in the ticket office of his hometown Philadelphia Eagles. “That was awesome because I’m a big sports fan, but I was like, ‘This still feels like a job. I have to go on and pursue my dream.”

That was 15 years ago, and today, after some lean years, Simeone has been on Comedy Central, is headlining clubs, and doing feature work in theaters for Gabriel Iglesias. “We recently performed at the Beacon Theater in New York and it was incredible. I thought, ‘How did I get here?’”

It’s that sense of wonderment that is the undertow to his nostalgia-based comedy. “I would sit and watch Saturday-morning cartoons, stay up late and watch Hulk Hogan wrestle, and that was great. Now I’m saying, let’s look at all that stuff again. Those memories are fun, and being an adult is even better.”

It’s all about finding something in particular from those youthful days that can help give you a better outlook on life today. “If you’re really satisfied with the little things in life, you’ll be happy,” he explains. “The more you live that’s all there really is: positive and negative. The little things aren’t going to make or break you. Once you realize that, being an adult is awesome. I can have ice cream for breakfast. When I was six years old I couldn’t do that.”

Talking about his generation might seem limiting, but Simeone says younger audience enjoy his set too, maybe even more than his contemporaries. “It’s amazing. It’s been a year since I released my first CD,Remember This, and I still get fan mail from younger people, which is the greatest thing ever.” He does find it odd though when they explain why they like his comedy. “These college students will say, ‘I miss being a kid,’ and I’m like, ‘You still are a kid!’ When you’re 20 being 10 seems like such a long time ago.”

Indeed, it seems that often another generation’s nostalgia is actually more appealing than one’s own. Television shows like Mad MenAquarius, and Masters of Sex all have sizable audiences that didn’t live through those times (although the appeal of that last show in the list might have less to do with the time period and more to do with the subject matter). There’s a comfort in nostalgia, as it often filters out the negative. And a previous generation’s nostalgia can seem even more comforting. “People like to go back to a time before theirs,” Simeone says, “because they think it was simpler and easier.”

The nostalgia thing has kind of become a cottage industry, as Simeone even has a podcast, calledGoodtimes with Steve Simeone, in which he discusses things from the past. Often a conversation with one of his guests will open a whole new avenue of memories, and lead to new material.

“The other day me and my guest were able to do that,” he says. “It’s really cool when you get people talking about their childhood and the walls come down. They get vulnerable and we talk about what happened in those years. That’s what it’s all about.”

Simeone is thinking of expanding his nostalgia-based offerings. “I want to launch a new podcast with retired folks called I Didn’t Always Used to Be, where I would go to retirement homes and just listen to peoples stories.”

“It all has to do with perspective,” he muses. “I think sometimes you’re not able to pick up on the good times. Today we’re bombarded with phone calls, emails, and tweets. We can’t pick out the good stuff and remember the good stuff.”

http://www.citypages.com/arts/steve-simeones-nostalgia-standup-spans-generations-7847972