A Dynamic Duo. Stand up comedy is without question an industry with wide variety. Different

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1 Viers 1 Sean Viers Advanced Writing Dr. Little November 2, 2006 A Dynamic Duo Stand up comedy is without question an industry with wide variety. Different comics utilize the past, present or future scenarios in their material. Some material can be fictional of course, making extreme circumstances sound somewhat like reality to appeal to the audience. Yet some material can be based on real life situations. Some comedians use scenarios that exist in your own household while others can utilize things such as politics to bring a smile to your face. Even though the material is crucial to a performance, you have to have a comic who can deliver it smoothly, and with a lot of charisma. Each stand up comic along with their own material has their own performance style. However, there is not just one successful style a comedian can have to become successful. For instance, if you take two comics who are currently popular all around the country you can compare and contrast their material, their approach, and their backgrounds. Two amazingly talented and hilarious comics who have forced themselves onto the scene are Lewis Black (age 58) and Dane Cook (age 34). Both Lewis Black and Dane Cook got into comedy at a young age, and through hard work and dedication they both are huge not only nationwide, but globally. These two comedians have very different techniques and material, yet both have the same success stories. Both comics have starred on television shows, and stretched into Hollywood. Dane Cook s relatively

2 Viers 2 new film Employee of the Month is very popular. Cook has also made an appearance in the movie Still Waiting. Lewis Black has starred in movies such as Accepted, Jacob s Ladder, and The Hard Way. Even though these comics have different styles, techniques, and material, their popularity has exploded. Just because a comedians have different approaches doesn t mean that only one way is the correct way. If you take the time to see past the alcoholic and short temperedness in Lewis Black you will love him. Actually, millions of people love him for exactly those reasons. Lewis Black, born in Washington D.C and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland, grew up of Jewish decent. He found his real home on stage as a stand up comedian. The former drug addict s material seems more thought out and developed than anyone else s and he took advantage of that ability while performing his routines. He turns his views on real life situations into hysterical rants. According to an autobiography, Black refers to his comedic style as being on the Titanic every single day and being the only person who knows what is going to happen. His deliveries are so full of frothing, barely articulate bile and rage that it grabs the entire audience and says, Pay Attention! The material Lewis Black feeds on is definitely about situations not a lot of comics touch upon. Turning politics, Homeland Security, and government are not the easiest of topics to get an audience interested in. Yet, Black's infuriated comedic rants (which eviscerate political figures, pop cultural trends, and societal currents) have ultimately gathered so much popularity that he has been referred to as "America's Foremost Commentator on Everything. When Black performs he attacks human stupidity. His tone has a huge range, which makes him so effective. One minute he will be serious and monotone, the next he

3 Viers 3 will go off on a tangent about something that happens to just really piss him off. During his major HBO Special, Black on Broadway, he says in a calm manner, We have a two party system. A democratic party, which is a party of no ideas. And the republican party, which is a party of bad ideas. He then immediately follows in a loud, hateful yet humorous tone by saying, And the way it works is, a republican stands up in congress and goes, I GOT A REALLY BAD IDEA. And the democrat says, AND I CAN MAKE IT SHITTIER! Lewis Black is definitely attracting an older audience. College students, adults, and even the older generations can feel the full effect of Lewis Black. His topics are mostly topics that are overlooked by the average person. My personal favorite is when Black explains how Americans are buying bottled water. Black simply explains how people had water going to their homes for free, but they said, No! Fuck You! I don t want it to be that god damn convenient. I want to drive and drive and drive, and look for water. Like my ancestors did. The way his material works is, after you hear it, you think about it. He broadsides you with his view on topics and ideas, and you absorb it. You start to compare it to your opinions, and soon enough, you laugh. You never expect to look at it from his perspective. And that is what makes Lewis Black so effective. Even though Black s tremendous strategy in comedy is successful, Dane Cook brings something different to the table. Dane Cook brings energy. As a child growing up in Boston, Massachusetts, Dane Cook starred in several television shows, yet comedy was his calling. Being the class-clown as he referred to himself in a VHI interview, Dane Cook always had the class laughing, all the while knowing he was heading to the

4 Viers 4 principals office. And what is so ironic, is the things Dane Cook talks about, and the way he acts on stage would qualify him for an expulsion in school. Cook s rock and roll style of energy has him sitting as one of the best comics in his generation. Dane s style is different from Lewis Black s in the sense that Cook will run around on stage, jump off tables, throw his arms up in a panic, and utilize the physical aspects of his humor. His dramatic stories he creates are so off the wall, he leaves you no choice but to bust out laughing. On his extremely popular album Retaliation he explains how the Kool-Aid commercials scared him as a child, while on his Harmful if Swallowed album he talks about snorting NesQuik, claiming he thought it had a connection to speed. When you compare Lewis Black s view on politics, social security, and border control to Dane Cook s car alarm songs, Burger King sex stories, and the awkward first kiss moment, you can easily tell that the way these comics deliver their material will be different. Dane Cook knows that it is not as funny to stand there holding the microphone with no energy and no expression. This is why his physical humor is off the charts. He uses his knack for firing off cutting edge, observational humor at a hyper pace to try and get the audience to hold their sides in laughter. From when he acts out a kindergartner smelling a scented marker by using the microphone to enhance the sniff, to the leaping drop kick on stage he uses to explain how the result of that kick is exactly how a public bathroom door looks. He delivers his art with passion. Dane Cook, like most comics respects his fans and always has his Myspace website posted with Thank You and I love you guys. His young appearance and catchy material makes Dane Cook so effective.

5 Viers 5 Overall, Lewis Black and Dane Cook are both amazing comics. Lewis Black s background, obscene language, and extreme rants are what turn his fans into addicts. They enjoy watching his because you will never know when he will flip the switch. Dane Cook s charisma, energy, and looks are what attract his audience. He appeals to the younger generations with all his random topics. Black appeals to the older generations with his outrageous views on more serious ideas. The material is different, the delivery is different, the appearances are different, but they both have one thing in common. Both Dane Cook and Lewis Black are going to remembered as two of the greatest comics of their time, and maybe all time.

6 Viers 6 Works Cited Black, Lewis HBO Special. Black on Broadway DVD. Cook, Dane Comedy Album. Retaliation: Need and Want DVD Cook, Dane. It s All About Me? People Magazine. 12, August Kings College Library. Starpulse. Dane Cook Biography. 18, July Kings College library. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Lewis Black Biography. 15, September Kings College Library. Youtube.com Broadcast yourself. Dance Cook bathroom skit. 3, June Kings College library.