May
20
Mellowed out cover of O’Doul’s by The Wallings Jr. I’m a fan.
Original video:
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If you like comedy and being told it’s illegal to take photos on the subway, then you’ll love the NYPD Sit Down and Shut Up Variety Hour, a new show I directed at UCB that simulates the experience of watching a sketch show produced by New York police officers. It features some of the funniest writers and performers I’ve had the pleasure of working with, and if you don’t see it you’ll have to appear at a courthouse in Queens at six in the morning and sit on a hard bench for four hours, and after all that we won’t even show up, so the judge will just throw the whole thing out and you’ll have wasted your whole day. So you should probably see this show.
May
11
If you’re in New York this Thursday, come to the UCB Theatre at 6 PM, when Adam Newman and I will be hosting our new show Later Dudes. It’s a late night talk show presented live on the UCB stage — we’ll be doing late-night-style comedy, interviewing two of the funniest comedians in the city, Sean Patton (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon) and Baron Vaughn (Comedy Central’s Awkward Comedy Show, USA’s Facing Kate), and harassing our unpaid intern Riley. It’s going to be fucking great. Hope to see you there!
- Adam
Apr
9
McSweeney's Internet Tendency: Macbeth and Macduff Get Into an Argument Over Semantics.
Hey! Are you a gigantic drama nerd or a high school English teacher? If so, you might enjoy this piece I wrote for McSweeney’s.
-Raphael
Mar
22
The Top 6 Obama/Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Videos On YouTube
From worst to best:
In a way, it’s the worst; in a way, the best. I remember making videos like this way back when and being so pumped about how good they were. It’s that energy and excitement that I know was a part of the making of this that makes me love it even though there are barely any lines that are on beat.
This is pretty bad, in reality it’s worse then the last one, but not in a fun way that would sell you on the idea. It uses a mirror effect for the first half of the video then keeps the horizontal axis flipped for no apparent reason for the the rest of it. Also leaving the TV on in the background is a classic rookie mistake. But the rapping is on beat, so it’s got that …
#4: Obama Fresh Prince / Sera Barak Obama el nuevo Principe del Rap?
This one occasionally manages to pull off Obama lip-syncing the original song which is impressive … when it works.
Also available in the crazy annoying Spanish version of the theme song.
#3: Fresh President of the United States
Okay, now this is good. For some reason he over-packs the chorus and just barely ekes out “of the United States”, but overall it’s good. Plus he nails the slightly sped up video that a lot of people forget about.
#2: Obama Fresh Prince / Obama de Bel Air
The only video that includes the picture of the license plate that says “FRESH”, which to me, is pretty essential.
And here’s a Spanish version of the same video with a different Spanish version of the song, which I find baffling. I have a feeling this version may have come before the English version. Crazy old internet.
#1: The Fresh Prince of Bill Ayers
Definitely the best of the bunch. It’s focused, well-written, and based on a nice little pun.
*Bonus Find: An interview of President Obama by Will Smith and an occasionally Rita Repulsa-looking Jada Pinkett Smith.
… And for the insatiable, here are a few more that didn’t even make the list.
Fresh Elect of Obama
The Fresh President
- Dave
Mar
15
Late World with Zach Galifianakis - Zach does standup at a preschool
Zach G., before he was famous. (It’s certainly a testament to the man’s considerable talent and popularity that hosting his own late-night comedy show on Vh1 counts as “before he was famous.”)
What I really love about this clip is he doesn’t just do the easy bit of telling a bunch of adult jokes that fly over the kid audience’s heads— of course he does do that a little (how could you resist?) but the majority of this segment is a lesson in knowing your audience and playing to that crowd.
Feb
18
For the final Very Fresh at the UCB Theatre in New York, we decided to perform some our favorite sketches from the past three years of doing the show. Then, we decided to post the whole thing online! Watch a video of the entire show above, or check out each sketch individually:
Feb
8
What We’ve Been Up To
Not to put you in one groove, but is Olde English working on anything new? OE is my favorite online sketch group. - pom5
I get this question a lot. Like, a lot a lot. For the record, here’s the answer:
Even though we haven’t put out a new sketch in a few years, we’ve been working constantly the entire time since. We’ve written two half-hour pilot scripts, created numerous “pitch bibles” (i.e., fully worked-out visions for television shows), and written pages upon pages of supporting material. The reason for the shift in focus: After six years of making sketches for the Internet, we decided that it was time to get some material on television or in theaters. Unfortunately, the downside of this approach is that all of the material you produce is designed to be consumed only by a few television and movie executives, rather than by your fans. And when those executives pass — because even if your ideas are good, they’re often still not “what we’re looking for this season” — all of that work ends up being seen by no one. It’s a shitty trade-off — unfortunately, it’s also part of the business.
But: I’m happy to say that for the last few months, we’ve been working on some projects that will one day be seen by, you know, an audience. Currently in production are a cartoon series we’re developing with PUNY (the animators of Akon Calls T-Pain), and a web series based on one of our pilot scripts, entitled “How to Be Alone”. Both are projects we’re very excited about, and with any luck, both will be coming to the web soon.
- Adam
Feb
6
Hey, guys, we got interviewed, for, some thing. (If the embedded video won’t play, you can watch it here.)
After the interview, Dave followed up with this email: “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It (and actually the vast majority of Big Willie Style) was produced by The Trackmasters who I kind of hate. Very embarrassing for me.”
THE MORE YOU KNOW.
-Raphael
Jan
23
ABOVE: Actors Brian Miskell and Emma Galvin, looking all fucking dramatic, in a play I wrote.
Dear Person Who Reads My Blog,
Okay, I know things have been kind of dead over here for the past few months, and for that I apologize. I have some very good reasons, involving jury duty, and cross-country travel, and my computer crapping out on me all of a sudden for no reason, setting me back over a thousand dollars (and they’re still not even sure they can get all my data back), and also me pretty much being homeless, crashing on my friends’ couches for the past several weeks. But all that’s a story for another time.
The main reason I’ve been too busy to post is that I’ve been working on a play I wrote called The Mike and Morgan Show, a play which opens tomorrow night. This is a play I’ve been working on for a very long time, and I’m thrilled it’s finally receiving its first full production as part of the Great Scot play festival, presented by The Onion and AV Club New York.
I tend to be self-conscious about most of my work, but I’m actually awfully proud of this piece, so take that for what it’s worth. I think this is really special and I think the actors and director are all doing great work and I hope people get a chance to see it. I know there are a lot of people who live in New York who read this blog who don’t know me personally, or maybe know me, but don’t consider me a real friend. It would mean a lot to me if you came out to this show and introduced yourself.
Full details below:
It’s the Mike and Morgan Show! Morgan died, Mike cried, and now, three years later, he wrote her a play about the last night they spent together. Watch Mike and Morgan drive around aimlessly! Thrill as they recall all the things they wanted to say to each other but didn’t because they were so sure there would be other days to say them. Maybe, if Mike concentrates really hard, this time he can save her from drowning (spoiler alert: he can’t). Who doesn’t love spending an evening with old friends? Fun! But sad. But fun!
written by Raphael Bob-Waksberg
directed by Lacy Post
starring Emma Galvin and Brian Miskell
The Mike and Morgan Show is running in rotating rep with two other wonderful plays, The Luck of the Ibis by Jonathan A. Goldberg and You May Be Splendid Now by Dan Moyer, and there are all sorts of great deals if you want to see two shows back to back, or all three.
Tickets are $15 (or $10 with code FACEBOOK) and can be purchased here.
Sat Jan 23, 7pm (The opening night show is immediately followed by a fun party with free tequila, sponsored by… uh, some tequila company, I guess.)
Sun Jan 24, 4pm
Mon Jan 25, 9pm
Tue Jan 26, 7pm
Thu Jan 28, 7pm
Fri Jan 29, 9pm
Sat Jan 30, 7pm (This is the show my dad will be at, in case you want to see my dad)
Sun Jan 31, 4pmAll shows are at:
Access Theatre
380 Broadway, 4th Floor (I hope you like climbing stairs!)
New York, NY 10013
(MAP)Visit http://www.shelbycompany.org for more information on Great SCoT and Shelby Company, the wonderful theater company who put this festival together.
Again, if you like reading my blog, you will like this play. The Mike and Morgan Show is like all the things you like about my blog, but 80 minutes of it. And none of the bad parts.
Hugs and kisses,
Raphael
Hey New Yorkers — go see Raphael’s terrific play! If you like his work in Olde English, you will like this play too. Plus, it’s your last chance to give Raphael a hug before he leaves for LA! (He hates hugs, but that just makes it all the more fun to hug him, poor guy.)
- adam
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