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Dave Chappelle Mounting a Huge Comedy Tour

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:54:03 +0000

After a very public disappearance from the limelight years ago, comedian Dave Chappelle is coming back in a huge way by headlining this summer's Oddball Comedy & Curiosity tour.

Funny or Die is sponsoring the 13-city tour, which kicks off in Austin, Texas, on August 23rd and runs the next five consecutive weekends. Chappelle is co-headlining alongside musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords. Also appearing on the massive bill are Kristen Schaal, Jim Jeffries, Al Madrigal, John Mulaney, Hannibal Buress, Chris D'Elia and more. Comedian Brody Stevens will be hosting a second stage in every city featuring local comics.

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Portlandia Coming Back for Two More Seasons

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 17:08:48 +0000

Now that he's left Saturday Night Live, Fred Armisen is going to have a lot more time to devote to Portlandia. That's good, because IFC has just renewed the sketch comedy series for another two seasons.

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The Festival Supeme Lineup is Incredible

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:24:12 +0000

Back in January of this year, I reported on a new musical comedy festival being put together by Tenacious D. Now the festival has a name and a lineup, and it is a thing of beauty.

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Inside Amy Schumer Returning for Second Season

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 22:09:57 +0000

Fans of sex jokes unite! Comedy Central has renewed Amy Schumer's weekly sketch show/stand-up hybrid Inside Amy Schumer for a second season.

The show, which premiered April 30th, was the network's highest-rated series premiere for the year and consistently wins its timeslot for all cable shows in the key 18-49 demo. This is all TV speak for "the show is a hit." I'm glad it's going to keep a lot of talented people employed who work behind the scenes, including head writer Jessi Klein and writers like Tig Notaro, Kyle Dunnigan and Kurt Metzger.

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FX Cancels Brand X

Sun, 09 Jun 2013 19:00:49 +0000

After two seasons on the air, FX is pulling the plug on Brand X with Russell Brand.

British comedian Russell Brand's talk show, which premiered in 2012, concluded its second season ...

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SNL Recap: Ben Affleck/Kanye West

Sun, 19 May 2013 16:41:01 +0000

Saturday Night Live ended another season this week, and with the finale came the departure of longtime cast members Bill Hader and Fred Armisen. That's a huge blow to the show; though they currently have a surprisingly deep bench of talent, few are as adept as Hader or Armisen at being both weird character focal points or utility players. The show will go on because it always does, but it won't ever be quite the same.

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First Group of Shows Announced for Just for Laughs Chicago

Tue, 14 May 2013 16:50:39 +0000

It's almost summer, which means Chicago is gearing up for the annual Just for Laughs Chicago festival.

The first batch of shows and comics have been announced, and -- surprise, surprise -- it's looking interesting already. Headlining their own shows will be Bill Maher, Artie Lange, Nick Swardson, Russell Brand...

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Bill Hader Leaving SNL This Week

Tue, 14 May 2013 12:24:09 +0000

This Saturday's episode of Saturday Night Live will be the last for Bill Hader.

Hader, who joined the show in 2005, has announced that he's departing after eight seasons, presumably to pursue other projects (read: movies). That means no more Stefon, no more Vincent Price, no more James Carville. Hader was one of the show's secret weapons, able to be funny in any sketch and completely disappear inside whatever character he was playing. This is a big, big loss for SNL.

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Yes, Seth Meyers is Taking Over Late Night

Sun, 12 May 2013 19:33:41 +0000

Well, scratch what I said the other day about John Mulaney maybe getting his own talk show. It was announced today that Seth Meyers will take over Late Night at NBC once Jimmy Fallon heads to The Tonight Show.

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SNL Recap: Kristen Wiig/Vampire Weekend

Sun, 12 May 2013 18:44:21 +0000

Remember May of 2012? Barack Obama was in the White House. Movies about Marvel superheroes were breaking box office records. Kristen Wiig was on Saturday Night Live.

It is with a fondness of a memory of 12 months ago that Wiig returned to host SNL for the first time less than one season after leaving the show last year. As could be expected, much of the episode -- the penultimate installment of the 38th season -- wound up being a Greatest Hits showcase of Wiig's popular characters. There was Target Lady, Garth and Kat, Gilly, Dooneese. Sure, several were missing (like that actress lady from Password, or Aunt Linda from "Weekend Update"), but that's only because Wiig had a lot of recurring characters during her tenure with the show.

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