The folks behind the comedy-centric blog Shecky Magazine have a lot of hate to get off of their chests, and so do we! Shecky's hate is directed at whoever is foolish enough to practice, comment on, produce, watch, or hear about stand up comedy, and ours is directed at Shecky!
Here are just a few of the people that Shecky has dropped a dump on in recent weeks.
Brian Lowry of Variety for speculating on why there are no more stand ups starring in sitcoms.
Peter Berrera for having the audacity to have only been doing stand up for two years!! Come on, Peter, you should have been doing stand up for more time than that before having an opinion!
Tim Rawal, columnist for the Asheville Citizen-Times (NC) gets talked down to for speaking ill of Dane Cook. You always take the high road, Shecky!
Matt Belknap of "A Special Thing" and the Never Not Funny podcast gets a blog lashing for also having opinions about comedy. Who the fuck do you think you are besides someone who has close relationships with most of our favorite comedians, Matt Belknap?!
And now, our very own local funnyman, Travis Helwig, is the subject of Shecky's tremendous bitterness. This is a man they have neither seen nor ever even heard of. Why? BECAUSE HE IS A COLLEGE STUDENT WHO IS FAR FROM BEING FAMOUS. He got interviewed, which is an exciting thing. But in Shecky's eyes, it means war. They are incensed at his views on comedy. How dare anyone express an opinion without the express written consent of Shecky Magazine, the Superbowl of comedy reporting and the authority on all Haha's and Chucklehuts across the land?
Of course this isn't the first figure in the area, Shecky has had negative things to say about.
And how dare you, almighty Shecky Magazine, print words on a computer, rather than a traditional newspaper! How the fuck am I supposed to read it?! I can't bring it on the subway!!! Also, do you think you're the first people to ever start a blog?!! How dare you! Pink is the new blog, not Shecky! Also, why do we park on a driveway and drive on a parkway? These arguments make complete sense, and don't make me seem crazy, completely bitter or out of touch at all. Also, like us, sometimes you just can't think of anything nice to write, and end up just shitting on people who probably didn't deserve it. Just ask Mike Metz.
And one more thing, assholes, will you please put a link to us on your website? Nobody reads this piece of shit.
5 comments:
get the "not hatin just sayin" guys on this. they might hate on me for suggesting they take requests though...
ha. it does seem like shecky's been in a sour mood lately.
I was all into this post and these comments until they made me feel like a loser for doing a guest spot in "bumfuck, mn", take it easy on your dc brethren
Wow. I just read this.
It's been a few months.
But thank you.
Here was my response that I posted on the Shecky blog about a month after:
"Considering this post is about me, I might as well say something.
I actually read this web site occasionally, which is why I was a bit surprised when I saw my name on here. While I want to respond to a lot, I'll be careful to not display "that painful combination of hubris and jaw-dropping ignorance" that seems to ooze from that story in the Connecticut Post.
First off, I apologize if my comments seemed to belittle something you are all passionate about. I'm equally passionate about comedy, just in a different form. I'm an improviser, and I told her that. When she asked why I liked improv more than stand up, I gave her the reasons. I didn't answer the phone and immediately start ranting about the state of comedy. I didn't want the interview to my manifesto, however I did answer the questions she asked of me.
I explained to her how I compensated by trying different things out. This includes the current incarnation of someone who is really lonely and uncomfortable in his life. I also pointed out that my character was mainly ripped off from my love of Andy Kaufman, Neil Hamburger, Jon Benjiman and Tim&Eric. She decided to not print my citation.
I was approached by my hometown newspaper to do an interview. It's that simple. Did she misquote me? No. Did she leave things out? Yes.
I never called jokes quaint or pedestrian or even dull. I said it wasn't my thing. I said I was much more satisfied by trying to make people not laugh, which usually leads to people laughing. I also told her this isn't a new concept.
I did not condemn stand up comedy or claim to be a maverick in the gray world of humor. I said it wasn't my thing. It's not something I enjoy, as much as I enjoy improv. Why was I worthy of an article? I have no idea. But she contacted me, and I said yes.
I can see how this article painted me as a bit of an asshole, but that wasn't my intention. Do I think it warranted ridicule on a website I respect? Probably not. However, what's done is done, and I realize now that it might have pissed some people off. And to that, I'm sorry.
I take comedy very seriously, and I understand how this could have been construed as an attack on your form of it.
I run a blog on my campus, and I recently got into some hot-water with a couple of people over something I had written. I had forgotten that the words I type are read by a lot of people, and that the things I say actually do mean something. Perhaps, the assumption was made that I wasn't well versed in the comedic circuit online, or that I would never stumble upon your post. Perhaps you didn't care. Either way, I read what you wrote. And I'm not going to say it hurt, but it didn't feel great. Comedy is terrifying enough and to be condemned by a respectable publication because of my first interview is, well, quite discouraging.
And you were right. I did stand up at the DC Improv last night and I've already abandoned the nervous guy.
Your New Comedy Messiah,
Travis Helwig"
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