Think Off-center

Awhile back, I posted a list of the funny people who helped shape my sense of humor. Carlin was number one on that list not because he was the first to come to mind (of course not), but because his philosophical observations about humanity occasionally rivalled those of Lao Tzu. In my opinion anyway.

Here's a list of some gems.

At least his death reminded me of his Life.





Rest In
Peace.

George Carlin 06/23/08

Knocked Up, a.k.a. The Top 101 Unforgettable SNL Moments Revisited

[EDIT - 5/15/08: To those of you arriving at this post searching for information about E!'s 101 Most Unforgettable SNL Moments, I know there isn't too much out there, including from E!. I found this which lists all the moments. I do hope you're not too upset that you've ended up here. Happy trails!]

What a great movie! So honest. I like comedies like that, like "Little Miss Sunshine" and "The 40 Year Old Virgin". You'd think I must like Steve Carell. But I don't. I don't? Wait, yes... yes... I don't. What? I do. I do what? I do... not like Steve Carell. That can't be right. I do like Steve Carell, no? No. Wait, no I do or no I don't? What? Like Steve Carell. No. No, I do. I really do... like Steve Carell. Yeah? Yeah... I don't. Really? No, I do. What? I must like Steve Carell. Do I? No.

I feel a little guilty about using the Top 101 Moments of SNL on a preceding post. A bunch of people are finding it because I initially screwed up and put "100", which, because it was incorrect, got my post kinda high up in Google. People hitting that link see Jimi Hendrix and a list of comedians. Some from SNL, but honestly the show was only tangentially related to the post. Well, it did inspire the post, but there wasn't any info about it. I didn't even put a link to the E! page for it or anything. Was that wrong? I hope people at least like my artwork. I am genuinely putting those lists to give a sense of who I am, what from our pop culture has seeped into my brain. And I'm trying to keep my rambling to a minimum, so I don't add paragraph upon paragraph detailing why each item on a list is there. Otherwise my posts would be epic, but in a bad way.

Right now, though, comedians like Steve Carell and Will Ferrell are making me laugh the most. Even "Blades of Glory" was a riot in spurts. They're kind of like modern-day screwball comedies, fast-talking, physical humor, silly, yet with an undercurrent of intelligence. Of course, as previously noted, "Bringing Up Baby" and the others of its time are in our limited DVD collection. I love it when funny people come together with a funny script and the perfect director for their time and place.

The owner of the Tempe Improv balked at my paintings of Steve Martin, Bill Cosby, George Carlin and Robin Williams, so if anybody's interested, let me know here or:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: WWW.VINYLART.INFO

and email me. Let me know, too, who your favorite comedians are!

Top 101 Moments Of SNL

[EDIT - 5/15/08: To those of you arriving at this post searching for information about E!'s 101 Most Unforgettable SNL Moments, I know there isn't too much out there, including from E!. I found this which lists all the moments. What follows here is another more personal list of mine.]

We were watching the countdown on E! last night and it reminded me of how important comedians and comedy have been in shaping my outlook on life. From the zany Monty Python troop to the warmth of Bill Cosby, there've been tons of funny people through the years who have connected with and influenced what makes me laugh:

George Carlin
Steve Martin
John Belushi
Dan Aykroyd
Gilda Radner
Bill Murray
Lucille Ball
Mitch Hedberg
Burns & Allen
Fry & Laurie
Sid Caesar
Steve Carell
Charlie Chaplin
Bill Cosby
John Cleese
Chris Farley
David Spade
Jimmy Fallon
Tina Fey
Will Ferrell
Mel Brooks
Christopher Guest
Phil Hartman
Rowan & Martin
Tim Conway
Caroll Burnett
Harvey Corman
Andy Kaufman
Buster Keaton
Denis Leary
David Letterman
Conan O'Brien
Marx Brothers
Tracy Morgan
Bob Newhart
Trey Parker & Matt Stone
Carl Reiner
Molly Shannon

These are a bunch of the biggies for me. There are lots of comedic actors, but they don't fit in with this list, I don't think.

I've gotten all the paintings done for Primitive Kool. Now I've just got to frame and box'em! The Newport Nights show is going to be 2007/10/27. http://primitivekoolart.com/ has more details. I'll do commissions of the ones that'll be in the show too, if you can't make it, or any other musician you'd want! I'm going to put a post of all 16 pieces together soon. For now:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT: http://www.vinylart.info/

and tell me who you'd add to my funny people list!

Comedians Too?

"But, Daniel, comedians aren't musicians," you might say. True usually, but, they are part of our pop culture. An important part, I think. So I've painted George Carlin, Robin Williams, Steve Martin, and Bill Cosby to start. The owner of the Tempe Improv is going to take a look at them this weekend hopefully! Leave me a comment if you want me to paint another comedian on commission for you! All they have to have is an album out on vinyl.

Also, if you don't have a clue about what these are, don't worry, just:

CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE AT http://www.vinylart.info/

and also, please let me know how you found me! Thanks!