Yesterday afternoon when I told my friend Tracy that I was driving to Brea to see Lewis Black, she said, "Boy, you must really like Lewis Black." It wasn't so much the distance (at rush hour, about 90 minutes) as the fact that it was Brea. But I've liked Mr. Black on TV, especially on The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, and I figured I might like an extended dose of him in person. So my pal Earl Kress and I braved the freeway and found it well worth the journey. In person, Lewis Black stammers a lot more than he does on television and gets generally angrier. He also employs the "f" word so often that that you'd think he's getting paid per usage, and he quickly succeeds in draining it of its charming impact.
But we had a great time, especially in the last half-hour when Black turned political. He delivered a diatribe against the California recall that I think would convince Arnold to vote against it. He went after Enron execs and politicians and those who would advise us on what to eat or not eat for our health, and it was all fresh and funny and justifiably outraged. I think the "justifiable" part is a lot of what I like about him. Comedians are always complaining about stupid ads and stupider politicians, and they often fail to convince me that there's any real passion for anything beyond getting a good joke out of the topic. The position is whatever leads to a punch line.
Not so with Black. He's a smart man who's serious about comedy, and he doesn't go for the obvious topic or, at least, the obvious take on the obvious topic. If you'd like to see him, his current schedule is up over at his website. He's about to embark on something called The Comedy Central Tour, which will take him into various cities, usually in big rooms with other stars of the network, such as Dave Attell.
Preceding Mr. Black was comedian Mike Birbiglia. Opening for a headliner can be a thankless task. You have to convince the audience that came to see the guy after you that you're a bonus, not a speed bump. With sharp material and an unjaded delivery, Birbiglia quickly won us all over. Near the end, when he said it was almost time to bring on Lewis Black, the audience did not seem eager for the next act…which is about the best you can expect of an opening act. You can learn more about the guy at his website and if you have the time, there are some video clips of his TV appearances.
Lastly, this will probably interest five or less of you, but Earl and I had dinner before the show at a restaurant called Riley's, which is just down the street from the Brea Improv. As you darn well know if you've read my latest book, Wertham Was Right, I used to be a huge fan and patron of the many Love's Barbecue Restaurants that once dotted the land. Now, there are only a few and until last November, when it disengaged from the parent company and changed names, the place now called Riley's was one. But it still looks like a Love's and when I stepped inside, it was like walking through a time warp, right into the Love's that used to be on Pico Boulevard in West Los Angeles. Same floor plan, same furnishings, even the same beans. I'm not sure if I enjoyed the cuisine quite as much as the personal nostalgia, but I certainly enjoyed something there.
The Love's website lists only six remaining outlets, and that includes the one in Jakarta, Indonesia (!) and the one I went to last evening, which is now Riley's. I visit the site occasionally to order another case of their barbecue sauce, which I use at home in cooking. It was fun to taste it again in its natural habitat.