The New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Springfield, Mo., comedy scenes lost a titan last week — beloved stand up, writer and actor Kenny DeForest. I am so lucky to have known Kenny as a colleague and a friend. I was selfishly psyched that he’d moved from LA back to New York after an (amicable) breakup last year. He’s one of those rare gems who pursued entertainment with no agenda. When we reconnected at The Gutter (where he filmed this special), we discussed the post-pandemic comedy landscape and navigating the notoriously cliquey LA scene. “I realized what I actually liked about comedy was the community,” he told me, a sentiment I never expected to hear from someone with multiple late night credits. But that’s the kind of guy he was. Refreshingly unpretentious and hellbent on remaining human against the backdrop of a tough city, a tougher scene and an industry that would rather see most creatives dead (sorry) than sufficiently employed.
I was (and am) obsessed with his Corden set, and told him so. It’s a dexterous, clever showcase of his characteristically playful approach to heady subjects — in this case, toxic masculinity and men’s inability to relate to each other (or take care of themselves without a woman intervening). That’s how he was off stage, too — patient, thoughtful, inclusive. Kenny came up in the Chicago scene with an incredible cohort including Liza Treyger, Megan Gailey, David Drake, Will Miles and Clark Jones. After he (first) moved to NYC, he, Will and Clark took over hosting Sundays at The Knitting Factory from Hannibal Buress (yes, the Hannibal Buress you’re thinking of). The shows and the hangs were legendary — a lynchpin of the Brooklyn scene. He appeared on HBO’s Crashing and made his late night debut on Seth Meyers in 2017. He was hilarious and had the mainstream credits to prove it. But his greatest influence was on other comics’ behavior; he inspired hundreds of us to be less shitty to each other, and to ourselves, without employing moralism or shame. So many people have been testifying to Kenny’s character because so many of us have a story about his greatness. It’s fitting that his posthumous legacy includes organ donation that’s already saved 5 lives. Maybe next year fewer of my friends will die. In the meantime, stream B.A.D. Dreams and do a small kindness for someone who needs it.
Recommendations
F.D Signifier’s It’s Tough Loving Lauryn Hill
Adored this in-depth, thoughtful video essay about Lauryn Hill and the travails of fandom. The woman’s a genius, no doubt, but I could never justify seeing her live in the year 2023. That said, last week I walked into The Commodore, heard How Many Mics bumping and immediately felt at peace. Boundaries.
Melinda Verga’s Snatch Game performance on Canada’s Drag Race
“It taste like…dirt.” Like a phoenix rising from the ashes (or whatever), Melinda Verga stunned with her turn as Manny Pacquiao in the competition’s signature challenge. Vergarinas, are we ready for our queen’s inevitable coronation???
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Tina Friml’s Fallon set
In a serious oversight, I didn’t plug my sweet friend Tina’s Tonight Show set (and late night debut!) last month. She’ll be starring in features in 3 to 4 years, so memorize her name, face and shoe size now. Jimmy saw her at The Cellar and immediately recognized her talent, joining Sharon Stone and Drew Barrymore as fans. Watch. Listen. Laugh — and learn how to be less annoying to disabled people.
Shameless Self-Promotion
I am once again doing 50 First Jokes at the Bell House on January 6th, 2024 (!) — tickets are available here. This year it’s TWO shows and I’m on the late one (10 PM). Every comic’s given 2 minutes to perform the first joke they’ve written that year (though in front of a large, sold-out audience that contains industry, not everyone follows the “rules” lol). It’s extremely fun and I recommend checking it out.
OK bye!
Kenny was truly a gem 😢
Tina is great! I saw her perform at Littlefield over the weekend!