Comedy Central February 2010

MMEDIA RELEASE:

Jeff, Walter, Peanut, Melvin and Achmed come to Comedy Central NZ

COMEDY CENTRAL
AUCKLAND, Friday 5 Feb, 2009 – He’s been hailed as America’s Greatest Comic, had the top grossing standup act in North America in 2009 and the first show of this series was watched by 5.3 million viewers – the most watched season premiere in Comedy Central history. Ventriloquist Jeff Dunham brings his pals to life in The Jeff Dunham Show, a stunning premiere on Comedy Central which premiered Thursday 4th February @ 7:30pm.

Dunham has ventured into late-night wonderlands such as The Tonight Show and Letterman and garnered praise from audiences for his quick wit and colourful cast of characters.  He pushes the boundaries at times with his humour – case in point being ‘Achmed the Dead Terrorist’, who was one of the most controversial and watched clips on YouTube, (frequently telling audiences to “Shut up! I kill you!”).

Dunham’s other characters include “superhero” Melvin, white-trash, beer drinking redneck Bubba J, retired, grumpy old man Walter, Player In the Management Profession (“P.I.M.P”) Sweet Daddy Dee (who frequently calls Dunham his “ho”… well, Jeff does work for Sweet Daddy Dee) and hyperactive, purple skinned woozle Peanut – described as “the bad kid” of the pack.

He helped create Seinfeld and is viewed as an icon of sitcoms. Larry David’s dialogue-driven humor has been used as a basis for many a contender to that Seinfeld throne though nothing has ever come close – except for David’s own acerbic television series Curb Your Enthusiasm. Comedy Central will premiere the HBO special that launched one of this decades’ most talked about television shows. Larry David: Curb Your Enthusiasm premieres Tuesday 23rd February @ 8:30pm. It’s art imitating life (imitating art imitating life), as David is approached to perform a one-off TV special. Agreeing he has to polish his stand up skills, David realizes that his nerves aren’t as robust as they used to be as he hits comedy club after comedy club. Featuring appearances by Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander and Richard Lewis, this is truly ‘must-see’ TV.

Martin Lawrence has been a national treasure in the United States starring in prime-time comedy Martin, alongside Will Smith in the Bad Boys franchise and donning a fat suit and drag in Big Momma’s House. Before his foray onto the big and little screen, Lawrence cemented his status as a funny man in the stand up circuit and frequently is considered an “originator” in many comedy circles. Martin Lawrence: You So Crazy! premiering on Tuesday 9th February @ 8:30pm shows the pure talent Lawrence commands of his audiences, as this classic HBO Special shows.  It’s raunchy, it’s racy, it’s undeniably funny, its Martin at his best.

He’s a curmudgeon and he’d quite rightly agree with you if you ever called him an “angry old bastard.” Author/playwright/actor/sometimes The Daily Show correspondent and comedian Lewis Black explodes on the stage for his first HBO Special and Comedy Central premiere Lewis Black: Black on Broadway on Tuesday 16th February @ 8:30pm, showing the observational and sometimes outright vulgar humour reminiscent of George Carlin who was a big influence on Black’s style. Topics such as US homeland security, sexual politics, international travel, tax cuts, Martha Stewart and US politics are all placed in the line of Black’s caustic, comedic fire as he shows he is afraid of nothing. What makes Black’s routines even more special is his refusal to write anything down instead choosing a topic and ranting in a stream-of-conscious delivery until he goes blue in the face!

The Jeff Dunham Show. Premieres Thursday 4th February @ 7:30pm
Lewis Black: Black on Broadway. Premieres Tuesday 16th February @ 8:30pm
Martin Lawrence: You So Crazy! Premieres Tuesday 9th February @ 8:30pm
Larry David: Curb Your Enthusiasm. Premieres Tuesday 23rd February @ 8:30pm

ends