In the past six months a group of comedians led by one tyrannically awesome leader managed to produce 10 episodes of Week Thus Far (and tape 11). Every Monday we’d show up in the Forks with two vehicles stuffed with sound and video equipment, unload into Finn’s Pub and systematically turn it into a makeshift television studio. Dan Robertson even built us a prompter out of (essentially) cardboard, a sheet of glass, a monitor and a tiny computer.

I’ve never been more proud of any project I’ve ever worked on. Every Thursday we meet to talk business, Saturday we write and shoot sketches, Sundays we edit between 16-19 News Desk jokes and 1-3 videos. When Monday rolls around we’re all sleep deprived and panic-ridden, but ready to put on a show for the enthusiastic and generous audience that’s laughing at the same jokes they’re hearing for the second time or applaud for a sketch they just watched without sound.

I could talk about it for pages and pages. Instead I’m going to leave you with a series of sketches we’ve put together (some have been sent to us) from Week Thus Far in chronological order.

Week Thus Far’s intro!

This is Sean doing what I call “Intellectually Bullying” people in the Forks.

The ‘One Great Part of One Great City’ series highlights what makes Winnipeg the best city in the world. Period.

Upper Fort Garry Wall

The Golden Boy

Odenna Celebration Circle

1123 Grosvenor Ave.

A smear campaign from the one they call “Old Ball Coach”. (We got a call about that hat)

I think I’m an idiot in this sketch. Like I’m consciously shitting the bed.

Dan Huen with Rockin’ Ron Pollock!

On one episode taping our band bailed last minute (Greg Arcade saved the day) and none of the footage made it onto the tape. Luckily we had a stand-alone camera set up and Will O’Donnell played rogue camerman and did a great job. We discovered that the stand-up juggernaut known as Ryan Ash can also can bust-a-move with some deadly precision.

I have plenty more sketches to show you from the Week Thus Far crew. Make sure you visit their website and tell them how wonderful they may or may not be. Stay tuned…

And, oh yeah, FRINGE SHOW! – Full Screen Ahead: The Sketch Show, Show. Stay tuned…

Irwin Barker is one of the most revered comics to ever come out of Winnipeg. He has an incredibly witty word play in his stand-up act. When Irwin’s on stage he not only captures the attention of the overwhelmed audience, he has all the comedians lined up at the wings of the stage clinging to every set-up. Irwin is currently a writer on the Mercer Report. Surf over to his website to check out some videos and buy his DVD – www.irwinbarker.com

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I posted this on May 9th, 2009. At the time I interviewed Irwin the only thing I knew about him was every comedian praised the ground he walked on. It wasn’t until I saw him perform that I understood why. I’d liken to watching his skills with wordplay on stage to watching Ronaldinho do kick ups mid-game. It was remarkable to watch, I think everyone leaves his show with a few more sparks ignited in their minds. We truly missed one of the most bestessess.

Make sure you also check out the interview Bruce Clark did on CBC radio.

Dan and I were lucky enough to interview Tim Wilkerson and Scott Blair from the comedy machine known as Magic Hugs. It’s a non-specific holiday miracle! Tim and Scott formed Magic Hugs in January of 2008 and since then have built an impressive web presence with aesthetically and comedically pleasing video sketches like the following…

This is the video that first turned my attention towards Magic Hugs:

This video features Larry Hankin! What?

THIS video got them runner-up in the comedy fetish video contest that funny or die put on!

If you didn’t lawl during those sketches then you should check your pulse because you might have already died and no one has told you yet. Let’s get down to it. Here is the interview conducted by Dan Huen and Tim Gray with Scott Blair and Tim Wilkerson.

Magic Hugs Interview!

Also, if you ever find yourself surrounded by a group of people you want to impress. Or maybe it’s a special lady, man or lady-man that you want to impress. No matter who you want to impress, show them the Laugh Grandma site and you’ll surely be the life of the party. It’s updated daily with the funniest content the internet has to offer.

Listen for a chance to win

Season 5 of Kenny vs. Spenny on DVD!

Here is the interview that Dan and I conducted with Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice. Season 5 of their show was released on November 26th, 2009. We were given a bunch of DVDs to give away so make sure you listen up for the full details on how you can get your hands on one. i know that Winnipeg is famous for loving three things – free stuff, slurpees, and hate.

If you live outside of Winnipeg and would like to partake please feel free. If you’re a winner we’ll mail you a copy free of charge. Let’s get to it! Here’s the interview, enjoy!

slade_kenny_spenny

ps – I still have a voicemail message from Spenny saved on my phone.

pps – DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE “SKETCHES AND DOODLES” SHOW AT THE GAS STATION THEATRE ON FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18th!!!

Pat Thornton – the creator/star of “The Owl and the Man”, Hotbox, and so much more…
Jason Derosse – cast member of Hotbox, very successful commercial actor, and so much more…
Bob Banks- A former Winnipegger and member of the Canadian comedy award nominated Improv group PROJECTproject …erom hcum os dna (this one’s for our dyslexic fans)

I had the privilege of watching these guys flex their funny muscles when they were in Winnipeg from November 17th to the 20th. As a self-proclaimed amateur comedian, I found their combined and separate talents to be awfully daunting. Just having a conversation with them either had me laughing hysterically or thinking provocatively (depending on whom I was talking to). Their combined talents make for a serious comedic force that entertains crowds on levels that they aren’t even aware of. Pat Thornton is a walking, talking punchline that can make anything outrageously and uproariously funny. Jason Derosse has a fire in his eyes and passion in his belly that let’s you know he’s very serious about the very funny. And Bob Banks is a spilly bag of brilliance, heart and hilarity. ‘Twas an honour to witness their comedic skills and chat with them on and off camera. Cheers,
Tim “Sincere Compliments” Gray

John B Duff is a local stand-up who produces two of my favourite stand-up comedy showcases in Winnipeg. He was the first producer in town to give me a chance at trying stand-up (in a legit atmosphere) and I am forever grateful for it. He is also like a father figure to a lot of the young comics in the underground Winnipeg comedy scene. You can almost always see him at a show giving a comic a piece of advice or effectively shushing a loud talker/heckler. The two shows he produces are “Shitz N Gigglez” and “Comedy at the Cavern”. The Shitz N Gigglez shows are on the 3rd Tuesday of every month at the Kings Head Pub and have been increasing in popularity over the past 4 years to the point that you’ll have to get there before 9pm if you want to grab some prime real estate seating. This latest reincarnation of “Comedy at the Cavern” is only about a month old, but it already has a strong following of eager comics and giddy seat-fillers. The “Comedy at the Cavern” show is every Sunday night at 9:45pm. If you want to try your hand at stand-up comedy all you have to do is show up at 9pm, sign up and then stand up.

Here is the long-awaited interview with Winnipeg’s favourite comedic father figure – John Be Duff.
john b duff edited

I normally don’t have a problem talking to famous comedians that have attained some sort of celebrity status because I never think of anyone other than human. Just because someone has done something great doesn’t excuse them from having the same flaws that make us all the imperfect simians we’ve evolved into. But, if you’re anything like me you’re childhood humour was shaped by the Kids In The Hall. I’d watch it every night with my brother and we’d imitate the characters from the show and laugh out loud in the true sense of the phrase. I love that show with every fiber of my being and I know it had a huge impact on my comedic sensibilities whether I’m consciously aware of it or not. So, when I was chatting with Kevin McDonald (frickin’ Kids in the Hall!) I kept falling back into my mind and thinking “Oh my god! This is Kevin McDonald from The Kids in the Hall! This is one the five comedians that I watched and laughed at religiously!!!). I made sure that I wrote down copious amounts of questions so I wouldn’t freeze up in the interview, but it was so much fun that I barely looked at the page.

He was such an animated fellow too! He came in after a long and exhausting day of doing media and even though we were sitting down for the interview he would constantly be getting up and adding animation to the stories he was sharing. And he mentioned before the interview that he doesn’t do caffeine so that energy is all him!

MAKE SURE YOU GO SEE HIS SHOW!!! It’s this Friday, November 13th at the Gas Station Theatre. There are still a few tickets available, buy them now and buy them fast! The show is called “Hammy and the Kids”. It’s an 18+ show, so leave the kids in their cage and come enjoy yourself.

Here’s part one of the interview. Enjoy epically…
kevin mcdonald finished part 1
Click here for part two.

The Sid Ceasar sketch that Kevin mentions…

An Ernie Kovac sketch…

And one of my favourite sketches that Kevin mentions in the interview…

Here is part deuce.
kevin mcdonald part 2

This interview with Tim Steeves was a nightmare from production street, but a dream come true from comedian avenue. I like to think of Steeves as possessing the ideal characteristics of a truly Canadian comedian. Despite his many successes and intimidating talent he’s still down to earth, humble, human and hilarious. I didn’t have to pester him with numerous emails or go through his agent or PR person before getting the interview. I simply found him online and made one brief request which he promptly replied to. We couldn’t be more grateful to feature him on this site and part two of our Hecklesode. If you don’t already know he’s a staff writer for the Rick Mercer Report, was a writer for many seasons on This Hour Has 22 Minutes, etc, etc.

We had all sorts of problems capturing this interview, but we managed to get about 98% of it on tape. I prefaced the interview with the details into what exactly went wrong in case you’re wondering. Even though the technical failures caused some random interruptions, it was still one of the most fun and free flowing interviews we’ve done yet. Listen up and Enjoy!

tim steeves interview edited

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New York based comedian and journalist Mandy Stadtmiller was gracious enough to have a little chit chat with Dan and Tim about comedy, journalism, women, celebrity encounters, interviewing and of course – et cetra. Her website features writings, videos, pictures, transcribed interviews, tid bits, and everything you need to know about Mandy Stadtmiller. If you take the time to properly peruse you can discover some real gems like a transcribed interview with late night talk show great Conan O’brien. It was a wonderful experience to be able to interview someone who has a huge wealth of knowledge about comedy and comedians. Her philosophies on comedy are insightful and inspiring to say the least. If I may dwell on the blog for another brief moment, it has some wonderfully fun posts with brief flirtatious captions mixed in with really deep and personal writings such as “Eyes“. It’s definitely worth checking out

Also, she makes a great reference to Stephen Colbert’s address to Knox College and blogged it beautifully – click here to check it out.

Without further adieu, I give you, the Mandy Stadtmiller interview… Enjoy!
The Mandy Stadtmiller Interview