{"id":9150,"date":"2015-12-29T15:04:32","date_gmt":"2015-12-29T20:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/?p=9150"},"modified":"2016-01-08T15:50:54","modified_gmt":"2016-01-08T20:50:54","slug":"top-50-stand-up-comedians-kevin-smith-tig-notaro","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hardwoodandhollywood.com\/pop-culture-spin\/2015\/12\/29\/top-50-stand-up-comedians-kevin-smith-tig-notaro\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 50 Stand-Up Comedians: Kevin Smith, Tig Notaro"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"kevinsmith\"<\/a>

Image courtesy of the “Kevin Smith Stands Up For Video Gamers With Youtube Channels” link posted on YouTube.<\/p><\/div>\n

22. Kevin Smith<\/span><\/p>\n

It is debateable whether or not Kevin Smith even belongs on this list. That is the only reason he falls outside my Top 15 because there are few people in the world who make me laugh harder.<\/span><\/p>\n

Without Smith, I would not be a writer and I would not have a podcast – or at least those things would look very different. His personal inspiration to me comes not just from his podcasts or myriad of fantastic films like <\/span>Dogma, Chasing Amy, <\/span><\/i>and <\/span>Zach and Miri Make a Porno, <\/span><\/i>but also from his appearance on stage in the <\/span>Evening With Kevin Smith<\/span><\/i> series.<\/span><\/p>\n

Taking only the latter into account, there is still such a wealth of quality material that he more than deserves his spot among other comic legends. Each special clocks in near or over the three-hour mark and while it is a twist on the classic formula, it consists of a human being standing on a stage telling jokes and stories.<\/span><\/p>\n

Other comics implement audience participation into their act, but Smith hands a certain amount of control to his fans by having them being each \u201cbit\u201d by asking him a question. As such, Smith\u2019s \u201cstand-up\u201d is highly improvisational and markedly distinct from others but it is still a performance of stories and jokes he has told before and if a casual observer walked into the room while you were watching one of these specials, they wouldn\u2019t be able to tell the difference between it and standard stand-up comedy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, he gets to utilize his experience in the film industry and his unique life and perspective to tackle subjects you won\u2019t hear from any standard comedian. Rather than discuss politics, race, and social issues (all of which can be great comedic material), he can take us through the process of working with prima-donna actors or out-of-touch studio executives. And, of course, he is always talking about nerd stuff which is a huge win for my people.<\/span><\/p>\n

He isn\u2019t for all audiences – the language can be incredibly crude – but if I\u2019m going to pop in a DVD because I want to laugh for three hours non-stop, <\/span>An Evening With Kevin Smith <\/span><\/i>(any of the four) are as good as anything produced by anyone else on this list.<\/span><\/p>\n