Comedy news for the holy week through Easter, Passover and Ramadan, oh my!
“We’ll do it LIVE!” may have only been a meme-worthy moment early in Bill O’Reilly’s TV anchoring career, but the decision by Netflix to go LIVE for the first time with Chris Rock last month has proved a smashing success, at least from a ratings standpoint. Chris Rock: Selective Outrage has given Netflix its most-watched comedy special debut ever.
Premiering March 4, Netflix’s first-ever live event attracted 418 million minutes from viewers in the 24 hours after Rock took the stage in Baltimore. Or roughly just a shade under 7 million viewers, if all of those minutes were distributed equally among people who watched the full hour.
For the next full week of Nielsen measurement (March 6-12, 2023), Chris Rock’s new hour pulled in an additional 798 million minutes (13.3 million hours), ranking ninth on Nielsen’s overall streaming report.
Netflix’s own Top 10 report for that week claimed Rock’s special had clocked 17.79 million hours. Which, wait a second while I convert hours back into minutes…
17.79 * 60 = 1,067.4 millions or 1.067 billion minutes?! So Nielsen’s number is only 269 million minutes short from Netflix’s number. That’s so many Seasons of Love!
Hmmmm.
I suppose the easiest explanation for this is thus: Netflix’s own numbers account for global viewership, while Nielsen only tracks American viewers.
How do we put this into perspective for comedy fans or just TV watchers, though? How does this measure up to the old ways where people only watched TV on TV, or even the new ways of other streaming comedy specials? Nielsen only began tracking and reporting streaming numbers in 2017, when there were fewer platforms to track (ah, memories, before Disney+, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Peacock and Paramount+).
In a nod to how significant this event was for the industry, even Saturday Night Live got in on the act, poking fun at Netflix over the weekend with guest host Molly Shannon getting a live special for her SNL caricature of stand-up, Jeannie Darcy. Both the Netflix Is A Joke account on Twitter as well as Netflix’s comedy executives were quick to like and share it, too!
Rock’s Selective Outrage broke the previous record-holder for comedy special viewing minutes in a week: Dave Chappelle: Sticks and Stones, which had 573 million in 2019.
But that wasn’t a big enough number to crack the Nielsen Top 10 back then, apparently, because that feat belonged to Chappelle’s follow-up, The Closer, coming in sixth during its first full week on Netflix in October 2021, with 399 million minutes. At 72 minutes long, that would translate into 5.54 million viewers if watched to completion.
tried to frame what that meant at the time:
Consider that Netflix themselves said that Kevin Hart’s Zero F**ks Given was their most watched comedy special in 2020. Released on 17-Nov, it didn’t make the Nielsen Top 10 list that week, meaning it had a viewership below 7.8 million hours. In other words, right around the range of Chappelle’s special—which earned 6.7 million hours in its first week—and these two comics seem to deliver the most viewers for Netflix stand-up specials. For those wondering, here’s my guesses for the top stand up specials for Netflix, based on their datecdotes:
1. Dave Chappelle’s Sticks and Stones – Greater than 21 million viewers [highest all-time, according to Ted Sarandos memo]
2. Kevin Hart’s Zero F**ks Given: Viewership 21 million [highest comedy in 2019, Netflix PR]
3. Dave Chappelle’s The Closer: Estimated viewership 20 million [Bloomberg leak](Where does that 20 million come from? In the past, the average show/film sees roughly 50% of their total viewing in the first 28 days in the first week. Or twice their first week’s viewership in the first 28 days. So this is my rough guess.)
But hardly anyone else in stand-up comedy has managed to break through the screen clutter and the streaming algorithms.
I know Jim Gaffigan: Comedy Monster on Netflix ranked ninth on the weekly streaming chart for “originals” (but not the overall chart) for the holiday week of Dec. 20-26, 2021, with 186 million minutes, or 3.1 million hours.
Who else, though? I can certainly think of several names who’ve received critical acclaim and a bump in touring ticket sales or TV/movie opportunities, but I cannot think of too many who’ve hit the zeitgeist in terms of massive streaming audiences. Can you? Please tell me.
HBO has the prestige if not the subscriber base to deliver a hit comedy, although they do have a long track record of setting the cultural conversation through their hit dramas and comedy series for pretty much all 22-plus years of this century.
And yet, HBO only recently let Nielsen track their HBO Max viewership, and Paramount+ only joined the Nielsen fold in the past month or so. Not that helps any stand-up comedians. Yet.
Speaking of which, back in Cable TV Land (not to be confused with Paramount+ brand channel TV Land), Jeff Dunham holds most if not all of the comedy special records at Comedy Central. That goes back to his big breakthrough in 2008, Jeff Dunham’s Very Special Christmas Special, watched by 6.6 million people. His 2015 special, Unhinged In Hollywood, nabbed 6.4 million viewers for its NBC premiere, followed by millions more when it showed up a month and a half later on Comedy Central. Jeff Dunham’s Completely Unrehearsed Last-Minute Pandemic Holiday Special in 2020 brought in 4.2 million viewers over five telecasts on Thanksgiving weekend.
Of course, he’s the rare performer to still put out a special on Comedy Central.
In 2023, Comedy Central is putting out new hours — such as Jenny Zigrino: Jen-Z a month ago — on YouTube rather than on TV. More of Comedy Central’s current focus on stand-ups (new or not-so-new) is on filming them in shorter showcase sets of half-hours or even less than 10-minutes, then dumping them onto YouTube.
There was a time not that long ago pre-pandemic when Netflix was filming half-hours or 15-minute sets, too, because they realized most viewers weren’t even bothering to watch the full hour specials. No wonder nobody was cracking the Nielsen list back then. But the shorter sets also afforded opportunities to newer, younger, lesser-known comedians. They still get those opportunities with Netflix. Last year they came through showcases filmed at Netflix Is A Joke: The Festival in Los Angeles. And now? Who knows?
R.I.P. Al Jaffee
Sad day for MAD magazine fans. Al Jaffee, the preeminent cartoonist for MAD whose record-setting career as a cartoonist spanned from 1942 to 2020 — and who had his toons published in every single issue of MAD except only one between April 1964 and April 2013, has died. Jaffee came up with “Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions” and was famously known for his Fold-In feature, wherein you could fold the drawing on the inside back cover to reveal a slightly different picture and joke. On his 102nd birthday this March 13, Vulture published an extended edition of the interview Jaffee gave to writer Mike Sacks back in 2008.
“We’ve lost an iconic member of the Usual Gang of Idiots. The world was very lucky to have Al Jaffee. I’m forever grateful that my stint at MAD let me meet the legendary fold-in artist. He came up with better jokes in his 90s/100s than most people could in their prime.” — Allie Goertz
Industry News and Notes
What else is new?
Netflix ordered Mae Martin’s limited series small-town troubled-teen thriller Tall Pines. Martin is creator and co-showrunner, and will EP with Ryan Scott and Ben Farrell. “Tall Pines is a story I’ve been dying to tell for years, and I’m beyond excited for people to see what we have in store! It’s going to be an insane roller coaster and so different to anything I’ve done before,” the comedian said.
Malia Obama is making a short film with Donald Glover’s company. As Glover told GQ: “The first thing we did was talk about the fact that she will only get to do this once. You’re Obama’s daughter. So if you make a bad film, it will follow you around.”
In other odd working couples, Adam Pally will co-star with basketball star Steph Curry in a potential NBC sitcom, a mockumentary called Mr. Throwback, about a memorabilia dealer who hopes his sixth-grade teammate can help redeem him. Curry would play himself. The series is from Happy Endings creator David Caspe and writers Matthew and Daniel Libman. Curry’s Unanimous Media has a first-look deal with Universal, and has previously developed ABC’s game show Holey Moley and Apple’s docuseries Underrated.
Variety reported that Ken Jeong will star in a FOX single-cam based on Dan Harris’ popular book and podcast 10% Happier.
Apple TV+ has renewed The Big Door Prize for a second season, which stars Christopher O’Dowd.
Funny or Die has a new show debuting April 20 on both discovery+ and HBO Max. High Science stars Matt Klinman and Zack Poitras, plus Paul Bettany as the voice of futuristic, talking bong “Dr. Oh,” taking Matt and Zack on psychedelic trips of scientific discovery to blow their minds with real facts from the cutting edge of human knowledge.
Showtime has canceled Ziwe after two seasons, leaving it with zero talk shows following the breakup of Desus and Mero.
For its final three episodes of the season, NBC is moving Lopez vs Lopez from Fridays to 8:30 p.m. ET/PT Tuesdays, beginning April 25, following Night Court at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Rupert Gee’s Hello Deli, made famous by David Letterman being next door in the Ed Sullivan Theatre, is retiring. Per Instagram:
Alex Edelman is taking his Off-Broadway show to Broadway! Just For Us will begin previews at the Hudson Theatre on June 22, with an opening night the following Monday, and a limited run through Aug. 19.
You can hear Edelman talk to me on my podcast, Last Things First, Episode #366, from Nov. 2021!
Last Week’s Specials
New on Netflix
My Name Is Mo’Nique (my review)
New on YouTube
Papp Johnson: Timeless (via Four by Three)
Mary Santora: Nothing Matters (via Helium Comedy Studios)
— The most popular YouTube release of the week, though, was a re-release?! Matt Rife has generated more than 2.6 million views and counting in the past six days for Matthew Steven Rife (previously debuted on Moment). ALSO last week, Cracked Up re-released Marvelous Mrs. Shenkman: AKA Flocked Out, while 800PGM re-released Robert Klein’s Child of the 50s, Man of the 80s.
New on Amazon Originals
Lizzy Hoo: Hoo Cares!? (review forthcoming on Decider)
New on Amazon for rent/sale
New on NextUp
Milton Jones: Milton Impossible
Njambi Mcgrath: Black Black
New on Dry Bar
Chris James: Black Harry Potter
Ryan Conner: Cub Scout Dropout
SO…for the running total for 2023, we’re now at what now, exactly?
THIS WEEK: 15
LAST WEEK: 16
THIS MONTH (APRIL): 18
RUNNING TOTAL for 2023: 153+15+36 = 204 comedy specials???
This new figure (204) supposes (perhaps very wrongly) that I haven’t missed any other previous specials on the NextUp platform, but at least retroactively adds in 36 Dry Bar Comedy specials released on their subscription platform since Jan. 1, 2023. I only have specific release dates for some of them, although I do have their release order.
Jordan Conley: Half Capacity 1/3
Cory Kahaney: He Bought The Hat! 1/4
Jen Kober: Top Banana 1/7
Lisa Alvarado: How To Stay Single
Dan Grueter: Cheese & Serial Killers
Tim Homayoon: Ex Boy Scout
Maureen Langan: Don’t Make Me Hate You
Jeff Leeson: What’s The Secret?
Kevin Farley: Fake It Till You Make It
Claude Stuart: Optimist Prime
Anthony Griffith: Laughing At MS
Andrew Arango Kennedy: Latino In Disguise
Carl Strong: Are You Ready For This?!
Andy Erikson: Unicorn Style
Isabel Hagen: Good Sport
Brian Kiley: What’s His Problem? 1/20
Ray DeVito: 40 & Simple 1/24
Don McEnery: Just Sayin’
Derek Hughes: Magician On A Mission
Karen Morgan: Rub Some Dirt On It
Jennifer O’Brien: My Hoopty Life
Dustin Nickerson: Sturdy & Nerdy 2/9
Ellen Karis: Dreams Don’t Come True 2/14
Mike Head: This Wasn’t The Plan…
Wali Collins: Oh Yeah. He’s Good.
Drew Barth: Tried Too Hard 2/23
Brian Scolaro: Trouble
Drew Thomas: Don’t Get Comfortable
Lionel Harris: Rent-A-Friend
Dustin Chafin: Cranky Pants 3/9
Jeff Nease: Can’t Talk To You Right Now 3/14
Alex Velluto: The Big Gulp Kid 3/16
John Knight: What Aggravates Me
Paul Sheffield: Positive Thinking
Amber Autry: That’s My Best Friend 3/28
Tommy Ryman: Waffles And Dragons 3/30
Late-Night Roundup
Fun Things To Do In NYC
This past weekend’s show(s) I plugged in The New York Times: Carmen Christopher performed late Saturday at The Bell House with opener/guest Joe Pera. Their packed house followed an earlier sold-out show by Fahim Anwar.
This coming weekend?
Would you like to promote your comedy show or album or special or whatnot on this newsletter???
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