On Max. Does that mean you’re unaware of it?

The battle is over and Netflix won, which is why other streaming outlets are licensing content to the behemoth once again. We live in an attention economy, and that’s the most difficult thing to do, get someone’s attention. And distribution is king, content is secondary. In other words, if you can’t see it it doesn’t matter how good it is. And the only buzz on Max is negative, it’s losing subscribers and its app is crap.

But I watched this Gary Gulman special anyway, because I read fantastic reviews. Will you agree? I’m not sure. This is not Chris Rock, a laugh a minute, a riot. Nor is it Dave Chappelle, luxuriating in his fame with his slow, drawn-out delivery and laughing at himself. Actually, Gulman resembles some kid you went to high school with. He wasn’t popular, but he did have some friends. Although that’s a great joke in this piece, about having no friends, I don’t want to tell you any more and ruin it.

I’d never heard of the cat until that documentary a few years back wherein he detailed his depression. Pretty interesting, but once again, I’d never heard of him. And then I got a phone call on my radio show on SXM. We were discussing ticket prices and this guy in  Florida was bitching how much Gary Gulman tickets were for this tour. And I looked up the venue. This was no club. Gulman was a headliner. He’d been building his career off the radar screen. but building it he was.

So I subscribed to his feed on TikTok. And it wasn’t long before I was hooked. So we watched the special last night and…

He was billed as erudite, the thinking person’s comic. Well, I won’t exactly say he was highbrow, but he assumed the audience had some smarts, some education, one of the good jokes involves “A Tale of Two Cities.”

But he’s got this funny delivery. Kind of a hesitation. It appears genetic. And this messes with the build. You know how it’s all about the last fifteen minutes or so for these superstar comics. They build and build and then you realize they’re on a roll. Kind of like fireworks. You’re enjoying the presentation but you’re waiting for them to light multiple rockets at once, for the finale. Whereas Gulman is just telling stories.

So he goes on about growing up on welfare. And about people saying those who do will lose incentive. And then he talks about the children of the rich, who have trust funds, where’s their incentive?

Well, I kinda ruined that one, but it plays out over a long period of time, it’ll still work when you watch it.

And he goes on about income inequality. Comparing his assets to the billionaire known as…

And he owns his Jewish identity.

Jewish comics have been smoothing off their ethnic edges for decades. George Costanza was supposed to be Jewish but it was thought a show with all Jews would be too much for the audience. But Gulman doesn’t hold back.

Now most comics are going for the cheap laugh. They figure if you’re haw-hawing they’re winning. And others are all about the amped-up delivery, carrying you over the transom. Gary Gulman is neither. He’s telling jokes, but he’s also telling stories, that you can relate to. He’s not trying to make you feel bad, he’s trying to let you know that someone else is on your side, understands you. He’s not a schmo, but he’s not setting the world on fire either. It’s refreshing.

But really, when he nails it, you’ll laugh out loud. You won’t be busting a gut throughout, but you’ll see where he’s going and it’ll resonate deep inside and you’ll laugh with him

For a long time there the only truth could be told in cartoons. That was the magic of “The Simpsons.” Now we get truth from comedians.

And that’s another routine that Gulman does so well, talking about the self-marginalized hating on you on social media for not taking them into account. If you play, you know this. You’ve got to mention every possible person who could be involved or offended. I love it when I write about an act and people go wild on me because I didn’t write about the producer, or the session musician.

But maybe you’re passive and afraid to play. And therefore you need the comedians to speak your truth.

You certainly won’t get it from the musicians. Too many are cartoons themselves. Or speaking platitudes worried about offending someone. But these people who take the stage naked, on the road with little more than a mic, they’re thrilling us. We watch them dancing without a net, we’re on their side, however many fall off the wire, or don’t really get on the wire to begin with.

It’s incredibly lucrative if you’re successful, far better than being a musician. But if you can not only make people laugh, but think, then you’re worthy of our attention.

I’m not going to say this Gary Gulman special is a grand slam, I’m not even going to say it’s a home run. But there are some unexpected long hits. If you’ve got Max, you should check it out.

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