The Eugene Mirman thread?

[CaptainBreakfast]

New book coming out:
http://www.amazon.com/Will-Whatevs-G...5814397&sr=8-6

New Comedy CD recording:
http://aspecialthing.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1367

[badinia]

Are you just trying to set a wily trap so he'll post something?

Clever. Verrrrry clever.

[CaptainBreakfast]

The question mark is present because of the reluctance for making a thread about Eugene Mirman, and also because I have heard* that he ,in one way or another, is not favorable of AST comedy-nerding.

Also, now you see that whenever I try explaining things, like on stage or anywhere, it comes out as a scrambled clustermeld of the english language.

[Jixby Phillips]

I like Eugene Mirman and thats a correct opinion to have so dont EVEN

[Eugenem]

Your trap worked! I just posted this.

I'm not sure where you heard that I am not favorable of comedy-nerding, but I would say that is not true. I myself am a comedy nerd. Just ask Jack Parr's first record that I asked Steve Allen to sign (10 years ago at the Coop in Cambridge, MA). Though amusingly enough, if I was to be against it I would mostly be concerned that people thought I liked or disliked things based on hearsay and whispers.

Feel free to ask me stuff and if I happen upon this thread, I will gladly answer it. Mostly, because I am a wonderful person.

-Eugene

P.S. I am proud to have my own thread, especially because it has a question mark. I enjoy the mystery.

[Shane]

Eugene,

I saw you in "Kentucky" with Kindler and Maron and I made it awkward, so i'm sorry. Also, you are funny.

[CaptainBreakfast]

Glad to know that what I heard was incorrect.

[Scratch Lightning]

Eugene, what was it like hanging out with my stepbrother when you were filming that 23/6 stuff at the conventions? Did you feel like he was too much of a hipster, or not hipster enough? Did you meet his baby? If so, please rate his cuteness on a scale of 1 to 10.

[Eugenem]

Is your step brother Ari? Then it was very fun and he was wonderful. His baby was a level 8 cuteness maybe? If it was someone else did his name also have lightning in it?

-Eugene

[CaptainBreakfast]

I once heard you dedicate around 4 hours daily towards your act. True?

[Me!]

What's your favorite color?

[Nick C.]

Eugene,

I thoroughly enjoyed your show last night. Kumail and Larry were both excellent as well. I look forward to laughing along with myself when your new album is released.

[nadsat droog]

Eugenem,

I preordered your book three months in advance. How will my life be better because of this decision?

[Eugenem]

I don't think I dedicate four hours to my act a day on purpose, though sometimes I might. I am not including the time it takes me to walk around and notice things. I certainly don't do it every day, though that sounds like a great rumor. When I'm working on stuff (like a new bit or an album) I will spend many hours trying to figure out what silly word or noise to make. But I think most comics do that. We all sit around mumbling to ourselves in the voices of the people we want to make fun of.

My favorite color is probably blue, just like everyone elses.

And if you preorder my book, you will receive crucial life altering information before anyone else. Imagine getting the information to invest in something called "Yahoo" in 1987? You would be rich beyond your fairly wildest dreams. How do I know this? It happened in the movie Frequency. My book is like that investment tip in Frequency. It's awesome.

-Eugene

[Big Box Of Money]

Eugene Mirman,

I read that you majored in stand-up in college. If this story isn't fucking bullshit, how did you do that?

[CaptainBreakfast]

Better yet, how did you get into hampshire whilst being in special ed in high school? I looked at that place, and it takes a lot to get in.

[ericluxury]

Eugene Mirman,

I read that you majored in stand-up in college. If this story isn't fucking bullshit, how did you do that?

I know its the Eugene Mirman Q&A thing, but I've read a few interviews with him and they always ask this so maybe he's sick of the question. So here you go, from sfstandup.com,

SF When did you start doing comedy?

EM: The first time I ever did stand-up was just after high school. Then I did it throughout college, in Western Mass. I actually created my own major. I went to Hampshire College where you could design your own major, so I did comedy. And then I moved to Boston after college, and started pursuing comedy as a career.

One of his TSOYA interviews goes into more depth about what that meant as far as what he did specifically.

http://www.sfstandup.com/blog/2008/0...man-interview/

[Eugenem]

It was probably a little easier to get into Hampshire College in 1992, when I went. Still, how did a slightly retarded young man get into a pretty good college? My grades got better junior and senior year (though I still graduated with a 2.1) and I did lots of extra curricular activities (I worked at a peer counseling hotline — which is where the idea for my book came from partially). Everybody loves the story of a seemingly slow person overcoming some unclear difficulty to make stupid art films and write weird short stories in college. Also, my guidance counselor wrote a letter saying that I was a terrible student who was secretly smart and creative. So did a few other teachers. And I had to write an extra essay.

Once there, I took writing, acting, film, history, philosophy, sociology classes. Everything you do becomes part of your major, so I wrote a weekly humor column for my paper, did improv, had a radio show, ran a weekly comedy night my last year, etc. I combined that with independent projects on Lenny Bruce for social science and the physiology of laughter for regular science and then did a one hour standup act as my thesis.

-Eugene

[CJ Toledano]

...then did a one hour standup act as my thesis.

Did anything from that one hour act end up in the act that you do now or any that you've previously recorded on albums or tv appearances/special?

[Scratch Lightning]

Is your step brother Ari? Then it was very fun and he was wonderful. His baby was a level 8 cuteness maybe? If it was someone else did his name also have lightning in it?

-Eugene

That was indeed my stepbrother. I watched all the footage on 23/6 (which also taught me about the awesome Get Your War On cartoons). Good stuff. He told me about you guys getting kicked out for making instant camping food, and the Internet proved it. Nice work.