Showtime Offers Big Stand Up Special Season

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Showtime’s beefy summer docket of stand-up specials features stars working for their first time veterans on to their third project with the channel.

Newcomer and socio-political comedian W. Kamau Bell released his first special “W. KAMAU BELL: SEMI PROMINENT NEGRO” this week to kick off the season. The show is directed by Morgan Spurlock of “Supersize Me” fame. This is Spurlock’s second comedy project of the summer, as he’s also directing Seeso’s documentary “The Pistol Shrimps”. Both Bell and Spurlock address similarly social-conscious subject and the men have professed to being huge fans of each other and “extremely excited” to work together on the show in Brooklyn.

Ben Gleib will also be releasing his first stand-up special with Showtime, “Neurotic Gangster”. Despite working as host of the comedy brain teaser show “Idiotest” and as a writer and guest on “Chelsea Lately”, Gleibs performance to a packed house in his native California’s coastal Lobero Theatre will be his first hourlong.

On May 20th Brad Williams’ sophomore special with Showtime will air, titled “Daddy Issues”. Williams’ comedy centers around social and personal issues, especially dealing with his own family and masculinity.

A two part all-star stand up showcase filmed at SXSW and hosted by “Tubbin with Tash” star and leading lady on “Another Period”, Natasha Leggero will air sometime in July. The Texan event stars amazing Bernie Sanders double and overall talent James Adomian, Moshe Kasher, Emily Heller, Andrew Santino and Baron Vaughn. The comedians featured in the second half have yet to be announced but promise to be impressive.

Showtime is also calling upon a tried-and-true source of success for them by backing Sebastian Maniscalco’s third stand-up special. The Chicago native will perform to Manhattan’s Beacon Theatre for “Why Would You Do That?”, which will be filmed sometime in May as part of one of seven sold out shows. Hopefully Maniscalco’s testament that he “had found a great partner in Showtime” after learning to “look for folks that are in it (comedy as a business) for the same reasons I am” will ring true for the aforementioned comedians and their future projects.

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Rachel Crowe

The most notable lies Rachel Crowe has ever told were that she has 10 children (no twins), she’s running a marathon retracing the path her ancestors took to evade the IRS and that she found childcare for 10 on a Saturday night. She’s also a stand-up comedian and dog walker living in Los Angeles. Follow Rachel on Twitter @Racheddar or on Instagram @thelma_and_disease. Or don’t, but at least appreciate those fresh hot puns.
Rachel Crowe
Rachel Crowe
The most notable lies Rachel Crowe has ever told were that she has 10 children (no twins), she’s running a marathon retracing the path her ancestors took to evade the IRS and that she found childcare for 10 on a Saturday night. She’s also a stand-up comedian and dog walker living in Los Angeles. Follow Rachel on Twitter @Racheddar or on Instagram @thelma_and_disease. Or don’t, but at least appreciate those fresh hot puns.