comedy
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Engadget at E3: How video games and film are merging inside VR
In Door No. 1, a virtual-reality comedy show coming to Hulu, the audience becomes the director, choosing not only where to look, but also selecting certain actions and propelling the story forward in unique ways. You're at your 10-year high school reunion, and there are plenty of characters to interact with, including a janitor who wants to smoke you out and a faded former best friend. Viewers pick people to hang out with just by directing their sight toward the desired action, no gamepads required.
Ellen coyly hints at return to standup with Netflix special
It's been over 15 years since Ellen DeGeneres took the stage for a proper stand-up special. With a smash hit daytime talk show, a record-setting Twitter account and bonafide American treasure status, DeGeneres doesn't exactly need the exposure of another special, but Netflix has been on a hot streak recently, nabbing up standup specials from comedy heavyweights and up-and-coming talent alike. So, the streaming company reached out to DeGeneres on her platform of choice to see if she'd be game for another solo show. Her response? "OK I'm in."
Amazon Echo gets its own 'Saturday Night Live' skit
How do you know when a gadget has become part of the American cultural zeitgeist? When it gets its own Saturday Night Live routine, apparently. The comedy show ran a skit (US-only) on May 13th pitching the "Amazon Echo Silver," an imaginary smart speaker aimed at the "greatest generation." Not surprisingly, that means lots of stereotypical jokes about seniors: the Silver is extremely loud, repeats itself and will answer back if you say any name that sounds even vaguely like Alexa. Naturally, you can only order it with a check or money order.
Recommended Reading: Juicero and the Silicon Valley hype machine
Silicon Valley's $400 Juicer May Be Feeling the Squeeze Ellen Huet and Olivia Zaleski, Bloomberg We never bought into the hype of a $700 juicer, but the folks at Juicero were able convince some that its WiFi-connected device was worth the investment. Well, you now only have to hand over $400 as the price dropped since it launched. Unfortunately, the juice packs that the machine uses can be squeezed by hand, which led the company's CEO to offer refunds this week to unsatisfied customers.
Recommended Reading: iFixit wants to show you how to repair everything
Meet the $21 Million Company That Thinks a New iPhone Is a Total Waste of Money David Whitford, Inc. We're no stranger to iFixit's in-depth teardowns here at Engadget, but the company has a plan that's much more than ripping apart the latest gadgets to see what's inside. Inc. takes a look at how the the company is helping the masses repair everything from smartphones to kitchen appliances and why they offer guides for doing so free of charge.
Two Dave Chappelle stand-up specials hit Netflix March 21st
Ever since Dave Chappelle left his show on Comedy Central in 2005 his fans have been asking for more, and on March 21st they will get it. The debut date was revealed in this brief teaser trailer, which gave just a hint of what's to come. While he's continued to perform, the comedian has been mostly absent from TV since 2005, other than hosting Saturday Night Live last year. Netflix signed up for three specials last year, while also cutting deals for comedy specials due in 2017 from Chris Rock and Jerry Seinfeld -- a major challenge to HBO and Showtime's dominance of comedy broadcasting.
Seinfeld's 'Comedians in Cars' moves to Netflix this year
Jerry Seinfeld's Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee is jumping from Sony's Crackle streaming service to one that people actually watch: Netflix. Late this year, the show will debut with 24 new episodes according to Variety. What's more, 59 back episodes of the Emmy nominated show will arrive on the streaming service as well, and there are plans for another new run of episodes for next year.
Conan O'Brien's 'Clueless Gamer' skit gets a full TV show
Conan O'Brien's Clueless Gamer segment, where the talk show host struggles through (and pokes fun at) the latest video games, has become increasingly popular -- so much so that some studios pay for their games blasted in these skits (yep, they're advertisements). And TBS is keen to capitalize on that success. Hollywood Reporter understands that the network is developing a stand-alone Clueless Gamer TV series that will go into production in February. Most of the details have yet to be hashed out, but Conan would only executive produce the show, not host it.
Louis CK's app gives you direct access to his comedy shows
Louis CK helped prove that artists can make good income by selling videos directly to fans, but getting his comedy shows to your phone can be a bit of a headache if you're unfamiliar with the intricacies of local file syncing. As of this week, though, you don't have to bend over backwards. The entertainer has released apps for both Android and iOS that let you buy, watch and listen to shows right on your device -- there's no sideloading required, and no third-party studios getting in the way. As Louis explains in a newsletter, this is really a mobile version of his website, just optimized to make your life easier.
Netflix has three Dave Chappelle comedy specials on the way
After stepping off the Saturday Night Live stage, the return of Dave Chappelle includes three comedy specials for Netflix. The streaming service announced today that three selections from the popular comedian would be released together in 2017. While details are somewhat scarce for now, Netflix did reveal one of the shows will be a new stand-up special while the other two will be unreleased material from performances at Austin City Limits and the Hollywood Palladium.
NextUp is Netflix for UK stand-up comedy
With huge catalogs of movies and TV shows, of which an increasing share are now original, Netflix and Amazon do a good job of catering for most subscribers' tastes. However, their broad focus means that some customers quickly consume the content that is most interesting to them and are left wanting more. This opens the door for streaming providers that focus on a niche or a specific genre, like comedy, which is exactly what UK company NextUp intends to do.
Netflix reportedly spent $40 million on Chris Rock
Chris Rock has had well-known comedy specials on HBO like Bigger and Blacker and Never Scared, but in 2017 when he returns with his first special in eight years, it will be on Netflix. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Variety and Deadline, the streaming service outbid others including HBO, Amazon and Hulu for the rights to two specials at a price of $40 million.
Rifftrax app takes the guesswork out of syncing jokes to film
For fans of snarky, alternative film commentary, Rifftrax has long been a haven of amusement. For only a few dollars, one can hear MST3K veterans Mike Nelson, Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett rag on classic and modern cinema. There was only one problem: syncing these audio tracks to the actual movies could be a minor nightmare. Fortunately, those days seem to be behind us: the group's new RiffTrax app will do it for you.
Twitch is taking auditions for an internet-wide talent show
Twitch may have started as a broadcasting service laser-focused on beaming your gaming exploits out to the world, but it certainly isn't staying that way. Now, the Creative banner has been expanded to include comedy, music, theater, voice acting and illusions magic tricks.
Audible's Channels offer short-form content for $5 a month
We've known about Audible's original content plans for for a few months now, but it turns out there were much bigger plans for the service. Today, the Amazon-owned company formally launched Audible Channels: a $5 monthly subscription that gets you shows, original series, comedy and news. If you're already paying for Audible, you won't have to pay extra for the new Channels. It's basically a podcast-like option from the service where the main focus has been audiobooks in the past. There's topic-based content alongside shows from notable publishers like The Wall Street Journal, Scientific American, and The Onion and Audible's own originals.
George Carlin will be reborn as a stand-up hologram (update: maybe not)
The greatest honor the 21st century can bestow upon a dead artist is to have their life's work reduced to commodity entertainment for nostalgia fiends. That's why so many singers have been brought back as Pepper's Ghost-style holograms in the hope of squeezing a few more dollars from their memory. George Carlin is the latest to become zombie entertainment, and will become a permanent fixture at the forthcoming National Museum of Comedy in New York State. In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, chief curator Kliph Nesteroff reveals that a Carlin hologram will be a "gimmick to bring people to Jamestown."
Amazon offers NBC's Seeso comedy service as a streaming add-on
NBC's Seeso comedy streaming service has been available to all since January, and now Amazon Prime members are getting easy access. The online retailer added NBC's lineup of comedy TV shows and movies, which includes new episodes of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night with Seth Myers the day after they air. You'll have to shell out an extra $4/month for Seeso on top of that Prime subscription, but doing so puts the comedy library alongside your other Amazon videos.
Bot Party asks: Are robots the future of comedy?
"You're so ugly, you scared the crap out of the toilet." That joke was delivered by a robot called Annabel wearing a sparkly blue prom dress. This is peak SXSW. The reason why Annabel is telling terrible one-liners is simple, if a little odd. Years ago, Arthur Simone, co-founder of Coldtowne Theater in Austin, started an improv show with his dog for a bet. It was a chain of events that would lead him to wonder if you could do improv comedy with a robot. Working with Martin Triplett, founder of Red Sky Robotics, they created "Bot Party" to find out. Annabel's toilet humor might not have Saturday Night Live worried, but it's proof that it's possible. She's also available for weddings.
NBC's comedy streaming service arrives on Roku and Fire TV
NBC's comedy streaming service officially went live back in January after a month-long preview. As of today, the monthly subscription is now available on two popular streaming devices. Roku and Amazon Fire TV owners can now take advantage of Seeso for genre-specific content. And yes, the $4/month service is also available on the Fire TV Stick. Seeso offers on-demand access to original series, late-night NBC shows, network series, movies and more. If you're still waiting for Seeso to reach your streaming gadget of choice, NBCUniversal says it'll be available on more platforms "in the coming months." For now, the web, iOS and Android are the current alternatives to Roku and Amazon's gear.
NBC's Seeso comedy streaming service is now available
If you cut the cord but still miss network shows like Parks & Recreation or The Office (US), you can now officially sign up to NBC's Seeso comedy streaming network. The service, launched in October, has been in a free limited beta for the last month. There are over 2,000 hours of content in the collection to start with, with classic stuff like Monty Python's Flying Circus and The Kids in the Hall on top of NBC's own programming. Late night shows Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and Saturday Night Live will also stream just a day after they air on the big network. If you're interested, it's only $4 per month, but whether that's feasible depends on how many streaming subscriptions you already have.
