Past Lineups: Comedians

In case you get TwentyWonder’s various performers mixed up, let’s review real quick: There’s the trio from Cirque-a-Palooza—so obviously Two Bit Circus is not at all related to the two members of four-member comedy troupe 2 Headed Dog, Mark Fite and Jim Turner, who brought their infamous Sashay Gigante act to TwentyWonder 2011 and appeared again at TwentyWonder 2013 and 2014. Glad we cleared that all up.

We’re gonna need a bigger bio. Beloved for playing Mr. Grant in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Ed Asner has over 300 onscreen and voice credits. This habitual Emmy winner has also championed the cause of labor in Hollywood, serving two terms as president of the Screen Actors Guild. It’s no wonder that The Tonight Show with Jay Leno featured a recurring segment called “Does This Impress Ed Asner?”. At TwentyWonder 2011, he read selections from Doctor Seuss to intimate klatches of a dozen or so. Ed, in his inimitable style, demanded the audience repeat everything back to him, at one point exhorting them to, “Get pissed off!”

Australia’s most awesome comedy band! They’ve blown away audiences across their home country and around the world with a mixture of original comedy songs and pop parodies. In addition to their epic show in the Doll Factory, they’ve played some minor venues like the Sydney Opera House. This trio includes lead vocalist Jordan Raskopoulos, keyboard player / backup vocalist Benny Davis, and guitarist / “way way backup vocalist” Lee Naimo. If you haven’t heard their Four Chord Song before, rush over to YouTube for a couple minutes of joy.

This knowledgeable and comedic yin-and-yang team announces for the Lucha VaVOOM! You can catch Blaine weekly as host of the comedy show “What’s Up Tiger Lily?” at the Hollywood Studio Bar & Grill on Sunset. Else “Evil E” Duff began as a skater for the Tru$t Fund Terror$ squad before she moved up to the announcer’s booth and took over hosting duties for the post-bout show After the Whistle.

Cinematic Titanic is a live riff show in which some of our hometown industry’s most infamous products get the skewering they deserve. If this idea sounds familiar to fans of Mystery Science Theater 3000, that’s probably because Cinematic Titanic is performed by the creators of MST3K! In 2010, Satellite of Love veterans Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, Frank Conniff, Josh Weinstein and Mary Jo Pehl dropped in on TwentyWonder to do what they do better than anyone. Sadly, Cinematic Titanic has recently reached the end of its journey, as Titanics so often do, but the MST3K gang has promised to go on riffing far in to…THE FUTURE!

Funny or Die (FOD) is a comedy video website founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. It keeps its content sharp by subjecting every video to a brutal “Funny” or “Die” vote by each viewer. Since its beginning in 2007, FOD has grown to become a recognized and influential brand in comedy. It has attracted contributions from all over the industry, including from Friend of TwentyWonder Judd Apatow. At TwentyWonder 2010 and 2011, FOD’s creative grand poobah Andrew Steele provided an exclusive sampling of FOD material for the TwentyWonder crowd’s enjoyment.

Heino is a German mashup of Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, and William Shatner whose popularity is as inexplicable as a three-night bender in Berlin. Heino! is a Heino parody act that roamed TwentyWonder 2012 interviewing crowd members for a fake radio show. The man behind the parody is Marc Hickox, a Second City alum who may be known to TwentyWonder fans as Lucha VaVOOM’s ringside announcer Rico Agave. You can catch Heino! regularly at Silver Lake’s Red Lion Tavern. Should you make it a point to catch this act at the earliest opportunity? JaWOHL!

Performer and writer Matt Hoffman is a longtime Superballer who has been contributing to the TwentyWonder cause since its inception. Whether he’s been assisting a Ring-Tossing Steve-O or emceeing the midway, he can usually spotted somewhere in the TwentyWonder crowd. Aside from helping us out, the accomplished Hoffman wrote the feature What the Bleep Do We Know? as well as the musical “Presidential Suite” which premiered last Fall. This year, Hoffman will be channeling his inner Jefferson as he reprises his presidential persona for the masses.

JP Hasson is best known for his music/comedy acts, but his talents and projects cover a huge range. He’s worked with bands like Soundgarden and The Dead Milkmen, as well as the animation team behind Sealab 2012 and Archer. In 2011 Hasson, touring under the name JP Incorporated, brought his show to TwentyWonder. JP Incorporated is likely headed to your city soon to give a live presentation on the benefits of adding the J.P. Inc. network to your cable subscription! And don’t forget their slogan: JP Incorporated “We’ve been in business for years.”

Dave Alvin is a co-founder and principal songwriter for The Blasters, a critically successful band that has grown a large base of devoted fans. If you’re not among them yet, check out their most popular track “So Long Baby, Goodbye”—you’ll probably recognize it from one of the many soundtracks it’s on. Andy Kindler is a comic known for regular appearances on Letterman and The Daily Show. TwentyWonder 2012 brought this unlikely pair together on the TwentyWonder main stage for a one-off treat. If you missed it, you probably missed your only opportunity to hear a performance of Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” involving a wooden train whistle.

For 10 years The Lampshades have been building up their reputation as the funniest lounge act in Hollywood. The Lampshades are the brainchild of two Second City alums, Kate Flannery and Scot Robinson. Kate Flannery is best known for her nine-season stint as Meredith on NBC’s The Office. The other half of this duo, Scot Robinson, is a respected comedian with credits that include Anchorman:The Legend of Ron Burgundy. The Lampshades’ music is composed by David Adler, a Chicago-based musician. At TwentyWonder 2013 and 2014 they took over the Chill Room for some of the funniest moments of those nights.