NEW YORK, NY, July 19, 2000 – Lenny Bruce, Woody Allen, Chris Rock, Jerry Seinfeld, Rosie O’Donnell and Ray Romano – these are just a few of the seemingly endless parade of funny men and women who honed their acts in Big Apple comedy clubs. Now thanks to Metro, TV viewers can be there weekly enjoying both the big stars of today and tomorrow, as they spin-off smart, sometimes cynical, routines and observations about life in this mad metropolis, before the worlds’ most critical audiences.
On Wednesday, July 26 @ 10 PM, Metro (Time Warner – Channel 70, Cablevision – Channel 16) will premiere New Joke City with Robert Klein. An important part of Metro’s new schedule, this new weekly one-hour series is dedicated to the edgy, without-a-net world of New York comedy. The show marries live New York-centric performances by stand-up’s most sophisticated stars and newcomers with a day in the life documentary about one of the episode’s featured comics, filmed the day he/she prepares for their big night on the stage.
Filmed at the Gotham Comedy Club, New Joke City kicks off with a monologue by the show’s host, Bronx-born comedy great Robert Klein. Klein’s hometown quips are followed by fresh routines from a quartet of dynamic stand-ups: a trio of buzz-worthy newcomers and a headliner who’s already established his/her place in the most competitive comedy scene in the world. Over 100 comics from the New York-area auditioned for the first thirteen episode. Fifty-two established names and new faces made the cut for the first season.
Stand-up isn’t the only form of humor profiled during New Joke City. Each episode also provides sketch comedy and edgy street theater from Nuyorican Rule. This sextet of Latin stand-ups and actors takes to the stage and the street to create characters and skits that take on and cut down to size many of the “holy cows” in New York, from the Donald to Rudy and Hilary.
“One of the things I love about this business is watching new talent emerge from the pack,” states host Robert Klein. “New Joke City will be special not only because it will break new talent, but because it’s the first show put the accent entirely on hometown humor – jokes and routines about and by New Yorkers.”
The premiere episode of New Joke City will include the following comics: Andrew Kennedy, Kyle Dunnigan, Laurie Kilmartin and Adam Ferrara. The show will also feature a documentary on Adam Ferrara, an interview with Laurie Kilmartin and Robert Klein and sketch comedy from Nuyorican Rule. A new episode of New Joke City with Robert Klein will premiere each Wednesday @ 10 PM, during Metro strand devoted to original programming that answers the question “What Makes New York New York?” (repeats Wednesdays @ midnight; Saturdays @ 1 AM).
Rainbow Media’s MetroChannels are the first and only suite of television networks devoted entirely to the experience of living in the New York metropolitan area. MetroChannels consist of METRO, MetroLearning, and Metro Traffic&Weather. METRO showcases what New Yorkers are passionate about by providing regularly scheduled original programs focusing on everything from fine dining to live music and sports, classic New York TV series and documentaries about the people, places and history of New York. MetroLearning provides unfiltered coverage of events unfolding in the many diverse communities throughout this metropolis. Metro Traffic&Weather is the tri-state’s first and only 24-hour local traffic, transit, and weather channel. Since its 1998 launch, MetroChannels has received numerous accolades for its programming — the 1999 & 2000 Community Spirit Award, New York Festivals Awards, Omni Awards and the Communicator Awards. In addition, MetroChannels was among the top 10 networks nominated for the 1999 local New York Emmy Awards.
Contact:
Sal Cataldi/Darcey Agostino
Cataldi PR
212-244-9797