Dane Undercooked

One of the mysteries of modern entertainment is the popularity of Dane Cook, the Boston comic who emerged from obscurity to become the top selling comedy recording artist since Andrew Dice Clay or something.

What did this spiky-haired young man have going for him? How did he snare so many college aged fans in the absence of a national platform or at least a win on “Last Comic Standing”?

It couldn’t have been the few episodes that ever aired of the 10-year-old sitcom “Maybe This Time” or his bit roles on “The Man Show” or “Crank Yankers.”

More likely, he built an audience by keeping track with every fan who ever saw him in a club, by answering e-mail, providing a jokey website to lighten their days, and incessant touring.

Also, the guy must be funny, right?

Well, as we see in HBO's “Dane Cook: Vicious Circle,” which premiered tonight, not so much.

In the special, recorded before a reported 36,000 at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Cook, 34, proves himself a calculated friend of youth who may as well come in on a skateboard wearing a backwards baseball cap.

Instead he comes inn with slang and slaughtered syntax:

“Wassup!” he yells to great acclaim. “There are so many things that I want to let you guys into my world about.”

If you’ve seen “Dane Cook Tourgasm,” you know that it’s all part of his plan: Don’t come off like a comedian, pretend to be their best friend, just hanging out in their dorm room, being funny about the most random topic.

That’s what he does in this big concert, going on and on and on about crying. He doesn’t sound like a Bostonian. Instead, he over-enunciates like a Minnesotan. He’s also got a low, loud yuck-yuck laugh that seems like it’s learned from Chris Rock (who at least has a good reason to crack up at his own material – it’s funny).

He patronizes his young audience, when he says the word “snarky” he almost instantly backpedals as if he’s trying to be too brainy. Google that word, he says. It exists.

(This is another possible hint to his success: an audience that may not know the meaning of the word snarky but knows what a Dirty Sanchez is).

For all his calculated nasty words and natural sexual situations, there’s kind of a weird Christian undercurrent to his material, as in some odd bit done with feigned outrage about a guy who sneezes on him and reacts to “god bless you” by admitting atheism. Eventually, he hopes the guy is reincarnated into a tree and savagely chopped down.

Essentially, Cook takes a random, uninteresting topic – going to the movies, seeing his dad naked – and goes on and on about it for 10 minutes or more as if he’ll eventually find some humor in the situation. He hardly ever does. What do these people see in him?

Finally, it’s clear. He gets into his filthiest material, the crowd goes nuts and it all becomes clear: He IS Andrew Dice Clay.

Comments

[Dylan Hurley]

you are an idiot...dane cook is the funniest person alive and if you werent such a loser maybe you could have gotten a wife that would have sex with you so that maybe you could have grandchildren that talk about how funny dane cook is

[kim]

interesting that some old, random, dude is the person chosen to critique the dane cook comedy special--yeah, it might appeal to all age groups [i doubt it], but big surprise, this guy [who probably has nothing in common with ANYone under 50] doesn't like dane cook.
write about something you know, because comedy apparently isn't it.
a tangent, but i liken this to old dudes, with NO style designing the current USAF uniforms--'updating' them! also ridiculous
my point is, stick with what you know; otherwise, you're just a dude at a job doing what someone told you to write about, and not writing about what you know.
i think it's funny, and if this guy's everyday comedy makes people happy, who cares?
remember seinfeld was about 'nothing;' everyday things can be way funny

[Brittni]

okay, i wasn't going to comment this do to it being more than a year old, but i thought why not?
Dane Cook is funny, and is very funny to most people, it's awesome to see a person talk about his day or his family, because it makes you see the humor in your own life, and notice that there is more to work and school, and everyday things than just doing them. He doesn't talk down to people, its just probably more common for people to hear "dirty sanchez" than "snarky", and i dont know what either are. but you shouldn't critisize something because you don't like it, I'm sure half the people that read this wouldn't like the same shows, movies, books as you do, but we have no right to tell you they "suck." And as the famous quote says "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" you should take that into consideration before you call someone filthy. Plus who cares if he talks like a bostonian or a minnesotian, he's a funny american and i bet you he doesn't care what he sounds like, just as long as he gets a laugh. And if you really knew about comedians it's all about making someone laugh, and he may not make you laugh, but he may make you realize wow, i might really need to google "snarky", & "why does the windex have two different types of sprays,"

Just take things into consideration before scrutinizing.

[Jennifer]

I would just like to say that one of the things that make comedians so popular is their ability to take everyday situations that we all go through, and find the humor in them. There is nothing funnier than the truth, and Dane Cook tells the truth, and is very funny. It is wonderful that he has a connection with his fans, and that is the key to his success... he is real. I've seen his standup several different times, he always has new material, and it is always funny. He is the real reason why there is a saying "keeping it real". People who are not in touch with youth will never understand youth.

[Sam]

i would get all pissed off but this article is very old

[Jessica]

are you kidding me dane cook is flipping hilarious!!!

[Freddie]

OK, so maybe some comedians can take important issues and make them funny, and yes, that is a true gift. But Dane Cook can take the not-so-important stuff and make it funny as well, which is also pretty much amazing. And although I'm a part of his "young audience" that you mention, I do know who Mitch Hedberg and Steven Wright are, and I think Dane Cook is just as funny. Plus, maybe yelling "Wassup!" and treating the audience like he's thier friend isn't a "plan". It is possible that not everyone is plotting against us and that Dane Cook is just a friendly guy.

[James]

You are a computer DOUCHE. Seriously, don't you have something better to do than criticize people? No, you don't, because you're fat, bald, and you probably live with your mom. Dane Cook is a funny guy. You have a horrible sense of humor, if any.

[Amy]

I wholeheartedly agree with you. Dane Cook is another modern popular comic with the gift of presenting mediocre material with great delivery. Most Dane Cook fans aren't aware of Mitch Hedberg or Steven Wright, but I'm sure they'd change their opinions of the kid if they saw his predecessors.

[Zac Eskridge]

how dare you say that Dane Cook isnt a good comedian?! you must have an awful sense of comedy! you are the rudest person i have ever met. you need to understand that to be funny a lot of the time, you have to be random. and he is hilarious because of his randomness! you are an awful person for cutting him down like that. i will give you that chris rock is funny, but dane cook is way funnier than chris rock. and about the audience not knowing what snarky meant but knowing what a dirty sanchez is must think he is funny...I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT A DIRTY SANCHEZ IS!!!! and i find him hilarious!!! you are an awful person.

[Megan]

I Started reading this article and was like "what is this guys problem? Dane cook is hillarious" Then I saw this-
"He’s also got a low, loud yuck-yuck laugh that seems like it’s learned from Chris Rock (who at least has a good reason to crack up at his own material – it’s funny)."
So you're taste in comedians must be out of wack if you think Chris Rock is funnier that Dane.