“LAUGHING MATTERS…THE MEN”–six of the best

“Laughing Matters-The Men”

Six of the Best

Amos Lassen

I love the “Laughing Matters” series of gay stand-up comedy. Ariztical Entertainment has managed to land the third in the series, “The Men” and it is great fun. This film features six of the gay stand-up comedians working in the business today—Bruce Vilanch, Alex Mapa, Bob Smith (“Selfish and Perverse”), Eddy Sarfaty, Andre Kelly and Scott Kennedy. They are all terrific.  And we get more than just the comedy. Interweaved with the routines are personal interviews and we learn about what each thinks is funny.

Bruce Vilanch has become a household name lately. He is a joke writer for the Academy Awards and has written for 16 “Oscar” telecasts. For two years he played the role of Edna Turnblad on Broadway in the mega-hit musical, “Hairspray” and has also collected several Emmy awards.

Alex Mapa is currently on “Desperate Housewives and was a regular on CBS in the sitcom, “Some of My Best Friends” and he was the first Asian gay character on television.

Bob Smith is one of my favorite authors and was a member of the original gay comedy group, “Funny Gay Males”. He has had several television appearances, has written two collections of essays and his first novel, “Selfish and Perverse” is one of the funniest and well-written books I have read in a long time. (My review of it is on these pages).

Andre Kelly says his claim to fame is that he is the only Black comedian to have appeared on BET. Likewise he has appeared on other stations and has opened for Margaret Cho.

Eddy Sarfaty says he is constantly on tour and has been on “The Tonight Show” and “Nightline”. Scott Kennedy is co-founder of “Gay Comedy Jam” and is also a comic who tours the country.

With all this comic talent, it is impossible not to laugh and this DVD guarantees it. So do I.