The first time I came across comedian John Mulaney was back in 2008. He was on a show called “Best Week Ever” on VH-1.
On the show, a group of comedians spent a half hour making witty comments about the happenings of pop culture in the “week that was.”
Since 2008, I’ve seen Mulaney on my TV several times – in a few appearances during the Weekend Update segment on Saturday Night Live and on various late night talk shows.
I caught his Comedy Central special, “New In Town,” last year and felt like I was starting to hear his name more and more.
So when we were looking for a headliner for this year’s “Hunger Is No Laughing Matter” benefit for the St. Louis Area Foodbank, I immediately thought of Mulaney. He’s a rare combination for a comedian – funny and well-known, but not too blue or risqué.
In fact, when we asked our Social Media Avengers for suggestions on comedians, Avenger Nick Sargent from Standing Partnership asked, “have you ever heard of this guy, John Mulaney?”
Nick’s suggestion validated my premise that Mulaney was a comic on the rise.
It was around that time that I discovered that John had been asked to shoot a pilot sitcom loosely based on his life for NBC.
Lorne Michaels of Saturday Night Live fame was executive producing the show and it seemed like by the time our event came around in August, Mulaney’s career would be on fire.
As it turns out, NBC decided to pass on Mulaney.
Still, a passed-over sitcom doesn’t change my belief that Mulaney is one of the most talented young comedians in the country. Clearly, I’m not alone in my opinion.
Click here to read Elise Czajkowski’s editorial about John and his show on Splitsider.com.
I encourage everyone to come see what I’m talking about on Saturday, August 17, 2013 at The Pageant. I’m positive you’ll agree that Mulaney is worth seeing in person.
The Foodbank has an internet pre-sale running through 10 p.m. Thursday June 6, 2013. Tickets go on-sale to the public through all Ticketmaster outlets this Friday, June 7, 2013 at 10 a.m.
Here’s the link – https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/06004ABEA7B870C0. The pre-sale password is: Foodbank.
Last year’s event with Mike Birbiglia and Greg Warren was a huge success for the Foodbank and we’re hoping this year’s event will be even better.
Ryan Farmer is the communications manager at the St. Louis Area Foodbank
