This Tuesday, September 26, at 8 p.m., Doug Stanhope performs at New World Brewery in Ybor City.
I had the opportunity to see Stanhope for the first time last November, and I was not disappointed. The dude is extremely vulgar, brutally honest and among the exclusive group of comics who’ve been accurately compared to the late, great Bill Hicks for his smart, in-your-face humor. He broaches topics ranging from America’s puritanical hysteria, to his own deviant sexual activities and incessant drug use, to the ridiculousness of censorship, to non-violent drug offenders and lowering the drinking age to 18. ("Why can an 18-year-old vote and die in a war, but not buy a beer?")
The night I saw him, some asshole catcallers interrupted fellow comic Lynn Shawcroft’s set, and Stanhope not only called them out before starting his own set, but had them escorted from the club. From there, he went on to complain about how people go to comedy clubs like they’re going to the movies, then get pissed off when the stand-up is not what they expect. In fact, Stanhope has been subject to large-scale walk-outs by his American audiences and he’s admitted that "People will leave. When I go on stage, it's like I'm leading you into battle — you're not all going to be here at the end."
From his website bio:
“I am a road pig, I travel doing stand-up of a cruel and unusual sort, creating as much live chaos as possible if only to break up the monotony of a world where adrenaline seems to be a controlled substance … I am also running for The Presidency of The United States in 2008. No, I'm not kidding. The Myspace page for the presidential run is the first in my Top whatever … If you only know me from television, then you aren't familiar with what I do. Television is shit but you take easy money when you can. Live shows are the only true freedom of speech left. Get out of the house. I will only be alive for so long.â€
