Set in the standup comedy scene of the early 1970s—when Richard Pryor was pushing the envelope as a rising star and a spot on The Tonight Show could launch a career—this Showtime original series serves up a mix of comedy and drama centered on the dreams and frustrations of struggling young comics in Los Angeles. Melissa Leo stars as Goldie, owner and manager of the reigning comedy club on the Sunset Strip, and Ari Graynor is Cassie Feder, a female comedian (favored by Goldie) working in a culture dominated by males. The rest of the cast is dominated by angry, aggressive, self-involved young (and not-so-young) men in a show that takes on drug addiction, self-destructive behavior, and how the high of performing is its own drug. Clark Duke and Michael Angarano are the most interesting figures in this guy's club, playing hopefuls who arrive from Boston with no money, and RJ Cyler stands out as a young black comic who tackles race and other incendiary subjects. The series is based on the titular 2009 book by William Knoedelseder and Goldie is a fictionalized version of Mitzi Shore, the matriarch of the Sunset Strip club The Comedy Store, which launched the careers of numerous comedians. The period setting is fun and the standup comedy is well-done but the dramatic scenes fall into cliché and Leo tends to overplay her role as the tough Jewish businesswoman in a chauvinist world. Compiling all 10 episodes from the 2018 first season, this is a strong optional purchase. (S. Axmaker)
I’m Dying Up Here: Season One
Paramount, 3 discs, 581 min., not rated, DVD: $39.99 Volume 33, Issue 5
I’m Dying Up Here: Season One
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