On Monday, Toastmaster-turned-comedian Juliana Heng hosted her maiden Open Mic Stand-Up Comedy @ THE POD in Sunway Putra Mall in Jalan Putra, KL.
Also ten other comedians plus one headliner. And together they entertained.
I was told many in the audience were first-timers.
When the show started, the humor sputtered like an old water faucet. But once we got into the mood, the flow of humor became fast and furious. And as time fled, the laughter grew louder and louder. If I might add, it nearly brought the house down. And that is no joke!
Jerry Lewis, the comedian and filmmaker (right) who was adored by many (including me), and disdained by some – but, unquestionably a defining figure of American entertainment in the twentieth century, died on Sunday morning at his home in Las Vegas. He was 91.
Lewis knew success in movies, on television, in nightclubs, on the Broadway stage and in the university lecture hall.
Certainly, his career had its ups and downs, but when it was at its zenith there were few stars any bigger.
And he got there remarkably quickly.
Barely out of his teens, Lewis shot to fame shortly after World War II with a nightclub act in which the rakish, imperturbable Dean Martin crooned and the skinny, hyperactive Lewis capered around the stage, a dangerously volatile id to Martin’s supremely relaxed ego.
After his break with Martin in 1956, Lewis went on to a successful solo career, eventually writing, producing and directing many of his own films.
As a spokesperson for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Lewis raised vast sums for charity; as a filmmaker of great personal force and technical skill, he made many contributions to the industry, including the invention in 1960 of a device – the video assist, which allowed directors to review their work immediately on the set – still in common use.
And Lewis was officially recognized as a “towering figure in cinema” at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.
For those who don’t know him, this best describes Jerry Lewis: “A mercurial personality who could flip from naked neediness to towering rage, Mr. Lewis seemed to contain multitudes, and he explored all of them. His ultimate object of contemplation was his own contradictory self, and he turned his obsession with fragmentation, discontinuity and the limits of language into a spectacle that enchanted children, disturbed adults and fascinated postmodernist critics” (Dave Kehr, The New York Times).
Jerry Lewis, simplistically complicated. R.I.P.
Yesterday, I was at Menara ExxonMobil in Jalan Kia Peng, Kuala Lumpur to attend the Tiger Toastmasters meeting. I was a Speech Evaluator.
Check out this video that is targeted at today’s popular kids – it tells us that the future does not always promise better days! In other words, it doesn’t get better!
The video above has a very appropriate title. And it rings true for Cardiff City too.
Even as I was glued to the Celtic-Hearts game on Saturday, I had another eye on the Cardiff-Hull match, given the Vincent Tan connection.
Cardiff City boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (on the right in photo) is getting hot under the collar. Cardiff now need five wins from their last 11 matches to survive. His EPL record is sad – he had won one, drawn one and lost 5 matches todate.
The Norwegian replaced Malky MacKay in January and even with his so-called Manchester United touch, Cardiff is not able to put the brakes on their rapid descent into the abyss of infamy. He knows he has a tough fight on his hands to maintain Cardiff's EPL status and it is sorely testing his fledgling managerial career.
"It is because it's a different challenge," insists Solskjaer. He is not admitting that he is out of his depth as the Cardiff manager.
Sure, he had gained a wee bit of fame as a MU player – he scored the second of two injury-time goals to help the Red Devils come from behind to win the UEFA Champions League Final in 1999 – but even if he considered himself a good player, it does not mean he can be a good manager.
In fact, Solskjaer had targeted the February 22nd game against Hull as a potential win for his struggling side. But they were soundly thrashed 4-0. He himself admitted that his Cardiff players weren’t good enough in front of both goals, defending and attacking!
Shouldn’t he stop his BS? I puke whenever Brendan Rodgers talks! And now this guy’s no different!
Berjaya’s Tan must have had a lousy birthday yesterday – he turned 62 – his Welsh ‘pretend dragons’ presented him with an unforgettable birthday gift: their worst home defeat in 14 years!
"I'm never going to quit," vowed Solskjaer. "I'm going to be in front of these lads and guide them and lead them”. Duh! What else did you expect him to say? Of course he won’t quit! No manager worth his salt will quit - he just gets the sack!
I cannot wait to see how long the Malaysian billionaire’s patience will last before he turns on Solskjaer. He had crucified MacKay and I predict he will do the same to the hapless Solskjaer! Just wait and see.
With the “Allah” issue still very much in the news, PAS representatives have been extending a hand of friendship to representatives of the Christian churches.
I am only going to highlight two instances.
Firstly, on October 22, 2013, PAS central committee member Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, Tasik Gelugor PAS information chief Abdul Rahman Kasim and a PAS delegation dropped by at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Penang to visit Bishop Sebastian Francis and Mgr Bernard Paul, the parish priest.
Secondly, on the following day, Parit Buntar MP Mujahid Yusof Rawa and company met up with Reverend John Kennady, the pastor of the St Mark’s Anglican Church in Butterworth and others.
These visits accompanied by dialogue were timely and well-spent. In a time of growing discord that threatens to rupture the national fabric, two groups of Malaysians came together to forge understanding and promote harmony. They are the bridge-builders and the peace makers. They are the true Malaysians!
[And that’s the great thing about PAS! These guys are not afraid to engage the Christians directly. If it was UMNO, they are likely to send their messenger boys and full-time minions, the Christian ministers to do the job!]
And for those who insist on seeing the lighter side of the “Allah” issue, you may watch "Allah, Apa Lagi?", an episode from That Effing Show:
In the world of cosplay, people don’t generally expect to get into trouble for dressing up as well-known characters like Superman, Spider-Man or Spock. But the designers of the hotel carpets for the Marriott Marquis Atlanta in Georgia, USA didn’t see the cosplay tributes in a positive light, which is a real shame.
Apparently the carpet costumes were so popular that one of the original cosplayers offered a version of the Marriott carpet pattern for the presumably vast number of people who also wanted to dress up in carpet-themed camo gear. Seeing this, carpet designers Couristan Inc. sent cosplay suppliers Volpin Props a Cease & Desist letter.
As one commenter pointed out, “If they were smart, they would contact you to do promotions for them.” After all, what other carpet manufacturer has its own fandom?
The absurdity is just laughable!
Together Life Gets Better is a Malaysian festival of hope that celebrates diversity, love and harmony. One of the many highlights was The Girrrly Show – featuring Dara, Arisha and Rozz and a special guest appearance by Shelah who is making her return! 4X Wow! The Pisco Bar at Jalan Mesui, off Jalan Nagasari in KL hosted this enthralling event yesterday:
Apple loyalists probably don’t want to know this but according to Strategy Analytics, in 2012, Samsung was the star performer, shipping a record 396.5 million mobile phones worldwide and capturing 25% market share to solidify its first-place lead. This means that one in four mobile handsets is a Samsung!
In fact, in the last three months of 2012, Samsung’s profits surged 76% helped by sales of its Galaxy smartphones. Net income rose to a record 7.04 trillion won ($6.6 billion; £4.2 billion), up from 4.01 trillion won in the same period a year earlier, beating analysts' expectations.
Didn’t they say the truth hurts?
With all the race and religion issues surfacing one after another – all cleverly manufactured by UMNO or its proxies – this video clip “That Effing Show #53” is asking “Which Malaysia Ah?”
Twelve months ago, a new comedy show was born and Comedy Kao Kao was staged successfully at The Bee, Publika in Jalan Dutamas 1 (just off Jalan Duta, Kuala Lumpur lah). Since then, it went from strength to strength and this month’s line-up featured Douglas Lim (the headliner) as well as Munir Mohd (the opening), seven open-mic acts and not forgetting the irrepressible Jason Leong (the host). It was definitely a hilarious Thursday and I even skipped the Sunway University Toastmasters meeting (Sorry!) to be there! Anyway, the show was sold out!
Anniversaries are meant to celebrate relationships and for Comedy Kao Kao, it's all about the special bond between the comics and the audience who according to many people – I included – it “is the warmest you can find”. And it is so true because as Dr Jason Leong said, "Without you, Kao Kao is basically a plump Chinese guy screaming at people eating burgers"! I honestly don't think Leong is 'plump' but if he insists that he is so, who am I to disagree?
