After a few episodes, you genuinely want these comedians to succeed, even the egotistical blowhards.ĭo we need another show about the entertainment biz? Not really, but this one rewards your viewing in a way that makes it unusually worthwhile. But I’m Dying Up Here does its best to transcend that, largely by making you care about this scrappy group of entertainers, who have all fully embraced 70s hair. In fact, at this point, that sort of onscreen character feels requisite, like a sort of stock character. It’s not a revelation to learn that comedians use their humor to channel depression, anxiety and a general sense of impending darkness. It’s the theme at the heart of the upcoming film The Big Sick, and in HBO’s Crashing, as well as Mike Birbiglia’s recent flick Don’t Think Twice. There are a lot of fictionalized versions of struggling comedians in pop culture. Ari Graynor, who plays Cassie Feder, one of the lone female comics, is the emotional center, often lifting the scenes beyond another clichéd behind-the-scenes Hollywood tale. Each episode unfolds in a day-to-day fashion and, like Louie, finds its drama in the smaller moments, rather than in grandiose climatic scenes. Carrey’s own experiences are built into the show, as are those of Al Madrigal, who plays the fictional comedian Edgar Martinez and is a consulting writer. The plot of the series is loose, based on real incidents that the involved comedians dealt with during the 70s. When they thrive, it’s vicariously triumphant. You’re not here to watch the comics’ jokes, as you might if you visited a comedy club yourself instead, you’re here to experience the trepidation and nerves that accelerate that long walk to the stage. The perspective is from their point of the view, rather than the audience’s. Early in the first episode, a tragedy strikes that forces the group to reconsider what it means to strive for fame, which sets the tone for what follows.Īs the scenes unfold, long tracking shots follow the comedians into Goldie’s, through the kitchen and backstage rooms, and on to the stage. They all spend a lot of time eating at Canter’s Deli and contemplating why they’re putting themselves through this. Two comedians, played by Michael Angarano and Clark Duke, live in an actual closet and are forced to go on Deal or No Deal in an attempt to earn money for food. The comics bicker and feud, often arguing over who gets which slot on the bill, while struggling to get by. I’m Dying Up Here, co-executive produced by Carrey, follows a group of up-and-coming comedians in 1973 as they fight for stage time at a club (Goldie’s) run by Goldie Herschlag (played by Melissa Leo, in a tribute to the Comedy Store owner, Mitzi Shore). The struggles of comics like Andy Kaufman, Richard Pryor and Jim Carrey as they rose to fame at LA’s Comedy Store was the subject of William Knoedelseder’s 2009 book, which this show turns into a fictional struggle. It’s based on reality when, in the early 1970s, comedians flocked to Los Angeles, trailing the move of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson from New York to the west coast. That’s the heart of Showtime’s I’m Dying Up Here. Behind the scenes there’s tragedy and darkness, which usually means that shows about comedians aren’t so much about punchlines, more the people who end up being one. Comedy is inherently funny, but its backstory is notably less so.
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