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Brick Wall Comedy
Brick Wall Comedy

Another Lone Nut

Richard Belzer

HBO · 1997

Conspiracy theories, political grievances, and the time Hulk Hogan choked him.

Richard Belzer stands on stage to talk about the time Hulk Hogan choked him unconscious on live television. He breaks down the 1985 incident, the resulting lawsuit, and how the out-of-court settlement paid for his home in France, a property he dubbed “Chez Hogan”. He pairs the wrestling anecdote with material about surviving testicular cancer and his genuine obsession with conspiracy theories involving the Kennedy assassination and UFOs. The set is built on his real life, delivered with the irritated sneer that defined his decades in comedy clubs.

The hour-long special aired on HBO in 1997, dead center in Belzer’s tenure playing Detective John Munch on Homicide: Life on the Street. While television audiences knew him as a procedural cop, he uses the stage to lean back into his roots as a political news junkie. He takes aim at Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, and imagines Bob Dylan singing “Like a Rolling Stone” with the cadence of an elderly Jewish man. It is a cynical, conversational set from a working professional treating his own medical history and legal battles as standard joke material.

The set list

4 bits

  1. Commentary on Hulk Hogan

    Addressed in scatological terms following his real-life history and altercation with the wrestler.

  2. Routines on Richard Nixon and Mafia politics

    Satirizing political leadership through routines like 'Richard Nixon & The Godfather' and 'The Mob President'.

  3. Conspiracy theories and JFK

    Satirical takes on assassination lore, UFOs, Heaven's Gate, and conspiracy books, including 'JFK-The Musical!'.

  4. Late night preachers and religious broadcasting

    Skewering evangelists in bits like 'Late Night Preachers' and 'Jazz for Jesus'.

How it plays

Tone
Cynical, scatological, poison pen, and satirical.
On stage
Sharp, quick-witted, dynamic, and acidic comic delivering cynical humor loaded with social commentary.
Pace
Begins with a montage of various sound bites and sound effects before settling into a typical standup rhythm.
About
conspiracy theories, American politics, pop culture, televangelists, UFOs, presidential scandals

What the critics said

Cub Koda of AllMusic commended Belzer's sharp, inventive comedic craft, describing the material as dealing with its varied targets in scatological terms with a large dollop of poison pen.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: gooent.com, allmusic.com, mixedup.com, filmadviser.com, fishpond.com, en.wikipedia.org.

Backstory

Belzer channeled his deep personal interest in conspiracy theories, particularly concerning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and forbidden knowledge, into his stand-up routine.

Details

Released
Where
HBO
Director
Keith Truesdell
Topics

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