Comedy Central Presents: Greg Proops

Greg Proops brings a confident, slightly smug erudition to a televised set built heavily on cross-cultural friction. Dressed sharply and speaking with a theatrical affectation, he zeroes in on how Americans behave when they travel. He details the attitudes of overworked Americans, the absurdity of a fancy Mexican restaurant in New York City, and the actual reasons the Pilgrims left England.

Filmed for the second season of Comedy Central Presents in 1999, the show caught Proops right as the British run of Whose Line Is It Anyway? was wrapping up. The appearance serves as a clear statement of his identity as a solo stand-up outside the ensemble improv format.

He spends much of his time comparing Americans to Canadians, and Californians to New Yorkers, filtering standard observational premises through a highly verbal, deeply sarcastic lens.