One Night Stand

Eddie Griffin’s 1992 half-hour for HBO’s One Night Stand is a look at a comic hitting his stride at an unusually fast pace. Only two years after trying stand-up on a dare in Kansas City, he had already moved to Los Angeles, become a regular at The Comedy Store, and landed on Def Comedy Jam. He works through an uncensored, high-energy block of material that relies heavily on sheer stage presence.

This set captures him right before his jump into sitcoms and feature films. The performance earned him a CableACE Award nomination.