Premium Blend: David Alan Grier (S5E6)

Comedy Central’s Premium Blend operated as a farm system for up-and-coming stand-ups, packing multiple distinct styles into a single TV block. Season 5 Episode 6 is a prime example of this sampler-platter approach. The showcase throws four completely different acts at the audience: Rob Paravonian’s acoustic comedy, Arnez J’s extreme physicality, Dan Naturman’s deadpan neuroses, and Scott Kennedy’s grounded observational work.

Aired in November 2001, the episode is hosted by David Alan Grier, who was keeping busy with television roles years after his sketch comedy peak. He handles the transitions between a lineup of comics who were beginning to build national momentum. Paravonian performs “Particle Board,” an acoustic guitar track lamenting the structural integrity of his apartment’s decor. Arnez J brings the hyperactive stage presence that would soon secure him his own specials. Naturman, a law school graduate who pivoted to stand-up, works through a set of dry self-deprecation, while Kennedy rounds out the roster with specific, openly gay material.