Premium Blend: Wanda Sykes (S6E9)

Wanda Sykes hosts this late-2002 episode of Comedy Central’s stand-up showcase, bringing her signature agitation to the stage just as her television career was gaining momentum. She handles the emcee duties, working the club crowd between a lineup of working comics looking for a break on basic cable.

The broadcast serves as a tight time capsule of the era’s stand-up. The episode features an appearance from Ron White, who was on the precipice of massive national fame with the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, delivering his trademark scotch-and-cigar routine. Tony Camin also takes the stage a couple of years before finding off-Broadway success with The Marijuana-Logues, alongside a quick television set from Stephanie Howard.