Splitsider

 
Interviews
2

Talking With Ben Hoffman About New Series 'The Ben Show' and This Week's Oscar Controversies

by | February 27th, 2013

It’s hard to imagine a time where the art of comedy didn’t intersect with the art of offense: humor and all the best things about it are often so deeply rooted in racial stereotypes and the social landscape that it consistently splinters the public on just when, if even possible, comedy goes too far. Can an interpersonal joke work if it has no social stigma to play against? While the disputes are many, it’s hard to pinpoint a universal line that should never be crossed and what stigmas are off-limits, and it’s for that reason the most notoriously crude comics are often the most polarizing.

And then there’s Ben Hoffman, who spends most of his time on Comedy Central’s new sketch show/man-on-the-street/adventure series The Ben Show pointing out all of his own shortcomings and flaws instead of yours, and while that could be where the real comedic heart of the show lies, you have to wonder why that is. We talked to the comedian about this week’s Oscars controversies, the recent comedic trend of straight guys going gay, and why he turns the insults inward on The Ben Show.

A lot of the humor on The Ben Show comes from your own self-deprecation: you consider yourself a pansy, you admit to not being well-endowed, you call yourself a “flabby jew.” Why is that?

It’s so much funnier for me to insult myself; I’m not a mean person, I don’t want to make fun of these people who are nice enough to be on my show. I mean, I don’t mind letting them hang themselves on the show, but for the most part, it’s much more fun for me, and I can leave with a good conscience knowing that I just met someone and they had fun. I always turn the humor on myself, and yeah, there’s other comedians who go after celebrities, but the number one target of my humor is myself. That’s the person I wanna go after. READ MORE

Interviews
3

Talking To Nathan Fielder About His New Consulting Comedy 'Nathan For You', And How To Improve Splitsider

by | February 26th, 2013

Everything can grow and evolve, and that couldn’t be more evident in the career trajectory of Nathan Fielder. In just four short years, he’s gone from performing in the syrupy wilderness of Canada on comedy series This Hour Has 22 Minutes to being a writer and standout performer on Comedy Central shows like Jon Benjamin Has A Van and Important Things with Demetri Martin. This year, his unique brand of bitterly dry humor steps out on its own with Nathan For You, a new Comedy Central series where Fielder consults businesses on how to do everything better.

We talked with Nathan all about his 8-episode run of consulting gigs all around the country, and the brilliant disasters that will occur over the first season. And just for good measure, we asked him to give us some tips on how Splitsider, like Nathan Fielder, can grow and evolve. That’s where things got awkward.

Your new show, Nathan For You, stars yourself as a consultant. Where did you get the expertise?

I did my undergraduate at a Canadian business school. So I have a Bachelor of Commerce degree. So that’s my entire business background. I got OK grades. They were pretty good.

Do you think you were successful in consulting these businesses?

Well, I go to them with very out-of-the-box ideas. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. I don’t know. I hope.

In the pilot episode, you introduced poo-flavored yogurt. I wanted to know what you thought of the taste.

Well, it didn’t taste good. I mean, the smell wasn’t actually that bad unless you got really up close. It wasn’t as bad as the real stuff. But the taste, when it first hits your tongue, it’s not that terrible. But then like a split-second later, all of these disgusting flavors just kinda burst in your mouth. I’m not really good at describing things, but it’s not something you would want to eat a lot of. I don’t even think it’s enjoyable as a bad food, even though I’m sure it’s not as bad as the real thing. READ MORE

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