2017 saw Netflix make a special to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Russell Simmons & Stan Latham launching a groundbreaking show: Def Comedy Jam. The original was broadcast on the US channel HBO and had provided a TV showcase for black comedians.
Recorded on 10th September 2017 it was released on Netflix on the 26th. Some red carpet pictures can be seen here, cast listing on IMDB and it can be watched on Netflix.
On paper the idea was great but the actual show was pretty rambling and had very little actual comedy within it. I thought it was just me struggling with it but I’ve just browsed some Reddit threads and reviews and I wasn’t alone.
There were some huge names involved on the night (Dave Chappelle, D.L. Hughley, Steve Harvey, Martin Lawrence) and lots more in the audience. Pre filmed segments were supplied by Chris Rock and Kevin Hart.
The “event attendees” listed was given to outlets such as TheSource.com (lots of sites have the same text) and it amused me to see that Jimmy Carr (once again, probably the only Brit in the room) was spotted – but not his friend, Neal Brennan, sitting beside him. The people who tweeted Jimmy about him being “the whitest man in the room” also missed Neal (ditto Ted Sarandos, sitting at a table slightly ahead of them).
The camera picked out Jimmy (cream linen suit, blue shirt) and Neal several times and, after a while, I tended to zone out into seeing how many audience members I could recognise (never a ringing endorsement of a show).
Jimmy was in LA from September 6-12.
He had been at the Comedy Central Emmy after party on the 9th (here) and appeared on Kill Tony on the 11th (here).
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