Cutting the Cord: Dynamic comedy from Bill Hicks and others
Free comedy streaming video site Comedy Dynamics is about to ratchet up the laughs -- and the angst.
The entire video catalog of the late comedian Bill Hicks will become available Tuesday on the service, which can be found on Android and iOS apps, as well as Amazon, Hulu and Roku.
This comes after a special one-night run of Hicks' Relentless in theaters on Monday night. Playing along with the 1992 performance is an original documentary with previously unseen Hicks clips. (For more information visit the Fantom Events site.
The reputation of Hicks, who died in 1994 at the age of 32 from pancreatic cancer, has risen since his death. (Rolling Stone had named him Top Standup Comic in 1993; more on billhicks.com.)
His satirical targets included pro-life activists, non-smokers and the government, most famously for bits about a cover-up in the assassination of President Kennedy. A regular comic guest of talk show host David Letterman, Hicks made his last appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman in 1993, but it was not shown because he made a joke about pro-life activists. Three years ago, Letterman invited the comic's mother Mary to the show, apologized and played Hick's routine.
Comedy Dynamics president Brian Volk-Weiss hopes to spread Hicks' legacy. " Through our digital platforms and expansive marketing campaign, we intend to relaunch one of the best comics who has ever lived to his current fans, and hopefully make a lot of new fans as well," he said.
The Hicks videos available on Tuesday are It's Just a Ride, One Night Stand, Totally Bill Hicks, Relentless, Revelations,Sane Man and an original documentary Reflections will also be available. (Note: These videos contain adult material.)
Hicks takes his place among the more than 100 full-length comedy videos and clips on the service. Comedians featured include: Rob Schneider, Bob Saget, Kevin Nealon, D.L. Hughley, Mike Birbiglia, Craig Ferguson and Whitney Cummings.
On the way: Kevin Hart (Get Hard) has partnered with Comedy Dynamics to produce three comedy specials. After those air on Comedy Central, they will be available stream on Comedy Dynamics (July 1).
Right now, the service is free with some advertisements, but subscription and pay-per-view options are in the works, Volk-Weiss said.
Hicks fans have plenty more to revel in: Comedy Dynamics will make all 11 Hicks audio releases available digitally on Tuesday. Also on that day, SiriusXM will feature Hicks on its Raw Dog Comedy Hits Channel.
A DVD box set of Hicks videos will be released on Aug. 18, with an album of previously unreleased audio material on Oct. 27.
"Cutting the Cord" is a regular column covering Net TV and ways to get it. If you have suggestions or questions, contact Mike Snider via e-mail. And follow him on Twitter: @MikeSnider.