3 Reasons Walmart is NOT the Little Shop Around the Corner

Walmart is ramping up its arsenal against Amazon by launching an eBook store. Walmart, and its partners, are proving they're big contenders.

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3 Reasons Walmart is NOT the Little Shop Around the Corner
Walmart is continuing to ramp up its arsenal against Amazon. The most recent advance in this ongoing contest is Walmart’s partnership with Kobo. By partnering with Rakuten, and it’s e-reader brand Kobo, Walmart has launched its own online bookstore. While Amazon is the reigning power in that space, Walmart isn’t exactly a small contender either.

The Little Shop Around the Corner

In 1998, just as the internet was exploding, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan stared in a cute remake of “Little Shop Around the Corner.” Titled “You’ve Got Mail” this took the basic premise of the 1940 film and reworked for a more contemporary setting. This time, instead of pen-pals, Hanks and Ryan were the instant messaging each other. Trust me, instant messaging was a big thing back in the day. And the alert was the pre-recorded “You’ve Got Mail.” Hence, the title of the movie. In the original “Little Shop Around the Corner,” the setting was a gift shop. For the 1998 version, Hanks is the corporate executive who’s in charge of development for a behemoth book chain store. Kind of like Amazon is today. Ryan is the owner of a small-time bookshop that’s a neighborhood institution. Ryan’s “Little Shop Around the Corner” can’t compete with Hanks “Fox Books.” And she knows it. When the newest location opens down the street from her store, the days of “Little Shop Around the Corner” are numbered. Though she attempts to fight it, Ryan’s little bookshop goes out of business. Let’s reimagine the story this way. Hanks, and by extension Fox Books, is Amazon. They’re established, they’ve run out the little stores, and things are going well. Fox Books, AKA Amazon, accounts for about 80% of all digital eBook readers and eReading apps. Ryan steps onto the scene. But not with a Little Shop Around the Corner. This time she’s Walmart. She may be entering a tough field, but she’s no newbie. And here’s why.

Walmart is a Retail Giant

Walmart has over 5,000 locations nationwide. These brick and mortar stores have been promising “always low prices” and discounts for decades. Walk into any Walmart and you’ll find clothes, food, automotive products, and much, much more. Where they’re lacking is the digital sphere. They do have online ordering, but it’s a far cry from Amazon’s presence. Amazon, however, got its start with books. And books are still a major part of Amazon’s annual revenue. They have eReader apps and the Kindle. They’ve built up a digital empire, and even their books and eReading platforms are an empire in and of themselves. It makes sense for Walmart to go after the book market. While Amazon does have a strong presence there, they haven’t been working to develop and adapt.

Large and Dedicated Client Base

The reason Walmart is a retail giant is thanks to its large and dedicated client base. On the book front, part of the reason Walmart may be losing customers is that they don’t have viable options for them. Now, by partnering with Rakuten and selling Kobo products in the store, they will. As easy as it is for someone to buy something off Amazon, buying it in a store has a much stronger appeal. Getting to hold and test out a product is an advantage. Those who test out a product are more likely to buy it. They get a chance to see themselves using it, thus, they can see themselves owning it. This is a similar phenomenon with books and telling stories, but we’ll get to that later. For Walmart to sell the Kobo Aura in its stores, it’ll be a huge plus for them. Not to mention Walmart is also rolling out an audiobook service. While Amazon already has Audible, Walmart is going to make theirs more affordable. And Walmart’s biggest draw has always been its prices. For a monthly Audible subscription, it’s $14.99. Walmart’s will be only $9.99 per month. Those shoppers who are always looking for a cheaper price, they’ll eagerly switch from Audible to Walmart eBooks.

A Physical Means to Buy Digital Products

With Kobo Aura’s on sale in the store, Walmart is making it easier for their customers to get their hands on it. Sure, you can order it online and have it sent to you. But you’re gambling that way. Reviews of a product can only provide so much insight. Walmart will also “sell” digital books in its stores as well. This is accomplished by provided cards. Like a gift card, customers can pick up a card that will allow them to buy the digital book they want. Maybe it’s Ernest Cline’s “Ready Player One”, or Gillian Flynn’s “Sharp Objects”. The customer will take the card to the register and pay for it there. Then they’ll activate the book by inputting the code found on the card. Personally, I’d like that experience. I know it sounds weird, but something about picking up a book and thumbing through it is so appealing to me. Then again, I love reading. Thus, a card that acts as a placeholder for the book is intriguing to me. It won’t take the place of a book. It will, however, fell more involved than just clicking “buy now” online.

Would It Have Been Different?

“You’ve Got Mail” was one of a series of romantic comedies that starred Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The two had chemistry on screen and worked well together. They didn’t get together in real life, but that’s okay. Tom Hanks has Rita Wilson and they’re perfect for each other. Don’t know what’s going on with Meg Ryan though. Anyway, had Meg Ryan’s character gotten the help of Walmart to take on Fox Books, the movie would have had a completely different ending. For one, Ryan’s “Little Shop Around the Corner” wouldn’t have been shuttered. She would have had a large inventory to work from. Her little bookshop would have been put into a much bigger network and supply chain. Fox Books would have had a harder time forcing her out. For another, Fox Books was really more like Barnes and Noble. And while they had their heyday, shutting down the poor independent bookstores, they’re now dealing with the consequences of not establishing an online presence. They’re fighting Amazon as well. Lastly, had Ryan had the support of a Walmart, then the story wouldn’t have ended with Hanks and Ryan falling in love. They would have fought bitterly for dominance in their region. Marketing teams would have been called in. At one point in the movie, Ryan is advised to “go to the mattresses.” With an army of marketers behind her, she would have gone a much better job this time. The Little Shop Around the Corner would have gone toe-to-toe with Fox Books, and most likely won. It wouldn’t have been a very romantic movie. Oh well.

Find a Book

Romances, mysteries, action, now you can find a book you like through Walmart. To download the title onto your favorite eReader or eBook app, make sure you’ve got the best Spectrum internet deals. This way you’ll save more money. And with all that money you’ve saved, you can go out and buy more books. And really, that’s what’s most important here.

3 Reasons Cloud Gaming Will Be Awesome

Electronic Arts has revived the dream of cloud gaming with their Origin Access Premiere. Here's 3 reasons why it will be awesome!

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3 Reasons Cloud Gaming Will Be Awesome
The promise of Cloud Gaming seemed to be a false promise. But now it appears Electronic Arts (EA) can revive that dream. Back in June 2018, EA demonstrated they were able to stream high-quality games via a high-speed connection. The person on the other end simply needed a controller to hook up to the television, computer, or laptop, and they could play the game. Just like Netflix brings movies and shows straight to the consumer, EA is working to launch their own game streaming service. All players will need is a controller, a high-speed internet connection on their device, and of course, a subscription. Then they’ll have access to a huge array of games to play with. This would have been nice if they’d come out with this technology a lot sooner.

That One Roommate

Before Cloud Gaming, before even Netflix streaming, I was a college student sharing a house with five other guys. The house, affectionately dubbed “The Shack,” should have been condemned. There were roaches living there, not to mention the squirrels and cats too. The squirrels left us alone, but the roaches were constantly inciting a turf war. The cats just used the place to procreate, and loudly. Rent was cheap though. Which was the point, I guess. To make the situation more livable, TV’s were brought in, DVD players, huge selections of DVDs, and games. One guy had an Xbox. Let’s call him Rick. While I did my fair share of movie watching, Rick played video games. Non. Stop. I shouldn’t judge, he turned out to be a great guy. And I did spend a few nights trying to beat Gears of War. I wasn’t totally immune. Yet, if you were to walk in there, 99 times out of ten, it wasn’t me on the Xbox trying to level up in the hottest game to come out that year- Halo 3. It would have been Rick. So the soundtrack of the house was a constant stream of explosions, gunfire, Rick shouting into his headset, and vulgar putdowns from other people playing the game as well. This was college. Since Rick played hours upon hours of Halo, he was good at the game. I wasn’t. I would be lucky to get five kills in a multi-player match. And Rick wouldn’t hesitate to point this out to me any time I picked up a controller. As if living in that cesspool wasn’t bad enough, I couldn’t prove myself in the last arena of true battle- online gaming. I graduated college, got married, and soon found online gaming really wasn’t the measure of a true man. But I digress. I didn’t own a game console. Thus, I wasn’t good at gaming. In hindsight, this wasn’t a bad thing. I did, after all, get into books. And I couldn’t be happier. Gaming, however, is going to change. As more and more games come out that only emphasize their online gaming mode and not their story mode, the video game companies will need a better way to market their games. Enter Cloud Gaming. It’s not all bad. And here are three reasons why.

No Consoles to Pay For

Part of the reason I never bought an Xbox or a PlayStation was the expensive price tag. And I was a poor college kid. My parents were also not big into gaming. So I can’t blame them for not shelling out the cash to buy me one that one time I put it on my Christmas list. With a streaming service, there’s no need to buy the console, or even the game itself. Just hook up the internet, plug in the controller, and away you go. A streaming game service was attempted back at the start of the 2010’s. Two companies, GoLive and Gaikai, each showed cloud gaming was a viable possibility. The only problem was the technology required to make it work was expensive and not as available as it was today. There was also the widely accepted belief that one buys games and does not stream them. Streaming was for movies and wasn’t seen as a stable method for delivering a high-quality gaming experience. EA has cracked that. Now all they need is enough subscribers to make it profitable.

Subscriptions

With Cloud Gaming, you'll only pay once a month, or once for the whole year. Paying once a month and getting games cheaper is better than having to pay for the console and the games too. At least, I would think so. I’m no expert here, but I do know what I like. And I’d much rather pay a little bit at a time than a lot all at once. It’s unclear if other game production companies will create their own subscription services like EA’s. But who am I kidding? Of course they will. Once EA proves this will work, other companies are going to launch their own subscription services to make it happen and compete. Soon the entertainment world will be one big subscription service, with subscription services to manage subscription services. At least the games will be cheaper.

Availability to More Players

Rick, though a good guy, was still hogging the Xbox most of the time. With a subscription service, this opens the door for even more people to plug in and play…so long as the internet speed is fast enough. There’s a way around that, just get the best internet bundles and you’ll be able to have multiple players, on multiple devices, all streaming their games at. The. Same. Time! If there are not enough ports for the controllers, then pull out a laptop, computer, or just another TV with an internet connection. Players would then be able to join in the game and no one would have to wait their turn to play. Cloud Gaming would make gaming accessible to a much wider audience.

When Is The Future?

EA’s Origin Access Premiere is still in its infancy. There will still be some kinks to work out, but as of right now, it seems to be working well. This is good news for EA as they continue their domination of the video game industry. For those who don’t enjoy video games, or don’t object to EA on principle, there are always books to read. As for me, I don’t see myself getting involved with video games beyond the few apps I have on my phone. Maybe when I’m older and my life slows down just a little bit I’ll have some time to just waste on a game. But I doubt that will happen any time soon. Rick, my old roomie, did give up gaming. I’m not sure when, but it must have been some time after he got married and started working a real job. Then he had kids. Last I spoke with him he was getting his masters and taking care of yet another baby. How he manages kids and masters level courses, I don’t know. I barely made it through my masters’ level course with one child. A few weeks ago I was near my alma mater and thought, just briefly, if that god-forsaken Shack was still there. Low and behold, it was. Some other poor sap decided they’d live with the roaches, the squirrels, and the cats, in that confined space. Hopefully, they have fast, reliable internet, and a streaming service.

5 Tech Must-Haves for Your College Dorm Room

Soon classes at your local college will start. Here are five tech must-haves for dorm living to get the most out of your college experience.

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5 Tech Must-Haves for Your College Dorm Room
Soon classes at your local college will start. Before that happens, you’ll be moving into your dorm room. If you’re lucky and live close enough to home, then you won’t have to get a dorm room. Or if you’ve found a way to score off-campus housing. If not, then there here are five tech must-haves for dorm living.

1.      A Good Laptop

You will be writing, period. What kind of writing you do is up to you…or your professor. You might write emails to friends and family, writing social media posts, or when you have time, that paper that’s due tomorrow. A good laptop is essential these days. All room and board charges cover Wi-Fi, so you don’t have to worry about the bill. Be it an Apple, a Dell, HP, Toshiba, or any of the other brands, make surer you find one with 8 to 16GB of RAM, as well as a good amount of storage. Low RAM means a slow computer. I speak from experience as my college laptop was slow. This made for some frustrating nights as I tried to write.

2.      Virtual Storage

This never happened to me, but I remember a fellow college student running full on across campus to get to the computer lab. There was a paper due that was 70% of his grade and the class was in ten minutes. So he’d downloaded it onto a flash-drive and sprinted across campus. Virtual storage wasn’t what it is today, but there were options at the time. Us poor college students couldn’t afford it though. Get a free Gmail account and you’ll get access to Google Drive. This way you can work on papers, save a copy to Drive, and print them out anywhere you have access to your email. Just make sure there’s a printer installed, filled with paper and ink.

Bonus

Although a little bit more expensive, get an external hard drive. My wife, who wrote huge papers for her honors program, kept one and it saved her sanity on more than one occasion. While virtual storage is helpful, a solid backup is added peace-of-mind. So save yourself the stress. And that guy who bolted across campus to print out his paper? He dropped the flash-drive on his way and couldn’t find it. Save yourself the anxiety and get virtual storage.

3.      Bluetooth Speakers

Back in my day, it was all about the stereos with multiple-disc interchanges. I graduated before the iPod really took off, or the iPhone came out. Not by much, mind you, but yes, I went to college in a time when Discmans were still the “it” thing. With smaller, and portable, speakers available, you have music right there with you, no matter where you go. Create a playlist on your phone, pair with a Bluetooth speaker, and you can take this anywhere you go. Doesn’t matter if you’re studying or at a party, you’ll be your own DJ. Check out JBL, Canz, Bose, Sony, and other Bluetooth speaker makers to find the one that works for you and your budget. Another plus- if someone has a Bluetooth speaker in their room and you’re not digging the music, just pair your phone to it and play your own music!

4.      Noise Cancelling Headphones

Dorms will be noisy. Doesn’t matter the time of day, someone will be making noise. Invest in noise-canceling headphones, it’ll help save your sanity. You just never know when two guys next door will decide to pump up their sub-woofer to watch The Punisher. Even with headphones on, I couldn’t hear my own music. Therefore, noise-canceling would have been a good idea at the time. Bose, Plantronics, AKG, and Beats are just some of the manufacturers who make noise-canceling headphones. And they come highly rated! You can then shut off all outside noise while you study, or just listen to something other than your loud dormmates.

5.      A Smart TV

With smart TV’s so prevalent, you can find a good deal on one with good resolution and apps like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. This will help cut down on all the clutter you have to take with you. Your movies and shows will be in one place, allowing you to save shelf space for…other things.

Bonus

Get a Chromecast, Roku Firestick, or Apple TV. These will make up for any apps or streaming services that don’t come with your smart TV. Or if you can’t get a smart TV at all, then you’ll have this as a backup. Since most dorms come with Wi-Fi, you’ll be able to stream and download that way and never miss the next episode of your favorite TV show.

Extra Bonus

The greatest thing about college is all the freedom you get to enjoy. The worst thing about college…is all the freedom you get to enjoy. You don’t have to figure it out on your own. Dorm life has been a constant for millions of people for years. Some of those people have gone on to write books about the experience. Find these on Amazon, Half-Price Books, BN.com, or download to your favorite eBook reader. This way you can learn from other’s mistakes so you can avoid making the same ones yourself.

Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis

Published in 1954, detailing the exploits of a college professor who doesn’t want the job at all. It may help you get an idea of where your professors are coming from.

Free Stuff Guide for Everyone by Peter Sander

Everything is expensive these days. When you’re in college this will be a harsh reality to contend with. Get this helpful guide so you can find the best deals, discounts, or other ways of making your dollar go farther.

Goodnight Dorm Room: All the Advice I Wish I Got Before Going to College by Samuel Kaplan and Keith Riegert

A funny and honest look at college. This book helps you understand the realities of college, as well as the real world, as well as giving you hints on how to adapt to dorm living and get ahead.

Dorm Room Essentials Cookbook by Gina Meyers

Everyone has to eat. But cafeteria food gets old really fast. And eating out for every meal is not feasible. This cookbook clues you in on how to make snacks, meals, and desserts on a budget and in your own dorm room.

The Naked Roommate: And 107 Other Issues You Might Run Into in College by Harlan Cohen

If there’s a lot of people living in a close, confined space, then the numbers dictate that one of them will be weird. Handling roommates and dormmates is a part of college life. Best to get ahead of the game and buy this book.

The College Humor Guide to College by Ethan Trex and Streeter Seidell

Who better to guy you into college than the people who parody college living? By taking the humorous route, the book is more helpful than actual guidebooks.   There are more titles like these available. This list will get you started. Make sure you get these books and read them before classes start. This way you’ll be even more prepared for college than any high school prep class could have made you. Download the eBooks, audiobooks, or stream them to your device with reliable internet. To do that, check out the best cable and internet deals. This way you’ll save some money before you jet off to higher education.

Ready Player One Review

Ready Player One earns the title of “Holy Grail of pop culture references” many times over. But is it better than the book it's based on?

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Ready Player One Review
Ready Player One earns the title of “Holy Grail of pop culture references” many times over. The film, released back in March in theaters, and on Tuesday, July 24th, on blu-ray, DVD, and digital download, goes above and beyond with the references. There’s the Iron Giant, Ninja Turtles, Monty Python, Gundam, King Kong, Blade Runner, and oh-so many more. With one-liners, and some of its own sly dialogue, the film does a good job of entertaining. It is, however, not as good as the book.

The Movie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSp1dM2Vj48 When I first heard that Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One was going to be turned into a movie, it seemed a natural progression for property. It was an homage to pop culture as well as cult-favorites. The irony is those very cult classics are now getting elevated to legendary status and pulled into pop culture itself. Another irony is Steven Spielberg got himself into the director’s chair for the film.

Spielberg

Spielberg’s heyday was in the eighties and he directed a lot of the films that ended up becoming pop cultures references. As his career progressed and he became a big-name director, he’s always been linked to the classics. And then he ended up directing the movie with a lot of references to his own previous works. I find that interesting. The effects were on point. And how could they not? If Spielberg was going to be involved, then good effects were a given. Without a multi-million-dollar budget behind something like this, then there would have been no way to capture the scale. At best, it would have become another niche movie to garner a cult following. That didn’t happen, as Ernest Cline found the right connections for his book and got the story turned into a screenplay and the screenplay turned into a movie.

The Writing

Turning a book into a film requires—shall we say—delicate reimagining. In my younger days I was a die-hard purist. This is one of the reasons I have a hard time watching any new X-Men movie that comes out. But more on that later. Old age has softened me to the point that my blood doesn’t boil when the movie diverges significantly from the book. Part of this is the realization that writing a book and movie are two different things. There is writing involved in both. The mindset for each is entirely different. Ernest Cline, the author of the book, had a hand in the screen writing, which is always a good thing. Author’s are protective of their work and I’m sure Cline was no exception to the rule. His involvement is probably why the spirit of the film is close to the spirit of the book. That may sound like semantics, but to writers, it’s important. Therefore, key plot points were lifted from the book and put into the movie. I’m okay with this as some books have been butchered beyond recognition in the past. Cline and his fellow screenwriter Zak Penn, should be commended for taking such a massive story and condensing it into a movie. They kept the feel of it while getting to the heart of the story.

The Book

While the movie was great, I’m still a fan of the book. I always will be. Within the pages of Ready Player One, the reader can truly get to know Wade Watts. This is a benefit of reading internal monologues. The movie was filled with references, both verbal and visual, to pop culture things. The book, on the other hand, goes beyond. Ready Player One not only drenches itself in pop culture and geekiness, it also serves a primer to those who are unfamiliar with it. A movie can only do so much. That’s why the book is going to remain timeless. The movie, sadly, will soon be dated. Luckily for me, I got to see a lot of the films referenced in the book. For those who saw the movie first, they’ll have to go back and watch them. Then they’ll be able to understand the reference and see why it’s funny. For someone like me, who knew the reference already, it’s even more enjoyable to see it cleverly inserted into a book. Though the movies climax was good, I enjoyed the book’s climax much better. And I can’t wait for when “flick-syncs” become a real thing.

Books First, Movies Second

While Ready Player One makes good use of previous films and games, it’s still a book. Most of the movies and games referenced within the book came from other books. And if that wasn’t the case, then the creators of said movies and games go their ideas from reading books. As movies get bigger and bigger in their scale and budgets, they’ll need to find new material. It’s an unavoidable fact of the industry. The first place for creators to look for new ideas is in books. And that’s also an unavoidable fact. Books will continue to provoke ideas and imagination. What makes books so unique is they give you the ability to create a film in your own mind. You pick the actors, the score, the effects, and the pacing of the film. Movies, while awe-inspiring, have a limiting quality to them- their run time. Books don’t have that problem. Do this; after watching Ready Player One, get on Amazon and buy the book. Make sure you have the best Spectrum internet before you do. Better yet, get out of the house, go to a Barnes & Noble, and buy the book there. If there’s no Barnes & Noble, go to your library. You’d be surprised what you learn.   “...and that, my liege, is how we know the Earth to be banana-shaped.” “This new learning amazes me, Sir Bedevere. Explain again how sheep's bladders may be employed to prevent earthquakes.” —Monty Python and the Holy Grail

5 Up and Coming Comedians that Need a Netflix Special

To help Netflix fill out their of comedy specials for their radio channel,I've picked 5 comedians that need a special on Netflix!

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5 Up and Coming Comedians that Need a Netflix Special
Netflix is busy expanding. While they’ve thrown over $8 billion into creating new content, they’re going to expand past streaming video…into streaming radio. Come January of 2019, Netflix will have their own channel on Sirius XM. But what are they going to put on it? Comedy. Netflix has a vast array of comedy specials featuring some of the best comedians to ever pick up a mic. And then they also have other “good” comedians who somehow got a deal. They must have figured out that Netflix had $8 billion to spend on new content, so why not them? Netflix will air bits from these comedians’ specials on Sirius XM. Since they need to fill out so much time, they'll be airing segments from the not-so-funny ones as well. I sigh heavily at this. Enough on that, let’s move onto the real issue at hand—up and coming comedians. While there’s nothing wrong with the tried and true names, they will, sadly, leave this earth one day. We’ll mourn them, no doubt, we aren’t heartless after all. When that inevitably happens, we’ll need new jokes to repeat to our friends and new catchphrases to incorporate into pop culture. It’s best to start this process early so we have the comedians waiting in the wings once the veterans finally shuffle from this mortal coil. For this reason, I have taken on myself* to search for up and coming comedians that need a Netflix special. Warning, there is mature language used by some of these comedians. You have been warned!

Josh Johnson

You’ve seen him on The Tonight Show, but did you also know he’s writing for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah? This southern kid has a soft-spoken delivery that pulls you in. That’s the kind of comedy that works after a long day. Too often new comedians mistake the “loud and in your face” approach as the best way to get a laugh. That comes off as annoying. Of course, after all this research into Josh Johnson, I see this little line- “Josh’s next stand-up special will be released on Netflix in 2018.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHQD8jIWUYY

Moses Storm

You’ve likely seen him in The Wedding Party and on Comedy Central. I especially love how he points out that he grew up poor yet looks like a rich white dude. It didn’t hurt that he was wearing a tux when he said this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3kAg6fjvRE

Cy Amundson

I made sure this guy didn’t have a Netflix special and turned out I was right. You’d think that if someone was on Comedy Central that meant that they made it, right? Not always true. Although I first saw Cy on “This Is Not Happening,” I was surprised to learn he’d also done voice work for American Dad and Family Guy. This shows more of his range and with a Netflix Special, I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of him in the future. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGdNvODziN4

Taylor Tomlinson

Yes, she’s already been on Netflix, but it was only one episode, so it doesn’t completely count. It was only 15 minutes, okay! She’s hilarious enough for at least an hour special. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROWP2HbyCx4

Bret Ernst

This guy’s language is a little more mature, but it’s still hilarious. I got to see him perform at the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club in San Antonio, TX. He was beyond funny causing my sides to hurt by the end of the night. He was the headliner that night, so the first two comedians to come in were local guys. They were alright, but I found their humor to be uninspired and repetitive. This was during the time when San Antonio was named one of the most obese cities in the nation. Guess what each comedian focused on? San Antonio being obese. By that point, I’d heard enough jokes about on the subject that I was tired of it. Sometimes a topic gets so overplayed it becomes aggravating to hear it. These comedians were supposed to warm up the crowd and yet, I wasn’t there. I’d laughed some but I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. Bret Ernst changed that. His storytelling style, blending in what would be heavy themes with abject irreverence, really surprised me. To take that kind of approach was, at least to me, intriguing. There are probably other comics who’ve done it, but he was the first one I saw who could pull it off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pRHEUl3oAk

Writing Comedy

Comedy is highly subjective, but the five comics above prove to hit the full range of humor. There’s something for everyone here. Creating comedy, or finding the humor in a situation, takes skill. It’s not a sixth sense, per se, but it does take a keen eye to pull off. That’s not all you have to do, however. You need to work the story, hone in on the salient points, and really know your material. Knowing a punch line is one thing, being able to adapt to a crowd that ain’t feeling your humor- that’s a true skill. In the meantime, make sure you have the best Spectrum internet deals. You’ll have fewer bills to pay and some extra cash. When Netflix launches their comedy channel in January, you’ll have the extra cash to subscribe. It’ll also put a smile on your face! *I had to write this because I was watching Josh Johnson while I was supposed to be working and convinced my boss I was writing an article.