I Heart Edmonton

The Funny People By Emil Tiedemann When you live in a city with a longish winter and seemingly excessive construction in the summer, you almost have to develop a sense of humour, or you might just implode one day. And if that’s the worst of it, we’ve got it pretty damn good.  Perhaps because of that, there are a lot of pretty funny folks here in Edmonton making us pee ourselves laughing, whether it’s at one of the comedy clubs or via a basement podcast or even some potty-mouthed Twitter account. We like to laugh, we like to make others laugh, and we don’t mind poking fun at ourselves from time to time. Most of all, we love stickin’ it to those damn Calgarians! Just kidding...ish.  The 'Vulgar Comedy Show' at The Hydeaway venue in downtown Edmonton. But, I digress. Some locals might say our comedy legacy dates back to around 1980, when Second City Television (SCTV) relocated from Ontario to Edmonton’s Allarcom-ITV studios, bringing along future legends like Dave T...

A dozen of Edmonton's most foul-mouthed comics battle for bragging rights at this first-ever prickapalooza showdown BY EMIL TIEDEMANN WARNING: If you can't handle a few curse words and touchy subjects, I recommend you skip over this post. Seriously...and don't say I didn't warn ya! David Dempsey L ET'S see who's the biggest asshole! Essentially, that's what we found out at last week's inaugural Edmonton Comedy Battle  (Feb. 8), hosted by The Hydeaway (10209-100 Ave.). As it turns out, Kelly Soloduka is the biggest prick of them all! Not exactly surprising, if you know the bastard. But, to be fair, there were plenty of other sons of bitches razing each other during the mockathon, an insult free-for-all slapped together by Aussie David "moved-here-for-a-girl" Dempsey and local comic Scott Belford . "Belford and I were inspired to do this since they run a similar event in Calgary," Dempsey told I Heart . "Scott wa...

A seemingly endless trail of local stand-ups braved the stage at the world-class Comic Strip for 'amateur' night BY EMIL TIEDEMANN ( WARNING : This post contains language and subject matter that some of you may find offensive, or just plain nasty, so please proceed with caution!) I NTIMATE lighting allowed a feeble sense of security when my friend Karen and I were seated at one of the benched tables of Rick Bronson's The Comic Strip , a "high-end" comedy club in the " Bourbon Street " region of West Edmonton Mall . Afterall, who wants to be picked on or solicited by some crude comics out to highlight your flaws for the sake of a laugh? Not me, which is why I also appreciated the safeguards of our back row seating arrangement. Now all I needed was some liquid courage, just in case I had to chit-chat with intrusive comedians about my "date" or what I do for a living, as they burrow through my stats until they found just the right joke at my expe...

Not for the weak or squeamish, local comics took turns offending everyone in their paths... wouldn't expect anything less! BY EMIL TIEDEMANN B EFORE you read on I must WARN you that I'm about to get all crude up in here! That's right, foul and lewd language will run amuck, so if you're the sensitive type you might want to skip this entry and come back tomorrow. Seriously, I'm gonna go George Carlin on your ass! But to be fair, it's only because I have to. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to properly tell you about last week's 'Fuck You Comedy Show' (Tuesday, June 1) at The Hydeaway (10209-100 Ave.). See, it's already begun! Like last Thursday's 'Pecha Kucha' event, this very different night out was a last minute decision. My good friend Karen and I made plans just hours prior to head downtown to the Hydeaway, the upper room of the Jekyll & Hyde Pub , to see our mutual friend Kelly Soloduka (pictured bottom left) headlin...