Author Description

From Library Journal Stand-up comedy has mostly migrated to video, but these four-tape collections of recently released single albums provide good value if a more limited experience. The Comedians of the Year includes four winners of the American Comedy Awards. The stand-out is Richard Jeni, who deploys deft wit and dead-on voices and characters to produce his "greatest bits." The raunchy, presober Margaret Cho riffs irreverently on herself and Asian American identity, adding raucous impersonations of her mother and other Asian immigrants. By contrast, John Pinette's impressions of Asians seem tired, and his "show me the buffet" shtick would work better if audiences could see his impressive girth. Brian Regan offers tamer but well-executed observational comedy. For public libraries that collect comedy. In Hilarith: The Best of Lesbian Humor, Kate Clinton manages a sly mix of lesbian references and topical humor ("Linda Tripp is an insult to drag queens everywhere"). Also excellent is Marga Gomez, who skewers pretentiousness with apt impressions. Suzanne Westenhoefer and Karen Williams connect with their audiences but sound more hit-and-miss on tape. Similarly, The Best of Latino Humor--featuring Pablo Francisco, Rudy Moreno, and the Spicy Hot Mamitas (not a group but five female stand-ups)--captures hot performances that drag a bit on audio. Still, both sets should appeal to libraries serving lesbian and Latino (especially Chicano) demographics.-Norman Oder, "Library Journal" Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. Product Description This 4-cassette set contains four full-length albums from four of the hottest comics in the businessall of them recipients of the Stand-Up Comedian of the Year award at the American Comedy Awards. From the Back Cover Richard Jeni explains, Comedy is a craft and Im like a cartoonist painting funny images in peoples minds with words. Jeni has the uncanny ability to inhabit his characters so fully that the