Chicano Humor and a Joke Contest; L.A. Xicano; Miguel Covarrubias

Comedy From Gabriel Iglesias - Win a DVD

The following is a press release from Comedy Central
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It's time for the revolution! Come join the comedy party with Gabriel Iglesias as he hosts COMEDY CENTRAL’s series, Gabriel Iglesias Presents Stand-Up Revolution. On November 15, Gabriel Iglesias Presents Stand-Up Revolution was released in North America on DVD by COMEDY CENTRAL Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Entertainment. The uncensored two disc set featuring over 40 minutes of new material from Iglesias, includes the seventh Secret Stash episode, extended episodes with over two hours of content that did not appear in the broadcast episodes, outtakes and the music video for the show’s theme song, Hey It’s Fluffy. The release coincides with the broadcast finale and hits stores just in time for holiday gift giving. Filmed at Phoenix’s newest club, Stand Up Live, the series features stand-up sets from Iglesias and his funniest comedian friends plus music from three-time Grammy® award-winners Ozomatli, the house band. The series, “Gabriel Iglesias Presents Stand-Up Revolution,” premiered on COMEDY CENTRAL on Thursday, October 6 at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT. On “Stand-Up Revolution,” Iglesias opens each of the episodes with all-new material and introduces different stand-up guests during each show. Comedian and long-time friend, Martin Moreno, is the show announcer and guest commentator, occupying his own podium next to Iglesias throughout the series. Other comics appearing in the series include: Cristela Alonzo, Zhivago Blea, Tommy Chunn, Joey CoCo Diaz, Dillon Garcia, Dennis Gaxiola, Noe Gonzalez, Rick Gutierrez, Maz Jobrani, Shaun Latham, Rudy Moreno, Larry Omaha, Carlos Oscar, Alfred Robles, Cleto Rodriguez, Edwin San Juan, Paul Varghese and Thea Vidale.

Known as the "Fluffy" comic in a Hawaiian shirt, Iglesias’ animated comedy style combining storytelling, parodies, characters and sound effects has earned him national crossover appeal, making him popular among fans of all ages. Iglesias has starred in two COMEDY CENTRAL one-hour specials, both of which had corresponding DVDs. His most recent release, I’m Not Fat… I’m Fluffy debuted in 2009 and his first special/DVD Hot & Fluffy was released in 2007. Iglesias has sold over one million DVD & Blu-ray units to date. Iglesias’ television credits include “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Conan,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” FOX TV’s “The Family Guy,” “Good Morning America” and “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.” He has also headlined the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal and Toronto. In 2009, Gabriel had the unique opportunity to be the headliner at the Amman Jordan Comedy Festival, the first of its kind in the Arab world – he recently returned to Amman Jordan for a second visit in 2010. Iglesias’ world tour performances include locations such as Australia (Melbourne and Sydney) and Saudi Arabia (Riyadh, Khobar, Qatar and Dubai.) On November 5, Iglesias begins his European tour of Sweden, Norway, Netherlands Belgium and England, his 2011 touring activities conclude with the concert at the prestigious Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles on December 30. This event is sure to be a blast for all of Iglesias’ fans.
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Okay, so that's the official hype. I've watched this video and another one from Iglesias. Bottom line is that he's funny, he looks like he's having a good time, and there's something to be said about a guy who can make his audience smile and laugh by making fun of himself. In terms of what passes for humor these days, you could do a lot worse. On the other hand, be aware that this is adult material. The DVD box comes with the Parental Advisory: "Explicit content warning: This program is recommended for mature audiences only. It contains adult language and situations." So, it's not necessarily something for the entire family to gather around during the holiday lulls, but it might be good for the adults' late night break from the hassle and frazzle of the Christmas season. Plus, the house band is Ozomatli - right there the show is a step ahead of all the other comedian broadcasts.

Tell Me a Joke

The publicity people behind this DVD have offered La Bloga's readers two of the DVDs for giveaways. I've tried to think of a unique way to give away the DVDs. The only thing I came up with is to have a joke contest. Here's the way it works -- send me a joke and if I think it is one of the two funniest jokes I receive, you win a DVD, and I'll post your joke here on La Bloga. As you can see, the selection of the winner will be totally subjective on my part. I will tell you this -- try to be original, don't be a hater, and you should know that it takes a truck to make me smile, and a circus train to make me laugh. Send your jokes to me, Manuel Ramos, at this email address: lablogaATaolDOTcom. I'll announce the winners and post the jokes in my next post, which should happen December 16. You have until December 15 at 5:00 PM (Denver time) to submit an entry. Good luck, and keep on laughing.

CSRC Holds First "Undocumented Event as Part of L.A. Xicano Public Programming Series

As part of its ongoing L.A. Xicano exhibitions in the Getty’s city-wide Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945-1980 initiative, the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC) will hold its first “Undocumented Event” at the Boyle Heights Farmers Market on Friday, December 2, 2011, from 3 p.m.-8 p.m. This free public event will be co-produced by the Mobile Mural Lab (MML), a mobile art space created by Los Angeles-based artists to foster dialogue and engage community around matters of public art. L.A. Xicano artist Sandra de la Loza is a co-organizer of this event. The Boyle Heights Farmers Market is located on Bailey Street at East 1^st Street near the Mariachi Plaza.

Undocumented Event No. 1 on Friday will engage issues around the Los Angeles mural moratorium, instituted in 2002 but currently under review by the City Council for possible revision. The MML truck will include a question-driven chalkboard piece for public commentary, outdoor video screenings, a mini-exhibit and research center, and dialogue with artists about the history of muralism in Los Angeles and its role in community development.

“Our goal is to bring aspects of the L.A. Xicano exhibitions from the museum to the community, focusing on muralism,” says CSRC Director and L.A. Xicano co-curator Chon A. Noriega. “Mobile Mural Lab is a perfect partner in this effort to establish a dialogue about public art between west side museums and east side communities.”

The MML will draw upon two L.A. Xicano exhibitions: Mural Remix: Sandra de la Loza (LACMA) and Mapping Another L.A.: The Chicano Art Movement (Fowler Museum at UCLA). Muralists associated with these exhibitions will be invited to participate. “The lab is designed to provide a common ground for individuals and communities to engage in dialogue and creatively express themselves within the public realm,” explains Roberto del Hoyo, artist and MML cofounder (with David Russell). Del Hoyo is also featured in Mural Remix.

This will be the only media release announcing the Undocumented Event series. The series will consist of pop-up events and activities announced through social media at least 24 hours in advance. Each event will be different in nature, involving community members and Chicano artists in varied capacities, and will cover a range of themes, including muralism, paper fashion, music, and the visual arts. The events will take place at public sites as well as at the Fowler Museum at UCLA between December 2, 2011 and February 26, 2012, the date the last L.A. Xicano exhibitions will close.

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L.A. Xicano is part of Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945–1980, an unprecedented collaboration of more than sixty cultural institutions across Southern California, which are coming together to tell the story of the birth of the L.A. art scene. Initiated through grants from the Getty Foundation, Pacific Standard Time will take place for six months beginning October 2011. Bank of America is the exclusive sponsor for Pacific Standard Time. To learn more, visit L.A. Xicano Facebook page or webpage.

Miguel Covarrubias

The African Diaspora in the Art of Miguel Covarrubias: Driven By Color, Shaped By Cultures is an exhibition organized by the California African American Museum (CAAM) and on view through February 26, 2012. The exhibition explores the representations of people of African descent in the work of Mexican artist Miguel Covarrubias (1904-1957). Covarrubias was a prolific painter, illustrator, caricaturist, writer, curator archeologist and anthropologist. Relocating from Mexico to New York City in 1923, he quickly became a member of the cultural elite whose many friends included Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston and the Rockefellers. Through a renowned mural, colorful paintings, sketches, prints, books and magazines, this extensive CAAM curated exhibit highlights Covarrubias’ multi-cultural depictions of the African Diaspora throughout the world.

Covarrubias’ work tells the story of peoples, traditions and everyday life. His drawings adorned the covers of Vanity Fair, Vogue, and Fortune. He also created set designs and costumes for theatre, including Josephine Baker’s La Revue Negre. Some of his illustrated books on display at this exhibition include The Weary Blues (1926), Blues: An Anthology (1926), Born to Be (1929), Mules and Men (1935), Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1938), Mexico South: The Isthmus of Tehuantepec (1946) Adventures of an African Slaver (1928) and Batouala (1932). His illustrations in Negro Drawings (1927) gave mainstream America a new and more dignified impression of African Americans.

Covarrubias was known during the Harlem Renaissance period for his representations of African Americans, but his paintings also depicted Afro-Mexicans, Afro-Cubans and West and North Africans. CAAM’s executive director, Charmaine Jefferson, said that it became clear to her nearly 7 years ago, that “Covarrubias needed to have his creative voice explored from the perspective of the people portrayed in his art.” Ms. Jefferson noted that while the style of his work is often exaggerated, it is a style that he applied to all that he painted. “As I looked at more and more of his work,” she said, “I began to realize that Covarrubias was more often than not a respectful and insightful chronologist of a full range of experiences by people of color. I was especially struck by how often he used his art to document Black culture, to lend vision to worlds outside of America, to support abolitionist efforts to end slavery and racism, to reflect family, and dignity, and life and especially the culture that surrounded the African American community of his days in Harlem. The depth of his work is astounding. You can see the clarity of his research and scholarship applied to his depictions, and you see his willingness to give himself over to see the world through the eyes of others. In this way, Covarrubias helped to make his a voice for us all. I am especially proud of our curator Mar Hollingsworth who took a gem of an idea and shaped an exhibition and palette for absorbing Covarrubias that is informative, visually stimulating and powerful from a variety of perspectives. This man of Mexican heritage lived and breathed the cultural diversity of the world long before it was fashionable to do so. We are honored to have this opportunity to share the Covarrubias that we discovered. We hope everyone will come to get to know his talents as we have.”

The exhibit took three years to complete; it includes several pieces that have not been seen in the U.S. and some of his original illustrations including work for Langston Hughes and Rene Maran. It’s a representation of many cultures encompassing people of the Pacific with an oversized mural 15 by 25 feet large, the Caribbean (Cuba and Haiti), Mexico (Tehuantepec), and West, North and East Africa. It reflects Covarrubias’ belief that “Real art can no more be a monopoly of one country than man can secure himself on an island and expect to picture humanity.”

For more information on the California African American Museum visit www.caamuseum.org or call (213) 744-7432. Admission is always free.

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Laughter is good - send in a joke.

Later.