Olde English (sketch comedy)
| Olde English | |
|---|---|
 Members of Olde English in 2010 (from left): Ben Popik, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, David Segal, Caleb Bark, and Adam Conover | |
| Medium | Film, theatre |
| Nationality | American |
| Years active | 2002–2013 |
| Genres | Sketch comedy |
| Members | Caleb Bark Raphael "Raizin" Bob-Waksberg[1] Joel Clark Adam Conover Jon Dame Tavit Geudelekian Adam Janos Jesse Novak Ben Popik Suzanne Richardson Shira Sandler Hana Scott-Suhrstedt David Segal |
| Website | www |
Olde English was an American sketch comedy troupe based in New York City. The group published over 100 comedy shorts on the internet,[2] and performed live at several venues and festivals in the US.
History[edit]
Olde English was formed by a group of students at Bard College, and was originally conceived by Ben Popik. While traveling in Europe during the summer of 2002, Popik chose the name for the group and began writing some of the early sketches. In the fall of 2002, Popik returned to Bard and held auditions for the group.[3] By 2010, Olde English consisted of Adam Conover, Ben Popik, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, Dave Segal, and Caleb Bark, although several others had joined and left over the years.[4]
Olde English produced videos for its website since 2002, usually posting one sketch every two weeks.[5] In 2004, Olde English released its first self-produced DVD, Gorilla Warfare.[6]
The group gained increased popularity in 2003 when their video "Gym Class" became a viral hit.[citation needed] In 2006, the group released a video titled "One Picture Every Day", starring Ben Popik and featuring an original song by former member Jesse Novak.[7] The sketch is a parody of an internet phenomenon popularized by Noah Kalina and Jonathan Keller. The video was seen on Good Morning America[8] as well as a Mountain Dew ad campaign.[9] On January 17, 2007, Olde English announced that its videos would be regularly featured on the comedy website Super Deluxe.[10]
Olde English performed live at the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival (2005),[11] the San Francisco Sketchfest (2005–2007)[12] and the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival (2007).[13]
Olde English's "Free NYC Rap", a rap music video protesting the restrictions for independent New York City filmmakers that were proposed in Fall 2007, was nominated for a 2007 ECNY award.[14]
Other projects[edit]
The members of Olde English—along with former members Joel Clark and Jesse Novak, as well as longtime collaborator Chioke Nassor—completed their first feature film, The Exquisite Corpse Project in 2012. The film first premiered at festivals in June 2012, and became available for commercial download at the end of April 2013.[15]
References[edit]
- ^ Ito, Robert (2019-05-07). ""Sometimes out of something awful something wonderful happens"". The California Sunday Magazine. Retrieved 2022-01-11.
- ^ "Olde English video archive". Retrieved 2007-04-02.
- ^ "Olde English message board: "Frequently Asked Questions"". Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
- ^ "Olde English Blog - "Where's Olde English?"". Archived from the original on 2007-03-03. Retrieved 2007-09-04.
- ^ "Archive of sketches published by Olde English in 2006". Retrieved 2007-04-01.
- ^ "Olde English message board: "Gorilla Warfare! Free!"". Archived from the original on 2007-08-30. Retrieved 2007-04-01.
- ^ "YouTube - "Ben Takes a Picture of Himself Every Day"". YouTube. Retrieved 2007-04-02.
- ^ "Olde English blog - "Olde English on Good Morning America!"". Archived from the original on 2008-08-07. Retrieved 2007-04-02.
- ^ ""Stay Sharp" Mountain Dew ad campaign site". Archived from the original on 2007-03-05. Retrieved 2007-04-01.
- ^ "Big Announcement – Super Deluxe". Archived from the original on 2007-03-01. Retrieved 2007-09-04.
- ^ "Chicago Sketchfest: 2005 Groups". Archived from the original on 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2007-09-04.
- ^ "San Francisco Sketchfest Archive". Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2007-09-04.
- ^ Frankel, Daniel (2007-02-27). "Variety Magazine: "Festival Streams Online Laughs"".
- ^ "ECNY Awards: 2007 Nominees". Archived from the original on 2008-01-09. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
- ^ "Security Check Required". Facebook. Retrieved 30 May 2016.