User:Lawikitejana/Greg Benson
Greg Benson | |
|---|---|
| File:Mediocrefilms-avatar.jpg | |
| Born | Gregory Charles Benson[1] January 23, 1968[1] |
| Nationality | American |
| Other names | Mediocre FilmsMediocre Films |
| Years active | October 2006-present |
| Known for | Comedy |
| Notable work | Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show[2] |
| Spouse(s) | Kim Evey (2004 - present), Paige Davis (1994 - 2001)[3] |
| Website | [1] |
Greg Benson (born Gregory Charles Benson in Dallas County, Texas[1]) is an American comedian, actor, and director of short films. His production company, Mediocre Films, promotes its creations via YouTube and MySpace.[5][6]
History[edit]
Born in Dallas, Texas,[3][1] Benson graduated from W. T. White High School in 1986.[7] Eventually he moved to California, where he has since appeared in several television commercials for companies that included electronics retailer Best Buy, Kia automobiles, Blue Cross Blue Shield medical insurance and Lean Pockets frozen sandwiches.[8] Benson is a sometime member of the ACME Comedy Theater improv troupe in Hollywood, where he first worked with writer/actor Wil Wheaton, who has since appeared in various of Benson's projects.[9]
He started making videos in 2005, initially putting them up on his own Mediocre Films web site.[10] Eventually he moved his distribution from his own site to YouTube, where within one month one of his shorts, "Greg Hits Hollywood," was featured on the site's home page.[11] The video and its sequels feature Benson interviewing strangers as a pretext for hitting them with his microphone, to see "what people will put up with just because they want to be on TV, or even just YouTube."[10] Since then he's become a popular YouTube comedian with over 272,000 subscribers, he's currently number 19 as most subscribed comedians and number 53 most subscribed all time. His most popular video as of early 2009[11] was episode 1 of the Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show, which was selected to be featured on YouTube shortly after being posted February 25, 2007, and subsequently drew nearly 2 million viewers. The series later was picked up by Sony Pictures,[11][9]who continued the show through two seasons on YouTube as part of its "C Spot" lineup; one reviewer for The Times of London described it as "Pee-Wee Herman meets Monty Python via the hyperkinetic madness of Japanese television."[12] Benson also landed a short segment role as a pet owner on an episode of the reality show "The Dog Whisperer" in 2007. Benson's most prominent directing credit is his work on the Internet series "The Guild," on which he worked again with his wife, Kim Evey, producer of "The Guild" and writer/star of "Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show."[13]
Awards[edit]
His first video, "Coming Home," was chosen by Amazon.com customers as one of the top five videos of the Amazon/Tribeca Film Festival's short films division.[14] His short "Phone Call to God" was chosen for second place in the Best Comedy division at the 2006 Evil City Film Fest.[15]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Ancestry.com. Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005. Original data: Texas. Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997. Texas: Texas Department of State Health Services. Microfiche.
- ^ http://www.gorgeoustiny.com/KimGorgeousTiny/Splash.html
- ^ a b Greg Benson: Biography at Internet Movie Database
- ^ http://www.myspace.com/mediocrefilms
- ^ Mediocre Films profile at YouTube
- ^ Monas, Steve (2007). Yourspace 2. ISBN 1419653210.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Alumni of W. T. White High School, Dallas, Texas at Classmates.com. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
- ^ Greg Benson: Other works at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ a b April MacIntyre."Wil Wheaton interview: A Gorgeous Tiny Chicken C Spot," Monsters and Critics, May 29, 2008.
- ^ a b Tommy Garrett. "Nothing mediocre about Greg," Canyon News (Laurel Canyon, CA), April 20, 2008.
- ^ a b c Kellie Hwang. "With Mediocre Films, couple embraces Internet's viral video," The Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ), March 28, 2009.
- ^ Nigel Kendall. "The Web watcher: Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine; Mediocre Films," The Times (London, England), June 16, 2008.
- ^ "Exclusive: interview with Kim Evey, producer of The Guild, Whedonage.com, November 15, 2008.
- ^ "Beginner filmmaker wins Amazon Theater/Tribeca Film Festival Short-Film Competition with his second film: Jack Paccione, Jr. took second place in inaugural competition last July with his first-ever film," Business Wire, November 3 2005: "Other finalist films included ... 'Coming Home,' written, directed and produced by Greg Benson: Inspired by Woody Allen, Spike Jonze and Monty Python, this comedy was based on a dream and shot in one evening with a budget of $10. No one expects to come home to this."
- ^ Evil City Film Fest 2006: Winners List. Retrieved 2008-01-21.
External Links[edit]