Dane Jeffrey Cook (born March 18, 1972) is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He released three comedy albums: Harmful If Swallowed, Retaliation, and Rough Around the Edges: Live from Madison Square Garden. Retaliation became the highest charting comedy album in 28 years and went double platinum.[1] Cook performed an HBO special in the Fall of 2006, Vicious Circle, a straight to DVD special entitled Rough Around The Edges (which is included in the album of the same name), and has made numerous television appearances. As an actor, Cook has appeared in fifteen films since 1997, including Mystery Men and Waiting.... He also starred in major movie roles since 2006 including Employee of the Month and Good Luck Chuck. He also had supporting roles in Mr. Brooks (a departure from his standard comedic roles) and Dan in Real Life. Most recently, Cook starred in My Best Friend's Girl.
Early life
Dane Cook was born in Boston, Massachusetts,[2] the son of George Cook (who worked at a golf course but at different times managed and ran a lumber yard, a window business and a rock club in Cambridge) and Donna Cook, a homemaker. According to an interview with collegehumor.com, he had agoraphobia as a kid.[citation needed] He grew up in Arlington, Massachusetts and attended Arlington High School.[citation needed]
Career
Stand-Up
In 1994, Cook moved to New York City and began performing in places. He also spent that time working the Comedy Club and College circuits. Two years later, he moved to Los Angeles, where he still lives today.[3]
Cook's big comedy break came in 1998 when he appeared on Comedy Central's Premium Blend. This started a relationship between Cook and Comedy Central that has lasted many years. In 2000, Cook did a half-hour special on Comedy Central Presents. Since then his special has won the Comedy Central Stand-up showdown twice in a row.[4]
In 2003, Cook released his first CD/DVD entitled Harmful If Swallowed. The success of the album landed him a recording contract with Comedy Central Records. The album is certified platinum. He released his second CD/DVD in 2005, entitled Retaliation. This album went double platinum and made Cook the first comic in 29 years to have an album at #4 on the Billboard charts.[4] This earned him a place alongside best-selling comedy vets Bill Cosby, George Carlin, and Steve Martin.[4] The success of the album also landed him a comedy performance at the MTV Video Music Awards, and then afterwards he joined Snoop Dogg (who introduced him) in presenting the award for Best New Artist.
On April 15, 2005 Cook performed his first HBO Special entitled Vicious Circle filmed "in the round" at the TD Banknorth Garden. The same year Cook shot two pilot episodes for his own sitcom, Cooked. The sitcom never got picked up and the two pilot episodes were later released on DVD as the Lost Pilot Episodes. That same year he embarked on a 30-day 20-show college tour called Tourgasm with his long time friends Robert Kelly, Gary Gulman, and Jay Davis. The tour was filmed and was later made into a 9-episode documentary on HBO.
On December 3, 2005, Cook hosted Saturday Night Live. He performed the longest monologue in the show's history and it was one of the highest-rated SNLs of the season".[5] He would then go on to host the premiere of season 32 of SNL a year later.
In 2006 Cook headlined for Dave Attell's Insomniac Tour and hosted the 2006 Teen Choice Awards alongside Jessica Simpson. The following year he won the award for Best Comedian. On November 12, Cook became the second comic to sell out Madison Square Garden. He did two sold out shows in one night. The show was filmed and would later be put onto a DVD to be sold on Cook's third comedy album. Cook won the Big Entertainer Award at the VH1 Big in '06 Awards, and Rolling Stone magazine's Hot Comic of the Year.
On November 13, 2007, Cook released his third CD/DVD entitled Rough Around The Edges, which was filmed live at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The Album debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top Comedy Albums chart.[citation needed] During that time, he embarked on a tour of the same name. This was Cook's first arena tour.
On April 10, 2007, Cook broke The Laugh Factory endurance record (previously held by Richard Pryor)[6] by performing on stage for 3 hours and 50 minutes. Dave Chappelle would break the record five days later.[7] On January 1, 2008, Cook again broke the club's endurance record, by performing on stage for 7 hours.[8]
From May 23, 2008 to May 25, 2008 Cook reunited with Robert Kelly and Al Del Bene for 3 shows at The Coliseum in Caesars Palace. Then, from May 29, 2008 to June 4, 2008, the Trio went to Iraq to perform for the troops. During all of these shows Bene was the Emcee, Kelly was the Feature, and Cook was the Headliner.
Cook is currently working on his fifth album ISolated INcident, which will also be a special that will air on Comedy Central on May 17, with the release of the record following two days later on May 19. He performed this in only two cities, Los Angeles and Tampa. This album will be the last as part of Cook's four record deal with Comedy Central Records. The new album was performed at The Laugh Factory. He came unannounced to the Factory and performed his jokes in front of a crowd smaller than 30 people. His material was reportedly "edgy" and more graphic than usual.[9]
Dane Cook's style is principally energetic physical comedy. He combines observational humor and wordplay with a casual attitude. Cook says his onstage persona is a combination of the personalities of his mom, Donna, and his dad, George. “My mother is like a Looney Tunes cartoon. She’s wiggly,†Dane says. “She has the ability to tongue in cheek a lot, and do it in a way where she’s being physical. My dad is the polar opposite. He always had a little ‘what the fuck’ in his voice. Even if he knew nothing about what he was talking about, he could sell it. So I looked at these two extremely funny people and created a style of comedy from absorbing their actions.â€[10]
His routines focus on his childhood, and his plans for the future, such as his "dream home". He will sometimes deliver jokes in the form of over-the-top rants with increasingly erratic body motions, pacing, waving, and jumping.
He explains:
Numerous commentators have characterized Dane Cook's humor as unfunny,[11] banal,[12] and lacking jokes.[13] Comedian Ron White has criticized Dane Cook for his lack of real material and for his inflated ego; saying "(He) does not make me laugh, at all, in any way, shape or form."[14] When asked about his opinion of Cook on The Howard Stern Show, comedian Nick DiPaolo said “he doesn't make me laugh, but that doesn't mean he's not funny.â€[15] On Boston radio station WBCN, Dane Cook was named by radio show Toucher and Rich to a tournament of the top 16 "Worst Comedians" and, based on listener voting, was voted the "Worst Comedian" of all.[16] In the Michigan Daily, Elie Zwiebel wrote that "he's managed to become one of the most overrated comics ever" and that his act is "boringly stagnant".[17]
In 2005, on the message boards of comedy web site 'A Special Thing', Louis C.K. posted a response to his fans who accused Cook of stealing jokes from him, writing, "Okay, this kid is stealing from me. And making lots of money. Three bits on one CD." Later, C.K. wrote "Just so you know, guys, I'm not going to do anything about this.... I'm not going to court over a bit called 'Itchy Asshole.'"[18] In an interview on the Free Beer & Hot Wings Morning Show in February 2007, C.K. stated that while the jokes are similar, the issue was "overblown" and may stem from a backlash against Cook's popularity. However, C.K. accused Cook of being "bullyish" and litigious towards comedians for having similar material to his despite Cook claiming elsewhere that comedians often have similar material and it is not a big issue to him. C.K. also stated "Too bad the guy [Cook] can't write enough to fill up his material..." After pressure by the hosts (Opie and Anthony Xm 202) for a statement, C.K. ended the interview by finally adding (as a joke): "Fuck Dane Cook, he's a cunt."[19]
Comedian Joe Rogan has spoken on many occasions about Cook performing a bit on an episode of Premium Blend that Rogan had developed on I'm Gonna Be Dead Someday (sketch titled "Tigers Fucking"), and claims to have performed the routine earlier in clubs with Cook present.[20]
Jim Breuer talked about Dane Cook's reputation within the comedy industry, saying: "Everyone kills this guy... Not one comedian comes on [my Sirius radio show] and says 'I'm so happy for him,' which is weird. ... They can't stand this poor guy." He went on to explain that a lot of comedians "are upset because they really feel this guy has snatched a lot of material". Breuer then went on to say that he personally thinks Cook is a "tremendous performer."[21]
Internet broadcasters Keith and the Girl have repeatedly made accusations of plagiarism, calling him a "Joke Thief" and will often times ask comic guests their feelings on Cook and his alleged plagiarism. [22]
On July 24, 2006, Cook asked for a guest spot at the Yuk-Yuks comedy club in Vancouver. Initially he was set to go up at the end of the night, but upon arriving at the club he requested to go up before the headliner, Peter Kelamis. Cook went over his allotted time, and after several minutes of the "wrap it up" light flashing, the club cut his microphone and attempted to "play him off" with music. Cook acted as though it was a mistake and continued his set for another five minutes until the process was repeated. Cook then dropped the mic and walked off-stage, furious, and was heard screaming obscenities at club employees backstage. Kelamis then refused to take the stage, and later referred to Cook's actions as "the most arrogant thing that I've ever seen in my life".[23]
Mark Breslin, the founder of the comedy club chain, quickly apologized and blamed the club's manager. Breslin stated in support of Cook, "I'm on Dane's side totally, 100 percent." Breslin also explained that Kelamis was the last show that evening and there was no reason he could not have gone on late, stating "the tradition is that stardom trumps everything".[23] When asked by People magazine "What's something you did recently you wish you could take back?" Cook responded, "I went onstage and was the rudest, most obnoxious version of myself. Women came up to me after and said, 'Don't ever say those things again. That was horrible!'".[24]
Film
Cook appeared in Waiting..., and next starred in his first leading role as the slacker boxboy Zach Bradley in Employee of the Month, with Jessica Simpson and Dax Shepard.
Cook co-starred in his first dramatic role as the devious photographer Mr. Smith in Mr. Brooks along with Kevin Costner, Demi Moore, and William Hurt. The film debuted at #4 at the box office, just behind Shrek The Third. The movie grossed $10,017,067 in the opening weekend.[25]
Cook starred as the air purifier call-center supervisor Tank Turner in the movie My Best Friend's Girl with Kate Hudson, Jason Biggs, and Alec Baldwin. The film grossed $8.2 million and debuted at #3 at the box office, just behind Burn After Reading, and got a 50-50 rating on fandango.com.[26]
Cook also played a small role in the movie Mystery Men as the Waffler.
Dane Cook also played a role along side Dennis Rodman in 1999's Simon Sez [27]
On April 1, 2009, Cook posted on his Twitter page that he has landed a prominent role in The Twilight Saga: New Moon. After a mixed reaction from fans, Cook admits it was an April Fool's joke.
Personal life
Brother's embezzlement
In December 2008, Cook's older half brother Darryl McCauley was arrested for allegedly stealing over $1 million from Cook over an 18-month period. Until November 2008, McCauley had been Cook's business manager, earning $12,500 a month. McCauley was ordered held on $3 million bail.[28][29] McCauley was indicted by a grand jury in March 2009; his bail was reduced to $300,000.[30]
Tours
- Tourgasm 2006 (w/ Robert Kelly, Gary Gulman, Jay Davis)
- The Insomniac Tour 2006 (w/ Dave Attell, Greg Giraldo, Sean Rouse)
- Rough Around The Edges Tour 2007
- Globo Thermo Tour 2009
Discography
Albums
- 2003: Harmful If Swallowed (CD/DVD) Comedy Central. #67 US; Platinum
- 2005: Retaliation (2CD/DVD) Comedy Central. #4 US; Double Platinum
- 2006: Dane Cook: Vicious Circle (CD/2DVD) Comedy Central.
- 2007: Rough Around the Edges: Live from Madison Square Garden (CD/DVD) Comedy Central. #11 US; Gold
- 2009: Isolated Incident (CD/DVD) Comedy Central.
Other releases
- 2006: Dane Cook's Tourgasm (3DVD)
- 2007: The Lost Pilots (DVD) Sony Pictures Television.
Singles
Cook co-wrote and performed the song "Ruthie Pigface Draper" for the Dan In Real Life movie with Norbert Leo Butz.[31]
Filmography
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From the Producer
Hi All, First, let me say I am really pleased that people have found the
Craig Stuart Garfinkle from Burbank - 15 February 2009project so entertaining. "Rough Around the Edges" was a true passion
project and a joy to be a part of and I think that emotion comes
through in the work.As the producer of the project, I felt I needed to respond to some of
the comments I have read about the audience reactions. Some of the comments imply that we added the screaming audience to the
track to somehow enhance the laughs. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Dane didn't need any of that! The reactions you hear on the
"Rough Around the Edges" CD and DVD are the actual audience. They were
absolutely going nuts and were uncontrollable during the performance.
Short of editing around the audience and adding fake laughs and
ambiance (which would have indeed been wrong), what you hear was what
we had to go with.It's like this: If you were ever to ask how the Beatles "sounded" at
Shae Stadium, you might get this reaction from someone who was there.
"At times I couldn't tell through all the screaming." Sincerely, Craig Stuart Garfinkle Producer, Rough Around the Edges.
Spoiled By The Hysterical Audience
My only previous exposure to Dane Cook was a clip of his stand-up
gary-hodgson3 from United Kingdom - 21 February 2008routine on YouTube - which I enjoyed. 'Rough Around The Edges' - where
Dane performs live at Madison Square Garden, features some really funny
material - his description of a guy trying to make do without a condom
was probably the high point for me! The only downer (and what a downer
it is) was the hysterical audience soundtrack which you have to put up
with throughout. At one point it sounded like someone was having a
panic attack, such was the volume of hysterical screaming. My message
to whoever edited this movie - HE IS A FUNNY GUY - YOU DON'T HAVE TO
PROVE IT BY INFLICTING ENDLESS MANIC SCREAMING AND WHOOPING ON ME!
Leave your Impressions!