What is ChuckleHutch?

ChuckleHutch is a comedy blog, written by humorist and stand-up aficionado James Kass. Its primary focus is the live New York City comedy scene, including stand-up, sketch and improv, with occasional comedic detours into television, movies, the internet and beyond.

James Kass? Who the hell is that guy?

That would be me. (Winky emoticon goes here).

I’m a simple Jersey boy, currently living in Queens, who has always been fascinated by stand-up since first hearing old Bill Cosby cassettes at the impressionable age of eleven. Ever since then, I’ve been constantly feeding my appetite for funny with a steady barrage of comedy albums, stand-up videos and live performances.

I’ve performed stand-up a few times here in NYC. While it was fun to do, I didn’t have the burning need to perform that most successful comics require to make it in the business. Though my delusions of becoming a comic didn’t last, my obsession with comedy and stand-up never relented.

I’ve focused what limited creative talent I do happen to possess into humor writing, comedic essays and the occasional dirty limerick.

Why another comedy blog?
Don’t we already have enough of them?

Probably. No, scratch that. Definately.

Now don’t get me wrong: I read nearly every comedy blog out there, from your run-of-the-mill comedy fan to the battle-scarred comedians themselves, to every shade of comedy nerd in between. I have a lot of respect for those who have been writing about comedy on these here interwebs long before I decided to throw my opinions onto the cliched brick walls to see what sticks.

I’ve commented on other people’s blogs (under various pseudonyms) for a long time, and I figured it was time to start my own. As they say, freedom of speech only truly applies to the one who owns the microphone, not the one who happens to be speaking into it. I figured it’s time for me to own the mic.

What’s your policy on comments?

Go for it! I appreciate feedback, and would love if the nonsense I scribbled here could morph into an intelligent discussion among people who love comedy. If we all appreciate and respect each other as people with that kind of common bond, we’ll all get along. If not, well… just remember what I said above regarding who owns the mic.