DVD Review: Artie Lang's Jack and Coke

For 9 years comic Artie Lang has held an esteemed seat on the Howard Stern Show endearing himself to fans with his down to earth blue collar demeanor and despite his recent brutal suicide attempt the New Jersey native has recently released his second standup special Jack and Coke on DVD.

The show which was filmed at New York’s own Gotham Comedy Club runs about an hour and a half and shows what a confident performer Lange is despite his insecurities. The best material in Artie’s set is his most personal and many of the funniest jokes will be familiar to fans of the radio show. Unfortunately, Artie’s best bits are few and far between and the comic often veers from the heartfelt and lands in the more predictable territory of gay and hooker jokes for much of the show, pulling from a seemingly never-ending bag of hack.

The best comedy often stems from personal trauma and rage and nothing says that more than 9 stab wounds to the abdomen so it’s a shame Lange doesn’t get real in his set. He ends up appearing like any number of stage vets who go through the motions and he never feels in the moment. When he does occasionally break from the mold it’s thoroughly interesting and funny and a few examples can be found on the DVD extras. Lange has proven he has great ability in his time on the Stern show so hopefully he sticks around long enough to reach his potential onstage.

For: Short & Sweet NYC