White Hot

While probing the mysteries of the Comcast channel lineup last year, we discovered the Whitest Kids U' Know, a young sketch comedy troupe that reminded us that televised sketch comedy didn't have to suck. The troupe, which came out of the New York's School of Visual Arts and has been touring N.Y. clubs since 2003, produced a stellar first season of nerd-funny clips, reminiscent of those other famous and similarly white sketch "Kids" (more on them below). Poignant moments from the season included Timmy pulling a pipe of excrement out of his pants during an office meeting, Abe Lincoln talking smack from the box of the Ford Theater, and future star Trevor Moore redoing Super Size Me with whisky. The troupe is young, funny, inventive, low budget in the best of ways, and they don't gear their comedy to the dumbest guy in the room and pause until he gets the joke. Although the first season appeared on something unholy called Fuse TV, Season Two begins airing this February on the Independent Film Channel, which looks the other way when profanity starts flying.

Tonight, they spice up our yearly comedy blowout, SF Sketchfest, which has dozens of performers and troupes spread out over 17 nights and 10 venues. Every year the fest closes with something special, and this year it's both a conversation and a performance from The Kids in the Hall, the Canadian troupe who first made people realize that televised sketch comedy didn't have to suck during a time when that was unfathomable -- the mid '80s. Between these two like-minded troupes is a blizzard of acts, from Rob Corddry and the Naked Babies, the Upright Citizens Brigade, and Kasper Hauser to Bucky Sinister and about 80 others, including Will Franken, who, since we heard from him last, went through a divorce and posted a picture of himself in his underwear on his site. Still funny! The Whitest Kids U' Know starts at 8 and 10:30 p.m. at the Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson (at Front), S.F. Admission is $20.
Jan. 10-27, 2008