Photos from our latest shoot!

Man, talk about your demanding work schedules! No sooner am I done with the IAQ than production sends over a batch of photos from our latest shoot.

I guess I could put off doing another update until tomorrow...but I need to be constantly writing to keep the invisible hobgoblins from stealing my thoughts, so this actually works out pretty well for me.

Here our host Dan Sullivan demonstrates his special superpower; the power to make anything he's holding look more delicious.

Might not sound like much at first, but if you've ever see him play a game of pickup where everyone on the other team is falling over each other trying to get a bite of the ball you'll realize just how potent a talent it really is.


Damn it Dan, we only had room in the budget for one slice! That's coming out of your weekly cufflink allowance!


And this lantern-jawed fellow is Justin Lanelutter, our head writer and the guy I answer directly to. As such, I'm going to forgo any clever quips and instead just shamelessly kiss his ass by praising his wit, intelligence, acumen, and taste.

Hey, don't look at me like that! Integrity is all well and good but it doesn't pay my bills!



And here we see Justin auditioning for our other upcoming project, a reality show entitled: "So You Think You Can...Do Whatever the Hell It Is You're Doing Right Here?"

IAQ.

Welcome, everyone, to our IAQ!

Q: Wait, so what is this thing?

A: Well, this is a website, a series of related words and images compiled and made available to the public via a global computer network.

Q: No smartass, what's THIS website?

A: Oh, this is the production blog for Variety Society, bringing you news and commentary about our new Bay Area late night comedy show. And right now you're reading our IAQ.

Q: Shouldn't it be "FAQ"?

A: The F in "FAQ" stands for "frequently," but so far no one has asked any questions at all, so we can't very well call them "Frequently Asked Questions" now can we? If anyone out there wants to get to asking questions then I'll be happy to change it later.

Q: So this is, what, like a show you guys are doing?

A: Hey, look at that, you're catching on fast!

Variety Society is a new hour-long late night show that will soon be showcasing the talents of comedians and musicians from all over the Bay Area. In fact, we're scheduled to shoot our pilot episode on November 13th, 4:30 PM, at the 9th Street Independent Film Center in San Francisco.

Q: What are you wearing?

A: Um, jeans, a tshirt, and Wonder Woman underoos. Why do you ask?

Q: So what's going to be on this show?

A: Adventure, excitement, and danger! Thrills, spills, chills, and more two-fisted action than one publication can legally contain!

Come marvel at the skill and grace of our specially trained team of synchronized swimming squids! And we're serving quiche!

Q: No, seriously, what's on the show?

A: Well personally I think the squid thing would be awesome but no one else is on board with it so far.

In non-squid related entertainment, you'll get comedy from our host Dan Sullivan, satirical news from our staff anchors Nicole Gonzalez and Marcus Sams, sketch comedy from the guys at PianoFight, plus special guests and musical acts.

And quiche! I'm really, really going to work on getting the quiche in there. Quiche is a winner.

Q: So I should watch?

A: Well it's your call, but you should know that we've consulted top physicians and they all agree that anyone who doesn't attend a taping of Variety Society or watch the show later will DIE eventually!

Q: Are you alone in the house?

A: Man I hope so. We keep getting trouble from this homeless guy who comes in here thinking we're Glide and asking us how long the line for soup is. I guess it would help if we stopped actually giving him soup, but he's very persistent.

Q: What is your favorite color?

A: Oh no, we're not falling for that. See, you want us to start in on that bit from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail", but that's not what we're about here, we're not just going to sit around recycling decades-old jokes for cheap laughs.

Except maybe for our New Year's episode when we'll all probably be so hammered that we may very well fall over while already laying down. Once it gets to that point, anything that ends up on the page and looks like it was written in English is probably going in.

***

Okay, that's it! You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here, so get on out and don't forget to close the door behind you. Keep watching this spot for news, updates, and witticisms. And quiche!

Seriously, I've got quiche on the brain. Anyone know where I can get a good one at this time of night? Something with cheese would be awesome.

We're sketchy.

We won't rest until we score free World Series tickets through blackmail and intimidation

We won't rest until we harness the power of the sun to fuel our earthquake machine

We won't rest until we steal every left sock in America

We won't rest until we reshape the face of the Bay Area comedy scene!

(Note to self: See about getting the delete button on this keyboard fixed...).

With that in mind, we're implementing our comprehensive 900-step master plan starting today. Yes, 900 steps. Why so many? Because it's comprehensive of course!

Step one was this blog, so we're moving right along. What's step two? If I told you that, you would be shocked to the very core of your being and might potentially never recover.

So instead on to step three: SKETCH FEST!

That's right, we're applying to Sketch Fest, San Francisco's annual comedy festival, which will celebrate its tenth anniversary in January. Will we be a part of the action? Well, only if the people evaluating these applications know a good joke from a sharp stick in the eye.

Although if stick in the eye is what they're looking for, we can provide that too. We're flexible about that kind of thing. It's all about breaking down boundaries around here.

As you can see that's our own Dan Sullivan beside San Francisco's famous Sutro Tower (also known as "That big antenna on the hill that nobody can remember the name of,").

You may be surprised to learn that Dan's proportions compared to the tower are not a perspective trick; he is in fact 400 feet tall. That rumbling you felt this morning wasn't an earthquake, it was just Dan taking his morning constitutional up Twin Peaks.

This towering mountain of a man walks astride the world as though we were all just ants in his wake, but fear not! He is a gentle giant, who seeks only to bring mirth and comedy into the lives of we little people.

And now we continue our search for a studio that he can comfortably fit into...

Please do not fact check this, just take our word for it.

What is Variety Society you may ask?

Well, the story of our humble enterprise is a fascinating tale steeped in mystery, loaded with intrigue, and featuring possibly at least one alligator attack. Seriously, keep reading, there may be an alligator attack at some point. You won't know unless you check!

It all began in 1849, the year of the Gold Rush, when an enterprising Scotsman by the name of Angus McElroy Huckleberry (of the famous North Blairlogie Huckleberrys) came to San Francisco to make his fortune.

Unfortunately old Angus' plan to develop a cheap and easy way to manufacture women's stockings using sheep's milk went awry, and he died a penniless vagabond. Truly this one flew too close to the sun.

In his last will and testament, he expressed but one wish: that someone would create a new late night show featuring the best of comedy, music, and improv from all over the Bay Area. This being the 19th century and neither television nor the internet yet having been invented, it was actually quite a remarkable request.

Confused by his stories of magical talking picture boxes and angry at inheriting his debts to the sheep farmers, Angus' family locked his will away in a safety deposit box and resolved never to speak of "the old coot" again. When the 1906 earthquake buried the box under several tons of rubble, it seemed that his dream would go forever unfulfilled.

Fast forward to the year 2010, when our ragtag group of rebel pirate freedom fighters (or at least, that's what it says on our team jerseys) discovered Angus' lost will!

Although to be honest, at the time we were actually looking for another lost safe deposit box that supposedly contains the forever unread script for Jay Leno's last verifiably good monologue dating back to 1992, but an unscrupulous rival beat us to it (curse you Belloq!).

Once we'd consoled ourselves about the loss (and recovered from the trauma of inhaling the odor of 150-year-old sheep's milk-stained parchment), we resolved to honor old Angus Huckleberry's dying request, and Variety Society was born.

Once it was just a few men and a dream. Now it's a slightly larger group of men and a dream. Plus several women, and I think we also have a pool table coming.

But soon it will be so much more than that! And as we prepare for our big premier in November, we like to think that Angus' benevolent spirit will be watching over us. And we mean that in the least creepy way possible, so please don't be afraid to come out.

And also don't be mad that there was no alligator. I tried as best I could to work it in.

The beginning of the beginning of the start.

Have you ever wondered what it's like behind the scenes of the Bay Area's newest Late Night show?

No? Really? Not even once? Um, wow...

Well, could you at least feign an interest? Because we started this blog to tell you all about it. Seems like you could meet us halfway here.

Remember, Variety Society will go live on the interwebs November 13th! Your doctor recommends that you watch.

Alright, so he's really our doctor, not yours. At least, we think he was a doctor. He had a white lab coat and a very impressive beard, but now that you mention it it was kind of odd that he examined us in that dark alley and that we had never actually made an appointment.

But he was very enthusiastic about prescribing the show, and that's really what matters.

Photos from our first shoot ever

Crusher and Dan Sullivan working on the intro.

We finally decided on a name. Welcome to the Variety Society.

From Variety Society