Drunk History

The Comedy Central hit, Drunk History, premiered nearly five years ago, but I just discovered it last year. Aside from being an MSNBC junkie, I do not watch much TV. But my best friend does, albeit very discriminately. While I forgive him for his attention to Trailer Park Boys, I appreciate that he DVRs episodes of Drunk History. When I visit him every other weekend, there's a festival of episodes to binge-watch on a Saturday night. And yes, there is alcohol involved.

Drunk History has just been renewed for its 6th season, which begins on June 19. It runs on Tuesday nights, but you can find back episodes on youtube or other venues if you are new to the series. And that's the cool thing . . . unlike most binge-watch-worthy shows, you can view episodes of Drunk History completely out of order. Each one is a snapshot of history and does not require chronological viewing. So you can watch Nellie Bly one night and Neil Armstrong the next and Wyatt Earp the next and on and on and on and on. Like history, but not chronological.

So here's what happens: Derek Waters, co-creator with Jeremy Konner, gets drunk with a comedian, who then tells a story of a character or event in history. Interspersed with the monologue are accompanying scenes acted out by professionals. Perhaps one of the most hysterical components of the schtick is that the actors lip-sync the words of the drunk comedian, which sometimes include burps and hiccups and all sorts of profanities. (It's adult comedy, duh.)

While filming is done in one day, the directors and editors have a lot of work to do. For every one minute of footage aired, two hours of footage was shot. There is always the danger of the comedian getting too drunk, which can sometimes lead to extra laughs, but can also sabotage the entire production. Waters insists on imbibing with his guests as a way to make them feel that they are in it together.

While I am way past having to cram for a U.S. History exam, I have learned a thing or two from watching Drunk History. Many times, an episode makes me want to research the historical event to learn more. Who would have ever thought that alcohol and education could be a match? (Derek Waters, that's who!)

I cannot help but think about the future Drunk History episodes, say, ten or twenty years down the road. You know, when historical events include The Wall, Stormy Daniels, That Rusher Thing, The Incarceration of Donald Trump, etc. I would like to imagine the obvious comedians lending their talents: Seth Meyers, Steven Colbert, Samantha Bee, John Oliver, Bill Maher, and the current SNL cast (especially Kate McKinnon). But I also like to imagine a drunken Sean Spicer, Omarosa, and Anthony Scaramucci telling a tale. Hey, even Sarah Huckabee Sanders! (Does she even have a sense of humor?) I have to admit, I am nostalgic for the talents of Carol Burnett and Tim Conway and Harvey Korman . . . they were drunk-ass funny without being drunk! Imagine what they could do with the current political climate!

If nothing else, the aforementioned current political climate has encouraged many of us to imbibe beyond our norm. Might as well try to learn something while we're at it. S'right?