AN EVENING WITH KEVIN SMITH – THE FILLMORE AUDITORIUM – SATURDAY NOVEMBER 21

SHOW CANCELLED

KEVIN SMITH, originally scheduled to perform at the Fillmore Auditorium on Saturday November 21, has been cancelled due to scheduling conflicts with his movie production schedule.

Refunds are available at point of purchase.

Kevin has stated that he plans to return to the area this Spring, and also to replace the Miami gig as well. Stay tuned. More dates on the way.

Via @smilinstanlee “Haven’t seen Kev for awhile. expecting call for Rats sequel” Alright: ur in the hockey flick, Stan. Damn needy actors…

So, it looks like Stan Lee will join Wil Wheaton (recently revealed to be quite evil on a “Big Bang Theory” episode) for “Hit Somebody”. Let the casting rumors continue!

If one thing in Kevin Smith’s life rivals his passion for movies, it’s his love of hockey (and particularly the New Jersey Devils). The writer and director of Clerks and Chasing Amy visited enemy ice in the form of the Detroit Red Wings’ Joe Louis Arena to chat with Mitch about Smith’s next film, Hit Somebody, which is based on a song of the same name that Mitch wrote for Warren Zevon.

It chronicles the ambitions of a bruising Canadian farmboy who dreams of scoring goals but is valued only for his ability to land punches. With the Wings practicing in the background, the two talk about the origins of the song, the setting for the film, what it meant to play “old-time hockey,” and the sport’s curious connection to a lady named Byng.

You can see the pure joy on Kevin’s face as he sits in Detroit’s historic Joe Louis Arena with a live practice going on right behind him, eventually even setting foot on the ice. To be a fly on the wall for what looks to be THE first live meeting between these two guys is a real treat for us, too. Two artists in two very different venues talking about their common love of the game…Just makes you see how this movie’s gonna be magic, doesn’t it? Those of you unfamiliar with Albom or his work can also get a good feel for the guy in this 15 minute chunk of clippage. You’ll also find some snippets of the song as well as a complete live performance from Warren Zevon attached to the official page. Albom also shares a few words about his inspiration to write the song.

Mitch Albom Live: Webisode #5 is our top pick of the week here at News Askew. Don’t miss it. This project is the one we think Kevin’s been waiting his whole life to make. On the project, Kevin says: ” I dream about it 24/7.” This one’s really gonna be something speical.

This is planned as a season-long promotion. Through the year, the Devils will be offering both home and away game opportunities. As schedules allow, Kevin himself may join you in the suite for a while or the entire game. How cool is that? Plus, these suites are the BEST way to catch an NHL game. You wanna get there. Final note – For home games, like this weekend’s, you need to be a resident of PA, NJ, NY or CT to win. For away games, winners will be picked from the regions where those games take place. Make sense? Ready to win? Here’s how.

First of all, you gotta be a follower of the Devils on twitter to win. So, log into your Twitter and follow @NJDevils.

Next, from your twitter account, RT this message, exactly like this but without the quotes: “RT I wanna worship the Devs with Kev. @NHLDevils & @ThatKevinSmith“.

That’s it — You’re entered! Make sure you continue to follow the Devils on twitter. They will notify you if you’re one of the lucky random chosen. You have until 11:59 tomorrow (Wednesday) to get your tweet in. They’re picking winners on Thursday. And since Kevin’s in town for an appearance in Philly tomorrow, we’re pretty sure he’s going to be showing up at the Devils game on Friday.

You’ll find all the official rules HERE. Get tweeting, and good luck — We’d love to see some News Askew fans packing the box. GOOD LUCK!

The answer was apparent Friday night at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, where the event was like a fantasy camp – except instead of paying $15,000 to play basketball with Michael Jordan or hockey with Wayne Gretzky, fans paid closer to $50 to hang out with Smith for a few hours. Part behind-the-scenes Hollywood tell-all, part stand-up comedy and part Catholic confession, Smith combined storytelling, the Socratic method and moments that bordered on motivational speaking to entertain a grateful crowd.

Smith has had about 50 years worth of career in the past 15 years, starting with “Clerks,” a 1994 art-house hit that Smith made for $27,000. He writes comics, acts sporadically and practically invented the modern bromantic comedy, where the male-female romance takes a back seat to the platonic man love between heterosexual leads. As critics started to say he was irrelevant – director Judd Apatow arguably played Oprah to Smith’s Phil Donahue – Smith connected with his fans more than ever on the Internet. Among his recent experiments: an online marathon where he answered questions on Twitter for 24 hours straight.

The hard-core fans greeted Smith like a hero as he walked on stage in ankle-length jeans shorts (and later, a bathrobe), launching into a 10-minute story about a test screening of the critically panned “Jersey Girl” in San Francisco. After that, he answered questions from the audience for three hours straight, displaying the rare combination of politeness and raunchiness, with a lack of hubris that made him likable even when describing his own excrement in detail. It was a night of many tangents and a few slow parts, but it was always comfortable.

Check out the entire article over at their official site. Then, check the upcoming appearances list over there on your right and get yourself booked for Kevin’s next show in your town.

Kevin Smith

Past Form: Smith’s had one or two minor hosting gigs in the past, but where he’s really worked is in his live Q&As, where he takes questions from the audience. Rambling and hilarious, he has to be experienced to be believed.

Show Highlights: Like Parker and Stone, he’d need a swear button, but he could bring on some more famous friends – like Ben Affleck – to help out with the wattage of the night.

It would be the first ever Oscars where the host opens the event with a monologue entirely dedicated to A) anal fissures and B) anal sex with his wife. Wait… Didn’t David Letterman do that already?

Sample Speech: “That’s why you’ll never see my name next to Scorsese, Woody Allen, and Spike Lee. Scorsese speaks a lot at NYU, and I’m damn skippy no one’s ever been like, ‘I’ll suck your d**k for five bucks!’”

Regarding the news, Kevin tweets: “It’s like hearing the house you grew up in has burned to the ground. I’ve now watched Miramax die twice. *sigh*”

10. Stinky BJ – MALLRATS

The actual awkwardness of this blow-job is left to our imagination as Brodie (Jason Lee) tells TS (Jeremy London) his girlfriend dumped him because he farted while she was going down on him. The epitome of dick & fart jokes

• Already got date w/RedBank’s vampire king, Count Basie: MY 4OTH BDAY Q&A 8/2.
• Because you demanded it! The comic book flicks I’ve liked the best (in no particular order)
• Via @lexica_areola “just watched MANCHILD, hilarious!” Ah, MANCHILD. Here’s a little taste of what might’ve been: http://tinyurl.com/yj99vp6
• Via @s_spatz “Scale of 1-10… How was last nights show?” I missed a pretty big laugh line and the out wasn’t a gut-buster, but I’d say 8/9.
• A Q&A’s only as good as the questions. To the Bay-ers who filled @thewarfield last night: thanks for some good queries. Same time next year?
• Via @DrFACIALPhD “can’t find tickets to ur show in Edmonton.” Small room that sold out quick. I’ll be back for 3/7 Devs game, so maybe then?
• Wait a sec – @NHLDevils have less than 5k in followers?! Puck that: I wanna double it. Follow Devs and I’ll pick 12 or more per games I’m attending. First add @NHLDevils, Jersey’s Team. Then, Tweet “I wanna worship the Devs with Kev. @NHLDevils & @ThatKevinSmith”

Yep, that’s right — A simple follow on Twitter and you might join Kevin at an upcoming Devils game. How cool is that? Despite being a Flyers fans, we’ll take one for the team and follow the Devils too, as a sign of solidarity, in response to this tweet: “Flyers-lovers! You can do it too: add/follow @NHLDevils and you can watch a game in my box (which sounds more erotic than it really is).”

Wanna hear what Kevin thinks of Twitter? Catch him on “Q the Podcast” (from CBC Radio) talking about his and other celeb tweets, as well.

13. CLERKS (1994)


Kevin Smith’s debut, about a day in the life of two service-industry suburbanites, was made for $27,575. It’s hard to tell where all that money went, but the cruddy lensing and muddy sound actually enhance the experience. This spitball of nonstop scatology and pop-cult obsessiveness — what are the ethical implications of killing independent contractors aboard the Death Star? — feels like a bootleg copy of an adolescent mind. SIGNATURE LINE ”I’m not even supposed to be here today.”

Earlier today, I heard you talking about how you were inspired by the movie Clerks. I thought that was somewhat surprising.

MW: I was inspired because there’s always been this story that the machinery of filmmaking was going to make its way down to the population. And I was inspired by the fact that this guy made a movie in his basement, and it was a complete movie, and it was entertaining, and he pulled it off. My wife and I went to Paris on the world’s cheapest vacation — $319 airfare, we stayed in someone else’s apartment — and all I remember is we went to the Pompidou Centre and I was like, “Clerks is playing here. That’s incredible!”

I found that very inspiring that, you know what? We all have these aspirations, and … just to see that that guy got off his a– and made that movie, I was blown away.

Kevin Smith is actually a massive Mad Men fan.

MW: Well, that’s cool!

The other day he sent me a question to ask you …


MW: Wow. Don will never try to fellate himself. (Everyone laughs)

Bummer. I never even heard about this. I love Kevin Smith. Might be time for me to find a new movie agent. One who doesn’t suck ass. That would have been amazing to be in Jay and Silent Bob… Huh…… Also, if you can let Kevin Smith know I would love him to stop up here to the web show. That would be rad. Also ask him if he knows any movie agents who are not money grubbing douche bags.

So, there ya go. Perhaps Kevin will find a use for Green in a future project. We think it’d be a good pairing, the guy’s got a fun, odd sense of humor that might be a good match for one of Kev’s scripts. Maybe he’ll even work him in “Hit Somebody”, with those whole Canadian thing going on. Never know.

How much I weigh is none of your business. I’ll talk about being fat, but that number, you don’t need it.

Hollywood is 30 square miles surrounded by reality. It’s an industry based on froth, cheap dreams and fantasies that we can sell you for 15 bucks. That being said, if you can keep your nose clean and navigate those waters, it’s the best job in the world. Unfortunately there are a bunch of dicks in my line of work that make it so tawdry.

Money doesn’t make you happy, but it does buy ease. Can I just pay somebody to mow the lawn because I don’t want to do it any more?

I have a tattoo of the Mad Hatter. I got that after we shot Clerks. I’d broken up with a girl and was feeling blue so I was drinking a lot of boxed Zinfandel. My friend was like: “That’s awesome, man – why did you get it?” I said: “Because I’m always late, right?” He goes: “That’s the White Rabbit.” So I have the Mad Hatter on my arm and it has no significance whatsoever, except to remind me not to drink wine out of a box.

The only movie I’ve ever walked out of is The Flintstones. That’s saying a lot, because I’ve sat through some utter shit.

The only threesomes I’ve been in have never been instigated by me. One person is work enough. Two people, that’s ridiculous. Me being fat and lazy, I’m more of a watcher at that point.

Being funny gets you a lot of places, dude.

I own Ben Affleck’s old house. I am not Ben Affleck-rich but I am a sultan compared to who I ever expected to be. My father made less than $30,000 a year as a postal clerk. It was soul killing, but he had to support his family.

The other day when I was getting my hair cut the girl said: “You know, there are people doing hair transplants now that are really good?” Look at the rest of me! That’s like putting a Band-Aid on cancer.

Bruce Willis is probably the most intimidating actor I’ve worked with. I find him – and I don’t mean this in an insulting way – undirectable. He has all sorts of range, but what he’s predominantly known for is playing the guy who holds his gun down by his side and saves people. How do you tell Bruce Willis to be Bruce Willis?

Playboy asked me to shoot an erotic image. I said I’d like to photograph my wife. They were like: “Oh… ” You could hear it in their voices: “We put really hot chicks in Playboy and we’ve seen you. No way you’ve got a hot wife.” So I sent them a picture and it was fine.

If I go to the mall, maybe five people throughout the day will recognize me. That’s totally manageable. Without those cats I haven’t got a house to live in.

My taste buds don’t run to anything remotely good for me. The most I ever took off on the Atkins diet was maybe 50lb, but you feel like you’re going to have a heart attack because you’re eating so much meat and cheese.

I gave up cigarettes about a year ago. I just started smoking so much marijuana that I had no time for cigarettes. That’s way better.

The last thing I wanted that I couldn’t have? A day off. It’s a lot of work being a fat clown.

Shooting the Sh*t with Kevin Smith is published by Titan Books, £9.99

Live: Kevin Smith at the Orpheum Theatre

The onetime indie-film maverick conducts a rambling, profane and ultimately entertaining Q & A session with fans.

Dwarfed by the cavernous stage of downtown’s Orpheum Theatre, indie film icon Kevin Smith held court Saturday night on a black leather couch that looked as if it came straight from 1994. Bathrobe clad, he took questions from faithful fans with an outing that, were it anyone but the affably crude Smith, might be billed as a one-man show.

Here it was just “An Evening With Kevin Smith,” the latest in a touring series of lengthy Q&A’s that the auteur periodically does to sold-out crowds in venues such as New York’s Carnegie Hall or Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto. Employing the same stoned, shaggy-dog storytelling of his films (and numerous expletives), Smith worked the volley of queries like a seasoned tennis pro. Or, as the hockey-loving Smith might prefer, like “The Great One” Wayne Gretzky, anticipating the puck.

In responses that lasted from four words to 45 minutes, Smith roamed far and wide, touching on such topics as the intimidating joys of working with Bruce Willis on his upcoming feature “A Couple of Dicks” and ordering $800 of groceries from Yummy.com while high. Typically sex-centric, self-deprecatingly honest and often hilarious, Smith’s extemporaneous ruminations had the flavor of therapy, albeit therapy for an adept showman.

The 39-year-old Smith admitted as much backstage after the show, “It’s probably more fun for me than any of them because I just get to sit up there for three hours and talk about my life.” Smith said he doesn’t prepare for these shows, he just goes up and talks — though the Internet dialogue he maintains with his fans gives him a strong foundation from which to work.

Some laughs are reserved for the geek-erati, but reading between the profanity-laden lines, those less familiar with Smith’s work could discern an intriguing subtext: an elegy for independent film.

Smith was a child of Harvey Weinstein’s Miramax, a product of a unique and exciting time in the early ’90s when independent filmmakers didn’t even bother to storm the gates of studios. They just went out and made films with no names, no budgets and no plot — and found an audience.

Smith grappled with fears of irrelevance until he finally embraced the uncertainty of his artistic direction and accepted that he might be moving from an apprentice filmmaker fueled by “brio and passion” to a hoped-for calmer craftsman.

Meditating backstage on his legacy, Smith’s thoughts on leaving behind the kid who made “Clerks” and “Chasing Amy” could apply to the film community in general: “I want to honor that kid because I spent so long being that person, but the adult in me wants to tell that kid . . . ‘You don’t get it, you’ll understand in a couple of years, life is about shifting focuses.’ “

SModcast 96: Take Off That Little Hat and Be Killed! – In which our heroes turn to the audience for guidance.

You can grab the show, TOTALLY FREE, exclusively at Quick Stop Entertainment. Fire it up in your MP3 player of choice for over an hour of free laughs — The absolute best value on the internet today.