a review of 叫我幸运

#29: Call Me Lucky (streaming on Netflix) I'd only been peripherally aware of Barry Crimmins as a figure in comedy and social activism through passing mentions in other comedians' anecdotes (primarily by way of Marc Maron's WTF podcast; After seeing this, I think I might "throw in a few shekels" to access Maron's 2013 interview with Crimmins himself.) and so on. But other than that, no real knowledge of the man, his work, or his accomplishments. The lovingly-made documentary made by Bobcat Goldthwait (whose nom de comedy was derived from Crimmins' dubiously acquired nickname "Bear Cat") is an amazing biographical information download on Crimmins. Beyond his blistering standup routines decrying government corruption and warmongering, he was also a godfather to much of the '80s Boston comedy scene as owner of a pair of influential clubs, Ding Ho and Stitches. Later on, after revealing his own childhood sexual abuse, he literally sacrificed months of his life and unknown amounts of his personal sanity gathering evidence to help shut down the child pornography trade on AOL and the nascent internet. It's an illuminating portrait of a figure who in a better world, should have been both a household name and an absolute hero of American culture. I highly recommend!