Last night we dropped by K-Date at Comix which is the brainchild of female comedian Helen Hong.  Her comedy show with matchmaking created a lot of curiosity because of a New York Times write-up from a few weeks ago.  We obviously had to go investigate what the buzz was about.  So what did we discover?  We had a lot of laughs on and off the stage.  Helen Hong opened with a monologue that many Asians and Koreans could relate to about her parent’s and Korean culture.  She then went off stage to quickly match up a few couples, which was equally as entertaining as the comedians.  Though Asians are shy, it was fun to watch Helen select an unsuspecting audience member and question them about what kind of girl or guy they liked.  After a few laughs from Helen’s banter with the young cute lady, she proceeded to roam around the room looking for a guy of her liking or that fit the description of the lady’s desire.  Interestingly, the first girl said she liked guy’s in suits and there was only one guy in a suit so that was an easy pairing.

Throughout the rest of the evening, different comics would do their monologue.  These are hand picked comics (or friends) of Helen’s and they were quite diverse: 2 African-Americans, a Jew, an Asian and a half white/Latin guy.  One of the funniest bits was from Jen Kwok, who sang a song called “Date an Asian (man).”  Not often do you see a Jewish guy and an Asian gal rap.

Back to the matchmaking.  So in between sets, the comedian on stage was given the power – with the help of Helen – to select and match up a guy and a girl.  One guy was lucky because he was selected twice by accident because the comedian hadn’t seen the previous matchmaking episode.  Anyway, some of the pairings seemed like a good fit because there was a lot of conversation going on afterwards and some were …. let’s say interesting.  It was definitely a good night of entertainment presented by Helen Hong.  The next one is in October, so come out and see us there because we’ll be back again doing some interviews.  Don’t be shy and say “hi” to us.

Come out Thursday night to Comix comedy club if you want a date, or K-Date:  watch Korean-Americans get matched up.  If you recall, back in late June there was a New York Times article about an interesting twist to the old dating game: mixing comedy with romance.   Comedian Helen Hong runs a comedy show at Comix where she matches up individuals between comedy sets.   After throwing out some jokes, she roams around the audience and identifies a man and a woman and matches them up, but of course she makes them throw down a shot to get them comfortable.

This interesting dating concept not only caught the attention of the New York Times, but it also is being written up by the New York Post and Time Out New York.  If you’re interested in checking out this fun scene, come on down to Comix New York this Thursday night at 9:30pm.   We’ll be there so come on out to at least meet us.  And btw, it’s a very even ratio between men and women.  So bring yourself or a group of friends and let’s all have some fun!

Comix New York @ 353 West 14th Street

Interesting article in the New York Times over the weekend about stand-up comedian Helen Hong’s attempt at speed matchmaking.  However, her twist is that she uses a comedy show to get people in the audience to meet each other.  She teamed up with Comix, a Manhattan comedy club to fill a room with Asians and let Helen do her thing.  So what was the genesis of this effort?

Ms. Hong spent enough time in South Korea to be familiar with a phenomenon called “booking,” in which men at a nightclub heavily tip a waiter to physically drag a young woman they’ve noticed over to their table. “It’s barbaric,” Ms. Hong said. “And of course the women have to look like they’re really protesting or else they look like a slut.” But she understood the basic motivation: “In most East Asian cultures, you can’t meet someone new unless you’re introduced by a third party.”

If you live in New York, it might be worth checking out and it’d also be good to support a Korean-American stand-up comedian.  Read more at the NYTimes.com>

The Chosun Ilbo makes note of how many Korean-Americans have influenced President Obama.  Here’s a quick roster of influential Korean Americans in the Obama administration:

• Eugene Kang – Special Assistant to President Obama – holder of his calender.  The only one aboard Air Force One who is of Korean descent and also named one of President Obama’s 52 most trusted people according to the New York Times.
• Harold Hongju Koh – Dean of Yale Law School and soon to be top legal adviser to the state department.  Also speculated to be a possible Supreme Court nominee – could be the first official Asian-American nominee.
• Michelle Rhee – Chancellor of the DC public school system who is subtly referenced by President Obama for her radical reforms.
• Other peeps in the administration: Christopher Kang, Elizabeth Kim, Helen Hong, Anna Kim