How Don’t Tell Comedy Became an Industry Gatekeeper

The latest in pop-culture news, recaps, and reviews, plus close reads, profiles, interviews, and more from Vulture.com. [Brand Logo]( stand-up [Comedy’s Benevolent Gatekeeper]( Since 2022, Don’t Tell Comedy has launched dozens of comedians’ careers with its popular YouTube channel. How did it get here? Photo: Don’t Tell Comedy via YouTube When 72-year-old comedian Susan Rice filmed a set for Don’t Tell Comedy’s YouTube channel in January, she went in without any expectations. While she’d enjoyed a busy career during the 1980s stand-up comedy boom, she moved to Portland in 1998 after the bust and settled into a role as an elder statesperson of the local scene. When a show producer asked in November 2023 if she wanted to be submitted for the opportunity, she was hesitant. “I’m too old for the show. They’re not going to take me,” she remembers objecting at the time. Rice was wrong. Two months later, she flew out to Santa Barbara and, after tracking down the remote warehouse venue where the taping was scheduled, proceeded to do what she’d been doing for 41 years: She killed. On March 11, Don’t Tell Comedy posted Rice’s set online, and her life changed. “My website blew up, my Instagram blew up, and my TikTok blew up,” she says. Overnight, her inbox flooded with opportunities to perform all across the country. Two days later, she received an email from the producers at America’s Got Talent inviting her to perform for the television judges. “Doing late night back in the ’80s when Johnny Carson was working, Carson made a lot of careers,” she says. “But this, Don’t Tell, is comparable.” [read more]( Devour pop culture with us. [Subscribe now]( to save over 40% on unlimited access to Vulture and everything New York. The Latest TV Recaps • The Real Housewives of New Jersey: [Green With Envy]( • The Bachelorette: [Let Me Tick, Bro]( • Below Deck Mediterranean: [Abandoned Anchor]( • Below Deck Mediterranean: [Abandoned Anchor]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Stories We Think You’ll Like [Read Long Island Compromise With New York’s Summer Book Club Join a variety of our writers and editors for a weekly discussion newsletter, starting next month.]( By The Editors [Brat and It’s the Same But It’s a Track-by-Track Booklist So It’s Not Hot-girl books to read at a bar with a martini and a side of fries.]( [Jack Black Cancels Tour After Bandmate’s Assassination Remark Kyle Gass called his joke at Tenacious D’s Sydney show “highly inappropriate, dangerous, and a terrible mistake.”]( By Zoe Guy [Daemon the Disappointing House of the Dragon doesn’t know what to do with the Prince Who Pouts.]( By Nicholas Quah [Shannen Doherty Remembered by Co-Stars and Friends Holly Marie Combs called Doherty “my better half of 31 years.”]( By Bethy Squires [Have You Ever Heard ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ Sung in Cursive? Ingrid Andress is here to help.]( By Bethy Squires [Idina Menzel Is Venturing Into the Redwood And, even more importantly, into the 2025 Best Actress in a Musical Tony race.]( By Jason P. Frank [Late-Night Hosts Are Concerned for Democracy After Trump Shooting Including Anthony Anderson, who drew the unlucky straw and filled in for Kimmel this week.]( By Jason P. Frank [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Vulture Games [Today’s Crossword]( 1-Down, Five Letters: Many characters on “The Bear” Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Pablo Cuadra/Getty Images, Kate Green/Getty Images, Steve Granitz/FilmMagic [Today’s Cinematrix]( Can you name a Stanley Kubrick movie with a two-word title? Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Joseph Okpako/WireImage, Theo Wargo/Getty Images, Keith Hamshere/Getty Images A newsletter about the perpetual Hollywood awards race, for subscribers only. [Sign up]( to get it every week. [Get the Newsletter]( [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe]( | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1701 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2024, All rights reserved