Give $$$ To Comedy Fest And Ride Eugene Mirman's Awkward Party Bus

Photo by Brian Tamborello

What's the most exciting thing you've gotten in exchange for a financial contribution to support local culture? A canvas WNYC tote bag to keep your other 5 canvas WNYC tote bags in? Yeah, me too. Which is exactly why it's so awesome that Brooklyn-based comedian Eugene Mirman has launched a campaign to raise money for his local comedy festival -- AND he will give you an exciting gift that isn't a tote bag in exchange for your financial support!

Over the last 4 years the fest has hosted John Hodgman, Jim Gaffigan, Mike Birbiglia, Kristen Schaal, David Cross, Fred Armisen, Michael Showalter, Janeane Garofalo and John Oliver (as well as many, many more -- see last year's schedule here).

This year Mirman plans to expand the festival to include "a full day of science, along with a petting zoo, and hopefully, an Awkward Party Bus." What's really exciting is that for $500 you can get a ticket for you and a guest to ride the awkward party bus (with hors d’oeuvres !). Double that and you can get a pet named after you in the first ever Bell House Petting Zoo. You can bet if I had $1000 I'd be affixing my name to a baby goat faster than you can say "hipster chucklefest."

If $500+ is a bit steep never fear - you can go lower... much lower. Mirman has contribution levels with rewards starting at $10 ("Your name will be printed in the festival guide, in small print, as a Very Gold Honored Patron"). As of this writing, the most popular pledge level is $20 - for which you will have "your name will be printed in the festival guide, in small print, as a Racist." Apparently Brooklyn comedy fans are more racist than we thought or irony is still preferred form of accolade -- but what really matters is that folks gave. So even if you only afford a little, head on over to Kickstarter and make a pledge...the festival is trying to raise 18k and is only (a bit under) a quarter of the way there. Whatever you get will be way better than another canvas tote bag.