You’ll Want to Dip Your Balls in It

Watching The State back in the ’90s (yes, we were alive then), we always felt like the corporate slave drivers at MTV were holding the reins a little too tightly on Michael Ian Black, David Showalter, Thomas Lennon, and company. The utter weirdness behind nonsensical skits such as “Taco Mail...

By P. Scott Cunningham

December 3, 2009

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "19274298",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17482312",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482310",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18711090",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17482313",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Watching The State back in the ’90s (yes, we were alive then), we always felt like the corporate slave drivers at MTV were holding the reins a little too tightly on Michael Ian Black, David Showalter, Thomas Lennon, and company. The utter weirdness behind nonsensical skits such as “Taco Mail Delivery” and “The Bearded Men of Space Station 11” was buried underneath the tween-pandering of “Doug” and “Barry and Lavonne.” Watching the Stella Shorts this Monday night at Sweat Records, you’ll learn why: The real material was way too raunchy and way too bizarre. With no TV restrictions, The State guys throw plot out the window, give Santa’s wife a penis, and have Paul Simon serenade an angel making dirty love to David Wain.

The Stella Shorts, a side project that was never released to the public, were made by Black, Showalter, and Wain between 1998 and 2004 and have been notoriously difficult to track down, even on the Internet. So a big Miami thank-you goes to Lolo Reskin for setting up the 8 p.m. screening. Entrance is free, but be a sport and buy a cupcake or a record.
Mon., Dec. 7, 8 p.m., 2009

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Miami, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.