Call Me Lucky

Bobcat Goldthwait’s (World’s Greatest Dad SFIFF 2009) newest film is a loving and insightful portrait of his friend, stand-up comedian and political activist, Barry Crimmins. We are treated to archival footage of devastatingly funny stand-up and receive insights into Crimmins’ work through interviews with comedic luminaries such as Stephen Wright, Marc Maron and Patton Oswalt. But the film takes a surprisingly raw turn when detailing Crimmins’ early life, the abuse he endured and the deep and painful truths motivating his political satire and activism. On a short list of “greatest comedians you’ve probably never heard of,” Crimmins was key in developing Boston’s 1980s comedy scene. By creating and booking the legendary Ding Ho comedy club housed in a Cambridge Chinese restaurant, Crimmins presented and mentored many of Boston’s standout performers including Goldthwait, Wright, Kevin Meaney and Jimmy Tingle. Not content simply to deride the Reagan administration from the stage, Crimmins traveled to Nicaragua in 1988 and engaged press on behalf of the the Sandinistas, where he found that his incisive wit made for an especially powerful form of activism. In the early ’90s, Crimmins became a forerunner of children’s rights, petitioning Congress to shut down the burgeoning child pornography trade in the early days of the Internet. Throughout, Goldthwait captures the unique voice—funny and insightful, hurt but not damaged, compassionate yet full of rage—that is Barry Crimmins. —Sean Uyehara