Showtime’s latest docuseries takes viewers inside the famed Comedy Store stand-up club in Los Angeles. It premieres Sunday, October 4. at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time on Showtime.
If you don’t have cable or don’t have Showtime, here’s how you can watch Comedy Store streaming online for free:
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Amazon Prime’s Showtime Channel
Amazon Prime subscribers (Prime comes with a 30-day free trial) can watch all live and on-demand Showtime content on the Prime Showtime All-Access channel. You can try both Amazon Prime and the Showtime Channel at no cost with a free trial right here:
Watch Showtime on Amazon Prime
Once you’re signed up for the Prime Showtime All-Access Channel, you can watch Comedy Store live or on-demand on the Amazon Video app on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Nvidia Shield, Xiaomi, Echo Show or Echo Spot, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, various Smart TV’s, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch on your computer via the Amazon website.
Showtime Online
This is ultimately the same option as above, except you’ll watch on Showtime’s digital platforms instead of Amazon’s. Showtime’s streaming service, which includes all live and on-demand Showtime content, comes with a free 30-day trial:
Once you’re signed up for Showtime’s streaming service, you can watch The Comedy Store live or on-demand on your computer via the Showtime website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV Stick, Xbox One, Smart TV, Facebook Portal TV or other compatible streaming device.
Watch Showtime on FuboTV
Showtime is available as an add-on to FuboTV’s main 100-plus-channel package. Both the main channel bundle and the Showtime add-on can be included in your free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch Comedy Store live or on-demand on the FuboTV app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Samsung Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch on your computer via the FuboTV website.
Watch Showtime on Hulu
Whether you already have Hulu or you want to sign up for a new subscription, Showtime is available as an add-on to either Hulu or Hulu with Live TV. If you’re a new subscriber, you can start a free 30-day trial of regular Hulu plus the Showtime add-on:
Once signed up, you can watch Comedy Store live or on-demand on the Hulu app, which is available on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV, or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Samsung Smart TV, LG Smart TV, Android TV, iPhone, Android phone, iPad, or Android tablet.
Or you can watch on your computer via the Hulu website.
‘The Comedy Store’ Preview
The Comedy Store “chronicles the evolution of comedy from within the walls of the legendary Los Angeles club — directed and executive produced by Mike Binder, who started at the Store as a doorman before rising to main stage performer, and executive produced by Oscar nominee and Emmy winner Mike Tollin.”
The five-part series brings to life the legends, heartbreak and history created at the iconic club on the Sunset Strip, weaving never-seen-before footage of trailblazers like Richard Pryor, Sam Kinison and Freddie Prinze together with interviews with David Letterman, Jay Leno, Chris Rock, Andrew Dice Clay, Joe Rogen, Whitney Cummings, Jimmy Walker, Michael Keaton, Jim Carrey, Whoopi Goldberg, Marc Maron, Damon Wayans, Bill Burr, Byron Allen and many more as they reflect on the ups and downs of The Store’s textured history.
As a Comedy Store alum, former stand-up comic Binder spotlights one of pop culture’s great laboratories that forever changed comedy and, for many, provided a launching pad to stardom in film and television. Legions of legendary performers cut their teeth doing stand-up at The Store on Sunset while being mentored by the tough but nurturing gatekeeper Mitzi Shore. Loved by most, hated by some, but always garnering their respect, Shore, says Binder “…changed the way comedy was presented. The Store is her legacy. It’s the epicenter of stand-up comedy in the world.”
In a virtual Q&A with the Television Critics Association ahead of the docuseries premiere, stand-up comic Bill Burr said the magic of the Comedy Store is almost indescribable.
“When I got to The Comedy Store, I can’t explain it. It is something about going up at The Comedy Store after 11 o’clock at night. I don’t know what it is. It’s just your inhibitions go away, the craziest stuff comes out of your mouth, and you learn to take more chances,” said Burr. “So it absolutely affected me. And just seeing those names on the pictures and everything always makes me feel like I’m not even worthy of being there.”
Binder added, “For me, I grew up there. I started there when I was 18 years old. And one of the great things for me is that I learned so much about life there — my friends were all Black, Hispanic, Jewish, white women. You know, Mitzi Shore was a really special woman from my point of view. First of all, she was so ahead of her time. She was the first — she was a woman in charge so long before other women were in charge. And she was into diversity 25, 30 years before anyone was talking about diversity, because The Comedy Store, it was really about who was funny, you know? It just wasn’t about diversity.
“And my friends were — we were our own minority. We were just comedians. And my friends were Damon Wayans and the Wayans brothers and Chris Rock, and my heroes were Richard Pryor. And Shirley Hemphill was my friend. We just didn’t really think in terms of — we thought in terms of funny, you know, and we were all on each other’s side, and it was a great time in my life.
“When I came back 20 years later, that changed. There was a strike, and I felt that energy change. But when I came back 20 years later, one of the things that made me fall back in love with The Comedy Store was that I feel this newer generation feel. I feel that from Bill and Sebastian and Joe Rogan and that whole kind of group, I feel they’re so supportive of each other. The podcast world feels so inclusive and open that that energy’s back and I don’t — I feel like it really is a very open society, and I’m really kind of proud of that. For them. Not for me. For them. So that’s kind of the way I’m feeling about it right now. I feel the lineups, if you look at them, it’s a pretty diverse lineup any night you walk into The Comedy Store.”
The Comedy Store airs Sundays at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time on Showtime.
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How to Watch The Comedy Store Documentary Online