Borowitz to speak at Krieger Lecture

Renowned comedian Andy Borowitz will speak at this year's Alex Krieger '95 Memorial Lecture. Borowtiz, whose work often appears in The New Yorker and on his satirical website, BorowitzReport.com, has authored six books—most recently, he published The 50 Funniest American Writers: An Anthology from Mark Twain to the Onion—and is first-ever winner of the National Press Club's humor award.

Borowitz will deliver the Krieger Lecture on Tuesday Feb. 21 at 8 p.m. in the Students' Building; a Q&A and book signing will follow.

The Krieger lectures always emphasize humor and levity, but the event itself arose from the most tragic of circumstances: Alex Krieger '95 was killed in an automobile accident during the spring semester of his freshman year.

In light of Krieger's passion for incisive, witty American writing, his family established a fund in his memory and honor that would help bring distinguished American humorists to Vassar.

Through the family's continued interest and generosity, the College continues to host this lecture annually. In the last several years, speakers have included Wendy Wasserstein, Calvin Trillin, Nora Ephron, Oliver Sacks, Tony Kushner, Michael Chabon, David Sedaris, Gail Collins, Ira Glass and Frank Rich. "It's an incredibly generous gift to Vassar," said Assistant Dean of the College for Campus Activities Teresa Quinn.

Originally from Shaker Heights, Ohio, Borowitz graduated from Harvard University in 1980 and served as president of the Harvard Lampoon, a renowned undergraduate humor publication that has helped launch the careers of several aspiring, Harvard-educated comedians, including Conan O'Brien.

In one online interview from August 2000, Borowitz discussed the origins of his career. "Once I was in college, I was on the Harvard Lampoon and there was a guy named Jim Downey who had graduated a few years before I had and had gone on to write for Saturday Night Live," Borowitz said. "Somebody at one point told me that Jim Downey made as much as a lawyer did. And I thought that was the best joke I'd ever heard."

He continued, "I couldn't believe that it was true. That someone would actually pay you for what we were doing at the Lampoon, which was basically sitting around making fun of TV and screwing up our grade point averages."

Borowitz's other credits include creating the acclaimed 1990s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and co-producing the 1998 film Pleaseantville. But he also has had extensive experience doing standup comedy, screenwriting, and filmmaking; he has even taught film classes at New York University.

In 2001, he founded the Borowitz Report, a site that posts one 250-word news satire every weekday. The site led to greater fame and widespread attention for Borowitz as a political satirist. Explaining the origins of the website, Borowitz said in a 2006 interview with TheBitterCup.com, "I had started writing fake news when I was an editor of The Harvard Lampoon in college. When I started going online (shockingly late, in 1997 or so) I started writing fake news stories and sending them to friends," Borowitz said.

Borowitz added, "I started the site in 2001 just to make it easier to send the stories out. I was really just doing it for me and my friends—I had no idea that millions of people would someday read it."

In 2007 he started blogging for the progressive blog The Huffington Post. His posts were featured on the home page of the blog and quickly became one of its most popular features. His popularity surged during the 2008 campaign, leading The Daily Beast to call him "America's satire king."

Quinn pointed out that in selecting a speaker each year, the College tries to find someone who will be a good fit. "The donors really want someone who resonates with students," explained Quinn. Borowitz had been on the College's radar for a long time, but it wasn't until this year that his schedule allowed for him to come to Vassar at the schedule date of the lecture.

Borowitz has not indicated what his lecture will cover, but Quinn suspects that he will most likely reflect upon his own college experiences and the challenges of his post-college life, topics that will surely speak to students' interests. "In terms of sharing his experience with students, I think students will find a lot to relate to. He's extremely funny but also very genuine," Quinn said.

Quinn also anticipates that Borowitz will enjoy his time spent at Vassar, not least because of the warm reception that he will likely receive from students. "Speakers always love meeting students because they're so engaged, interested and curious," she said.

In years past, students have often benefited from various exchanges that they have had with various Krieger lecturers. Quinn recalls the year in which Chabon came to deliver the lecture. Not only did he arrive on campus earlier than expected, he also spent time with several students in the Library and conducted a writing workshop with them.

Quinn suggested these invaluable interactions between the speakers and students have proven formative to students' experiences at Vassar. "Every year, students have nothing but good things to say about the speakers and their interactions with them," Quinn said.