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(Free-Press-Release.com) November 9, 2006 -- Dane Cook's rise to the pinnacle of standup comedy is undeniable.

HBO has handed him the all-important one-man show, plus the "Tourgasm" series. He has sold out stadium shows that harken back to the `70s, when giants like Steve Martin and Richard Pryor roamed arenas. His albums rank with music stars on the sales charts, he's hosted "Saturday Night Live" multiple times, he was the leading man in the recent film "Employee of the Month."
But is he funny?

That might sound like an absurd question for the biggest name in standup and surely a subjective one. But a number of comics and critics are wondering if Cook might be more of an energetic talent and savvy self-promoter than any kind of comedy great.

"Everyone

kills this guy," says Jim Breuer, a standup veteran and former "SNL" cast member who hosts a Sirius Satellite Radio show that often includes comedians as guests. "Not one comedian comes on (my show) and says `I'm so happy for him,' which is weird. ... They can't stand this poor guy."

Breuer acknowledges Cook is a "tremendous performer," but says a lot of comedians "are upset because they really feel this guy has snatched a lot of material" the ultimate sin among comics.

Cook has been particularly hounded by accusations that some of his material on his second album, "Retaliation," which debuted last year at No. 4 on the Billboard pop chart, bears similarities to earlier jokes by Louis CK. Cook

has denied any plagiarism.

Cook generally brushes aside criticism or even welcomes it by soliciting feedback from his fans and altering his material accordingly. Still, the backlash appears to be mounting, with recent slams from Rolling Stone, Slate.com and Salon.com, and a spoof of Cook by the Fox sketch comedy show "Mad TV."

In July, Cook performed a guest spot at the Rhode Island comedy club Yuk Yuk's, where he was to perform a 20 to 30 minute set before headliner Peter Kelamis. Cook continued past his allotted time despite repeated signals to finish the act and eventually had to be cut off.

Cook wanting to extend his set wasn't remarkable, but the biting criticism from Kelamis was. He later called it "the most arrogant thing that I've ever seen in my life."
The Internet-fueled rise of the Boston-bred, 34-year-old comedian is a well-known part of his identity. In 2002, Cook spent his $25,000 savings to build a robust Web site, DaneCook.com an avenue few if any comics then considered. He also set up a MySpace.com page, where he now has over 1.5 million friends.

"I got my balls busted for a long time when I first started the Web site," Cook recently told The Associated Press. "Those same comics that were busting on me were coming back to me five years later and asking `Hey, how do I set up a MySpace?'"

Source: http://www.yahoo.com