Bert Kreischer Awarded Stand-Up Comedian of The Year (and rightfully so!)

The “Just for Laughs” Montreal Festival highlights some of the most impactful comedians in the industry. This year, their choice for Stand-Up Comedian of the Year was one of our favorites, Bert Kreischer. 

Kreischer does it all, from live shows to movies, and never fails to put a smile on our faces. He starred and produced in his 2023 film, The Machine, which is based off his viral story about entanglement with Russian mobsters.  

His 2023 Tops Off World Tour has performed to sold out arenas around the world. His Netflix stand-up specials are also a crowd favorite. “Secret Time” (which was filmed in Philadelphia), “Hey Big Boy”, and now, “Razzle Dazzle” are three Netflix specials that have been added to his resume. 

The Florida native expressed his gratitude for “Just for Laughs” and this award. “As comics, we do so much of our work at night, on the road, and in the shadows. Sometimes you feel like no one notices, but to get recognized for my work, especially by JFL, which is the gold standard in comedy, means absolutely everything to me.” 

Kreischer was not the only comic to take home some big prizes that night. Quinta Brenson, a Philadelphia native and creator of “Abbott Elementary”, was honored as the Comedy Person of the Year. Ronny Chieng walked home with Breakout Comedy Star of the Year, and Mae Martin was awarded Rising Comedy Star of the Year. 

We’ve always known that Bert is one of the funniest people in the world, but the acknowledgment of his work is the cherry on top for. Although he is taking a break from his tour, the next leg will begin in September. For now, if you want some more Kreischer content, you can check out his recent 2 bears podcast episode with Rob Lowe. 

After the first couple of times Bert Kreischer came to The Preston & Steve Show Studio we made an in-house rule to always have a camera person snapping pictures for the entire length of his unpredictable, outrageous, sometimes scandalous, always shocking visit.

So, we dug through our archives and created an ultimate photo ranking of Bert's appearances on The Preston & Steve Show:

Bert had come directly off a red eye flight from LA to Philly into the studio. Wearing his neck pillow as a hat, he was chugging that coffee for one main purpose: to have an empty cup and move on to something stronger.

The inaugural red eye adventure. This visit was on the tamer side, but it was also historic as it was the first update to Bert's 3 year, on-going alcohol wall.

Records indicate this was the first time we met The Machine. It was also our Intern Steve Vassalotti's last day. They took off their clothes and did shots of Captain Morgan.

We were prepared with mini liquor bottles for Bert's visit, he drank them all before 9am. The evidence was displayed proudly on our wall. Little did he know that those bottles would remain untouched until his next visit. Another surprise for Bert that day: Courtney Love.

Bert's most iconic interview on The Preston & Steve Show. The photos from this day have formed a life of their own: Joe Rogan and Tom Segura have turned them into memes, no one can un-see that butt photo and Bert cast himself in an M. Night Shyamalan movie (still pending).

Days before the country shut down for COVID-19, we noticed that Bert was only a couple hours away from Jack Frost Mountain and if anyone needed to experience Cardboard Classic, it's him. After his show the night before, Bert's crew drove all night, made a sled along the way, and met us at the top of the tubing hill for one epic ride.

The man made it to the Eagles Super Bowl Parade! He happened to be in town scouting out locations for his Netflix special and we happened to be broadcasting on The Parkway an eye shot away from the Art Museum. Further proof that this man IS the real Van Wilder.

The top moment goes to the day Bert become Kathy's godfather. We googled things you need for a Quinceañera and godfather was on the list. We called up The Machine and he promptly replied, "f--k yeah," and the rest is history.

Bert slept for maybe a total of three hours then joined CaseyBoy and Team WMMR for the 65 mile Ben to the Shore Bike Tour.