Gossip, Sex, & The End of the World : Collected Works of tongue in A mood

See what critics called “sharp, irreverent, and sometimes deadly serious comedy” (San Francisco Bay Guardian); “slapstick comedy that explores and pokes fun at the Filipino American experience” (San Francisco Chronicle); and a “bullshit variety show” (San Francisco Weekly). Featuring: sketch comedy written by A. Samson Manalo, Patty Cachapero, Kevin Camia, and Kennedy Kabasares; director’s notes; diagrams of the original Bindlestiff Studio layout by Ramon Abad; sheet music composed by Theodore S. Gonzalves; an afterword with the founding mother of Bindlestiff Studio, Chrystene Ells; a glossary of terms; and full color photographs.

“This book is a hoot! Funny in a provocative way, and provocative in a funny way: Gonzalves and Manalo rip within the folds of the diasporic Filipino culture. With this tome they prove you can be laugh-out-loud funny and serious at the same time. I had so many light bulbs go off while reading this book, I’m afraid to check next month’s bill.” — Luis H. Francia, author of Eye of the Fish: A Personal Archipelago

”Gossip, Sex, and the End of the World: Collected Works of tongue in A mood provides crucial context for showing that we as a Filipino community have been tackling the same issues for decades – using our creativity, humor, and wit to understand ourselves, our parents, our culture, and our place in American society. The jokes are as fresh and relevant as ever. Ranging from being pissed off that someone had the audacity to eat their leftover sinigang to poking fun of whitewashed Filipinos (Chad!), the sketches touch on deeper questions about what it means to be Filipino American. Whatever we as a community are going through at the present – it has been examined, poked and satirized by generations before. Gossip, Sex, and the End of the World is a comfort – offering validation to Filipino Americans today that they are not alone – and we are talented and as hilarious as hell.” — Malaka Gharib, author of I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir

“Tongue in a mood talaga! I read this book aboard a flight from Guam to Honolulu, breaking only to exhale before diving back for more riotous laughter and memories of that special time in the Bay Area in the late 90s, when, despite the advent of the dot.com doom, we witnessed the explosive birth of a theater group that began with three performance artists in 1994 and which quickly grew into an ensemble to include musicians and other performers. tongue in A mood critiques culture, colonial history, and peoples through smart, twisted, and memorable vignettes. Who could ever forget the plight of the Filipino house decors, like the talking giant wooden spoon and fork, for example, in “Klosit Komrads,” with Jesus Christ impersonating Robert DeNiro in Taxi Driver? Or how about Lola Sayang food products that sold exotic delicacies, like preserved pig’s blood in aluminum cans or lechon ice cream with actual pig body parts? Or, my favorite, the poignant, unapologetic lovemaking between a Filipino couple in their “Golden Years.” Riffing on a line by Nostradamo in “Sandwich Boards,” a fantastical one-act about a jeepney ride to the end of the world, i.e., Manila — the stories may be tragic, but tongue in A mood is pure magic.” — R. Zamora Linmark, author of Rollin’ the R’s, Leche, and The Importance of Being Wilde at Heart