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February 25, 2011
Giggles pay dividends
Berger’s new venture has a dose of shtick.
MICHELLE DODEK
“I’m shtick!” exclaimed Kyle Berger when discussing his new business venture, Shticks and Giggles. “The projects I put together for people are unique to them. They are meaningful, emotional and fun.” Berger is referring to an activity he claims he has been doing since he was a teenager, turning out projects for friends’ bar and bat mitzvahs. He’s done it for weddings, significant birthdays and for the occasional bris. It’s a perfect way to mark a lifecycle event and connect generations through private jokes and personal history. This shtick is a combination of humor and sentimentality that is bound to have lasting meaning to its subjects. 
Launched in January 2011, Shticks and Giggles provides personalized songs, videos and mockumentaries, as well as printed personalized memorabilia like a newspaper’s front page done-up with photos and kitschy articles, all about the person of honor.
For his father-in-law’s 50th birthday, Berger prepared a realistic-looking front page of the Zalman Times, using the middle name of his wife’s father for the title. Full of family photos and articles making reference to many aspects of the life of the birthday boy, Berger said he had to do some sleuthing to put it all together.
“I had to find out little jokes and stories. I asked about sweet sentimental things too. Even though I know [my in-laws], there were lots of things I found out,” Berger said. It is Berger’s ability to uncover the funny bits about a family that allows him to connect generations and make them laugh – and even cry – at the same time.
The music videos and songs he produces do the same. Last year, when his daughter Aleeza was three years old, Berger wrote a birthday song for his daughter’s Bubbie Lynn, who lives in Philadelphia. It featured cute lyrics and had Aleeza accompanying her father on the chorus. “She said it was the best gift she had ever received!” said Berger. “She sent it to all of her friends.”
The key factors in this equation are the personalized lyrics and music and an unbelievably cute kid. Since every grandchild is adorable to his or her grandparents, and everyone likes to celebrate their best times, Berger feels that he has a product that every generation can enjoy.
“It’s not just about the final product. It’s also the experience of putting it together, especially with family stuff,” Berger mused. When he produces a song, after getting pertinent personal information and crafting lyrics and music, he consults his clients and then brings the recording studio to the singers. He marvels at how well kids do when he gives them a microphone and puts on the headphones. With the technology that he has at his disposal, he says he can record 30 different tracks and edit them all together to create an end result that exceeds expectations. Video can be even more fun because with every finished, edited video Berger also includes side-splitting “out-takes.”
He said he thinks of scripts for his videos very quickly. “I’ll be driving home and laughing,” he said when thinking of the shtick he wants to include in a new project. Although he does this work with a great sense of fun, Berger also recognizes that it is a serious piece of memorabilia that can be brought out at future lifecycle events. For instance, an amusing and professionally made video featuring a three- year-old for his grandparents’ anniversary may be shown again at his bar mitzvah and perhaps at his wedding as well.
Berger is uniquely qualified to act as a self-proclaimed “jack of all trades,” perfectly suited to this type of entertainment. He was trained as a journalist (and was a co-owner of the Jewish Independent for several years), so the writing and newspaper piece is a no brainer for him. He explained that his interest in music and video entertainment is a bit of a family legacy. His father, Marshall, was a rock ’n’ roll star in Winnipeg in his youth (although, Kyle cheekily asserted that there is no evidence of his father’s old life remaining). The youngest of the four Berger boys, his brother Jory, is “living the dream” in Toronto, performing at local bars and running his own recording studio, Upstairs Music Studio. All of the vocals in Shticks and Giggles songs, however, come directly from Kyle or his clients.
“I’m not pretending to be the best singer and, when I get people to sing, I encourage them not to be too serious,” said Berger. “I’m opening up an opportunity for regular people to have personalized videos and music.” According to him, a completely original song can be produced in as little as three days, depending on the complexity of the project, and he has special introductory rates that are in effect for the time being. Looking forward to working with people to make personalized, intergenerational shtick, Berger said, “For me, making this stuff up is just hilarious.”
To check out the Zalman Times, Bubbie Lynn’s birthday song, an endearing introductory video featuring his daughter, Aleeza, and other Berger creations, visit shticksandgiggles.com.
Michelle Dodek is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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