Issue date: 5/7/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Courtesy [Click to enlarge]

College Humor's website remains a destination for funny - catering to college students across the nation. Jakeandamir.com is a website that spun out of the offices of College Humor, presenting its hysterical videos chronicling the relationship between Jake Hurwitz, 22, and Amir Blumenfeld, 25.

Blumenfeld plays the character of Amir, the annoying, overly attached office friend of the character Jake, played by Hurwitz. Amir survives on five "squares" of McDonald's McNuggets and the occasional QPB (quarter pounder with cheese) when he wants a little variety. Essentially the characters are based on themselves and their friendship, however the actions are exaggerated for the viewer's comedic pleasure.

I had the pleasure of making a long distance telephone interview with Blumenfeld and Hurwitz from the College Humor offices in New York City. They appeared to keep character the entire time and were quite the entertainment.

Here is a bit of what they had to say:

What made the two of you start jakeandamir.com?

AB: The T-shirt. (There is a T-shirt that can be purchased through bustedtees.com, a website that the two are linked with. Jake models for them regularly.)

JH: We started making videos at College Humor and ended up uploading them on Vimeo.com because College Humor operates out of the same office. We were always making them for our friends, and then we started the website. And now we're here.



How much of the interaction between the two of you is real, and how much is it the characters you two are portraying?

JH: It's all characters. Our characters almost become us. We think about everything in terms of Jake and Amir.

AB: What characters?


What are your backgrounds? How did you both get your start at College Humor?

JH: I grew up in Connecticut. I went to New School in New York. I wrote for College Humor for a few years and was an intern. I put together desks and microwaves. Then I got a full-time position.

AB: I dropped out in ninth grade…

JH: Amir! Be serious.

AB: I went to school at Berkeley. I studied Business. College Humor hired me when I graduated.


Where do you see the duo going in the future?

JH: There's a bunch of people just finding the website. We want to keep it up; up the quality of the videos and keep on making funny videos.


I noticed a certain pattern with the music you use in your videos. Is there any criteria you have for the music you use?


AB: Songs that own hard.

JH: In the videos where Amir is editing, it tends to be music that was really big in high school, like "Sunday Morning" by Sugar Ray that we used in the video "Bomb Threat."


What was your favorite video to make?

AB: "Sleeping Pills."

JH: That was my least favorite. Being shirtless in Union Square was so horrible. I like the ones where we get everybody from the office involved. We just made a video where we slapped our boss. The founder of our company is still willing to be a part of the joke, and that is so cool.


If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?

AB: Penguin. Next.

JH: She asked you why.

AB: Because they can fly.

JH: No they can't.

AB: Oh.


How about you, Jake?

JH: Monkey. No, dolphin.


Is there anything else you'd like to let college students who read this to know?

AB: Jake and I are best friends.

JH: No, we're not.


One last question. Do you guys have girlfriends?

JH: Amir has a girlfriend. Jake does not. Spread the word.



Jakeandamir.com updates very frequently. You can also see them at collegehumor.com in more hysterical videos. Oh, and Jake Hurwitz is single. He wants the ladies to know.

Briana Monasky can be reached at bmonasky@statehornet.com

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