Todd Lamb
Encyclopedia
Todd Lamb is an American writer and director based out of New York City
. He has written under the moniker Rock Ninja, as well as his birth name
. He created the popular Rock Ninja! concert reviews that recurred in The SF Weekly
. This editorial series featured a ninja who would attend concerts and review them in a kung-fu
voice. The final Rock Ninja! article was a meeting backstage with the Beastie Boys
, entitled "Pawns in The Sun", the series ran for two years to much acclaim but stopped in late 2004.
His comedy and pranks have been featured in Stop Smiling Magazine, Larry Flynt's Big Brother Skateboarding
Magazine (the publication that the TV program Jackass launched from), Radar Magazine, SF Weekly
(with those articles later syndicated in sister newspaper The Riverfront Times), The Warlock zine, New York's Wooooo Magazine and threethousand.com.
in an effort to make their lives more dangerous. This book contains photography of each person that received the hairdo and strange case studies
of each incident. This book was featured in the October 2007 issue of Nylon Magazine. Popular culture
blog jezebel.com called it an "ill-iterary masterpiece" in their book review
Also a series of small, humorous pocketsized books by Lamb, entitled The Big Book of Wisdom, are available through blueq press. This series features the learnings that Lamb gathered, collected in multiple travel size versions in the volumes: romance, office, and art. Swedish artist and illustrator Johan Malmström drew illustrations that correspond with Lamb's writings. The series was created to be used in society, and was designed to be taken with when leaving the house.
Lamb was the creator of the zine
titled "Brown Trip", which received praise from Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine
and was featured in a 2007 issue. It was a small printed booklet with hand penned art. Brown Trip was designed to test whether the reader was a hippie. Only 100 copies were created.
In 2008 Lamb began posting humorous notes around NYC asking New Yorkers to do tedious things with a character named "Chris". Each note is signed by "Chris" and asks people for rides to malls, advice on life, and help with pets. The ongoing project has been titled Notes From Chris. The notes have become immensely popular around New York City and across the internet, with imitators attempting to re-create and imitate the signs as far away as Australia. The series of notes was listed on The Huffington Post's "Top 7 Sites To Waste Your Time On". This distinct style of street note is now an internet meme, with the Notes From Chris project sited as the inventor.
, as a serious man who breaks a world record
for whoopie cushion
sitting. In 2009 Lamb co-created an animated television program with director Aaron Stewart through production studio Hornet Inc. It is reportedly in development with a cable television
network and called The Bloody Band Aidz about a wild rock band
that lives in New Jersey on town arrest. No air date has yet been reported for the series.
He has created television commercials
for advertising agencies
Mother and Goodby Silverstein & Partners
. While at the Goodby Silverstein & Partners agency, Lamb created a public service announcement
, directed by Jeff Goodby, for the Marin Cancer Project that won the agency's first Emmy Award.
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He has written under the moniker Rock Ninja, as well as his birth name
Name at birth
The name at birth is the name a child is given by his or her parents, according to a generally universal custom, and legal requirement. What happens subsequently about this name has a substantial cultural component....
. He created the popular Rock Ninja! concert reviews that recurred in The SF Weekly
SF Weekly
SF Weekly is a free alternative weekly newspaper in San Francisco, California. The newspaper, distributed throughout the San Francisco Bay Area every Wednesday, is published by Village Voice Media, a 16-paper alt weekly newspaper chain that also includes the New York City Village Voice and the Los...
. This editorial series featured a ninja who would attend concerts and review them in a kung-fu
Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
voice. The final Rock Ninja! article was a meeting backstage with the Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
, entitled "Pawns in The Sun", the series ran for two years to much acclaim but stopped in late 2004.
His comedy and pranks have been featured in Stop Smiling Magazine, Larry Flynt's Big Brother Skateboarding
Big Brother (magazine)
Big Brother was a skateboarding magazine founded by Steve Rocco, which was notable for ushering in street skating and the sub-culture of skateboarding....
Magazine (the publication that the TV program Jackass launched from), Radar Magazine, SF Weekly
SF Weekly
SF Weekly is a free alternative weekly newspaper in San Francisco, California. The newspaper, distributed throughout the San Francisco Bay Area every Wednesday, is published by Village Voice Media, a 16-paper alt weekly newspaper chain that also includes the New York City Village Voice and the Los...
(with those articles later syndicated in sister newspaper The Riverfront Times), The Warlock zine, New York's Wooooo Magazine and threethousand.com.
Books and Printed Materials
A book titled Yo, Check The Perm! was released in September 2007. Lamb gathered 15 people in the New York area and gave them permsPermanent wave
A permanent wave, commonly called a perm, involves the use of chemicals to break and reform the bonds of the hair. The hair is washed and wrapped on a perm rod and waving lotion is applied with a base. This solution creates a chemical reaction that softens the inner structure of the hair by...
in an effort to make their lives more dangerous. This book contains photography of each person that received the hairdo and strange case studies
Case study
A case study is an intensive analysis of an individual unit stressing developmental factors in relation to context. The case study is common in social sciences and life sciences. Case studies may be descriptive or explanatory. The latter type is used to explore causation in order to find...
of each incident. This book was featured in the October 2007 issue of Nylon Magazine. Popular culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
blog jezebel.com called it an "ill-iterary masterpiece" in their book review
Also a series of small, humorous pocketsized books by Lamb, entitled The Big Book of Wisdom, are available through blueq press. This series features the learnings that Lamb gathered, collected in multiple travel size versions in the volumes: romance, office, and art. Swedish artist and illustrator Johan Malmström drew illustrations that correspond with Lamb's writings. The series was created to be used in society, and was designed to be taken with when leaving the house.
Lamb was the creator of the zine
Zine
A zine is most commonly a small circulation publication of original or appropriated texts and images. More broadly, the term encompasses any self-published work of minority interest usually reproduced via photocopier....
titled "Brown Trip", which received praise from Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine
Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine
Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine is a magazine created in 1994 by a group of artists and collectors including Robert Williams, Fausto Vitello, C.R. Stecyk III , Greg Escalante, and Eric Swenson to both help define and celebrate urban alternative and underground contemporary art. It was edited from...
and was featured in a 2007 issue. It was a small printed booklet with hand penned art. Brown Trip was designed to test whether the reader was a hippie. Only 100 copies were created.
In 2008 Lamb began posting humorous notes around NYC asking New Yorkers to do tedious things with a character named "Chris". Each note is signed by "Chris" and asks people for rides to malls, advice on life, and help with pets. The ongoing project has been titled Notes From Chris. The notes have become immensely popular around New York City and across the internet, with imitators attempting to re-create and imitate the signs as far away as Australia. The series of notes was listed on The Huffington Post's "Top 7 Sites To Waste Your Time On". This distinct style of street note is now an internet meme, with the Notes From Chris project sited as the inventor.
Film, Television, and Commercial Work
Lamb has appeared on TV shows including Late Night With Jimmy FallonLate Night with Jimmy Fallon
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon on NBC. The show premiered on March 2, 2009, as the third incarnation of the Late Night franchise originated by David Letterman....
, as a serious man who breaks a world record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
for whoopie cushion
Flatulence humor
Flatulence humor refers to any type of joke, practical joke device, or other humor related to flatulence.-History of flatulence humor:Although it is likely that flatulence humor has long been considered funny in cultures that consider the public passing of gas impolite, such jokes are rarely recorded...
sitting. In 2009 Lamb co-created an animated television program with director Aaron Stewart through production studio Hornet Inc. It is reportedly in development with a cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
network and called The Bloody Band Aidz about a wild rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
that lives in New Jersey on town arrest. No air date has yet been reported for the series.
He has created television commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
for advertising agencies
Advertising agency
An advertising agency or ad agency is a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients. An ad agency is independent from the client and provides an outside point of view to the effort of selling the client's products or services...
Mother and Goodby Silverstein & Partners
Goodby Silverstein & Partners
Goodby, Silverstein & Partners is an advertising agency based in San Francisco. Their client list includes Got Milk?, Chevrolet, Hewlett-Packard, Frito-Lay, Sprint, Yahoo!, Nintendo, the National Basketball Association, Netflix, Adobe, Sonic Drive-In, Corona Light, Modelo, BevMo!, Dickies, TD...
. While at the Goodby Silverstein & Partners agency, Lamb created a public service announcement
Public service announcement
A public service announcement or public service ad is a type of advertisement featured on television, radio, print or other media...
, directed by Jeff Goodby, for the Marin Cancer Project that won the agency's first Emmy Award.