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Eddie Griffin has signed with ICM Partners. Named one of the top 100 greatest stand-up comics of all time by Comedy Central, Griffin has performed at some of the country’s most notable venues, including Los Angeles’ Comedy Store and New York City’s Apollo Theater. He has also appeared on Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam as well as the HBO specials One Night Stand, Voo Doo Child and the intuitively named HBO Comedy Half-Hour. His 2003 documentary feature DysFunktional Family, which he wrote and produced, followed the comedian home as he reunited with his eccentric relatives. Griffin’s most recent

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The mostly tireless Louis C.K., who recently announced he'd be taking a year-long hiatus from his critically acclaimed FX series "Louie" to recharge by doing tons of stand-up, will be airing his next comedy special on HBO. Read More: 'Louie' Going on Hiatus, With Louis C.K.'s Comedy Set to Return in 2014 The premium cable network announced today that it would be the home of C.K.'s next hour-long special, which will be directed by C.K. and filmed at one of the stops on his current sold-out 16-city tour, which started in October and wraps in February in Washington, D.C. This is C.K.'s second stand-up special to land at HBO -- his 2007 hour-long special "Louis C.K. Shameless," his first, aired on the network, as did two half-hour specials, a 1997 episode of "HBO Comedy Half-Hour" and 2005's "One Night Stand: Louis C.K.

Stand-up comedy is one of the most beloved art forms there is, and it's also one of the most difficult to master. For every Louis C.K., there are a hundred Jeff Dunhams. People often make lists of the best comedians of all time, or the best comedy albums, but when it comes to actual comedy TV specials, which is what every comedian strives for these days to get into heavy rotation on Comedy Central, it's a different story. There's a million of them - some are good, some are decent, some are iffy, and some are awful. Here, however, are some of the most innovative, groundbreaking comedy specials that have ever been made - shows you should really see if you're a fan of comedy at all (Note: specials are listed chronologically).

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George Carlin at USC (1977)

Any mention of innovative comedy specials has to start with George Carlin, who forged...