VIDEO: Watch an Excerpt from The Onion's Forthcoming Documentary TOO SOON: THE COMEDY OF 9/11

The Onion Issue from N. Fituri scown on Vimeo.

Honoring tomorrow's 30th anniversary of satirical news outlet The Onion, Nick Scown and Julie Seabaugh have released The Onion Issue, a short film focusing on the challenges staffers surmounted in helping America regain a sense of normalcy in the face of tragedy. The sample segment is culled from the pair's forthcoming 2021 documentary Too Soon: The Comedy of 9/11, which follows the sudden halt and gradual evolution of the comedy industry in THE 20 years following the most earth-shattering public event in U.S. history.

The Onion Issue features interviews with original writer/editors Todd Hanson, Carol Kolb, and Robert Siegel, plus still images courtesy of Kolb, Siegel, and New York-based comedy photographer Jason Spiro. The first mainstream outlet to return to the public eye after 9/11, The Onion's September 27, 2001 headlines included "America Vows to Defeat Whoever It Is We're at War With," "Hijackers Surprised to Find Selves in Hell," and "God Angrily Clarifies 'Don't Kill' Rule."

"Founded as a humorous alt-weekly on August 29, 1988 in Madison, Wisconsin, The Onion has inspired generations of comedians and comedy fans," says Too Soon producer Julie Seabaugh. "Its influence was never more immediate than when it gave the country collective permission to laugh again in the aftermath of 9/11."

Too Soon is a proud member of Film Independent's Fiscal Sponsorship program. Additional information, donation opportunities, and mailing list sign-up are available at TooSoonDoc.com.

Emmy-nominated producer, editor, and writer Nick Scown's subjects have ranged from Oprah to the UFC. He's been fortunate to work in post-production at Sundance's summer labs, networks including Fox, FX, NBC Sports, and two different companies that produce 30 for 30 documentaries for ESPN. He's additionally edited the documentary Conquering Kilimanjaro for Mark Cuban's HDNET. 2018 feature-film debut Pretty Bad Actress, featuring Jillian Bell (Workaholics), is now available on iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play.

Producer Julie Seabaugh is an award-winning 15-year comedy journalist who has contributed to outlets including Rolling Stone, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, GQ, Playboy, The A.V. Club, The Village Voice, L.A. Weekly, Vulture, and numerous other titles. Her debut book, Ringside at Roast Battle: The First Five Years of L.A.'s Fight Club for Comedians, was released via Amazon earlier this month.

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