The folks at Google must have enjoyed The Internship, the 2013 comedy which doubled as a virtual love letter to the company’s work environment.
The Internet giant was less pleased about a much smaller-scale production over the weekend, one which gently teased the company in the heart of San Francisco.
Saturday’s Roast of a Techie performance at the Playland Bar on Polk Street featured a Google employee being teased by a team of comedians. The company insisted it was uncomfortable with the event for reasons beyond the ribbing.
They were concerned that the flyers originally used the term ‘bus-riding’ techie and encouraged people to ‘bring their best protest sandals and a carton of eggs,’ ” said Pete O’Keefe, 27, who organizes the bimonthly roasts, which have previously lambasted other San Francisco archetypes like street kids, drag queens and immigration lawyers. “They said they were concerned for (the Googler’s) safety.”
That reaction isn’t as paranoid as it might sound. The day before the roast, more than 100 protesters marched on the Mission District home of a Google employee who is allegedly evicting tenants in a building. It was the latest in a string of protests targeting individual tech workers, which have grown out of the demonstrations against the buses employees in the industry ride to work.
The gags ranged from silly to inspired, although someone touched on more emotional subjects.
He moved to S.F. on orders from Google, on a covert mission to invade the Mission,” joked Jeremy Talamantes.
Destini Bryant riffed on the city’s growing class divide – and its now ubiquitous bus protests.
“I’m not trying to kick you guys off the bus, I’m just trying to get in the bus – it’s nicer than my studio and has a better Wi-Fi connection,” Bryant said.
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