The Official Fan Club of Comedian and Actor Dane Cook

After the release of his CD/DVD Retaliation, similarities were noticed between Cook's work and material recorded on Louis C.K.'s 2001 album Live in Houston.[8] The bits in question are Louis C.K.'s "Itchy Asshole," "Guy On A Bike," and "Naming Kids." In 2005, Dane Cook performed and released three similar routines on Retaliation.[9] These are "Itchy Asshole," "Struck By A Vehicle," and "My Son Optimus Prime," respectively.

In 2005, on the message boards of comedy website A Special Thing, C.K. posted a response to his fans who accused Cook of plagiarizing from him writing "Okay, this kid is stealing from me. And making lots of money. Three bits on one CD." Later, C.K. wrote "Just so you know, guys, I'm not going to do anything about this.... I'm not going to court over a bit called 'Itchy Asshole.'"[10] In an interview on the Free Beer & Hot Wings Morning Show in February 2007, C.K. stated that while the jokes are similar, the issue was "overblown" and may stem from a backlash against Cook's popularity. However, C.K. accused Cook of being "bullyish" and litigious towards comedians for having similar material to his despite claiming elsewhere that comedians stealing material from each other happens often and is not an issue to him. C.K. also stated "Too bad the guy [Cook] can't write enough." C.K. ended the interview by jokingly saying, at the constant prodding by the DJs, "Fuck Dane Cook, he's a cunt."[11]

Comedian Joe Rogan has spoken on many occasions (including the December 1, 2006 broadcast of the Opie and Anthony Show) about Cook performing a bit on an episode of Premium Blend that Rogan had developed on I'm Gonna Be Dead Someday (sketch titled 'Tigers Fucking'), and claims to have performed the routine earlier in clubs with Cook present.[12]

Rob Sheffield criticized Dane Cook's material in a Rolling Stone article from October 2006, claiming a joke he performed was originally done by Emo Philips.[13]

Comedian Ron White has criticized Dane Cook for his lack of real material and for his inflated ego.[14]

At a 2007 Irving Plaza show, comedian Zach Galifianakis commented, “I saw Employee of the Month the other day...it wasn't as good as I thought it was gonna be.” During his closing number he revealed a sign that read “Kill Dane Cook" before leaving the stage.[15]

Comedian Andy Kindler has been particularly critical of Cook in his stage act, saying "Thank you MySpace for inventing Dane Cook" and that "Dane Cook is a pyramid scheme. 'Tell ten friends who know nothing about comedy about him.'"[16] He criticized his lack of material by asking a crowd "Do you think people drive home from a Dane Cook concert and go 'Ha Ha Oh my god we've been had! There's not a goddamn joke within a hundred miles of his act!'" In comparing the Dane Cook phenomenon to the spread of Nazism in Germany, Kindler asserted that "Dane Cook is worse than Hitler, because at least Hitler had a point of view!"[17]

Dane Cook has most recently been associated with stealing material from comedian Demetri Martin. Martin performed the "size too small shoe joke" on his 2005 CD. Cook performed an almost identical joke on Saturday Night Live afterwards.