What You Are Laughing At

Weekend Wrap-Up

I'll start back on Thursday night. I did a money gig for a buddy who needed a headliner at the Taster's Wok. As you have surmised, it's a Thai restaurant in Lynnwood that hosts a comedy night once a week to entertain people tired of yelling "GIT 'ER DONE!" at each other all night. Okay, you probably didn't guess what I'd writtend after "restaurant" but that's what it is. I did it solely for the money and to work on my crowd interaction chops. I followed local legend Heneghen who is able to riff off a crowd with razor-like intent and spoon-like precision. He gets going and can't stop, and he had the place ROARING with ha-has. Good thing, too, because he followed LD., who cramped my game from the get go. I sat at a table with LD and Didi M., another comic. I sat next to this woman who was way hot, and no ring in sight, so I'm thinking, "Well hello there," and "please let my zipper be up." I sit, LD launches into a barrage of stuff that neither concerns nor interests me. Her and I had our differences in the past, but fawk-a-duck if she doesn't know when to shut it. All I could do with the gal I WANTED to talk to was run my fingers on the inside of her elbow from time to time. She seemed cool with it, responding by pulling away and gagging a little.
LD goes up and does well for 3 of the 18 minutes she's up there. Heneghen kills for 20-25 ish. Next thing I know I'm 5 minutes in and riffing off the crowd, doing better than just my jokes, which seem to be falling out of my mouth. Blah blah blah: Summary: Heckled by fat divorced guy with white shoes and high-waters, bored dipschidt at bar shines a flashlight in my face, bar owner missing the sleeves off his favorite t-shirt, and I got out with my life, if not my dignity.

Yep, what a great F'ing weekend it was. I did time at Chuckle Bucket's on Friday and had a great set following an energetic, disjointed, and entertaining set by a Canadian Laugh Slut. The guy just would NOT get off stage. 7-10 minutes is not 7 & 10 minutes. BUT it allowed me to go up and address the time issue as well as launch into a new bit. I riffed through the new bit, nothing really prepared, but it went pretty darn well. I have to make sure that I keep my act tight, however, because eventually, when I'm really angling for TV spots, I can't be rambling as if I've never been behind a mic before. Small crowd, but really very into the show. Everyone had good sets, which was nice to see. There's funny to be consumed. LESSON LEARNED: Being yourself is always better than being what you think other people want to see, unless people did not want to see you.

Then I went over to The Comedy Book to catch Jim Gaffigan (gaff-again, NOT Ga-figgin, as I was repeatedly reminded by his manager, who happens to be an ASS). Accompanying me were my respiratory cold and Cistern O'Hanrahan. The place was packed, and good thing too as Jim was recording his Comedy Central CD. If you can't destroy a room like that as a comic, you quit, immediately, and hit your head on a hard-cover copy of "1,001 Tasteless Jokes" until you forget your act. But from what I heard everyone did really well. Jim did really well, too. He's got something good going there. So pale. So funny. So smelling of meringue.

The next day I sat at the Mermaid Coffee House, which has taken to hiring less attractive staff since their IPO, and got to the nitty of some client-specific jokes. I have a gig on Sept.1st for a large, local software design business, kind of a Mom&Pop thing, and I want to make sure I am giving my best. It's weird to "have to" write for a specific event, but I have had a couple of my best performances for such gigs. This will be a fun one at the Triple Door, performing with Kid Dynamite. It's gonna be fun. And YES, I will be wearing a suit. JEEZ. And besides, I've spawned a couple of really great bits, I think, that will carry over to my other comedy.

Yesterday I just bummed it with Chlorine O'Grady and Shoogs B, writing eating, and wallowing in the end stages of upper-respiratory congestion. These are two of my favorite people in the world. It's almost like we can read each other's minds, but choose not to out of respect. Killroy made rad Thai Peanut Chicken Satay, a.k.a. "Chicken Candy," as dubbed by G-Bro. Then we eventually ended up at open mic at The Comedy Track.

Performed well, going 2nd after Nate The Latest Great. He's 13 years old and doing really well on-stage. However, he's doing straight lifts of a well-respected national act, and therefore has started his comedy career on the wrong foot. I'd like to coach him a little by letting him know how vital it is that he learn to write and perform his own material, but at the same time, he's 13 and his dad's a lawyer. Maybe he picked this instead of Summer Camp. Regardless I don't need no boy crying "Wolf/MICHAEL JACKSON" when I'm just trying to expose him to... I mean show him the... trying to help. Regardless, I had a great set following him, including where some man-hater tried to heckle me and I addressed her comment by telling her that I heard it, I know why she said it and why she said it the way she did, and that I know the games, so save it. Afterwards she came up to me and said she thought I was the best performer of the night, then asked me if I ever give private shows. I wasn't sure what she meant, so I told her that I will tell jokes for free, but the sex will cost her.
Anyone know how to treat a leather burn?
--------------------
Got some stuff forthcoming. Until then, keep your pants off.



Take Me Home

My Non-Funny Blog.