Tonight are the semi finals for Sal's Comedy Laugh-off being held this year at Stand Up NY. Unfortunately winners will be picked by who gets the most laughs. Being a weeknight and most of my friends live in NJ... I am going it alone. My husband works till 7 and I'm in the early show. My goal is to give it my best and have fun. I really would like to make it into the finals at Caroline's next week. I made it to the finals last year and I think I am even funnier now....but its not for me to say....its the audience so I really will have to give it my all. Contest play with my head. I think I look often for externals to validate my talent and as a comedian. I look at my bookings I listen to the laughs and ferret for any sigh that I am getting stronger and funnier. Lately the comments I have been getting are that I'm stronger and that I deliver the goods on a regular basis. Yet the validation for me of winning a contest seems like something I really would love to own. We get no report cards in this school we are attending on the road to having this job. I just want an A. Is it ego??? no its more insecurity...and the need to be validated.
Comments are below
My recent expereince
Posted on 06/29/2005 at 07:16 PM by Andy Kaufman
I am new to the comedy scene and even newer to the mind fuck of contests. Here in my home cowtown they have a 7 month contest that had 300 entrents and cretins. They have 15 folks each week with two or three moving to the next round.
They never tell us who the judges are and base votes on "star power", "material", "audience reaction" and "stage pressense", all of which I thought would be in my favor.
This story has been told, but I lost to a midget wearing a diaper. That Said Robin, there is NOTHING funnier then a midget wearing a diaper who tells stories about how hard it is to get girls. As I watched my ambition fold away even I was laughing hysterically and when they annouced the winners for that week I was hurt, disappointed, suicidal and ready to give up comedy except I realized that there in nothing funnier then a midget wearing a diaper telling jokes about jumping rope on a tampon string. I'm laughing just writing it.
So where do I get off thinking that after a few month of re-inventing myself that I could beat a midget wearing a diaper? I shoulda known better. I am using it in my act though cause it has got to be reverse kharma for when I lied to get into the Special Olympics and am STILL pissed off that I only got the Bronze.
The contests I have participated in where comics vote for each other is a circle jerk at best. I know I am good cause the audience laughs. One man's view? If you want to get validated, go have your parking ticket punched. This is about the bliss of laughter.
sal's
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 03:55 PM by Jennifer Dziura
I went to that contest once, and after spending 4 or so hours there having the emcee make skeezy comments about me (I sat upfront, like the good schoolgirl I am) and then having the proceedings dominated by guys telling rape jokes ... it was like a frat basement in there. Not my brand of comedy. Typical joke: I don't wanna go on a date, I just wanna get laid! Does a dog go on a date? Nuh-uh, he just HUMPS that bitch!
the greeks said, all things in moderation
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 03:57 PM by Jennifer Dziura
Not that humping bitches can't be funny, of course. But four hours of rape jokes in a basement?
Love them hate them Love to hate them
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 04:01 PM by Robin Fox
Contests for a fact play with my head. Last year at Ladies of Laughter I came in first at the NJ semi finals first round. I had never expected to do so well. I cried all the way home The following week I was eliminated. I cried all the way home. I knew that winning this thing could open many doors for me as it has for so many women comics before me... Just getting to the finals in NYC was the goal. Many women have had there carreers launched there. Kirson, Vejay Nathan, Michelle Bateau, Pecetelli, Leaghne Lord...etc I lost. But now looking back I see that if I got to the finals in NYC I wasnt ready yet. I truly have come to believe that you have to be prepared so that when Luck show up you can hit it out of the park! I made it into the finals last night so I will be at Carolines next Tuesday night. I will be ready the rest is yet to be....
Yeah Robin
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 04:37 PM by Kelly Shannon
You go girl! Bring it on home.
good thinking
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 05:03 PM by Andy Kaufman
I think if you go in without expectations nothing bad can happen. Jennifer's expereince not withstanding, I too have sat through rape and dick and fart jokes which are so easy to tell but pass though me like fast food. As we work, build something and take our lumps, again, nothing bad can happen if we have no expectations other then make people laugh.
A friend of mine told me this week that if someone has thin skin then they should not be in comedy. I agree. If we go inot these things just hoping to have some fun, make a few people laugh and getta few free drinks, then that is the head of a winner. If we go into competition thinking "OMG I will just DIE if I don't move on" then you might get past this round but eliminated in the second.
go to the bar and order a good stiff hemlock.
With all that said Robin, go have a GREAT time.
I know the feeling
Posted on 06/30/2005 at 06:04 PM by April Brucker
People have been saying the same about me but I have never won a contest. Yeah, it's frustrating in a way but HAVE FUN! That's why you do this. And I collect quotes so I'll give you one that you left me by Laurie Kilmartin, "The only thing we can do is get funnier." You'll kick ass, don't worry.
(apropos pithy yet well used cliches of encouragement)
Posted on 07/01/2005 at 12:47 AM by Angry Bob
to the victor, the spoils - to the vanquished...well, you really want to be victor here!! good luck!
Good Luck Robin!
Posted on 07/01/2005 at 01:47 AM by Adrienne
Your awesome, just be yourself and have fun!
Break Both Your Legs!
Posted on 07/03/2005 at 10:01 AM by Adam Sank
(And I know you will!...)
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Pot roast blues
Sunday night after a fathers day dinner and sitting around admiring all the new shirts and ties that were given as presents...I got the itch to run into the city. Sal's Comedy Hole has been running a Laugh off contest and there were only 4 chances left to make it into the contest. I had made it into the final 5 of the night after many long hours and I was beaten each time by A, A better comic B, A comic with lots of friends to cheer for them or C, a young hot girl comic that the guys all wanted to win. The last one was particularly hard for me when one night the Laugh Off was won by a girl who used to baby sit for me when my daughter was a baby. I didn't even know she did comedy. To her credit she was funny. She had a friend there and she was young and hot. A trifecta.
So Sunday night, I drove into the city and was so happy to be there and the goal was to win a spot into the finals to be held in a few weeks at Stand Up NY and the winners from that will move on to Caroline's. I came in guns blazing and got a spot for the evenings final 5. The room was mostly comics and as I walked up to do my 90 seconds I knew that I needed to make the comics laugh and if I didn't I was out. I couldn't do my standard 90 because they all have heard it 10 or more times. I did a new joke. This joke is an "act out" and any time I have done an act out it bombed. I had done the joke only 2 times before it killed the first time and bombed the second. I did the joke anyway and it killed....thank god. I took a risk and it paid off.
Many people think I am at a disadvantage for doing comedy because I live an hour away in NJ. Be that as it may I don't let it stop me. I go into the city on average 3-4 nights a week and when I am there I try to do at least 2 spots as many as 4. If I cant get a second spot I will stop in at a room (a once a weeker) and watch other comics and find out how I might get up in the future. Some rooms have been very receptive and others are like the secret handshake club. One evening I stopped in and watched an entire show....I bought my drinks and had a very nice time. The guy running the room and I performed in a show together the previous week and I had had a fantastic set amongst some pretty heavy hitters. When the show was over I went up to the guy who runs the room and waited for a few minutes while he finished talking to another comic. He turned around and said " Come by around 11:30 on such and such night you might get up" I asked him how he knew what I wanted to speak to him about and he said " your a comic what else would you want" I then asked him if I should confirm by calling or email I might not be free this coming week ...could I come the next one..and he said as if annoyed..."just come by"and walked away. I did stop by and when I saw him I was told that the show was fully booked and that maybe next time. I then came by a month later and was told that the show is really only for people with top credits... "comedy central etc." He wasn't rude he was just blunt. I hung outside and watched as the comics came and went. I didn't know that some of my fellow open micer's had been on Comedy Central Wow.... or maybe not. It felt like a brush off. I stopped by another night and hung out with the comics outside while I did this I informally barked into the room 8 girls and asked them to tell the guy at the bottom of the stairs Robin sent them down. Later when I saw the guy running the room on the street I tried to talk to him. I said his name as he walked by me 3 times. Finally I walked over to him and said hello and that I was happy to send some girls into the room. He said "thanks" I was just about to ask if I could bark in the future and he walked away. I recently saw him and asked if there was any chance some time I could have a spot and what would I need to do. He told me " sure not tonight" and kept walking. If this was happening to any other comic I would tell them forget it ....There are 100's of places to play don't bother. But It does bother me. I can and do well on stage... I do well with the kind of audiences the room gets and I'm sick of being looked at and treated like I should go home and make a Fucking Pot Roast.
I have come to think that for people who book rooms that are mere more than an open mic, they have an agenda. The first agenda might be that they only book people they need to return favors to. Secondly they book people who will book them. I can deal with this...hey its show biz. They also book there friends ok. Then they book the barkers. The barkers often after only 3 or more hours outside get put on often at the check spot. So what's left. What I resent is the condescending attitude and the way the person yielding the power acts. It reminds me of the guy who gets to direct traffic in the small suburban town for the 4th of July fireworks. All the power goes to their head. I know this is to be expected. But do you have to act so condecending. I remind myself...all I can do is get funnier.... all I can do is get funnier... and I still might not get a spot.
Comments are below
Posted on 06/23/2005 at 10:30 PM by Joe Fernandes
They say the cream always rises to the top. Just keep being you. I have noticed that, the rude comics, often are the worst comics. Just keep standing in line. Move over when the next person in line quits. Before you know it... you'll be right where your supposed to be. See ya Saturday.
By Invitation Only...
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 12:06 AM by Al Wagner
Now that I have seen you rock a room full of comics, the idea that you are getting resistance is very troubling, more so than if you were just a pot roast mama doing spoken-word karaoke. I just remember how sharp you were and a whole lot of laughter. It seems weird, and I know nothing except anecdotes about the booking dynamic, but if you come right out and ask for it, you don't get it. If you hang around and talk about how you are booked for the one competitor they actually feel envious of, then you will be asked. That's my Cinderella story, based on Nasonex-induced delusions.
And the buddy system is in full effect, and while that is every business, there are less alternatives in comedy. I Guess I hope that if I get comedy-blocked by a booker I will have other options, some club will have me when I am funny, but it sucks being turned down for no apparent reason when it is obvious you have game. And you were a five-minute doubleheader, so what does that say?
Ditto on what Joe said
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 08:39 AM by April Brucker
That is often true in my experiece. The rudest are often the worst
Robin, just don't do shows for jerks
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 12:48 PM by Shaun Eli
You're good enough that you can find stage time. No reason to drive yourself nuts nor to support bad behavior. And certainly don't go out of your way to steer people to a show run by someone you don't like.
That's why I always carry my business card-- if someone asks about a comedy show-- HERE! Read all about me. Come see me.
Some people have told me that I'm not ready for their room-- that they fill their shows with people who have TV credits (which, for those reading who are not comedians, is a selling point comedy clubs use-- our comics have all been on these TV shows...). Which is fine. If they then give stage-time to people with no TV credits who aren't as good as I am, I give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they owed a favor. I've gotten into shows for the same reason. But if someone were to ask, they'd be told the truth. He owed me a show, or whatever. If I found out that the person lied to me, however, I stop trusting him. Period. And I very much try to avoid doing business with people I don't trust.
I couldnt have said it better.
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 01:29 PM by Robin Fox
Thank you... It just pissed me off. I needed to vent. I actually hesitated to write about this for a while and then thought...Im not looking to out this guy. I am looking to describe something that I think many comedians go through and wanted to share my anger and frustration. I need to look at more than what I have than what I dont... Tonight I am at DOnt Tell Mamas and I dont Have to bring a soul...based on how well I have done there before. Sat. night Joe and I and some other comics many who are here on the Soapbox will be doing a show for 300 people in East Brunswick, NJ. and getting paid. So boooo hoooo. I wonder what Mr 4th of July has going this weekend??
So Sunday night, I drove into the city and was so happy to be there and the goal was to win a spot into the finals to be held in a few weeks at Stand Up NY and the winners from that will move on to Caroline's. I came in guns blazing and got a spot for the evenings final 5. The room was mostly comics and as I walked up to do my 90 seconds I knew that I needed to make the comics laugh and if I didn't I was out. I couldn't do my standard 90 because they all have heard it 10 or more times. I did a new joke. This joke is an "act out" and any time I have done an act out it bombed. I had done the joke only 2 times before it killed the first time and bombed the second. I did the joke anyway and it killed....thank god. I took a risk and it paid off.
Many people think I am at a disadvantage for doing comedy because I live an hour away in NJ. Be that as it may I don't let it stop me. I go into the city on average 3-4 nights a week and when I am there I try to do at least 2 spots as many as 4. If I cant get a second spot I will stop in at a room (a once a weeker) and watch other comics and find out how I might get up in the future. Some rooms have been very receptive and others are like the secret handshake club. One evening I stopped in and watched an entire show....I bought my drinks and had a very nice time. The guy running the room and I performed in a show together the previous week and I had had a fantastic set amongst some pretty heavy hitters. When the show was over I went up to the guy who runs the room and waited for a few minutes while he finished talking to another comic. He turned around and said " Come by around 11:30 on such and such night you might get up" I asked him how he knew what I wanted to speak to him about and he said " your a comic what else would you want" I then asked him if I should confirm by calling or email I might not be free this coming week ...could I come the next one..and he said as if annoyed..."just come by"and walked away. I did stop by and when I saw him I was told that the show was fully booked and that maybe next time. I then came by a month later and was told that the show is really only for people with top credits... "comedy central etc." He wasn't rude he was just blunt. I hung outside and watched as the comics came and went. I didn't know that some of my fellow open micer's had been on Comedy Central Wow.... or maybe not. It felt like a brush off. I stopped by another night and hung out with the comics outside while I did this I informally barked into the room 8 girls and asked them to tell the guy at the bottom of the stairs Robin sent them down. Later when I saw the guy running the room on the street I tried to talk to him. I said his name as he walked by me 3 times. Finally I walked over to him and said hello and that I was happy to send some girls into the room. He said "thanks" I was just about to ask if I could bark in the future and he walked away. I recently saw him and asked if there was any chance some time I could have a spot and what would I need to do. He told me " sure not tonight" and kept walking. If this was happening to any other comic I would tell them forget it ....There are 100's of places to play don't bother. But It does bother me. I can and do well on stage... I do well with the kind of audiences the room gets and I'm sick of being looked at and treated like I should go home and make a Fucking Pot Roast.
I have come to think that for people who book rooms that are mere more than an open mic, they have an agenda. The first agenda might be that they only book people they need to return favors to. Secondly they book people who will book them. I can deal with this...hey its show biz. They also book there friends ok. Then they book the barkers. The barkers often after only 3 or more hours outside get put on often at the check spot. So what's left. What I resent is the condescending attitude and the way the person yielding the power acts. It reminds me of the guy who gets to direct traffic in the small suburban town for the 4th of July fireworks. All the power goes to their head. I know this is to be expected. But do you have to act so condecending. I remind myself...all I can do is get funnier.... all I can do is get funnier... and I still might not get a spot.
Comments are below
Posted on 06/23/2005 at 10:30 PM by Joe Fernandes
They say the cream always rises to the top. Just keep being you. I have noticed that, the rude comics, often are the worst comics. Just keep standing in line. Move over when the next person in line quits. Before you know it... you'll be right where your supposed to be. See ya Saturday.
By Invitation Only...
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 12:06 AM by Al Wagner
Now that I have seen you rock a room full of comics, the idea that you are getting resistance is very troubling, more so than if you were just a pot roast mama doing spoken-word karaoke. I just remember how sharp you were and a whole lot of laughter. It seems weird, and I know nothing except anecdotes about the booking dynamic, but if you come right out and ask for it, you don't get it. If you hang around and talk about how you are booked for the one competitor they actually feel envious of, then you will be asked. That's my Cinderella story, based on Nasonex-induced delusions.
And the buddy system is in full effect, and while that is every business, there are less alternatives in comedy. I Guess I hope that if I get comedy-blocked by a booker I will have other options, some club will have me when I am funny, but it sucks being turned down for no apparent reason when it is obvious you have game. And you were a five-minute doubleheader, so what does that say?
Ditto on what Joe said
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 08:39 AM by April Brucker
That is often true in my experiece. The rudest are often the worst
Robin, just don't do shows for jerks
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 12:48 PM by Shaun Eli
You're good enough that you can find stage time. No reason to drive yourself nuts nor to support bad behavior. And certainly don't go out of your way to steer people to a show run by someone you don't like.
That's why I always carry my business card-- if someone asks about a comedy show-- HERE! Read all about me. Come see me.
Some people have told me that I'm not ready for their room-- that they fill their shows with people who have TV credits (which, for those reading who are not comedians, is a selling point comedy clubs use-- our comics have all been on these TV shows...). Which is fine. If they then give stage-time to people with no TV credits who aren't as good as I am, I give them the benefit of the doubt that maybe they owed a favor. I've gotten into shows for the same reason. But if someone were to ask, they'd be told the truth. He owed me a show, or whatever. If I found out that the person lied to me, however, I stop trusting him. Period. And I very much try to avoid doing business with people I don't trust.
I couldnt have said it better.
Posted on 06/24/2005 at 01:29 PM by Robin Fox
Thank you... It just pissed me off. I needed to vent. I actually hesitated to write about this for a while and then thought...Im not looking to out this guy. I am looking to describe something that I think many comedians go through and wanted to share my anger and frustration. I need to look at more than what I have than what I dont... Tonight I am at DOnt Tell Mamas and I dont Have to bring a soul...based on how well I have done there before. Sat. night Joe and I and some other comics many who are here on the Soapbox will be doing a show for 300 people in East Brunswick, NJ. and getting paid. So boooo hoooo. I wonder what Mr 4th of July has going this weekend??
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Tuesday night Lantern open mic R.I.P.
Tonight was the final show of the Tuesday night Morrison Motel. I have come to love this show and am so sad to see it go. Worse yet is Matt O'Brian will soon be leaving NY to follow his writing dream in LA. John Morrison hit gold when he choose Matt to run the Tues. Night show. It was different from any open mic I had ever done. Before the Tues Motel I liked the Original Weds night Motel and if you had asked me at the time I would have thought that you couldn't improve perfection. Well Matt and DJ Scribbles did just that. Matt ran a tight fun and original gem of a show. I found my voice in this room. I learned so much from all the great talent and support and fun I found in this room. I looked forward to getting my lottery letter each week and held my breath till I found out if I made the cut or not. I looked forward to seeing Matt and John Morrison, Will, the gang form NJ, Raquel, Lisa Harmon, Jill Twiss, Eric Alexander, Sven, The guy who does German Scooby do...is it Seymour? Angry Bob, Manny, Emily Epstien,Nicole Cunningham, Mike Cayto,Guy Wench and all the others who I cant name but will still feel a special bond to for sharing and enjoying so many long fun nights with. I am sure I am not alone in saying Thank you Matt I will miss you most of all...I wish that all your biggest dreams you have for yourself come true. I also loved your song tonight. Matt sang a parody of I will survive, that killed. I am so sad to see it go. I am sure in years to come some of us will reminisce about the special times we shared in the little room that could and was killed....in a train wreck before its time.
Comments are below
Sorry to see the Tuesday Mic go...
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 07:15 AM by Adrienne
I think Matt is one of the best MC's and certainly a fav of mine. I wish him all the luck. How did your set at NYCC go?
Ditto on that
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 07:18 AM by April Brucker
I too think Matt is one of the best MC's and he was certainly wonderful to get to know as a person. He used to see me on my long jogs down Park Avenue. Anyway, I did a lot of growing as a comic in the Tuesday Night Shows and it became a part of my fabric. I too am sad to see it go. And I missed Matt's song. Damn!
I agree...
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 10:40 AM by Lisa Harmon
The Tuesday night open mic was my favorite too and Matt is one of my all time favorite comedians. I know he will hit it big in LA and we can all say we knew him when. Thanks Robin for the kind words - it is true, we had a lot of fun down there and a lot of very funny people. Best to Matt and DJ Skribbles, success could not come to two more deserving people.
Comments are below
Sorry to see the Tuesday Mic go...
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 07:15 AM by Adrienne
I think Matt is one of the best MC's and certainly a fav of mine. I wish him all the luck. How did your set at NYCC go?
Ditto on that
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 07:18 AM by April Brucker
I too think Matt is one of the best MC's and he was certainly wonderful to get to know as a person. He used to see me on my long jogs down Park Avenue. Anyway, I did a lot of growing as a comic in the Tuesday Night Shows and it became a part of my fabric. I too am sad to see it go. And I missed Matt's song. Damn!
I agree...
Posted on 06/22/2005 at 10:40 AM by Lisa Harmon
The Tuesday night open mic was my favorite too and Matt is one of my all time favorite comedians. I know he will hit it big in LA and we can all say we knew him when. Thanks Robin for the kind words - it is true, we had a lot of fun down there and a lot of very funny people. Best to Matt and DJ Skribbles, success could not come to two more deserving people.
Monday, June 13, 2005
Peer pressure
I had my first show for the Soapbox Friday night. I was very excited to finally get a shot at it... I wanted to do really well. Not to be late and knowing that traffic on a Friday night into the city can be brutal I left my home at 5:30pm. I figured I would get there early and get a bite to eat and then hit the pavement there after. Traffic was a nightmare and even by giving myself 2 and a half hours to get into NY.... by the time I found parking a half a mile away from the club.... I was 5 minutes late. I called ahead from 65th street at 7:50pm to say I was stuck in traffic and would be a few minutes late.
As soon as I got there I was put to work. I don't mind barking... but nothing was going right. I usually just try to do crowd work with the people... I joke with them and when I have done it in the past down in the Village I am fairly good at it. First let me say that even at 8pm it was still Friggin hot out. I thought I would get parking closer to the club so that I could leave my 200 lb pocketbook in the trunk of my car. This was my first mistake. I wanted my bag so I brought it with me. It also looked like rain so I carried an umbrella. A shitty street merchant pop up kind that the handle all of a sudden wouldn't retract.
I start to bark on the corner and just as I begin a Ice cream truck parks itself on the corner in front of me. He is going to be there for an hour with his engine on. So its diesel fumes for me. I'm an exhausted from my long drive in and I need to pee. Not only do I need to bark but they have there own special way of doing it. Basically you shout out the names of a few of the comics and then say there credits. Non stop. This is not how I am used to doing it but the woman in charge of me is with me and I have to do it her way. I am a team player and if I accept your terms I stick to them. I am exhausted. Why I have on sandals with a heal is just pure stupidity. I am thirsty because I haven't had a thing to drink since 4 pm. Fortunately the ice cream guy besides exhaust has bottled water. I ask to take a bathroom break go inside for a second and then wash my face. My pocketbook had dug a huge gash into my shoulder. Im too Friggin old for this. Why am I doing this. Do I need this. I am never going to make it in this business anyway.... why??
I go back out. I go on the far corner. Danny Mc D. is out on the corner nearest to the club. He is barking his ass off. Mind you does he need to do this. Not really. Sure he wants to make money. But he could ask any other comic inside to give a hand.....but he does it. I'm impressed. It is now 10pm I have been at it for a few minutes short of my 2 hours. Danny is still on his corner. The women in charge is working her tail off. I have never ever seen people working harder at barking in my life. It is now 10:20 and I am totally out of steam. I need a cigarette and I need to sit down. I nicely ask how much longer....because I haven't stopped all day and I'm exhausted. I even gave a thought as to asking if I could perform another night and get my barking as a on a gift certificate. I thought again and knew it was a really bad idea....not the best first impression.
I went into the club I looked at the room to see if any of the people I barked had showed up. I recognized a few. I was too tired to remember. As I went back to the bar to sit down I looked longingly at all the comedians who didn't have to bark. They were invited to come to the party as they were. I want to be one of these people. More than anything. I know we have to put our dues in...... But fuck I'm an old lady here. I just want to lay down and go to bed. I thought I had stamina. The Mc who was very sweet told me that I was to go on next. I am not ready. Perform who can perform....do I do comedy??? What set should I do? What is my set? I ask If I can have 10 minutes to sit and rest that I really need to cool off in the air conditioning and get myself back. I get a drink of water. Think of my set. I look for a place near the stage to stash my purse. Let me say.... I hate my purse. I hate the need to drag around that albatross...all night. What did I need it for.
The Mc introduces me and I come up to the stage. I look like shit I feel even worse. Thank god for adrenaline. I do my first joke and they laugh.... it is smooth sailing all the way through. The set went very well. I get off the stage and the other comics are very receptive and I detected a bit surprised that I did as well. A few comics that I know from other clubs who know me but never saw me perform before told me that I did really well....they liked my stuff. It is nice to earn the respect of your (one day I hope to be) peers. I felt very proud yet all I wanted to do is crawl home and into my bed and maybe have something to eat. The last meal I had eaten was at noon.
I go over to Danny McD. and thank him for the spot. He is very nice and thanks me for helping out. He tells me that he didn't see my set but has been told that I did a great job. I walk the half mile to my car......its all up fucking hill. There are scary men on the up the street and I think about hailing a cab to go 2 blocks. I just put on my crazy face....and put my keys in my fingers like brass knuckles hold my shitty umbrella in my other hand and walk. Who wants to rape an overweight housewife anyway...... There's a cute Spanish girl with a nice but walking her dog on the other side of the street.... I calculate who is more vulnerable. Its a tie. Dog plus hot girl or middle aged mommy without a dog. I get into my car lock all 5 doors with a press of a button and pull onto Columbus Ave. I decide to take 57th street to West End Ave to the Lincoln tunnel. The traffic isn't to bad at 11:00 ... I get to the Jersey side and its a parking lot. They closed the East extension of the Tpk and we all have take a detour onto Route 3 to the west extension of the Tpk. Fuck!
I got home almost at 1 AM. Was it worth it??? If one day and one day soon I pray.... I can be one of the comics who just puts in her avails and gets a spot without barking it will be. It isn't an ego thing. Its a god my feet are killing me and I need to pee thing.
Comments are below
No....but reading about was "worth it"
Posted on 06/13/2005 at 12:54 AM by Michael Hayne
In all that is holy, I'm buying you a lighter purse. I can only hope that you like "Cucci", because that's unfortunately all I can afford at the present moment. Really though, I'm so sorry things went absurdly chaotic for you, Robin. Although I'm glad to read the show went well despite everything else. Would have this happened to have been RB's West Side??
That's the biz....
Posted on 06/14/2005 at 09:43 AM by Lisa Harmon
I feel the same as you do Robin. Some nights are pure torture! It would be nice to not have to bark or for cyring out loud, a place to put our purses! It doesn't seem like a lot to ask but in a male-dominated world purses don't figure in. The only reward is that you had a great set and you know how hard you worked and have a sense of committment and accomplishment. When I'm done with a night of barking and I'm riding that lousy subway home, I'm beat but I know I worked my ass off for that six minutes on stage and that's what separates me from a lot of other people that aren't dedicated. It just means you understand how difficult stage time is to get. Maybe we should ask for a place to put our purses. Seriously, that sh*t is heavy!
I did it the night after you....
Posted on 06/14/2005 at 01:34 PM by Chris McDevitt
Same Deal, I was much later and barked much later. Goddamn that place gets creepy after like 10:30pm. I was the only one on the street NOT asking for money.
Craig Gass was fun. His Walken sounds like Reverend Jim though. Barking isn't bad, just pray the comic you're barking for has an easily pronounceable last name.
As soon as I got there I was put to work. I don't mind barking... but nothing was going right. I usually just try to do crowd work with the people... I joke with them and when I have done it in the past down in the Village I am fairly good at it. First let me say that even at 8pm it was still Friggin hot out. I thought I would get parking closer to the club so that I could leave my 200 lb pocketbook in the trunk of my car. This was my first mistake. I wanted my bag so I brought it with me. It also looked like rain so I carried an umbrella. A shitty street merchant pop up kind that the handle all of a sudden wouldn't retract.
I start to bark on the corner and just as I begin a Ice cream truck parks itself on the corner in front of me. He is going to be there for an hour with his engine on. So its diesel fumes for me. I'm an exhausted from my long drive in and I need to pee. Not only do I need to bark but they have there own special way of doing it. Basically you shout out the names of a few of the comics and then say there credits. Non stop. This is not how I am used to doing it but the woman in charge of me is with me and I have to do it her way. I am a team player and if I accept your terms I stick to them. I am exhausted. Why I have on sandals with a heal is just pure stupidity. I am thirsty because I haven't had a thing to drink since 4 pm. Fortunately the ice cream guy besides exhaust has bottled water. I ask to take a bathroom break go inside for a second and then wash my face. My pocketbook had dug a huge gash into my shoulder. Im too Friggin old for this. Why am I doing this. Do I need this. I am never going to make it in this business anyway.... why??
I go back out. I go on the far corner. Danny Mc D. is out on the corner nearest to the club. He is barking his ass off. Mind you does he need to do this. Not really. Sure he wants to make money. But he could ask any other comic inside to give a hand.....but he does it. I'm impressed. It is now 10pm I have been at it for a few minutes short of my 2 hours. Danny is still on his corner. The women in charge is working her tail off. I have never ever seen people working harder at barking in my life. It is now 10:20 and I am totally out of steam. I need a cigarette and I need to sit down. I nicely ask how much longer....because I haven't stopped all day and I'm exhausted. I even gave a thought as to asking if I could perform another night and get my barking as a on a gift certificate. I thought again and knew it was a really bad idea....not the best first impression.
I went into the club I looked at the room to see if any of the people I barked had showed up. I recognized a few. I was too tired to remember. As I went back to the bar to sit down I looked longingly at all the comedians who didn't have to bark. They were invited to come to the party as they were. I want to be one of these people. More than anything. I know we have to put our dues in...... But fuck I'm an old lady here. I just want to lay down and go to bed. I thought I had stamina. The Mc who was very sweet told me that I was to go on next. I am not ready. Perform who can perform....do I do comedy??? What set should I do? What is my set? I ask If I can have 10 minutes to sit and rest that I really need to cool off in the air conditioning and get myself back. I get a drink of water. Think of my set. I look for a place near the stage to stash my purse. Let me say.... I hate my purse. I hate the need to drag around that albatross...all night. What did I need it for.
The Mc introduces me and I come up to the stage. I look like shit I feel even worse. Thank god for adrenaline. I do my first joke and they laugh.... it is smooth sailing all the way through. The set went very well. I get off the stage and the other comics are very receptive and I detected a bit surprised that I did as well. A few comics that I know from other clubs who know me but never saw me perform before told me that I did really well....they liked my stuff. It is nice to earn the respect of your (one day I hope to be) peers. I felt very proud yet all I wanted to do is crawl home and into my bed and maybe have something to eat. The last meal I had eaten was at noon.
I go over to Danny McD. and thank him for the spot. He is very nice and thanks me for helping out. He tells me that he didn't see my set but has been told that I did a great job. I walk the half mile to my car......its all up fucking hill. There are scary men on the up the street and I think about hailing a cab to go 2 blocks. I just put on my crazy face....and put my keys in my fingers like brass knuckles hold my shitty umbrella in my other hand and walk. Who wants to rape an overweight housewife anyway...... There's a cute Spanish girl with a nice but walking her dog on the other side of the street.... I calculate who is more vulnerable. Its a tie. Dog plus hot girl or middle aged mommy without a dog. I get into my car lock all 5 doors with a press of a button and pull onto Columbus Ave. I decide to take 57th street to West End Ave to the Lincoln tunnel. The traffic isn't to bad at 11:00 ... I get to the Jersey side and its a parking lot. They closed the East extension of the Tpk and we all have take a detour onto Route 3 to the west extension of the Tpk. Fuck!
I got home almost at 1 AM. Was it worth it??? If one day and one day soon I pray.... I can be one of the comics who just puts in her avails and gets a spot without barking it will be. It isn't an ego thing. Its a god my feet are killing me and I need to pee thing.
Comments are below
No....but reading about was "worth it"
Posted on 06/13/2005 at 12:54 AM by Michael Hayne
In all that is holy, I'm buying you a lighter purse. I can only hope that you like "Cucci", because that's unfortunately all I can afford at the present moment. Really though, I'm so sorry things went absurdly chaotic for you, Robin. Although I'm glad to read the show went well despite everything else. Would have this happened to have been RB's West Side??
That's the biz....
Posted on 06/14/2005 at 09:43 AM by Lisa Harmon
I feel the same as you do Robin. Some nights are pure torture! It would be nice to not have to bark or for cyring out loud, a place to put our purses! It doesn't seem like a lot to ask but in a male-dominated world purses don't figure in. The only reward is that you had a great set and you know how hard you worked and have a sense of committment and accomplishment. When I'm done with a night of barking and I'm riding that lousy subway home, I'm beat but I know I worked my ass off for that six minutes on stage and that's what separates me from a lot of other people that aren't dedicated. It just means you understand how difficult stage time is to get. Maybe we should ask for a place to put our purses. Seriously, that sh*t is heavy!
I did it the night after you....
Posted on 06/14/2005 at 01:34 PM by Chris McDevitt
Same Deal, I was much later and barked much later. Goddamn that place gets creepy after like 10:30pm. I was the only one on the street NOT asking for money.
Craig Gass was fun. His Walken sounds like Reverend Jim though. Barking isn't bad, just pray the comic you're barking for has an easily pronounceable last name.
Wednesday, June 8, 2005
A Mothers Love
I am a Mom. Hurt me I will bleed .....hurt my child I will want to make you bleed. In my personal life I often joke about needing a mommy mafia to hand out justice to nasty adults and school bullies alike. Nothing brings out the lioness in a mother than the primal need to protect her children.
I did an open mic the other night and one of the bookers, who is a fantastic great guy came up to me after my set and told me how much he liked what I did. BUT.... He went on to say, that my set was disjointed. (It was an open mic with 6 other comics in the room) He also didn't get one of my jokes at all. It got a strong response in the open mic and it does in rooms with a paying audience. It is a clever joke with a sly punch and I often make fun of the one or two who don't laugh by saying....I guess you don't read. He turned out to be one of the people I would have had to make fun of for not getting it. I swear without revealing the joke it is obvious. I felt very defensive. The joke is about going on a whale watch.. He asked me if this had really happened to me. I said no.... I get sick too easily to go on a boat. He suggested in a very nice way that I shouldn't do the joke if it isn't real. I love this joke. I love it as much as you can love a joke like a child....there might lay the problem. Really though .... the joke was born by me and my life leading up till that moment of its conception.. I didn't just fall on the joke and take it home with me....that would be an adoption....or worse if I heard someone else do it and abduction. Maybe I need to be more objective of my material????? This gentleman is very supportive of me and I don't think he was coming from a mean place. However. He runs a room that I ache to be passed in. I disagree with the concept that unless it happened to me I cant use it in a performance and have it be funny. I gleaned this joke out of my own life experiences and what I might have said if I was in that situation. My being and life gave me a slant on the subject and my creativity gave me the joke. It is mine and real and even though I didn't go on the boat.....it is Real and reflects me and my sensibilities and comedic character. Now what do I do?? Where and what is artistic integrity here??? He wanted to know what happened after I got off the boat. I explained that it was a 3rd piece of a longer set about my gay friend Barbara. Don't tell him................but I don't have a real gay friend name Barbara. I once knew a girl who although she was married and had 3 children was very butch. Barb was created out of that soil. I breathed life into her. I'm not killing Barb I love her............not in a gay way ... she's my baby too.
Another time When I auditioned for a major club in NYC, afterworlds I was told that a punch line I had should be changed. She suggested a new punch line. It sucked. No really it did. I just stood there and listened. ( thinking are you nuts.....that isn't remotely funny) She had all the power..... I wasn't going to say " are you nuts??" " That joke kills and establishes myself with the audience." What I did was nod my head and act like....hummmmmmmmmmmm..... that's interesting. I had shelpped that joke around for 6 months and honed it and polished it, I did everything but breast feed it.... and in less than 10 minutes she knew what would turn the whole thing around!!!!!!! Where is her HBO special. What I did figure out,eventually, was the joke was the wrong one to open with in that room on that night. Afterworlds for the next 3 months was to tell my joke and then mention her Idea for the punch line.......and say hers is funnier if It will get me booked there.
You know what??? I appreciate all your feed back and support. I appreciate you wanting to help me. I listen and I do incorporate Ideas many times when other comics give me their feedback. What kills me is when a joke that you are so happy with ....that hits 99% of the time is examined..... Especially by by someone who could help me. I really respect the booker at the open mic. I think he really wants to make me a better comic. I think he takes the extra time to listen to my sets and wants to help. I am so defensive. I need to be open to criticism..... it might make me a better comic. I also do not want to look belligerent and un-teachable. I thanked him. I then spent the next 12 hours trying to figure out who is in a better place to judge the joke. Is its me who have dragged the joke from club to club....open mic to open mic ?????????or the Booker who has done comedy for almost a decade, who saw the joke at an open mic and saw it disjointed from its set placement, and not in a polished set. Note to self......... Be more like Ophira Eisenberg or Will McKinley. Every time they do an open mic it is a set good enough to audition for Letterman. It is honed and camera ready. I often use these rooms as JOKE AUDITIONS.... I make the joke go out and do its stuff and see if it can fly. Maybe this is wrong??
Back to the booker..... His last bit of advice was that I should be going to see some A list comics at work and see the masters at work. That perhaps I haven't been exposing myself to really good comedy, and picking up some bad habits. I haven't gone to many clubs to see top talent lately. I worked with Jessica Kirson and learned so much about characters and fleshing them out on stage. I watched Ted Alexandro and saw how being clever and body movement could come together. I saw Jim Brewer and learned that if you have an hour you can really let loose and that improv skills can shine. Lewis Black showed me intensity and controlled rage.....to talk about what infuriates me. I shy away from going to the city clubs because of a few reasons. Firstly if I am going to go to the city I want to perform. Secondly cost.
Just about at the end of my first year doing stand up I asked a A list comedian if she could coach me. She said that she didn't as a rule but she would look at a tape and decide if I was worth working with. I was looking for my Simon Cowle. This is a huge commitment of time away from my family and I didn't wish to waste my time or anyone else's if this was a delusional pipe dream. I waited the year because some people suck cause there new and some just suck cause there not funny. I needed some truth and told her I was willing to hear it....save me and everyone else from my own delusion. I mailed her my best 5 minutes and waited for her call. We arranged to meet in the city the next week. I asked her what she thought of the tape and she said, "we will talk when I see you". I didn't breathe for a week. She and I met in the city. As soon as we began she said.... " I watched your tape and I have to say I loved it. I took a deep breath of relief. She also went on to say..... That I would have to work hard and it wouldn't be easy. She has watched me progress as time has gone one.. and when our paths have crossed and I do a set She will make suggestions and tweaks. What feels different in this situation is perhaps, she doesn't hold the keys to the kingdom.....passing me at a club. She also comes from a place that says......I think your good and this might help. She is never...................Why this??? Why that??? She never makes me feel like I need to defend myself or a joke. That must be it. Like someone who criticizes my child rearing...............I want to run hide or rip your heart out. Yet if you suggest this might be great for your kid and I know how much your dedicated to them so here's something you might like to know about. or Fuck it................. Maybe I just like my medicine sugar coated.
I will say that there are many gauges of how well you are doing at this thing. Do you get booked? Do your make money? Do audiences like you consistently? Are you asked to do shows??? etc there are lots more. In the end though..... comedy is like music. I love one group you might loathe. I heard someone say they hated Lewis Black......it was unfathomable to me. But then some people like the music of Creed. Go know??
Comments are below
everyone loves giving advice
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 02:19 PM by Mark Anundson
listen to it all and take hardly any.
someone once told me.....
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 04:47 PM by April Brucker
advice is like candy. pick the pieces you like and don't eat the rest. (kinda makes sense but dosn't I know. Quote from an elderly relative).
I think Mark is right..
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 04:53 PM by Larry Bailey
Listen to everything, but trust your insticts. I did hear a story about Dave Chappelle about when he first came to NY. Neil, who's his writing partner suggested a different tag to a joke Dave was doing. Dave was very reluctant to listen to his advice, but he did and the joke killed. So I guess you never know.
Hey April...
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 05:43 PM by Michael Hayne
would that someone happen to be 'Forest Gump's' Mother?
My thoughts
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 06:45 PM by Shaun Eli
1. I was taught (and agree) that a joke in general works better if it COULD be realistic. I don't know your whale joke but if it could happen to you it probably works better than a joke that relies on an implausible premise.
2. I was there when Robin was told a different punchline to her joke. I thought I liked the suggestion (and didn't hesitate to tell Robin). BUT-- the beauty of stand-up comedy is... you can try each version a half-dozen times and see what works better. I like that better than simply asking people which version they like. Comedy relies on surprise. Surprise audiences with each version and see which gets better laughs. I know it's hard sometimes when someone tags a joke you've worked on for a year. I've done that for people too-- even comics way above my level (in my defense, I've been writing longer than they have). Sometimes they're receptive, sometimes they resent some 2 year comic giving them, a 6 year comic, a better tag. I hope that when I reach the 6 year mark and some new guy says "Try this..." that I'm receptive. Or at least that I say "Thanks!"
3. I would love for every set I do at an open-mike to kill. Some do, some don't. But I use open-mikes to try out new material, to experiment with ways to present old material, and in general to learn. Sure, I want to make people laugh, but my main goal at an open-mike is to LEARN HOW TO BE A BETTER COMIC.
michael
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 11:10 PM by April Brucker
No, actually. This was before the movie Forrest Gump even came out. She was soem older lady that used to go to my church. I was fairly young when I knew her and she died when I was nine. I was nine when Forest Gump came out. Anyho, she told me this once when I was even or eight and rady to make my communion and people were confusing me. She had an obedient hat too I remember. Wore it all the time. I think Hollywood stole from this lady because Forrest Gumps mama sounds a lot like her. She was an alter server too. Died suddenly. Nice lady. Really like her....
I did an open mic the other night and one of the bookers, who is a fantastic great guy came up to me after my set and told me how much he liked what I did. BUT.... He went on to say, that my set was disjointed. (It was an open mic with 6 other comics in the room) He also didn't get one of my jokes at all. It got a strong response in the open mic and it does in rooms with a paying audience. It is a clever joke with a sly punch and I often make fun of the one or two who don't laugh by saying....I guess you don't read. He turned out to be one of the people I would have had to make fun of for not getting it. I swear without revealing the joke it is obvious. I felt very defensive. The joke is about going on a whale watch.. He asked me if this had really happened to me. I said no.... I get sick too easily to go on a boat. He suggested in a very nice way that I shouldn't do the joke if it isn't real. I love this joke. I love it as much as you can love a joke like a child....there might lay the problem. Really though .... the joke was born by me and my life leading up till that moment of its conception.. I didn't just fall on the joke and take it home with me....that would be an adoption....or worse if I heard someone else do it and abduction. Maybe I need to be more objective of my material????? This gentleman is very supportive of me and I don't think he was coming from a mean place. However. He runs a room that I ache to be passed in. I disagree with the concept that unless it happened to me I cant use it in a performance and have it be funny. I gleaned this joke out of my own life experiences and what I might have said if I was in that situation. My being and life gave me a slant on the subject and my creativity gave me the joke. It is mine and real and even though I didn't go on the boat.....it is Real and reflects me and my sensibilities and comedic character. Now what do I do?? Where and what is artistic integrity here??? He wanted to know what happened after I got off the boat. I explained that it was a 3rd piece of a longer set about my gay friend Barbara. Don't tell him................but I don't have a real gay friend name Barbara. I once knew a girl who although she was married and had 3 children was very butch. Barb was created out of that soil. I breathed life into her. I'm not killing Barb I love her............not in a gay way ... she's my baby too.
Another time When I auditioned for a major club in NYC, afterworlds I was told that a punch line I had should be changed. She suggested a new punch line. It sucked. No really it did. I just stood there and listened. ( thinking are you nuts.....that isn't remotely funny) She had all the power..... I wasn't going to say " are you nuts??" " That joke kills and establishes myself with the audience." What I did was nod my head and act like....hummmmmmmmmmmm..... that's interesting. I had shelpped that joke around for 6 months and honed it and polished it, I did everything but breast feed it.... and in less than 10 minutes she knew what would turn the whole thing around!!!!!!! Where is her HBO special. What I did figure out,eventually, was the joke was the wrong one to open with in that room on that night. Afterworlds for the next 3 months was to tell my joke and then mention her Idea for the punch line.......and say hers is funnier if It will get me booked there.
You know what??? I appreciate all your feed back and support. I appreciate you wanting to help me. I listen and I do incorporate Ideas many times when other comics give me their feedback. What kills me is when a joke that you are so happy with ....that hits 99% of the time is examined..... Especially by by someone who could help me. I really respect the booker at the open mic. I think he really wants to make me a better comic. I think he takes the extra time to listen to my sets and wants to help. I am so defensive. I need to be open to criticism..... it might make me a better comic. I also do not want to look belligerent and un-teachable. I thanked him. I then spent the next 12 hours trying to figure out who is in a better place to judge the joke. Is its me who have dragged the joke from club to club....open mic to open mic ?????????or the Booker who has done comedy for almost a decade, who saw the joke at an open mic and saw it disjointed from its set placement, and not in a polished set. Note to self......... Be more like Ophira Eisenberg or Will McKinley. Every time they do an open mic it is a set good enough to audition for Letterman. It is honed and camera ready. I often use these rooms as JOKE AUDITIONS.... I make the joke go out and do its stuff and see if it can fly. Maybe this is wrong??
Back to the booker..... His last bit of advice was that I should be going to see some A list comics at work and see the masters at work. That perhaps I haven't been exposing myself to really good comedy, and picking up some bad habits. I haven't gone to many clubs to see top talent lately. I worked with Jessica Kirson and learned so much about characters and fleshing them out on stage. I watched Ted Alexandro and saw how being clever and body movement could come together. I saw Jim Brewer and learned that if you have an hour you can really let loose and that improv skills can shine. Lewis Black showed me intensity and controlled rage.....to talk about what infuriates me. I shy away from going to the city clubs because of a few reasons. Firstly if I am going to go to the city I want to perform. Secondly cost.
Just about at the end of my first year doing stand up I asked a A list comedian if she could coach me. She said that she didn't as a rule but she would look at a tape and decide if I was worth working with. I was looking for my Simon Cowle. This is a huge commitment of time away from my family and I didn't wish to waste my time or anyone else's if this was a delusional pipe dream. I waited the year because some people suck cause there new and some just suck cause there not funny. I needed some truth and told her I was willing to hear it....save me and everyone else from my own delusion. I mailed her my best 5 minutes and waited for her call. We arranged to meet in the city the next week. I asked her what she thought of the tape and she said, "we will talk when I see you". I didn't breathe for a week. She and I met in the city. As soon as we began she said.... " I watched your tape and I have to say I loved it. I took a deep breath of relief. She also went on to say..... That I would have to work hard and it wouldn't be easy. She has watched me progress as time has gone one.. and when our paths have crossed and I do a set She will make suggestions and tweaks. What feels different in this situation is perhaps, she doesn't hold the keys to the kingdom.....passing me at a club. She also comes from a place that says......I think your good and this might help. She is never...................Why this??? Why that??? She never makes me feel like I need to defend myself or a joke. That must be it. Like someone who criticizes my child rearing...............I want to run hide or rip your heart out. Yet if you suggest this might be great for your kid and I know how much your dedicated to them so here's something you might like to know about. or Fuck it................. Maybe I just like my medicine sugar coated.
I will say that there are many gauges of how well you are doing at this thing. Do you get booked? Do your make money? Do audiences like you consistently? Are you asked to do shows??? etc there are lots more. In the end though..... comedy is like music. I love one group you might loathe. I heard someone say they hated Lewis Black......it was unfathomable to me. But then some people like the music of Creed. Go know??
Comments are below
everyone loves giving advice
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 02:19 PM by Mark Anundson
listen to it all and take hardly any.
someone once told me.....
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 04:47 PM by April Brucker
advice is like candy. pick the pieces you like and don't eat the rest. (kinda makes sense but dosn't I know. Quote from an elderly relative).
I think Mark is right..
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 04:53 PM by Larry Bailey
Listen to everything, but trust your insticts. I did hear a story about Dave Chappelle about when he first came to NY. Neil, who's his writing partner suggested a different tag to a joke Dave was doing. Dave was very reluctant to listen to his advice, but he did and the joke killed. So I guess you never know.
Hey April...
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 05:43 PM by Michael Hayne
would that someone happen to be 'Forest Gump's' Mother?
My thoughts
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 06:45 PM by Shaun Eli
1. I was taught (and agree) that a joke in general works better if it COULD be realistic. I don't know your whale joke but if it could happen to you it probably works better than a joke that relies on an implausible premise.
2. I was there when Robin was told a different punchline to her joke. I thought I liked the suggestion (and didn't hesitate to tell Robin). BUT-- the beauty of stand-up comedy is... you can try each version a half-dozen times and see what works better. I like that better than simply asking people which version they like. Comedy relies on surprise. Surprise audiences with each version and see which gets better laughs. I know it's hard sometimes when someone tags a joke you've worked on for a year. I've done that for people too-- even comics way above my level (in my defense, I've been writing longer than they have). Sometimes they're receptive, sometimes they resent some 2 year comic giving them, a 6 year comic, a better tag. I hope that when I reach the 6 year mark and some new guy says "Try this..." that I'm receptive. Or at least that I say "Thanks!"
3. I would love for every set I do at an open-mike to kill. Some do, some don't. But I use open-mikes to try out new material, to experiment with ways to present old material, and in general to learn. Sure, I want to make people laugh, but my main goal at an open-mike is to LEARN HOW TO BE A BETTER COMIC.
michael
Posted on 06/08/2005 at 11:10 PM by April Brucker
No, actually. This was before the movie Forrest Gump even came out. She was soem older lady that used to go to my church. I was fairly young when I knew her and she died when I was nine. I was nine when Forest Gump came out. Anyho, she told me this once when I was even or eight and rady to make my communion and people were confusing me. She had an obedient hat too I remember. Wore it all the time. I think Hollywood stole from this lady because Forrest Gumps mama sounds a lot like her. She was an alter server too. Died suddenly. Nice lady. Really like her....
Thursday, June 2, 2005
The Agony and the Ecstasy
I was given a guest spot at The Comedy Village last Friday night. Its the new room run by PJ and Duncan J at the former Boston Comedy Club. I was feeling horrible all day. I was edgy and felt like a car that was idling too fast. I had little or no focus and felt like I was on the verge of tears....worst of all, I had no idea what was bothering me. Not the best place to be in to perform. I have learned that you MUST go on no matter how you are feeling. Happy, sad, whatever. For no other reason than, knowing you can perform under such conditions. What will happen if I get a big break one day and just my luck..................I'm not in just the right emotional space. So, no matter how I am feeling and at my age with all my hormones flying everywhere, the show must go on.
I arrived at the Village, wow I see a parking space right on the corner. I just turn and pull in. Then a car backs up and puts its window down and the driver says "Fuck you Cunt.....I had this space. Didn't you see me Bitch.???" I say "Sorry no I didn't see you"(there are only 10 more spaces free on the same street since its only 6:40.) "I will move". He didn't have his reverse lights or his directional on.....how was I to know? " Dad" says his 9 or so year old son "she said she's sorry she's gonna move,,,, leave her alone. " I pull out of the spot go 2 cars up and park. Welcome to NYC.
I ran over to a club around the corner to meet a comic from NJ who was doing the bringer there. He said he might need a few people to meet his quota. I had to eat dinner anyway and if I could help out another comic all the better. I warned him and another comic I know from NJ who was to be on the same show to time their sets. The last time I did a show at this place I brought 5 people and got the light at 3 min's. I didn't have my timer so I had no proof. I have done the set 100 times and I know how long it takes.... I was robbed. I am sorry its just wrong. I still am furious about this. They over book the shows or throw up friends and then fuck the comics who bring in the audience. I also resent the fairytale that industry is going to be there.......and Santa too. Sure enough one of my pals goes up with his I Pod recorder and tapes his set....when he gets off it says 3mins 39 seconds. They lit him at 2 and a half minutes. I told him to show it to the guy running the room his recorder... I still don't know what happened.
Off to my show. The comic I just went to see came with me to the Comedy Village. I take a seat up in the back...... the room looks nicer than when it was Boston. Duncan warms them up. In the front row by the stage are 2 gay guys on a first date. It is established that they met online in a chat room. One is wearing a suit 3 sizes to big and the other is wearing jeans and a dirty shit. Odd. The first 4 comics talk to them but lightly. I decide I need to stand out in this room. I need to be edgy and tough. I want to establish that I am not the mom who stays home and makes a pot roast. So I get up on stage and say something like "So you met in a chat room?" (they just said it one comic ago) to which they say "No." (strike one) I go " so how did you meet" they say "yahoo personals". So I say, " It is always awkward on a first date till you get that first kiss out of the way" "Have you two kissed yet?" They reply "No". I suggest that they should kiss. The guy in jeans says he will kiss me. "No Thanks" (strike two) so I say "Just kiss him ......ITS NOT LIKE YOUR NOT GONNA BLOW HIM LATER." .....................................nothing..................................................no laughs................................................no crickets.............................................maybe deaf mute crickets.............................all you could hear was the candle wax melting. I lash out at the audience and say.."hey if it was 2 girls you'd be cheering KISS HER KISS HER. ( strike three I'm fucked) So I switch gears and just go into my standard set. I get a few pity laughs.................. and scene.
Fortunately Duncan was taking a phone call out on the street and missed the entire thing. I go outside for a smoke, addictive little fuckers. He asks me how my set went and I was honest and told him that I have been known to have done better it wasn't my finest 5 minutes. I tell him my crowd work fiasco and he says, "No problem ....it will make you a better comic." Yes this is true BUT WILL THEY EVER BOOK EL STINKO AGAIN???? Just then PJ walks up and asks the same question. I am just as honest with him. He says .... "Well you'll just have to come back and do better next time wont you??" I thought that was decent. I like these men.
The pleasant thoughts float away and my desperation and depression start to marinate into a putrid stank. I had my chance an I blew it. I second guess my judgement. Why did I go into the crowd??? WHY?? WHY??? I need to go home and bake some cookies. I knew from the minute I opened my eyes it was going to be an off day.
I don't want to go home. I walk over to Sal's and he greets me and is happy to see me. I tell him about bombing and he says...."It happens" Yeah well ............I still hate it. He asks me if I am going to be around at 12 am. He and the gang are going to BBQ. I should come. So I say, "maybe"....If I don't lay down in traffic first. I sit at table on the street and order a drink. Let the chain smoking begin!!!!!!!!!!!!! I sit and review my set like it is the Zabruder Kennedy assassination film. I talk to the comics as they come and go. I commiserate and get a lot of..... Don't let it get you down, your funny, it happens, along with..... How long are you doing this???? Shit this one and that one all sucked in the beginning....consider yourself lucky and in good company. As each comic goes in to do their sets, I lighten up a bit. Duncan comes by from his club and says hi. He reassures me that he likes my stuff and to not worry. It happens. Katie has been barking for a while and I tell her to sit down and I get up and bark for her for a few minutes. When she goes in to wait to do her set I'm barking and still talking to Duncan. Sal comes out and asks me if I want to do a spot. I hesitate saying I couldn't bear to bomb again. He offers again. Duncan looks at me and says. " NEVER, ever turn down a spot." I thank Sal and he says in 15 minutes your on. I walk in and a comic who I respect who always does well is having a rough time. The sure thing jokes aren't landing right. The comic plows on. Its not going well. I ache inside. I hate comedy ... I hate these ass holes. I pray they don't hate me back. The comic walks off after their done head down. Seconds later its my turn. No time to get creative. I take my tried and true blue set out of my bag of tricks and start. I had barked a few of the tables into the room and there laughing. Maybe I don't hate you. I continue and its going good. The jokes are hitting and what???? some clapping... I Love the Clapping...more more ....That feels good don't stop. I hit my five minute spot and there is no light. I continue around the stretch to my second five and break a new NYC record. I do 14 minutes and they love me!!!! And I LOVE THEM!! I want to take them all home with me and feed them Pot roast.
Later that night I am talking to the comic who bombed. We discuss how random it is. The BBQ begins and I'm with my friends sitting on Mac Dougal street on a roof top deck.... living a dream bigger than I ever dreamed to have. I walked to my car and I see Duncan outside of his club. I tell him I had a great set. He tells me he heard. Some comic told him already. ",Good for you," he says. " Never turn down a set." I got into my car drove out to the Holland tunnel sat in traffic at 2 am for an hour and went home.
Comments are below
on and off days.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 09:14 AM by April Brucker
We all have off days and on days. I know I had a few off days. But you learn more from a bad set than a good set. But the good thing is, as someone told me, "you dust your butt off and keep on going." And that is exactly what you did, and what comedy is about. Good job and keep 'em laughing.
The set wasn't that bad.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 11:04 AM by Chris McDevitt
Let's face it.. Wrong audience. You had a coupla fags, me, some military midwesterners, and a mixed potpourri of minorities and comics. A set isn't a bomb just because they don't tickle your asshole with their tongue. If you reach one sneaky bastard made out of chocolate. The set is a success. As for the same sex couple in the front row, they were the absolute bottoms of the barrel (pun intended.) They didn't know how to dress, didn't know how to date, one was drinking wine the other was drinking bud light. They were the nerds of the gay community. So can we assume, NOT YOUR TARGET MARKET. Don't worry about disappointing them. I'm glad you had a good set at the Hole. Interesting place. I got the feeling from my two hours sitting there, that the bartender could get you just about anything you wanted, and I don't mean drinks.
Good enough for the invite...
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 11:30 AM by Al Wagner
The good news is that you are good, generous and appreciated enough to be offered a spot...and I don't think that happens without the being good part too...the bad news seems to be that no matter how successful you are on the whole that the audience dynamic still unhinges us when they don't laugh, play dumb or worse...and I am not speaking from the successful perspective, just passing on what I hear. As quickly as laughter can lube the Tin Man, silence condenses one hundred years of rust into a single hush. And sometimes the victory is in just getting out the next few words...but bombing well appears essential (oh how I wish it was as easy as just knowing that) considering it is unavoidable at some point for us all. I liked your ad lib...should have brought you the release of tension. And it sounds like going into the audience was the ripe idea and not poorly done, so like a smart stock that tanks you somehow have to accept that a good decision had unexpected consequences...I am a master of "if only" and self-sabotage critique, so again it is easier said than done...but you teach by sharing. !:@)
Rainbow at the end of the storm.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 12:21 PM by Adrienne
Glad you did well at Sals....See the first set was just your warm-up.....Duncan is right you should never give up a spot especially when you drive so far into the city....If I were you I would have been more upset with the guy in the parking spot. I would have never gotten out and would have told him to go f himself. Just like that, becuase his son was in the car. But if he wasnt I would have said the whole word...lol
all I can say
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 02:29 PM by Mark Anundson
is thank God I am not a woman.... kidding... not really...
Parking
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 03:11 PM by Shaun Eli
No, if Robin was pulling head-first into a space a guy was backing into, it was his space. But there was no call for cursing at her, he just should have explained that he was there first.
On my second date with my girlfriend I was backing into a space when a woman pulled right in behind me. We explained to her what she did was wrong and that we were already backing in when she pulled in. She wouldn't even roll down her window to talk about it, and wouldn't get out of the car. After trying to reason with her for five minutes we drove away and found a space at the other end of the block.
I won't say on a public forum what we did to her car when we got back from dinner, but my girlfriend was very supportive of my actions.
comedy village
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 03:24 PM by Sean O'Connor
comedy village seems majestical
I had no issue with moving
Posted on 06/03/2005 at 02:16 AM by Robin Fox
The space shouldn't have been mine. That's not the point here. I had no way of knowing he wasn't signaling nor was his reverse lights on. I cant read minds. Plus there were 10 spots clear in front of him. I cant get over the way he spoke in front of his child. Also thank you Al for your nice comments. And Mark you should thank god... it aint ez being a woman. In body, In life and in comedy. Sean I like the Comedy Village. I got no where with the Boston. They looked at me like my Mini Van was double parked and I must be late for car pool. At least these guys gave me a chance. I also like the open mic on Tues. I hit it and then do the Lantern and end at Sal's.
I arrived at the Village, wow I see a parking space right on the corner. I just turn and pull in. Then a car backs up and puts its window down and the driver says "Fuck you Cunt.....I had this space. Didn't you see me Bitch.???" I say "Sorry no I didn't see you"(there are only 10 more spaces free on the same street since its only 6:40.) "I will move". He didn't have his reverse lights or his directional on.....how was I to know? " Dad" says his 9 or so year old son "she said she's sorry she's gonna move,,,, leave her alone. " I pull out of the spot go 2 cars up and park. Welcome to NYC.
I ran over to a club around the corner to meet a comic from NJ who was doing the bringer there. He said he might need a few people to meet his quota. I had to eat dinner anyway and if I could help out another comic all the better. I warned him and another comic I know from NJ who was to be on the same show to time their sets. The last time I did a show at this place I brought 5 people and got the light at 3 min's. I didn't have my timer so I had no proof. I have done the set 100 times and I know how long it takes.... I was robbed. I am sorry its just wrong. I still am furious about this. They over book the shows or throw up friends and then fuck the comics who bring in the audience. I also resent the fairytale that industry is going to be there.......and Santa too. Sure enough one of my pals goes up with his I Pod recorder and tapes his set....when he gets off it says 3mins 39 seconds. They lit him at 2 and a half minutes. I told him to show it to the guy running the room his recorder... I still don't know what happened.
Off to my show. The comic I just went to see came with me to the Comedy Village. I take a seat up in the back...... the room looks nicer than when it was Boston. Duncan warms them up. In the front row by the stage are 2 gay guys on a first date. It is established that they met online in a chat room. One is wearing a suit 3 sizes to big and the other is wearing jeans and a dirty shit. Odd. The first 4 comics talk to them but lightly. I decide I need to stand out in this room. I need to be edgy and tough. I want to establish that I am not the mom who stays home and makes a pot roast. So I get up on stage and say something like "So you met in a chat room?" (they just said it one comic ago) to which they say "No." (strike one) I go " so how did you meet" they say "yahoo personals". So I say, " It is always awkward on a first date till you get that first kiss out of the way" "Have you two kissed yet?" They reply "No". I suggest that they should kiss. The guy in jeans says he will kiss me. "No Thanks" (strike two) so I say "Just kiss him ......ITS NOT LIKE YOUR NOT GONNA BLOW HIM LATER." .....................................nothing..................................................no laughs................................................no crickets.............................................maybe deaf mute crickets.............................all you could hear was the candle wax melting. I lash out at the audience and say.."hey if it was 2 girls you'd be cheering KISS HER KISS HER. ( strike three I'm fucked) So I switch gears and just go into my standard set. I get a few pity laughs.................. and scene.
Fortunately Duncan was taking a phone call out on the street and missed the entire thing. I go outside for a smoke, addictive little fuckers. He asks me how my set went and I was honest and told him that I have been known to have done better it wasn't my finest 5 minutes. I tell him my crowd work fiasco and he says, "No problem ....it will make you a better comic." Yes this is true BUT WILL THEY EVER BOOK EL STINKO AGAIN???? Just then PJ walks up and asks the same question. I am just as honest with him. He says .... "Well you'll just have to come back and do better next time wont you??" I thought that was decent. I like these men.
The pleasant thoughts float away and my desperation and depression start to marinate into a putrid stank. I had my chance an I blew it. I second guess my judgement. Why did I go into the crowd??? WHY?? WHY??? I need to go home and bake some cookies. I knew from the minute I opened my eyes it was going to be an off day.
I don't want to go home. I walk over to Sal's and he greets me and is happy to see me. I tell him about bombing and he says...."It happens" Yeah well ............I still hate it. He asks me if I am going to be around at 12 am. He and the gang are going to BBQ. I should come. So I say, "maybe"....If I don't lay down in traffic first. I sit at table on the street and order a drink. Let the chain smoking begin!!!!!!!!!!!!! I sit and review my set like it is the Zabruder Kennedy assassination film. I talk to the comics as they come and go. I commiserate and get a lot of..... Don't let it get you down, your funny, it happens, along with..... How long are you doing this???? Shit this one and that one all sucked in the beginning....consider yourself lucky and in good company. As each comic goes in to do their sets, I lighten up a bit. Duncan comes by from his club and says hi. He reassures me that he likes my stuff and to not worry. It happens. Katie has been barking for a while and I tell her to sit down and I get up and bark for her for a few minutes. When she goes in to wait to do her set I'm barking and still talking to Duncan. Sal comes out and asks me if I want to do a spot. I hesitate saying I couldn't bear to bomb again. He offers again. Duncan looks at me and says. " NEVER, ever turn down a spot." I thank Sal and he says in 15 minutes your on. I walk in and a comic who I respect who always does well is having a rough time. The sure thing jokes aren't landing right. The comic plows on. Its not going well. I ache inside. I hate comedy ... I hate these ass holes. I pray they don't hate me back. The comic walks off after their done head down. Seconds later its my turn. No time to get creative. I take my tried and true blue set out of my bag of tricks and start. I had barked a few of the tables into the room and there laughing. Maybe I don't hate you. I continue and its going good. The jokes are hitting and what???? some clapping... I Love the Clapping...more more ....That feels good don't stop. I hit my five minute spot and there is no light. I continue around the stretch to my second five and break a new NYC record. I do 14 minutes and they love me!!!! And I LOVE THEM!! I want to take them all home with me and feed them Pot roast.
Later that night I am talking to the comic who bombed. We discuss how random it is. The BBQ begins and I'm with my friends sitting on Mac Dougal street on a roof top deck.... living a dream bigger than I ever dreamed to have. I walked to my car and I see Duncan outside of his club. I tell him I had a great set. He tells me he heard. Some comic told him already. ",Good for you," he says. " Never turn down a set." I got into my car drove out to the Holland tunnel sat in traffic at 2 am for an hour and went home.
Comments are below
on and off days.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 09:14 AM by April Brucker
We all have off days and on days. I know I had a few off days. But you learn more from a bad set than a good set. But the good thing is, as someone told me, "you dust your butt off and keep on going." And that is exactly what you did, and what comedy is about. Good job and keep 'em laughing.
The set wasn't that bad.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 11:04 AM by Chris McDevitt
Let's face it.. Wrong audience. You had a coupla fags, me, some military midwesterners, and a mixed potpourri of minorities and comics. A set isn't a bomb just because they don't tickle your asshole with their tongue. If you reach one sneaky bastard made out of chocolate. The set is a success. As for the same sex couple in the front row, they were the absolute bottoms of the barrel (pun intended.) They didn't know how to dress, didn't know how to date, one was drinking wine the other was drinking bud light. They were the nerds of the gay community. So can we assume, NOT YOUR TARGET MARKET. Don't worry about disappointing them. I'm glad you had a good set at the Hole. Interesting place. I got the feeling from my two hours sitting there, that the bartender could get you just about anything you wanted, and I don't mean drinks.
Good enough for the invite...
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 11:30 AM by Al Wagner
The good news is that you are good, generous and appreciated enough to be offered a spot...and I don't think that happens without the being good part too...the bad news seems to be that no matter how successful you are on the whole that the audience dynamic still unhinges us when they don't laugh, play dumb or worse...and I am not speaking from the successful perspective, just passing on what I hear. As quickly as laughter can lube the Tin Man, silence condenses one hundred years of rust into a single hush. And sometimes the victory is in just getting out the next few words...but bombing well appears essential (oh how I wish it was as easy as just knowing that) considering it is unavoidable at some point for us all. I liked your ad lib...should have brought you the release of tension. And it sounds like going into the audience was the ripe idea and not poorly done, so like a smart stock that tanks you somehow have to accept that a good decision had unexpected consequences...I am a master of "if only" and self-sabotage critique, so again it is easier said than done...but you teach by sharing. !:@)
Rainbow at the end of the storm.....
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 12:21 PM by Adrienne
Glad you did well at Sals....See the first set was just your warm-up.....Duncan is right you should never give up a spot especially when you drive so far into the city....If I were you I would have been more upset with the guy in the parking spot. I would have never gotten out and would have told him to go f himself. Just like that, becuase his son was in the car. But if he wasnt I would have said the whole word...lol
all I can say
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 02:29 PM by Mark Anundson
is thank God I am not a woman.... kidding... not really...
Parking
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 03:11 PM by Shaun Eli
No, if Robin was pulling head-first into a space a guy was backing into, it was his space. But there was no call for cursing at her, he just should have explained that he was there first.
On my second date with my girlfriend I was backing into a space when a woman pulled right in behind me. We explained to her what she did was wrong and that we were already backing in when she pulled in. She wouldn't even roll down her window to talk about it, and wouldn't get out of the car. After trying to reason with her for five minutes we drove away and found a space at the other end of the block.
I won't say on a public forum what we did to her car when we got back from dinner, but my girlfriend was very supportive of my actions.
comedy village
Posted on 06/02/2005 at 03:24 PM by Sean O'Connor
comedy village seems majestical
I had no issue with moving
Posted on 06/03/2005 at 02:16 AM by Robin Fox
The space shouldn't have been mine. That's not the point here. I had no way of knowing he wasn't signaling nor was his reverse lights on. I cant read minds. Plus there were 10 spots clear in front of him. I cant get over the way he spoke in front of his child. Also thank you Al for your nice comments. And Mark you should thank god... it aint ez being a woman. In body, In life and in comedy. Sean I like the Comedy Village. I got no where with the Boston. They looked at me like my Mini Van was double parked and I must be late for car pool. At least these guys gave me a chance. I also like the open mic on Tues. I hit it and then do the Lantern and end at Sal's.
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