This is part of my promise to be more Amish. I’m getting on my grind. I have an 8pm show. I want to ready come 6 so I have 3.75 hours to get ready. I’m going to do some cleaning up and then watch all my comedy video’s and figure out which jokes to use tonight. I’m not throwing anything new in tonight, just refining my set. I hope everyone can come out and enjoy a good show.
If you’re interested in getting free tix for it, holla at me.
Laugh Lounge - Essex & Stanton - LES, NYC.
I read a good comics blog post the other day about how she’s frustrated with the industry and it’s unwritten set of rules for “coming up”. I feel the same way she does. Everyone has a different way, often contradicting each other, all leading to gaining odds of being discovered. No clear cut route, no writing in a stone, no map with an X. Just a set of rules other generally slightly more successful/well-known comics try to share with you. Why am I listening to these dudes? I’m in the same shitty early afternoon open mic as these guys. I’m getting the same awkward laughter as them.
A good friend who I miss greatly (come home dude!) told me before he left that I shouldn’t follow the rules set before me. He made it clear that I have the talent to do what I want. This mystical brass ring in front of me is mine to get and not to let anyone tell me how. I’m getting hyped just thinking about it. Once thing I’m sure of is that I want a crew of comics to “get it” with me. I’m not in this to make a name for myself. I’m in this to open doors for my people. I’m in this for the ability to put really funny people on and let them shine. If they fail, they deserve the opportunity to come back.
When I was a manager I awarded hard work just as much as I did success. Why? Because success comes and goes but a great work ethic is here to stay. Somewhere along the way to where I’ve gotten today I forgot that. I’m sorry for that. I’m sorry for everyone who believed in me and I didn’t reach their expectation. I’m sorry for everyone who’s pushed me and I didn’t move. I’m sorry to everyone who told me I’d amount to something and I didn’t commit hard enough to it. I’m especially sorry to everyone who told me I’d be nothing and anything I’ve done has helped you think you were right. I reached great hieghts in the corporate sales game because I stood tall every time someone pushed me back.
What am I going to do now? I’m going to get on my amish grind. Thats right. Work twice as hard as the next guy and get this shit. One day the line-up I chose to put up on stage with me will feed their families, not just our egos.
I’m convinced there is no such thing as success but I’m still running after it. I make fun of my wife cause she has such a positive outlook on life. I try and say it’s cause I was raised in Newark and she’s from a nice suburb. I often tell her she still believes a unicorn is going to show up in our apartment for her one day. She jsut believes things/people are inherently good.
I’m a pessimistic bastard. I know it. I actually enjoy it. I’m real. I know this world is ready to hit you over the head, take your wallet and turn your asshole into a cannoli. However, for some reason I feel the harder I work at comedy (this includes Improv and other funny-related things) the more likely I will become a success at it. I’m starting to think I’m just fooling myself. That said I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. It may not exist but I’m going for it like it’s around the next corner.
Okay, I’ve been discovered. As some of you may or may not know I’ve decided to be very selective about whom I tell I am becoming a comedian. Recently my in-laws found out. Well they didn’t exactly find out but they asked enough questions that I decided to tell them. This all started because my sister is a bit big mouthed and one certain future in-law has big ears. Put those two together and BANG.
I didn’t expect them to be oppossed to it. Frankly, they’ve all told me countless times that I should be a comedian. What I wasn’t prepared for was the well wishes and support. I don’t know how to take it. I’m used to proving people wrong. I’m not too used to being told “you can do it”. I’ve been absolutely floored by both their non-surprise and their willingness to proactively support.
My wife has been the most supportive which should go without saying. I’ve also been really impressed by my sister and her husband. I always assumed they would look at it as a foolish approach but everyone I’ve come in contact with has been pushing me forward.
I’m not sure I started this post as a Thank You post but thats how it’s ending. The start of this trip has been fun and rewarding. I’m glad you’ve all been here for it but I’m more happy that you will all be here for the long haul.
Okay. Thanks to some sales techniques I learned along the way, I’ve been able to acquire my own show. It’s going down in two weeks (Oct. 9th @ 11:00PM) at the Village Lantern. I’m really excited and a bit worried. I think I’m going to go “all out” for this and let a large group of my friends and former co-workers know. I have to fill the room of 40-45 seats in order to be invited back as a promoter.
Before you ask, no it doesn’t pay. Well it does kind of pay but only enough to Supersize it. I guess this is what you do on the way up. I don’t mind proving myself. I’ve done it before and I’ll have to do it again and again.
BTW: Hit me up if you’re interested in attending the show.
I got the DVD in question. I looked at it and there is SOMETHING burned on it. What? I dunno. So far two people with the expertise to look at it have found nothing. I’m depressed. I’m sure I can duplicate the performance but it’s disturbing that this would happen. In a few years when I’m getting ready to perform at Carnegie Hall in front of the HBO cameras for my special, this will be something I’ll laugh at. If I could just get over it now.
Last week there were about 8 comics. 1 was “featured” meaning he’s a house act and the other was the producer of the show. I received more laughs and ovations than both of them put together. Not to toot my horn, just facts. It was my greatest set. Probably the greatest set they’ve had in that room in years. 10 minutes of consistent roaring laughter. Someone actually yelled “ENCORE” at the end. My DVD (recorded by the producer via his camcorder) was, mysteriously, the only one that didn’t work. He told me he had friends with “high tech equipment” which could look at it and see if they could pull the video off of it.
I didn’t like the sound of it, nor do I trust anyone, but why would he lie? Jealousy? Did he simply forget to record and felt bad? I couldn’t imagine why he would lie but I still don’t like it. One week later and I find out that the DVD is not recoverable and I’m lost to do it all over again. Not to say I can’t but it puts me back a week.
Reviewing this story with a few more seasoned comics, I’m told how some producers might want to keep that DVD to send to agents and bookers to try and make money off of me. The agents/bookers would reach out to me for real work and secretly the producer who “found” me would make a cut of each of my sets. I’m not sure if this is what is happening but if I find some funky shit, I’m going back to EWR Alexis. UWS Alexis will take that day off…
I haven’t posted in forever, however, I’ve been on my grind. I got contacted by a booker for a club who asked me a shitload of questions. He found me funny enough from the conversation to put me on. He’s invited me back each time. Granted this week I had the most laughs of anyone up and I even had someone yell encore as I came stage (hard to hear over the roar of applause).
I’ve been contemplating what I’m actually doing and how I’m faring. Should I try to work as many clubs as possible or should I stick with one which obviously really believes in me. I’m going to speak with some more established comics and see what they think.
I read on another blog about how he spent some time away from the city and it reminded him of why he went to NYC in the first place. I’m getting on the same grind as of today. Everyday is about the dream. I gotta get it done.
I actually signed up for something related to comedy. I had a long conversation with my wife yesterday. Here was the equation for that conversation:
me(still sick + alcohol + tired + warm) + wife(drunk) + anniversary
I explained that as I signed up for this improv class, I would be declaring that I would not be proactively searching for sales management job. She agreed. My only concern is whether should would remember any of it the next day. So I did it, I paid and everything. It’s official.
I decided on an improv class and not a stand up class because I think stand up is something which needs to be natural and not taught. They’re not like acting classes or cooking classes. I don’t want to learn how to construct a joke and sound like an 80’s comic. “People who ride the bus… whats up with them?” get the fuck outta here. The best “comedians” are people to walk you through theories and stories while on stage. Constructed jokes in the classic sense, or at least as taught in a 101 class are not modern. I would rather get up there and learn from failing. Although this sounds like the roughest road, I assume it’ll help me find my voice quicker
The wife is pretty excited about it, along with some concern. I’m sure it’s difficult on her to know that her job is the only one carrying our additional expenditures. I’m sure it’s unfair to some degree as I understand this is a gamble. A gamble that if it works out will prove to be very lucrative. I also assume that if it isn’t going to work out I’ll know very quickly and can resume my bleh normal life.
So here we go. I start in 13.5 days. It’s a once a week course. I was hoping for an intensive (5 days/wk) course but they were all sold out already. I opted for once a week for 8 weeks. This leaves me enough time to begin putting together some of my ideas for stand-up and some of the video’s I want to record.
I want to begin writing as soon as possible. I’m hoping I can find some people I can click with that have the same sense of humor as I do and I can begin writing with them. Lot’s of assuming and hoping going on but at the end of the day I’m one step closer to my goals. Actually if it paid well enough I would love to be a writer for SNL. I’m not sure how secure the job is but it looks like it’d be a ton of fun.
