Everybody Has OCD, Including the Comedians We’ve Seen Live
I heard someone on the radio recently, claiming that everybody has obsessive-compulsive disorder to a certain extent. Most folks are able to adjust and it’s not a huge issue for them, but people with advanced cases can end up in the wacky shack before it’s all over. You’ve seen them on TV, muttering numbers and going through complicated rituals, etc. Weird shit.
If it’s true that we all suffer from OCD (and I suspect it is), I’d like to know how it manifests itself with you.
If you could see my desk at work, you’d know right away that I wasn’t able to escape unscathed. Unless I’m in the middle of something extra-crazy, everything is in its place. The phone is pointing in a specific direction, and if it’s moved even a centimeter while I’m away, I know. And it pisses me off. Same goes for my legal pad and pen, calculator, and desk calendar. Keep your booger-hooks off my stuff. ‘Cause I can sense that something is askew, even if it’s imperceptible to the human eye.
There’s a guy who sits a few desks away from me who works amongst a towering heap of trash. Clearly, his dusting of OCD hasn’t triggered a neatness compulsion. I have to turn away, while I’m walking past. It’s almost too much to handle. I expect it to collapse on him someday, and his toes to curl up underneath, like the Wicked Witch of Wilkes-Barre. But I digress…
The strange thing? I’m not all freaky-neat in my office at home. In fact, it’s often a disgraceful mess. Like right now, for instance… Wonder what that’s all about? My OCD seems to be location-specific.
What about you? Can you point to anything that might be an indicator of obsessive-compulsive disorder? If so, tell us about it. Also, if you have any stories to tell about people you’ve known, who are afflicted much worse than you are… Please use the comments link below.
Oh, and I also HATE when people have icons on their desktop just scattered around all willy-nilly. Right-click that shit into some kind of order, already! Holy hell. It’s unnecessary chaos, and bothers me greatly.
Now we need your stories.
And the second Question of the Day… Which well-known comedians have you seen perform live? You know, speaking of OCD. I’ve been to hundreds of rock shows, but not a whole lotta comedy. Oh, I’ve visited a few comedy clubs along the way, but the “talent” was usually unknowns. To me, anyway.
As far as well-known comedians are concerned, I can only think of Steve Martin, Jay Leno, Sam Kinison, Jeff Foxworthy, and Robert Schimmel.
Steve Martin was the very first “concert” I ever attended, in Huntington, WV, at the height of his white suit wild-and-crazy-guy popularity. We were seated far back, in a giant auditorium, and he did a special magic trick for us called “the dime trick.” Heh. The encore: “King Tut.”
Jay Leno appeared at a deli in Charleston, WV, called Michael B’s (I swear it’s true). They wanted to start booking comedy acts on the weekends, and Leno was the first. This was before the Tonight Show, when he used to go on Letterman all the time and bitch about the stuff that was getting him “steamed.” He was really funny back then. Some of you might have a hard time believing it, but it’s true.
I saw Sam Kinison at a medium-sized theater in Greensboro, NC. I always liked him, even when it wasn’t cool to admit it, and the Greensboro show was a lot of fun. The guy was pacing back and forth all night, like he was trying to stop himself from completely losing his shit. He acted tightly-coiled, if you know what I mean. I’m still a fan.
Jeff Foxworthy performed at one of our conventions, when I worked in the music biz. He was funny. What can I say? You try not to like it, but he wins you over.
And I saw Robert Schimmel at a fancy-pants hotel in Anaheim, CA, years ago. Good god, my sphincter nearly released. I was sore for a week, from laughing. He had that room rocking, and it was an amazing thing to behold. The guy was a master… and now he’s gone. He’s probably raising nine shades of hell with Kinison in heaven (or wherever).
Have you seen any big-time comedians perform? If so, tell us about it in the comments section below. And just so you know, Toney saw Monty Python at the Hollywood Bowl, when she was a teenager. How cool is that? She also saw the Clash, and I didn’t. But that’s another story for another day…
I’ll see you again tomorrow.
Have a great day, boys and girls.
Filed under: Daily
Good Morning Surf Reporters…….
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ok, now that’s out of the way..
Robin Williams @ Heinz Hall /Pittsburgh on Mother’s Day way way back.. 1979, 80i’sh. Mom and Grandma brought me along… about the only real memory was Williams looked down in the front row and saw a silver haired, surely great grandmother…
he said “hello, happy mothers day ..and just to let you know, grandma, I’m going to say fuck tonight… a lot” which he pretty much did thereout in his manic raving style…
Bill Cosby…Penn State _ Beaver, around the same time. Much smaller setting, outdoor, ampitheater like. He came out, sat down on a chair and told stories for the next 2 hours… typical growing up in Philadelphia, hard streets, Dad don’t take no bullshit, look out Mush mouth, Fat Albert’s mad this time…
Billy Elmer, a local, semi famous comedian… that was at the Funny Bone, or Laugh Track or Giggles…2 drink minimum at $6.50 a pop & 3 warm up acts, all who pretty much died right there in front of the room.
….and I can only imagine seeing Robert Schimmel live. I’ve seen HBO specials and others and have also almost ripped a sphincter with laughter…
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I skipped out on going to see George Carlin live – probably about six months to a year before he died. That changed my concert going habits, and now if I have the chance and I can afford it, I don’t pass something up. Still haven’t seen any comedians live (they’re like 2 or 3x as expensive as the concerts I go to), but thanks to Carlin, I’ve seen a ton of musical acts that I probably would have skipped out on otherwise.
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In the L. Frank Baum book, on which the movie is based, the slippers are silver. MGM wanted to show off Technicolor.
Here’s a pretty good piece from Joe Posnanski on Dandy Don…
http://joeposnanski.si.com/2010/12/06/dandy-don/?xid=cnnbin&hpt=Sbin
jtb
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clintcurtis Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
Wow! I did not know that, although I think most people are like me and have only seen the movie, and not read the book. I have a friend who is like the “Rainman” of trivia, so I’ll have to try the silver slippers out on him. After 15 years of trivia questions, I’ve only stumped him on the Major League Baseball logo. As he says when he thwarts me on yet another trivia question, “But we’ll always have Harmon Kilibrew!”
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CADude Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
JTB,
Thanks for the link to the excellent piece on DD. Somehow I’d missed it.
OCD. ADD. AADD. ADHD. PTSD. How in the fuck did we get through the 80′s, 70′s, and 60′s (and all or parts of the 50′s for some of us) without knowing what to call all of these maladies, and what drugs we should be ingesting as “cures”? I think we had various degrees of crazy, ranging from slight to bat-shit, but everyone (the afflicted and the affected) dealt with it. Hell, a whole generation evolved to be called the Greatest Generation after experiencing the horrors that we’ve only witnessed by seeing the opening of “Saving Private Ryan” or, more recently, the brilliance that was/is “The Pacific”. They didn’t know no stinkin’ PTST. They simply moved on with life and built the strongest freedom-based society man has ever known.
OCD? I guess I just prefer “slightly off”, or “bat-shit crazy”, depending on the degree. And who’s to say, anyway?
-Dude
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And here are my friends helping me treat my OCD…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7M8xJgQvbvc&feature=player_embedded
jtb
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I’ve seen Billy Connolly in Glasgow. Very funny on his home turf. He’s a legend. He goes out ‘unscripted’ and ‘lets it happen’. This would scare me shitless but it works for him.
Ive seen Jerry Sadowitz, (not for the feint hearted!).
I’ve seen Frankie Boyle too.
Here’s a wee bit of him on a good day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmmomV-ax-s
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longtimefirsttime Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 11:31 am
you from Scotland Ian? My boyfriend is from Newarthill!
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Ian the Errolite Reply:
December 9th, 2010 at 11:09 am
Newarthill is a smelly place, due to the meat rendering plant. I used to work for the Scottish Envirinment Protectection Agency so I know all about it.
If he’s painted you pictures of purple heather on the mountains, its all fucking lies!
I know a woman of around 36 from there called Lorraine Black.
If he knows her it will indeed be a small world.
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I saw Steven Wright at London Dominion, quite a few years ago now. Simon Pegg was in the bar!
And Jerry Sadowitz at Fairfield Halls, Croydon (South London/Surrey). There were about 10 people in the audience and I got to pick the card out of the grapefruit!
Just remembered that I’ve also seen Ross Noble at Soho Theatre!
I have OCD about quite a few things, especially when I do stuff automatically and then have to think back on how I managed to get through the day, like when I’m out in town drinking myself into a stupor … I’m usually a bit OCD about where my purse is in case there’s a thief nearby …
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The Evil Twin Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 8:24 am
Hey! Captain Sensible worked at the Fairfield Halls, cleaning toilets, but he understood one day….
(one of my favorite songs of all time!!!)
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I saw George Carlin back in the 70s at the Charleston Municipal Auditorium. It was before I finally got sick of him, and it was a freebie from a friend of mine. I think he’s the only “big” comedian I’ve ever seen live.
Leno made jokes on TV about that Michael’s gig. He apparently thought he was scraping the bottom of the tour barrel when describing how the Michael’s audience had to look over their booth seats to see him. He described it as a low point in his career. I actually saw him use that material twice on TV.
Oh, and I’ve seen The Clash live as well. Twice.
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Bill in WV Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 3:01 pm
Yeah, it was definitely a weird show. I actually got to participate in one of his bits.
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Top Ten!
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The two big-name comedians I have seen are Louis CK, and Jim Gaffigan, but they weren’t the funniest.
With Gaffigan, I remember laughing my head off (along with most of the audience), but a few years later I can’t remember a single joke.
Louis CK was awesome, but I wouldn’t recommend his stand up to someone going through a divorce, or who may have even the slightest suicidal tendencies. I get the feeling he could be a great cult leader if he put his mind to it.
The Just For Laughs comedy festival in Montreal sends a group of comedians on tour across Canada every year. In 2009 they had 6 comedians, and I had heard of 4 of them. Turns out the first show sold out and they added a second, which meant the first show had a tight time limit. The first 5 guys only got 10 minutes each, and headliner Danny Bhoy got 30 at most. I believe Danny is the funniest guy I have seen perform live, even with such a compacted act.
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Kevin Meaney – around 2005
Mitch Hedberg – Fall of 2004
Jerry Seinfield – sometime in the mid-90′s
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Son of Sam Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 2:07 pm
RIP Mitch he made me crack up everytime.
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Bill in WV Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
“Go put your big pants on, we’re Big Pant People!!” – Meaney’s Mother
Cracks me up still to this day.
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retrollama Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 3:42 pm
ditto… I wonder what Mr. Meaney is up to these days?
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I’ve never drank a Monster Energy drink before, but this one I am drinking now makes pretty good burps.
I don’t think I have any dusting of OCD. I think I received extra doses of PTFO and DGAS.
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I’ve seen Rodney Carrington twice. The sad thing is he doesn’t do Carlos any more.
He was fantastic!… the first time. The second time was just after he released a new comedy album. We purposely didn’t watch the Comedy Central special or by the CD because we wanted to hear the new act in person. Wow, were we disappointed. He performed the exact same act we saw the previous year. No new material!
It gets better. The opening act was the same comic that opened the previous year and he did the EXACT same act, down to the very last joke. It was a huge disappointment.
I’ve also seen Dave Atell. Well worth going!
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Saw Rodney Dangerfield during his Caddyshack heydey in Scranton. Also Richard Lewis, Ron White, and the great Don Rickles twice. Once I was in the front row, but off to the side so I missed his line of fire.
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madz1962 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 10:56 am
I saw Don Rickels 2 years ago. Fantastic!
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George Carlin about 8 times since the 80s. And he had OCD very badly – he speaks about it in his “sorta/autobiography” “Last Words.”
Rodney Dangerfield – I got to shake his hand! We went backstage because of…
Kevin Nealon – I dated a guy who was friends with him – we saw a rehearsal of Saturday Night Live (Dan Akroyd was a guest and Justine Bateman was the host). We saw Rodney then skipped over to SNL.
PS _ Nealon’s stand up shtick was lame.
I know I have OCD – I have a thing with numbers and counting – steps, time at a red light, etc. Someday I’ll be in a shitbox nursing home fending off bedsores and muttering numbers to myself.
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I saw Bill Cosby in Reno back in the 80′s. He was the “cleanest” comedian I ever saw, that’s for sure. Not an “F” bomb in the place.
JCIII: I saw Billy Elmer several times. The first time was at some comedy club in Monroeville at “Monzo’s” Palace Inn back in the early 90′s. He was funny as hell but kind of went down hill after that.
Larry “Uncle Lar” Reeb, at the Funny Bone in Station Square. OMG…I pissed myself. All makeup on my face was washed off with tears from laughing so hard. He frequently comes to Pittsburgh. And I’ve seen him on the Tonight Show.
Katt Williams at Heinz Hall in Pittsburgh about 3-4 years ago. He is a ball of fire. Hilarious but not for everyone. Gotta have thick skin to survive one of his shows. Both white AND black humor. While very raw, very truthful. I loved him. HBO On-Demand had one of his shows featured. Haven’t check it in a while though so not sure if it’s still available.
I have been “sprinkled” with a little OCD fairy dust with some things. Not as bad as I used to be. When I owned my antique store with my good-for-nothing “partner”, I knew when something sold or was out of place. Even the smallest item or movement. Even my partner said she could believe how I could possible notice even a piece of jewelry in our case moved an inch. I was very anal how the shop looked. Cleaning, rearranging, window displays…etc. I infuriated me when I would open up in the morning and find half eaten cookies and whathaveyou from her rotten kids. She would leave the mess for me to clean up. But she was no better. She would take her “dates” to the shop and do god knows what leaving open empty wine bottles and dirty glasses everywhere.
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Bill in WV Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Larry Reeb is funny as hell. “What’s up with All Temperature Cheer? Heck, it’s all ALL TEMPERATURE. Look, if you mix Tide and hot water, it’s not gonna blow up. It’s soap !!! “
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The Evil Twin has spidey-sense about where his beloved “things” are. According to my MIL, he has been that way all his life.
My OCD tendencies: The bed must be made before I get in the shower. I don’t like to walk into an untidy room after I am all clean. I save foil like I live in the depression (well, we practically do – Thx Prez). And, my sink (kitchen) has to be free of water spots and as shiny as possible.
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TILLY Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:30 pm
like I live in the depression. HIlarious.
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I read this book a while back: I’m Dying Up Here: Heartbreak and High Times in Stand-up Comedy’s Golden Era.
I learned a lot about Letterman, Leno, and some of those other dudes.
And now Steve Martin plays bluegrass music, and gives art lectures.
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Jeez, I forgot – I just saw Lewis Black about 2 weeks ago. He was hilarious. Even the guy who opened for him was funny.
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hot fuzz Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 11:46 am
Madz – did Lewis do his cold weather schtick?
It’s colder than FUCK – IT’S FUCKING COLD!!!!
Makes me laugh every time – he’s hilarious. I like his new line about the TSA pat downs.
“…you mean I get the flight AND someone tickles my balls? I’M THERE!!!!”
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madz1962 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 2:26 pm
OMG Hot Fuzz, my face actually hurt the next day. Between laughing and rocking in my seat – I probably looked like I was the recipient of the Short Bus Rider of the Year award.
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I’d like to see Larry The Cable Guy or Gabriel Iglesias.
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…fucking computer…
As far as home…no dirty dishes in the sink. Ever. As soon as dinner (or whatever) is over the kitchen is cleaned. Our house is small. A dirty sink just adds to the clutter. I wish I had the same attitude towards laundry
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hendersob Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
I’m with you on the dishes!. We have a black sink. I spend more time washing the sink than the dishes. It also gets a coat of car wax every few months
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I saw Leno at a casino – he did about an hour of standup. The audience clapped. He left the stage. We left the room. It was so blah… a few smiles, a few laughs but nothing funny enough to make me wet my Depends.
I saw Robin Williams once at a Second City show at The Old Firehall in Toronto. We had the dinner…show.. the improve…Robin joined for more improve…and then he did his own show for about 45 minutes or so. There were rumours he was in town and joining in so we really lucked out. The “auditorium” at the old fire hall was about the size of two truck bays so it was a great, intimate atmosphere being 10′ or less from the stage. Just an exceptional night – a birthday dinner for She who must be feared and obeyed.
Robin’s talk on golf is one of the funniest I’ve ever heard.
Billy Connolly is hilarious. Even when he’s clean, he’s really good. I remember a punchline from a character he played on TV from probably 15 years ago to describe a date “…and the rest is pure pornography”.
She who must be feared and obeyed counts the steps EVERY time she goes up or down. She calculates how many people can be seated in a hall (chairs per table x tables)… I have to count the wheels on transport trucks I pass on the highway if they have more than 18. I always start at the rear counting all the doubles, then the singles, then add the two front wheels of the cab. Record is 42. But then again isn’t everything?
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I’ve seen John Pinette twice. The guy’s a riot but he didn’t update his act much in the 2 years between when I saw him.
OCD galore: knuckle-cracking, fingernail-picking, compulsive adding of numbers; hair-pulling (arms, legs, head – you name it. I haven’t had much hair “down there” in ages.)
I guess that’s TMI.
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madz1962 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
I love John Pinette!
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How frequently do you have to masturbate for it to be considered OCD?
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Chuck in Belpre Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 11:41 am
If you forget you did it or have to do it again to make sure then I would say you have other problems.
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hot fuzz Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 11:49 am
I guess based on that criteria it’s more of either a nervous tick or a hobby.
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I’ve never seen a comedian live. But if you ever get a chance to see Bill Burr live or on Comedy Central don’t hesitate. Funniest guy I have never heard of.
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OCD. Cannot stand the volume on the Hi-Fi or TV being an odd number, or not being a multiple of 5.
20 – OK
21 – no
22 – OK
23 – no
24 – OK
25 – OK
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I saw George Carlin on “A Place For My Stuff” tour. He walked out on stage and started with “Did you ever notice that the women who are for the ERA are the ones you don’t want to f&*k anyway?” No hello, no nice to be here, just straight into his act. Funny.
For you younger readers, ERA does NOT stand for Earned Run Average. Google it.
My OCD is finger and toe nails. Middle aged white guys get funny looks getting mani-pedi’s, but F ‘em!
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My underwear is all rolled neatly into different compartments and arranged by color….what of it?
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johnthebasket Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 7:33 pm
My underwear isn’t rolled, only because I wear them rather than smoke them. But, I guess, technically, they ARE arranged by color. White.
jtb
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Gretchen Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 9:12 pm
Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em!
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“My Hands are Bananas” is one of the three best things that has happened to me this year!!!
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My OCD contribution. I used to have it very bad, but I basically cured myself for the most part. It used to be so bad I had to go back and check the door to make sure it was locked 3 or 4 times.
the wife and I would be going somewhere & I’d have to back into the house to make sure the gas pilot was still lit, then leave the house, then go back to make sure I locked the door. Again.
Is the iron on? Is the coffee pot off? Did someone turn the burner up on the stovetop? Then I’d obsess about it & go through checking everything again before going back outside. Then I’d go back and make sure the door was locked again.
It was maddening. And for obvious reason drove the wife batshit crazy. But as I said, I “cured” these annoying idiosyncrasies by saying out loud, 3 times “the door is locked, the door is locked, the door is locked.” That’s a bit OCD in itself, but got me to stop double triple checking everything before I left.
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madz1962 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:44 pm
JCIII – I have a similar thing with the pilot lights – I have to check the gas stove every night – a good 3 or 4 times to make sure the burners are off. I’ve woken up from a sound sleep in a panic that they may be on and that we’ll die of carbon monoxide poisoning.
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Casey J Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 7:28 pm
This shit is not funny. I had that, about ten years ago. I would check my door. get to my car. have panic attack the door was NOT locked. do this again. and again. Then I would be halfway to work and freak about the coffe pot or stove. I would almost be in tears over leaving work to check or staying there.
so I get it. I am “better” now. Or I just have more to worry about.
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oh fuck, I think I left the iron on this morning……
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YEARS ago (10 maybe?) my brother & I won free tickets to go to some casino (he was 24, I was maybe 21) to see Howie Mandel. It was….awkward. First off, we’re in a Bingo Hall & he is standing just feet from the audience on a stage that they probably rolled in for the occasion & immediately he started bitching/joking (more bitching than joking) because he is a Germaphobe/OCD & didn’t like being that close to, well, people. To make matters worse security was nill & some douchebag who was drunk just walked on stage & kept grabbing Howie’s hand to shake it (Howie almost had a seizure) & kept patting him on the back while his fat, torn T-shirt wearing wife kept taking pictures & saying loudly ‘Smile, Honey!’. Finally, Howie looked around, said, ‘Be Right Back’ & all of a sudden we hear something behind us & saw he had climbed some stairs to the Bingo Caller area (which was dark & empty) & did about 5 more minutes from up there before he quickly said goodnight. All in all it wasn’t funny & I was more mad at the facility for not protecting it’s “talent”.
As for OCD, I completely understood his phobia, although I am not as bad. However, over Thanksgiving weekend I was chasing my 2 year old snot-faced nephew around with a squeeze bottle of Purell & everytime he touched me (after I’d see him wiping his snot across his face), I’d squegee the shit over my entire body.
I am also wacky in the following areas:
-All my money is placed in my wallet in denominations from highest to lowest, and the stupid black circle thingy has to be lined up & in the N position when stacking.
-I count coins obsessively, even if I had counted earlier in the day. For instance, if I count coins one day but add $.75 later, I will re-add everything, with the coins in their own pile based on denomination instead of simply adding $.75 to my prior total. Drives my boyfriend INSANE!
-Will go crazy instantly if I have clutter @ my desk. At work I am more lenient, but I still have everything neat & organized. At home, if too much shit piles up I start to panic & can’t calm down until order is restored.
-My email inboxes (personal & work) are always empty. If I get mail, I instantly read it, then either delete (and clear the deleted folder ASAP!), or place the email in an appropriate sub-folder. ANAL!!
-Dishes. OMG. Dishes. When you are done eating, clean your dish. If you leave it at the sink, you might have it thrown at your head. If you leave it in the sink with nasty water filled inside you just might become a homicide statistic very, very soon. (I have to force myself to not do dishes at other peoples’ houses)
-Favorites on computers. All of my favorites are organized in a folder I created, and also in categories. Gardening goes in the Gardening Folder. Gaming in Gaming, etc, etc, etc. My boyfriend once fucked with my bookmarks & put everything in different categories & when I began crying as I fixed it he realized that wasn’t a good idea. Then he called Oprah for help.
-Card playing. When playing cards my cards are in a certain order, lowest to highest, books together, & facing a certain way. If I have an Ace where there is simply one large spade in the center, the spade is facing upwards. If there are discard piles in the center of the table, I am the one who stacks the piles neatly and if one is out of place I quickly re-stack them.
Now, if anyone can figure me out, feel free. I read this over & realized I need a padded cell & medication ASAP. From now on, call me Chief.
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icecycle66 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 2:05 pm
All I saw in your post was “INSANE ANAL”. Sounds good to me, that’ s all I need to know.
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The Evil Twin Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:32 pm
I do that card thing. Always have. Usually do the bill denomination thing, too.
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Limey Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
I think the community should collectively freak you out
There are 6516 emails in my personal inbox
There are 8056 in my business inbox.
Ah, the mess.
I DO do the bills thing though. That’s sensible.
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clintcurtis Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 8:38 am
Melissa, the “clean your dishes” part has hit my sweet spot. II you want to earn a major amount of holiday spending money, I have an 11 year old and a 16 year old that I would dearly love to have taken out. lol!
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icecycle66 Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 10:28 am
JFC, what a fucking psycho.
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I read through it again and saw a little more “INSANE ANAL ASAP”, Sorry I can’t be there sooner, I’m on my way.
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Back in high school I would tear those magazine inserts into perfect little strips and leave them all over the house, I would also constantly flip the the TV controller while watching a show. Used to drive my Mom crazy. Wierdest one was mouthing words silently before I said them and typing out words on my knees. 4 years in the Corps and 2 tours of Iraq cleared that nonsense right out of me
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madz1962 Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:13 pm
Thank you for your service, SeaninSac! You’re awesome!
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Son of Sam Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 7:37 am
Agreed
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My first comedian was in the early 1980s…Steve Landesburg fro “Barney Miller” fame was playing at the college my little sister was going to. Really good show, funny guy, but dunno if it would hold up if I heard the act nearly 30 years later.
Only other comedy act I have been to was one that a first time date dragged me to. It was really weird, because she was raving about this guy, and how funny he was, and how ALL her friends said she should go see him.
I took her to see him…and when we walked in, she said, “There he is!!!!” The guy turned and looked at us, called me by name, we shook hands, and he comped me the the$15 apiece cover. Turns out he was a friend from my Air Force days. He spent a good part of his act pointing me out in the audience, and laughing about all the trouble he and I used to get into. Total delight to see him, as seeing me was to him. The audience delighted in his spontinaiety, and my date couldn’t shut up about the evening.
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Son of Sam Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
If that didn’t get ya laid nothing will?
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CADude Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:40 pm
“…and the rest was pure pornography” ??
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I have a friend who’s currently trying to “make it” in the comedy business, so I ‘ve tried to support him by going to some of his shows.My friend is not too bad, but, I’ve seen more than enough local terrible comedians.
I haven’t seen too many “name” comedians, but recently I’ve seen and met Judah Friedlander, by way of the above-mentioned friend. I’ve also seen Jake Johannsen, who’s still pretty decent. Years ago, I suffered through a Carrot Top show when he played at my college.
Don’t know if this qualifies as “stand-up” but I also once saw Graham Chapman (of “Monty Python” fame) doing a speaking engagement at college. Oh, and Bill Cosby spoke at my graduation.
I’ve been to more than a few live appearances with the “Cinematic Titantic” crew. All of the members were part of the original “Mystery Science Theater 3000″ gang, and they still do some fantastic movie riffing. (Most of them are former stand-up comedians, so there you go).
OCD: too many things to get into now, but most of it has to do with organization: straight lines, alphabetical/numerical order, and uncluttered surfaces.
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The Evil Twin Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Those MST3k guys do a series of dvds called “Riff Trax.” Have you seen any of them? I was wondering how they stacked up to the MST3k stuff. Netflix has about dozen or so of their titles…
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retrollama Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 4:31 pm
Yeah, Riff Trax are the “other guys” : Mike Nelson and Kevin Murphy (Tom Servo). I’ve seen their versions of “Plan 9 from Outer Space” and “House on Haunted Hill”. Both were pretty great.
Cinematic Titanic has Joel Hodgson, Frank Conniff and Trace Beaulieu (Crow/Dr. Forrester). I’ve not seen any of their dvds, but they are awesome live.
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Jersey Scott Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 6:31 pm
I’ve seen Cinematic Titanic live ( and plan to see them again next Spring ) and I’ve got a few of their DVDs. They do some that are what I guess you’d call ‘studio’ and some that are recordings of live shows. The live ones are better but its all good stuff. I like CT better than Riff Trax, but I’ve always been more of a fan of Joel than Mike.
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nick Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 6:30 pm
RIff Trax are fun – for the most part though, they’re mp3 that you need to play alongside the movie – essentially a separate commentary track. They’re funny – but it’s mostly an inconvenience to have to have two things playing – particularly if you need to pause for some reason.
In theory, you could probably import an mp3 as an actual commentary track in DVD Shrink and make a Riff Trax version of any given disc – I’ve never actually sat down and tried that though – way too much work honestly.
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I saw Cheech and Chong a couple years ago. They were funny but predictable. I went on a date a couple weeks ago to a comedy club and 3 out of the 6 comedians were really, really good. I think comedy makes for a great date night because you don’t have to talk all the time and because you find out about the other persons sense of humour.
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The Evil Twin Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 7:03 am
I think that’s a great point! Sense of humor was definitely a dealbreaker for me back when I was dating. If she had a really corny sense of humor, or none at all, it wouldn’t matter how good the sex was or how compatible we were on other fronts. If you can’t laugh together on the same level then nothing else falls in line. At least that’s my experience…
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I saw Bill Cosby in college in 1991. He did a thing “In the Round” sort of. It was a smaller school and for some reason he didn’t have a huge draw. When he heard that the student group that booked him lost money he gave the money back. Very classy.
I saw a few other acts there that I later saw on TV, but whose names I can’t recall. Pauly Shore was at the same college at the height of his popularity, it was a decent show.
I saw Richard Jeni at a outdoor venue about 10 years ago and had a great time. Too bad about his ending.
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No big OCD events to report – at work and at home, things get to a threshold level of mess….and I clean up. Simple as that.
I will say that the stacks of paper on my desk are always lined up, sorted by task, orthogonal, and I have been made fun of for that.
Comedians live in concert:
Cheech & Chong in the early 1970′s. I remember it being a really expensive ticket and they played just under 45 minutes, basically doing their first two albums, but in costume. We all felt ripped off but I think we just got high and forgot about it. Hey, it was the 70s.
Steven Wright in the late 1980′s. Rich Hall opened, and he was good, but Wright had everyone on the floor.
The late George Carlin in the mid 1990′s. One word: Brilliant.
I’ve been to couple of comedy clubs and seen very funny rising talent, but no marquee names to remember. One guy in Boston showed up in There’s Something About Mary, as the first fireman in the bathroom.
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Malcolm Reply:
December 7th, 2010 at 6:12 pm
Steve Sweeney is the Boston guy. Now owns a comedy club in Copley Sq.
And Larry Reeb, thanks for the reminder. Funny stuff.
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I am a firm believer that I do have some kind of mild OCD. Since I was little, I wash my hands so frequently that year round they are dry, cracking and bleeding. I do not touch public door handles without putting my sleeve on it. I was deathly afraid to touch raw meat until we moved out onto our own and I was forced too. I have to check the back door 2-3 times before I leave the house, and have often actually reparked the car while backing out of the driveway, gotten out and, and checked it again to make sure it’s closed. It sucks.
I haven’t seen any comedians except for some dude at a local club who sucked. I really want to see Lisa Lampanelli and Daniel Tosh…I wouldn’t mind Ron White either. Of course the late George Carlin would have been awesome too…
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Oh, and Dave Chappelle! I don’t think I’ve laughed so hard at stand up ever until I saw ‘For What It’s Worth’.
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Carrot top at U of A Monticello
I’m ashamed.
I’m OCD about my pistol
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Yeah, I’d also be ashamed if I went to school in Arkansas.
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Whatever OCD I have mainly manifests itself in my code. In the physical world, not so much.
Steven Wright at the Warner Theater, 2006-ish. Fookin funny as hell.
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Carrot Top in 1995 or so.
The asshole with the puppets a few times, but didn’t pay for a single one (free college shows and what not).
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Oh, and myself, billed as Tony the Worst Comic in St. Louis.
I’ve since moved the act to OKC with a similar amount of success.
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I got to see Jim Carey at the Ventura Theater right before Ace Ventura Pet Detective came out. Ii think In Living Color may have been still on the air. As he came out on stage he whipped his leg up and held the ankle like the neck of a guitar and played air leg. WTS? How does a person get their led in that position? Funny as hell.
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“leg’ not led
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Steve Martin’s “Wild and Crazy Guy” comedy album was the first album I ever owned. Yeah, I was never into music like the rest of the world. The name comedians that I remember are Andrew Dice Clay in a very large arena, paid big bucks for me and my date and it was over in less than an hour. It was decent but drinking before hand probably had an affect on my opinion. Also saw Sam Kinnison, but it was after he re-discovered religion, not too long before he died. It was disapointing, wish I had seen him when he was still angry.
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clintcurtis Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 9:00 am
Okay, the “Wild and Crazy Guy” was the second comedy album I bought. My first was an 8 track Cheech and Chong taht my best friend pointed out later was some crummy knock off with the words “Tribute to” preceding the names “Cheech and Chong.”
…and if ya really wanna know weird counterfeit recordings: I know a FedEx driver who used to deliver to Burl Ive’s house in Anacortes, Washington. She asked Bur’s wife if Burl could autograph a cassette case, but she refused to do it because it was a knockoff, and he receveid no royalties for it. I can see the royalties deal, but seriously, when you are a 90 year old Burl Ives and some 20-something woman wants your freakin’ autograph on a bootleg tape (that she bought not knowing it WAS bootleg).
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WE have seen Jim Gaffigan a few times and Mike Birbiglia a few times. Both Funneist the first time.
Recently I saw Christopher Titus (for free) and a few years ago we saw Ron White.
The best comedian so far was a guy who opened for Birbiglia named Nick Thune. Fucking hilarious! look for him on youtube
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Received this as a text from friend yesterday. I’ve read it before but thought it was funny. So to all my Surf Reporter buds:
I found this beautiful winter poem and thought it might be a comfort to you. It was sent to me and it’s very well written and I hope you enjoy it too:
“WINTER” by Abigail Elizabeth McIntyre
FUCK.
It’s cold.
The End.
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“If you have O.C.D. and you know it, wash your hands…..” (clap – clap)
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I guess the closest thing I have to OCD is that I can’t STAND having “loose socks”, you know when they sort of slide down your foot and bunch up a little at the toes, that drives me CRAZY so I am always pulling up my socks to make them nice and tight on my foot…”
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bikerchick Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 12:35 pm
Condoms too?
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BillyBigs Reply:
December 8th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
Silly girl, I don’t wear condoms on my feet…(But I do like them tight too!)
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Saw Carrot Top at The Roxy in Atlantain the early 90′s before somebody made him angry and he hulked out. Much like Foxworthy, you don’t want to like him, but he was pretty funny. The “would you please pass the jelly” guy from the Polaner All Fruit commercial was in attendance as well, so you know it was a star-studded occasion!
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Saw Steve Martin’s dime trick at the Latin Casino, mid ’70′s. He showed his “Absent Minded Waiter” video where he keeps forgetting everything Buck Henry orders. Buck keeps telling his date not to worry about it, and it pays off when Steve gives him 100′s of dollars in change…
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