MARK WIBERG

I had the good fortune of opening a show for two California comedians – Grant Lyon and Marc Yaffee in Atascadero at Player’s Restaurant last week. I know the internet and blogging is all about real time but excuse me for not being lightning fast on this – I was sick – but even if I wasn’t sick, it doesn’t mean I would have posted this any sooner. Anyway, it was a great show, and I did alright, despite not feeling well. This bit I did about editing a homeless sign to instill fear into passerby’s was a hit (ie., “family of 4″ but scratch out 4 and write 3 – ha ha! isn’t homelessness funny!!!! I guess so).  Lyon and Yaffee were two I hadn’t seen or met before but both were very cool guys doing their stand-up comedy in very different styles.

Grant Lyon is younger, 23, and is silly and smart and will do just fine in the world of comedy or in whatever direction he goes into – he’s ambitious! Keep an eye on this guy!

And Yaffee – in his act he talks about looking like Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker who plaged Los Angeles in the 1980s: that’s not easy to deal with – while others were looking for dates, I was just happy to have an alibi.

Not a direct quote but you get the idea. The dude looks dangerous but he’s been doing comedy for 10 years and he has that laid back, sharp wit. Very funny.

It reminds me of when I lived in L.A. and was immediately surprised by how many funny comedians there were (and, yes, equally unfunny people too) – but so many good comedians are out there – they’ll get their chance at some point, to either make it to television, movies, or continue in a more lowkey presence and tour the country or their particular state. A comedian doesn’t have to be on television to make a living – plenty of unknowns make $ touring colleges, corporations, etc…no guarantee you can do that forever as tastes change, but there’s no guarantee that any job will pay the bills forever. And getting on television isn’t the guarantee either – it may extend your comedy career a little but anything can happen.

So, if your town has a comedy club or you see they are doing comedy at a local coffee shop or bar, I encourage you to go. You may be surprised at just how good the comedians’ acts are.  Or, if they suck, that can be enjoyable too (it’s almost-good-but-still-bad comics that make it painful). Support your local live comedy and you will feel better about yourself and you will live longer and make more money and get to do all the things you ever wanted to do, like raise unicorns or climb mt everest or date claudia schiffer. Whatever you want to have happen will happen if you support live comedy. If it doesn’t, then it’s the fault of somebody else, probably the checkout girl at the grocery store or the dudes who work on your car – both of these people know what you eat, and how little you take care of your car – that is all they need to know about you to mess up your life.