Catching Up Pt. (04.16.09)

Catching Up Pt.2 –Development (Booker, Material, & Comic)


I remember about a year ago someone on the Comedy Couch mentioned that new comics should use their first two year to focus on writing material rather than using their energy to run their own room(s). At the time, I didn’t think much of it because running a room a year ago was the last thing on my mind back then. A lot has changed in 2009 for me in this regard.

In 2009, I have become a booker as well as a comic. With the success of the first Flip n Asian Show, an opportunity was offered to Art and I to continue producing shows for Lafflines. As a way of trying to make the show thrive, we’ve made a conscious decision to phase out of “Asian” shows. We’ve extended invites to other comics who are not of Asian descent, and the shows have become much stronger in the process. Also this year, I was in the midst of putting together a weekly show for an upscale Filipino restaurant before things were abruptly ended by the sale of the restaurant.

It was during the process of putting together the weekly shows that I realized what that particular pro was talking about. The point made a year earlier crystallized because I realized that I was thinking of joke ideas and not developing them because my focus was elsewhere. Between day job, booking responsibilities, girlfriend, and actual stage time there was no more time to develop the ideas into good jokes. Now that I only have a bi-monthly show to help organize, I’ve been trying to develop my ideas as fast as I can because I think I may have another opportunity on the horizon.


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As far as developing my current jokes, I think I’ve been doing well with that. After the month and a half long funk that I was in, it seems that I’ve gained a new way of telling my jokes. The feedback that I’ve received has been very, very enthusiastic. Here, are some of the responses I’ve received …

Lafflines (Mar.20.09) – “You were awesome! Do you have a CD I can buy?”
Yuk Yuks (Apr.01.09) – “Good show, man. I'll probably be seeing you on the TV in a couple years.”
Kino Café (Apr.21.09) – “You can hear the applause from the outside.”

The generic “good job, buddy” are always nice to hear, but those compliments above went beyond that. To be honest, I was a little taken aback by the compliments but gladly accepted them. And the one at Lafflines was my favorite for another reason – I was integral part of the show and my set didn’t feel out of place with the pros that were working that night.

However, in regards to the newer jokes that I’ve been working on they have not fared as well as my older ones. Below is a quick list of the jokes that I’m working on and the problem(s) I am having with each of them.

Prison Bitch – okay start followed by nothing
Pussification – illustrating the shows are time consuming; establishing male bravado also time consuming
Cheap Hitman – There is ambivalence with this particular piece that is preventing me from fully following up and developing this as much as I would like.
Hyperhydrosis – turns sexual
Sugar Cane – turns sexual
Twitter History – close to another comic’s facebook bit
Twitter Founder – turns to gay bit
Yellow Camp – good for one joke
Ubiquitous – similar to another comic’s stuff
Cleator – very clunky; needs a finish

Out of the above new jokes I am developing, I am most hopeful about Cleator. I think it has the potential to be one of my better bits that will on par with Box Set, The Rabbit, and Tunnel of Love. It’s nowhere near the level of those yet, but with some work, it may get to that level.



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This was posted July 1st, 2009. I completely forgot I had written this shortly after I posted the last "Catching Up". For the record, the above was written on April 4th, 2009.


Dennis L.