Flip N Funny

Kamikaze – Decoded

2012-02-02T16:55:00.000-08:00

In the 2010, Jay-Z released a book entitled Decoded. The book was to serve as a listener’s guide to the lyrics of some of his songs. Jay-Z broke down what he meant in the songs, surgically dissecting what each line meant at times. Decoded is somewhat similar to the Coles Notes or Cliff Notes you used in high school to help you understand what Shakespeare's plays meant – but better. Essentially, Decoded is Jay-Z explaining exactly what he meant with each song in the book and the inspiration behind it.

From time to time, I will write a “Decoded” for certain jokes to show people that for me, the process of writing a joke is more than just coming across something and replicating it on stage. For me, the process of writing jokes has always been a long one where an idea will marinate for months before seeing the light of stage. The jokes can take many different forms and shapes, before settling into the finished product.

My first Decoded is focused on my Kamikaze which quickly became my opener back in 2007. There are countless “bad Asian driver” jokes to the point it has become a hack premise and at a glance, Kamikaze is simply one of those jokes. However, it is much more.

Kamikaze opens expressing my preference for documentary films. Although half a truth, "my preference for docs" becomes the segue that leads into the premise. With the segue, the piece is conversational. Without it, the joke can’t stand on its own and comes off sounding like a street joke –

Q. Why are Kamikaze pilots not as honorable as initially thought?

A. Because they were crashing their planes because of bad driving.

After the punchline, I follow with the tag “So, you guys are into racism.” Originally, I riffed this line after an exceptionally loud reception to the joke took me by surprise. Since then, I’ve consistently added it because the line does get a secondary laugh, but the line also acknowledges the seemingly unspoken agreement between performer and audience that racism is an accepted part of the comedy interaction. Even though I blatantly call the audience racist for laughing, I must also take responsibility for presenting the idea in the first place.

Now, here’s the mindbender – this is a political joke. As a Filipino man who had family killed in the Bataan Death March, this is my “Fuck you!” to the Japanese atrocities of World War 2. By taking the idea that Kamikaze pilots were these brave men that sacrificed their lives for their country and making a mockery out them, I made a political statement. Essentially, I’m planting a seed with the audience in the hope that one day they will see footage of Kamikaze pilots in action and telling whoever they’re with that these pilots weren’t brave, they were just bad pilots.

I have always regarded Mel Brooks as a patron saint of using comedy to undermine the powers of an oppressor. In an interview he did with www.Spiegel.de, Brooks described the power that laughter can have, "By using the medium of comedy, we can try to rob Hitler of his posthumous power and myth.” Replace Hitler with Kamikaze, and that was my aim for the joke.

Kamikaze is my attempt to rob these pilots of their bravery, patriotism, and glory.

Clean Enough for Church

2012-01-30T17:04:00.001-08:00

My very first visit to a Gurdwara was a decade and a half ago. I thought that my first trip would be for a wedding of some sort, unfortunately, it was for a funeral. Not only do I remember wanting to be there for my friend, but I also have a strong recollection of pestering my brown friends about the etiquette of being in a Sikh temple. I wanted to be respectful to the traditions and practices of the Sikh temple. I was mindful of not taking off the head cover, sitting with my legs cross to make sure my toes never point to the sky, and touching my forehead to the ground just before I gave my donation. I have a sincere respect for other religions, so you can imagine how respectful I would be inside the walls of a church.

Two Saturdays ago, I performed at the Broadway Church. It was a benefit show for the victims of the Sendong Typhoon that recently wrecked a region of the Philippines. Performing when there are kids in the audience was always weird for me because of the mature subject of my material. So, I needed to reach a whole other level of clean to be an effective comic to perform in a church that night.

This benefit was predominantly a music concert highlighting many of the talented Filipino performers we have in the Lower Mainland, as well as some acts who staked their claim in the homeland. I haven’t done many shows that weren’t focused on comedy, so this music-centric gig was unfamiliar territory. So, there I was backstage thinking how I was going to do performing on the ALTAR in front of an audience of 150-200 people sitting in PEWS.

To my great satisfaction, my set lasted 6.25min and it was absent of any cursing and suggestive or blatant references to sex. I thought I rose to the challenge with more than a handful of people congratulating me on a good set afterwards. To be honest, I’m a little surprised to have felt so at ease and confident going in. It was far from perfect, as a couple jokes in the middle of the set kind of slowed down the momentum I built. However, I finished strong with a semi-big laugh at the end.

After the set, I was pretty darn proud of myself. I just finished a strong set that was completely clean. I just helped in a fundraiser that generated thousands of dollars to help people in need. And I did all that without compromising my commitment to be completely respectful within the walls of a church. Simply, this was one of my most satisfying nights of performing.

Angel's Work

2012-01-18T10:50:00.001-08:00

Being nice is second nature for me. I say “second nature” because at my core, I can be described as “nasty, brutish, and short.” Some are born nice, while others are nice because they’re repentant. I’m one of the repentant.

Although I have other reasons why I aspire to be a comic, doing Angel’s Work is at the top of the list. For me, comedy is a great way to tell God “sorry” for all the dumb stuff I did in the past. Every set is an opportunity to replace pain with laughter. This intent of “doing good” is reflected by my comedy that flirts with the inappropriate from time to time but never crosses the line to shock comedy category. I know the difference between teasing and bullying and I make certain that my comedy does not come off as mean spirited.

In my opinion, the only thing better than making strangers laugh is making them laugh for charitable causes! I hope by now people know that I’m willing to help out in fundraisers. And this is of course leads me to this plug – on Saturday, January 21^st, I will be performing at a variety show benefitting Philippines and the victims of the recent typhoon that devastated the country.

This Benefit for Typhoon Sendong Victims show is extra special for a couple reasons. Firstly, the show is only my second show in front of a predominantly Filipino crowd and I will take this opportunity to dress up my material with some of my tourist-Tagalog. I understand my mother tongue easily, especially if it’s something that my parents would yell at me for doing something I shouldn’t. However, speaking Tagalog is a completely different beast, so the challenge should be fun.

The second reason why I’m looking forward to this show is that it’s going to be inside a church. As I stated earlier, my material likes to flirt with disaster without getting in shock comedy. That said, I’m far from being a squeaky clean comic. Removing the cursing is not an issue because when you listen closely to my material, you will realize that I rarely swear. Part of my effectiveness as a comic is my ability to talk about dirty things without making the audience feel dirty. If my style is blue, it’s more of baby blue.

So, this Saturday night at Broadway Church, I will have an opportunity to perform in front of an audience, some of them with families directly affected by the typhoon. It is my duty to take away the pain (even if it’s momentary) and replace with laughter. I’m planning on using my tourist Tagalog and keeping my set as clean as possible.

Wings, don’t fail me now!

Should I Stay or Should I Go? Part 2

2012-01-13T15:08:00.000-08:00

Looking Forward to Comedy 2012

In 2007, I met a lot of great guys starting out in the Vancouver Comedy scene. We saw each other’s ambitions and supported each other’s raw talents in rooms like Zawa, Wired Bean, Myles of Bean, etc. In the four and half years since, our numbers dwindled. Some left comedy because they realized their talent couldn’t cash in the cheques their ambitions were writing. Others left out of sheer frustration of the process. And a few of us left because other priorities began to trump their comedic dreams. At the end of 2012, will I be the next to go?

I have never started a year with so much doubt regarding my future in comedy. When I started comedy in 2007, I had a good job and a great girlfriend. This year, I’m starting comedy with a great job and a great wife. I’m at a stage of my life where I have to decide between my boyhood dreams and more adult responsibilities.

This year, I have to do more to justify continuing the dream. There’s more to improving than more stage time and increased paid gigs. I have to challenge myself to be better in all aspects. I have to write better, perform better, interact with the audience better, and network with other comics better. I need to step up to every challenge that crosses my path whatever that may be.

If I don’t feel that I made myself into a significantly better comic at the end of 2012, I am done.

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

2012-01-06T12:05:00.000-08:00

Comedy Review 2011

In the past 4 years that I have done a personal comedy review, I recall the promise I made to myself – as long as I continue to develop, I will continue pursuing the dream of becoming a citizen of the Nation of Professional Comics. As it relates to 2011, it is debatable whether or not I developed as a comic.

If I were to base my opinions on stats alone, I regressed in 2011. I logged about 3.5 hours less this past year than I did in 2010. Consequently, my lack of stage time also led to a drop in earnings of approximately 33%. (Not at all a big issue since the number is sooooo small!) Another surprising development was a difficulty in getting spots. I had no issue getting spots at Lafflines or Comedy Mix, but the pubs and coffee shops that had comedy eluded me in 2011.

On the other hand, there are some stats that I can share that shows development. In 2011, I thought I gained much needed experience working the weekend crowd. On May 12^th – 14^th, I did my first weekend gig at Comedy Mix. From Thursday to the late show on Saturday, I registered times of 14.25, 18.28, 19.46, 21.40, and 22.05. With the exception of the Thursday set which was cut short because of a drop in comic, I can see the progression that I made in regards to relaxing and taking my time. Sure there were minor adjustments made regarding the set lists, but all in all I found it to be a successful venture.

In regards to Lafflines, they have continued to support my growth by feeding me a couple weekends to work on longer sets. The best set I’ve ever done for them happened on December 16^th when I did my first set at the theatre room. For just over 23min, I had one of my best sets of the year to a crowd of 300 people. It was a show full of corporate dinner parties and I rocked it, mixing in a little bit of crowd work with my regular set.

Another encouraging sign of growth relates to my hosting abilities. I only hosted twice this year but I think on both occasions, I was able to demonstrate the growing comfort level with being the setup man to the comics. On the second hosting job I did this year, I think I took a moment to listen to the sets and come back on the mic with something witty to say regarding the last comic. I think there is much to be said in communicating to the audience that you are also invested in the show.

As far as the creative process is concerned, I believe that I did grow in 2011. It’s difficult to articulate but I think my experience has given me the ability to see more clearly where “the funny” is. I’m also getting better at stripping away the excess of the joke. Before it would take me a few sets to realize that a particular joke had excess wordage. This year, I have been more efficient in assessing the jokes. I have learned the valuable lesson – sometimes less is more.

At the end of 2010, I was working on a collection of jokes which I can probably name Surrey Set – Costco Preggers, PJ Hooker, and White Wedding. I ended up giving up on these jokes because they were sexually themed which I want to get away from and there wasn’t much of a redemptive quality to them. The PJ Hooker joke, in particular, was seen as mean spirited and insensitive by a pro that I have a great respect for. I might bring it back, if I’m able to clean it up somehow. In all honesty, however, revising it is very low on my list of priorities.

Throughout 2011, I thought I did a good job in developing new jokes. Jokes that I was able to develop and add to my catalogue were Call Centre, Shawshank, Slashing, and Incapable which added a meager 5min. However, I take pride in that these were the type of jokes that I was looking to add – non-sexual in nature. Other jokes that I introduced in 2011 that I will continue to work on are LMS which needs expansion and Copy Sales which needs cleaning.

So, to answer the all important question that determines whether or not I continue on for another year – did I improve as a comic?

Yes, I did … by the slimmest of margins.

A Nice Guide to Beginner’s Comedy

2011-03-25T07:18:00.000-07:00

Personal Background

I first performed at a comedy club in February 1993 and continued to do it off and on for the next ten years. Since my focus was either on university or employment, I came to realize that comedy was a hobby. Although I received compliments and support from one or two pros back then, I came to understand that my hobby was taking away time from people who wanted to do comedy for a living. So, instead of asking for spots to fill up my calendar, I would go up only when I really missed it which would minimize the stage time I was taking away from people serious about comedy.

Although I pursued other writing interests, I would always come back to comedy. Every time I would see a comic on TV that sucked, I thought to myself “what if?” Then one day in 2007, I realized that in 20 years, I could be asking myself “what if?” and it scared the shit out of me. So, I decided to go for it in summer of 2007. I told myself to keep going until I stop improving. Whether it took 3 months or 10 years to hit my plateau, I would stop at point. I can rest in knowing that I tried my best.

The past three and half years have buzzed by and I can claim to have experienced both successes and failures. I have passed a few people who started before me, and I’ve also been passed by people who started after me. I have been able to earn invitations to the past two Vancouver Comedyfests, been paid by both local comedy clubs, but I’ve never been invited to go on the road. I’ve made some smart choices that led to great opportunities, as well as poor ones that dropped me down a few notches in the pecking order. In a nut shell, I’ve been able to accomplish a couple things in comedy, but still definitely far from being a seasoned pro.

Before I dispense my advice, I must admit I do feel weird about giving it. I can only share what I've learned in three years. I do not know it all. My advice only touches on your approach to the comedy community and "making your way" through it.

Material

- FOCUS ON 5 MINUTES

- Squeeze in as many laughs as you possibly can in the 5min

- 5min is the usual amount of time you will receive for the first few months of being a comic.

Getting Spots

- BE POLITE.

- Always include “please” and “thank you”.

- There is a fine line between persistent and pestering. Do not pester.

- No more than one email per week per booker. Not only are they receiving your request, they’re receiving requests from everybody else in the community.

At the Venue

- NEVER EVER DISRESPECT THE SHOW.

- Shut the f**k up then watch and learn.

- If you need to talk, go to the back of the room and speak in hushed tones.

- Unless you have a pressing matter to attend to, always stick around till the end of the show. There are lessons to be learned in each set, especially the headliner.

- Always thank the booker before you leave.

Politics

- EVERY WORK SPACE HAS POLITICS, COMEDY IS NO DIFFERENT

- DO NOT GET CAUGHT UP IN IT. IGNORE IT TO THE BEST OF YOUR ABILITY.

- Treat everybody with respect and be mature and diplomatic if something does not go your way.

- Remember the adage – Be careful of who’s toes your stepping on because they might be connected to the ass that you may have to kiss later.

If you decide to take up comedy, you would be entering a different world. You are an immigrant trying to fit in a new country. Try to learn the customs of the new world without imposing your own expectations. Despite what your ego may tell you, you are not the revolutionary that will liberate this new land of comedy. So, dial it down a notch.

Essentially, please be mindful of your manners.

Flipn Update - Unexpected

2011-03-10T19:57:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to work this past weekend at Lafflines. Signing up for the gig, I was asked to do a tight 15min - no filler, just the straight goods. I’m happy to say that I was able to do just that. I cleared 15min quite easily to my surprise. I thought the max time I could clock in was about 17min, including my B level jokes, 20-25min including C level crap that requires major revisions.

Although I did throw in some new jokes to try on each of the three sets I did on the weekend, I am more than proved to myself that I am closer to my goal than I originally anticipated. I threw in the jokes because I had the liberty to do that in all three sets. I had won crowd over in a big way in all three sets. These were my best outings on any of the weekend shows that I have done.

With this piece of info, I have reassessed my timelines for reaching my goals. I think I can push up getting to 25min by the summertime and getting that total up 30min by the end of the year.

Review of This by Melissa James Gibson

2011-01-29T11:56:00.000-08:00

THIS - Jan.28.11

It’s been a long time since I’ve been to the Vancouver Playhouse. In fact, it’s been nearly 20yrs since the last time I was there for a play. Taking in This by Melissa James Gibson was an excellent way to get myself reacquainted with the production values the Playhouse puts forth. I’m pretty sure that there have been changes in staff since my last visit, but I distinctly remember the elaborately detailed sets they had in the past. I can report their high standards have not changed.

As for the play itself, I strongly suggest you see it. In a nutshell, the husband Tom (Todd Thompson) cheats on his wife Marrell (Karen Holness) with their friend Jane (Megan Follows) and spit hits the fan. Originally, Jean Pierre (Fabrice Grover), the French doctor was intended to be set up with the Jane but we eventually see that his function in the play is to be a hanging temptation for Marrell and it’s unclear whether or not she took the bait. As for Alan (Dmitry Chepovetsky), the human stenographer, he’s the Greek chorus and comic relief all at once. Nearly all the best lines come from Alan.

Although the performances were flat from time to time from a couple of the players, the writing was so strong that it made up for any of the timing errors the cast made regarding their lines. Obviously, I can’t be certain whether or not a couple of the actors were having an off night, or their timing was dictated by the director. As a comic watching the production, the material would have been better served if they picked up the pace. On handful of times, I thought their timing was a beat or two slow.

As funny as the material was, the most interesting aspect of the play is what it says or doesn’t say about adultery. The title “This” is the word used by Tom and Jane to refer to their adultery. Is Gibson saying adultery has become so commonplace that we no longer need to even use the word “adultery”? The word “this” is so common, that we virtually eliminate all negative connotations by using “this” when referring to “adultery”.

For me, the most intriguing question of the play is does society accept adultery because we’re now able to rationalize it with our intellect, or is our intellect the last line of defence? With Jane being a student at the Ivy League school and Tom being the self educated employee of institution, is Gibson painting a picture of Intellectualism vs. Pseudo/Self Intellectualism? The audience is shown that Tom calculated that his wife withdrawing sex, plus Jane being recently widowed is a rational equation that will lead to sex. It’s interesting that Tom, the unaccredited intellect initiates the affair with Jane, half expecting the Ivy League grad to turn him down. Is the playwright inferring that the “true” intellectual, Jane, could have ended the affair before it began?

It’s a great sign for any play or movie, when your brain continues to churn the morning after you’ve seen it. I suggest you see This before it’s run ends.

The Secret of Comedy

2011-01-13T12:53:00.000-08:00

Raw Canvas Lounge - Jan.11.11

Set Time - 5.30min

First time at Raw Canvas Lounge. What a cool place! I can’t comment on the quality of the food or drinks because I just had my regular prison fare (glass of water). If you’ve never been, half the space is reserved for diners and the other half is reserved for artists. There are about ten easels set up for art enthusiasts to take advantage of. And because the venue respected art, it seemed to have permeated to the staff who showed respect to the comics and the art that we were refining. They were friendly and respectful. Much respect to Darcy Michael and Jane Stanton for setting up the cool ass venue.

As for my set, this was a promising development. I forgot to do the Beauty and the Beast reference to one of the jokes and it seemed to have smoothed out the bit which I’m happy about. Unfortunately, that portion makes me giggle. Unless I can successfully restructure the tag I might have to remove it indefinitely. The preceding joke, Surrey Costco, is surprisingly getting a bigger response. I may need to switch the order if this continues.

Tuesday night also served another reminder that my material makes me The Secret of Comedy – strong enough for a man but made for women. As in my material seems to be written for women to enjoy, but men get a good kick out of it too!

False Start @ Lanalous

2011-01-09T22:54:00.000-08:00

Lanalous - Jan.09.11

Set Time: 7min (approx.)

I wanted to start off the year on the right foot. I wanted to go out and have fun and destroy the room on my first set of the year. I wanted people laughing soooo hard that they would shoot their drinks out of their noses. I wanted them laughing so hard that they actually start coughing up organs. THAT DID NOT HAPPEN!

Instead I received a drunken woman asking me math equations. I shit you not. After my joke, This, she yelled out "what's the square root of 3+1?" My response was "do I ask you how to shoot heroin?" Not exactly the best comeback but I was able to get back at her a little.

As for the remainder of the set, I think I need to spend more actual rehearsal time rather than just practicing in the car. There's an old New York joke that goes like this -

Tourist: How do I get to Broadway?

New Yorker: Practice! Practice! Practice!

Comedy Goals 2011

2010-12-30T12:50:00.000-08:00

For the past couple years, my goals for comedy always included competitions and festivals and doing this and that room and so forth and so forth. In 2010, I felt I made some headway in regards to getting better gigs but I also felt that I stagnated a little in developing fresh material. This coming year, I decided to take my focus away from such a wide variety of goals. Instead, my focus will simply be on development.

I think opportunities will continue to come my way as long as I add to my catalogue. Not only do I want to develop more material, I want to leave my comfort zone and play around and start using the mic stand. I want to try sitting down and chatting with the audience. I think crowd interaction is the weakest part of my skill set and I have to improve on that asap.

So, no long laundry list of what I’m looking to accomplish in 2011. I just want to focus on improving me as a standup comic.

Return of FlipnFunny!

2010-12-30T09:48:00.001-08:00

In January 2009 I decided to start a blog as a way of tracking my progress in the Vancouver Comedy Community. Unfortunately, it got off to a very rough start as one of the very first entries got me into a huge online war with a fellow comic. Things were smoothed out in a relatively short time, but the experience took a lot of the fun out of blogging.

Another reason for the lack of entries was a combination of a busier schedule and a loss of focus. In 2008, I logged 8.14hrs of stage time which grew to 11.11hrs (2009) and 14.01hrs (2010). It probably should have been more this past year, as I basically shut it down at the end of October to prepare for my wedding. I’m getting the call more and more to do longer sets and paid sets which are great, but when you get that paid gig the expectation is to bring your best material. I essentially traded developing new material for paid gigs this past year. Hence, my development stagnated.

In hindsight, I should have used my time more wisely away from the stage. I should have focused more on writing and developing new material. I have added material in 2010, but in all honesty the time I put into developing them was minimal.

Going forward, I think I have to get back to the disciplined approach I took when I first started. In 2007 and 2008, before I decided to do the blog, I was disciplined about recounting what I did right and what I did wrong. No performance would be left without analysis. I need to get back to that kind of discipline.

In the next couple days, I will lay out my goals for the upcoming year for comedy.

Vancouver Comedyfest - Post #1

2009-10-02T16:14:00.000-07:00

An Evening At The Vogue ...

October 2nd, 2009

Although one of my goals for 2009 was to be part of the festival, I pretty much resigned myself to being a spectator. I think I was lucky to get on. A little over a month ago at the Sin Bin, I had a shit set in front of a festival scout. Thank God most of the other acts that night had difficulty with that crowd. Afterwards, I approached the scout and made the suggestions, “if the festival is going to have a show for comics who do well in clubs, but suck in bars – I would be a good fit for that show.” He smiled and suggested I send him a clip of what I can do.

I went home that night and sent him a link to my best set ever at Yuks (thank you D-Lo). He replied he liked the clip and asked me for some dates as to when he can see me again. I then went about procuring time at Yuks and Lafflines, so I can get a decent club setting for the scout to see me again. Thank you Rob! Thank you James! I got spots at both clubs.

The scout saw me do a solid 5.30min set at Yuks on a Thursday. I squeezed in three applause breaks in that five and half minute spot. Unfortunately, after the show the scout gave me the news that I would not be part of the show. He said he liked the set, and he offered some tremendous advice, but the decision was no to this year’s festival. He ended up saying that if he can find me a spot for me, he will get me one, but don’t get my hopes up.

Fast forward a week and a half to 3.30pm on Friday, September 18th. I get an email from the scout saying that he has a spot for me at 8pm that night but I had to respond asap. After a quick back and forth of emails, I was in the festival and I was going to perform at THE VOGUE THEATRE!!!! Are you fucking kidding me??? THE VOGUE!!! Needless to say, I was very excited to be part of the show.

Although the capacity for that theatre is about 1,100, I estimate that the crowd I performed for was about 400-500 people deep because I was the first comic up. Another aspect of the show I was excited about was performing in front of a predominantly East Indian crowd. I can now say with pride that my Apna jokes are Apna Approved! Boo-Ya!

I admit, I had some nerves going into the first joke which didn’t get the attention of the crowd to be honest. However, the second one got them on board and they supported most of the set. I hit the tiniest of snags during the Tunnel piece when I overheard a guy say, “talk about sex again.” Besides that, I thought I did well.

Set List, 9min
Kamikaze
This
Box Set
Flip Commitment
Brown Swimming
Porn
The Rabbit
Tunnel of Love
Juice

I wasn’t able to time it because my watch battery died that night and I think it would look horrible if I brought my berry onstage to use the voice recorder. So the time I have recorded is from the stage manager who said I did a perfect 9min.

Although I’m incredibly grateful to the decision makers of the Comedyfest to have included me in the list of performers, I am even more thankful for the opportunity when I see a strong list of names who were nowhere to be found in the shows. There was a jaw dropping list of local comics that I look up and learn from that were not asked to perform. It is not a place to say who should or should not be there, I’m just thankful that I got a first-hand taste of the festival. And I sure the hope the work that’s in front of me will be good enough to get me another invite to perform.

Am I Getting Spoiled?

2009-10-01T13:51:00.000-07:00

October 1st, 2009

In a matter of eight days, I have exited the stage angry. Angry to the point, I was cursing certain members of the audience under my breath. Last week at Kino, my set was interrupted by an idiot who was showing off for his friends and it completely took away the focus from the stage. Last night at the Great Bear Pub, some guy shouted out a part of the joke that I was doing and I pretty much told him to fuck off. In both instance, I still believe the individuals are guilty of being bad audience members. However, in both cases, I had to talk myself down from doing something stupid like confronting them after the show. Yeah! That stupid!

Lately, I have had a great run of luck in regards to getting booked at Laffs and Yuks on a fairly regular basis. And not only am I being booked in these prime spots, I am getting great responses from the audience each time I’m up. It was on one of these nights which garnered me a spot on this year’s Comedyfest. Is the anger that I’ve displayed this past week one of first signs of entitlement? Am I starting to get the attitude that “I’m Dennis FUCKING Litonjua and they’re going to love me?” Am I starting to become a prick?

Before the Comedyfest, I was in the midst of trying to take a short break from comedy because I was exhausted. To be honest, I’m still in that head space where I need a break just to get my wits about me because life is going so fast for me at the moment. I am big believer in taking one step back before taking two steps forward. I think my lack of energy and the amount of stress is part of the reason why I’ve been getting angry lately. So, some time off will help me get better control of my emotions.

Another thing that I’m sure will keep me humble is going out to the non-club shows and working on other material. In the last couple weeks, I have organized the material that I want to revise and edit into four subjects – Work, Driving, Youth and Religion. Granted, they’re not ALL ENTIRELY NEW, but they have newer elements and are in the process of heavy revisions. That said, the first two, Work and Driving, are both coming along nicely. Unfortunately, the other two are proving to be a little more difficult. I believe getting back to the basics of developing material into a polished bit will be the ball busting experience that I am looking for to keep me from becoming a prick.

Dennis L.

Cleator - Aug.21.09

2009-08-21T10:02:00.000-07:00

CLEATOR - New Joke Sputtering

On Tuesday, August 18th I once again tried my hand at working a joke that’s been brewing in my head for the last couple years. The joke is a true story of my visit to a doctor. So many things were so weird that it necessitated its own bit.

On my first attempt to share this joke, it was very, very clunky. It had no flow and it didn’t help that I missed some points to the joke. So after a start that elicited some laughter, the bit quickly descended into a long awkward bit. I’ve done some major revisions on the joke before trying it out again on Tuesday. And although I received a more positive response from the older members of the crowd, I still had some issues.

Here is a list of the issues with Cleator –
- Younger members of the crowd can’t relate to the topic
- Topic is fricken gross
- I had trouble memorizing the joke
- Some of the tags are very subtle

Even though I have a short list of issues with this joke, I still have a lot of faith in it. I think with some time and further revisions, I KNOW I can make this joke work.

Dennis L.

YUKS - 10 vs. 10

2009-08-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

YUKS – 10min vs 10min
August 3, 2009

On June 10, 2009, I had my best set ever at Yuks. It was part of an ethnic show where I did a SOLID 10min set. Last week, I did my first paid set at Yuks by doing the 10min spot on Tuesdays. Although I felt good about my set, it came nowhere near the first 10min spot I did which will count (for now) my best set EVER.

In preparing for the 2nd set, I made a mental note to WAIT for the laughter to die down before proceeding with the next joke. I think I made the mistake of waiting too long this time around. I have to get a better feel for the timing of the situation. I have to learn to find that spot where the crowd’s laughter is BEGINNING to die down to tell the next joke. But I also need to be very careful as to not wait too long so I don’t kill the momentum. The two experiences have illustrated this important detail for me.

June 10, 2009
Kamikaze
This
Box Set
Flip Commitment
Indian Swimming
Brown Medal
The Rabbit
Tunnel of Love
Juice

July 28, 2009
Kamikaze
This
Box Set
Flip Commitment
Indian Swimming
Porn
The Rabbit
Tunnel of Love
Juice

As you can see there isn’t much difference between the two set lists with the exception of the replacing Brown Medal with Porn. As for the pieces bits themselves, there was one minor change worthy of note in The Rabbit. Beyond that, no changes were made.

Dennis L.

Canada Day Update (07.01.09)

2009-07-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

Canada Day Update
July 1st, 2009

Considering that my last post had nothing to do with comedy, I have sooooooo much to share in regards to my thoughts about how my “career” is going in comedy. It’s been three months since my last post about comedy, and that post was more of a personal update rather than a comedy update. So, here is a quick rundown of what’s happened in the first half of 2009!

Big Name Out of Towners!
I have had the pleasure of working with …
Gabriel Rutledge – Winner of Seattle Comedy Competition 2004. Gabriel was part of FNC.3.
Brad Upton – 20yr veteran and international headliner. I did 15min with him on a weekend spot.
Debra DiGiovanni – from Comic Last Standing and MM Video On Trial. I did 7min with her on a weekend spot.

Running Rooms
FNC @ Lafflines
Even though the last show had a horrible turnout, I still have a soft spot for this show and I’m looking forward to future shows. Art is awesome to work with and there’s a never ending list of charities that need money. Some way, somehow we would like to help.

A couple months ago, I watched an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and they were building a house for a guy who was mentoring kids in a rundown neighbourhood. This gentleman stressed the importance of education and being a helpful hand in the community. The gentleman’s motto in life was, “Lift as you climb” which was his way of telling kids to strive for excellence, AND help bring others to the same level excellence. I’m going to teach my future children that because I’m adopting the same motto – Lift as you climb.

UFC @ Lafflines
I got this idea when a Toronto based comic came to town months ago and he was previously in California doing shows and he mentioned that there was a show that was drawing huge audiences of guys just because the advertising mentioned MMA . Shortly thereafter, I came up with the idea for Ultimate Funny Challenge which I pitched to Lafflines during a conversation. And lo behold, boom there goes the dynamite.

I’ll soon be sharing more details to the show but there are already about a dozen people who know how this show is going to be formatted. As of now, the intended launch for the show will be August.

Comedy Quest @ Rekados
As frustrating as the end result was, I got a quick taste of what to expect when I actually do run a weekly room. I was so excited because I had the opportunity to build bridges between Filipino and North American Stand Up Comedy and the bridge between white people and Filipino food. I was soooooo looking forward to bringing different people to two things I love very, very much. And it was a kick in the nuts when the owner told me that he chose to sell the place and the plans for comedy were being scrapped. I have no ill will against the owner and I look forward to re-visiting the idea of working again when he gets another restaurant up and running.

Comedy Quest – Part Two
I am currently in discussion with pub in Surrey about a new room. The location has many, many positives going for it which makes me very hopeful that the opportunity pans out.

Again, this would be about building bridges. I want to show the comics who don’t make it out to Surrey that it’s not the shit stain of the Lower Mainland. True, there’s a lot of questionable ticks that some folks will show when they’re walking around after getting their hits, but there are also plenty of good, sophisticated, and educated masses that reside in Surrey. On the other side, I want to bring Surrey the gift of awesome standup comedy that is living and breathing in Vancouver. I want Surrey to get excited about comedy. I want them to seek out comedy on the other side of the Fraser. And I think I can do that by bringing Surrey some of the best that Vancouver Comedy has to offer. Wish me luck that this pans out and sees the light of day.

So, if Comedy Quest comes to pass I will find myself running three different shows. Yes, that’s a lot of responsibilities, but it’s the ideal number of rooms that I want because they each serve a different purpose.

Flip n Comedy – this is the charitable show. Art and I get to make contributions to charities that we like. And as I had said, there will always be charities in need of money.

Comedy Quest – this is the pro show. I want set up a show where I can study pros. I encourage other amateurs to study what’s going on stage when a pro is working.

UFC Night – this is a pro-am show. Since the other two shows aren’t really opened to a lot of other amateurs, this is my way of opening more doors for us.

Development
I think I have made some vast improvements in the first half of the year. Although I have not really added any other bits to my portfolio, what I have done is tightened my existing material. In doing so, my sets have gotten better and so the audience feedback has reflected the progress. I recently had the set of my life at Yuks. I did just over 10min and I had laughter throughout the set. The laughs were huge and long – kind of like a black porn star’s penis. Anyhoo, I feel that I have made the most out of the opportunities that have come my way. I didn’t feel out of step when performing with the bigger names that I have had the privilege of working with. I don’t mean any disrespect to the other fine comics I have worked with, or their fans, but the fans of Debra Digiovanni are more vocal in their admiration for their performer. In that particular show, I felt that I worked that I fit in nicely with the other comics who helped fill in time before Debra took the stage.

New Material
When I mentioned that I have not really added any new bits, I wasn’t telling the whole truth. Have I been working on new material? Yes. Have I added any of that material into my repertoire? No. Do I plan on putting more work into new material? Absolutely. If I was to add the material that I don’t think is quite ready yet, I think I would be adding 8-10min. If I was to add the material after the required revisions, the time would probably drop to about 4-6min.

First Paid Gig
Technically, I was first paid to do comedy about ten years ago when a friend of mine asked me to open for his improv group out in Langley. However, since I don’t count most things that I did in comedy prior to August 2007, June 24th and 25th 2009 were my first ever paid gigs. After having done what was asked by me by Lafflines, they rewarded me with the co-middling position in the line-up. My first paid spots were with Reza Peyk and Richard Lett who I both enjoy working with. They’re good guys and would have no qualms about working with them again.

As for the sets themselves, I have to be honest and say that they were not my best moments as a comic. The first night I did about 17 and half minutes and then on Saturday, I did just over 15min. Although there were lulls in the set, I was able to pick the crowd back up each time. That was the first night which I followed with a tighter 15min set, but I managed to stutter my way through most of it. On both occasions, I thought I had finished strongly. And on both nights, I received many kind, generous words from audience members.

To be brutally honest, I don’t think I did that well. I think I have to face the fact that I don’t quite have 15min set that EVERYONE would consider tight. I can go strong for 12min, maybe even 13min but I have to be honest and say that I don’t have 15min. The stuff I added to make the 15min mark have received mixed success. This assessment is based on my own personal memory of the experience, a review of the recording from Saturday’s set and the feedback from one particular veteran.

As much as I want this, and as much as I want this NOW, I have to consider the bigger picture. There are two aspects to the bigger picture – one regarding the community as a whole and the other is personal role and long term goals.

Comedy Community
Any community is only as strong as its weakest link. If I am to be a professional comedian, I have to step up my game. When people go to a weekend show and sees me (for instance) do a mediocre job of setting up the headliner, they may conclude that the next time they go to a comedy show, they should only get there in time for the headliner. Or worse yet, conclude the $15-$20 they paid is not justified by the show they get because only two thirds of the act was good. I don’t want to be that guy who ruins comedy for potential new fans.

Long Term Goals
I have to improve to meet the bar of excellence that has been set by the comics before me. It is my job to raise myself to that level, rather than lowering the standard to meet my mediocrity. If I don’t improve and continue to put up mediocrity, then there’s no sense in setting long term goals because career would be over before it even began.

So I may need to shy away from the next opportunity, if I am not fully convinced that I can rock a full 15min set from start to finish.

Happy Canada Day!

The Denminion of Canada

Catching Up Pt. (04.16.09)

2009-07-01T16:19:00.000-07:00

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.

///

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.

************************************

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.

Pacman KO2 Hitman

2009-05-04T16:10:00.000-07:00

Pacman KO2 Hitman (May.02.2009)

As Filipinos worldwide are starting to come down from the high of Manny Pacquiao’s annihilation of the Ricky Hatton, it’s time to put in perspective what this victory means for boxing. A lot has been written about how Pacquiao now belongs with the true legends of the sport – Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Henry Armstrong etc. I have to agree with this assessment 100%. Forget the fact I’m Filipino, I am basing this conclusion to the nearly thirty years I’ve put in following this sport.

In my opinion, THE PACMAN IS GREATEST FIGHTER IN THE LAST 30 YEARS!!! He is the best since Muhammad Ali. He has surpassed the accomplishments of Sugar Ray Leonard, Roy Jones Jr., Pernell Whitaker, Oscar De la Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Jr., and Julio Cesar Chavez.

As many have pointed out, Pacquaio is the closest thing to Henry Armstrong’s conquest of three divisions that spanned 21lbs. Pacquaio’s titles have been won from 115lbs to 147lbs which is a span of 32lbs. With the exception of the first fight with Erik Morales and the couple with Juan Manuel Marquez, Pacquiao has been dominant since his debut at junior featherweight. The one punch kayo of Ricky Hatton stands above all “Big Fight” knockouts of the past 30 years. Pacquiao’s victory even surpasses the Thomas Hearns’ knockout of Roberto Duran in the second round because Pacquiao was supposedly the smaller man, yet he was the one walking away from a flattened foe.

Other reasons why Pacquaio’s the greatest fighter in the last 30yrs …
Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, and Juan Manuel Marquez - this triumvirate of Mexicans had less than 10 losses between the three of them when they fought Pacquiao. These three men were considered the standard to which featherweight division was compared. Each one of them is an easy first ballot Hall of Famer. Everybody avoided these men, if they could help it. Pacquiao scored two stoppages against Morales, one stoppage and one decisive win over Barrera, and two very close fights with Marquez who he knocked a down a total of four times.
Other solid competition Pacquiao defeated includes De la Hoya (HOF), Ricky Hatton, Oscar Larios, and Lehlo Ledwhaba. All were stopped within the distance.

Below is a list of fighters briefly summarizing why their great and why their greatness falls short to the accomplishments of Manny Pacquiao.

Sugar Ray Leonard
Why he’s great …
This version of Sugar Ray has wins over Wilfred Benitez, Roberto Duran, Thomas Hearns, and Marvin Hagler. All these men are bona fide greats and Sugar Ray bested them all. Enough said.
Why he falls short …
I roll my eyes every time I read that Leonard is the first five division champion. After “defeating” Hagler, Leonard fought a good Canadian kid named Donnie Lalonde for the Super Middleweight AND the Light Heavyweight titles ON THE SAME NIGHT!!! How can you win the title if you’ve never fought at that weight class? And it should be noted that Lalonde was a one handed fighter. A previous shoulder injury prevented him from using his left hand effectively.

Pernell Whitaker
Why he’s great …
Sweet Pea is one of my favorite fighters EVER. He is the BEST PURE BOXER I have ever watched. The man was unhittable in his prime. Whitaker can stand in the pocket and hit you with everything and not take any return fire. It was customary to hear “120-108, 120-108, 120-108” read at the end of his fights, as he became known for shutting out his opponents on the scorecards.
Whitaker is a four division champ who couldn’t punch worth s**t. Technically only has one win against a HOF fighter with Azuma Nelson. However, he has a disputed draw against a prime Julio Cesar Chavez and a disputed decision loss to Oscar De La Hoya, both of which I thought Whitaker won. Other notable names on his resume include Buddy McGirt, Roger Mayweather, Julio Cesar Vasquez, Jose Luis Ramirez, and Greg Haugen.

Why he falls short …
In winning titles from lightweight to junior middleweight, Whitaker covered 19lbs. Pacquiao has covered 35lbs or 39lbs depending on which records you look. In all honesty, Whitaker was such a good boxer that it is plausible that if he had more punching power, he could have gone up to middleweight and possibly defeated William Joppy or Julio Cesar Green for the WBC belt. Then again, I could have been blessed with Eddie Murphy’s wit and be mentioned amoung the very best comics in the world. Too bad, so sad – we can’t always get what we want.

Julio Cesar Chavez
Why he‘s great …
Chavez was a certified s**tkicker. He is best known for the path of destruction he laid by going an astounding 88-0 record from the start of his career and winning titles in three divisions. He only has one win over a HOF fighter – Edwin Rosario but it was CRUSHING victory. That said, he went out and destroyed the following high caliber opponents – Mario Martinez, Roger Mayweather, Rocky Lockridge, Juan LaPorte, Jose Luis Ramirez, Meldrick Taylor, Hector Camacho, Greg Haugen, and Tony Lopez.
His only losses during his prime were against Whitaker (incorrectly scored a draw) and Frankie Randall. On the downslide, he lost De la Hoya and Kotsa Tszyu. The other losses were to non-descript opponents when he was completely done as a fighter.

Why he falls short …
Chavez didn’t cover the same ground as Pacquiao has, as he’s basically fought a range of 15lbs – not even half of what the PacMan has done. Also, the level of competition he defeated doesn’t match the names Pacquiao has beaten. Chavez accomplished a lot, but not as much as Pacquiao.

Roy Jones Jr.
Why he’s great …
Without a grain of doubt in my head, Jones was the most TALENTED fighter I have ever seen. He had amazing had amazing hand speed and footspeed and one punch kayo power. His most meaningful wins came against Bernard Hopkins, James Toney, Tito Trinidad, and Mike McCallum who are all Hall of Famers (HOF). He had other wins against quality opposition like Virgil Hill, Reggie Johnson, and Montell Griffin.

Why he falls short ….
Jones made the poor choice of wasting his talents on fights that didn’t matter. In his prime, Jones fought non-descript guys who had no chance in hell in beating him. There was a joke about Jones that went something like he likes to fight civil service guys because he fought Ricky Frazier, a policeman, and Tony Thornton, a postman.
The potential to cement his greatness was there because during his prime, there were a handful of English boxers fighting a round robin tourney to claim who the best super middleweight was. And to his discredit, Jones didn’t fight any of the following – Chris Eubank, Nigel Benn, Michael Watson, and Steve Collins.

Oscar De La Hoya
Why he’s great …
He is the first six time division champion. As much as people want to discredit De la Hoya, I believe he is a good enough fighter to have competed against ANY OF THE GREATS in boxing. I certainly don’t think he would win most of them, but he would put up a solid effort and challenge a lot of the old time greats. Technically, De la Hoya only has two victories against HOFs and both were over Julio Cesar Chavez. I believe De la Hoya won the rematch against Shane Mosley and I believe that he also won enough rounds to secure victory over Felix Trinidad. Other solid fighters he defeated include Genaro Hernandez, Rafael Ruelas, Hector Camacho, Ike Quartey, and Fernando Vargas.

Why he falls short …
A handful of his victories were very questionable. His wins against Pernell Whitaker and Felix Sturm were very controversial. He’s also lost to Bernard Hopkins, Floyd Mayweather, and Pacquiao. Essentially, when it came to fighting elite level fighters, De la Hoya consistently fell short.

Floyd Mayweather
Why he’s great …
So far, Mayweather has remained undefeated in his career that has covered from junior lightweight to welterweight (17lbs). He is a solid two way fighter who doesn’t forsake his defense while attacking. He’s in the mold of Whitaker but with more power and fighting out of a conventional stance. His list of HOF names that he’s beaten includes De la Hoya and Jose Luis Castillo. Other high caliber fighters he’s defeated include Ricky Hatton, Diego Corrales, Zab Judah, and Genaro Hernandez.

Why he falls short …
Similar to Jones, Mayweather has been rightfully criticized by the boxing media for his lack of gumption to fight the best available opposition. Before he “retired” there were opportunities to fight either Antonio Margarito and/or Miguel Cotto. The thing with Mayweather is that he’s now decided to come back and fight Juan Manuel Marquez, with a potential of fighting Paciquiao if he wins. It’s not too late to add to his legacy by taking on challenges bigger and better opponents.

DENlightening you with some boxing opinion ......

Catching Up, Pt. 1 - The Hiatus (Apr.10.09)

2009-04-16T16:27:00.000-07:00

CATCHING UP Pt. 1 – The Hiatus
April 10, 2009

It’s been quite some time since my last entry. Initially, the blog stopped because one of the posts lacked discretion and a conscious decision was made to suspend posts until things cooled off a bit. Even though things have cooled off for some time, I have not been able to get back to blogging because I have been incredibly busy.

The time between the last post and this post has been very trying to say the least. To be honest, the online war that prompted the suspension of this blog took a lot of the fun out of comedy for me. Compound that with a few personal issues on top of that, the past couple of months of comedy was a test of mental and emotional toughness for me.

The weekend before my online war with a fellow amateur comic, I found out that an old high school friend lost her baby at birth, a close friend of mine lost his father, and another good friend informed me that she was going to get a divorce. Then in early March, one of my closest friends found out his brother was shot in the head; the brother past away a week later in the hospital.

My friend’s death was the closest loss I’ve ever had to go through so far. I’ve been more than lucky thus far to not lose anyone that I’m particularly close to. The thing with my friend’s brother’s passing is that I was really close to the family growing up. I can’t count the amount of times I would be over hanging out with my friend and having his family to banter with. My friend’s family is a good family that didn’t deserve the heartache they received. My heart goes out to them.

On the day job front, I have spearheaded a project of launching a new website. The launching of a new site is surprisingly easy when you have the right people to delegate. However, there are a lot of details to oversee. Revisions upon revisions are required to establish a quality site, so the project takes a TON OF TIME.

So during the months of February and March, I have been showing up to shows either distracted and exhausted, and some times both. From the January 13th to March 17th, I felt like I was in a bit of funk. The Jan. 13th set a Yuks was the last set I felt good about before the whole Yuks competition got the best of me. Then for a couple months, I performed like I was in a fog. The set at Kino on March 17th was the start of me starting to get my groove back.

The couple of months that I have been “off my game” made me think about how much I want this. How much am I willing to fight through to “make it”? What exactly am I willing to give up? What exactly would I NOT give up?

More things to catch up on .....

Dennis L.

Flip N Asian Show # 2 (written Feb.05.09)

2009-04-16T16:23:00.000-07:00

FLIP N ASIAN SHOW #2
Lafflines – Thursday, February 5th 2009

For this particular episode of the FNC, I took Bullet. Aside from a prolonged portion of awkwardness during Fat Dennis, I thought I put together a solid effort. I thought the emcee did an amazing job of putting the crowd in such a great mood that I think that it was easy for me to do my first joke.

I thought Kamikaze got a decent reception, but I was able to raise the energy with This. Then the awkwardness came with Fat Dennis. The awkwardness was due to not really knowing this bit as much as I should. I’ve only used once since I put on the shelf about a year back. However, I do believe the joke has more nuggets that I can mine out of it.

Regardless, it took me a couple of moments to get the set back on track with Flip Commitment which I followed with my Brown jokes. This was the first time I had a sizeable Brown contingency in the audience for the Brown jokes. And I’m glad to say that my instincts were proven correct and that they don’t go over the line. The jokes are said in good fun and are not overly disrespectful to the Brown community.

After the Brown jokes, I was able to crescendo with Porn, Rabbit and then finally, Tunnel. I got HUGE responses for Rabbit and Tunnel. HUGE. It was a good set, despite the seconds lost during the transition from Fat to Flip Com.

Set List
- Kamikaze
- This
- Fat Dennis
- Flip Commitment
- Indian Swimming
- Brown Medal
- Porn
- The Rabbit
- Tunnel of Love
Time: 9.19min

There is one other thing worth noting from the night. The host, Sunee D., highlighted a skill that I haven’t really put any thought towards. I really liked how he paid close attention to the show and would open up with wisecrack about the previous act in between sets. I think that’s a skill that I should be honing instead of shooting the shit with other comics during the show.

Getting Back On the Saddle - Double Spot (written Feb.03.09)

2009-04-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

DOUBLE SPOT
KINO / DARBYS – Feb.03.09

After the debacle with blogging that led to a brief, but bitter feud with another comic, it was time to re-build the good faith that I had damaged in the last week or so. Last night was the first step of getting back on track. I had two spots last night – Kino and Darbys.

KINO
To be honest, I felt uneasy about this set. Coming off the Joke Off which I really don’t count as a set, I’ve been a little tense about my place in the community. Pondering how much damage did I do to myself? The set at Kino was the first step towards finding out.

///

The set itself was decent. I didn’t think I was great, but I didn’t think I was horrible either. I had a strong start and a strong finish, but at around the end of Fat Dennis I had a lull. The stall in laughter could be attributed to me not really knowing the material well enough, but it also highlighted the possibility that the joke needs revision.

Another aspect that needs further attention is The Rabbit. I am still not happy with the transition from explaining what it is, to what it can do. I need to insert a joke in there to keep the bit from stagnating.

On a positive note, I think I found a better spot for the phrase “human stalactite” in the Porn bit. Also positive was the further shortening of Tunnel of Love. Admittedly, this was done completely by accident.

Set List
- Kamikaze
- Fat Dennis
- Flip Commitment
- Porn
- The Rabbit
- Tunnel of Love
Time: 6.52min

DARBYS
Since the Kino show had a late start, I wasn’t able to leave until shortly after 10pm. After a quick drive, I arrived at Darbys about 10min before I was scheduled to go up. Last night’s crowd at Darbys was definitely lively, borderline rowdy. Goodness gracious, but when they laughed, they laughed hard.

Personally, my set was a little uneven. There were moments where a certain joke would fall flat, but the very next line would elicit an eruption of laughter. I believed that happened with The Rabbit and its features. And it is worth mentioning that my tongue got tied on a couple of occasions.

In all, I thought the crowd was a little tricky, but I managed to stay in the pocket and deliver the goods.

Set List
- Kamikaze
- This
- Flip Commitment
- Porn
- The Rabbit
Time: 5.07min

For me the night was “successful” in that I got back on the horse and let the material do my talking for me. However, I was reminded last night that I really need to get my ass going in regards to writing new material. I saw a couple of my personal favorites performers present newer jokes which were awesome. I hope the stuff in my head turn out as good as the jokes that I saw last night.

Denaissance!

Comedy Goals 2009 (Reposted)

2009-04-16T16:13:00.000-07:00

FLIP N FUNNY
Comedy Goals 2009

- Work together with Art and make the FNCS one of the best shows in town
o Organize contact list
o Design poster template
o Get (more) facetime on TV and print

- Add another 10min of SOLID, EDITED material
o Anything less than 8min will be considered a failure

- WRITE the following joke ideas
o Cleats
o Duckie
o CLEANER MATERIAL

- EDIT the following jokes
o Tunnel of Love – shorten it
o Sasha – find intro and exit
o Youth – bunch of revisions
o Pharmaceutical – find exit

- Advance ONE round in the Yuks competition
- Do another weekend spot at Yuks
- Do a 10min spot at Yuks
- Do my first weekend spot at Lafflines
- Participate in the Comedy Festival
- Get headshots done
- Get websites up and running
- Get more video done
o Learn to edit video

**** Originally written Jan.13.09 ***