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BACK ISSUES INTERVIEWS Stand-Up Comedians Jim Norton Robert Kelly Donnell Rawlings Brad Stine Tammy Pescatelli Leighann Lord George Sarris Nick DiPaolo Russ Meneve Shang and more By Tasha Harris, NYC Comedy Journalist STAGE TIME The Magazine That Stands Up For Comedy |
You have your five minutes and it’s pretty good.
There are people out there who we don’t know
about right now, who can tear the stage up for an
hour, who are road comics. They are a lot of
people who have been doing it for 10 years, 12
years, who are very good. Patience is not the
virtue of this generation.
When I’m losing money in the stock market on a
daily basis, I call up my money manager and
start screaming at him and he uses a line which I
take and I use on comedians, which is “This is
not a sprint. It’s a marathon.” It’s not going to
happen overnight. You have to keep going and
do it. And keep writing and writing and you’ll get
better.
Say you get up and start writing and it’s bad.
Well, keep writing anyway because you write 10
pages, out of nowhere, that’s when it happens.
Always have a tape recorder with you because
your best ideas always happen when you least
expect it.
Comedy is actually like a frog. You dissect it. You
kill it. The rules are: There are no rules. Just be
funny. Seinfeld actually told a good friend of
mine, who was like, “I’m worried about this and
that and the industry” and Seinfeld was like,
“Just worry about being funny as humanly
possible. If you are funny as humanly possible,
they will find you.” And they will.
The industry knows where the bodies are, who’s
ready and who’s not. There’s no Chris Rocks [or]
Dave Attells sitting in front of the New York
Comedy Club tonight, scratching their heads
wondering why they’re not getting anywhere. If
you’re ready, you’re going to go. Your job is not
to blow it.
You have to be so good that you can’t be
ignored. Another misconception is that, “Oh, the
industry is trying to keep us down.” Steven
Wright came out of nowhere 20 years ago and
got up there dead pan and I’ve never saw
anything so funny in my life when I first saw him
20 years ago…It’s all about hard work.
It’s like everything else. Why are we sitting here
having this interview? Why did the mayor write a
proclamation letter to us? Because there was a
ton of hard work involved. So many people ask
me, “George, how did you do it? Can you come
help me punch up my show? We’re really leaking
oil over here.” Well okay, I send out about 200-
300 letters a day.
There are people out there who we don’t know
about right now, who can tear the stage up for an
hour, who are road comics. They are a lot of
people who have been doing it for 10 years, 12
years, who are very good. Patience is not the
virtue of this generation.
When I’m losing money in the stock market on a
daily basis, I call up my money manager and
start screaming at him and he uses a line which I
take and I use on comedians, which is “This is
not a sprint. It’s a marathon.” It’s not going to
happen overnight. You have to keep going and
do it. And keep writing and writing and you’ll get
better.
Say you get up and start writing and it’s bad.
Well, keep writing anyway because you write 10
pages, out of nowhere, that’s when it happens.
Always have a tape recorder with you because
your best ideas always happen when you least
expect it.
Comedy is actually like a frog. You dissect it. You
kill it. The rules are: There are no rules. Just be
funny. Seinfeld actually told a good friend of
mine, who was like, “I’m worried about this and
that and the industry” and Seinfeld was like,
“Just worry about being funny as humanly
possible. If you are funny as humanly possible,
they will find you.” And they will.
The industry knows where the bodies are, who’s
ready and who’s not. There’s no Chris Rocks [or]
Dave Attells sitting in front of the New York
Comedy Club tonight, scratching their heads
wondering why they’re not getting anywhere. If
you’re ready, you’re going to go. Your job is not
to blow it.
You have to be so good that you can’t be
ignored. Another misconception is that, “Oh, the
industry is trying to keep us down.” Steven
Wright came out of nowhere 20 years ago and
got up there dead pan and I’ve never saw
anything so funny in my life when I first saw him
20 years ago…It’s all about hard work.
It’s like everything else. Why are we sitting here
having this interview? Why did the mayor write a
proclamation letter to us? Because there was a
ton of hard work involved. So many people ask
me, “George, how did you do it? Can you come
help me punch up my show? We’re really leaking
oil over here.” Well okay, I send out about 200-
300 letters a day.
These are few things to keep in mind when you are submitting your tapes to festival producers. TAPE SUBMISSIONS: The quality of the tape is your responsibility. Do not attach post-it notes to your tape, apologizing for poor quality. If your tape isn't good quality, do not submit it. Avoid submitting tapes with crowd work. Producers want to see your act. The running time of your performance should be (5) five minutes. (This might vary, depending on the festival.) Your tape is your resume. The tape will be viewed FIRST. Producers will read press contents (resume, press clip) after viewing your tape, if they are interested. Producers look for training on your resume. It is common practice to list training at the end of the resume. Instead, you can place your training at the top before your experience. Be sure to include course of study, instructor and training center. Submit only (1) one photo with your tape. Two or more might confuse producers when booking certain shows that involve casting. PRESS CLIPS: Submit only (1) one press clip. Producers will not read through heaps of photo- copied clips from the Corny Mountain News. Make sure your press clip is not misleading. If you were not featured on the cover of the publication, do not copy it as such. For example, center your clip on top of the cover, so that the cover itself is visible. |
I send out about 2000 emails a day. I personally put up flyers. I get around and they’re like,
“Oh, stop. Okay, I get ya.” In other words, “Oh, I didn’t realize it was that much work.” It’s a joy
really putting it together. It’s not the destination. It’s the journey. I’ve had my career on Wall
Street. I’m doing this for enjoyment and to help people. And that’s the truth.
- Tasha Harris, Fall 2005
“Oh, stop. Okay, I get ya.” In other words, “Oh, I didn’t realize it was that much work.” It’s a joy
really putting it together. It’s not the destination. It’s the journey. I’ve had my career on Wall
Street. I’m doing this for enjoyment and to help people. And that’s the truth.
- Tasha Harris, Fall 2005