Cover: Russ Meneve
Most Valuable Player: Russ Meneve Making the Comedy World a Better Paid Place
By Tasha A. Harris
It’s a chilly Sunday night in March as I enter Carolines to meet one of the hardest working comics on the New York comedy scene, Russ Meneve, despite feeling under the weather, came out to talk to STM about his comedy career and how he co-founded the New York Comedian’s Coalition with Tom Shillue and Ted Alexandro, which united over 400 comedians to ask club owners for a long overdue pay increase. After several meetings with comedians and club owners, Meneve and the Coalition negotiated a raise for all working comics in the city.
Meneve is a natural leader onstage as well as offstage. The Hawthorne, NJ native has appeared several times on The Tonight Show, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Last Call with Carson Daly, Last Comic Standing, and his delightfully wicked and hilarious stand up earned him a spot on New York magazine’s “The Ten Funniest New Yorkers You’ve Never Heard Of.” Even after scoring a victory for New York City comics and receiving Cringe Humor’s highest honor as “The Impact Player of 2005,” Russ continues looking out for the betterment of his fellow comics, educating and empowering them to receive their fair share in the comedy business.
Read full interview (4 pages)
Watch Russ Meneve on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”
STAGE TIME is an online magazine that covers the craft and business of stand-up comedy. Launched in 2005, STAGE TIME has emerged as one of the leading online media resources for comedians, providing informative interviews, career advice articles and insightful commentary.