Anyone here done standup comedy?

[Reverend Conehead]

Before the whole pandemic hit, my goal was to do some standup here in Omaha. A local club has an open mike night, and so I've been busy creating a routine for it. We have musical festivals here in the summer where a lot of different bands play. They often have local comics do quick sets between bands while the bands are swapping out the equipment. It's something I've always wanted to do, but never quite got up the guts to do. I was always worried about flopping and being embarrassed. However, as I've gotten older, I've gotten more and more of a feeling of "who gives a rip?" I felt like I could just go for it, and, while there would be some stage fright, it's not like they're going to shoot me if my jokes aren't funny.

When I was a kid, I was the class clown. Kids always told me I would make a good comedian. This isn't a Netflix special that I'm forced to cancel. It's just local open mike stuff, but it is a bummer that the pandemic thing has taken it away, at least for now. I'll still be busy writing my jokes and practicing the routine on my own. I've always found it really fun to make people laugh.

 

[The Fonz]

Go for it the key is make the jokes as short as possible you don't want to lose the audience

 

[Reverend Conehead]

Go for it the key is make the jokes as short as possible you don't want to lose the audience

Great point. My guess would be the more experienced and successful comics may be able to get away with longer jokes, but even they would start with short ones before putting any longer one into the routine.

 

[The Fonz]

Great point. My guess would be the more experienced and successful comics may be able to get away with longer jokes, but even they would start with short ones before putting any longer one into the routine.

It is like giving a speech the longer it gets the less interested the cowed in it ..always short joke or speech is much better..I had very limited experience in that with theater and one thing you don't want to do is drag the joke for a longer time

 

[Reverend Conehead]

It is like giving a speech the longer it gets the less interested the cowed in it ..always short joke or speech is much better..I had very limited experience in that with theater and one thing you don't want to do is drag the joke for a longer time

Yes, I've noticed the very good comics build the upcoming jokes from the previous ones. So they don't have a series of unrelated jokes, and they typically don't have one long one, but instead, they'll have done quick, funny joke, and then the next one builds on that idea, the next one on that, and so on. So it ends up as a longer story, but it's all connected up with laugh points. Regardless, you're totally right that you can't lose or bore the audience.

 

[nobody]

I haven't, but I've seen a of good comics deliver short jokes, but each joke adds a little more information to a later joke, so it's a bunch of short ones that also add into a long one toward the end overall.

 

[kskboys]

Not intentionally.

 

[kskboys]

Great point. My guess would be the more experienced and successful comics may be able to get away with longer jokes, but even they would start with short ones before putting any longer one into the routine.

Longer jokes must be entertaining the whole way through and/or have more than one funny part.

 

[kskboys]

And DO NOT EVER EVER EVER try to tell a long joke to a bunch of drunks.

 

[CF74]

Looking forward to your Youtube vid...

 

[CouchCoach]

The ones I like, Black, Burr, Jeselnik, Madigan, Oswalt, Papa, Segura use their established personality to tell longer jokes and because I like them and think they're funny, I stay in tune with them.

I was a class clown and people have asked me why I haven't hit the stage because most people find me funny and I have a stock answer, lack of guts. My wife used to push me hard in that direction, not to quit my day job pushing, because she thought I was a natural comic. I've given this a lot of thought over the years and one memory keeps coming back to me.

I had a friend that I worked with that lived in New York and he actually became a comedy writer and he was constantly pushing me and on one trip to NYC, we decided to go to the Improv after dinner, and he even told me this was part of his plan as it was amateur/up and comer night. Everything is going along fine until this guy takes the stage and he bombs and my greatest fear was right there in front of me. It was evident he knew he was bombing, he was nervous and sweating and stammering and people, including me, just sat there staring at a man dying inside. I was dying along with him and that feeling never left me anytime I think about getting up in front of a bunch of strangers and putting myself on the line.

However, obviously, there are those that don't share that and some comics even talk about the times they've bombed. Rev, if you've got thick skin, why not have a go at it? None of those that made it knew they would.

 

[CouchCoach]

And DO NOT EVER EVER EVER try to tell a long joke to a bunch of drunks.

DO NOT EVER TRY TO TELL ANYTHING to a bunch of drunks. Especially, last call.

 

[Runwildboys]

I recommend you get @Streetwise 's advice. He does standup regularly, and I've never seen it, so he might suck....but it's more than any of us have done. And he's a funny guy in print, so he's got a head start on you.

 

[The Fonz]

The ones I like, Black, Burr, Jeselnik, Madigan, Oswalt, Papa, Segura use their established personality to tell longer jokes and because I like them and think they're funny, I stay in tune with them.

I was a class clown and people have asked me why I haven't hit the stage because most people find me funny and I have a stock answer, lack of guts. My wife used to push me hard in that direction, not to quit my day job pushing, because she thought I was a natural comic. I've given this a lot of thought over the years and one memory keeps coming back to me.

I had a friend that I worked with that lived in New York and he actually became a comedy writer and he was constantly pushing me and on one trip to NYC, we decided to go to the Improv after dinner, and he even told me this was part of his plan as it was amateur/up and comer night. Everything is going along fine until this guy takes the stage and he bombs and my greatest fear was right there in front of me. It was evident he knew he was bombing, he was nervous and sweating and stammering and people, including me, just sat there staring at a man dying inside. I was dying along with him and that feeling never left me anytime I think about getting up in front of a bunch of strangers and putting myself on the line.

However, obviously, there are those that don't share that and some comics even talk about the times they've bombed. Rev, if you've got thick skin, why not have a go at it? None of those that made it knew they would.

My all time list will start with some of the greats : Robert Klein,Jeff Foxworthy,Garry shandling,Redd Foxx, David Brenner. Now I love Burr he tells it as it is to a degree and Carlin for his cynicism Rodney Dangerfield was the king of one line jokes

 

[MWH1967]

@Risen Star is a pro.

 

[CouchCoach]

My all time list will start with some of the greats : Robert Klein,Jeff Foxworthy,Garry shandling,Redd Foxx, David Brenner. Now I love Burr he tells it as it is to a degree and Carlin for his cynicism Rodney Dangerfield was the king of one line jokes

I love all of the older comics and it was great seeing Klein in that HBO doc, Brooklyn USA.

Burr is my favorite and Segura was my 2nd until his last Netflix special, didn't like it at all. Anthony Jeselnik is fun to watch him really push the envelope and even he surprises himself with what he can get away with his crowd.

The guy I don't get at all is the one that takes his shirt off. He's not remotely funny to me.

 

[Reverend Conehead]

DO NOT EVER TRY TO TELL ANYTHING to a bunch of drunks. Especially, last call.

That, and don't do what Michael Richards did. Destroyed his career.

 

[timb2]

Give stuff people can relate too. Stuff like you can be in your own bathroom at home . you will have no gas(farting) when taking a dump. Go to a public bathroom and it is like your insides could fill a helium balloon,but that's the not the worst of it. There always that guy he won't leave the bathroom. It is like he knows you need to drop a bomb like it was Hiroshima
and he is waiting so he can make a snide comment about your farting. Always happens never fails.

 

[G2]

I recommend you get @Streetwise 's advice. He does standup regularly, and I've never seen it, so he might suck....but it's more than any of us have done. And he's a funny guy in print, so he's got a head start on you.

I appreciate the kind words brother. I did a few openings, but nothing really took off. Then from a good friend in my department, I was put on to do annual installation dinners. Working out pretty good until the Rona up and squashed my momentum, lol. I've taken this period of isolation to really dig in and write.

 

[G2]

I love all of the older comics and it was great seeing Klein in that HBO doc, Brooklyn USA.

Burr is my favorite and Segura was my 2nd until his last Netflix special, didn't like it at all. Anthony Jeselnik is fun to watch him really push the envelope and even he surprises himself with what he can get away with his crowd.

The guy I don't get at all is the one that takes his shirt off. He's not remotely funny to me.

Burt Kreischer?