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The Good Old Days

The Good Old Days

 

I always said I would never get nostalgic as I got older but, today I can’t seem to help myself. I want to talk about a time long ago in my life that some of you may not be aware of. Do you know, at one time I worked as a professional stand-up comedian?

Yes, I know it’s hard to believe. I never became real famous but, I always made a living at it. I really enjoyed it. In the end, I was even teaching classes to help newcomers to the craft advance and learn the skills they needed.

Teaching gave me almost as much gratification as performing. Watching my students improve and become more confident always gave me a sense of pride.

Nothing can ever compare to performing in front of a group of people and making them laugh as hard as they possibly can. Bringing that kind of joy to others brought even a greater sense of bliss to me.

Those were different times. Some of you may have heard about them. People were allowed to go out in large groups. You would sit at tables with strangers that were within six feet of you. You would laugh and drink and possibly even touch each other.

After the show, people would come up and say they had a great time and shake my hand. That’s when another person would put their hand in yours.

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Unemployed Aggravation

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Christmas Parties

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What Are You Trying To Say?

What Are You Trying To Say?

 

So the local newspaper, the Post-Gazette, is going digital. Anyway, that’s what I think I’ve deciphered from their current ad campaign. If you’ve seen it, you’re probably as confused as I am. Elderly people complaining that the newspaper is going digital, one old lady talking about her cookies…the same old lady telling the PG to go screw themselves…

At first, it wasn’t obvious what they were trying to say. Actually, it really still isn’t now. There’s another one with an old guy reading the newspaper on the bus, next to a kid with headphones, staring at his phone. The old guy goes on about how he gets his business news each day from the newspaper and can’t get up to the minute quotes on his phone.

So apparently, this is the only old guy lost in time that doesn’t realize the current trend. As the commercial ended, I looked to see it was an endorsement of the Post-Gazette. This is where I became confused.

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500 Years of Comedy

500 Years of Comedy

 

Last week I was booked to do a show in Munster, Indiana at the Performing Arts Center there. One of my best, if not the best friend I have, Nick Gaza books and runs the shows there. We met and became friends when we were living in Los Angeles. Actually, I lived in Burbank and he lived in Glendale, but it was in the L.A. area.

Since we don’t see each other very often, maybe once a year, I went in a few days early to hang out. Munster is in the Chicago area, so when I get back that way I usually get together with a few comedian friends.

This time, my old friend Bill Gorgo decided to invite a group of us to his home for a Wednesday afternoon barbeque. One of the advantages of being a comedian is that your Wednesday afternoons are usually free.

I’ve known Bill since the 80’s and he’s always been a very humble and gracious person. He’s one of the most intelligent and clever people that I know and always has a smile on his face. Here’s the kind of guy he is. Despite being in extreme pain from a back problem, he went ahead with the plans, did all of the cooking and prep work and was a great host…He also made more than we could handle and ended up eating leftover brats and polish sausage for a week.

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