Tag Archives: comedy

Maz Jobrani: Brown and Friendly

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By David Gavri

Maz Jobrani is a Persian American stand up comedian who was raised in the San Fransisco Bay Area, where he earned a degree at UC Berkeley. He was later accepted into UCLA’s Ph.D. program. While there, Maz visited the university’s prestigious theater program and was immediately hooked on acting—something he was involved with as a kid. He left the Ph.D. program and decided to pursue his childhood passion of acting and performing.

Maz’s first big break came as a founding member of the Axis of Evil Comedy Central Special, which premiered in 2007. It was the first show on American television with an all Middle Eastern American cast. The tour performed in the United States, and later went over to the Middle East, selling out shows in Dubai, Beirut, Cairo, Kuwait, and Amman, Jordan—where they performed in front of the king and queen.

Maz followed up his Axis of Evil tour with a Showtime special, Maz Jobrani: Brown & Friendly, for which he toured all over the world. He is currently working on his next special, Browner & Friendlier.

Since then, Maz has made TV appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Lopez Tonight, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend, and The Colbert Report. Maz has also played roles in Ice Cube’s Friday After Next and Sydney Pollack’s The Interpreter.

And after selling out the entire weekend at The Improv, Maz took the time out of his busy schedule to hang with us and share his story. Continue reading →

Friends With Complications

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By Al Bahmani

It’s not often true friendship and show business combine. No matter how hard you try, you really can’t like everyone. Everyone you like might like you less. Especially when it comes to work or the possibility of future work. Who needs 30 pieces of silver when you have a spot to perform at a pub? Alliances and rivalries come and go at the drop of a hat. Despite all your cynicism, and self doubt, you meet someone and you make a friend.

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5 Common Open Mic Mistakes

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By Steven Padilla

1. Not Staying In The Light

All of the attention is meant to be focused on you.  That’s why you went on stage in the first place.  Stay center stage, where the light is.  If the entire stage is lit, feel free to roam.  Very simply stated, stay in the light.
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Quit Comedy, Not Your Day Job

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By Steven Padilla

If you are getting into stand-up comedy to become wealthy, quit now

There is no money in comedy.  You will perform for free for a very long time.  When you actually start to understand who you are and how to actually be funny on stage, you will make very little money.  At this point you may be just a guest spot or the host at a comedy club.  It took you three to four years to get to this spot.  Now what?  It may take another three to four years to have enough material to become a feature at a comedy club.  Still unable to quit your day job because a feature spot does not cover your bills plus road expenses.  Three to four years later to have finally reached headliner status and you can finally quit your day job and focus solely on comedy.  You still have not broken the bank. In that nine to twelve years you spent pursuing that comedy dream, you could have become a manager, senior manager, or something greater at your job.  You could have invested your extra money into stocks and bonds.  Been able to afford that new house and car.

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Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club-Beaumont Picture Gallery

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By Steven Padilla

A new comedy club has opened up.  It’s not in Houston, but it’s close.  The Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club in Beaumont had its grand opening on Friday, August 17th.  Here are some pictures of the new comedy club.

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The Bob Biggerstaff Interview

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By Steven Padilla

In 1991, Bob Biggerstaff was a student at the University of Houston.  One day a comedian came to the school a day before he was to perform.  He was in search of a few people to go on stage before him to start the show.  Bob was one of the guys picked.  That was his first time on stage.  He wouldn’t get back on stage until 1997.  It was then that he became a door man at the Laff Stop.  A few months later, The Laff Stop had started an open mic. That was when he started focusing on comedy.  His first paying gig was in 1999 and he became a regular in 2000.  3 years later, he went on to win Houston’s Funniest Person Contest.  In 2007 he was a semi-finalist on NBC’s Last Comic Standing.  Nowadays he is touring the country.  He frequents the open mics in Houston, telling jokes and/or playing Golden Tee.

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10 Questions with Andy Huggins

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By Steven Padilla

A graduate of both The Comedy Store in Los Angeles and Houston’s legendary Comedy Workshop, Andy Huggins is a thirty-year veteran of both clubs and concerts. He has opened for acts ranging from Ray Charles to Billy Gardell. In addition, Andy has written for Bill Hicks, Jay Leno, and Billy Crystal on The Academy Awards.(Source-www.rooftopcomedy.com)  In the 1980’s he was one of the Texas Outlaw Comics, which also included  Riley Barber, Steve Epstein, John Farneti, Bill Hicks, Jimmy Pineapple, and Ron Shock.  He still writes and works on his craft.  These days you can see him perform Mondays in Houston at the Houston Comedy Unions’ open mic held at Sherlocks River Oaks.  He is a crowd favorite that never disappoints.  Here are 10 questions with the man himself after the break.  Interviewed by Kevin Farren.

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