TV Or Not TV

Monday March 16th, 2009 - Chicago, IL

No appearance on the Late Late Show tonight and the only one who doesn’t seem upset about it is me. I’m getting calls from all over the country from people who said they were looking for my name and didn’t see it. Hey, I don’t run the show. I was just a guest on it.

In my mind even if I don’t get on at all it still was worth the trip. The experiences I had of how to narrow down material into a TV set and the pressure of doing it and the feeling of accomplishment it brought afterward were all fantastic. I needed them to forge ahead.

It made me a better comic all around and I didn’t embarrass myself so now everything’s a bonus, including it airing. What I really need is the DVD so I can send it out to bookers for future work. They don’t have to have actually seen it although I do think it will run in due time. They have a big job to make everything fit and I‘m not worried about it at all.

My friend Bengt Washburn from Utah was on last year and he was pushed back several times as I recall. I can remember getting emails from him and felt bad at the time because nobody wants to be bumped but that’s how it goes. I’m not the only one to experience this and it really doesn’t bother me at all. It will run when it runs and I’ll be totally grateful.

I’m already preparing for my next appearance, whenever that may be. I won’t let myself make the same mistakes I just made and will be more than ready to go in there and really let it rip. If I know my act inside and out it will let me deliver the lines with confidence.

If Jerry Seinfeld did his set eighty times before he did his first Tonight Show I’ll bet I’ll at least be able to match that before I do another television appearance. It will also help to make my radio appearances better as well. I‘ve got a lot more crisp clean jokes to deliver.

Doing good radio is a part of the business many comedians overlook. As a headliner it’s usually required at least once during the week and what most people don’t realize is more listeners will hear a five to ten minute radio shot than will come out to the club all week.

I’ve always tried to do good radio because I’ve been on both sides of the equation. It’s a huge anchor to a radio show if a comedian doesn’t play along and many times they do not for whatever reason. Sometimes they just don’t know how. Whatever the case it isn’t fun.

Some comics are really good at it to the point it helps sell tickets. That’s the whole idea. It’s like professional wrestling, the interviews are designed to sell tickets to the live show. The ones who get that concept are few and far between. Bruce Baum is a guy who does.

I was in Salt Lake City and Bruce came in to do our show. I’ve always been a big fan of his from his TV appearances on ‘Make Me Laugh’ back in the day. He has manic energy and for whatever reason he just cracks me up. When he came in he had jokes ready and it really made everyone look good, but especially him. I was impressed with his preparation and always try to be that way myself. I will use my TV set jokes to make my radio better.