Archived Comments

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1. Steve, I know you’re against books that try to teach you to write comedy. They all seem to be titled, “How To Be Funny For Money” or something ridiculous like that. But what is your opinion on books by famous comedians, like for example their autobiographies. I’ve read “Born Standing Up” by Steve Martin and “Pryor Convictions” by Richard Pyror. They aren’t about writing jokes but they provide input on the comedian’s career. Can studying other comedians path to fame and their style of comedy be useful to aspiring comedians?

   • I recommend that you consume anything that will help you reach your goals. I have read the autobiographies of about a dozen famous comedians and it gave me insight as to the different paths each comedian embarked upon in their stand-up comedy journey.

     So the answer to your question is yes, if for nothing else to get a better understanding of the various aspects of the entertainment business — both good and no so good.

2. The answer to your question is probably not unless you are established as a comedy writer. Plus, it would be next to impossible to communicate with a comedy star unless you had an inside track.

   You could present your material to lesser known comedians, but even then you would need to give away some of your material and have it used by them before you could get paid for comedy material.

3. I was pleasantly surprised to see your recommendation of considering dress. I thought immediately of Gary Gulman, John Heffron, Alonzo Bodan, and Jerry Seinfeld, among others. I had been thinking about this concept even before seeing your article: These outstanding comedians present themselves in a very professional manner that, in my opinion at least, actually adds to what I consider the “believability factor” — plausibility, convincing the audience that what you have to say MIGHT be true and MAY be important — a big part of the comedian’s challenge. I would suggest.