Hey guys,

So you've all known me here for the last 8 years as the guy who makes things like this:

and this:

but I'm also a guy who does this:



Last week I was given the big opportunity to make my TV debut on the cable show "Gotham Comedy Live" which airs on AXS TV (formerly called HDNet). As one of the hundreds of faceless stand up comics in NYC, getting the chance to put my stuff out there on national TV was huge.

The show is filmed at the Gotham Comedy Club in NYC, and it consists of 4 comics and a celebrity host (in this case, Tom Arnold). Everyone gets a 9 minute set, and it is totally uncensored, which is quite rare for TV.

It was obviously a nerve-wracking experience, made even scarier by the fact that since it was aired live, there was no chance for do-overs or editing if something went catastrophically wrong. But luckily, it all went really well! Two guys on the production crew told us comics afterward that out of 79 episodes that they've done, this was top-to-bottom the best one.

So, anyway, ask me stuff about it!

Did you get paid?

Edit...do you have a family member named Brian?

What was growing up like being named after a small college?

Did you do a lot of open mic nights before getting paying gigs? How and where were you "discovered?"

sick **** dude.

how much practice does it take to get to the point where you can work your material w/o notes? did you forget anything?

Yeah I got paid, but I don't know if I'm allowed to say how much. Don't have a Brian in my family.

It was cool, except their team name used to be the Fighting Christians, and I'm Jewish, so that was weird.

In NYC even if you're doing regular spots at clubs, you are often not getting paid. And the club spots that do pay don't pay a lot, like $20 to $40. I don't get paid spots in the comedy clubs (yet). I do some paid gigs at private events. Stand-up may never be my source of income. A lot of well established comics still have day jobs. Of course, if I was able to quit my job and just do stand up (or comedy writing), that would be sweet.

I guess that depends on your own memory. If I'm trying out brand new stuff, I still don't go up with notes. It's often better to just wing it even if your phrasing isn't perfect yet because you'll find yourself improvising new lines that are better than what you wrote. I probably would run a new joke idea in my head 3 or 4 times before going on stage with it for the first time.

Nothing in this set was brand new. The newest jokes in this set I've already been doing for a few months. There were a few new tags that I added to a couple jokes that were just a couple weeks old.

I didn't forget anything. I've only gone blank on stage once for just a few seconds, but it feels like much longer. Because of the million things running through my head while doing this show, I did have 2 moments where for a split-second I kind of forgot where I was at in a joke, but I recovered and you probably couldn't even tell where that happened. It seems like a while in my head, but it happens really, really fast in real time.

Is this how you met Emilia Clarke?

Not about TV specifically, but I've always wondered... Why are so many stand-up comics so awful? Do they not REALIZE they aren't funny?

(I haven't watched your skit yet so I'm not talking about you.)

No, that was just being in the right place at the right time.

It's probably the same reason why there are so many bad poker players. They have some fleeting moments of glory and delude themselves into thinking they're better than they are.

You guys look cute together. So Jelly.

3, 1, 2, #2

Sorry, I noticed I didn't answer all your questions.

I've been doing stand up since I was in college, but when I graduated I got sidetracked and unmotivated so I was only doing a handful of bringer shows each year. Then about 2 years ago I decided I wanted to give it some more effort so I started doing shows about once a month. Then I got the chance to intern at a comedy club, which consisted of helping out 1 night a week in exchange for 1 spot a week -- usually the "check spot" which is the time when the audience is paying their bills. I did that for about 10 months. Then I auditioned at a couple of clubs and got "passed" which meant that I was allowed to perform there. However, you usually don't get booked spots but there are a few nights a week where you can go and perform at the end of the regular show, assuming the audience feels like sitting through a few more comics. I've been doing those late night spots for the last few months, 2 or 3 nights a week.

I also do some bar shows, which are very popular in the city. They're booked shows, but they take place in bars instead of in comedy clubs.

I do open mics once in a while to work on new stuff. Or leading up to the TV gig, I did a lot of open mics just so I could get as much stage time as possible to work out the kinks.

I got "discovered" at a private show I did last summer. Was approached by someone who works for the network and he recommended me to the show's producer and passed along a video of my stand up. Then I didn't hear back for a few months until mid-January when I got the notice that I was booked.

lol... i get this

i would have guessed you were a fellow member of the tribe! now time to watch

i'd love to meet tom arnold

If Kanye ran up on stage would you punch him?

that was great! nice work

Good stuff.

Eeyellouinne is a character from LoTR.

I never realized Tom Arnold was so tall.

First of, congrats on the TV appearance. I've always found your MSPaints and posting to be very funny, so I'm not surprised to find out you do stand up.

Was this your first time at Gotham? Judging from this clip, the room seems pretty poorly policed, is that accurate or did you just run a little bad on this occasion?

Obviously venues are going to vary wildly in terms of quality, what are some of the clubs and bar shows you've done in NYC that you thought we particularly good?

Have you applied to any festivals? If you got in, how was your experience?

I'm sure you've seen a lot of good comics who haven't been on TV yet, can you name or youtube link a few of them?

Who is the biggest comic you have performed with?

I usually add an extra tag there where I say it sounds like an elf from LOTR. It doesn't always resonate with the crowd and I needed to conserve time so I left it out this time.

Yeah certain people were a little rowdy, but it wasn't too bad. And the one lady who called out during that 80% bit worked great because it allowed me to call back to my earlier joke. I've never made that comment before but I'm happy I thought of it because it really brought the house down.

This was my first time performing at Gotham, but it's a great room and is run really professionally. Probably the best club in New York after the Comedy Cellar (where I have not performed).

The Stand is a newer club that also has great comics, nice atmosphere, and good food.

The New York Comedy Club has really revamped their image since they changed ownership last summer and is one of the best spots to see young up and comers.

The Comic Strip Live is great because it has so much history (where Eddie Murphy and Chris Rock got their start. Eddie's former manager is the owner). The Broadway Comedy Club is a good room with a very touristy crowd, so it's a good place to work on universal material.

I've applied to a couple festivals but didn't get in. I expect with this tape, now I'll be able to get into one or two smaller ones at least.

Best comics who are lesser known are Mark Normand, Joe Machi, Ricky Velez (correspondent on the Nightly Show with Larry Willmore), Phil Hanley and Aaron Berg. I'll include some links later.

Biggest comics I've performed with? I guess Todd Barry, Judah Friedlander, Jay Pharoah

Jesus, thats the Khaleesi in that pic? She looks so much hotter on the show.

good going, Dr.

How was the order of the comics decided? Do they ask you if you want to go first, second, etc?

Tom Arnold always seemed like a decent dude, was he cool to you?