Hi all,

I am interested in bulding a low budget comedy show to try out at a local comedy club. I was wondering what you all would suggest. I love Harry Anderson and would most likely being doing some of his material, modified for my own personality, also maybe a little Amazing Jonathan type stuff but What else could I Study?







_________________

Yours In Magic

Mike

Mike:



I would suggest that you find a copy of Judy Carter's STAND-UP COMEDY and study it from cover to cover.



-Marty

If you are planning on doing some of Harry Anderson's material, may I assume you have cleared it with Harry Anderson, or at least his management company, first?

cheers,

Peter Marucci

showtimecol@aol.com

Ok Heres the question...What exactly do you need to clear with Harry or his management. If I did a needle through arm I would not think I would need to clear that. Yet if I performed a similar version of cufflinks that may need to be cleared? I am really confused on that whole matter.



_________________

Yours In Magic

Mike

Mike:



If you are constructing an act using commercially available effect that is perfectly fine. If you intend to borrow your presentation of the effects from others that's not okay. The challenge is to come up with your unique presentation.



-Marty

Needle through arm, Three Card Monarch, Cufflinks and other marketed Anderson effects that you may have purchased...



All of these are sold so that you can perform them. You may do them exactly as written in the instructions, which is how Harry does them--although you will be much more successful if you adapt them to your own persona.



Items that Harry has performed but not marketed, however, are a different thing altogether, and I assume this is what Peter was meaning. Do NOT go out and do the Harry Anderson HBO special trick for trick and word for word. I didn't get that as your intent from your post, but it bears being stated anyway.

Ok I see what you all mean. I got it. you see, I was going to use some of his effects but not his patter, and all the effects are marketed so this would be ok right? Basically I would take his apparatus and use it with my patter/routineing.



_________________

Yours In Magic

Mike

Right!

Sure, Prophet, that would be just fine.

Now, back at the original post, I don't think there is a simple answer.

Dying, as the actor said, is easy; comedy is hard!

It would all depend on your own type of personality.

If you're 15 years old, doing a routine involving your years in a Tibetan monastery wouldn't be particularly good.

Or, if you are a middle-aged banker (and look it!), doing a slapstick act wouldn't work. (Or maybe it would! Let me think about that!)

Anyhow, you get the idea.

The comedy comes from the persona and the persona comes from within you.

That's about all I can say.

cheers,

Peter Marucci

showtimecol@aol.com

Excellent point, Peter!

Comedy comes from one's personality. A boring person cannot just say one day, "Hey! I think I wanna be funny!"

Some people have the natural ability to make other people laugh. If you are one of those people, you will most likely succeed in the world of comedy. And as with any magic performance, get your routine down to a science before performing it.



Bengi

I think the middle aged bank manager would work, if the person is capable of pulling it off.
Sometimes I feel like slapping my bank manager with a stick.

Awesome book! Nathan Allen highly recommends it (for what that's worth).

Be yourself. Maybe the silliest, dumbest thing you do will go over. I just wouldn't try to be too suav like Lance Burton or to mystic like Blaine. And go slow and pace yourself so they can follow your effect. Good luck.

Study comedy as suggested above. The magic will come with time.
Stay away from Harry Anderson and Amazing Johnathan stuff. They have seen it and you will look bad duplicating it.