Stu Baker Comedy

A New Frontier in Joke Writing - A Book Review of "Social Comedia"

2011-05-31T12:44:00.000-07:00

I am still working on my research for definitions of stand up and a brief history of stand-up comedy, but I wanted to take a break and tell you about a book I recommend which was written by a comedian friend of mine from Seattle, Dartanion London. (Note: Each link in this blog entry is to a different one of each of his social media outlets.)

Social media has created new opportunities for humor to be expressed. The short form of Facebook and Twitter updates combined with a multitasking and distracted society call for a new approach. Though this short form actually owes to the old one-liner style of comedy, the immediate and ever present world of the internet delivers it us with ease and frequency. From our fingertips we can now have delivered a pie in the face.

With Social Comedia, Dartanion London has written a new kind of joke book. From his almost once-a-day delivery of slightly slanted observations of today's world on his social media profiles (Facebook and Twitter), he gives you something to think about -- although just for a second. Then another joke moves in.

This book may not grant all your comedy wishes. But hell, the damn thing has robots! Take it into the bathroom, take it one joke at a time, take two and call me in the morning. It'll keep you entertained for minutes at a stretch!

I've seen Dartanion's stand-up act a number of times live. Each time I was struck by his original approach. Leave no doubt, he is funny. But he pushes boundaries too, which is what I like to see in any comedian I follow. He has a background in sketch and improv and he takes this with him to the stage. He is intelligent, composed and unpredictable. He also has a quality I like to see in comics -- it's as if he doesn't really care if you laugh or not (even though you do). If you need comedic touchstones to help you get a handle on what he's like, I would suggest that Dartanion London is as if Steve Martin and Andy Kaufman had a love child -- with Aspberger Syndrome. Just take a look at the promotional video for his book below. It alone is worth the price you pay for the book.

Social Comedia - A Book That Can Change Your Life from Dartanion London on Vimeo.

Find "Social Comedia" at Amazon

Even my cat Oreo likes "Social Comedia"!

History of Stand Up: The Prologue

2011-04-09T14:19:00.000-07:00

In my last blog entry, I indicated I'm reading a lot of books on the history of Stand-Up. My intention was to write a "Brief History of Stand-Up". But as I made my way through the volumes of material on the subject I also encountered a problem; not everyone agrees on just what stand-up comedy is. So, as "First Things First" things go, I'm backing up once again and tackling this by asking several comic how they define Stand-Up.

Certainly, the dictionary offers a starting point: Merriam-Webster 2: performed in, performing in, or requiring a standing position; especially : of, relating to, performing, or being a monologue of jokes, gags, or satirical comments delivered usually while standing alone on a stage or in front of a camera (stand–up comedy) (stand-up comedian) . Wikipedia: Stand-up comedy is a style of comedy where a comedian performs for a live audience, usually speaking indirectly to them. It is usually performed by a comedian with the aid of a microphone, either hand-held or mounted. Google: "Stand Up Comedy" is a song by rock band U2. It is the seventh track on their 2009 album No Line on the Horizon.

It seems to me that each comic has a definition that relates to their particular style of comedy. That's why I decided to ask several comics -- famous and infamous -- and see who responds. I'll post these responses and a few more thoughts soon.

Getting Somewhere from Nowhere

2011-03-18T23:18:00.000-07:00

I was never very good at "first things first". I always just sort of jumped in, got messy and tried to clean up afterwards. Maybe it's because I am somewhat ADD, but doing things in a linear fashion just doesn't appeal to me. I have seen people who approach tasks much more methodically and it just seems mostly boring to me. A lot of time is wasted where you could actually be getting messy and having fun.

Just so you know, I'm eventually going to get to a point here, so stay with me.

My finest example of how I can't do things in order is that I don't read product manuals. I push buttons and turn knobs until things work. The gamble is whether or not I can figure things out in less time than it would take to read the instructions. I usually figure it out. Besides, I don't know how many times in the past I did read the manual and things didn't work like they said they would. I remember I spent a couple of hours looking through the manual for a new cell phone to try to figure out how to set it to vibrate. After much searching, swearing, and more searching and swearing, I couldn't find it. I finally just started pushing buttons on the phone until I got it to do what I wanted. Later, I discovered that the manual for the phone calls vibrate: "Polite Mode". Screw you Verizon! Not calling it "vibrate" wasn't polite at all. It was pretty rude, actually.

Learning something the way someone thinks we should learn it doesn't always work. When we learn something new, we all come to the table with some background knowledge. So the problem with getting to a goal by way of advice or instruction from others is that the path is often presented as a "one size fits all" scenario. Plus, not only are we all different in terms of our past experience and basic abilities, we also each learn differently. Some people are visual learners, some learn better by listening. Some people learn by modeling and learn by trial and error. I seem to learn better in a barely controlled mashup. (That's right spellcheck. I said "mashup." Even you are learning something today.)

As with other performing arts, when learning comedy, some of us turn to teachers. In most areas of the country, there are a number of comics or former comics running stand up comedy classes. But some people take the position that you can't teach "funny". Aside from having some narrow, provincial, and mystical definition of what "funny" is, I think this is exclusionary nonsense. One person may come to the table with better abilities (most likely learned from others), but everyone can improve the abilities they have. I've found the most important factor in any art form that will make one unique and more likely successful is passion. If you're passionate about what you do, are persistent and are willing to take chances, you'll improve. If you don't have a passion for comedy, you're probably going to have trouble succeeding. Also, don't come see me perform ... please.

There is the problem of the perspective of the teacher. Many teachers make the mistake of teaching only from their own subjective experience. The comics in their classes tend to pick up on this perspective and a shared style develops. Instead of teaching the comic how to discover their own voice, they Inadvertently or deliberately teach their own style to their students. So, the problem of a foundation from one comic is compounded by this projection of all the teachers own misconceptions and limitations.

The best learning platform for stand up is just doing it. Go up a lot. Along with writing all you can, performing will be the most important thing you can do to get better. Performing will teach you 10,000 different subtleties to stand up. Writing will keep your mind working in fresh ways and give the audience something new to laugh at. But both writing and performing can be helped by some fresh perspective.

Lately, I've discovered a glaring hole in my haphazard approach to learning stand up. What is challenging to me is that this hole requires stepping back and learning something I probably should have learned before. I have to pay attention to "first things first". I'm talking about studying the history of stand up comedy. I'm talking about knowing how we got to where we are; about those that have gone before us and laid the groundwork -- or did groundbreaking things -- that shaped the art form so many of us are striving within and to whom we all owe some debt. It occurred to me that in order to get "somewhere fro nowhere" it might help to know how others did it. Plus, I'm learning from truly great comics and not from just one former comic trying to teach from some failed perspective.

So, I have about a dozen books I'm working through these days and I have to say I am fascinated. Lucky for me that I have a passion for it because I was going to do it anyway. As soon as I finish one book that I can't hardly put down, I pick up the next one and can't put it down either. From learning about theories that the art form emerged from court jesters and minstrels, through vaudeville and the borsht belt comics of the catskills, through the television era, the challenge of the 60's anti-establishment comics, the 70's revolution and revolt, the 80's explosion, the 90's crash, into today.

So, I'm sort of reading the product manual on stand up comedy. And I've somehow learned how to set things to vibrate. Soon, I'm going to consolidate some of this history in another blog entry. As with other blog entries I've made, if few people actually read it, it still gives me a place to put things together in some kind of linear fashion. God help me.

Cheeseburger Update

2011-02-20T10:59:00.000-08:00

This blog was originally started to chronicle my travels through stand up. I started it when the Cheeseburgers of Comedy Tour was forming. But when that didn’t come together like we planned, I stopped making entries here. My progress is pretty much recorded on my Facebook Twitter pages, but I find myself drawn back to this blog so I can make some comments that are longer than 140 characters.

I got an email the other day from someone who wanted to know whatever happened to that tour, so I decided to make a quick entry here to update that.

We only ended up booking three weeks for the tour. One of the weeks got cancelled because of logistic problems. Though three of had regular communication, we couldn’t all seem to get on the same page. We knew we wouldn’t make much money and would have trouble being booked because we weren’t well known, but I think things began to fall apart when we realized how much of a financial commitment it would actually take to get out there.

Three of us (me, Myke and Chet) did do two weeks – one in the Phoenix area where we performed for six straight nights. The other week, we went to The Comedy Club in Rochester for three nights which Chet booked for us. Both weeks were successful and exactly what we wanted to do for a six to eight week period for the tour. So, from all the effort we put out, we essentially accomplished about 25% of what we set out to do. We agreed that we might pick it up again later.

Chet, Myke and I still talk regularly. Myke and I perform together all the time. We will most likely do something with Chet again sometime I’m sure. Hallie is doing very well for himself and even put out a CD.

Though the experiment of three or four unknown comics crisscrossing the nation didn’t come to pass, three guys did go from one end to the other, so it wasn’t a complete failure.

Thanks for reading. More on me soon.

What’s in a Name?

2010-03-01T23:35:00.000-08:00

The official launch of the Cheeseburgers of Comedy Tour has begun. We put a video promo together and now have a website. The first leg of the tour won’t officially start until June in Phoenix, but all four of us will be getting together for a trial run at the end of this month. We start in LA for a show at the Ice House with fellow Bootcampers Jimmy Shaw and Roy Brewster, then we head up to Oregon and Washington. After that, we return to LA to do a show at the Comedy Store. For the two LA shows, will be just be doing short sets and the shows do not feature the Cheeseburgers of Comedy.

So far, the name of tour has begun to do its job. People remember it. With few exceptions, it has been received in the spirit it is intended. It’s not a big thinker. We’re touring the country, telling jokes and eating cheeseburgers. In fact, we will be looking for the best cheeseburgers in town and putting up YouTube videos of our experiences visiting them. So the name not only references our shared food choice, but also a secondary activity – a quest for the perfect cheeseburger!

The name also lends itself to an easy and relatable design for t-shirts and other merchandise. Eventually, we also hope to put a DVD together of our stand up exploits and our cheeseburger critiques. The money we make along the way from the bookings alone will most probably not be enough to sustain us. Selling a few t-shirts and other items along the way will help us keep gas in our tank and food and lodging on our days off.

Also, if you hear we’re coming to town and you know of any great places to get a really good cheeseburger, let us know. Hell, let us know even if we're not coming to town, it might be on the way and I'm sure we'll be hungry.

Schedule for March/April

3/28 Ice House Comedy Club (Annex Room), Pasadena, CA

3/31 Wildcard Bar, Wenatchee, WA

4/01 Wildhorse Resort, Pendleton, OR

4/02 Quality Inn, Ellensburg, WA

4/05 The Comedy Store (Belly Room), Los Angeles, CA

Cheeseburger of Comedy Website

Cheeseburgers of Comedy Promo Video

Stand up -- On making it the performance of your life

2010-02-23T11:50:00.000-08:00

A smile once again comes over your face. You're still waiting for the day where this gets old for you, but it hasn't happened yet. You're still as fresh as when you first started this glorious work. As you lean into the mic and say the first words that start the ball rolling, you imagine the thrill of those people on the receiving end of your latest hilarious musing. You pause before you speak, knowing the joy your slanted view of reality will stir within their souls.

"Can I take your order please?"

You know you delivered! You know you nailed it! Sometimes the temptation to talk during the silence is strong, but you know the seasoned vet will wait. You gotta say it like you mean it or they don't believe in you, they won't have confidence in you and you might as well pack it in. You've lost the battle. You wait for the reaction with professional confidence -- and then it comes.

"Yeah. I'll have a number 3 combo with a coke."

Yes! There it is! You've hooked 'em now. Now they are yours! This is going to be one of those performances that they'll remember their whole lives. You know they'll be telling their friends to come see you as they try to imitate you around the water cooler the next day in an attempt to vicariously be like you. Now that you have then right where you want them, you deliver the next punch.

"Would that be medium or large?"

You know you're just baiting them now. This is one of those sure lines that get them every time. Never fails. You know what's coming next.

"Large"

Now you bring them home. They're actually depending on you now. You've brought them to the desert, and they need you to take them to the promised land. They have come to you, laying down their hard earned money, wanting you to take them away from their troubles, their daily, dreary lives for a moment. You don't disappoint them. You now show them why they have come to trust you time after time to be their savior.

"We'll have your total at the window. Please pull around."

It's time for the afterglow. They want to meet you now. See you up close. They may not ask for your autograph or to have a picture taken with you because they are sometimes in awe of you or they're too shy. But you know they want to be near you. You are gracious and charming. You try to make them feel comfortable and give them a moment they will tell their grandchildren about. You make yourself available to pose for pictures if they ask. You know they will one day realize they saw the performance of your life. Little do they know that you have put it upon yourself to never give them anything less.

On Moving Forward

2009-12-15T13:17:00.000-08:00

Some people describe life as a river; that you go with the flow, the river takes you downstream, sometimes there are rough waters and other times it’s a gentle current. Blah, blah, blah. My experience is if life is a river, then you’re swimming upstream. In order to make any progress, you have to swim hard and fast. Take a rest, and you move backward. Eventually, it is inevitable that you’re going to drown. But that’s just the nature of the beast.

At this point, some may simply say I’m swimming the wrong way; that if I just relax and let the river take me downstream, there’s something lovely waiting for me that I was destined for. We can take nature as a cue on this and see that everything has a way of balancing itself out. The ultimate design is actually perfect and we each have a place. And some of us get eaten for dinner.

I don’t think those who know me would think of me as a negative person. To the contrary, I’m pretty sure most would say I’m positive. So, this viewpoint of a difficult struggle in life and the extraordinary effort it takes to succeed may not seem consistent with positivity. But the viewpoint is based in my experience. Nothing has ever been easy for me. The orientation of having muscular dystrophy all my life probably has something to do with that viewpoint. (I will be writing about this much more in the future). Nevertheless, it’s my experience. Life isn’t easy. You have to make an effort to get to where you want to go, otherwise you drift where life takes you. This comes down to the question we all must ask ourselves: “Is our life a matter of choice or is it predetermined?” In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I’ve decided I have a choice in life.

So, as I undertake this current project of advancing a stand up comedy career to the next level, what ever that may be, I understand that I can’t just stay in my house, watch reruns of Golden Girls, eat potato chips, and “let the river of life take me where it wants to”. I want things to move forward. I want to get somewhere. Somewhere closer to success than I am right now. In order to do that, I do what I heard a wise person once say, “I get up each day, report for life, then do the next indicated thing.”

Today’s activity started with this blog. But I also made a booking for the tour and exchanged emails and phone calls with other comics, friends of comedy, and others regarding these plans. I updated my Facebook and Twitter status and got back with people who acknowledged me as best as I could. Here’s what I noticed; things are starting to happen. Who knew?

I want to give a quick shout out to a new comic friend Dave Robinson who wrote about me in his blog. Active comics eventually run into each other in the river rapids of life and I knew of Dave from Twitter. Though we really didn’t talk much, we exchanged a few jokes across the ether. I regarded him as an experienced and funny guy. He seems to also be on a similar journey and I just wanted to thank him for giving me some attention and a lift. Anyone who has something called "Davewear" can't be all bad.

You move forward. That’s all. You take your best shot with the resources you have at hand. You may not even have the resources of the person next to you, but if you apply yourself with a little more passion, ingenuity, and excitement, you can make some progress.

I’m swimming as hard as I can.

Ultimately Stand Up Boils Down to a Mic and Mouth

My Brain

2009-12-14T11:18:00.000-08:00

I’m trying to get organized and focused on what I need to do to get ready for the tour. Chet is really busy with his school and job(s) but we exchange notes every day. It is starting to dawn on me how really big this job of doing a successful comedy tour is going to be. It seems like I need to do so many things, it’s hard for me focus OR get organized. I know from experience that when you’re trying to achieve something big, it’s important to make a list then focus on one thing at a time. That way you don’t get overwhelmed. But I am so A.D.D., I sometimes can’t even focus long enough to make that list. I just keep jumping from one thing to the other.

I’m blaming my brain. I can't help but think that, even at my age, my brain should be working better than it is. As bad as it is, I'm amazed I could even think THAT! What was that person's name again? The one who's shorter than me and has the same last name as me and follows me around in the house? Why am I wearing this condom? Where did I leave that brand new can of Spaghettio's? Huh, brain? Where the hell you been? And why in the hell did I dream last night that I won a brand new Ford Focus? It’s my dream! Why didn't I dream I won a Dodge Viper or at least a one of those new Dodge Caravans?

My brain just won't listen to me! My other body parts listen to me. Kidneys keep filtering crap so I can pee, my lungs work whether or not I tell them too, my pancreas does whatever pancreases do. I don't get why my brain thinks it can do whatever it wants. I mean, it's definitely not a team player.

If I want to take my comedy to the next level, I need to get more results out of my brain. So, I had a talk with it. I sat it down and said, "Look, brain, you work for me. So, either you shape up and fly right or you're history! I mean it! The next time I dial a number on the phone and you forget who I was calling, you're fired! I'm getting a new brain. (and by the way, thanks, Brain, for the immediate reminder that I'm a stupid idiot by telling me no one "dials" phone numbers anymore!)".

I'm starting to think its all my fault. I let my brain hang out with the wrong crowd. When I was young, I let it spend too much time watching television. It used to get me in trouble in my class when it was daydreaming. When it was time to take the quizzes, I would ask it for the answers and it would just sit there in silence forcing me to cover for it by making up stuff. I muddled my way through the multiple choice and it was easy to bullshit my way through the essay questions, but when it came down to the fill-in-the-blank questions, my brain was the one that was blank! The asshole!

Then, when I was a teenager, I started smoking pot. That’s when my brain really got off the leash. It started thinking "outside the box". It started asking questions like, "Why do we have to live by society's rules ... man?", and "If a tree falls in the forest, does Schrodinger's cat secretly love its mother?" Huh? Have another puff of ganja you dirty hippie! You can't even think your way out of the paper bag you're using to quiet the anxiety attack you're making me have because you're so fricking high!

Now I'm finally at an age where I'm supposed to be enjoying my life and I can't remember why I came. My brain just keeps telling me to turn on the weather channel or check my Facebook page. Did somewhat just mention me on Twitter? I think i heard my Tweetdeck chirp. Chocolate chip cookies and milk sound good to me right now.

... I'm sorry what was I talking about?

Oh yeah, the comedy tour. We seem to have gotten a good reaction to the "Cheeseburgers of Comedy" idea. So, at least we have gotten this far. I think I need to be the one to decide what's next. My brain sure isn't going to do it.

Stu Baker's Brain

Edginess and Taking Risks

2009-12-13T18:50:00.001-08:00

The last time I had a month break from school, I felt the freedom of not having so much schoolwork hanging over my head and I felt like I accomplished a lot with my comedy. This time Christmas is on its way and after this first week, I can already tell it’s going to be more difficult to keep focused on stand up. I have a list of things I’m going to focus on and I’ll get something done I’m sure, but I can already feel the next class coming up on the horizon. It will be my last class though, so the temporary feeling of freedom I have now will soon become more permanent.

I have a show this Saturday at a VFW in Coolidge. While this may not seem like the ideal environment for stand up, the guy who puts the show together has been successful at creating decent comedy events where the people come out to see a good comedy show. A couple comic friends of mine said they had a good time at the show when they did it because the crowd really seemed into it. So, I’m looking forward to it. I also get to headline, so I’m looking over my material to see if I am going to rearrange things a bit or stick with the one-hour format I’ve been working from for the past year. I do have some new material, but a lot of the new stuff I’ve been working on might be too edgy for this crowd. I can’t be too sure until I get there and survey the audience. Still my instincts tell me if I want to connect with them, I should steer clear of some of the stuff I’ve develop over the last year.

Part of the reason my most recent material is so edgy is because I’ve been writing and working things out in the context of the room I often work in, the Hidden House in Phoenix. Hidden House is a weekly show where most of the best comics in the area come out regularly. It’s a small room that has a capacity of only 50 or so people. The room is almost always packed (often over capacity) with a crowd of people who are there to see a good night of stand up. There is a fair amount of turnover in the audience but if you perform regularly, or even semi-regularly as I do, you need to come up with some new stuff to keep performing there or the crowd will tire of you somewhat. There is a small group of comics who produce the show and go up every week. Beyond that, there is a secondary lineup of the semi-regulars who fill out the experienced portion of the line up. But they also let newcomers and less experienced comics go up which gives a good perspective on how hard comedy really is and how good the good comics are. Sometimes, these newcomers surprise everyone and have a good set. This is more often the case than I like to admit because it sometimes makes me wonder how far I’ve really come when a comic can get up who has only done maybe 10 or 12 shows and do as well as, or better than, me. This is when I remind myself that comparisons with others are not really the best way to improve in comedy. When I compare myself with how I was when I first started, I know I am a lot better. That’s all that should really matter.

The edginess that seems to work at Hidden House is sometimes based in explicit language or topics. You can imagine that references to body parts and sexual acts get an easy laugh. Edgy material is not necessarily blue. However, it does tend to be surprising and it tests boundaries. Blue material often does this but these days, it is so common that unless you have an original approach to it, you’re not treading any new ground and you can come across looking like a hack.

Edginess is more than that. It’s more of an attitudinal thing. The best comics I observe there have a kind of detachment from the actual effect they expect from the room. That is not to say they don’t care about the room or if anyone laughs. To the contrary, they all know if they don’t get laughs there are essentially bombing. But many of the comics working material out know that you have to take chances to get better. You have to try new jokes or new ways to do old ones. You pick topics no one is talking about or you talk about old topics in new ways. To do that on a regular basis, the best comics seem one step removed from the whether a particular joke works in a particular moment. So this overall attitude of “OK. You didn’t like that, here’s something else”, prevails. They don’t crumble or get flustered. Perhaps another way of stating it is that these comics have confidence or that they come from experience. But these terms don’t quite describe this process of experimenting with the right orientation, this air of detachment to results.

One thing I’ve learned about comedy that has applications to life in general is that to improve at something, you have to be willing to take chances. This carries with it the fact that from time-to-time you will fail, otherwise, it wouldn’t really be considered a risk. This sets up an interesting combination of competing goals when doing comedy on any given night. While we all want to do well – to “slay” and “destroy” in the dramatic and violent vernacular of the comic (which I will discuss later) – we must also experiment and take chances. Since taking chances means we will sometimes fail, we weigh each night and measure our prepared material against the situation (the audience, venue, management. etc.) and make decisions about whether we are going to construct a set of so-called “A” material to create the best result we can, or are we going to mix in new stuff and see how it goes. Or, perhaps we even improv moments to see where they will go and see if we can create a one-of-a-kind memorable moment. Each comic comes to a decision on these variables each night whether they aware they of it or not.

For me, I need to feel I am growing in some way. I take each opportunity to perform seriously. I feel like I need to either perform my usual material better in some way, or find a new joke within the structure of a bit, or run some new material. One night I did a 10-minute set in front of an audience that had never seen me before. I chose a set of jokes I was completely comfortable with and was very familiar with. For me, it was a “safe” set. I got a good reaction but I wasn’t very happy when I got off stage. I felt like I phoned it in and was not really in the moment. I was performing for the crowd, but not interacting with them much. I was telling jokes and getting laughs but I was not really taking any risks. The set lacked the kind of spark I look forward to as an indication I am growing in some way. I decided that night that playing it safe was not the reason I got into stand up. You don't get up in front of group of people to try to make them laugh if you like to play it safe.

So, taking risks in style, performance or material is key to growth and perhaps why stand up can be so satisfying. It has been said that stand up comedy is the last soapbox. It is the last place one can get up in front of a group of people and say anything you want about any subject. Not only do you not have to be politically correct, you don’t even have to be correct. As long as you are getting laughs, you can keep talking. The very best comics in stand up history not only tested boundaries but also made us think. I believe the only way a comic gets to that point is to take risks.

A Passionate Set at Hidden House

Cheeseburgers of Comedy

2009-12-12T15:29:00.001-08:00

As I finish up this year, I’m preparing to go on tour next year with some other comics. Myke Dehu and I have been on several road trips together and we met Chet Wild at Kyle Cease’s Stand Up Bootcamp this past year. Chet is a very funny comic who is also a hard worker and an idea guy. It’s hard for me to keep up with all the shows he’s doing back East He threw out the idea of going on tour to the rest of the Boootcampers and I responded since I was planning to tour too. We kept the conversations going and now the conversations have turned into plans and goals. We plan to do some shows back East, some in the Midwest, and eventually the West Coast including Seattle down to LA. Other Bootcampers will also go with us for different legs of the tour. Eventually, there will be several other comics including perhaps Bootcampers Dartanion London, Halli Borgfjord, or others. As well as many guest appearances from comics we have performed with over the years like Don Steinmetz, Shawna Whitlock, David Lew, Jimmy Shaw and Roy Brewster. Maybe even a few others we have met along the way! And ... maybe even some special guests!

The logo above is the concept we’re considering for the tour. Everyone knows that when a comedian is on tour, he or she eats a lot of cheeseburgers. We plan to find the best burger joints along the way and will seek out the best cheeseburger in every city we perform in. We’ll be putting up YouTube videos of our exploits doing comedy and eating burgers. Who could not love that?

Any comments would be welcome.

P.S. I like cheeseburgers.

Finishing My Master's and Going on Tour in 2010

2009-12-10T15:52:00.001-08:00

Myke and Me on Tour!

This past Monday, I finished my next-to-the-last class in my pursuit of my Master’s Degree in Psychology at University of Phoenix. I started taking classes towards my Master’s right after finishing my undergraduate degree in 1979 but I quit after one semester to play music for a living. I was then performing with in an acoustic duo called “The Other Guys”. That act broke up in the summer of 1979 and after playing in another acoustic act of a short while my daughter Amy was born. I quit playing music to get a real job.

I always thought that someday, I would go back to school and get my Master’s but going back to school seemed like a big commitment in time and money, and frankly, physical effort. University of Phoenix (UoP) offered a program online and I funded it with student loans. So, it fit all my criteria for getting my degree and I thought I could do it in my spare time since I am online frequently. It turned out to be harder and more consuming than I thought. However, after two years in the program, I am now only one class away.

Being involved in the study of psychology again taught me some important and interesting lessons. I always felt that with my undergraduate degree, I had learned enough to be to know that I still had a lot to learn. With a Master’s, I feel like I now know enough to be dangerous. That is, I feel like the background, credentials and knowledge now qualify me to make some commentary on why people behave that way I do, however, I still haven’t learned enough to be an expert on anything, so I should probably keep my mouth shut. It’s difficult to articulate the lessons I’ve learned from this Master’s program, however, I will try to bring things into focus a little at a time with this blog.

The time and energy I spent getting my Master’s did take away from my comedy career somewhat, but I’m hoping that as the lessons I learned along the way sink in, they will eventually inform and elevate my comedy. I will finish my Master’s in February and I look forward to having more time and energy to work on my comedy.

Next year, I will be touring a fair amount doing stand up comedy across the US and have started the blog to create a public journey trying to get to the next level in stand up. Besides the usual open mics, I only have a few bookings until the end of March 2010, when I will do a short tour in Oregon and Washington with Myke Dehu and Chet Wild. We intend to start in LA with a few guest sets and will do four nights after that as a part of a Tribble run. Tribble is an agency that books comedians for one-nighters across the Northwest. These days, it’s generally casinos and comedy nights at various bars. It takes a fair amount of driving to get to the first gig of any tour, but then after that the distance between gigs is usually only 4 or 5 hours. The pay is not great but if the headliner and feature travel together, as Myke and I usually do, you can make a buck or two. It is, however, very good experience for comedians who aspire to get to the next level. While on these tours, I have an opportunity to work on my 45-60 minute headliner set. In my local area, I have very few opportunities for that.

For me, it’s nice to have second person along because then there are two people around to help me on stage. With Muscular Dystrophy, I can’t climb steps so I need a couple of people to help me on stage. Myke and I did one tour together with just the two of us and we had to find that second person each time to help me get on stage. It generally worked out, but it had the potential of being awkward.

Chet Wild and I are planning a series of 2 or 3 tours across the US this coming year (2010). Tentatively called the “Cheeseburgers of Comedy” tour, we will do some East coast gigs, some Midwest and a few out here in the West. All told, we should probably do at least 4 to 6 weeks on the road this year.

So, this blog will offer some insight into what it’s like to be on tour as a comic and also what it’s like to aspire to the next level in comedy. This information is all offered in context of the fact that I also have Muscular Dystrophy (MD), so, I’m doing stand up even though I can barely stand up. As the blog moves forward, I’ll offer as many insights on getting better at comedy as I can as well as what it’s like to aspire to anything. The desire to improve and be successful in comedy has elements that are similar to improving in other pursuits. As I mentioned before, at one time, I tried my hand playing music for a living. So, as I am attempting to be better at comedy, (be funnier), I’m also trying to understand what it takes to be more successful in life in general. I’m aware other people are on a similar journey. Some are trying to make it in the music business. Some are authors trying to publish their first book. Some people are simply trying to figure out how to go to college and get a degree in spite of challenging circumstances. These journey’s all have features in common. So, as I move along the timeline and hopefully improve, maybe others can look over my shoulder and learn to and be inspired in some way to be better themselves.

Feel free to comment on the blog or to write me at djstudbaker@yahoo.com. I will try to get back with anyone who takes the time to drop me a note.

My Life Philosophy

2009-12-10T06:04:00.000-08:00

"Life is a miracle. Death is inevitable. Everything else is hilarious." - Stu Baker