These videos speak for themselves, but from the Youtube description: Pat House is very funny young comedian. Occasionally when he performs a moron walks out behind him BUT- never disrupts his act.
That moron is the one and only John Kensil.
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Come out with all of your friends to:
The Comic Vs. Audience Comedy Show!
Monday, March 23rd, 2009
8PM
at the Shubin Theatre
407 Bainbridge St.
ONLY FIVE AMERICAN DOLLARS (tickets on-sale soon)
Featuring stand-up comedy by:
Meg Favreau
Pat House
Conrad Roth
David James
Hosted by Dave Walk (he'll have some jokes too)
And did we mention it's BYOB?!?!?
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Come out with all of your friends to:
The Comic Vs. Audience Comedy Show!
Monday, March 23rd, 2009
8PM
at the Shubin Theatre
407 Bainbridge St.
ONLY FIVE AMERICAN DOLLARS (tickets on-sale soon)
Featuring stand-up comedy by:
Meg Favreau
Pat House
Conrad Roth
David James
Hosted by Dave Walk (he'll have some jokes too)
And did we mention it's BYOB?!?!?
Read more...
This spring, I will be running a marathon as a part of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training. As a participant in this marathon, I must raise $6000. This money will help fund research, medication and other support for patients with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma.
At only $10 a ticket, this is a great chance to see Ted Alexandro and to support a good cause at the same time. See, comedy CAN make a difference!
We'll have more with Ted later this week (maybe).
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Our Top 5 of 2008 lists continue...
TOP FIVE MOST IMPROVED COMICS OF THE YEAR, 2008 by Pat Barker
1) Kent Haines. Perhaps this wasn't an improvement as much as it was Kent shining when given an opportunity, but there's no way anyone else could head this list. I don't know the exact time line of when Kent got here from Alabama, but he might not have even been in Philly one year ago. Now he's one of my favorite local guys. Smart, funny material. It's just a shame that the University of Alabama are choke artists and blew the National Championship. Can't win 'em all, Kent.
2) Aaron Hertzog. Aaron's always been a good joke writer, but I feel like he's turned a corner recently and gotten even better. His joke about the Hide-and-Go-Seek Killer is brilliantly crafted and anyone who quotes Dr. Dre in their act is good in my book. Check out his set on his MySpace from Doogie Horner's Ministry of Secret Jokes show.
3) Conrad Roth. It's tough for me to get into the one-liner stuff too much, because so many people do it horribly. Conrad is not one of those people. I did a show with him back in May, and there were definite bright spots, but it was still very hit-or-miss. Over the next six months, he wrote a bunch of great new stuff, ditched a bunch of mediocre old stuff, and now his act is solid. Conrad consistently impresses me by pulling off a style I never could.
4) Pat House. While this list is mostly relegated to relative newcomers, I feel like I have to make mention of the strides House has made recently. A lot of his newer jokes are really good and he's been tweaking older jokes and making them better too. I did a show with him a few months ago and was very impressed. Pat and I have probably done over 100 shows together, and this was the best I've ever seen him.
5) Derek Gaines. Quite possibly the most underrated comedian in Philly. Every time I see him, he's funnier than the time before and has developed some new killer bit. It's impressive. He'd definitely be higher up on the list if I got to see him perform more. Derek will "make it" in comedy in some way, guaranteed. Ridiculously good stage presence, great material, and an overwhelming likeability. He's even cut down on his use of ridiculous acronyms, and that is admirable.
For the record, picking five people for this was insanely difficult. There are lots of people who made strides over the course of '08, and recognizing them all in this limited of a forum is impossible. Special "shout out" to a whole bunch of others that make me laugh very consistently - the Doogies and Joe Docs and Brendan Kennedys and Chip Chantrys of the world. Overall, I feel like Philly has a very very good scene and I'm excited about 2009.
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Jessica Ciaramella is the winner of our DUOS ticket giveaway. She's won two tickets to the show tonight at 8PM at Helium Comedy Club (2031 Sansom St.) with Animosity Pierre, Meg & Rob and Dave & Brian. Jessica writes that her favorite comedy duo are Abbott and Costello:
because I have been in love with the "Who's On First" sketch since I was a kid. My friends and I used to reenact it at random...because we were cool like that.
This Thursday, Philly Sketchfest presents a special event at the Helium Comedy Club: DUOS: A Night of Sketch Comedy.
In the grand tradition of classic comedy duos such as Abbott & Costello, The Smothers Brothers and Laurel & Hardy, and in the footsteps of modern masters like Tenacious D, The Sklar Brothers and Philly’s own Tim & Eric, PHILLY SKETCHFEST and HELIUM Comedy Club are proud to present DUOS: A Night of Sketch Comedy & Music, featuring ANIMOSITY PIERRE, DAVE and BRIAN, and MEG & ROB. Hosted by Pat House.
And we're giving away a pair of tickets! To enter, e-mail comicvsaudience AT gmail DOT com with the subject "DUOS", your full name and your all-time favorite comedy duo and why. The winner will be chosen at random and will have their name and answer posted here Thursday morning.
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Here are the details:
The Comic Vs. Audience Comedy Show
Monday, September 8th, 2008
at the Shubin Theatre (407 Bainbridge St.) [directions]
8PM
$5
with:
Carolyn Busa
Conrad Roth
Pat House
Kent Haines (2008 Philly's Phunniest Person)
BYOB!
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Here are the details:
The Comic Vs. Audience Comedy Show
Monday, September 8th, 2008
at the Shubin Theatre (407 Bainbridge St.) [directions]
8PM
$5
with:
Carolyn Busa
Conrad Roth
Pat House
Kent Haines (2008 Philly's Phunniest Person)
BYOB!
Read more...
File Under the At Least You Got A Good Story Dept., from Pat House's Myspace:
Last night I performed at The Townehouse in Media, PA for Riots Comedy. It's a fantastic room with great crowds and a great staff. I've had very good shows there, and I was excited to return.
There was a couple seated up front who were extremely talkative. I had friends and family seated around them, and several of them had told me how loud and distracting they were.
I was the third comedian to go on, and as soon as I get on stage, they're talking. Loudly. I did my opening joke to feel the crowd out, hoping their conversation would by over be the time it was done. It wasn't.
I was polite, (but stern) and I asked them what the chatter was about. "French fries" was the answer. I said "OK, well I'm glad to know that my set is interesting enough that you guys are discussing food during it..." in the hopes to get a few laughs.
I told them they were being distracting and that it's not fair to the crowd because they paid to see a good show and they're making it difficult for me to give them that show.
The husband shoots me this how DARE you look and has the audacity to say to me "Look, it's been a long week..." My blood pressure skyrocketed at the fact that he was justifying them being disruptive and I fired back "I don't fucking care. Eighty people paid to see this show, no one paid to hear you..." To which the crowd applauded, which was great, because they were on my side.
The wife said something to the effect of "We're here every week, we bring people everytime..." I cut her off with weak retort, but I was so heated I didn't even know what to say, and I blurted out "They don't even have shows here every week so you're either high or stupid."
She then picks up the three beer bottles that are in front of her (I think two of them were full) and launches them at right fucking at me, completely covering me in beer. It's all over my shirt, jeans, face, glasses, the wall - everywhere. So I did what I'm sure other people in that situation would do. I immediately pointed directly at her and said:
YOU
FUCKING
CUNT.
Her husband rushes the stage, half pushes me/half punches me in the face, I fly backwards, off the stage, praying to God that I don't go through the window that's behind me. After a little more screaming, they left.
Let me tell you how awkward this makes a comedy show. I tried to make a few jokes about it, to basically re-start the entire show, and somehow after all of that, I still had a pretty decent set.
I think half the crowd were totally turned-off and appalled, thinking that this is how comedy shows are. But I appreciate the other half - the people that hopped back on board and allowed me to carry on.
All in all I don't even know what to think. Maybe I was out of line calling her a cunt, I don't know. But it seems like the appropraite response for when someone hurls glass bottles at you from six feet away. What I do know is that ALL of this stemmed from two people who could not keep their mouths shut during a comedy show.
One thing that was great were the people who came up to me afterwards and said it was 'great' and 'fucking awesome.' One of the waitresses thanked me for getting them to leave. It's great to know that people were on my side for this. I woke up this morning to about 20 emails and myspace messages from audience members and other comedians, so I thank them for that as well.
Who knew that telling jokes and trying to contain an audience would make someone the bad guy?
Oh, and lastly, no, I did not have a joke about a riot and Riots Comedy. I thought of that on the car ride home.
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From Pat House's Myspace:
Set your Tivos, VCRs, thingamajigs and doohickeys because THIS Saturday, I will be on NBC 10's new show, "Dig Philly TV" (it's the premiere!) with my good friends, Chip Chantry and Steve Gerben.
It's a what's-going-on-in-the-city kind of show, and the three of us filmed a "Best Week Ever"-type segment for it today making fun of Philly-related news headlines. I think it came out great, so make sure you tune in.
Dig Philly TV: Saturday Feb. 23, 7:30pm, NBC 10. Check your local listings.
Pat House is a local stand-up comedian. You can see when he is performing near you at his Myspace page and you can read more about him in this recent Temple article.
As I write this composition, I'm a 23-year-old, full-time college student with two part time jobs. On top of the already hectic schedule of balancing an education and work, there is another element to my life that occupies more time than school and work combined.
Throughout my college career I have been studying stand-up comedy more than anything I ever had to study for school. I watch comedians just about every night of the week, and in the last three years, I've seen more comedians than I can even count.
Obviously, I'm no headliner. There are thousands of comedians that have a lot of more experience than I do, but I've been around for a while and I have invested more time and energy into the art of stand-up comedy then I have with anything in my life. I have a pretty good feel for the game, and taking my own personal experiences and observations (as well as talking with other comedians), I decided to put in writing a few situations that we (as comedians) encounter on a regular basis.
The following are some gripes and other things I wonder when it comes to how people react to comedy. It's a little rant-like at some points, I understand. I don't intend for it to be, I just wanted to get my thoughts out in the hopes that maybe someone will take note to what I have to say, and hopefully save a comedian from aggravation.
1.) Say Something Funny
"Oh, you're a comedian? Tell me a joke!"
"Say something funny." That's a request I get just about every time someone discovers that I do comedy. To my knowledge, comedy is the only profession where people demand you to prove yourself on the spot. My question is simple; why?
How many people have you met, where upon finding out what they do for a living, you immediately say "So, you're a (job title)? Tell me about (something that pertains to their job)."
Comedians are not clowns. Clowns apply make-up and engage people with props or pantomime situations. They're hired for events because of their interactive ability to amuse people on the spot.
Comedians, on the other hand, are artists who share their view of the world in a humorous manner, usually through stories or observations. They spend years writing and constructing a universal act - an act that is intended to entertain large groups of people (usually adults) in a setting such as a comedy club or theater.
For some strange reason that I can't even begin to comprehend, most people are under the impression that comedians are funny all the time or that they're always 'on.' I've met hundreds of comedians, and I can probably count on one hand how many are 'on' all the time. If a comedian is constantly in comedy-mode, it usually means one thing – they're not funny.
Stand-up comedy requires an atmosphere. It is extremely rare that a joke is as funny off stage as it is on stage. A joke that you address to a live audience does not translate when you tell it to people at a party, a bar or on the street. The material we write is designed for an environment where people come in the anticipation of laughter, they're ready for it. Material isn't written for personal conversation, so for a comedian to share one of their bits in a social setting is not only out of place, it's embarrassing.
2.) Disbelief
This is the basic skeleton of a conversation I've had with countless people once they found out that I do comedy. It's not verbatim, it varies, but it's always to the effect of:
Do you really do comedy???
-Yes.
Like, for real???
-Yes.
No way!! I don't believe you!!
-Ok...
If you don't believe that I do comedy, I do not care. I'm not going to stand there and list my credits and accomplishments until you accept it. You mean the guy with the popped collar and Jew-fro doesn't believe I do comedy? Oh no! How will I sleep tonight? If you believe me, awesome. If you don't, awesome. I don't care.
I find that a decent amount of people who are surprised with me doing comedy, seem to be surprised with disbelief that I do comedy. It's almost insulting. Really? You're a comedian? YOU? Why is it so surprising that I want to make something of myself? Or that I want to do something big?
I once had a woman tell me "You don't look like a comedian." On other occasions, people have said to me "You don't look funny." What does that mean? What does a comedian look like? I know comedians who are white, black, male, female, still in high school, retired, single, married, drug users, alcoholics, gay, straight, handicapped, mentally unstable, and Jewish.
What if I had a retort for that woman? How insulted would she have been if I said "Oh, you look like you'd be a security guard. You have the I-didn't-exactly-finish-High-School kind of look."?
Comedians are people. As you learn in pre-school, people come in all shapes and sizes and from different backgrounds and lifestyles. To this day, I still think about what that woman said and it bothers me. As a comedian, someone please tell me, what am I supposed to look like?
3.) Put That in Your Act
No. The answer is no. No matter how funny you think something is, odds are, I will not talk about it on stage. I am dumbfounded by the amount people I will share a laugh with; either they'll have a comment or I'll have a comment for something, and immediately afterwards they say "You gonna put that in your act?"
Just because something made us laugh does not mean it's going to make everyone else laugh. Yes, we overheard someone say something ridiculous on their cell phone, but no, I will not bring it up on stage that night – or any night.
In addition to the in-the-moment situation that some may think will be funny on stage, it's just as important to emphasize that telling a comedian a joke to say on stage is just as irritating. Comedy is a way for someone to express themselves and give people their insight of the world in a comical way. Thus, telling a comedian a 'jokey-joke' is nothing short of offensive. It seems that every week, I will encounter someone who will tell me the oldest and lamest joke with the longest, most uninteresting set-up imaginable.
If that isn't enough, after they finish telling me this 'hilarious' joke, they'll proceed to say "You can put that in your act!" Oh, can I now? Well, thank you for giving me permission to use not only an unoriginal joke that everybody and their mother has heard, but also a joke that is ridiculously unfunny. Here's a question - how many comedians have you seen take the stage and for their 'big opener', they use a joke that begins along the line of "So a Rabbi, a priest and a Muslim walk into a bar…?" Pencils down. The answer is zero.
4.) Being Offended and Heckling
If you are easily offended by anything, please do not attend a comedy show. Just a warning; it's probably not the best outing for you. However, if you are easily offended and still choose to attend a show, please do everyone in the showroom a favor and keep your mouth shut. It is impossible for a comedian to satisfy everyone's individual sense of humor and someone is bound to get offended. At a comedy show, your opinion does NOT matter. That's not my rule, it's the rule.
Comedy is subjective. Comedians have material on an infinite number of topics and every comedian is different. While most comedians tend to use a mainstream subject matter that almost everyone can relate to, or find enjoyable, jokes centered around sensitive subjects such as abortion, rape, AIDS and pedophilia are bound to be heard in comedy clubs, and mostly likely, one person in the crowd (if not more) is a victim of one of those instances or knows someone who is.
Let's say a comedian performs in front of a large audience and has a killer set. Despite 95% of the crowd enjoying them, not everyone will, and that is fine (trust me, a comedian would be more than thrilled if 95% of the crowd enjoyed their set). Yet, sometimes, if an audience member does not like a certain word or joke, they feel the need to voice their opinion. Why? I don't know.
Heckling does not improve the situation; it usually digs the hole deeper and has the potential to ruin a show - quickly. The patrons in that room who paid to see comedy and want to be entertained by professionals, not some drunken woman who heard something she didn't like and thought she should take action.
When dealing with a heckler, I think the odds are astronomically low that a comedian would commiserate with the disrupter and say "You know what? You're right. What I said was wrong. I'm sorry." Usually the situation ends with the heckler being berated by the comedian or escorted out by security (or both).
If you don't like something the comedian said, let it go. There will be a different bit coming soon - or another comedian. Most of the time, comedians are not trying to be obscene or crude when talking about a possible touchy topic. A lot of comedians have dealt with situations in their life that they used humor to get though. For example, a comedian who has a disability or illness may use humor to get through the experience. Now, as comedian, they may have jokes pertaining to their ailment to ease the pain that a select group of people may find offensive. Someone in the crowd may be offended, but to the comedian, it can part of a healing process.
5.) Being Quiet and Common Courtesy
In addition to heckling, being talkative is just as unwanted and just as annoying. People sometimes treat comedy shows like music at a bar. Music is in the background, musicians even know this. Songs do not require the attention that comedy does. With comedy, you need to focus on every word. Missing one word can lead to the absence of the punch-line. (One thing in particular that blows my mind is how some people will excessively talk at their table, completely ignoring the comedian, and then blame the comedian for not being funny).
Talking not only disturbs the people seated around your table, it's also distracting to the performer. Like a song, a comedians' set has rhythm and timing. People having conversations and even whispering can distort one's listening as well as sidetrack the comedian.
Another nuisance that is just as bothersome as talking, are cell phones. It is infuriating for the comedian to get through their set-up, and then as they're about to hit the crowd with the punch-line - riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing. Every comedian knows what it's like to lose the central part of their joke to an obnoxious sound, and it is frustrating beyond words.
Picture yourself sitting at your desk at work. You're typing on the computer and every time you finish a paragraph, someone holds down the backspace key, causing you to lose everything you just worked on. It's the exact same thing.
This even goes further then just the ring. Texting is just as discourteous and equally maddening. Just like losing a joke to a ring, it's just as rude for someone to text right in front of the comedian's face as they perform. Texting is basically saying "F you" without holding up your finger.
It's also important to also point out the people who think that either they are a part of the act or that the comedian is speaking to them directly. Some people at the show will actually talk to the comedian during their act. It's a gray area between heckling and talking at the table because they're not necessarily heckling, or talking to people at your table, they're talking to the comedian for no reason whatsoever. As if the comedian doesn't have enough on their mind making sure their set is running smoothly, sometimes, people will feel the need to (loudly) add their own tag to a joke, or, just as annoyingly, have a comment for everything the comedian says.
"I know what you mean!" "That happened to me, too!" or even an agreeing "Yeeeeeeah!" are all things some people feel that they should share. Comedians bring their own jokes to the show, complete with their own punch-lines. Unwanted audience participation is as necessary as a third shoe.
--------------------
I've obviously just spent a lot of time ranting and pointing out several negative aspects of comedy, but over-all, comedy is a fantastic thing. If you think it's great to watch, you should try performing it. It's a different world. Personally, I'd rather be entertainment than see it (except at a party or at a bar).
Comedy is an amazing art. I watch comedy almost every night of the week. It's great to watch someone point out the things you think but would never say, or point out things about everyday life that you didn't notice until then and it's great to just see how different people view the same world.
Performing comedy is therapeutic. I really don't know what I'd do with out it. It's an addiction. But like everything else you love, it can never truly be perfect - I woudn't want it to be perfect. The ups and downs are what makes comedy fun. But one thing I could live without are the people who I mentioned in my five points. The next time you meet someone and you find out they're a comedian, do them a favor; just say "Awesome."
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It's the second Sunday of the month and you may be thinking to yourself "Hmm, what was I going to do on the second Sunday of every month? Laundry? Taxes? Wash my dog?"
No, you're going to see stand-up comedy! Unwashed Comics is tonight at the Walking Fish Theatre, nestled in the heart of Fishtown (or Kensington, depends on who you ask). Come out to see:
Jose Vega
Nolan Gilbride
Pat House
Doogie Horner
Chip Chantry
Hosted by Joe Dougherty! Remember him?
At the Walking Fish Theatre (2509 Frankford Ave.), $10, 8PM
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