Looking back at 2010
Another year has gone by and what a year it was…
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The whole Nick Madson thing.
[I still gotta finish writing the rest of what happened, but meh, no one cares :P]
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While the Madson thing was going on I helped write and produce a comedy variety show, we sold out the 150+ seats.
[Learned a lot… a lot. Opened with a 9/11 sketch.]
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Had the pleasure of attending the Just for Laughs Alt Comedy show in Chicago.
[I love you Chicago. Hope to see you soon.]
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Even got to hang out with Patton, Kinane, Kindler, Maria, and Hardwick after the show.
[Left to right: Justin Hullinger, David Rotz, Kyle Kinane, and Myself.]
[The Black Shrimps is an inside joke]
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The Fall of Penguins Comedy Club.
[The fall of our Rome. We were devastated, sending most of the local guys scattering in the dark. The city is turning it into a farmers market.]
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Had a couple gigs around town,featured in the local paper.
[Article: http://qctimes.com/entertainment/article_b3ad53ea-a589-11df-920a-001cc4c03286.html]
[Performed with James Draper and Chris Schlichting, two incredibly talented people.]
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The first ever Iowa Comedy Festival.
[Got to be a part of their “Kernel” showcase]
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Co-wrote a movie you’ll never hear of. The facebook page is still up. It would have been hilarious.
[I should post a PDF of the screenplay somewhere. We thought it was going to be huge, going so far as to register it with the Writers Guild.]
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Wrote comedy bits and filled in as a co-host for the Burlesque Le Moustache troupe a few times.
[On stage with David Rotz. Yes those are mannequin heads, vader helmet and lightsaber. My character Doogen Van Hausen shows the people what german burlesque looks like.]
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My performance at City Hall.
[City council meeting on the birthday of Lenny Bruce. I had to do it.]
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Helping in the creation of The Blacklist
[From left to right: Ben Holmes, Cody Tucker, David Rotz, Me, Allison Mann, Joey Curtiss, George Strader (in the green), and Travis Shepherd.]
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Emceeing Kindlers show at the Speakeasy.
[Hilarious show, got to see Kindler work on material, only had maybe twelve people in the audience. “I was on a network show.. what do I gotta do to pull a crowd!!!” ~ Andy Kindler, truly hilarious.]
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Helped put together a roast for George Strader.
[The closest thing to a mentor I’ve ever had. The comedy scene here was all but completely destroyed when he came back in town from Chicago and he revived it. Incredibly talented. He told me he wanted to book me as soon as he heard my nihilism joke “Every day I’m slipping deeper and deeper into nihilism… and that depresses me.”. I owe him a lot and a part of me wants to stay in the QC just to continue working with him. I’m about to start rambling so I’ll stop, suffice to say.. pretty cool guy.]
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Accomplished a lot in 2010. Probably the most eventful year of my life. Experienced a lot of things, learned even more things, made some incredible friends, perhaps an enemy or two… Loved, lost, and recovered from heartbreak. Probably still recovering.. Anyways.. It’s going to be a hard year to top. Hope to make some short films in the coming year, I’ve been doing a lot of writing. Should be getting employed soon which will create the bridge to Chicago.
I’m only 20. I keep forgetting that. People keep telling me that I have a bright future ahead of me, I hope they’re right.
I can’t thank my family enough for supporting me and my passions. Not every family would be ok with dropping out of school to be a comedian.
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The Original Quad-City Comics (Before the fall of Penguins Comedy Club)
[From left to right: Gene Davis (A one timer, I dunno why he got in the picture), Jim Petersen, Me, Justin Hullinger, Pablo Ramos (behind Justin), James Draper (hat), Mike Steele, Eydie Petersen, David Rotz, Stay Puff (yep), and Wayne Lyter.]
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Alright 2011… I’m ready. But before we start… *ahem* “People call me an old soul… they like to say it means I’m wise beyond my years. I just think it’s a nice way of saying that I’m going to die young.”.
I never tire of that opener.
Andrew King.
