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Honolulu Lite Charles Memminger |
Doing standup without
a net at a new venueThe television show "American Idol" has proved without a doubt the lengths to which some people will go to completely humiliate themselves in public. What is that strange need certain people have to make a fool of themselves in front of large groups of strangers? Is it a specific psychological illness? A latent form of self-loathing? A pathetic cry for help?
I really need to know. Because I've just agreed to go back into Waikiki and attempt standup comedy, an enterprise I last endured in January 1997, a few nights that continue to live in comic infamy.
I appeared at the only two comedy clubs in Honolulu at the time, two clubs that curiously closed their doors shortly after my visits. It would be harsh to say that I single-handedly closed down the entire comedy club industry in Honolulu, but, hey, you gotta face facts: Clubs are there, I perform, clubs are gone.
My recollection of those nights on stage is hazy, so post-traumatic stress syndrome isn't all bad. I quit waking up in the middle of the night screaming quite a few months ago.
But once you've got that "Makin' A!" bug in your system, it apparently has to be surgically removed. That's the only explanation I can come up with for volunteering to try standup again. (Although, after performing in front of an angry, alcohol-drinking audience that paid good money to laugh, addressing the Rotary Club is a breeze.)
THE WEIRD THING is that the guy who got me onstage in the first place, Hawaii comedian Bo Irvine -- and whose club it is alleged I assassinated -- has invited me to visit his new venue at the All Star Hawaii restaurant at the Gateway to Waikiki. Comedy has made a great comeback in the past few years, and local comic icons like Bo, Da Bruddahs, Paul Ogata, Mel Cabang and the God-something-or-other of Hawaii comedy, Andy Bumatai, have been drawing crowds all over the place.
In the spirit of "American Idol," Bo Irvine has been searching out Hawaii's hot new comic talent. He's currently running a contest featuring 30 comic wannabes. Thursday will be the first competition, and that's when I'll make my comeback appearance. I'm not in the contest, I'll just be taking the mike to cool off the audience before competition. The competition will continue on the next three Thursdays until six comics are picked to compete in the finals on April Fools' Day.
I will give a full report of the nervous breakdowns, produce-throwings and heckling outbursts -- at least related to my meager contribution this Thursday -- in a special "Honolulu Lite Extra!" in Sunday's Star-Bulletin. Tickets for any of Bo's "Crack Up Comedy Showdown" events are available at the door of All Star Hawaii. Or you can go to his Web site at www.boirvinecomedy.com for more information.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Charles Memminger, winner of National Society of Newspaper Columnists awards, appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. E-mail cmemminger@starbulletin.com