Jim Richardson's annotations to Colin Quinn's
"Loners in Unity"
Keynote speech, ComedyPro conference at
31st Just for Laughs comedy festival
Montreal, Canada, July 25, 2013:
Interesting insights by a lower echelon stand-up comic
Disclaimers:
1)
Transcript
with my annotations added Monday, July 29, 2013.
But please listen to the audio clip first, both
for Quinn's actual words and the audience
reactions which are not indicated on
this very poor transcript.
I got this
written version of Quinn's speech off the web; so, it is slightly censored,
contains misspellings, inaccuracies, and is also significantly incomplete.
Why use such a lousy transcript? A transcript of lesser quality would be insufferable and
frankly, Quinn's writing/improvisation is so sloppy that it is not worth the
time to do a faithful version.
As the speech is obviously
a rush job and you will already have listened to the speech as intended,
I will
return the favor by getting these thoughts up ASAP.
2) If you want more articulate descriptions of far more meaningful comedy
careers by infinitely more thoughtful comics, please refer to:
•the two excellent Letterman interviews and the Nichols & May
article.
•Plus, Kevin
Spacey's August 26, 2013 speech predicting the near-future game-change for
all major American TV channels on my Goodies
Page.
•Or the Woody Allen video at the bottom of this page.
Obviously, I am concerned that this speech by Quinn currently has high visibility
and should be addressed.
Especially for those who arrogantly state, "I knew most of it already," but
continue to practice the unprofessional behaviors that Quinn lists.
OK: enough already yet with all these qualifications:
I yield to temptation and annotate my running thoughts
with an eye toward both clarification and then,
•expand with my reactions to some of Quinn's key
points:
COLIN QUINN: First of all, thank you all for coming to this. I’m glad you got here
yesterday. They cancelled my flight. It was supposed to be 11 o’clock and
it was cancelled until 12:30. The stewardess was giving all the instructions
in French so she could’ve been saying anything. Plus the pilot was from Brooklyn
so fugghedaboutit. It balances itself out.
I would like to start by saying I saw Andy Kindler yesterday. I haven’t
seen him in years. I love Andy Kindler. He comes up to me and says, “Hey man,
you’re giving that speech tomorrow it’s great.” So I said thanks and he said,
“I hope you memorize it.” So I laugh and he says, “no, seriously, I hope you
memorize it.” So I was like, “go f*ck yourself.” I tell you that because it’s
such a comedian personality to tell you to demand what you want from the other
person. And I saw Jim Norton this morning and he tells me this, and this is
a typical comedian personality, he goes, “hey, where do you get your credentials?”
I’m not your f*ckin’ manager! I didn’t have my credentials on, ya piece of
sh*t. Why do I say this? I don’t know I just thought it was important.
Well, lets get down to the bare of it. I like the fact that, you know how
all you have to be when people ask you to be the serious person at a comedy
convention, yeah that sounds about right.
Well, we’ll start with my comedy roots. I started by, uh, my dream, like
all of you, was just to be able to get up and do stand-up comedy, if I could
just gather the balls to get up. Then you get up, you have the balls to get
up, you get a few laughs, and then you’re like “holy sh*t, if I can just make
money doing this and if I can just make a living doing stand-up, I wouldn’t
have to worry about my day job.” And then you get to that point and you’re
like, “If I can get interest of people that come to see me, and they come
to see ME
[Because Quinn now has high visibility, he has "marquee value" which
is Las Vegas shorthand that means he can "get butts in seats."
Whereas
most comedy clubs offer bills with comics having only weak credits,
•these
bills are roughly interchangeable comics when owners consider their ROI (return
on investment).
Example:
After I produced about 1,000 professional stand-up comedy shows in Northern
California, one venue had a steady attendance of 185 customers every Saturday
night . . . no matter who we put on.
•Whenever
my student/client David Feldman went on the old "Alex
Bennet radio show" to plug this venue, attendance shot up to 275 customers.
But, oddly, attendance dropped well below 185 the next week.
•Conclusion: comics
with high enough visibility to bring SRO (standing room only) crowds but charge
markedly higher fees
do not necessarily add to the club owner's profit over time in certain venues.
Go figure!
. . . But I digress.],
it’s at that point that you start to realize it doesn’t keep going
like that. You know what I mean? You have to have ups and downs. I was on
MTV, but then I was back trying to get gigs. I had to live with my mother
for a year, then I was on Saturday Night Live, and then I was doing f*cking
firehouses in New Jersey. And they were all like “What are you doing here?”
and I said I don’t know what happened. I’m just saying it’s one of those businesses
where my goal was the same goal that most people have, which is like, “I want
to keep getting to a different level. I don’t want to just be doing – I mean
I love doing stand-up, it’s my favorite thing in the world, it’s your favorite
thing in the world, it gets you high, and even though it would be a nightmare
for you if you were living your dream, or being some sh*t. You know what I
mean? Like your dream is what? To get that kind of money and exposure and
then you’re going to go do stand-up and everyone’s going to love you. What?
Because you’re on The Big Bang Theory? You see yourself as one to five people
there and you’re impressed. No you’re a miserable f*cking comedian. You would
be the person on the set that is yelling, screaming, starting sh*t with the
director. That life is not funny. I can re-write that, you know.
So this is basically what happened to me. You can look at my story, for example,
and say oh here’s a guy that knocked around [sic] his [he's] up
and down, and eventually he found his niche of doing one-man discoverable-
I don’t even know what to call it. That would be the dizzy version, yes, but
that’s fine. I’ve also been writing like all this sh*t you want done and it
doesn’t get done. And for various reasons. Sometimes the networks [sic] aren’t
[don't hire] the brightest [sic] people [executives] in the
world, and sometimes it’s because you sabotaged yourself. So really what I’m
talking about here, why do they call it lovers in unity? Because these pricks
that run this festival made me come up with the title three weeks ago. I said
I’m a comedian! I don’t have a title or a theme. And they wanted me to write
my speech and hand to them beforehand. This is what I’m saying. There is a
disconnect between us and each other. Everyone loves to be at the Montreal
Comedy Festival, do you not know comedians yet? I’m not writing out my f*cking
speech.
First let’s look at the managers, actually let’s look at bookers. We’ll get
to the managers later. Bookers, here’s the thing, if you’re booking a comedy
show, stop trying to craft the f*cking TV set. Your shows are uneven to begin
with. Every late-night show is an up and down. By the time we actually come
on it’s a breath of fresh air. Even for me. I know all the comedians and I’m
so happy. Why are we responsible for all of our sets where there’s no fat
left -meaning no flavor- it’s like having a meatball but cooking it in the
sauce for four hours. And then you take it out and decide, this meatball is
good it didn’t need the sauce. Part of what makes every comedian that’s here
funny, is not always the straight line, fat-free version so you are destroying
yourselves. Nobody believes you when you say standards and practices. What
a coincidence they had the same note you had three weeks ago.
[Without
examples, it is difficult to figure out what Quinn means here. So, I will take a flier:
Quinn might be saying that club owners bug comics if they have works in progress
that they are testing out during their sets.
•Woody Allen states that the best
time to try out new material is Saturday night at a comedy club because then
your new bit has a chance in front of 150-450 audience members who are hearing
your new bit for the very first time.
Such is hardly the case during mid-week open
mics before audience of 20-40 folks, half of whom are comics who have already
heard your bit 50 times. Nothing can be concluded from the success or failure
of a new bit performed before such small, pre-corrupted audiences.
Plus, audiences come to open mics with very low expectations.
The open mic system is a known failure.
•For more of my thoughts on the more logical
and academically correct approach to developing an act,
read here: http://www.stand-upcomedyworkshop.com/AboutUs.html#ComedyMarathonContests]
Okay, for networks, this is just a quick thing for networks, follow
the plan that fails 90% of the time for the past 70 years. Because
there’s other meanings after doing what we do for so many years. They’re
just sitting there going “our audience-“ first of all, we play your
audience every night you stupid m***er f*ckers. We play audiences all
over the country. That’s what we do. We’re test marketing every goddamn
night. If you had a 50% success rate I’d be like, “Hey at least you
know something.” I’m just speaking from what I’ve done. My whole career
was like I’m not going to try and get money from outside or work within
the system, I am the f*cking system. I’m like hey, everybody knows
me, it just never worked that way. Maybe it’ll work for you. Once in
a while you get lucky, Louis C.K., but for most people, it’s not going
to be that way. Just think, Patrice, Geraldo, they never found shows
for those two. Those large personalities, and they couldn’t get a show
for them. So think about that. Norm MacDonald, and this is not a slam
on Comedy Central, sure it’s not, [sarcasm] this day has been coming
for a long time. And Norm MacDonald is one of the most Renaissance
mad minds, hosting a goddamn sports show. That’s called putting someone
in a harness. He’s hosting a goddamn sports show. He doesn’t even like
sports, he just likes gambling. I hope your next sports show is hosted
by Aaron Hernandez. And there’s a lot of great shows on Comedy Central,
I’m not trashing, but stop test marketing to f*cking 14-year-olds.
Here’s the way it’s supposed to work, you’re doing it backwards, adults
influence kids. That’s the way it’s supposed to be, not the other way
around. By the way, anyone at this festival who is in the industry
part of this business who judges one set you saw someone do at this
festival, you’re not part of the industry, you’re just another person
who was at the show who goes, “hey I thought that person bombed.” Stop
judging by audience response, I know that sounds stupid, but if somebody
bombs five times in a row, there’s a problem. But one bad set you can’t
be judging the rest of their career on that.
Comedy Central Roasts, stop having celebrities on and stop writing jokes
for people. Nobody writes their own sh*t. It takes away the organic thing.
And that takes me to a quick digression about tough crowds. Here’s the thing
about tough crowds, I created that show and I brought that show from NBC to
Comedy Central and here’s what bothers me, they tried to replace the show,
without me, after the show left. And this goes to point something out. You
can’t just replace sh*t. Every comedian is individual. I’m not the best f*cking
host, I’m not even the best host of Tough Crowd, it’s creative business. You
have to hire comedians as consultants. You can’t keep hiring crowd-pleasing
hacks and don’t get a panic look on your face when someone is doing a new
piece for three minutes and isn’t killing it every night. It’s not a problem,
it’s a f*cking process. You’re architects of your own destruction. You hire
hacks, you make sure the five people that are heckling get taken care of,
not the 150 people that are horrified by the five people ruining the show
so they can’t hear the comedian. That’s a good way to run a business. I’m
just saying, you’re chasing people out of your clubs every time you let these
f*cking idiots in.
[Process:
•I teach my students and clients to always be testing out at
least 5 minutes of new material.
Even if you are getting paid handsomely.
•Remember: local club work is not your national TV debut.
Every performance at a comedy club is a step forward in developing your act.
Know what you are trying to accompllish at every performance:
•What is tonight's
goal that is different from every other night?
Club owners may comment, but that is their problem.
[So, how do you get away with it?
•The
trick is to place said new bit(s) in the middle of your act where solid material
at the beginning and end of your set protects your act every night.
Instead, comics often open with what Del VanDyke calls "the I-hope joke".
Why do so many comics make this fatal mistake?
Perhaps you are afraid that you will forget your new bit?
But if the bit fails, you then have to dig your act out of a hole.
Not a good way to open, yes?]
Managers and agents, first of all, telling people they need more Twitter
followers is pathetic. But the truth is, we know we need you, we can’t function
without you, we couldn’t have all gotten up here without you. I’m in a sick
relationship with you. I acknowledge there’s two sides to this sh*t. We’re
not the easiest people. With the managers, we’re like the jealous, possessive
psycho. You know, you bring us bad news and we explode and blame you. And
you seduce us when you meet us. You flatter us and make us feel like we’re
the only one, but you push us aside when somebody else shows up. But here’s
the other thing for managers, quit using agents as excuses. But we’re a couple,
lets come out and admit it. We need both of you. You get to be with a fun
person but have to deal with the bullsh*t on the way home. But that’s part
of my whole theme, don’t worry I do a theme underneath it all, believe me.
Open [sic] minders [micers], you stink but you think you’re great. I stunk and I thought
I was great for years and that’s the only thing that keeps you in this business.
It’s part of the make up of stand-up and it takes five years to really know.
People doing it five years, it takes ten years. But here’s my little other
notes for stand-ups, not that I’m Mr. Performance, but I’m just trying to
tell you when you’re doing stand-up, I see so many funny stand-ups on Comedy
Central and everyone is standing there, ironically, not moving. Move around.
You’re going for your life right now. The only one that can pull that off
for more than ten minutes without boring people is Todd Barry. Everyone else
needs to move around in a circle a little bit. The only thing that accomplishes
is one of your drunk audience members will think, “wow he’s a great writer.”
People, just move, walk, open your body, yell every once in a while, it’ll
save your goddamn career.
[These stage acting descriptions are too vague.
Blocking movements
is exacting. Otherwise, movies could never get made.
I would think that Quinn has taken acting classes as he later mentions he
took screen writing courses, etc.
•In any case, since I already have a video preview for the first half-hour of
my Professional Stage Movement course on this web site,
this is a very good time for you to check it out.
Why not?
It's legal.
"Lessons
26-29, “Choreographing the Joke: Professional Stage Movement Workshops”]
This is to my fellow comedians, all of you people that are up here. First
of all, don’t be a dick to the new people. They’re annoying and they want
to drain you of your knowledge and use you for whatever they can, but that’s
what you did to people and that’s what people do to people because it’s human
nature. Just play along, don’t be a cranky bastard.
The rest of this is more or less to us. First of all, what I’m saying is,
what I tried to do was go the normal route. When I was on [sic] SNL [short
for the on-going NBC-TV "Saturday Night Live" comedy skit program begun
in 1975],
I pitched the shows, I wrote the shows out, I took the screen writing classes,
went there, met people, we love Colin, we love him, you know what I mean? They’re
going another way but they love you, they want to work with you. Like I said,
if you’re lucky and you can pull that off, good for you. In the meantime, you’re
gonna have to work on your own. Work with each other. The people in networks
are never going to think what I think is funny, they’re just not. It doesn’t
work that way. You have to work with each other. So here’s what I’m saying. First
comedian advice then I’m giving you my industry advice. First of all, we’re the
only people around that I can see that are actually saying something. So say
something, say something. You know what I mean? I feel like everyone just gets
locked into one thing like “oh this is what my guy would say.” No. You’re the
one person to say whatever you think that’s interesting to you. Whatever your
outside interests are, you should be bringing them onto the stage. Look, even
my things I’m doing right now, everyone can do that kind of stuff if you just
focus in on one thing and then do it. Anyone that can be thematic, and you don’t
want to but at a certain point you have to be that person that people go “oh
he’s that kind of personality.” You kill every f*cking night but it’s arbitrary
and people just forget because people have to sink their teeth into what you’re
doing. Yeah it was pretty boring but it was something I had to say. And when
you say something funny, please be funny. If you’re gonna preach, fine. If you’re
a preaching comic, preach f*cking funny. If you have more pause breaks than laughs,
you’re a pandering f*cking populist.
[Again, Quinn is saying more than one thing at a time which clutters his thoughts.
•Stand-up comics are hardly the only artists who have something to say.
Get a grip, Quinn!
[To say something
on the stand-up comedy stage that your persona (main character aka narrative
character) would never say,
there is a simple and rather obvious solution:
•Have one of your minor character's who could say it, . . . say it.
Duh!
[The last
line on "more applause breaks than laughs" describes
George Carlin's career in the 1990s Watch Woody Allen: A Documentary on PBS. See more from American Masters.
•with
one notable exception,
•plus,
Carlin's most excellent last recorded show for HBO-TV in Santa Rosa, California.
Too
bad that Quinn doesn't have the guts to criticize one of the comedy gods.
Great comedians and all true artists are gods, but ones with clay feet.
I'm just saying.]
I love these new fundamentalist speech monitors. I thought we were the ones
that were going to slide behind this politically correct f*cking nightmare.
Apparently we’re just watching and blogging about that sh*t too. First of
all, here’s why it’s so infuriating. Sam Morrow, the original great joke controversy
of this year, it was a comment on how people accept rape jokes. That was the
thing, it wasn’t even a rape joke, it was a comment on rape jokes. The don’t
even know what they’re raged about, its just so infuriating to me. But that
being said, don’t get f*cking lazy and just write whatever the most shocking
sh*t is. Because shock can easily become the new [sic] hap [hack]. Edgy
comedy can easily become [sic] hap [hack]. Here’s
the other thing, headliners, when you start headlining, don’t become a cheap
f*ck. You know how many headliners turn into f*cking a**holes? Once people
start headlining, the industry exploits us and they tell their friend to work
with them for 58 bucks. “They’re coming to see me.” That was fast, you turned
into everything you hate. You shouldn’t have more than 64% of your set be d*ck
jokes, or else I don’t want to hear any complaints. 64% I think I’m being very
f*cking liberal here.
So here’s what happened, the good news is success in stand-up is very bad
for your act. In a way I’m glad that once I got everywhere I thought I
wanted to go, I just kept falling right back. Sometimes it was self-sabotage,
sometimes it was the industry, it doesn’t matter. The point is this, when
you reject stuff, I’ve turned down a lot of things, and sometimes I turned
them down because I’m a comedian and it was in good taste. But sometimes
I would turn it down because I was scared. And that’s the big thing nobody
talks about, fear. Fear, ego, and control are the three things, because
when you’re doing stand-up, you’re doing the one thing the whole world
is afraid to do. And you’re standing up there doing it. But then when you’re
put into a situation where you don’t control the room, you don’t have a
mic, you don’t have an audience, suddenly people become a little bit scared.
[Another common career failure that is very visible: not properly preparing
for media interviews.]
And the way it came
from me, I was supposed to be in Austin Powers a long time ago, like
17 or 18 years ago. Mike Myers calls me up and says, “look I have this
part, I saw you on the Larry Sanders Show, and I want you to do the
same thing you did there in my movie, Austin Powers.” And I said, “Thanks
Mike but I’m working on my own sh*t but thanks.” I’m sure many of you
would’ve done the same thing. He called me back and said, “Colin, you
got the part.” And I said the same thing. Thanks but I’m working on
my own sh*t too. He laughed and said look I don’t want to have to beg
you- and I said Mike, I respect you, good luck with your thing, good
luck with my thing. I might’ve done that because I didn’t believe in
his project. It wasn’t finished, I didn’t know what the project was
at the time. No one knew the juggernauts that was Austin Powers.
[One of my students in the 1980s, who had just become a local
headliner, was contacted by the producer/director from the local
PBS-TV channel in San Francisco, California.
The message left on his answering machine invited said newbie headliner
to be one of three acts
on an upcoming episode of the already successful "Comedy
Tonight" series.
He missed the phone call but refused to call the producer
back. "If he wants me on his show, let him call me again!"
This was the first of many dumb career mis-steps to follow.
[Similarly pathetic stories that stopped many a comic's career advancement
•inspired
me to create a slide show illustrating the point:
If you've never hired a consultant,
you may wish to begin with my most frequently
asked question,
"Why
do I need coaching?" ]
What
I’m saying is that when you do it, there’s a fear that I feel when I see
stand-ups say, “I won’t sell out, I don’t go to parties.” The two biggest regrets
I have in my stand-up career- it was three. One, was not keeping that energy
of how I was making my living, and I should’ve kept that if I would’ve thought
about what it means. Two, taping and listening to every set.
[Just "listening to every set" may not solve much unless
you listen to purpose.
•There
is a predictable laugh pattern that will emerge as the bit gets set.
Quinn talks against getting the TV set together during comedy club performances.
•Yet,
that is a crucial, final part of the process.
•I
have witnessed the error to be much more on the other part of the polished/unpolished
scale:
taking way too long to set a bit.
[From the get-go, Editing
for a TV set needs to be clearly your main career focus.
Here, Quinn is just plain wrong.
Sorry: but this needs to be said loud and clear.
His blatant disregard of this business reality is what lead up to this career-defining
but unforgivably sloppy keynote speech.
•A
lot of great points got buried in his muddle.
Sadly, this is most reflective of the difficulty Quinn had on SNL . . . ever
getting polished bits together.
Great guy, most likeable personality.
•But,
The Act is the Thing.]
And three, going
to every stupid party. I feel like I spent my whole career being invited to
all these big events and I’d just say f*ck that and go to all the clubs. But
guess what, I could’ve put on a nice suit and gone for a half hour, and just
shook hands, stayed for a half hour and then leave and go do comedy, but I
didn’t do it because, f*ck them, I’m not going to be a part of these a**holes.
But I wasn’t afraid, I was uncomfortable to be around that, you know what
I mean? Being around all these people and being uncomfortable because they
have something I want and they have the power to give me what I want. And
I’m sure this applies to many of you, it’s like “f*ck you, let me control
the crowd, let me do my comedy,” but I’m not telling you to go kiss ass, all
I’m saying is if you want to get whatever it is that you are trying to get,
you do have to ask somebody at some point where they have money or power.
You don’t have to kiss ass or change anything about your content, but you
do have to be civil, show up to a few meetings, look them in the eye, try
to remember their names, how many f*cking names do you forget immediately,
you know what I’m saying? I can’t even tell you some of the biggest names
I’ve forgotten over the years. The responsibility for us is to write, listen
to your sets, but you also have to take responsibility for being around the
industry.
[Whoever you slight on the way up, you are liable to meet again on
the way down.]
What we should fear, is becoming a pompous ass, becoming a cheap headliner,
and becoming a hack or a thief. Here’s what we do for you, being vulnerable
or looking stupid, not by your own choice, you feel like you’re being
muted over. Let me save us all the pressure, nobody is a f*cking genius.
If there’s a genius, we’ll all know about it and let you know. Even
Woody Allen comes out as sh*t 40% of the time. What we fear the most
is being silenced. That’s the fear. I mean 80% of you right now would
like to grab this f*cking mic and take it over for me. So all I’m saying
is this kingdom of speech is a mistake but the only one’s in this country
that really tell the truth are right here. I love you guys thank you
so much.
[The transcription
here is just plain inaccurate:
If I remember correctly, Quinn says that Woody
Allen has the the best batting average in the industry but misses 40% of
the time.
•If
Woody Allen were a major league baseball player and consistently hit .600,
Woody would rightly be a legend!]
Woody Allen:
•PBS-TV
has never taught their viewers the basic how-to's of writing & performing
stand-up comedy.
Instead, this most American of art forms is taught not as craft but only as
art history.
None-the-less, watching Woody Allen
•assemble his movie scripts and
•explain his workflow from picture to picture
is both inspiring
and informative.
Note: if this embedded video will not play on my web page,
click
the light blue
link to "Woody
Allen: a Documentary" which you can see under the video player, and watch it on
the PBS web site.
.
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