Poking fun at sex, drugs, animals
pays off for University comedian
B\ Layne Lakelish
(nr ore Reporter
lie I ikes one I i ners anil cute
•met doles so do his atidi
i'll! es.
And the best thing about
i omedv andiem es. he said is
that the\ laugh'' because "it's
nice when they laugh
Alter iinh two-and .1 halt
years behind the comedii nil
i rophone. John I irinigan I ni
versity rhetoric i ornmunii .ition
major. has enough 1 omedy e\
perience under Ins bell to ini
pressiveh till Ills resume
W ith TV experience comedy
contests (in w hit h lie lias al
wavs made it to the finals)
charity shows (in whir h he has
raised StcOliO lor various 1 ban
lies). -40 al! Northwest region
shows, numerous Midwest re
gion shows and t ometh club
pertorrnaiu.es. no one would
guess that it all started so re
i entlv
"1 iviis ream mi k of st hoof
in the I.ill of 1987 so I went
buck up lo Portbind .uni took
the term off to ski." i innig.m
explained "Then m\ dad told
me. 'Get .1 job' and I'd heard
about an open mike, so I just
started going down there even
week
I guess von could suv I lust
started to do (lie i oinedv
thing . I liked ll and I 11 id it
he said It wasn't something
that started when I was a kid
but I guess I u as always the
class clown
Alter this first open nuke ex
perienr e. he del ided lo take the
next \ eai 1 ilt instead ol j 11 sI the
term, and he spent Ins time
making people laugh lbs origi
nal skiing vacation ended up
being the beginning of his 1 a
reel as a professional comedi
an
After about si\ months oi
open mike I startl'd to make
inonev width is reallv rare
and I didn't ha\e to hum off ul
m\ parents anymore he said
lint alter about a year it
started to got frustrating lie
t a use I wasn't getting week
Ions; runs I was just doing one
■lighters, and I was making just
enough mullet to mxt get b\
At that point. hr pm ked his
hags out r again and hradrii
hai k to lugrnr to finish si hool
I lust (lei idrd I might as uoil
go hai k to si hool and finish up
iiri ausr I onlv had .1 vrar Irtl
hr said Now I ni pist tin
isiting up slosvlv. very slowly
Mr s Imm hai k at thr I dm rr
sity sun r last spring trrm, hut
hr has dn idrd not to do any
hit al shows until hr graduatrs
I It' dors liowrvrr still plan
t 1 unrdy t harity shins s anil par
tit tpalr in 01 1 asional t ontrsts
11 k 1 • (irt'rk ( onirdy Night last
month hat It ot thr I part it 1
paling ( oinrdians hail livr to
sis minutes ol mikr lime anti
I innigan 1 >imr out thr m tor
' 1 won a h Y hr salt I
1 y t-n though hr s not up on
t luh stagrs lot ally hr s still
doing ssh.it hr eonsiders to hr
the rssrntial 1 omrtlit task
()nr of thr most important
things I think tomrdians lift'd
to tlo is svritt' ss riti* svritr.
ss 1 ilr hr saiti
\\ hr 11 I ss as up III I ’ol tlaild
tloiug oprii mikr shows, I sass
all thrsr people going up rvrry
ss rrk titling thr rxat I same
lokrs anil I said thrydr not tlo
ing anything nrvs and thrydr
not going anywhere hr rx
plainrtl
After this realization hr tie
(lilt'd. at that pin lit to has r
list- urss minutes ot material
lot rvrry shosy and nosy hr
makes stirr to alts ays 1 rralr
nryy linrs
So. svritr. svritr ss rite hr
dors at least list- nets jokes a
day "I 1 Hint' up with a lot ol
my osvn stuff and sometimes
it's pist ss hat others sas hr
said People are surprisingly
luiiny ss ithout knots ing it
Sex gets a lot ol laughs hr
said, talking about favorite tun
ns subjet ts "Sex is the funni
esl thing of all it really is, ry
entiling about it hr said
Its like the universal lati
gliagr
Iliut; jokrs also rank mimi thf
top Most audiem os an- poo
I lie lu-twoon -!H mil 111 visits
old and the\ liavo all usuallv
had t'\pciii‘iii os 01 .it IimsI lii-cn
oxposed, In- said "Thrv ran
relate
\ n1111.11 jokes .mil anei deli's
also get .1 lot of I.IUglls TfOple
seem to really like 1nm1.1l
hni's " ho s.iid
hi thf two and .1 li.ilt if.us
In' s lii'cn writing .mil (ii'rforin
mg luini'dv. three ntliiT i nine
di.ins havi' hi-i'ii Ins underh mg
inspir.it unis I i'iiiiv Hi in 1 ■
Kit hard I’rvor and |a\ I enn
Whi'iii'Vitr I talk ahout 1 0111 •
edv. thi'si- three 11.uni's always
idlin' up lie said I 11 ki
lt rut 1' bei ause ol Ins ludit loi
tin' Irt'i'iloin ol spi'i'i h besides
tin- l.n I that lie s mi ri'dihK
hrilliant. I innigan said
I likt' It 1111 i- and I’i sor ho
i austi ol thi'ir honesty vou
listen to l’r\ oi and vou beliey e
what lie suss. lie explained
It s unlike I dlin' Murphy he
i.au.se it vou know where lie s
been and vou know his bat k
ground you ( an t believe
him
And .1-- Inr |.n hello (If s
(lie nit est gu\ you'd evcr
Hurl 1 iimigan said
Vis hr did ai luaik mri't
l.enu. Ill a way dial imty a co
median would dare Ilf was
gui ng In lif at I In- 11 nil ( f ntf 1
so I i ailed him up. said that 1
was a lepoitei for tin- I'nii’i.ihl.
which I wasn't and set up an
interview .' explained I imii
gall
I tin e ,il the interv lew
I mnigan lold I fun the truth
and the two ended up talking
about i omedy I h really was
a on e gin just like he is on
I \ . he said
So mm h tor Ins p.ist lie s
i mu filtrating on Ins future
now lie s ott to Spokane s
I ddv Murphy A i tub for spimg
bleak (Thursday through Sun
day), and lie s already hooked
spring term and suiimiei
shows
tut tin1 l.ii nil lullin', i uni
fill In. ill’s I Ilf (Hi lull' I ri'.ilh
u .ml In u nli- piuiliii r find il i
ii'i l mm it's siHimii.n In1 said
I Jon't gut ini' urung i miii'dv
is grtral and it's liv• • ami llmru
arr puiipiu who apprei I,ill* it mi
tin- spol. Iml llii'ii- an' sti main
had tinlv. ms iml llii'tc today lh.it
I timin' I v a got In do smiir
thing Im the industry
1990 DUCK SOFTBALL
I’rt'init'rt's This Wtwkond
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(High S< hool and under)
The Oregon Daily E merald's Entertainment Guide
( inuU-w (ihnln
I ni\ersil\ '•Indent Inhn Unniuan said he si,tried "the inmedy
Ihint;" just Inn years ,n;n. when i urinsily led him In an open
mike i nm/ietitinn in I’nrlland
\uw { 111■ 1 >■<I\ is .1 iv,i\ lor Ulial (Infs hr like lit'st .ilitiul
inr to cxpciinur 'ill of that llif l,,.jng a comr.lUn' ||\ ., fun
,it ting, writing producing and
directing, hr said
u a\ tn rai n iniiiii'i hr said
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