Together In Comedy

As I write this, I have a cold. Is blogging good for a cold? Is it blog a cold, starve a fever? I think I read that on Wikipedia. I looked up Wikipedia on Wikipedia and here is what I got. Fun.

Comedy Nights


Me and Kyle

My world has been busy. We are launching a new comedy night in Santa Barbara at a beautiful restaurant called Rocks (Wednesday nights.)

It’s a completely different feel from Bricks (Thursday nights) which is fun and loud and teetering on the edge of unruly. However we seem to have begun a fine tradition of hosting comedy nights at restaurants named after building materials.

This past Wednesday was our third week at Rocks. It’s a cozy, charming nightclub upstairs, overlooking an outdoor shopping mall but completely private and nicely appointed with a big stage, full sound and lighting and limitless potential to make it a hot spot for comedy.

I had booked Kyle Cease who is a rapidly rising comedic star and I was determined to pack the place and create a stir of comedic energy on Upper State Street that had been missing since we were rudely and unlawfully booted from the Andalucia Hotel in July. Here is a list of events which impeeed my path towards that goal.

1) Kyle called to ask if he could cancel and go headline at the Tempe Improv. I kindly requested that he not do so. (Kyle is the first comedy kid I’ve mentored and we are as close as family so he can ask and then I can say, “I’m going to have to beg you not to do that.")

2) Ari (my partner) is as sick as a very sick dog. He was moaning incoherently into the phone but apparently he had a sinus infection that had exploded inside his ear canal and sitting upright was causing a severe loss of balance. I was on my own.

3) The MC, Erik Griffin called to cancel. He had an audition. I was hosting.

Now, both Eric and Ari are very good at audience wrangling and I tend to be shy about approaching strangers, but I can and will do it when called upon. I was called upon.

Here comes the good news. It turns out that my cousin’s cousin, Marla lives in Santa Barbara. She is a very outgoing person and she was coming to the show with her son Morgan who loves acting and improv comedy.

Well, Ari was having the fliers made but (see above) he can't sit up, so I emailed the file to the Kinkos on State Street. They said they need a 24 hour turn around. I said, “Please,” and invited them to the show for free. They didn’t come but I got my fliers and Marla led the way. Together, we walked into every store on the mall with our fliers and our charm and we filled Rocks.


Kyle and Morgan

Brittany Dryden, thank you for bringing your friends. Marla and Morgan, thank you for everything. And thank you Larry and Angel for helping us create Comedy Rocks Wednesdays!

Weezy & The Swish

Two weeks ago, our guest on Weezy & The Swish was comedian, Tom Clark.


Laura, Me, Tom Clark, Matt

Last week, we welcomed comedian Michelle Billoon who brought her friend Cesear and they both stuck around for our Kid/Adult Comedian Mixer. This is a new monthly event which we’ve instituted where comedians of all ages can gather together to share jokes, ideas and snacks and where adults can play video games and kids can wait for their turn. If you couldn’t make it, here’s a taste…




Is This The Look You Were Going For?



My friend, Ian and I took a stroll down Sunset Blvd. recently and I caught this saucy, young clubber. I do believe that this is the look she was going for but should she, as if sent by God, stumble upon this web site, she will in fact see what the world sees and she will make some crucial life and wardrobe changes.

Merry Holidays and have a wonderful week.

I Should Blog More Often

My friend, Deb Cox told me that if I blog every day, people will become addicted to my blog. I don’t know if that’s such a good idea because then they’ll be knocking on my door at all hours of the night looking for a fix. They’ll be exchanging sex for blog installments, there’ll be dust ups and gun play.

Being a blog dealer does not fit into my lifestyle and I prefer readers who enjoy my blog recreationally. Anyway, I don’t have time to blog every day. I’m too busy setting up my meth lab.

Comedy Nights at Rocks

The big news of the week is that we have opened up another great room in Santa Barbara. “Comedy Nights” is expanding into a club called Rocks, every Wednesday night at 8:00 pm. This place is sweet. It sits upstairs in a great restaurant at 801 State Street. The club has a fantastic and private ambiance with a huge stage, lighting, sound, great food and wonderful people. We have an excellent lineup for December, including Kyle Cease on the 13th so please stop by…Especially if you live nowhere near Santa Barbara. There are many reasons to visit Santa Barbara, not the least of which is…. You might see Oprah.


Todd Rex, onstage at Rocks

Thanksgiving in Buffalo



You may think it’s far too late for me to blog about this, and you are correct but sometimes retro can be fun, so I’m going to blog about Thanksgiving. I went home to Buffalo, NY which is where I grew up.


Joanna, Tracy, Carrie, Sarah, Craig, Mike, Jenny


Nathan, Daniel, Mei, Jakey

Being a Jewish family, Thanksgiving marks the big pilgrimage home for all cousins. My Mother hosts about 40 people at our house. This year, my brother built a broccoli casserole, my sister built a chocolate pie and my nephew and I built The Mayflower.


Not seaworthy, but centerpiece worthy

Weezy & The Swish?

For the first time in 76 episodes, we skipped a week of Weezy & The Swish. We also skipped Comedy Nights and Teen Comedy, so this blog is mercifully short with no movies.

I would like, however, to offer a programming note. For my birthday, my family got me a self publishing deal so that I can turn my manuscript, “Journals,” into a book. I’m very excited about it. My sister, Joann, designed this book cover and I think it’s amazing.



“Journals,” is a semi-autobiographical story of a girl’s relationship with her father and of her growing up and facing life’s pain and beauty and complexities.

Have a beautiful week.