“Laughs” will not just finish out our 13-episode run, the show has just been given a four-episode extension. This week has been a sine curve of emotion. Last Wednesday night, I lost my father. He was my comedy guru and one of the principal reasons I did standup. 18 hours after that loss, I had to tape an episode. The phrase “it’s what he would have wanted” is thrown around a lot. But it rang true for me. Towards the end of his life, my father didn’t send many emails. His final three were to his job, letting them know he was sick. To the board of his synagogue, telling them he had to skip a meeting. And to some of his friends, reminding them to watch my show. How do I deal with that as a son? The pride and the sadness have been battling in my head since. My father’s greatest joy was seeing a job well done. My brother’s neighborhood was ravaged by Hurricane Sandy, but the treehouse my father built stood as if it were brick. So taping that episode, the words “job well done” echoed in my head long enough for me to hold it together. And as I closed the show by telling my father’s favorite joke, I cried. The support I received from the “Laughs” cast and crew during this past week has turned my grief into gratitude. Cards, flowers, phone calls, food, Facebook messages, hugs, donations to my father’s synagogue – it’s all been incredible. It reminded me that family is not just biological. I lost my father – but I have so much family left. What I enjoy most about “Laughs” is being able to share my comedy family with a larger audience. Their appearances on “Laughs” led some of them to agents, to record deals, and to tons of great gigs. Hell, one of them even had their high school girlfriend reach out to them to re-kindle. Hard to top that as a success story. But for this extension, things will get even better. Every artist who appears on the show will be paid for their appearance, right down to Tweets and Vines. We’re already in the process of booking a college and club tour of some of the show’s acts. And we’re working on a “Best of Laughs” album series, where 100% of the sales and the royalties go to the artists. We’re not only doing more episodes, but we’re doing them right. This is, and will be, a job well done. The loss of my father has inspired me to do something more. When I first started as a comedian, I moved back in with him. I wasn’t making enough to pay rent, and he gave me the support I needed to get on my feet. So, with the help of Reddit and a board consisting of some of the biggest club owners, agents, managers, and TV executives in the business, I’ve started a scholarship fund for comedians named for my father, so that they can have the same support that I did. We’re simply selling Reddit comedy shirts – and our goal is to use that money to pay a comedian’s rent for an entire year. If you’d like to apply, pick up a shirt, or just learn more about it, please visit ComedyGrant. These next four episodes will determine the future of “Laughs”. Not only were we extended, but if we hit our ratings goal, we are all but guaranteed to be extended again. If we get picked up for a full run, I get to share 400 comedians a year with a national audience. And if you watch, if you tell your friends to watch, this proverbial house will be built out of brick. Since last week, I have been consistently asked how I am, and I haven’t really known what to say. I will forever have a piece of me missing, and I will forever wish that time didn’t march on quite so finitely. But the next time I’m asked how I am, I can honestly tell them that I’m okay. I have to be. I’ve got a job to do.
Posted on: Fri, 17 Oct 2014 23:54:14 +0000
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