Here’s another bit of self-promotion masking itself as a meaningful blog…

Wednesday night of next week (March 3) is the fourth instalment of Red Carpet Comedy.  I’ll be kicking off the show again ahead of (at current count) another 8 comedians trying their hand at their newest material.  As has been my main objective lately, I’ll be talking more about the epidemic of ego that seems to be spreading around society, and pointing out my love/hate relationship with my own narcissism.  (I’ll be writing more on this blog in a couple of weeks about why I’ve been writing/talking so much about ego in my stand-up act.) These evenings have always been a blast for both the performers and audience. I hope that if you haven’t already been able to make it out you can spare some time on March 3.

This next announcement is going to be a little cryptic (that’s intentional)… in April I’ll be opening for one of Canada’s biggest names in comedy.  He’ll be coming through Calgary on April 9 and 10, and will be in Edmonton the following weekend (April 16 and 17).  I’ll have more information closer to the shows but it will be my next big appearance in both of these cities and I didn’t want you to be able to say, “I didn’t know you were performing so I made other plans.”  Now, the only excuse you’ll have is: “I didn’t want to see your show.”  (Perhaps leaving you with no other excuse wasn’t the best choice for my self-esteem… but it’s too late to go back now.)

As always, I look forward to seeing your smiling face in an audience soon.

My previous YouTube “sketch” video was relatively successful (mostly because of my friends that shared it with their networks).  Sure, I’m no Susan Boyle, but I was happy with the response that the video received.  So, I did it again.  Not the same video (that would be strange and pointless), but a brand new video with a new concept, new location, and new facial hair.  (That last part is a bit of a personal experiment, and other than having it called “a growth” two weeks ago, it has been successful.)

After watching it (it will only take a minute) you may ask yourself if this video was about someone in particular and, yes, yes it was.  However, in the interest of sparing this person the embarrassment I’ll keep the name to myself.  Sorry.  I know you wanted more gossip than that.  Go read TMZ or something.

Enjoy…

Last week myself and fellow comedian, Cory Mack, launched a brand new project with the objective of assembling all Canadian Comedians in one online location to celebrate the rich comedy landscape in this country.  It’s called Comediapedia and in addition to having a complete directory of comedy in Canada (we hope), it will also include a comprehensive timeline of Canadian Comedy, a newsletter for the comedians involved, and anecdotes from the various performers.

Nothing like this has ever been attempted before.  Too often we can get bogged down in the politics of the industry and easily forget that the goals of all comedians are the same: to entertain (and perhaps enlighten) audiences.  It was with that notion and intention that Comediapedia was established.  Neither Cory nor myself have any other objectives than to create a sense of community amongst all Canadian comedic performers.

If you are a comedian: I urge you to visit the site and establish your profile.  You can share as much or as little as you like… even just your name and headshot would help us to create a more complete list of performers.  Once you have done that – share the site with your Comedian friends to help us make the directory as complete as possible.

If you are a fan of comedy: If you see a Canadian Comedian on stage or TV but didn’t see or hear their name you may be able to find them within the Comediapedia database.  The comics have the option to share their popular/memorable punchlines (which can be searched).  Or maybe you know where they are from and can do a search based on that.  I can’t imagine a Canadian Comedian that wouldn’t love to have you as a fan.

While the database may appear meager now, with time it will grow to encompass all Canadian Comedians that wish to take part.  When that occurs we will have a central location to acknowledge the massive achievements and unbelievable talent that this country produces.