The aftermath of the video of me clowning Carlos Mencia and exposing him for being a joke thief released its havoc on the internet like a tidal wave of exposure and comic justice.
Unfortunately, it also got me banned from the club.
I got a call from Mitzi Shore the owner of the comedy store yesterday, and she wanted to hear my side of things.
I told her what happened on Saturday night with the whole Carlos thing, and she told me that she would try to work it out.
She called me back today to give me a spot tonight at 10pm, and said that Carlos and I would just have to avoid each other around the store.
She asked me what times I wanted to go on stage this weekend, and I said as long as I got on before Carlos I didn't care. I said thank you, and hung up.
Then I get a call from Tommy the manager of the club an hour later.
He told me that "they" had decided I needed to "take a break" from the store, and that Carlos was physically threatened by me, and worried about me being around.
That, and they're upset at me for putting the video up on the internet because they had asked me to stop filming my internet reality show "the JoeShow" at the club.
They also said that Carlos apologized for the weekend, and said that they could advertise that he would be performing there this weekend.
Now, I know this isn't coming from Mitzi, because I had just talked to her an hour before, so I'm assuming it's her sons that have made the decision to have Carlos there and keep me out.
Mitzi's health hasn't been well over the last years, and slowly her sons have assumed the role of taking over the club.
Whether the decision is financial, because they can sell a ton of tickets with Carlos, or whether it's personal, because Pauly and I have never really liked each other, either way, it is what it is.
It's also indicative of this massive problem we have in the comedy community in general.
Here you have a club that basically sells other people's art. They put the chairs there, sell the drinks and turn the mic on, and the artists do the rest. You have a situation where a comic that's been known for stealing other people material gets called out onstage, exposed, and then the video is put on the internet for all to see, and their reaction is to ban the guy that exposed him and made the video. To the thief, they sit back quietly and profit from his crime.
It's truly fucking mind blowing.
There's not another art form in the world where the creative rights of the artist get as little respect.
If they banned the both of us for this incident, then I would understand that they're just trying to avoid conflict, but the fact that they have told me to "take a break" but they have him onstage this weekend is just a tremendous slap in the face to me, and to the art of stand up comedy.
The first thing I did when I got the call, is to phone my friend Rita over at the Improv in Hollywood and ask if I could get on there this weekend. She bent over backwards to accommodate me, and gave me spots for Thursday night at 10, Friday at 8:30, and Saturday at 10. To her, and Joel over there, I say thank you very much. I truly appreciate the support.
If anyone wants to see me this weekend, that's where I'll be performing.If you want to come down and show your support and have a good time, the address for and phone number for the improv is:
323 651 5810
Hollywood Improv
8162 Melrose ave. Hollywood, CA
I've been working out at the comedy store now for almost 13 years, and I've always wondered when it was all going to end.
The comics have always speculated that when Mitzi dies the sons would probably turn the place into a parking lot. We always used to sit around talking after the show was over, wondering where we would perform in LA when the end came.
The place was even one of the reasons why I still lived in LA. I would go on the road to certain places and think about moving there, but I could never find a club that I could work out at that was anything like the store.
There's really no place like it. At one point and time it was a mob run nightclub owned by Bugsy Segal, and the building radiates this weird energy from the years of performers, criminals, customers and experiences.
It's an energy vortex, and a magnet for crazies. That was one of the best things about filming my reality show there, it was just guaranteed that you would get nutty people to talk to there. They're just drawn to the place, like moths to a light bulb.
The problem is, Mitzi was always the one that kept the place together.
She's the one with the true love of stand up comedy. She created it, she nurtured it, and she supported the art form.
As she fades, so does the essence of the club. For me at least, this decision by whoever is in charge over there now to have me "take a break" is the last sign I needed to see that the end is nigh.
It's been a great time, but like all great times it must eventually end.
I think the way it ended, with a video seen by millions of people is just about a perfect way to go. It's almost fitting that I get banned from there, because it makes no sense.
Nothing about the comedy store has ever made sense.
That was always a part of the beauty of the place.
If you feel like calling them and expressing your disapproval, or perhaps thanking them for banning me, the number there is 323 656 6225 info@comedystore.com
Unfortunately, this is probably the last time you'll see my name on the Marquee there. It's been great!!
