Some Hot Get-Ahead Tips for Speakers, Comedians,
Humorists and anyone interested in Comedy History from John Cantu
by Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE
John Cantu was a comedy legend and was producer at the
famous Holy City Zoo in San Francisco from 1975 to 1981
and co-owner from 1979-1981. He told me how the comedy club
got its name and how the philosophy of a young comic can
help any of us achieve maximum success. Although these events
happened many years ago they are part of the comedy history
of the super stars of today. There are lessons for life
and all performing. Hope you enjoy reading of my conversations
with Cantu.
* * *
"The Holy City Zoo," he told me, "is the only comedy club
named for a municipal institution. Before the club opened,
the owner saw a poster about a café bankruptcy sale
in the Santa Cruz mountains. He followed the map to Holy
City and found the zoo where he bought the redwood tables
and chairs from the out-of-business zoo café. Then
he realized that he'd spent his entire decorating budget
and still didn't have a sign for his new club. The seller
was eager not to lose the sale. 'We won't be needing this,'
he said, and gave him the zoo sign. That's how the club
got its name.
"When we opened, I was just like you. You start doing
business, confident that although no one knows you, you'll
be recognized as soon as everyone sees how creative, industrious,
and inventive you are. So you wait. And wait. What I've
learned in the comedy club business and in life is just
how long it takes for talent to be recognized.
"The Holy City Zoo was an incubator for many future stars.
For example, it was amazing what people said about one young
comedian: 'He's not too bad. Some of his jokes are actually
funny.' (It helps if some of the audience thinks your acts
are actually funny.) 'What was that new act?' they'd say.
'The maniac with the girl's name? That Robin Wilson-somebody?'
Robin Williams talked and moved so fast that it took awhile
for audiences to understand him. That's true of all of us.
It takes time for others to get to know us and to find out
what we're all about.
"Especially if we do things differently than people are
used to. Once this new guy walked out on stage, and I thought,
'This fellows going to have a hard time.' Number one, his
stage persona didn't strike me as being marketable. Number
two; his stage name would be a disadvantage among Midwestern
religious conservatives. 'He's not going to make it,' I
decided. The audience was polite but not enthusiastic--until
they got to know him. It was 'Father Guido Sarducci,' played
by Don Novello. I was used to stand-up comedians in suits
and ties, so I was blind to the potential of a different
type. Don Novello was so talented that he was soon on the
Smothers Brothers and Saturday Night Live TV shows.
"Talent in the raw isn't always easy to spot. Another
act that I failed to appreciate was a young comedienne.
She had flopped at The Boarding House, a major room that
launched a lot of musical acts. I ran a comedy room downstairs.
The owner told me, "I've got this new act upstairs who's
not doing well. Why don't you try her?" Her lack of success
didn't bother me because an audience coming for the music
might not be in tune with the comedy. However, she was so
bad that some people asked for their money back. She didn't
tell jokes, just stories about her life. She let the audience
find the humor themselves. Years later, when I saw her rave-reviewed
performance in King of Comedy, I realized how brilliant
Sandra Bernhard was.(The film came out in 1983)
"One night at the Boarding House, I saw the beginning
of a success story with a real moral. It was tryout night,
and the last act was getting ready to go on. He was typical
of the hundreds of comedian wannabees. He hated his day
job, and his friends had all told him he was so funny that
he should go on stage. 'In a few months, you'll be on Saturday
Night Live!' they said. Well, it doesn't quite work that
way. Usually.
"A year earlier, this young man, Tom Finnegan, had tried
out for the Holy City Zoo and flopped. Now he was trying
again. Practically no one was there, but I resolved to give
him a fair hearing. Some beginners, facing an empty house,
decide not to go on. Others get up and read me the riot
act for not providing them with a huge audience.
"Instead, this guy walked on and presented his material
as if there were a thousand people out front. His first
story was about being robbed by a New Age mugger who threatened
him with a Perrier bottle if he didn't assume the lotus
position. 'Wow, this guy's material is really fresh,' I
thought. It was some of the funniest stuff I'd heard in
months.
"I had been hoping to leave that evening with a beautiful
brunette at my table, but I realized I needed to take care
of business. I gave her a bus token to get home and dragged
Tom Finnegan right over to the Holy City Zoo. A bunch of
comedians were standing around outside,including Michael
Pritchard, Paula Poundstone, Dana Carvey, and Rob Schneider.
I told them to come in and watch this guy. Because Tom Finnegan
had been willing to get up and do the best he could with
what he had, he was now performing in front of well-known
comedians with many years of experience. A few months later
he was writing for many of those comedians. That would be
a good ending to the story, but, like the Ginsu commercial,
there's even more.
"Through his new clients, he quickly connected with and
was hired as a writer by the Tonight Show. One day, he got
up in front of an empty house and did his best, and a few
months later, people were laughing at his jokes on national
TV."
(1,047 words)
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