Michael O'Connell at Jon Lovitz Comedy Club and Hollywood Improv this week!

After an amazing time performing with my crew - the Comedians with Disabilities Act - at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, I'm returning to LA again next week for two shows at two more world-famous comedy hot-spots - the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club and the Hollywood Improv.

In both cases, I'll be standing in (so to speak) with a show called The Crippled Kings of Comedy, one produced by Dante the Comedian (Last Comic Standing).  It, too, will feature a group of all disabled comics.  I'm very much looking forward to meeting some of the disability brothers and sisters from the SoCal area and seeing if I can represent well for NorCal (recognize!).

The first show is this Wednesday night, October 26th, at 8:00 PM, and will be at the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club (1000 Universal Studios Blvd #222, Universal City, CA 91608 - 818 824 6545) on the famed Universal CityWalk right outside Universal Studios.

Show #2 will be Sunday night, October 30th, at 7:30 PM at the Hollywood Improv (8162 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046 - 323 651 2583).  As for the days between the two shows, I'll be hanging around LA and seeing what else I can make happen.  Strange things come to pass in the magical land of Hollywood, you know...

So if you're in SoCal, come on out and see me while I'm in your neighborhood!  Two chances in one week!  Hope to see you there!

The Comedians with Disabilties Act at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, October 4!

On Tuesday night, October 4th, handicapped parking will be a little harder to find on the streets of Hollywood.

The Comedians with Disabilities Act, the all-disabled comedy troupe, will bringing their "special" brand of funny to the legendary Laugh Factory on Sunset Boulevard for an unforgettable night of hilarity to benefit Los Angeles City College's Office of Special Services.  The fundraiser will provide funds for tutoring for LACC students with disabilities.

In their first performance since their highly successful and heralded Special Olympics fundraiser show at Napa's Uptown Theatre, the group - made up of Steve Danner (little person), Michael O'Connell (wheelchair) and Nina G (comedienne who stutters) - will be joined by special guests to provide a night of decidedly unconventional humor.

Eric Mee, the visually impaired regular on the tour, will not be performing in this particular show.

Formed in 2010, the cadre is comprised of working comedians who decided to combine their unique situations into a comedy show that fans hadn't seen before, one where they milk their individual challenges for hysterical storytelling, and at the same time take the chance to educate the public on disabled peoples and issues.  Called "The most unconventional comics to pop up in 2011" by the San Francisco Examiner, the northern California-based team they are making their first appearance as a group in southern California.

 Steve Danner

Steve Danner’s comedy career began as an audience member at a club. The comedian on stage that night decided to have some fun at his expense, and Danner’s skills in heckling back at him led the comic to approach Danner after the show and suggest he give comedy a try. He did so, and soon began a career as a prolific comedian and producer, delighting crowds at clubs and comedy rooms all over the west coast with hysterical tales centered heavily on his dwarfism. His comic journey keeps him on the road much of the time, but as Danner is fond of saying, “Shrimpin’ Ain’t Easy!”.

 Michael O'Connell

Michael O’Connell was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at two years old and went into a wheelchair full time in 1995. But it wasn’t until years later that a friend dared him to try doing comedy at an open mic night at a Sacramento club, and after ending up winning the competition that first night on stage, he never looked back. He’s played comedy clubs from Seattle to San Diego, been featured in newspaper and on radio and television, and counts several Hollywood celebrities among his fans. His business card reads “100% Comedy, 0% Stand-Up”.

 Nina G

Touting herself as “the world’s only female comedian who stutters”, Nina G hails from the Bay Area and has spent a lifetime dealing with both speech and learning disability issues. A key note speaker and disability activist, Nina turned her talents to the stand-up stage to help raise disability awareness through comedy, and performs at some of the industry’s hottest clubs (the Hollywood Improv and the Purple Onion) and has shared the stage with some of its biggest names (Dave Chappelle).

 Kathy Buckley and John Kevari

The regulars will be joined for the fundraiser by two special guest comedians, both Los Angeles locals.  The headliner for the night will be America's first hearing-impaired comedienne, the award-winning actress, author and motivational speaker Kathy Buckley.  Her list of televised appearances is overwhelming (The Tonight Show, The Today Show, CBS This Morning, Entertainment Tonight, just to name a few), her accolades are astounding (from such names as Colin Powell and Anthony Robbins), and she has touched hundreds of thousands of lives through her acting (shows such as Touched by an Angel and her critically acclaimed one woman Off-Broadway show), her writing, and her motivational speaking engagements all over the world.

Also performing is Los Angeles comedy veteran John Kevari.  Born with two fingers on one hand, John grew up watching the giants of comedy on Johnny Carson and feeling drawn to stand-up "like a moth to a flame".  After reading an article in People Magazine about the Comedy Store in 1986, the then-23-year-old caught a bus from his home in San Bernardino to Hollywood and did his first stage appearance there on a Monday night show.  That first success has led to over 25 years of bringing laughter to LA's biggest comedy clubs, and to showing audiences how to turn adversity into hilarity.

The Comedians with Disabilities Act fundraiser show begins at 8:00 PM at:

The Laugh Factory

8001 W Sunset Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90046

Tickets will be sold at the door. Valet parking is available.

An additional free comedy show featuring the Comedians with Disabilities Act will take place earlier in the day at 2:00 PM at the Camino Theater at Los Angeles City College, for students and faculty of LACC only. 

Michael O'Connell to perform opening night at Sacramento Comedy Festival

During the life of this blog, I've tried to use it to occasionally highlight more than just what I'm up to in comedy.  More specifically, I've tried to use it to let people in the Sacramento area know what an amazing and thriving comedy scene is going on right here in the old home town, something I myself didn't realize until I accidentally stumbled into a comedy career.

As fans of comedy, most folks watch YouTube clips, catch specials on Comedy Central, watch Saturday Night Live or buy a stand-up CD or DVD from some well-known performer.  But while this is all well and good and perfectly fine, people don't realize that they're missing out on the real energy of comedy, the raw essence of it, the laboratory where it's birthed (or stillborn).  They don't realize that they have access to the very crucible where all those voices and faces from TV and the web start out and pay their dues and become the household names that go on to make movies and blow their noses with hundred dollar bills (if I was Sandler, that's what I'D do when I had a cold...).

This is the arena of live local comedy.  And you don't have to go to LA or New York or Chicago to find it.  It's right here in Sactown.  It's in our local comedy clubs.  It's in all of our many open mic rooms that you can find almost any night of the week in the area.  It's in bars.  Sometimes it's even in cigar lounges (thank you, thank you very much).  It's traditional (and experimental) stand-up.  It's improv groups.  It's sketch comedy.  It's every flavor of funny that your heart desires.

And the even better news is that for four days this September/October, you don't even have to look all over town trying to find it.  Because it's all going to be in one place.

The Sacramento Comedy Festival is a four-day showcase of the best Sac (and San Francisco, and a little LA) has to offer.  Taking place at the Sacramento Comedy Spot downtown, it will feature multiple shows from Thursday (September 29) to Sunday (October 2), allowing you to sample as little or as much as you please.  Broken down by genre (improv, sketch, stand-up), these shows will range in cost from $8.00 to $12.00 each, but there are package deals available to let you get great savings for buying all-day passes or the big full-weekend pass.  All told, you'll have 20 different comedy shows to choose from, all filled with some of the best and brightest talent from around the region.  You like the old stool-n-mic stand-up?  Come see folks like Ellis Rodriguez, John Ross and Nick Aragon (and San Francisco treats like Nina G, Mary Van Note and Marty Grimes).  More a fan of SNL or Kids in the Hall?  Laugh it up to sketch comedy groups like The Syndicate, Uphill Both Ways or Van Full of Candy.  Or do you like the Who's Line is it Anyway? frenetic comedy style that only improv can bring you?  Marvel to the lightning-quick hilarity of Sacramento's Anti-Cooperation League, LA's Bro Squad 5 or Oakland's Awkward Face.

The stand-up part of the Festival begins Thursday night (9/29) at 9:00 PM, when I'll be lucky enough to be performing with some of my favorite people in Sac comedy world - Keith Lowell Jensen, Ray Molina, Eve David, Josh Barbee and Johnny Taylor.  For those of you who've been asking when I'm going to be on stage in Sac again, you now have your answer.  Ten bucks will get you a ticket to see all six of us.  Or, if you're REALLY smart, you'll grab up that weekend pass and spend four days laughing your arse off at all the amazing acts that Brian Crall - owner of Sacramento Comedy Spot - is bringing together for your knee-slapping pleasure.

For the full schedule for the festival, a full list of performers and a link to grab tickets, just click here for the skinny:

Sacramento Comedy Festival

If you've been meaning to delve further into your town's comedy scene, you'll never get a better chance, Sac.  Come on down to midtown and see some of the folks you'll be later able to tell your "I saw them when" stories about.  Hope to see you there!

The Comedians with Disabilities Act this Saturday, July 30, at the Uptown Theatre in Napa!

A blind man. A woman who stutters. A wheelchair user. A little person. While this may sound like a description of a support group, it is, in fact, the lineup for the “Comedians with Disabilities Act”, a comedy tour that the San Francisco Examiner called “The most unconventional comics to pop up in 2011”. Made up entirely of performers with different disabilities, the troupe is bringing their “special” brand of humor to Napa’s Uptown Theatre on Saturday night, July 30th, for a one-night-only fundraiser to benefit Special Olympics. The foursome, all of them working northern California comedians, met each other through the comedy club circuit and decided to band together to treat audiences to a unique and unforgettable experience.

“Lots of able-bodied comedians out there tell blind or wheelchair jokes and get the audience to laugh AT the handicapped,” said Michael O’Connell, the group’s wheelchair representative. “But wouldn’t it be more fun for the crowd, we thought, to be invited to laugh WITH the handicapped instead? That’s guilt-free fun right there.”

Since their first sold-out show in Sacramento, the group has been in growing demand, getting booked at such lauded venues as San Francisco’s Punch Line comedy club and at college campuses. Their comedy comes from the lifetime of experiences each has had due to their individual challenges. They see the tour as not only a chance to entertain, but to educate people on disability issues.

“We’re all comedians first,” said Napa native Steve Danner, the comic who is a little person, “and it’s a comedy show. But who says you can’t make people laugh and send them home with something to think about too?”

Danner’s comedy career began as an audience member at a club. The comedian on stage that night decided to have some fun at his expense, and Danner’s skills in heckling back at him led the comic to approach Danner after the show and suggest he give comedy a try. He did so, and soon began a career as a prolific comedian and producer, delighting crowds at clubs and comedy rooms all over the west coast with hysterical tales centered heavily on his dwarfism. His comic journey keeps him on the road much of the time, but as Danner is fond of saying, “Shrimpin’ Ain’t Easy!”.

Michael O’Connell was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at two years old and went into a wheelchair full time in 1995. But it wasn’t until years later that a friend dared him to try doing comedy at an open mic night at a Sacramento club, and after ending up winning the competition that first night on stage, he never looked back. He’s played comedy clubs from Seattle to San Diego, been featured in newspaper and on radio and television, and counts several Hollywood celebrities among his fans. His business card reads “100% Comedy, 0% Stand-Up”.

Eric Mee was only eighteen years old when, while protecting a young child, he was stabbed in the chest. Complications resulting from his injury led to the loss of his eyesight. Choosing not to let this drastic life change get him down, he began joking about his condition and giving speeches to groups that were always filled with humor. After many suggestions, he turned his talents to stand-up comedy, and now brings his manic energy and outrageous tales to the stage.

Touting herself as “the world’s only female comedian who stutters”, Nina G. hails from the Bay Area and has spent a lifetime dealing with both speech and learning disability issues. A key note speaker and disability activist, Nina turned her talents to the stand-up stage to help raise disability awareness through comedy, and performs at some of the industry’s hottest clubs (the Hollywood Improv and the Purple Onion) and has shared the stage with some of its biggest names (Dave Chappelle).

This concert features a special guest performance by Los Angeles comedian Samuel J. Comroe, a fast-rising stand-up star with Tourette Syndrome. Comroe learned back in school how to get others to laugh about (instead of at) his condition, and used to perform comedy shows on his high school campus at lunch for fifty cents a person. This love of comedy turned into career, and he’s now a regular at LA laugh spots like the Improv, the Ice House and Flappers, has won several comedy competitions (including placing 8th out of 101 in the World Series of Comedy in Las Vegas) and has taken his one-of-a-kind performances nationwide.

Produced by Big Mini Entertainment, the benefit concert begins at 8:00 PM (doors open at 7:00 PM).  Tickets are $20.00 and may be purchased at the box office or through Ticketmaster.

"Smokin' & Jokin' II" this Friday, July 8, at Tobacco Road!

Kick-ash comedy returns to Tobacco Road cigar lounge this Friday, July 8th, at 8:00 PM, courtesy of Ramp-Up Productions and the Punch Cigar Company.

After its monster debut, Sacramento's only comedy and cigar event returns to kick the jokes and light the smokes once more.  Attendees will enjoy fine cigars from Tobacco Road's mammoth humidor while being treated to comedic sets from some of Northern California's finest comedians.

Veteran comic Kristen Frisk, winner of 2010's Tommy T's Talent Search Finals, has been dazzling audiences solo and as part of one of California's hottest comedy tours - "The Real (Funny) Housewives of Rio Linda" - and now brings her madcap skills to the smoking set.  Having played such venues at the San Jose Improv and Sacramento's Punch Line, she's now the first comedienne to perform at Tobacco Road, and plans to leave her mark.

Ellis Rodriguez, the Boston-born son of Panamanian immigrants and former Marine, is a west coast comedy power player who's a regular favorite at clubs like the Hollywood Improv, the Laugh Factory, Tommy T's, Pepperbelly's and Laughs Unlimited, and recently completed taping on his soon-to-be-released comedy DVD "Go Be a Clown".  Smokin' & Jokin' audience members will get a chance to see this dynamic, charismatic and much-heralded performer in an intimate (and smoky) venue.

The show will be hosted by wheelchair comedian Michael O'Connell, a regular at Tobacco Road and a player at comedy clubs from Seattle to San Diego.  The creator of Smokin' & Jokin', he is also one of the founders of the "Comedians with Disabilities Act" comedy tour, a troupe of disabled comics that have brought their unique brand of funny to venues like the San Francisco Punch Line and are preparing for their July 30th blockbuster show at Napa's Uptown Theater.

The second Smokin' & Jokin' show brings a new twist as the hour before the show begins (7:00 PM to 8:00 PM) will become Amateur Hour, when audience members will be invited to come up and try their hand and telling a joke at the mic before an audience.  This portion will be for amateurs only.  No working comedians will be able to perform.

Handling sound and spinning Rat Pack music for the show will be NorCal's DJ Rob, whose skills and tunes will set the tone for this exclusive and unforgettable evening.

Sponsoring the show will be Punch Cigars, and Punch's representative, Ed Trevino, will be on hand with cigar deals, offers and merchandise. 

Tickets for the event will be $10.00 and will be for sale at the door only.  No advance tickets sales will be provided.  Seating is limited due to the venue's size, so early arrival is strongly recommended.  Early arrival also allows plenty of time to relax, enjoy the lounge's friendly atmosphere, and light up a stogie or two.

Smokin' & Jokin' II will go down at:

Tobacco Road Cigar Lounge

2912 Pasatiempo Lane

(at Town & Country Village, corner of Fulton and Marconi, across from Trader Joe's)

Sacramento, CA 95821

916 489 4590

Come spend your Friday night lounging and laughing at Tobacco Road!

The "Comedians with Disabilities Act" at Bunjo's Comedy Lounge in Dublin, CA - 06/17/11!

This Friday night, June 17th, the Comedians with Disabilities Act will be rolling into Dublin, California to bring their "special" brand of comedy to Bunjo's Comedy Lounge.

All your CDA regulars will be hitting the stage: Eric Mee, he of the visual impairment; Steve Danner, he of the little personification; Nina G, she of the sharp (and stuttering) tongue; and Michael O'Connell, he of the four-wheelin' joke-dealin'.  They will be joined by special guest performer Sandy Selvi, an MS survivor, stem cell recipient, author, speaker, and hysterical comedienne. 

Bunjo's Comedy Lounge is located inside the Willow Tree Restaurant in Dublin (just minutes away from Pleasanton, Livermore, San Ramon, Fremont, Castro Valley and Hayward) and is fast becoming a major go-to spot for Northern California comedy, featuring performers from HBO, Comedy Central, Showtime, Jay Leno, David Letterman and More.  Food can be ordered from the restaurant before or during the show, featuring the Willow Tree's heralded Chinese cuisine. 

Bunjo's Comedy Lounge

@The Willow Tree Restaurant 

6513 Regional Street

Dublin, CA 94568

925-264-4413

The show begins at 7:30 PM.  Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at the event or online at www.bunjoscomedy.com.

My 1-Hour Interview on Disabled Radio

I got a wee bit behind on my updating and didn't get around to telling y'all about my interview I did on the internet radio show "Disabled Radio".  Oops!  But don't fret.  You can still hear it.  And there's a LOT of it to hear.

I first met Disabled Radio host Rob Pritts when I called in to chat on the show where fellow Comedians with Disabilities Act member Nina G was the guest.  Rob asked that I come back and do the show myself, and I said I'd love to, and we set a date and made it happen.  I've done quite a few radio spots during my time in comedy, but about 20 minutes is the max I've done.  On this show?  A full hour, with just me.  Could I possibly talk about myself, comedy and disabilities for a full hour?

You've met me, right?

So Rob and I did the show, and it was a blast!  We talked about a whole range of subjects related to both comedy and disability, as well as my life in general.  We also got to interact with some cool folks via Disabled Radio's chat room, including my pal Martin who was catching the show live.  I was really pleased to be a part of something like Disabled Radio, which works as a fantastic venue to bring disabled people together and to educate the "abled" at the same time.  Big thanks again to Rob for having me on.  And we're talking about getting a show together with all four members of the Comedians with Disabilities Act soon, so looking forward to that quite a bit!

If you'd like to hear my appearance (the whole damned hour of it), just click here:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/disabledradio/2011/05/19/enter-laughing

Davis gets schooled this Thursday night with "Comedy Binge"!

Davis is about to get a whole lot funnier.

This Thursday, April 14th, stand-up drops on Davis in a big way with the premiere of "Comedy Binge" at the Graduate, a new monthly showcase featuring some of Northern California's best comics.

Davis local comedian Cory Guebels, producer and host of Comedy Binge, has pulled together some of the best working comics from Sacramento, Stockton and Lodi to launch the endeavor.  The comics include Nick Aragon, Jason Armenio, Michael O'Connell, Josh Barbee, John Ross and Keith Lowell Jensen.

Noting the lack of stand-up in the city of Davis, Cory took it upon himself to change that.  As the title of the show suggests, instead of bringing in just a headliner and an opener, he wants to over-stuff the audience with multiple comedic courses, giving the crowd a  variety of styles to sample and a cross-section of what the NorCal scene has to offer.  The next show is already booked for May, with a new roster of exciting young comics ready to joke it up for the Graduate.

 

Doors will open at the Graduate at 8:00 PM, and the show starts at 8:30.  The cover charge at the door is $5.00.

The Graduate
805 Russell Blvd #A
Davis, CA 95616
530 758 4723

NOTE:  Comedy Binge comedians Jason Armenio and Michael O'Connell will be appearing the day of the show on the "Radio Parallax" program on KDVS 90.3 FM to promote the event.  The program runs from 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM, and can be streamed live off the web here.

"Smokin' & Jokin'" comedy show at Tobacco Road on Friday, April 8th!

Like a good cigar with your punchlines?  Then this show was designed for you.  Seriously.  I was thinking of you when I designed it.  Honest.

Ramp Up Productions proudly presents Smokin' & Jokin', a night of cigars and comedians at Tobacco Road Cigar Lounge in Sacramento, Friday night, April 8th, from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM.  

The show will be hosted by comedian and cigar enthusiast (and not necessarily in that order) Michael O'Connell, and will feature the double-headlining talents of two of northern California's finest stand-ups, Keith Lowell Jensen and Sean Peabody.

Sean Peabody is a veteran of the stand-up circuit and has headlined comedy clubs and colleges all over the west, as well as shows for the troops overseas (Sean being an ex-Marine himself).  Known for his crowd interaction and extroverted style, Sean always leaves audiences dazzled, and is considered by many a California stand-up to be the "comedian's comedian". 

Keith Lowell Jensen gained fame as part of the "Coexist?" comedy tour and as a solo comic has played clubs from L.A. to New York, opening for some of the biggest names in the business (like Norm MacDonald and Robin Williams). He also directed and starred in the documentary film "Why Lie? I Need a Drink" and is set to release his second comedy CD.

Michael O'Connell is in a wheelchair and makes jokes about being in a wheelchair and therefore people laugh because they're afraid to hurt the feelings of a guy in a wheelchair.  In other words, everybody wins.

Tickets for Smokin' & Jokin' are $10 at the door, and those attending are encouraged to show up early, as seating is limited.  A couple of Tobacco Road notes:

This will be a smoky room, as audience members will be lighting up and smoking cigars and pipes.  It's recommended that only those who feel they're okay with sitting in a smoky room for a couple of hours attend this show.

Cigarette smoking is not allowed in the Tobacco Road lounge.  Cigar and pipe smoking only.  Cigarette smokers and can step outside to smoke and head back in at their discretion.

Bringing one's own cigars is not permitted, much in the same way bringing one's own bottle of vodka is not permitted at bars.  Tobacco Road has an enormous walk-in humidor with a vast range of cigars to suit any cigar fan's tastes, so you're sure to find just the right stogie (or two!) to suit you as you enjoy the show.

Tobacco Road is located at Town & Country Center at the corner of Fulton and Marconi in Sacramento, right across from the Trader Joe's.  The address is:

Tobacco Road
2912 Pasatiempo Ln
Sacramento, CA 95821
916 489 4590

 

Be sure to tell all your friends who enjoy cigars (and comedy), and we look forward to seeing you there!

A Magical Place presents a night of comedy (and a wee bit of magic) featuring three of Northern California's finest, together on one stage.

Michael O'Connell, the self-described "wheelchair comedian", has been taking his hilarious tales of disabled living to comedy clubs from Seattle to L.A. He counts Hollywood celebrities among his fans, has worked with some of the best in the comedy business (including Bobby Slayton and Will Durst), has appeared on the Dennis Miller Radio Show and is the headliner on the "Comedians with Disabilities Act" comedy tour.

Keith Lowell Jensen is a veteran of comedy stages from coast to coast, and has shared those stages with the likes of Norm Macdonald, Doug Stanhope, Neil Hamburger, Tim Meadows and Robin Williams. Perhaps best known as the Atheist comedian on the "Coexist? Comedy Tour", Keith has appeared on "Lopez Tonight" on TBS, directed and starred in the documentary film "Why Lie? I Need a Drink", and his anxiously-awaited second comedy CD ("Cats Made of Rabbits") is about to be released, much to the delight of fans of his outlandish observational humor.

Mark Pitta came out of the San Francisco stand-up scene in the 1980s, and soon found LA calling. A national headliner, Mark has appeared on the Tonight Show under both Johnny Carson and Jay Leno, was the host of Fox TV's "Totally Hidden Video" and hosted NBC's "Friday Night Videos", appeared on NBC comedies "Mad About You" and "Third Rock from the Sun", and has been featured on several Comedy Central programs. Mark has also opened for such famed musicians as Chris Issak, Celene Dion, Vanessa Williams, Smokey Robinson and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. Mark hosts "Mark Pitta and Friends" at the heralded 142 Throckmorton Theatre each Tuesday night in Mill Valley, a showcase for up-and-coming talent that's been known to have drop-ins like Dana Carvey, Richard Lewis and Robin Williams.

Doors open at 7:30 PM, and the show begins at 8:00 PM. Seating is limited. Tickets are $10.00 at the door. The show is for 21 and older only.

A Magical Place

85 Enterprise Court Ste D

Galt, CA 95632

209 745 2850

To hear this show discussed on the Don Geronimo Radio Show, click here, go to the first show segment, and go to 31:50 in. 

 

Mike Betancourt, Michael O'Connell and Sam Bruno - This Tuesday at the Rose Room!

Are you ready for this, Roseville?  I don't think you are!!

This Tuesday, February 15th, I will be hooking up with full-contact headliner Mike Betancourt and the inked one, Sam Bruno, at the Rose Room in Old Roseville for an 8:00 show.  The doors open at 7:00 for dinner specials, so come early to get your pizza on (along with your drink - we encourage early drinking at our shows).  The tix are $10 per person or $15 per couple.  Way too cheap for this kind of triple-threat comedy onslaught, you say?  You're RIGHT.  And you're WELCOME.

Sam (he of Sam Bruno Entertainment, the biz putting this show together) will be opening things up, and if things go like they often do, someone will end up punching him in the head before his set is over.  Sam continues to defend his crown as Sacramento Comedian Who's Spent the Most Time in the ER.  Jokes will fly.  Fists might, too.  One way or the other, Sam will knock you OUT.

I'll be dropping somewhere between 20-30 minutes up there, and while I don't want to get your hopes up too much, I MAY be telling some wheelchair jokes.  Don't hold me to that.  But keep hope alive.

Finally, your headliner for the night will be Mike B., whose last trip the Rose Room not only tore the joint up, but somehow ended in a still-talked-about Dirty Dancing finale reenactment.  Every comedian gets hecklers.  Not every comedian lifts their hecklers up to the heavens like Swayze.  You never know what's going to go down when Mike's on the mic, so don't be the poor sap who misses out on his latest breakdown.  You'll have the time of your life.  And you've never felt that way before.

Come one, come all, come early!  And come to:

The Rose Room

314 Lincoln Street  

Roseville, CA 95678

Thanks for the memories.

When I did that first video slideshow showing my 2010 in comedy month to month, I was agonized by how many photos I had to leave out with me and people - people like the friends, fans and family coming out to all the shows.

So instead, I've done a second video with just shots of me and all the many people in my comedy universe, from spectators to fellow comics to celebs.  And even now, I was STILL agonized by not being able to fit everyone in!  If you know you're in a pic with me and don't see yourself in this, my apologies.  Fall Out Boy just need to write longer songs in the future.  Either that, or I have to get a lot less awesome people in my life.

Thanks, everyone, for making this past year so unforgettable.  But be sure to stick around!  More excitement is on the way in 2011!

 

The "Comedians with Disabilities Act" Hits San Francisco Punch Line 02/01/2011!

With their sold-out debut performance behind them, the "Comedians with Disabilities Act" is bringing their "special" brand of humor to the Punch Line Comedy Club in San Francisco on Tuesday, February 1st, at 8:00 PM.

The trio of Eric Mee (sight-impaired), Steve Danner (little person) and Michael O'Connell (wheelchair) will be rocking the Bay for one night only, joined by special guest Nina G, San Francisco's renowned stuttering comedienne, and producer/host Keith Lowell Jensen of the heralded "Coexist? Comedy Tour".  Covered in print (The Sacramento Bee), on radio (Capital Public Radio's "Insight") and on television (CW31's Good Day Sacramento), the comedy group is about to storm the San Francisco media, and plans to drop another standing-room-only performance on the California comedy world.

"There's a big difference between laughing at someone with a disability and laughing with them," says O'Connell, the show's headliner.  "We have a great time poking fun at our disabilities, at ourselves, at the absurd and hilarious things that happen to us in our lives.  And even at each other.  And we invite the audience in on the joke with us.  While we're there to make people laugh, we also give the crowd a chance to look inside our worlds and learn a few things they wouldn't have otherwise known.  There are a lot of things people don't know about disabilities just because they don't happen to know anyone with a disability.  After our show, they feel like they do."

Tickets are on sale through LiveNation or half-priced through Goldstar.  While tickets are also available at the box office, advance purchase is recommended.

The Punch Line Comedy Club

444 Battery Street

(Between Washington and Clay)

San Francisco, CA 94111

415-397-PLSF

Spend an evening with the "Comedians with Disabilities Act" and find out what happens when adversity meets hilarity.

2010 - My Year in Comedy

So...THAT was a good year...

2010 is now behind, 2011 stands ahead, waiting with promises of new adventures, new surprises and new people.  But before I start the major forging ahead, I thought I'd pause to take a look back - via musical photo slideshow - at my year in comedy in 2010.

And let me apologize to all the people who should have been in this thing that may not have made the cut.  I put together a timeline of photos that did a pretty good job covering the whole 2010 experience, and then realized I had right about twice as many photos as I could actually fit with one song.  My choices were to either make a video with two songs (which is not kind to ask people to sit through) or make the painful decisions and create the best map of my comedy year I could in the time available.  Had to go with pain.  But it breaks down the month by month pretty good.  I do now, though, want to make another video that's just photos of me with people, because it's the people - fans, friends, family, fellow comics, the occasional famous person - that made 2010 the most exciting and fulfilling year of my life to date.  I will get around to that dedication, f'sho.

Maybe after LA.  And San Francisco.  :)

Please take a little time travelin' trip with me (and that's high quality video, so go ahead and use the option to view full screen for best watching), and if you were in any way a part of it with me (whether you pop up on this video or not), thanks for everything.  And let's do it again...all 2011 long!

'Ello, LA! Michael O'Connell one night only in LA on Tuesday, 1/11!

Say "hello" to Hollywood.

Well, to Burbank, at least.

LA peoples, you will be able to find me perched upon a stage at Flappers Comedy Club in Burbank on Tuesday night, January 11th, at 8pm.  I'll be appearing a part of "Bobbie Oliver's Too Funny Tuesdays", a show hosted by the lovely and hysterically talented Sally Mullins, and will be rocking it SoCal-style for one night only.  Not two nights...ONE!

I, with a selection of LA's finest comics, will be doing the funny for your delight.  Drinks will pour, lines will be punched, a good time will be had by all.  Not some...ALL!

Tickets for the show are $15.00.  If you're a fan and plan to be in the house, please contact me directly about getting tickets from me, either via Facebook or by email at michael@michaeloconnell.com.  Please feel free to spread this news far and wide to friends, family and Farmville buddies in the LA area, as I'd love to meet them all.  I do hope you can make it out yourself!

Again, that's:

Flappers Comedy Club

102 East Magnolia 

Burbank, CA 91502

818 845 9721

And Happy New Year to all.  No wait, not all...ONE!  No, "all" was right in that case, wasn't it?

 (Click flyer for larger view)