Robert Dean

Today I am interviewing Robert Dean, a comedian from Trumbull, CT who has been doing comedy for over a year and a half. To find out more about Robert, please visit his website.


Why did you start doing stand-up comedy?

The pussy.

I honestly cannot remember the exact reason I started. I’m sure it’s something psychological or philosophical, like acceptance, or the desire to be remembered. I’m sure there was a reason I got on stage for the first time, or wrote my first joke, but that reason escapes me right now. It probably wasn’t that good.

It wasn’t for fame or wealth, though I never ruled out the possibility.

I think I started because I felt I had to.

I had a pretty active imagination as a child and spent most of my time quietly and contently entertaining myself. I was (and still am) only interested in entertaining myself, making myself laugh. I was never the class clown in school. I always figured the guy making fun of the teacher’s boobs and making poems about diarrhea was the comedian.

I consumed and absorbed as much comedy as I could. After listening, watching and memorizing everything I could get my hands on, comedy began opening up to something greater than I had originally thought.

Eventually, I was creating on my own. And that grew naturally into something that I felt I had to do on stage, something I wanted to do in front of people. I wanted to let them in on what had been making me laugh.

I went on stage for the first time and completely fell in love, became completely dependent. I don’t know why I started anymore. But I still do it, and will keep doing it, for that constant and unending rush of performing, the excitement and pride of creating and all the pussy that comes with it.

Do you have any role models?

Yes, Many.

Andy Kaufman. Although Andy would never have himself called a comedian and in no way can I compare myself, or my material to him, he really opened up my eyes to what Stand-up comedy could be and what it doesn’t have to be. Andy turned stand-up comedy into art, or at least made me realize the potentiality for art in stand-up, the possibility of difference, the need for originality.

I would list every other comedian who I look up to but the list would be too long and I don’t want to forget anyone.

I basically admire anyone, comedian or not, with confidence in what they are doing, what they are creating, and who they are.

How do you write comedy?

I steal all of my jokes from forgotten comedians of the 1980’s.

I always carry around at least 2 notebooks and 4 pens. I often write or try to write on the train. I seem to write the most at night when I cannot sleep, often caused by the writing process. No jokes have ever come after saying: “Okay, time to write some comedy!”

I’ll get an idea from something I see or think of. I play around with it and see where it leads. This all happens, normally, without me being consciously aware of it. If I end up with something funny rattling around in my head, I’ll jot down a word or phrase or two to remember it. If it’s not funny, which it usually isn’t, I think of something else. If I do think it’s funny, I tend to get ‘on a roll’ and will write a lot of ‘jokes’ at once, then nothing for a while. If I am hard-pressed for inspiration or material, I’ll take old material and either simply write it out to tighten it, or use it as a placeholder and try and write lead ins or follow ups.

Then I take the new jokes, write them out as one or two words on my set list, get on stage and watch the silence.