Pat Lamb

Today I am interviewing Pat Lamb, a comedian born in Jersey City, NJ who has been doing comedy for six years. To find out more about Pat, please visit his website.

Why did you start doing stand-up comedy?

People have always loved the way I expressed myself ,the way I said things,the expressions I used, I have been a student of language and how people express themselves all my life. That's why my act contains non- punchline stuff, like the NY expression for whore - WHO-AHHH. People are familiar with it through media. When I use it in my show I hear people in the audience laughing and repeating it ( even people not familiar with it). Language offers a lot of comedic possibilities and I love exploring it. I'm an artist and cartoonist - all great art is about exploration and despises ingratiation. Woody Allen says take chances, Who needs convention? When you can DATE children.

What do you do when you forget your next joke?

I DO THE NEXT THING I REMEMBER. I write an outline of things I want to say in my set, so there's always something to reach for. You'll never see me say "What else was there?" BAD Habit - just go on to the next thing. Don't dawdle, everything should have a direction, otherwise, (you need a comedic GPS) the message to the audience is that you don't know what you're doing.

What is your recipe for a great joke?

Just keep writing and it will come to you. Its something a lot of people feel, identify with or just find really silly. I wouldn't call it a recipe, though. I really hate what I call mechanical jokes, the formulaic stuff - I'm not interested. Scatological is easy and a waste of time, if you want to get work you got to be able to work clean. I like it clever, witty with a FLOW. A set-up that's believable (an actual or near actual experience) versus the unreal: cop pulls me over, "Have you been drinking? Your eyes look blurry." I said "No, have you been eating donuts? Your eyes looked glazed." I have heard guys say this, its funny, a whole act of this stuff turns me off, doesn't tell me about the person. Besides, if this was actually said to the cop, the comic's beating would have been posted to youtube.