Make 'Em Laugh, Seattle -- It's Tough Out There, But Comics Are Finding Inventive Ways To Win New Fans

There was a time in the world of comedy when people lined up around the block, and paid cover charges and two-drink minimums to catch the latest hot comic. When lawyers, nurses and housewives dreamed of giving up their day jobs and striking it rich in stand-up. When club or restaurant owners with available space and visions of quick profits became overnight comedy impresarios.

Through much of the go-go '80s, the comedy biz rode that wave of popularity, laughing all the way to the bank. But these days, the laughter has died down.

"I think stand-up comedy is in a coma. There's still some vital signs showing, but not much," said local comic Elliot Maxx, who is celebrating his 20th year in the business.

Seattle's comedy scene, which once boasted four full-time clubs, hasn't been immune. Today, only the Comedy Underground in Pioneer Square does comedy full time. The Last Laugh had its last laugh a few years back, Giggles has cut back to weekends and the Showbox Comedy and Supper Club (formerly the Improv) is shifting to live and DJ music part of the time.

Earlier this year, the annual Comedy USA Industry Guide reported that nationally there are 350 clubs, compared to the 475 that flourished in 1992. Of the clubs still around, only 75 offer comedy full time.

A new wave in Seattle

But in Seattle, the decline of comedy clubs has led to a mini-explosion of books and CDs by local comedians.

Recently, Maxx came out with "Oregon's Best Jokes" and "The Seattle Joke Book III" a sequel to two highly successful Seattle joke books he wrote with Gene Openshaw in 1985 and 1986. Michelle Beaudry, another veteran of the local comedy scene, has just published "Travellers Laffbook: 50 Reasons to Stay Home Starting with Alabama."

Last month, Vince Valenzuela released his CD, "Deraindamaged!," a comedy album taped during his gig at the Comedy Underground on, or just before, April Fool's Day. Bill Radke, KUOW-FM's news director and a regular contributor to Sandy Bradley's "Potluck," will come out with a cassette next month, the first spoken-word product released by Yellow Tail Records, a local recording company.

There is even a Seattle-based site on the World Wide Web that give comics an entirely new way to reach an audience (http://www.uspan.com/u-laff).

"These products are just another way to reach our audience because many of them don't want to go to clubs any more," Beaudry said.

There are enough new products that Beaudry, who also works as a promoter and booker, now has a small catalog listing them. "Millions of Items!" her four-page flyer boasts. "Only 11 actually available."

The products are a direct result of the hard times facing the industry, Beaudry said.

"Before, when the boom was on, there was so much work that we had no time," Beaudry said. "Now you have to be very resourceful. This is the time when you have to work harder because so many people are giving up."

For Valenzuela, the CD has been a goal since the days he was learning his craft, studying the albums of stand-up greats like Richard Pryor, Lenny Bruce and Bob Newhart.

This year, ready to take a break from the exhausting demands of the comedy circuit, he decided to pursue his dream project. He created his own company, Shameless Records, and spent $5,000 to make the CD, believed to be the first by a local comic.

"Comedy albums used to be very popular in the '50s, '60s and '70s, then the TV shows took over," Valenzuela said. "So this is really a retro product. This is how hip this is. I was actually going to put it on vinyl."

He's not sure if he will ever recoup his money, but Valenzuela sees the CD as investment in his career.

"It's a way of getting your name out there. If people appreciate the work, they'll want to hire you."

Valenzuela is also hoping the CD will help launch his career beyond Seattle. Next year, he plans to move to L.A.

"If you looking to be at a different level in the industry, L.A. and New York are the places that can do that for you," he said. "Seattle is a good AAA (minor league) city, but not a heavy hitter. It's a good place to start, and I figure you can always come back."

The extracurricular projects can be profitable.

Like Valenzuela, Maxx wrote the first "Seattle Joke Book" as a marketing tool: he hoped the book would eventually lead to club gigs.

Not much work materialized, but the book sold so well that Maxx and Openshaw followed up with a sequel the following year. Both books sold about 20,000 copies, making the bestseller list of Pacific Pipeline, a regional book distributor.

Then the comedy boom hit, and Maxx said he was so busy with work that for several years he didn't have to make a single phone call to line up gigs.

Only when things started to slow did Maxx consider doing his new books. This time he took on a book project himself, investing about $10,000.

"It's a gamble I guess, but given the sales record for the first two books, I'm not too worried. The nicest part is that it's done. With stand-up comedy, it's never finished. You're always working on it. With a book, once you're done, you're done."

Maxx views his book as separate from his onstage work, which is more a blend of humor and music. His folk songs have titles like "When Cows Cry" and "Ode to a Neutered Whale" and "Trailer Trash Woman," which he calls his first love song.

Earlier in his career, Maxx, too, headed to L.A. to try his luck with the Hollywood "lottery," but like most people, he never got the winning ticket and came back home.

Radke, a past winner of the Seattle International Stand-Up Comedy Competition, welcomed the chance to explore humor in a different way through his cassette.

"I felt such a pressure to keep the big laughs coming, because I want to see people have a good time, and club owners like to hear the laughter," Radke said. "But it makes it hard to sustain a theme in your act. At comedy clubs, they're out for a good time, and the attention span is not very long."

With the extended monologues that fill his cassette, Radke was able to explore themes and topics in a way he prefers.

The taping for the cassette, done before an audience at Kane Hall earlier this month, proved to Radke that audiences were willing to follow him as he wove stories about growing up in a large household. Or delivered his quirky take on current events.

"It all builds up to a point and each piece comes together to form a picture," Radke said. "You see how it all culminates to that point, instead of just one funny bit after another."

The response to the comedy products, which most of the comics market and distribute themselves, has been positive.

Beaudry has sold as many as 34 books after a performance, and the book also has sold well at a waterfront jewelry store that carries it. She has recouped the $3,000 she spent in getting the books printed, so future sales will be profits.

"My book isn't time sensitive, so I can sell them at shows five years from now," she said. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Meet the comics

Elliot Maxx and Michelle Beaudry will be appearing together at the Bellevue Barnes & Noble, 626 106th Ave. N.E., at 7 p.m. Saturday; at the downtown Borders Books & Music, 1501 Fourth Ave., at 6 p.m. Nov. 15; at Tower Books, 20 Mercer St., at 8 p.m. Nov. 17; and they'll take part in a comedy roundtable at Barnes & Noble at Crossroads Mall, 15600 N.E. Eighth St. in Bellevue, at 7 p.m. Nov. 24.

Joined by comics Len Riggs and Jay Kulm, who also have books, Maxx and Beaudry will take part in "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover Charge," a show at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 3 at Comedy Underground, 222 S. Main St. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Listen and laugh

To hear an excerpt from Vince Valenzuela's "Deraindamaged!" call the Seattle Times InfoLine at 464-2000 from a touch-tone phone, and enter category LAFF (5233). The CD is available locally from Blockbuster Music, Warehouse Records (at Northeast 45th Street and Roosevelt Way Northeast), the Borders Books & Music stores in downtown Seattle and Tacoma, and through Shameless Records, 542-6149. Most of the products created by local comedians are also available from Laffbooks, 283-9049.

Elliot Maxx and Michelle Beaudry will be appearing together to promote their books at the Downtown Bellevue Barnes & Noble, 626 106th Ave. N.E., at 7 p.m. Nov. 11; at the downtown Borders Books & Music, 1501 4th Ave., at 6 p.m., Nov. 15; at Tower Books, 20 Mercer St., at 8 p.m., Nov. 17; and they'll take part in a comedy rountable at the Barnes & Noble at Crossroads Mall, 15600 N.E. 8th Ave. in Bellevue, at 7 p.m., Nov. 24.

Joined by comics Len Riggs and Jay Kulm, who also have books, Maxx and Beaudry will take part in "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover Charge," a show at Comedy Underground, 222 S. Main St., at 8:30 p.m. on Dec. 3. ----------------------------------------------------------------- THE JOKE'S ON US: SOME FREE LAUGHS

Elliot Maxx says that there are 423 jokes in his book "Seattle Joke Book III," including the cartoons. That, by his calculation, comes to about two cents a joke.

"Some of the jokes are worth two cents," he said. "Some are even worth a nickel."

Here's a dime's worth:

Why did Seattle Harbor Tours throw Jean Enersen overboard?

They heard she was a good anchor.

Did you hear about the new Microsoft home game?

It's called "Monopoly."

Why are the Seahawk receivers so healthy?

They never catch anything.

What did Gov. Lowry give his staff for the holiday?

A Christmas goose.

What's the nicest thing about living in Spokane?

At least it's not Idaho.

Here are a few excerpts from "Travellers Laffbook: 50 Reasons to Stay Home Starting with Alabama" by Michelle Beaudry:

Rhode Island is so small:

Rand McNally uses a 1 to 1 scale.

Its DNA has a single helix.

James Michener's book is a two-page brochure.

Florida is so dangerous, the Florida Keys are having duplicates made.

Why is Oregon shaped like sandbag?

To stop the California flood.