Laugh Factory’s Jamie Masada’s Comedy Bail-Out, the interview

By April MacIntyre Mar 4, 2009, 2:29 GMT

Jamie Masada of The Laugh Factory

If you’re a comedy fan or live in Los Angeles, Laugh Factory club owner Jamie Masada is a known name. 

The comedy impresario has been lighting up the strip with the top names for years.  He also hosts a killer Thanksgiving and Christmas banquet annually for anyone in need of a hot meal and a smile.

This year the Laugh Factory’s 30th annual Christmas dinner for the underprivileged had its highest turn out ever.

It was an epiphany for Masada, noting the severity of the nation’s economic crisis.  “I’ve never seen so many people and families with their kids waiting in the rain for a free meal and comedy show.” 

Deeply moved by this, The Laugh Factory is imploring Congress to immediately fund what Masada calls in good fun, an “Economic Cheer-Up.”
 
The Laugh Factory would ostensibly like to join the ranks of those banks and corporations who are lining up in front of Congress for a bail-out.  However in this case, instead of sitting in vaults, all the money ideally received in Masada's perfect comedy world would directly lift the spirits of a burdened people by funding a nationwide comedic tour.

Masada stands firm in his beliefs and says that “Average, hardworking Americans are losing their jobs and we keep bailing out the rich people who got us into this mess.  The underprivileged and those laid off deserve a break, and I believe that through comedy and laughter we can help lessen the stresses and tensions that are plaguing our citizens in this economy and in doing so make the recovery come that much faster.”

Masada jokingly estimates that such a bail-out would require just 700 thousand, a fraction of the currently proposed stimulus package.  Masada notes, “What we plan to do will help people cut back on depression pills, medical bills and suicide.  And at the same time we are helping over 1,000 of our most talented comedians do what they do best: make people happy.”

Friends and neighbors are in economic desperation and many continue to question the funds granted to wealthy bankers and corporate entities.

It is the Laugh Factory’s plea that Congress provides monetary support far less grand than that requested by corporate America to “The Economic Cheer-Up.”
With the support of Congress, the Laugh Factory and its group of struggling and professional comedians can launch a grass roots movement to get on a bus and revitalize a nation in desperate need of laughter; one joke at a time.
 
Congress needs to act quickly to prevent this economic depression from becoming any more of a mental one than it already is. 

Jamie Masada and the Laugh Factory request that all Americans in need of a laugh write to www.laughfactory.com, include your address and they will forward the message to your congressperson and President Obama demanding support for the Cheer-Up. If Congress fails to act quickly, the Laugh Factory comedians are planning to march to Washington and plea to President Obama.

Monsters and Critics caught up with Jamie Masada of the Laugh Factory this week.

Jamie, you were close to comic Richard Jeni, and even held his memorial
at the club.  Did his death make you more sensitive to the despair and
suffering and reinforce you commitment to serve the community?

Jamie Masada:  My commitment to serve the community has been strong for 3 decades and it gets stronger every day. 

As you know, I do Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners for the underprivileged and the entire Hollywood community, as well as a summer Comedy Camp for at-risk kids, and there are so many other philanthropic endeavors that I am involved with. 

Over the years we have lost so many great comedians, many of them before their time.   Richard Jeni, and the other comics I've lost were all very close to me and they are all irreplaceable.  They are like my family.

How would define the difference in vibe, feel and overall tone between your club, your neighbors Mitzi and her Comedy Store and Bud's Melrose Improv?

Jamie Masada:  I established myself 29 years ago as a comedy club that would guarantee to make you laugh. 

You come to the Laugh Factory and the person on the stage will always be funny.  It doesn't make any difference if the comic is known or unknown, they have to be funny.  There are plenty of known comics that have not been funny that I have had to get off the stage. 

And if that person is not funny, like in the case of Michael Richards, I will volunteer to give your money back. 

Our customers have been coming for the past two decades and they come 2 or 3 times a year to see a show.  It is that type of repeat business that keeps us sold out all the time.

Why do you think your club became the staging ground for more ethnic comedians to showcase than the others?

Jamie Masada:  I don't look at people's background or the pigment of their skin.  As long as they are funny they can get on the stage. 
29 years ago it was obvious to me that certain voices were underrepresented in standup comedy. 

So we started the Black Pack with Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Paul Mooney and Keenan Ivory Wayans.  A year later, along with Paul Rodriguez, we started Latino Night, a weekly show, that continues to this day. 

My latest show is Asian Invasion.

You see a lot of sad cases on Sunset.  Tell me a favorite success story of someone you and your club helped turn around.

Jamie Masada:  Every summer we do a Comedy Camp for at-risk kids at the Laugh Factory. These kids spend the summer learning comedy and being mentored by my comedians like Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle, Dane Cook, Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Bob Saget, George Lopez, Paul Rodriguez, and so on. 

Over the years, all those comics and others have helped me run this camp and so many of the kids have turned their lives around.  They have gone on to be some of the most successful people in Hollywood and other industries.

The news today said one out of ten Angelenos are unemployed, and reports are it will get worse.  What are your hopes and ideas for stimulating jobs in the county?

Jamie Masada:  Right now we are lobbying congress and President Obama to fund our Economic Cheer-Up.   

We plan to take some of our best comics and go on a bus tour of the country bringing laughs and smiles and encourage people and give them hope for a happier future. 

Everybody knows how tough times are right now. This year during our annual Christmas dinner for the underprivileged I saw more suffering than I had ever seen. 

One man came in with his family and kids who had been sleeping in their car! 

You really feel like the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.  Everybody has to do everything they can to get this country moving again and smiling again.  I encourage everybody to go to www.laughfactory.com and sign our petition which will help poor people, not only rich people. 

And starting March 12th, Tom Arnold is going to have a weekly show at the Laugh Factory called "Laughing with the Stars."  And anybody with an unemployment card will get into the show for free.

Best comedy performer to ever to hit your stage was...?

Jamie Masada:  How do you pick that?  Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Jim Carrey, Rodney Dangerfield, Robin Williams, Dane Cook, Dave Chappelle, there are just too many and I have enjoyed every one of them.

Tell me which comic you would love to have at the Factory that
has not played yet

Jamie Masada:  Everybody from Bob Hope to Richard Pryor to Rodney Dangerfield, to everybody alive and working today has performed here.

The only one I can think of is Don Rickles.