On The Road with Dave

I belong to a Comedy Writing Forum and this was posted a few days ago. It seems that if you are a New York comic, and New York is the only place you do your "gigs", you are getting short-changed.



A Comedians' Union? Imagine the Meetings

December 22, 2004
By JESSE McKINLEY

So a comic walks into a bar, does a set and still can't
feed his kids. Or his pets. Or his pets' kids. So what does
he do? He gets a lawyer, forms a coalition and threatens to
strike.

Hello? Is this thing on?

Seriously, folks, you can't make this stuff up. Hardened by
decades of low wages and even lower self-esteem, some 300
New York comedians have decided to unite to ask the city's
comedy clubs for, well, a little respect. (Oh, and more
pay.)

Two weeks ago, the group, the New York Comedians Coalition,
sent a letter to the owners of 11 clubs around the city,
asking for $120 for a 10 to 20 minute set on the weekends,
up from the current average of $60. They are also seeking a
small increase in weekday pay, which runs about $15 to $25
a set, as well as holiday pay for regulars. M.C.'s, who
introduce acts and plug the audience for information ("So,
where you from?"), would make upward of $200 for a weekend
gig under the coalition's plans, as opposed to the current
industry rate of $75 to $125.

"Comics have been making the same wage essentially since
1985," said Ted Alexandro, one of the coalition's founders
and a regular performer on the city's comedy circuit. "And
the revenue being created is outrageous."

In particular, Mr. Alexandro and his comedic colleagues
point to the clubs' practice of charging covers and an
enforced two-drink minimum, a policy that makes it almost
impossible for weekend audiences to escape without spending
at least $30 a head. Comedians say that when you add in
lucrative special shows for corporate events, proms and
bachelor parties, the clubs are killing (the comics' patois
for doing well).

Club owners aren't so sure. "It's an extremely competitive
market," said Chris Mazzilli, the owner of the Gotham
Comedy Club on West 22nd Street. "You've got clubs in
Midtown handing out free tickets and pulling people in off
the street. We're charging $15. That can make it tough."

But workanight comedians say the rates in city clubs pale
to what they can make doing longer sets on college campuses
or headlining in other cities. "I could do 30 shows in town
and make $800," said Ben Bailey, a 34-year-old comic with a
wife and a cat at home. "Or I could work the road and do
eight shows and make $2,000. There's no comparison."

Many club owners hope there's some room for compromise,
especially in a close-knit industry where tough crowds have
hardened owners and comedians alike. Mr. Mazzilli, a former
comedian himself, has agreed to raise his weekend rate to
$75 and will meet with the coalition after the New Year to
see if a bigger raise can be arranged. The Comedy Cellar,
the venerable club in Greenwich Village, has added acts and
also raised its rate to $75.

Cary Hoffman, the owner of Stand Up New York, on West 78th
Street, which pays $60 a set on the weekends, says he, too,
will meet with the comedians, but says he isn't sure how
much more he can pay. "The economics are staring me in the
face," Mr. Hoffman said. "My rent is up, my insurance is
up, everything is up. The only thing I can do is try to
find some way to raise the money so that I am viable."

For their part, the comedians say most of the city's club
owners have offered to talk and Mr. Alexandro said plans
for a possible work stoppage have been put on hold unless
talks on pay break down. (Health insurance? No one's even
going there.)

Russ Meneve, another coalition founder and a regular at
clubs like Caroline's in Midtown and Comic Strip on the
Upper East Side, said the increase in base pay is
especially important for younger, less established comics
for whom making an extra $10 an hour during the week is -
here comes the pun - no laughing matter.

"For newer and development acts, that money means a lot to
them," Mr. Meneve said. "But believe me, it helps me as
well."

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/22/arts/22comi.html?ex=1104767359&ei=1&en=9e251a26bc07b11e

Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company