Sebastian Maniscalco

Sebastian Maniscalco is one of today’s hottest comedian’s with impeccable comedic timing, energy, and most of all stage presence. I had the pleasure and privilege of personally interviewing him after seeing his show at Gotham Comedy Club on August 12 (click here for my review).

After graduating from Northern Illinois University with a degree in Corporate Organizational Communications, Sebastian realized his communication skills would be better utilized on stage entertaining audiences! So he packed his bags and moved out to Los Angeles and spent every free night possible performing at local clubs, bowling alleys, and bars. With perseverance, a strong work ethic, and skill, Sebastian rose through the ranks of comedy, landing a one-hour Comedy Central special “Sebastian Live” (which he took on a 20-city tour) and a gig on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” as a style correspondent providing hilarious grooming advice to unsuspecting airline passengers and churchgoers. From there, Sebastian was all over the television. His many appearances included the award-winning series “The Savages,” “Tim Meadows’ The Very Funny Show,” “Comedy Central’s Premium Blend,” “Showtime’s Comics without Borders,” “Comics Unleashed,” and “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.”

In between television gigs, Sebastian continued to perfect his routine on the stand-up circuit and while traveling around, he was handpicked by award-winning actor and entertainer Vince Vaughn to be on one of the four featured comedians in the critically acclaimed film, “Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Comedy Show.” In 2009, Sebastian completed an international USO tour for the troops around the world in Guam, Fuji, Misawa, Iwakuni, and Hiroshima. These performances combined with sold-out shows at the Dubai Comedy Festival and Lebanon’s Music Hall helped solidify him as an international sensation.

Sebastian is currently out touring the country. When he hits your town, I highly recommend checking him out. It’s a night of laughter you’ll surely remember! His next stop is at The Punchline in Atlanta, GA from September 9-12. (Click here for more tour dates). For much more on Sebastian Maniscalco, be sure to check out: http://www.sebastianlive.com.

1. Who inspired you to become a performer? Johnny Carson.

2. Who is the one person you haven’t worked with that you would like to? Billy Burr.

3. What is your proudest moment? Bringing my parents to “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and having them get to see that whole experience.

4. What’s the weirdest reaction you’ve had to your set? When I opened for Andrew Dice Clay…his audiences are very dedicated to him and I got heckled a bit, not like a blender was thrown at me, but some comments were shouted out. Every comedian has to go through this to get to where they are.

5. Do you have any strange or unusual talent that no one knows about? I don’t have any strange or unusual talents, but I am a neat-freak and a bit compulsive about it.

6. Favorite way to stay in shape? I like running, I work with a trainer sometimes, I like yoga and pilates. I’m on the road a lot so I like to have stuff that is easy to do anywhere.

7. Boxers or Briefs? Boxer briefs

8. Favorite TV show? Cheers

9. Favorite website? Expedia.com

10. Superman or Wonder Woman? Wonder Woman

BONUS QUESTIONS:

11. Favorite ride at an amusement park? I like water rides.

12. Summer Resort or Winter Retreat? Summer Resort

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Wendy Liebman

From appearances on “The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson” to  “Late Night with David Letterman” to her own HBO Special, Award Winning Comedian, Wendy Liebman has been making us laugh for over 20 years! Check out www.wendyliebman.com to see when she’ll be appearing at comedy club near you or in your living room on TV.

1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a comedian? I used to get really nervous for the comedians when I watched them on the Tonight Show. My heart would start pounding. I don’t know if I knew I wanted to be a comedian, but I was obviously invested on some level. The first time I got laughs on stage was in college. I was in a play called Uncommon Women and Others by Wendy Wasserstein, and my character didn’t say a lot but she had really funny lines. Getting laughs is addictive. When I was 24 I took a night class at an adult ed school on How To Be A Stand-up Comedian, and I was hooked.

2. What was your first face to face fan encounter like? I was going into a bathroom at a truck stop on 95 S, driving from Boston to New York, and this guy said, “There’s Ruth Buzzi.” Cause I used to say someone thought I looked like her in my act. (“I don’t know who she is. Is she pretty?”) I don’t know if the guy was a fan, but the fact that a stranger in the middle of nowhere recognized me was fun. To this day I’m always amazed when someone recognizes me. Especially my parents.

3. What website to get your news from? I get a lot of my news from a few different websites. LBNelert.com, Huffingtonpost.com, and Naturalnews.com. The last one is a health website that I love.

4. Favorite Holiday? I like Thanksgiving the most, but in theory only.

5. Favorite talk show host? Oooh, I love them all. I’d love to be on Conan one day and Tavis Smiley.

6. Today Show or Good Morning America? I’m not up that early. (Actually I am but I don’t know which or which. I like Diane Sawyer and Meredith Vieira.)

7. Favorite actor? Al Pacino.

8. Books or Magazines? Both. I love books about the soul (Pema Chodron) and writing (by Ann Lamott and Natalie Goldberg). I also like some novels. Magazines, in the supermarket. And The New Yorker for the cartoons.

9. What’s in your purse? I spent so much money on my purse I have nothing to put in it.

10. Favorite kind of shoes? Skechers.

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