Doug Stanhope Interview

Interview with Doug Stanhope

How long did it take you before you felt like you were funny onstage?

It feels like a rollercoaster and still does. Sometimes you think you're the best in the world and the next day you can't imagine how you ever got a single laugh. It's that down time that keeps you in check and keeps you writing and trying to improve.

How old were you when you started comedy?

23.

What is the best advice you ever received?

To never give or take advice, because you only tell people how to be like you.

What advice do you have for up and coming comics?

See above answer.

Who do you think is funny?

Sean Rouse, pound for pound I like the best. And of course Dave Attell. And I just recently caught on to Rick Shapiro who's brilliant. And a lot more.

Why don’t comics support other comics more?

I hear that a lot but I have never seen comics as being generally unsupportive. Maybe it's different in the Mouth and Asshole cities of NY & LA, but on the road I've always found comics incredibly supportive overall - and that's from the time I started to now.
Open mics can get a bit karaoke-cunty, but generally I'd say that if you've found comics to be unsupportive, it's probably because you're a shit log on some level.

If you ever had a bad set, how did you deal with that?

The same way I deal with troubled relationships, unpaid bills, new shoes, plane delays or coming in last place. I drink.

What are your future aspirations?

I haven't had aspirations in years. I'd like to torture-rape Nancy Grace, but you'd need AIDS to do it professionally and I can't catch.

What is the difference between a good comic and a great comic?

Early death.

Describe your writing process?

At this point I probably have 25-30 notebooks full of anything from phrases to fully written bits, but I only go through ‘em every now and then. I'll sit with a set list and see what bits fit with what like a crossword puzzle until I have a set and I'll use that as a basic skeleton and that will gradually lose some stuff as it gains other shit.
So if you see me over a course of weeks, it'll be a lot of the same stuff, but in six months or a year it'll be mostly new. You'll see where roots of bits are now... sorry I just realized how uninteresting this is.

Who do you see as a new and up coming comic?

New comics in my world, new guys are ones who've only been doing it 12 or 14 years. We're all old and going. But as long as we're making each other laugh, that's all that counts.
So I'll say Brendon Walsh so as to not ruin your question. I think he's the newest of our old, bitter group.