Rod Man, a Villa Rica native who moved to Los Angeles in 2002, taped the finale of NBC's "Last Comic Standing" weeks ago but he can't tell me what happened. It could cost him $250,000 and a development deal with NBC.
"The whole thing has been a boost," he said earlier this week. "I'm winning already. That's a beautiful thing about it, man. Anything else will be icing on the cake."
[UPDATE August 14: He won! Details are here. I made a false presumption in this story. Rod Man really didn't know who had won until yesterday because the producers taped scenes showing each of them winning the big prize. That also ensured the audience had no idea either and leak the news out. Smart!]
The two-hour finale airs Thursday night. Judges Roseanne and Russell Peters will do sets, along with the three finalists. Rod Man faces off against the lanky, model-esque Lachlan Patterson with his sly, twisted observations and the rambunctious Nikki Carr, a lesbian without a chip on her shoulder but a backpack full of self deprecation.
Better yet, if you can't get enough of Rod Man, you'll be able to see him in person at the Punchline August 29 to 31, Labor Day weekend. Buy tickets here.
(You can read my original interview with him last month here.)
There is no public vote. The judges make the final decision on who wins. Executive producer Wanda Sykes explained to Seth Myers on his talk show why: "I don't trust America," she said. "I am like the damn Republicans of the competition shows. I'm stopping everybody from voting!"
Rod Man understands her rationale. "I love the public and the fans," he said. "But it's good to have this judged by people who are comedy professionals." (They did put him in the final three, so he has no reason to complain!)
"Last Comic Standing," which returned this summer after a four-year break, started with 100 comics but pared quickly down to just ten. Based on what they showed in the early going, the break definitely upped the ante and plumped up the talent because there were plenty of laughs from the get go, even among comics who didn't make the cut.
Rod Man stood out from day one. And since then, he has brought consistent laughs, whether he's doing improv on a Universal Studios tour bus or roasting Gilbert Gottfried. He said he enjoyed the different humor exercises, having never done sketch or improv comedy before. "I like building new skills," he said. "It helps my stage show." And he realizes if he is going to create his own TV show, he'd have to learn more about teamwork. (Stand-up comedy is a relatively isolating experience in comparison.)
His wife and nine-year-old daughter love Ellen DeGeneres so he was thrilled to be able to visit her on set. "On TV, she comes across as warm and jovial. In person, she was just like I expected. Those baby blue eyes! She was really warm. But one thing's for sure: I can't dance!"
Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
The audience finds his humor endearing, no matter what topic he has addressed. He has a knack for taking potentially offensive subjects and softening them up just enough to make them fodder for laughs. For instance, ugly babies are simply dubbed "babies going through changes" and saggy breasts? They lack "confidence."
"He has this every man kind of confusion," said judge Keenan Wayans in a press conference this week. "He can take on subject matter and weave it into this character. Once you buy into the character, he can talk about anything."
Rod Man spent his formative comedy years at the Uptown Comedy Club in the 1990s when it was located in Buckhead, where patrons were mostly black.
Peters, a veteran comic who recently appeared at the Punchline to prepare for an arena tour, said he had known Rod Man for 15 years but had only seen him perform in front of black audiences. He wondered if Rod Man’s humor would translate. “He destroyed in a mixed room” on the show, Peters said. “I apparently misjudged him.”
Rod Man said he spent many years focused on black audiences but “I always felt my comedy plays anywhere. I’ve made a conscious effort to start dabbling more into mainstream audiences just to satisfy my own comedic mind.”
Credit: Rodney Ho
Credit: Rodney Ho
His take on his rivals:
Nikki Carr: "I worked with her only once before. We were in Bermuda. The promoter was terrible. She didn't get all her money. [He claimed he did.] She's a powerhouse. She's the famel Bernie Mac so to speak. She's doing her thing."
Lachlan Patterson: "I used to host this club Comedy Union. Lachlan was the white bartender in an all-black club. They liked Hennessy and Corona. I had to school him on black people's liquor history. He was a cool guy. Canadian. Very nice. He voted against me. I had breakfast with him the morning after that. I had to keep my eye on that Canadian. He has skills. A good comedian. A good writer. He's going to be fine, win, lose or draw."
Why did other comics go after Joe Machi so much? "Joe has this quirky unassuming thing about him. He's quiet. He is such a nice guy but he's a killer on stage. He ended up beating Monroe and Karlous. He is always writing, always coming up with new ideas."
Sample some of his humor from the show:
His top 5 performance:
His top 4 performance:
His Universal Studio tour:
His "bromance" with Lachlan:
His talk with Jay Leno:
TV preview
“Last Comic Standing” series finale, 9 p.m. Thursday, NBC
Comedy show preview
Rod Man
8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 29; 6 p.m., 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Saturday, August 30, 7 p.m. Sunday, August 31
$25
Punchline Comedy Club
280 Hilderbrand Drive, Atlanta
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