Tag archives: comedian

So Glad We Had This Time: A Love Song
By Jeff Wing   |   July 23, 2024

My rebellious teen years formed me. I was an iconoclast, an outlier, a pugnacious and angry loner dancing on the knife edge of chaos. Refusing to play the idiot game, I skulked around the outskirts of the Established Order and its meaningless rules of conduct, taking wild, ferocious swings at this stupid world and its […]

Brian Regan: ‘Competent’ Comedy from Consummate Pro
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 20, 2024

Brian Regan has been doing comedy for decades, dating back to The Tonight Show in the last month of Johnny Carson’s tenure (when he “got the couch” as they used to say) to regular appearances with Jimmy Fallon. He’s put out several popular albums, made eight stand-up specials for major streamers and, most recently, co-starred […]

Have a Hart: Comedian Cancels Cell Phones
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 30, 2024

The current local comedy cavalcade continues this week at the Arlington, leaving behind the Lobero in favor of the much larger venue, where Kevin Hart, one of the most popular stand-up comedians on the touring circuit, will perform on January 27. Hart has appeared in dozens of films and TV shows, receiving two Primetime Emmys […]

The Long and Short of It: Brad Williams Is Very Funny
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 9, 2024

Comedian Brad Williams has fond memories of his first appearance at the Lobero Theatre almost a decade ago, when he recorded Fun Size, his first one-hour special, at the venue. Things were a bit different then: Williams wasn’t yet all that well-known and the show wasn’t even close to sold out. “When you see the […]

Comedy’s Inclusive Comeback
By Montecito Journal   |   May 31, 2022

Samantha Bearman, the owner of Bear Cave Productions, LLC, is single handedly bringing comedy back to the Santa Barbara community. Bearman has established Bear Cave Comedy shows at several thriving locations from Goleta through downtown Santa Barbara. The goal behind Bear Cave Comedy is to lift up voices that are often marginalized in the comedy […]

Pressing Pause with Paula Poundstone
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 10, 2022

Interviewing Paula Poundstone is a little like binge watching a comedy series on Netflix: you hit the start button once and autoplay keeps the episodes rolling, and everything is interesting enough that you don’t really want to hit pause.  Poundstone’s tendency toward stream-of-consciousness rants and musings is a big part of her appeal, of course, […]

Don’t Cancel This
By Joanne A Calitri   |   April 26, 2022

John Cleese Presents “An Evening of Exceptional Silliness” on May 25 at the Granada Theatre. John Cleese has revealed his upcoming tour stop in Santa Barbara, May 25, at the Granada Theatre. In our exclusive interview, he gives an affectionate nod to Montecito, his former home for himself and his daughter Camilla, along with a […]

Franken-sense: Ex-‘SNL’ and former Senator returns to comedy roots
By Steven Libowitz   |   March 31, 2022

You can count on one finger the people who have shifted from a soaring career in comedy to a pinnacle of political power, and somehow, shockingly, back again. Maybe Ukrainian president Zelenskyy, although the former comic is a bit busy fending off the Russian invasion to find anything funny these days – So that leaves […]

As Harding’s Mom, Janney’s Aim is True
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 1, 2021

I don’t know if it means anything that my phone went dead just after I asked Allison Janney about White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. There was a long pause. Some laughter. Then she said, “Oh boy, oh dear. I don’t know how anyone could want to be …” Janney, of course, is the […]

SBIFF Sessions on Zoom and YouTube
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 14, 2021

SBIFF’s first Film Talk of the year features Paul Walter Hauser, who got his start as a stand-up comedian before turning to acting where he has enjoyed a number of noteworthy roles. In addition to a litany of TV series guest shots and a few recurring roles, he proved a scene stealer at the movies […]

For the Love of Comedy
By Steven Libowitz   |   December 3, 2020

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced lockdowns and closures all over creation, Camarillo-based comedian Jason Love just kept on cruising. Sure, his regular in-person gig, including a rotating lineup of stand-ups he put together monthly for the Carrillo Recreation Center in Santa Barbara, went by the wayside. But Love, a former humor columnist for the Ventura […]

Dennis Miller Sells Montecito Spread
By Richard Mineards   |   November 26, 2020

Comedian and political pundit Dennis Miller, 67, has sold his Montecito spread for $49 million in an all-cash deal. It’s the second largest amount recorded for a home in our rarefied enclave in recent years, behind only the $63.3 million paid by construction heir Riley Bechtel for a much larger estate last month. According to […]

Forty Years in Paradise: Blues Duo Marks a Milestone
By Steven Libowitz   |   November 17, 2020

Last Sunday afternoon, Tom Ball and Kenny Sultan played at the Cold Springs Tavern. November 3 will find the acoustic blues duo at the roadside bar in the woods below the San Marcos Pass again. So will three of the four Sundays after that. No surprise there – Santa Barbara’s “Good-Time Ambassadors of the Blues” […]

Hope is Here
By Richard Mineards   |   April 30, 2020

Beanie Baby billionaire Ty Warner has launched a new plush toy version to raise money for coronavirus relief. Ty, owner of the Biltmore and the San Ysidro Ranch, has been putting up New York medical workers free of charge at his five-star Four Seasons Hotel in Manhattan, as I have chronicled in this illustrious organ. […]

Makes No Cents
By Richard Mineards   |   April 2, 2020

Former Montecito funnyman John Cleese is not exactly raking in the big bucks. John, who rose to fame as a cast member with Monty Python’s Flying Circus and Fawlty Towers, has revealed a paltry royalty payment he received for narrating the film Winnie the Pooh, stating that one check totaled all of 20 cents. John, […]

Remembering Lyle
By Richard Mineards   |   March 26, 2020

My condolences to actress-comedienne Carol Burnett, 86. Lyle Waggoner, who co-starred in her popular eponymous TV series from 1967 to 1974, and was a fixture on Wonder Woman with Lynda Carter from 1975 to 1979, has died age the age of 84. “He was funny, kind, and multi-talented,” says the longtime Montecito resident. “But even […]

His Brand of Recovery
By Steven Libowitz   |   February 6, 2020

“Russell Brand: Recovery Live” is a funny and profane exploration into personal development and wellness from the comedian who, after years of addiction and poor choices, has dedicated himself to spirituality “to avoid self-destruction.” Brand – who was married for 14 months in the early 2010s to Santa Barbara-raised pop star Katy Perry – leads […]

The Divine Mess: Laughter is the Best Medicine
By Steven Libowitz   |   November 14, 2019

Sarah Taylor has been acting since high school, but was always interested in the serious roles. She didn’t get into performing stand-up comedy until many years later, right around the same time her own struggles led her to investigate Buddhism. “It was very odd, because I had a real pull to just sit and practice […]

Hearts & Hugs for Heroes
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   October 31, 2019

Next Wednesday, November 6, the Friendship Center invites the community to celebrate veterans and their service to our country at the Montecito Center, 89 Eucalyptus Lane.  There will be a heroes’ hug line, heart cookies, flag ceremony, and patriotic music. Carol Metcalf-Roth, licensed MFT, Military Family Life Counselor, and comedian, will do live comedy and […]

Lauding a Leading Lady in Comedy
By Steven Libowitz   |   August 29, 2019

We’re not pulling your ear – pardon, leg – when we tell you that Carol Burnett, the funny lady whose career dates back nearly six decades – is coming to downtown’s jewel of a theater next month to be honored as a Granada Legend. They could hardly have picked a more worthy or highly decorated […]