411Mania Interviews: Comedian Jon Reep
Posted by Al Norton on 10.17.2009
411's Al Norton sits down for an exclusive interview with Last Comic Standing winner Jon Reep to discuss his new Comedy Central special, Metro Jethro.
Jon Reep has been doing comedy full time for 11 years and was already making a living when his career took a big jump by winning season 5 of NBC's Last Comic Standing. His newest special – Metro Jethro – premieres tonight at 10 pm on Comedy Central, with the DVD hitting stores next Tuesday.
Al Norton: How old were you when you realized you wanted to do comedy, and how old were you when you decided to do something about it?
Jon Reep: I think I was in 3rd grade when I wanted to do comedy. I grew up in a small town in North Carolina so it wasn't really a possibility, being a comedian. It's not like a real job. There's no guidance counselor you can go to and say, "I want to be a comedian." It was just something you see on TV and in movies; I didn't think it was a possibility.
Third grade is when I started making people laugh. My Mom told me my 3rd grade teacher came to them and said, "you should take this kid to Hollywood right now because he's making everyone here laugh their heads off." I don't remember anything that I did but that's what she tells me. Comedy is always what I wanted to do; I just didn't think I could.
Al Norton: And when did you make the decision to do something about it?
Jon Reep: I grew up in Hickory, North Carolina and moved to Raleigh, North Carolina – that's the place Barney Fife is from – to go to college, I went to NC State. When I moved there I was introduced to comedy through a comedy club called Charlie Goodnights. When I was in high school I got "Class Clown", my Dad got "Class Clown", my brother got "Class Clown:…Everyone who knew me said I should be a comedian but I didn't think it was something serious until I went to comedy club and checked it out. I walked in and saw this girl on stage and she was making the whole crowd laugh and I thought, "I've got to try this."
It was kind of scary because my whole life people had been telling me to be a comedian and know it was right in front of me, a place that would allow me to try it. Now I have a chance to fail (laughing). Before it was just a stupid idea but when it was real it got scary.
Al Norton: Tell me about your first time up on stage?
Jon Reep: I've had many comedy influences over the years and one of my favorites was Chevy Chase – I loved how goofy he was and how he could just fall down and get a laugh. My first time on stage was an open mike night with about 40 people in the crowd, including a buddy of mine in the back with a video camera, and the MC tells the audience, "this is his first time on stage so be nice." I was annoyed because I didn't want them to know it was my first time. I ran on stage and thought it would be funny to fall down. To my own credit, it was a great fall; it looked like I really busted my ass. I ran on stage, fell down, jumped up waiting to hear laughter, and no one was laughing. They all went, "ohhh"; they thought I really fell on my first time and felt sorry for me.
I tried to do some comedy but I didn't know what I was doing. The microphone was way far away from my face so no one could hear what I was saying. It was pretty pathetic. The only person who was laughing was my buddy in the back of the room, and he was laughing at me for sucking so hard.
Al Norton: You've been doing this long enough that you've got quite a bit of material but what kind of a writing schedule do you keep? Do you wake up every day and say, "I have to write from 9 – 10."
Jon Reep: Most comics are comedians because they can't do anything else (laughing). I wish I could force myself to do that. Lately when I go on the road I get inspired to write, on an airplane or in a hotel room I'll just start banging something out. Some stuff works, some stuff doesn't; it's a number game and you just throw it out there and see what sticks.
Al Norton: Does your material vary depending on where you are playing? Are there jokes you'd tell in Arkansas but not in Atlantic City?
Jon Reep: Sure. I don't change the whole hour but I will allow 15 or 20 minutes just for that audience. I do about 10-15 minutes of improv every show, just to see what kind of crowd we have. I have a joke that works in New York and LA, bigger cities but not so much smaller towns.
Al Norton: You're not a political comedian but in the last few years politics has become pop culture so has any of that worked its way into your act?
Jon Reep: I wish I was smart enough to give an informed opinion about that stuff but I know I'm not so I stay away from it. The one thing I am smart about is that I am smart enough to know I don't know shit. There's nothing I hate more than seeing someone on stage giving you their so-called expert opinion on something and they don't know what they're talking about. That's why I stick to myself; I know me.
Al Norton: What kind of impact did winning Last Comic Standing have on your career, and was it immediate?
Jon Reep: It was pretty quick. Prior to Last Comic Standing I had had some success; I had six commercials, I was on the road as a comic, I had a half hour special on Comedy Central…I was doing ok, but in terms of stand up comedy it put me on the map. If anyone knew me it was from the commercials.
I wish Last Comic Standing was still on because it was great for comedy and comedians. It was the only prime time show to give a network audience to comedians. You get on Leno, you get on Letterman, it's great but it's late at night. Comedy Central is great too but you can't beat the amount of exposure Last Comic Standing gives you as a comedian. I was very happy to get on there and even more so to have won.
I wasn't even going to do it – I had to get talked into it. I had a love-hate relationship with the show because as a comedian you sit there and watch and you get frustrated, you get mad at who the audience picks. What I did not like about the show was that as a comic you're supposed to be confident on stage but on Last Comic Standing you do your set and then look right into the camera and say, "please vote for me!!!!" It looked so desperate and I hated that. But it's a necessary evil because you can't beat the exposure you get.
Al Norton: There seems to be a feeling among older comics that riding a show like Last Comic Standing to success is almost cheating, like they resent anyone who doesn't pay their "dues" doing 1:30 am open mike nights.
Jon Reep: That's true. That's how most of the veterans feel, sure. And in a lot of cases rightly so.
Al Norton: I'll use Dane Cook as an example; when someone gets to that level of popularity there is this attitude of, "he's not that funny. I know lots of guys with better stuff."
Jon Reep: Sure, definitely. You meet any comedian who's been in the business more than 10-15 years and doesn't have many TV credits and you'll find a very unhappy person with a very, very harsh opinion of young comics quick to success. And I get it; you work out there, you put your dues it, you feel like you've earned it.
I'm not going to name any names but there were folks on Last Comic Standing who had some success but now can't tour behind it because when you go to a comedy club you're supposed to have at least 25-30 minutes as a feature act and at least 45 minutes as a headliner, and coming off a network show they are going to bill you as a headliner. If you don't have 45 minutes, the audience feels ripped off and so does the club.
That's why putting your dues in on the road is so important because that's where you come up with those 45 minutes.
Al Norton: You mentioned Chevy Chase earlier; who are some of your other big influences, and who makes you laugh now?
Jon Reep: On Saturday mornings when I was a kid instead of watching cartoons I watched old, black and white Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin movies. I loved Jerry Lewis when I was a kid. As I got older it was Bill Cosby, Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, Dana Carvey. Brian Regan is one of my favorites working today. Rodney Carrington, who is a great friend and a very funny guy.
When I saw Brian Regan live it was the first time I had ever laughed for an hour straight. He's smart and not afraid to look silly; I like anyone who has some cleverness to their jokes but at the same time is not afraid to get in to it and look stupid. I like sophisticated stupid.
Al Norton: Let's talk about your special; define for me "Metro Jethro."
Jon Reep: A Metro Jethro is what I am; I'm half Metro, living in a Metropolis, half Jethro, hillbilly from a small town. It's anyone who was born in a small town who now lives and works in a big city. It's a smart redneck, a redneck with an education…A well redneck, if you will (laughing). It's not so much blue collar as it is loose collar. For example, I love sushi now; I just deep fry it first. That's what a Metro Jethro is and I think there are a lot of us out there.
Al Norton: Is there a female version of a Metro Jethro?
Jon Reep: Yes, Metro Millie. Brittney Spears is a great example of a Metro Millie. She was raised in some trailer park in Louisiana and now she's one of the most famous pop stars in the world, and she still does crazy stuff like shaving her head, she still eats fast food, she's been divorced twice…That's a Metro Millie, right there.
Billy Bob Thornton is a great example of Metro Jethro, a redneck living in LA.
Al Norton: For people who maybe aren't all that familiar with your stand up, what might surprise them about the special?
Jon Reep: It's smarter than you think. There's some good, clever writing in there. There's also a great closer so you have to watch the whole thing. On the DVD we've got a ton of great extras.
Don't miss Jon Reep's Comedy Central standup special Metro Jethro, tonight at 10 pm. The CD and DVD will be available on Tuesday, October 20th. Visit www.jonreep.com for a list of upcoming tour dates.
