The 2008 New York Arab American Comedy Festival was yet another high point in my 11 year stand up comedy career. This came almost six years after I first performed in New York in 2002 with Dean Obeidallah (organizer of the festival). This show was called the Arab American Comedy Tour.
It all started in 1996 when I performed for the first time at Jokers Comedy Cafe. At the time comedian Gary Davis was running the show and he made me feel right at home even though I was stressed to all hell! This was the start of a great relationship with club owner Lisa Grigsby. Lisa became my second mother in the harsh world of stand up comedy. She also helped me through the rough times in my personal life.
When I first began performing it was only a hobby but quickly turned into a career. It’s amazing to look back on those days because many of the comedians I performed with went on to be famous. Guys like Vince Morris (BET’s Comic View, HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, Comedy Central Presents, BET’s SOB and Sex In The City), Greg Warren (The Bob and Tom Show, The Late Late Show, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend and BET’s Coming To The Stage), and Josh Sneed (Comedy Central’s Laff Riots and Comedy Central Presents).
After years of performing, mostly in Ohio, I quit stand up comedy out of frustration. It sucks when no one wants to book you because they fear you might “offend” their audiences. The problem is comedy clubs based their opinion on the stereotype of Middle Eastern people not on the content of my material.
I remember when I quit stand up comedy my friend and fellow stand up comedian Kris Shaw told me I was stupid for quitting. Even though I was out of the business we continued to keep in contact and he continued to remind me that I was stupid for leaving. After three years away from stand up I got a call from Ahmed Ahmed in October 2006. He told me that Comedy Central was going to air a new one hour special called “The Axis Of Evil Comedy Tour“. This would be the first all Middle Eastern comedy show on national television. This was the point where I realized I gave up and they didn’t. Now they were going to the next level while I was looking back on all the hard work I put into the business only to quit.
It was at this point that I made a life altering decision. I had a great job at Lexis-Nexis, a legal information company, making six figures a year. I loved my job but I felt like I still had unfinished business in the comedy world. I made the decision to leave Lexis-Nexis and return to comedy. I had no guarantees but I had a passion like never before.
When I told my parents I was doing this I expected a very negative response. My father was 80 years old and my mother 72. They had seen me jump from career to career so this was not an out of the ordinary decision for me. To my surprise, they fully supported my decision. They said they saw the passion in my eyes. On the other hand, Lisa Grigsby didn’t feel the same way. She saw me fall back on comedy every time I was unhappy with my career. After returning for a few months her confidence in me got stronger as she saw I wasn’t losing my drive.
I began looking for work immediately and once again my friend and comedian Kris Shaw was quick to help. He invited me to go to Michigan for a four day tour that helped me get comfortable on the stage again. Kris has always been by my side in and out of the business. He is someone I consider a true friend.
January 2007 was another major turning point for me. I went out to Los Angeles for a week on my way to Alaska because my friend comedian Tammy Pescatelli had given me an opportunity to do a show up there. I called another friend, comedian Mark Eddie, to let him know I was in town. He invited me over to stay at his home in Castaic, a beautiful city just outside of Los Angeles. We watched a movie called “The Secret“. This was an amazing motivational movie that changed the way I saw life. I became more positive about things that happened to me instead of looking at the negatives.
While in Los Angeles I got to hang out with Maz Jobrani, Ahmed Ahmed and Aron Kader from the Axis Of Evil Comedy Tour. They watched my new tapes and allowed me to open two tour dates in Cleveland, Ohio and Chicago, Illinois. By July 2007 I was selected for Comedy Central’s Open Mic Fight. Only 72 comedians were selected. I was progressing at a pace beyond my expectations. In November 2007, comedian Ray Hanania asked me if I would like to go to Israel and Palestine for the Israeli Palestinian Comedy Tour. I gladly accepted and performed for the first time outside of the U.S.
Last week was the culmination of my year long return to comedy. The festival was in it’s fifth year and stronger then ever. I met several talented Arab American comedians and actors who were very hospitable and helpful during my trip. As not to ramble on about this adventure, I have broken up the trip into several blogs that will follow.
I hope you take the time to read them and hear about all the amazing things that happened.
Sherif Hedayat
www.funnysherif.com
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kind words about an awesome comedian… Kris Shaw!!!
[...] Eastern comedy show on national television. This was the point where I realized I gave up … credit : [...]
thank you, dude