Comedian Stevie Mack: Getting Serious About Comedy

I got my first part in a movie when I was about 9 yrs old. This film crew was filming a movie called "Why Me", about breast cancer and they asked us local kids if we wanted to be in the movie, we were like, "yeah", so they used us as extras in the back ground. That same year Sydney Poitier and Bill Cosby were filming a movie called, "Uptown Saturday Night" at a church near my elementary school. This time they didn't even have to ask, I just invited myself onto the set and became an extra in the church scene. I got to meet all the actors, sat right behind Flip Wilson, got his autograph and everything. I didn't get paid for any of that but it definitely sparked an interest in being in movies.

I never thought about being a comedian until much later. I always loved comedy though. I used to love watching all the comedy shows like Flip Wilson, Sonny and Cher, Laugh In and Evening at the Improv. As a child I would sneak and listen to the comedy albums of Richard Pryor and Cheech n' Chong. At school I would hang around the funniest people, the ones who could make me laugh. My Grand Mother was hilarious, a natural riot! But, I never thought I was funny. I wanted to make movies, behind the scenes. I made my first movie with an 8mm Kodak Brownie when I was 10 years old. When I turned 12 years old, I thought I'd be a singer, like the Jackson 5, so I joined the Young Saints Academy where I hid out on stage and toured from city to city performing in musicals and plays.

Back in 1984 I used to work with a comedian at Venice beach and he thought I was pretty funny, he said I should do comedy and become a part of his act, but I only wanted to write some jokes and stay behind the scenes. One night at a party I gave in and did a bit with him and it was amazing, having those people admire me for being funny was a great sensation. But I didn't launch right into comedy then either. It wasn't until 1991 when I was producing and hosting a series of live shows featuring my poetry and comedy skits. When people started telling me how funny I was, I started adding more jokes to the shows and they were getting a kick out of it. They started telling me I should go to the comedy clubs and perform on stage like all the other comedians I'd seen on TV. I was like, "hey I'm not that funny!" I always thought I was less funny than others. That's a self esteem issue that all the great ones like W.C. Fields, Richard Pryor and Jackie Gleeson had to overcome.

In September of 1991 I went to open mic night at the Comedy Store on Sunset and performed a 3 minute routine, mostly voices, characters and a few original jokes. The audience was laughing wildly, I couldn't see them, but I sure could hear them; I felt them. From that night on, I rode my 10 speed bike to all the open mics in town and performed comedy somewhere every night of the week. Eventually people started hiring me to perform at parties and events and I was like, "hey maybe I'm better at this than I think." But there was still something missing. I wasn't doing the business part of show business. I was watching a lot of comic's careers take off, some not as funny as I was, and I started wondering, what is it that they're doing that I'm not?

Well, they were taking their careers serious. I was partying and having fun. They were getting managers and agents who in turn would get them gigs, inroads and contacts to help them get ahead in the game. They were going at it from a business stand point and I was going at it as a hobby. Now, however, I put in the long hard hours away from the stage as well as on the stage. I work every day as if I'm working for someone else, but I do it for me. I have an alter ego; one side is the talent, the dramatic actor, the funny man on stage and in front of the camera; the other side is the shrewd businessman, the one who does all the do-diligence, he get the contracts signed, make all the phone calls, write all the letters and mine all the internet websites and social networks.

I've been in and on more TV, radio and film in the last couple of years than all the 14 years preceding. Two years ago if you were to Google my name, nothing would have come up, but now if you Google my name, the first 30 pages are filled with info about me. I've built up a strong internet presence. I have my own brand with a strong following via my web based (((StevieMack@NightRadio))) show, (((StevieMack@NightTV))) show and "IngleWatts" the animated series gaining momentum.

I'm on over 100 different social networking sites with a combined total of 80,000 followers, viewers, friends and listeners; I email, Blog, Tweet, Skype, fax and perform live comedy weekly. I also joined the Groundlings and the Upright Citizens Brigade improv troupes to expand on my abilities to bring the funny from all angles. My dramatic acting has improved tremendously with each acting gig I've gotten, so it's only getting better in all areas from here on out. The journey is as ultimately as important as the destination. I know that sounds like a cliché, but it's really a fact. I'm living in the now, less distractions...all that glitters isn't gold. That's not just another Cliché, that's a fact.