I write this the night before (or more accurately the morning of) my second trip to Tahoe in two weeks. That's right. I was in Tahoe not more than twelve days ago and I'm going back. Yes, I am a gambling junkie. We all have our vices. Mine involves the rush of splitting aces and lining up five wilds on the screen in front of me. So before I kick off another fun fest, I have to get this story down. My dad was kind enough to give me vouchers for a free night's stay at Harrah’s or Harvey's and free show tickets. Opting not to see the musical review, I get to go to the Improv. I hate that my years of watching bad comedians created a bit of skepticism in me. All of my favorites have become actors, or at least got their own shows and don't bother anymore.
I guess this was one of those good times I can say that I was gravely mistaken. Having pretty decent seats (I can't complain because they were free) but being incredibly exhausted from the horrible previous night's sleep, we watched as our host Howie Nave came on stage. The man rocks hard. Totally funny and he breaks out his guitar and does this awesome bit on how he crashed a Los Lobos concert and opened for them. He does this fantastic version of La Bamba that I promise will be sung the next time my family is together for a holiday. I even told him that after the show and he laughed with me. (My family has a long standing connection to the movie La Bamba so this story is going to kill come Thanksgiving.)
Next was David Gee. The way it's set up, he's the featured act, so he wasn't on for that long. I felt bad because there was this bit he did where he's talking to his brother on the phone. "He calls me up and he says to me, "Steve......" Only my boyfriend and I were laughing. At that point he says,"..because my name is David." By then people laughed and it caught on when he did it again with a story about his girlfriend. He was really good and did this killer Nicholson impression at the end. Short time on stage, but great stuff.
Here was the kicker. The headliner for the night was Wendy Liebman. For those sad sheltered "didn't watch Comedy Central and stand-up shows on after Saturday Night Live" childhoods, she's a very talented comedian with a flair for quick sarcasm. She incorporated this into her act but the half of the showroom I was on was busting up with laughter while the other side didn't really respond. I think it was her style was more appealing to the college age set. This was a Tuesday in the middle of April so it was mostly the dinner at 4:30 crowd. The two girls sitting next to us were in college (Go to
This is what made me laugh. I was excited to see her because I liked her when I was younger. Unfortunately, I know her from the show Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist. This was a great show on Comedy Central that had Jon Stewart, Ray Romano, Denis Leary, (all before they hit it big with their shows) and a whole bunch of other comedians in as patients and using their bits for therapy sessions. (A lot of stuff comedians use lately is observational humor, so the format really worked.) Did I forget to mention that this was an animated show? So I know her voice and her stand-up, but I only know her as a cartoon. When we first got there, I thought I saw her come in. It could have been her, but then the person walks over and sits down three seats away from me (one of the 
So the show ends and I decide I want to hang around and catch a glimpse of the performers. It wasn't like in Vegas were I had to scramble to see Penn and Teller or The Amazing Jonathan after the show. It was practically empty by the time they came out. Davis Gee was out first and he zipped through with some people that he apparently knew who came to the show. Howie was out second. It was after he came out that I realized that I was carrying my small gambling purse containing only cash, my ID, and my comp card. That is to say my purse with my notebook and a pen were in the room. Son of a bitch, I have nothing for them to sign an autograph with! So I go hunting for one at the Hard Rock Cafe, but the hostess girl was on the phone away from the podium thing, and I didn't want to interrupt her or steal while she wasn’t looking. I was taught never to steal. So I run back to the box office and look for a pen and do see one but it's closed off. So as I walk back I see Howie and make eye contact. It's at that point I just go for it.
I walk up and tell him it's was a fantastic show. He smiles. Like I said earlier, I told him the La Bamba thing will have my family rolling. I also told him I was looking for a pen so I could get an autograph and he laughed it off like it was nothing. Yeah that's easy for him to say. I really wanted it. Here's the coolest part. We are about to part ways, I tell him again how great the show was and he gives me a hug. AWESOME!
After riding that high I see Wendy has finally come out (I love how cocky I've become that I'm just referring to them on a first name basis. It's not like we've gotten together and barbequed or something......yet.) I go up and do the same thing, tell her it was a great show. (Going back to the having something to say to the famous person thing, I was prepared this time.) I told her, not that I was making a reference to how old she was or anything, but I used to quote her in high school. Then I told her that I wanted to get an autograph but couldn't find a pen. She said she might have one. ROCK! Turns out she had a Sharpie. (EVEN BETTER!) I give her my ticket and as she's signing it I told her how I thought the college girl who was sitting three seats away might have been her because I only know her in animated for. She laughed at that and said, "Dr Katz?" Nothing inflates my ego more than making famous people laugh (in a good way, not at me). So I step aside realizing I was rude for watching her sign my ticket. Realizing this after she covers it with her hand like my third grade teacher taught me to keep the other students from cheating off me. She asks me what I do and I proudly responded that I'm unemployed. I did recover by telling her I was study for actuarial exams and she told me her dad worked in insurance. She stood up, handed me the ticket and gave me a hug (AWESOME AGAIN!). When I read what she wrote to me, I don't know if I actually turned red, but I could feel the blood rush to my cheeks. Well, you can see for yourself.
Sleep deprived or not, this was one of the greatest nights ever.
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