Funny Flips

MEDIA ALERT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    Tuesday, February 26th, 2013

CONTACT: Josh Filipowski  914-629-1225 josh at  like2laugh dot com

MARCH COMEDY MADNESS:  SPREADING ALL OVER LOS ANGELES

WHAT: 64+ comedians battle it out in brackets, going one-on-one in this 7th annual single elimination stand-up comedy tournament, March Comedy Madness: 64 Comedians, 1 Champion Inspired by the NCAA tourney, spanning to 5 Los Angeles clubs and featuring special guest national headliners, the Madness continues until 1 champion is crowned. Past Champions have found continued success, including Julian McCullough (Comedy Central Presents), Reese Waters (Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham), and Myq Kaplan (NBC’s Last Comic Standing)

WHEN/WHERE:

REGIONALS

Thurs., March 7, 10PM - Flappers Comedy Club Burbank

102 E Magnolia, Burbank, CA 91502

http://www.facebook.com/events/134661183372965

Thurs., March 14, 8PM - Sal’s Comedy Hole

7356 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046

http://www.facebook.com/events/415251155234883

Thurs., March 21, 9PM - The Downtown Los Angeles Comedy Club

501 S. Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013

http://www.facebook.com/events/133871980121063

Thursday, March 28, 8PM - M.i.’s Westside Comedy Theater

1323-A Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica, CA 90401

http://www.facebook.com/events/574623075882442

FINAL 4 and CHAMPIONSHIP

Wednesday, April 3, 7:30PM - Hollywood Improv

8162 Melrose Ave, Hollywood, CA 90046

http://www.facebook.com/events/403474686416218

WHO: Hosted/Refereed by creator Josh Filipowski of Like2Laugh.com with 64+ competing comedians plus Specials Guests: 3/7 Rob O’Reilly (Comedy Central) & Dwayne Perkins (Conan), 3/14 Dan Ahdoot (The Tonight Show) & Mo Mandel (Chelsea Lately), 3/21 Rick Shapiro (Lucky Louie), 3/28 Nico Santos (Chelsea Lately) and more TBA! And YOU (the audience) decide the winners.

HOW: Come out. Buy Tickets $10-$15, plus 2 item minimum. Laugh and Cheer!

WHY: Get your dose of March Comedy Madness & support some of LA’s hottest comics and make some new favorite comedians as they battle it out in the brackets at an amazing show near you!

“Makes comedy fun again” -Jamar Neighbors, 2013 Finalist

“The Madness has proven fast-paced, loose and fun for comedians and audience alike. It’s not a contest - it’s Madness.” -LA Examiner

Produced by: www.LIKE2LAUGH.com

FB page: http://www.facebook.com/marchcomedymadness

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The Competitors…

Adam Cozens

Alec Owen

Alec Scholzen

Alex Davenport

Alex Hooper

Allegra Barnett

Alyson Weaver

Amaya Perea

Andrew Lisa

Ari Adams

Big Al Gonzales

Brad Sachs

Cicero Salmon

Cornelius Peter

Courtney Barnett

Crazy Boris

Dana Moon

Danny Jolles

Dave Rankin

David DeVito

David Nieker

Dean Delray

Dennis Lavender

Dillon Garcia

Dinah Leffert

Doug Reed

Eric Gruber

Fox E Cellars

Gem Digadi

Geoffrey Plitt

Gil Garibaldo

Griff Pippin

Hormoz Rashidi

Ian Jasper

J Mandyam

James Frey

Jason Schneider

Jay Light

Jay Weingarten

Jeremiah Watkins

Jessica Michelle Singleton

Joe Abel

Joe McAvoy

Joe Praino

Jon Schabl

Julia Austin

Julia Prescott

Julian Shine

Keith Carey

Keith Reza

Keith Seoul

Kvon

Kyle Chrise

Lauren Brenner

Margie Mintz

Mason Pryor

Matt Gubser

Matt Lewis

Matt Portman

Matt Ritter

Meg Swertlow

Mike Citera

Morgan Jay

Nate Craig

Nick Cobb

Nick Leidl

Paige Wesley

Pat Regan

Piotr Michael

Reggie Flenory

Ryan Budds

Ryan Clauson

Sammy Obeid

Scott Boxenbaum

Sean Hobson

Seth Plummer

Shaun Latham

Talia Harari

Thai Rivera

TK Kelly

Zenobia Del Mar

HOLLYWOOD- LA’s March Comedy Madness 64 comedian tournament concluded marvelously yesterday at The Comedy Store with the crowning of this year’s champion Adam Yenser.  With some all-star guests and a fun crowd ,the final four comedians performed head-to-head and audience vote determined the winners.

Donning his trusty referee jersey, Josh Filipowski opened the final show of the month-long event, warming up the crowd well and closing with applause after he tagged a failed joke with, “That is why I’m not in this contest.”  Next, 2010 MCM finalist- Mike Lawrence, in town from New York for writing projects, performed his magic on the microphone.  He played for the crowd, and against them, and back to them, toying with the entire concept of comedy and crushing while at it, especially for the on-looking comedians.  He set the audience right up to keep showing love for the final four competitors about to follow.

Starting off the competition, Jamar Neighbors hit hard with his seemingly sporadic and spontaneous stories; delivering big laughs to defeat Dan Madonia who’s mellow methods didn’t grab the audience as shows past.  “I can’t wait for the 4/20 Highlarious show,” Madonia mentioned off stage as a good sport knowing his crowd as Neighbors moved on to the championship round.

Adam Yenser and Bryan Dey battled on the other side of the brackets.  Adam’s consistent hits and pace proved perfect in propelling him through to victory.  Bryan Dey brought it too, charming the crowd with consistent laughs.  The vote was close, but Yenser edged ahead.

Between the Final Four and Championship round, 2011 Champion Samba Schutte graced the stage and crushed with his complete comedy; showing off his multi-lingual, multi-cultural, multi-hilarious takes on the whacky world we live in where some horses have more movie credits than actors.

In the coin flip before tipping off the championship match, Jamar Neighbors elected to perform after Adam Yenser.  Yenser opened strong and stayed solid all throughout with funny stories from his past like when he lived in New York and locksmith would leave a business card at his door every day. “It’d make a better ad if he left them inside on my pillow.” He was smooth like Steve Kerr in a 3 point contest.  Draining 3 ball after 3 ball, the crowd was his.

Neighbors then led the crowd to big laughs with family stories and got topical with Trayvon Martin. “How do we know he didn’t steal those Skittles in his pocket?”  He worked more like Kobe Bryant.  Where is he going next? And swish he delivers.  In the end, the perpetual punchlines and TNT tags of Yenser reigned supreme.

“His jokes are so well written! I can see why,” Neighbors said.

March Comedy Madness 2012 brought out 64 competing comedians, amazing special guests (Eliot Chang, Rob O’Reilly, Rick Shapiro, Justin Martindale and above mentioned), packed & pretty-packed houses and a month of maddeningly amazing stand-up.  It was the 6th and another successful year of Madness for Josh Filipowski and Like 2 Laugh Productions (www.LIKE2LAUGH.com).  As comedians mingled in the greenroom Neighbors added, “Thank you [Filipowski] for making comedy fun.”

The newly crowned champ Adam Yenser (www.AdamYenser.com) graciously accepted his title & check and acknowledged all his hardworking competitors. “It was a lot of fun and all the comedians were great especially Jamar Neighbors.”

He got more than money and bragging rights (you can tell he is not much of a bragger).  “Winning $250 dulled the pain of not winning the $650 million in Mega Millions,” he quipped.

The Champ’s prize package includes a guest appearance on Toad Hop Network’s Sports Cast: broadcasting from Jon Lovitz Comedy Club (www.ToadHopNetwork.com), acting classes with New British School (www.NewBritishSchool.com), headshots by Gijs van der Most (www.ThatHeadshotGuy.com) and a scheduled weekend spot at The Comedy Store, La Jolla (www.TheComedyStore.com)

“I’m looking forward to that,” the champ said before heading home to work late, as the writing never ends.  We are looking forward to more from Yenser.

MARCH COMEDY MADNESS 2012 LA
In honor of the NCAACollege Basketball Tournament, 64 comedians go one-on-one in this comedy competition hosted and refereed by Josh Filipowski and www.LIKE2LAUGH.com. In each round, two comics perform standup head-to-head and the audience decides the winner! As the field is narrowed down, sets get longer and more hilarious, until the final two comics perform and a champ is crowned 2012 March Comedy Madness Champion.

HOLLYWOOD – Last night’s most riotous comedy show carried into this morning as the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds of March Comedy Madness at The Comedy Store left 4 standing.  Dan Madonia, Jamar Neighbors, Bryan Dey and Adam Yenser all advanced in funny fashion to the Final Four which will take place next Friday, March 30^th.  Nail biters, some shockers, buzzer beaters, and joke-offs kept the capacity crowd on the edge of their seats and nearly out of them from laughter.

Referee, host and producer Josh Filipowski of Like 2 Laugh Productions tipped the show off, warming up the crowd before truly special guests Boom Shaka Laka in drag shocked and Crank Williams awed.  Then the Sweet 16 took the stage with some close comedy competition.  Adam Yenser power packed punchlines edged out Hanoch Serebrenik whacky charm in a 30 second joke-off after both having destroyed.  Yenser’s superlative writing, impeccable timing and off the cuff callbacks carried him past maddening middle school math teacher –or- pot store clerk? Cornelius Peters in the following round.

Noteworthy New Yorker Joe Praino crushed with tales of late nights back in NY where his delivery guy was also his drug dealer. “Falafel with extra white sauce, huh? Extra white sauce?”  He was followed by San Antonio transplant Bryan Dey who won the crowd over with his hilarious takes on the cute Mexican army and plenty more (see him for yourself next Friday).  In a nail biting joke-off it appeared Praino had the bigger laugh, but the crowd held strong for Dey which propelled him through the Elite 8 where he continued to bring it, passing him on to the Final 4.

Around the other side of the brackets, the powerfully present what-will-she-say-next Faith Choyce fell to Brooklyn’s own Rome who got everybody wondering, “Where is Brooklyn really at? Seriously there is nobody there. They’re all out representing!”  Rome’s Kingdom then fell to Jamar Neighbors who has been simply slaying his way through the Madness.  Jamar’s tales have held true and his 30 second knack of knock-out joke-offs left the Belly Room belly aching.

The last puzzle piece brought us the battles of Madonia - Fager and then Madonia - Singleton.  First round Doug Fager had the audience in his hand and slipped out of bounds with his final joke.  Audience, uncomfortable from AIDS, was eager for a laugh and Dan Madonia granted more than one.  His stony demeanor and awesomely funny attitude towards drugs and life, and doing drugs with him in your life, led to laughter and applause and a victory which continued past Jessica Michelle Singleton in the Elite 8.  JMS had rushed over from Brea IMPROV where she had hosted for Bobby Lee.  Unfortunately that rush seemed apparent as she raced the clock. Her outrageous flagrant attack on Adele and fat friends had everybody wanting more time for her to truly let lose and do her thing.  Her rattling jokes-per-minute style was no match for the chill easygoing holy-shit-that-was-funny Madonia.

To break up the 16 and 8 rounds the Belly Room of The Comedy Store was blessed from right off the screen of Project X.  Rick Shapiro brought on huge guffaws as he fired his fierce stream-of-conscious off the wall comedy.  Get this man his own Comedy Central Presents already.  And for the winner of the tourney TOO, to be determined by YOU, the audience, next Friday as the Final 4 and Championship alley-oop slam dunk in-your-face March Comedy Madness 2012 Champion is crowned.

Catch the final rounds of Madness Friday, March 30^th, 10pm in the Belly Room of The World Famous Comedy Store, 8433 Sunset Boulevard.  Visit www.LIKE2LAUGH.com or www.TheComedyStore.com for tickets and info.

MARCH COMEDY MADNESS 2012 LA
In honor of the NCAACollege Basketball Tournament, 64 comedians go one-on-one in this comedy competition hosted and refereed by Josh Filipowski and www.LIKE2LAUGH.com. In each round, two comics perform standup head-to-head and the audience decides the winner! As the field is narrowed down, sets get longer and more hilarious, until the final two comics perform and a champ is crowned 2012 March Comedy Madness Champion winning headshot’s by www.ThatHeadshotGuy.com, acting classes from www.NewBritishSchool.com, feature spot at La Jolla Comedy Store and more, CA$H, fame, glory and thus and such!

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