Chasing Hollywood Representation
“You gotta get a manager” — that’s what I kept hearing when I moved to LA. I’ve mentioned in other pieces a couple of half-hearted attempts that didn’t pan out. But one time, a big-time manager actually came close to pursuing me. One of her clients is currently selling out Madison Square Garden. Maybe that could’ve been me? Probably not — but hey.
My first interaction with her was
at a showcase for the Aspen Comedy Festival. It’s a massive festival, and getting in means being seen by a lot of industry people. The showcase was held at the Comedy Castle in Michigan, and each comic had five minutes.
My set crushed.
The crowd was with me from the start, and I walked off feeling great. Afterward, I found myself at the bar with a beer, talking to another comic — or rather, listening to him talk at me. I couldn’t get a word in. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed this manager walk across the room and stop right in front of us, waiting for him to wrap up. He kept going. And going. My internal monologue: Dude. Stop talking. A big-league manager is standing right there. I don’t think he knew who she was.
When he finally finished, she
turned to me — not him — extended her hand, and said, “You were great.” I was genuinely stunned. I had assumed she was there for the other comic.
That led to a call from her office asking me to come in and bring writing samples, including TV spec scripts. I had no idea how to write one, but I asked around, got some guidance from friends, and figured it out.
I remember grinding away
on that script over Thanksgiving. I wasn’t going home to Virginia and didn’t have anywhere to be, so I worked. The next day, her office called to postpone the meeting.
This pattern repeated itself a time or two.
They’d schedule, then cancel. I was doing sets around town at the time, and it seemed like every time I’d start building momentum and get a little “heat” on me, I’d get a call — and then silence. That’s just how it went.
About a year later, I ran into her
at a cookout in Griffith Park hosted by a comedian friend. She remembered me and was genuinely warm. But the meeting never happened.
And that’s okay.
While playing Madison Square Garden would make for a great story, my career took a different turn — toward humor keynotes — and I couldn’t be happier with where it led. I never needed the traditional agent route to build the career I have.
Sometimes you don’t need what everyone else says you need. Follow your own recipe for success and you might just get it.
One of my jokes from that killer set!
Sometimes you don’t need what everyone else says you need. Follow your own recipe for success and you might just get Jan McInnis is a Keynote Speaker, Comedian, Comedy Writer, and Master of Ceremonies. She has written for Jay Leno’s Tonight Show monologue as well as many other people, places, and groups – radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, and even guests on the Jerry Springer show (her parents are proud). For 20+ years she’s traveled country as a keynote speaker and comedian sharing her unique and practical tips on what business leaders can learn from comedians (no, it’s not all about telling jokes).
She can be reached at www.TheWorkLady.com, or Jan@TheWorkLady.com She’s also a GREAT Master of Ceremonies. Click here for her emcee site
Some of the stories in this newsletter are taken from Jan’s popular book:
Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs.
Glad you found a path that worked for you. I got "ghosted" (that's what they call it in Hollyweird) by a producer I pitched to -- he loved my pitch and said he'd get back to me... and never did, even though I sent clever, fun, informative emails every few weeks to him and his assistant.