Clark Peterson • writer • standup comic • goober
Clark Peterson
• 1979-82
1990-94
2005-2020 covid •
Feature Article excerpt or Bio
Month 19xx · Bay area Publication • byline
Cheese slices cheese on toast paneer. Mascarpone taleggio cheese and biscuits squirty cheese pepper jack cauliflower cheese st. agur blue cheese swiss. Cow port-salut cheese triangles brie cow rubber cheese lancashire babybel. Cheeseburger.
Stinking bishop emmental cottage cheese. Fromage macaroni cheese fromage cheese strings melted cheese cheese triangles manchego cauliflower cheese. St. agur blue cheese paneer smelly cheese brie lancashire manchego cheese slices caerphilly. Cheddar blue castello cheese slices fromage frais.
Cheesy feet cheese strings say cheese. Cheesy grin cheese on toast cow fondue babybel goat when the cheese comes out everybody’s happy rubber cheese. Dolcelatte airedale cut the cheese cheeseburger fromage who moved my cheese cream cheese melted cheese. Cheesecake.
Commentary on review or article,
PDF of Resume or Press package
• Reviews • Pull Quotes • Blurbs •
“st. agur blue cheese swiss. Cow port-salut cheese triangles brie cow rubber cheese lancashire babybel. Cheeseburger.”~ Contra Costa Times • 198x
“out everybody’s happy rubber cheese. Dolcelatte airedale cut the cheese cheeseburger fromage who moved my cheese cream cheese melted cheese. Cheesecake.” ~ The Daily • 198x
Quick Takes
Starting point for Stand-up
specific show?
Seeing Steve Martin, Martin Mull, and other comedians and interviewing them
Reason
for the bOom
Comedy boomed in the mid-70s when rock music's big heyday was over and people wanted a different diversion in a more intimate setting, not a stadium. Baby boomers were flexing their maturity and creativity. Cable TV showed comedians in abundance, and people wanted to see them in person. Robin Williams emerged from San Francisco to lead the way. The SF Comedy Competition began and clubs found they could host comedy shows every night and pack the people in when formerly only music could draw customers. Comedy looked easy, and scores of wannabes gave it a shot, soon finding out it wasn't so easy.
reason
abundance
Free open mic shows in numerous venues with comedians lined up to sign up for 5 minutes and Robin dropping in sometimes to wow the crowds. You could do 3 or 4 clubs in a night.
Tryouts for Competition
SF Chronicle • 1981
Auditioned and didn't make the cut.
My Favorite Joke
.
I was pulled over and the cop asked me why he stopped me. I replied, "A neurotic need for power and low self esteem?"
Joke I wish I wrote
Mike Bizarro
Mike Bizarro had a good joke about "Someone in Marin County was pulled over on suspicion of driving an American car." ~Mike Bizarro
The best joke writer was Steven Pearl. Example: "Roman soldiers: count off. I, II, III, IV, V..."
Best Crowd
Audience PArticipation
One time I was looking for a punch line for a joke about a cheap hotel where the TV was nailed down, the remote control was nailed down, the lamp was nailed down, even the _____ was nailed down. Someone yelled out, "The maid."
Hecklers
HCZ
One night at the Holy City Zoo, a heckler was escorted out but he came back and laid rubber with his car on the sidewalk in front. Squealing tires and shouted epithets didn't faze Michael Pritchard,, who at 6'6" and 260 pounds strode out like John Wayne and asked them if they wanted to go to jail. They didn't (surprise!) and they left.
Crazy Nights
Ready to Rumble
Another time someone heckled Rick Reynolds so he lambasted the guy. Later on, the guy came back and wanted Rick to go outside, so Rick got someone else to join him and they went outside, where the guy punched him. Rick went into overdrive with even more insults until friends calmed him down for fear the guy would be back with a gun.
OTHER BAY AREA GIGS / EVENTS OF NOTE
Local Comic Interviews
Interviewed lots of comics both local and national. Some of my articles were about Steve Pearl, Michael Pritchard, Billy Lucas, Jim Morris, Rick Reynolds, women in comedy, Martin Mull, Steve Martin, Steve Landesberg, Bob Sarlatte, John Dr. Gonzo Means.
featured video
2012
Judging Comedy Competitions
I was a judge in the SF Comedy Competition a few times…
Writing?
WIldlife Photos?
YouTube Channel
As a visual starting point,…
This section will disappear when your page goes LIVE… once you’re finished filling in the gaps and satisfied with the look and feel of your ‘wing’ of AMUSEum.
- Words
- Images
- Video
- Links
- The cheesy placeholder text in the Feature Article, Excerpt, or Bio begs for an introductory story about you… your words or someone else’s. You are in a unique position to offer insights into the influence the journalism side of the rise of SF comedy. Care to share?
- Let me know if you have old calendars, snap shots or ephemera of your own to fill the cheese-colored placeholders, to help illustrate your stories…
- Put together that ‘portfolio’ of the local comics’ interview in PDF form. Help a girl out, if you have the date/source pub. for Steven Pearl, Rick Reynolds and Gonzo for the locals… Martin Mull, Steve Martin, and Steve Landesberg for the national interviews, and want to include them, send ’em my way, pretty please. Don’t hesitate to curate if you prefer a different selection of your writing.
- If there is a particular video from your channel that best features your work, please send that link. I placed the oldest I could find.
