Jaz Kaner • Self-made Buffoon
Jaz Kaner
• 1982 - 1987 •
(formerly known in the 808 as Jim Shawhan 🙂
October 2025 • Jaz Kaner
First of all, I need to apologize to Leland Cotton Brown – When I opened for him in 1984 I REALLY should’ve left-out my Jack Nicholson impression, dammit. That’s just common show-biz courtesy. I mean, the guys PROMO shot was Leland doing … Jack Nicholson.
While we’re at it, Let’s break down MY promo shot there, the underwater one. That was shot in Christie Blawie’s back yard pool in Fremont. Photographer? That was none other than Brian Copeland. Yes, Brian is no Jeannene Hansen, but we had a blast that day. The Charlie Tuna was an afterthought, just to sell the point that I’m uh, .. underwater.
How did I end up in SF?? When Jay Leno came through the “Comedy Corner” in my home town of Honolulu he told me (in his Jay Leno voice) “Ya gotta go to LA”. But I had friends in SF, AND they let me use their moped, which was no match for the hills there, but hey, chick magnet.
So in October 1982 I dipped my toes into the San Francisco comedy scene, got a two-month taste, and made plans to come back in spring. By autumn of that year I was making a living at stand-up. (It’s amazing what you can do when your rent is $160 a month : )
• Reviews • Pull Quotes • Blurbs •
“Jaz Kaner’s hip & kooky spontaneity makes him a surefire fun-packed crowd pleaser” ~ Dramalogue • 19XX
“genuinely hilarious”~ Honolulu Advertiser • 19XX
Quick Takes
The Holy City Zoo
Oh and if those walls could talk …
…was like a crusty little pirate ship. It was all dark wood, sawdust and peanut shells on the floor, and some 60 heavy solid wood chairs, like they were chiseled by a lumberjack. When Robin Williams showed up, a standing audience would magically appear, folks passing by on the street, thinking, “wait, … could that be him …?!” The stage was small, maybe 12 feet across, and only inches high. The restroom was past the stage in the back, so you became a running target for whoever was performing. Perhaps the crowning feature tho, was the four “balcony” seats, known by comics as the “Spice Rack”. It was sometimes occupied by a jury of your peers, adding what they could to your act. All in all, the room was small and intimate enough to be the perfect clubhouse for the developing comedian.
In this Corner
Monty Hoffman
It was ’Jam Night’ at the Holy City Zoo. That would typically be a Sunday or Monday, when Stevie Gurr brought in some amps, guitars and drums, and we’d make music “magic” … or not. Steve Kravitz was decent on drums, Perry Kurtz and Billy Jaye on guitar, Warren Spotswood sang the Doors, etc. The rest of us danced. Marty Higgins was there dancing with his girl, enduring insults from (the notorious) Monty Hoffman, until he could take no more. Marty - being the ’Nam vet he was - quickly took control in the form of a heavy glass beer pitcher across Monty’s bald noggin. Monty buckled to his knees as Marty & gal made for the exit. I was standing outside when Monty came through the door, blood streaming down his face, very pissed off and looking for revenge. He tore off a nearby car antenna as a weapon. I guess that’s what you do in New York - start fencing. But Marty was long gone. The news of what happened spread fast. The following night Jeremy Kramer and Robin Williams were on stage as newscasters, re-creating the whole event in hilarious slow motion.
That Time
Rob Schneider Kissed me
My earliest comedy ‘experiments’ were at the Don Ho Show in Waikiki. (My daughter thinks of Don Ho as Hoku’s dad : ). Don was always generous and helpful with advice - a father figure to me. Those were my early comedy years - I knew I really didn’t deserve HIS audience, but there we were. When I came to SF, Rob Schneider and I hit it off. We were both surfers, played racquetball together, and he had a thing for Hawaii. So when Rob put together his big “Luau Comedy Show” at the Other Cafe, I was on the bill. I told him I’d ask Don Ho to do a special LIVE call-in during the show. ‘Don’s people’ agreed. We were stoked. On the night of the ‘Polynesian Spectacular’, Schneider opened by being carried out on a surfboard by two women. As I recall, he was wearing a loincloth - always fearless, that guy. We all did our acts, sprinkled with the odd hula & poi references. I did my Chinese rock star thing, and there were the usual guests. But no call from Don, .. myeh, whatever. I did my set and left early to go hang at the Holy City Zoo. An hour later I was talking outside, and Schneider walks up, grabs me and plants a kiss on my cheek, and laughs at my homophobic reaction. Then he says, “The room emptied out, and then the phone rang. It was Don asking for YOU! I told him you already left, and he told me (in his typical pidgin) “Well den, give dat guy one beeg kiss for me”.
The Oakland Police
on my tail… lights
Warren Thomas was my co-pilot on a gig in the east bay. We were driving back, late night, in my rusted out Honda Civic that I’d (for some reason) shipped from Hawaii. The tail lights were out, so I had to remember to turn on the two flashlights back there, to shine thru the red tail-light casing. Yes, I’m McGyver. But apparently the flashlights needed batteries - a cop pulled us over. He stepped up to the window, “Hi, I stopped you because your tail lights are out”. Then ME, being the wacky comic showing off for Warren, said, “OH, ok. I thought you wanted to see the dead bodies in the trunk”. Warren didn’t laugh - he moaned and shook his head, “Oh Jaz …” Apparently he had much more experience with the Oakland police, and it was from a black perspective - stupid white me. The officer asked me to get out and show him ‘the bodies in the trunk’. I got out, explaining that we were comedians returning from a show. I opened the trunk and showed him two dead … flashlights. He laughed. Somehow it all made sense.
Road Comic
Dana Carvey
One of the better local comedy rooms was “Laughs Unlimited” in Sacramento. (The owner Scott Edwards - as of 2025 - is still alive and well, and hosting a podcast). Laughs was my first ever full-week comedy club gig,1983. I opened on a bill with Paula Poundstone and Garry Shandling. Yowza! Paula and I had to share a room. She remarked “Whee, this is like summer camp”, ha! A year or so later, Scott upped the accommodation to a three-bedroom house nearby. We road-comics were quickly learning that the shack we slept in was far more important than the showroom. During the week, I was out shopping and found a toddler’s inflatable swimming pool, about two inches deep with cute pink fishies all around. It was only three bucks, so I brought it back to the house and set it up in the back. (We get bored on the road). When I got back home, I ran into Dana Carvey at the Zoo, and mentioned, “Oh, I see you’re going to ‘Laughs’ in Sacramento next week. I just got back from there”. Dana’s first question, “Yeah? Hey, how’s the condo?” ME: “Oh, Scott puts us up in a nice house now, lotsa parking and your own bedroom” Dana: “That’s great!” ME: “… oh, and there’s a pool”.
Rey Booker
& The Shocking Horse
We were on a Bob Moore road gig - Rey Booker, Bobby Gaylor, Bob Moore, and myself - Long drive out near Modesto. On our return, Bob Moore mentioned he had a friend out that way with a ranch and horses and stuff, said we could stop and visit. OK. We got there, parked, met the owners and a few horses in a corral. Somebody with an evil sense of humor (was it Moore?) noticed the electrical plug that connected to the wire around the horses fence. They discreetly plugged it in as we stepped back and giggled. Rey Booker was calling the horse over. He was wearing a light jacket, and laid his arm right across the now electric wire. We all grimaced and giggled, but nothing happened. We looked at each other. Then the horse walked over. Rey’s hand touched his nose, and well, the horse grounded the circuit. The horse and Rey both jumped in the air. Rey was shouting, “Wow man, static electricity man!! Damn!” We were laughing our asses off. That horse still hates comedians.
Open Mic
Open Fly
It was open mic night at The Punchline, full house. The Punchline, with a good crowd, was a terrific room. We were all signed up, waiting to go on. There was one new smiling face - a smartly dressed African-American fellow, suit & tie, ready to take his first shot at standup. He was introduced and nervously took the mic, and fumbled through his opener with little response. Then the crowd slowly started noticing that he’d left the fly open on his well-pressed pants. The titters were getting louder, but in all the wrong places. As he moved around the stage, his neatly tucked white shirt started bulging through the opening. The laughter got louder and louder. Now he was killing, and no doubt thinking, “Damn, this comedy stuff is easy!!” That woulda been a fun night to be the emcee.
Comedy
Boot Camp
Hands down, the SF Comedy Competition was the best ever school for developing a live act. If you used it wisely, it was seven nights at different venues, and seven progressively tighter re-writes. It was comedy boot camp. There was an opening field of nearly 200 comedians that was boiled down to forty - twenty comics a week, for two weeks. It’s tough to stand out amongst twenty comics. Maybe that’s why the Fox Productions crew was always happy to have me - a circus act amongst the talking heads. One reviewer called me “the pastiche entry” - I had to look it up (not flattering). I made the semi-finals (top ten) three times. It was always an adventure.
Competition
Flips & cartwheels
I made a lot of lifelong friends through the competition. One year it was like all of Boston showed up: Jimmy Tingle, Eddie Strange, Rich Ceisler, … Another year, Chas Elstner was closing his five minutes with, “Thanks, you guys really MAKE ME FLIP!” Then he’d do a fuggin BACK FLIP. Killed every night. Comics hated following him. One comic who had to follow him (and I wish I could remember who…) opened by mocking the exuberance, “Thanks, You people really turn my stomach!” then he did the lamest cartwheel. An epic survival strategy. In the early rounds there was always one not-ready-for-prime-time comic from any random foreign country, just so Fox could maintain the name “INTERNATIONAL comedy competition” And there was always one act that had a live meltdown on stage, and railed on Fox Productions. The third time I did the competition was 19??. I was living in LA by then, and drove up with Peter Gaulke. To show our burning career ambition, we brought our surfboards. Peter’s eclectic act was a favorite amongst the comics and producers, and consistently in last place every night.
OTHER BAY AREA GIGS / & Beyond
OTHER COMEDIC SKILLS & TALENTS
Not sure where this was taped, seems of television quality, so guessing there a show name
Collaborations
Choice of Podcasts with Scott Edwards
bonzai Surf School
jazkaner.com
Greatest Hits
Vast Lives • from Taiwan
The Pavilion is open for viewing
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.
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- Images
- Video
- Links
Placed Don Ho, Rey Booker and Dana Carvey placeholders and will do a deeper dive for the other 2 missing slots. If you have better photos (performance of otherwise, a selfie with Don Ho?), blurbs, clippings or ephemera you want to add, (or replace) send ’em along.
If you want to cull any calendars or listings from the carousel gallery, let me know.
Since I’m a chronology freak, any specific dates are welcome. If you decide to keep the (late 1980s) video in the other Bay Area Gigs section, reveal the television(?) show it appeared. Your stories are kinda timeless though, so those are not mandatory.
