Day: March 21, 2010

As I scanned the line outside of Gotham Comedy Club overnight, with several hours still remaining before NBC production staff for Last Comic Standing would arrive to open the doors for the "open call" auditions for season 7, I was surprised to see Bryson Turner walking toward me. You see, the last time I was face-to-face with Turner, we were sitting in the green room of the Cap City Comedy Club, minutes after he had won the "Funniest Person in Austin" contest last May. You can see that here and now (or whenever). I wasn't expecting to see him sitting (and perhaps sometime soon, sleeping) on the sidewalk or right lane of West 23rd Street. He said he was naively aware that he could have gone about this process differently, as he watched other comedians he knew go in and out of the club Saturday afternoon, and see them see him and have that moment of surprising recognition. Could he have gotten an appointment? Perhaps. But he seemed to be OK with his plight for now. And as he told me, he already has his bags packed for Detroit, where he is headed Monday to perform in a showcase for Laugh Detroit (aka the 3rd annual Detroit Comedy Festival) hosted by Lewis Black. So at least he has that to look forward to, no matter what happens for him...