Thanks to McComb, Comedy Tips (part two)
Here is part two of my article about the way Billy McComb helped me add the laughs to my act.
One thing I learned very quickly in the comedy circuit is how little respect the average magician and juggler receive from comedians. By the time I had started to learn the ropes I had begun to understand why this was the case.
Comics, generally speaking, think that magicians utilize stock lines and get away with stale material only because they have the magic to save their rear ends. It is certainly true that people tend to laugh during a magic show simply because they realize they are supposed too. I call this the “Patter Syndrome.” Just what the heck is this thing called patter that pops up so often in magic literature? The dictionary defines it as: ‘Meaningless empty chatter: to speak rapidly and glibly or to repeat something quickly in a mechanical way. When a comedy magician wants to give a stand-up comedian a run for his money, he must throw away his ‘patter’ and in its place use words that are well chosen and conscious, and don’t even get me started on heckler stoppers!
Comedians spend a lot of time working on their character, which (believe me!) has nothing to do with improving any ungentlemanly or lady like traits. What they are doing is making sure they don’t sacrifice their performing persona just for a fast laugh. Comedy is only real, then, when you are. Once the audience thinks that they know where you are coming from and who you are, then the comedy takes on an extra dimension.
I could go on telling you my thoughts on comedy, but I have a better idea. I want to continue by sharing some tips Billy McComb taught me over the years about performing comedy magic. Billy had a secret prop and it is one you can’t buy in a limited edition, sterling silver version from the Joe’s Porper or Stevens.
McComb used a small digital tape recorder that fitted into his top pocket and he audio-taped almost every one of his performances. After each show he would listen carefully to the recording and make note of what worked and also how to make it work even better.
While listening to the recording Billy applied the Bob Hope rule. If there isn’t a laugh every thirty seconds then there should be. This is one of the reasons that Billy worked well into his eighth decade and was able to open shows for Amazing Jonathan in Las Vegas into his eighties winning an audiences of crazed A.J. fanatics. These were the kind of audiences were would give short shrift to most contemporary performers, let alone someone who looks like their grandfather.
In the age of videotape it is easy to forget how effective it is to concentrate just on your words and the audience reaction to those words. In McComb’s case it was astounding how little you really needed the visuals while listening to his show. Billy had a simple rule, he told the audience what he was going to do, he described it as he did it and then he told them what he had done after he had done it.
Sometimes when people are laughing they don’t pay as much attention to the tricks as they might desire. This is such a simple technique that it’s almost impossible to grasp how effective it is until you try it for yourself.
One other practice that I’ve learned from Billy is keeping your jokes in a particular sequence and attaching them to specific tricks. This is a great way to keep your comedy fluent and yet consistent. It is tempting to think you can shift hunks of comedy around in your act, moving them from trick to trick. However it isn’t nearly as easy as it seems. It is much more effective to keep those comedy building blocks separate and solid.
When you get a sequence right, keep it that way. Many of Billy’s props had a list of punch lines written on them. Just knowing the list is there allowed him to relax and concentrate on his real job, which was telling jokes. It enables you to relax and make things look effortless.
A reporter once asked movie star Gary Cooper about his technique as an actor. Cooper replied: “ Acting is great, just never get caught doing it.” It’s the same with comedy, make ‘em laugh but just don’t get caught doing it. The funniest jokes are the ones that seem to happen on their own. This is comedy 101.
Thank you, Billy. You were the Godfather of Comedy Magic. Without you I wouldn’t be the comedy magician I am today: in fact I might even have ended up as a chartered accountant, and that would have been no joke.
REMARKABLE MAGIC 
Billy was the best magician and greatest man I ever knew. I miss him every day.
Amen to that Pop!