 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
When I was 7 years old my father came home late from work one night. This was a strange occurrence. I distinctly remember playing on the hallway floor when my father burst into the house with three large boxes; there was one on his shoulder, one under his other arm and yet another in front of him that he kicked all the way from Manhattan to our home in Flushing, Queens. The boxes were filled with comic books. Glorious mid-70’s comic books. It was mostly horror and science fiction with an occasional Batman or Aquaman thrown in (most of the Batman stuff was Brave and the Bold which had Batman teaming up with various members of the DC superhero universe.) And that’s when I fell in love with comic books. They were my first and best friends.
When I was 10 years old I received a tape recorder for my birthday. It was one of those “black brick” recorders with a little orange square in the middle of the “Play” button so you could record. The duties of that little recorder were split between recording TV shows and newscasts (the latter tapes being saved in case of nuclear war so there would a record of human progress for the survivors of the war. I was 10.) and the improvised stories my siblings and I wove. We would gather around the tape recorder and with the premise that we would be “going” to a haunted house. A typical “story”could be transcribed as
Jason: Look at the scary house.
Jennifer: We better not go in there. It’s a scary house.
Jonathon: Come on, guys. Let’s go into that scary house.
Jason: Here we are inside the house. Look at that ghost!
(all scream)
Mom (from upstairs): What the Hell is going on down there?!
Jason: Mom, you ruined it!
Mom: Well, quit screamin--- (tape ends)
That was my first experience with improvisation. It would get refined as the years went by, but my passion for both comic books and improv would only grow.
The comic book industry and the improv world share many attributes.
|
THE COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY
|
THE IMPROV WORLD
|
|
|
relatively small, but tight-knit community comparted to the rest of the print industry
|
relatively small, but tight-knit community comparted to the rest of the entertainment industry
|
|
|
thinks the medium deserves more respect
|
thinks the medium deserves more respect
|
|
|
is grateful for the "mainstream" attention, but doesn't think X is representative of the medium
|
is grateful for the "mainstream" attention, but doesn't think X is representative of the medium
|
|
|
holds conventions
|
holds fests
|
|
|
sorta cult-like
|
sorta cult-like
|
|
|
obsessed with t-shirts
|
obsessed with t-shirts
|
|
|
has love/hate relationship with tv versions
|
has love/hate relationship with tv versions
|
THE COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY THE IMPROV WORLD relatively small community compared to other print mediums relatively small community compared to other theatrical productions thinks the medium deserves more respect thinks the medium deserves more respect is grateful for the “mainstream” attention, but doesn’t think “BRAND X” is representative of the medium is grateful for the “mainstream” attention, but doesn’t think “BRAND X” is representative of the medium holds conventions holds fests is filled with hard-core devotees who, while filled with passion for their art form, might scare potential followers away, sort of like a cult is filled with hard-core devotees who, while filled with passion for their artform, might scare potential followers away, sort of like a cult obsessed with t-shirts obsessed with t-shirts
Besides these superficial similarities there are deeper and tighter bonds.
Both are unique American art forms. Though they both have their beginnings from other countries, it was here in American that they bloomed. Comic books have become such a part of the American psyche that Superman was made a postage stamp. People are familiar with his name and general storyline without ever having picked up a comic book. Improvisation, both long-form and short-form, has gained popularity of late with numerous clubs and theaters devoted to improv sprouting up across the country.
The bottom line for both comic books and improvisation is that they both want to tell the audience a story. Be it about a man who can run superfast or two roommates deciding what to do with cat, they’re both about the characters and situations they find themselves in. What I particularly love about both genres is that unpredictable nature of both. When I can guess the ending of anything, it becomes boring- but the great examples of improv and comic books keep me surprised sudden appearances of a heretofore “throw-away” villain or line.
The fantastical nature of both genres is something taken for granted sometimes. We just accept that a man can fly or can leap over a tall building. In improv we just accept it when someone enters a room or house with knocking or opening a door, we would never let a movie or tv show get away with someone just appearing next to another character. We accept strange coincidences like all the important women in one persons’ life having the same initials or Earth being some sort of beacon to alien races. We accept it when characters happen to be related to another or a restaurant somehow becomes the denouement capital of the world.
Within my comic-book world, I love the shared camaraderie and language. I can throw around terms like “ret-con” or “one-shot” and everyone knows what I mean. I can make jokes about post and pre-Crisis or being Northstar’s Prom Date and people will laugh because they get it. I love that we all share a passion for stories and myth and for holding history in our hands. I love that Superman has been around for sixty freaking years. I love hating all the Batman movies. I love laughing at how bad the Superfriends were, but remembering all the Health and Safety Tips (long before “knowing was half the battle!”) I love that Alex Ross lives in Chicago and sometimes I see him at Chicago Comics where I occasionally work in the chaotic basement sorting out/filing comics for store credit.
Within my improv world, I love the shared camaraderie and language. I’ve been lucky enough to be taught by people I admire and respect and I’ve been around long enough to teach people I admire and respect. I can go to shows and laugh at the sheer comedy of a show or laugh because I know what the people on stage are going through. I love that once I did a show so bad that even I wanted to leave the building before it was over. I can put up a show and someone will ask me if they can be in it or, better yet, someone else will put up a show and ask me to be in it. Watching an audience entranced by a show is one of the greatest things I have ever been witness to, and I get to witness it at least twice a week.
I love both my worlds and sometimes they combine to create something unique. An improvised comic book on stage is something I did in 1997 and it was tons of fun. We performed it at, where else?, a comic book convention.
In 1997, I was asked to work on an on-the-net comic book by some fellows who had seen me perform at the ImprovOlympic. They learned of my fascination with comics and thought I would be a good match for another improv/comic guy. We fleshed out an entire world with great characters and even got as far as designing the overall look of the website, but then the guys and the money disappeared. Now, in 2002, the co-writer of that comic writes “Nightcrawler” for Marvel Comics. His name is Chris Kipiniak. Hey, Chris!
Del Close, the man I hold responsible for seducing me completely to long-form improvisation, consumed science-fiction novels as lesser men snack on M&Ms. The co-founder of the ImprovOlympic, he also wrote a comic-book in the late 80’s called “Wastelands.” Del loved comic books and when he was writing for DC he was put on their comp list. As a result he had tons of comic books and comic-related books laying about his apartment. One day, after class, he asked me if I wanted them all. I begged a classmate to drive us to Del’s house and help me bring it home. The box was the size of large mail-box and weighed about twice that. I still have almost all the comics, but I have all the books. Some weird stuff too. When Del left this mortal plane, I inherited a rare artifact; an old-fashioned comic-book spinner rack. That rack holds all my new comics, but the top row holds Del’s headshot.
I think is someone told me that I could make a very profitable living doing just improv, but I would have to never read a comic book again I would turn it down. I think if someone told me I could write Superman and Batman and any other comic book I wanted, but I had to never improvise onstage again I would turn it down.
I think Superman is the best example of my two loves. He’s from Krypton, and that made him Super, but it’s Earth that made him a Man. It’s only by combining the two that makes some one whole and healthy.
I could have made a great Star Trek / Spock analogy here, but that’s another essay.
Well, those are my thoughts. Please visit the Argos Agency Message Board to discuss this thread. The first one is a post from me titled: "The Future" or just e-mail me.
JASON
Argos Agency | Shows | Journals | Features | Essays | Message Board | Polls | Email Jason