All it took was one performance at a Washington, D.C., comedy club to hook Tom Rhodes.
Rhodes caught his uncle Bob Ryan in performance at the time. “My dad took me to see him when I was 12,” Rhodes says now. “I sat at the bar sipping Cokes, and I saw (my uncle) and 10 other guys go on, and I thought that was all I ever wanted to do.”
Rhodes, who is now 27 years old and celebrating 10 years in the business, decided then it would either be major league baseball or standup (hey, he could always ditch comedy for baseball; that seems to be going around . . .).
He officially became a comic when he was 17, and he went on the road at 18, two weeks after graduating from high school.
“I substituted that for university work,” says Rhodes, headlining at Zanies-Mount Prospect (2200 S. Elmhurst Rd.; 708-228-6166) this weekend.
Rhodes says his comedy at the time consisted of jokes that reflected “what 17-year-olds think about: Trying to get (lucky) at the drive-in, borrowing your dad’s car, just 17-year-olds’ thoughts.”
Some 10 years later, Rhodes is seeing his career kick into high gear. He has appeared on several standup comedy shows, including Fox-TV’s “Comic Strip Live” and A&E’s “Caroline’s Comedy Hour” and “Comedy on the Road.”
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A hot performance on Comedy Central’s “Two Drink Minimum” got him a development deal with the all-comedy cable network.
And now Rhodes, as befitting his age, is being tagged as a comic for Generation X, the twentysomething crowd that was born after 1965.
“You can call it whatever you want. I just happen to be 27 and have long hair,” he says. “If it brings people my age out, that’s all the better. I’m not opposed to that. . . . I just hope somebody finds a better name than `Generation X.’ “
Like?
“The Pierced-Nipple Generation.”
You oughtta be in pictures
. . . And that’s what Dan Rosen is doing. The comic, performing at the Funny Firm (318 W. Grand Ave.; 312-321-9500) this weekend with Brian Regan, will see a screenplay he wrote go in front of the cameras in June, but not before he himself goes before the cameras in March.
The movie he wrote, “The Last Supper,” is about a group of University of Iowa graduates who invite a bunch of right-wing extremists to dinner in an effort to change their way of thinking. If that doesn’t work, there’s always murder.
“It’s `The Big Chill’ meets `Ten Little Indians,’ ” explains Rosen, 30, a comic for 10 years.
The standup lineup
Here’s who’s working at the comedy clubs. Current sets are scheduled to run through Sunday; all new acts begin on Tuesday unless otherwise noted. Lineups are subject to change.
All Jokes Aside (1000 S. Wabash Ave.; 312-922-0577): Cedric the Entertainer will be doing his thing this weekend. Co-headlining starting on Thursday is Speedy, whom you had to spot pretty quick on “In Living Color,” and Royale Watkins, who has performed on HBO’s “Def Comedy Jam.”
Funny Bone-Naperville (1504 Naper Blvd.-Tower Crossing Shopping Center; 708-955-0500): Joe Marlotti, who has done several standup comedy television shows, headlines through Sunday. Appearing on Tuesday is Tim Wilson, who has appeared on Showtime’s “Comedy Club Network.”
The Improv (504 N. Wells St.; call 312-STAND-UP): Making people laugh among the Improv’s variety acts are standup comics Kevin Rogers and Tommy Brogan this weekend, and Diane Alaimo and Andre Kelly next week.
And . . . Tommy Chong of popular counterculture comedy duo of Cheech & Chong is making a mini-tour of the Chicago area the weekend of March 4-6. He’ll appear at Wisecrackers in downstate Bradley on March 4 (call 815-935-5800 for show times and reservations); the Cubby Bear in Chicago on March 5 (312-559-1212); and Zanies’ Vernon Hills’ location on March 6 (708-549-6030).