Robbie Printz

The Red Door Café was silent save for the sounds of small conversations and rustling chairs. This quiet serenity would not last, however, for fifteen minutes into the night, the walls were vibrating with the sound of laughter. The cause of this laughter: Robbie Printz, “Comedian at Large.”

For those who have not heard of Printz, be warned: you will. Doing stand up comedy for the past fifteen years, he has not sat down once. He has earned victories at the prestigious Boston Comedy Festival as well as accolades from the Improper Bostonian, who voted him Best Comedy Act. He has appeared on MTV, NBC and Comedy Central as well as comedy clubs and colleges across the country.

Praise and reputation can only go so far, however. The act is truly all that matters. As soon as Printz approached the microphone, he began his opening sequence. After that, one joke was followed by another and another. Printz drew upon every aspect of the audience’s personality. The speed and accuracy of every zinger was almost comparable to an archer.

Beginning with a sensational hatred of EZ Pass, the jokes continued to the lives of toll collectors and how it must have been as a child “dreaming of toll- collecting.”

Next Printz began the discussion of religion, a topic that is akin to walking the razor’s edge for comedians. He handled it as politically undelicately as possible and launched some of the most hilarious one-liners of the evening.

Pondering a passing drivers damning him to Hell earlier in the day for a minor infraction, the comedian then went on to question what it would be like to be in Hell. Like a modern-day Dante, he created his own vision of the underworld, which included a “menu of sins” in a hilarious montage of jokes.

Printz progressed to ripping apart John Mayer. The routine included an extremely warbled rendition of “Your Body is a Wonderland.” No celebrity was safe from the comic’s quick wit and lightning fast tongue. Perhaps the most side-splitting portion of the evening was the comedian’s discussion of Star Wars. Beginning with an imitation of Luke Skywalker whining and wetting himself. Printz was not afraid to take classic icons and expose them for the comic gold mines that they really are.

The monologue progressed to his parents and their unprovoked assault on him as a child. These comments about his childhood were slightly disturbing in their frequency, these quips served only to heighten the comedic flavor he was dishing out. It made the comic appear human to the audience. He was not just some guy on stage, but he was someone with a past. Although the crowd may not have been able to fully grasp his past, the meanings and punch lines were clear enough and each line hit home.

Finally came the coup de grace: The answer to an age-old question, “Which is the better pet, cats or dogs?” Printz, an avid dog lover, cut into any cat owner in the audience. He made imitations reminiscent of early Robin Williams stand-up, emulating the self-righteous nature of cats and how cats in fact own their masters and refuse to take anything from anyone.

The crowd was enthralled as the comedian hit with line after line. Audience members barely had time to breathe due to the fact that they were laughing so hard. Unlike some comedians who would merely continue with a practiced routine, Printz fed off of this energy and took different jokes to even further extremes.

Afterwards, he went on to reveal that his inspirations included early episodes of Saturday Night Live and Eddie Murphy's stand-up routine.
When asked why he does comedy, Printz replied, “My reason?…Making people laugh… That and I don't have to get a real job,” said Printz.
Printz is still an up and coming artist and is definitly on the fast track to becoming one of the leading funny men of his generation.

He was able to take a group of college students that were extremely stressed out embark on a hilarious adventure through his eyes.

With a unique style that doesn’t copy those of his predecessors, Robbie Printz is able to cross the border between what is merely funny and what is comic genius. There were some portions reminiscent of other comedians, but it was his incorporation of other comic’s idiosyncracies that made him great.

His impressions were dead-on with Robin Williams, Bill Cosby and Adam Sandler. All in all, the comedian proved himself, spastic, insightful and incredibly inventive and resourceful. All of these are qualities of a true comedian.
- Muhlenberg Weekly

"People laugh at him - Nonstop" - The Nashua Telegraph

His set was fast, cool, funny and confident. - Boston Herald

Robbie Printz is a comic who works clean -- he'll come at you from a young child's point of view, complaining, for example, about how parents put the good stuff (a cookie jar) on the hard-to-reach top shelf, but leave the bad stuff (toxic cleaners) in the cabinet below. Printz, winner of the 2002 Boston International Comedy Festival, once warmed up audiences for the dirty-minded Fox TV show, "Married With Children." Printz is a versatile sort who spins stories about marital foibles and everyday woes for a college age-plus crowd. - Boston Herald

By Bryan Fahey
March 08, 2006
Three-year-olds have the most power? Men can’t complain about bad gifts? Parents are muggers? Although these ideas may seem far fetched, Robbie Printz brought them to life last Thursday in the Cellar. Printz picked on unusual subject matter while also picking on audience members to add a dose of reality to his hour-long set.

Throughout the evening, Printz touched on a variety of subjects. He focused a lot of material on strange rules of love, rules of parents and why dogs are better than cats. Printz’s philosophy is that dogs just get it. They want you to be their master while cats are just stuck up.

One of Printz’s most convincing comedic arguments was three-year-olds having the most power of anyone. “At age three, you can get anyone to tie your shoes. You can say, ‘While you’re at it, double knot it so it doesn’t happen again!’ You can get grown adults to look at your poop and applaud you. ‘Oh, that’s great. That’s my little pooper trooper!’ But if you’re married, your wife will think it’s disgusting.”

Another great moment was Printz commenting on common sense. “My favorite sport is hockey,” he starts. “I was at a game once where this guy with a crazy foam puck head was shouting words of encouragement to the skaters. ‘Skate! Put the puck in the net!’ I’m thinking, I’m sure they know how to do that. That would be like me waking up in the morning and seeing the mailman, shouting, ‘Hey! Put the mail in the mailbox!’”

When the night was over, students, red-faced from laughter, left the packed Cellar. It’s no wonder Printz has performed on Comedy Central and MTV2. His craft definitely shows. For anyone that missed the performance, you can download some of his telecasted moments on his Web site, www.robbieprintz.com
- UW Lacrosse - Racquet

by Celia Powell, of the Advance Titan
Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Thursday nights hit a lot of points for most UWO students; some head home for the weekend, some rush off to work, some head out to the local bars and some fill their brains with NBC. Last Thursday at the Titan Underground comedian Robbie Printz offered an alternative to the same old thing.

Printz, who could easily be pegged for an overly gregarious college student, has twice the attitude of any sarcastic campus kid and enough energy to make even the toughest audience, or college student, fold over with laughter.

After Printz took the stage, he worked the audience and won them over within the first five minutes. Printz’s act swept the Union walls of their institutional feel and worked the funny bone of every audience member.

Inspiration can come from anywhere, and Printz was definitely inspired by Oshkosh. “I knew you guys make really cool outfits for kids,” said Printz who referred to the city as B’Gosh during his act.

The reference clearly upset one of the students who was wearing a T-shirt that had “Jessica Rocks” written across the chest. Printz quickly picked the girl out of the audience and added some improvisation to his act.

Upon discovering the girl wearing the shirt was not Jessica, but merely Jessica’s friend, Printz singled out both students and later said, “Until the word gets out about just how much Jessica rocks, Oshkosh will still be known to the U.S. by B’Gosh.”

The frequent laughter heard from the audience drew curious looks from people passing by. More often than not, these students found their way into the doors of the Underground to join the fun.

Printz’s improvisational abilities are clearly one of the reasons he won the Boston Comedy Festival and can also be seen on Comedy Central.

The foundation of his Thursday night act focused on adult life and real-world observations. The Reeve Union Board’s Comedy and Variety Committee picked out Printz as a performer and booked him to do his comedy act for UWO. “I saw [Printz] at the National Association of Campus Activities and he was hilarious. That was why we decided to book him,” said Melissa Whitehaus, RUB Comedy and Variety Chair and UWO senior. “Most of the comedians we book come from NACA.”

Printz, who is on the road a lot, said he never seems to be in the same place for very long. The comedian said of his nomadic lifestyle, “I want to get home to see the family.”

After making gestures of sniffing his armpits, he quickly added, “And do some laundry.” Printz also said that he loved the area and has a brother that lives in Milwaukee. Printz is surprisingly easy-going and grounded in family for someone nationally known.

He has been doing stand up since he was 20 and noticeably draws inspiration for his act from his family. But it is all in good fun because his brother was in the audience on Thursday.

Everyone in the audience seemed to be in good sprits during Printz’s performance. He made his harshest critic, a sourpuss frowning in the front row, smile after pointing out the student’s grumpiness to the audience.“I saw this guy at the NACA in Rochester and had seen him do showcases before,” said Jerry Bloesh, RUB Coordinator of Student Activities. “He gets the show going and makes everyone have a good time.”

Printz works comedy clubs, university campuses and corporate events feeding off the audiences’ energy and spinning it into his act. He can use both positive and negative vibes and turn them into something constructive that will have everyone laughing.

After his routine, Printz headed to the door to do a meet and greet with his fans. It is this openness and likeable personality that makes the award-winning performer unique and fun to be around.

Upon leaving the show, one student asked Printz to autograph an empty box of cigarettes. Printz obliged, adding his name to the student’s collection that includes other famous comedians.
- Advance Titan - UW Oshkosh