Samuel J Comroe

Contact: Barbara Holliday, (818) 845-9721

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 28, 2010


Comedian with Tourette Syndrome
Helps Raise Funds for TS Kids Camp!
Flappers Comedy LLC in conjunction with the Ice House Comedy Club
Proudly Present Comedian Samuel J Comroe!

PASADENA, CA – Flappers Comedy LLC and the Ice House Comedy Club are proud to announce they are producing a Comedy Fundraiser for the Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) Southern California Chapter. The purpose of the fundraiser is to help raise money for TSA, and their Youth camp in Southern California this summer and have some laughs at the same time. We are requesting a suggested Donation of $20.00 or you can just come and donate what you can!! We'll also be having a raffle, so you can buy some extra raffle tickets and win something for yourself! The Camp is brand new and located in the mountains of Orange. This will be a great opportunity for TS kids to meet and socialize with each other. Many kids with TS have never met anyone like themselves. It will be a life changing experience for many.
What if Stand Up Comedy and Tourette Syndrome met face to face? Meet the headliner of the show the 21 year old Samuel Comroe, a young brave comedian who shares his trials and tribulations about living with Tourette Syndrome and turns them into an unforgettably funny, energetic and vibrant Stand Up comedy set. Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, the Greater Los Angeles area. Being the fifth child of seven, and diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome at an early age, and he has never taken himself too seriously. He began developing his stand-up career as early as his junior year at Canoga Park High School, performing in the school auditorium during lunch, where his high-energy, and relatable material always brought in the crowds. Now, almost four years later he continues to bring his energy and talent to explore the world of stand-up comedy, creating material from his every-day observations, relations, and life in general. His comedic inspirations include, Robin Williams, Steve Martin, George Carlin, Daniel Tosh, Richard Pryor, Dave Chappelle, Kyle Cease, and many more.www.SamuelJComroe.com
Flappers Comedy LLC, Sam’s Management team is a production, management and booking company that has been working with famous talent with disabilities for while now, you may recognize them for helping bring Josh Blue to the College Market and helping to get him a winning appearance on the Last Comic Standing in 2006. They also created the “Preferred Parking Comedy Tour.” Owned and operated by two seasoned comedians; Barbara Holliday and Dave Reinitz. Since they began producing live comedy stage shows in 1997, the couple have established themselves as leaders in L.A.'s comedy scene. Together, Reinitz and Holliday have produced lives shows and festivals such as Uncle Clyde's Comedy Contest (14 Years), Survival of the Funniest, Side of Fries, the Hollywood HaHa Festival, and are currently working on opening their own comedy club venue called Flappers Comedy Club in the Burbank and Claremont areas. More Info: ComedyCasting.com or www.SamuelJComroe.com.
Ice House Annex
Where: 24 N. Mentor Ave Pasadena CA
When: Tuesday April 13th, 2010
Time: 8pm Show
Ages: 18+
Show Tickets: Suggested Donation $20.00
Online Pre-Purchase at www.ComedyCasting.com
Tickets & Info: 818-845-9721
- Flappers Comedy

prepiechick (1 week ago) Show
Wonderful comedy, thanks for giving us a good laugh.

derekhouck (2 weeks ago) Wonderful set Sam. :-)

sharkbaitcher (2 weeks ago) Sam....great routine! Thanks for all the laughs....keep it up

faroukhinnawi (2 weeks ago) Fantastic! Congratulations.

Codypup01 (2 weeks ago)
BLINK TWICE IF YOU'RE IN TROUBLE... sam you just got your first movie catchphrase!!!  Tell the cave you're returning their batshit!!! VERY FUNNY MATERIAL.

BatALash (2 weeks ago)
Your sets keep getting better :)

calmatt88 (2 weeks ago) goddamit....i miss everything

shammyrox77 (2 weeks ago)
very good :)

monicaazad (2 weeks ago)
amazing set! very funny

omidsingh (2 weeks ago)that was amazing - Youtube AS of 12/1/09

Sitting across the table eating a French dip sandwich, Samuel J. Comroe looks like any other 22-year-old - but he's not.

A Northridge native, Comroe was diagnosed with the neurobiological disorder Tourette Syndrome when he was in third grade.But rather than consider it a setback, he's long approached his condition as a laughing matter. "I just go out on stage and say, `I have Tourette Syndrome. That's what it is,' " said Comroe, a
stand-up comic. Comroe's condition manifests itself in recurring eye twitches and head movements that could easily be mistaken for nervousness.
"The reaction I usually get from crowds is a very shocked `We don't know how to deal with this' look," Comroe said. "Most people don't believe
me and will come up to me after the show and ask if I really have Tourette Syndrome. Like I would just go around doing 20-minute bits about
Tourette Syndrome and making fun of others - `Come back next week when I make fun of people in wheelchairs' - no, that's not what I'm
trying to do."

Comroe will be trying to entertain Tuesday night as one of the headliners of the Tourette Syndrome fundraiser at the Ice House Comedy Club Annex in Pasadena.
In the process, he may clear up some misconceptions.

In reality, the verbal outbursts Tourette Syndrome is commonly perceived as a disorder that causes its sufferers to uncontrollably shout obscenities and racial slurs. Though that can be a symptom, the condition more typically induces
tics such as eye-blinking, head-jerking, shoulder-shrugging, tongue-clicking, sniffing and facial grimacing. (called coprolalia) associated with Tourette Syndrome afflict
approximately 10 percent of those with the disorder, according to Dr. John Piacentini, director of the Child Anxiety and Tic Disorders
Program and professor of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA.

"Typically, Tourette Syndrome is thought to be (caused by) a dysfunction in circuits in different areas of the brain that are associated with movement and inhibition," Piacentini said. "Unlike many psychiatric disorders that impair thinking, like schizophrenia or autism, people with Tourette's are usually normal," he said. "The
disorder itself does not inhibit anyone's ability to think or reason, (although it) can really interferewith kids paying attention in school or adults in the workplace, and can be very socially stigmatizing."

Despite his humorous take on the condition, Comroe admitted that growing up with Tourette Syndrome was at times a challenge. "From the point I was born I realized that something was going on, but I didn't know what it was," said Comroe, who has five sisters and one brother. "I felt very alone and thought, `I'm twitching and spasming and no one else has this. What's wrong with me?' But it helped to make me grow. I don't think that I would be doing standup comedy if I didn't have a hard shell from being picked on."

As most signs of Tourette Syndrome reveal themselves between age 4 and 6, children who suffer from the disorder often have difficulty socializing and focusing in school. These symptoms, as well as the motor and vocal tics that characterize Tourette Syndrome, are typically treated with drugs.

Many people who have Tourette Syndrome also have Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. "The medications work reasonably well, but are powerful and have many side effects," said
Piacentini, who works primarily with children.

"Over the last several years there has been a fair amount of research looking at nonmedication treatments, specifically a form of behavior therapy that is called habit reversal training," he said. "This treatment and work is being done at UCLA along with several other leading research centers around the country. The
behavioral treatment is especially important for children and is a very viable option at this point for people, either as a treatment by itself or with
medication."

Having developed a hard shell from the playful teasing of his friends and family, Comroe first tried out his stand-up act at his 11th-grade talent show. From there, he got up on stage as often as he could.
He began college, but soon found that his true passion was in comedy. "I used to make jokes about Tourette's but I didn't really like talking about it," Comroe said.
"But I did open up and start having a lot of fun with it. "Stand-up is really therapeutic and a distraction," he said. "When I'm focused on something else I don't twitch as much and the fact that I can recognize this and express myself to the people in the audience is my way of handling it."

Making others laugh has helped Comroe come to terms with his disorder. However, he has found another way to make others happy while strengthening himself -philanthropic work, such as Tuesday's show, which will raise money for a
newly developed camp for children with Tourette Syndrome.

"You see shows like `Oprah' and `Dr. Phil' on TV about kids with Tour - Daily Breeze and Daily News

Nothing to do on a Wednesday night? Meet me at the Brea Improv for a night of laughter that is sure to provide you with a few great jokes to tell at the office Thursday morning!

"The popular showcase returns to the Brea Improv featuring comedians who have been on The Tonight Show, Comedy Centrals Live at Gotham, and [my favorite] Chelsea Lately." I attended one of these shows in December and what a Christmas gift to myself that turned out to be.

Normally when somebody tells you they have Tourettes (syndrome), your first instinct is not laughter-unless the person telling you is Samuel J Comroe. "I didn't even get the good kind, you know-Cussing. I got a twitch in my eye. My friends were trying to get me to go to this party with strobe lights. Do you see how fast my eyes blink? Every light is a strobe light to me!" It was precisely this brand of humor that landed Comroe in the LA's Funniest Comic Finals at the Jon Lovitz Club on March 1st.

The first comic of the evening was the beaming husband and father, Tony Baker. If dimples were black holes, I narrowly escaped death sitting front and center. "You can't smile in the hood with dimples!" said Baker. He is already becoming well known for his 'fade into the background' philosophy. For a quick laugh follow Tony Baker on Twitter here.

Next up coming to the stage was the mastermind behind the whole show, the producer himself, Nick Cervantes. With nuggets like, "Ever notice they always hold canned food drives, but never ask for can openers?" the audience seemed quite pleased this previous broadcasting major turned to comedy. But even before his broadcasting and comedy days, Cervantes held jobs just like most of us that were less than favorable. "I used to work at Disney Land and I'd flirt with the Little Mermaid. . .Mostly because she couldn't get away." In addition to pithy dialog, this entire show was made possible by the brain child of Nick Cervantes so expect great things from him in the future.

This guy I had never seen before, but he reserved himself a spot as one of my favorites in one fell swoop. "I hate Secret Santas. Why can't we give gifts to the people at work we really hate? You know, like give the bad breath guy a pack of gum and a card that says F*** You!" Jay Ko quickly had all of us in the crowd re-thinking our priorities. "I don't give my change to bums because I can't. I need it to make wishes." Ko left us with one last laugh that might also serve as a bit of parenting advice. "You know what you get when you put a fat kid in gymnastics? Farts." My unborn son thanks you for that Jay.

Having already seen him a few times, I watched in anticipation to see the looks of the unsuspecting audience members faces' as Thai Rivera took their minds for a spin. "When shopping for my first car I don't know if my parents knew that I preferred a Honda, but I'm sure my dad preferred a straight son so. . .We'll take what we can get." Thai ripped the stage so hard that I feared they might call an intermission to put it back together for the next guy!

Luckily, the next guy had no trouble following the previous power-house of a comedian. KT Tatara started off by playing a game with us called Girl or Kid? where he compared certain women's behavior to that of a four year-old. KT also evaluated the nature of a woman to want a man who is, "Older, smarter, richer. . .See that's why, as men, all we have left to look for is ass!" He has a lot of interesting theories that make for a great laugh, some of which you might get to check out when he headlines the Irvine Improv on March 24th. FREE tickets and more details here or email ktsguestlist@gmail.com.

You've seen him on the Chelsea Lately round table and will soon see his Comedy Central special debut later this year, but I got to see Mo Mandel up close and personal. "My friends warned me about becoming shallow moving to Hollywood for show business and all. . .But I don't even talk to them anymore so it's cool." As if this soon-to-be household name doesn't have enough fans he grabbed a few more with this one liner, "I don't use condoms in order to build a bigger fan base." Mandel went on to address a bigger question that most of us probably don't give enough thought to. "How do you know if you're good in bed? I wish I could bang a robot and get a printout that says something like you're a six just so I would know if I'm any good or not." I concur. After, what I now understand to be an ill-timed tap on my shoulder, Mo announced, "Never go home with a girl you meet at a comedy show. . .[looks around the room] Although tonight it's probably okay." Love you too Mo.

Quinn Dahle would round out the evening for us and bring the show to a close. "Women are smarter than men [Women in the audience go wild]. I also believe in Santa Clause." Dahle is full of one liners that are sure to make you think, once you've caught your breath from laughing so hard! "If you get fired, just turn around and fill out an appl - Miami Comedian Examiner