Comedian Stevie Mack was born in a crazy house so at age ten he escaped and joined the Young Saints Academy where he hid out on stage singing, acting and performing choreography, while touring Los Angeles from the Watts Festivals and Towers to the stages and theaters on Sunset and Gower.
In 1991 Stevie Mack made his stand-up comedy debut at the World Famous Comedy Store in Hollywood, CA. Two years later Comedian Stevie Mack produced and hosted the first topical comedy show in Los Angeles and currently performs on TV and at prominent comedy clubs across the country.
Stevie Mack expanded his acting and improvisation skills by joining the Groundlings, the Upright Citizens Brigade improv troupes.
Stevie Mack is the writer, producer and host of the hilarious political satire show, StevieMack@NightTV.
Recovery Comedy: What were you like as a kid?
Stevie Mack: I was a dirty kid. Always climbing fences, jumping roof tops, trees and tinkering with anything that contained oil, chocolate, blood and ink. I kept laundry detergent companies in business. I was a kleptomaniac too. I stole any and everything!
Recovery Comedy: What made you decide to become a stand-up comedian and how long have you been performing?
Stevie Mack: First started performing stand-up comedy back in 1990 at an open mic at a coffee shop on Melrose, show was hosted/produced by the infamous “Melrose Larry”. I recently had a return of memory on that one. I thought my first public performance was in 1991 at the Comedy Store on Sunset, but that’s what my Bio still says.
Recovery Comedy: Were you performing stand-up comedy before you got into recovery?
Stevie Mack: Only performed at that open mic a couple of times prior to getting sober. However, I got serious about comedy and entertainment after I got into recovery. But got even more serious after my last run in the streets doing drugs and drugs doing me. After I checked into detox on July 10, 2006, I made a decision to take my comedy and acting really serious as a career. So I struggled with making a decision to turn my will and my life over to the care of God as I understood God, because that meant that if God didn’t want me to be an actor/comedian I would be sad and flipping burgers. But the reality is, my Higher Power (God) would not want me to be somewhere not using all the talent that I’m blessed with. So I made that 3rd step decision and over time I was lead back to the stage and screen in a bigger way than before.
Recovery Comedy: Does your comedy have a message and if so what is it?
Stevie Mack: Yes, my comedy has a message and the message is, don’t take yourself too serious. Learn to laugh at yourself and it’s easier to deal with it…it being whatever you are going through.
Recovery Comedy: Who are your comedy idols?
Stevie Mack: My comedy idols are comedians who pull themselves up by their bootstraps and make a name for them-selves with comedy that makes you think and laugh. As far as comedians who paved the way my idols are Richard Pryor, Cheech and Chong, Flip Wilson, Steve Martin just to name a few.
Recovery Comedy: Where does your inspiration for material come from?
Stevie Mack: My inspiration for material comes from news, current events, daily observations, sudden busts of funny thoughts, and of course tons of material comes from relationship fodder. I tweet and Facebook a lot of stuff that I eventually may or may not wind up doing on stage plus I’m on my radio show four nights a week, so I have a lot of ways to get my material out to the world, aside from live performances.
Recovery Comedy: What is your joke writing process?
Stevie Mack: My joke writing process is simple; sometimes I record my jokes into my smart phone, sometimes I jot them own on any random piece of paper. Sometimes I write them straight to twitter or Facebook. If I decide to perform it on stage, I record it to see what the audience response is. If they laugh, I keep it, if they don’t, I do a re-write, perform it again, record it and so forth and so on. Some jokes just don’t get the response I thought they would no matter how many times I re-write them; that’s when I ditch them.
Recovery Comedy: Can you tell us about your one person show?
Stevie Mack: “Stevie Mack’s Diary of a Crackhead” is a poignant and very funny one-man play about addiction and recovery. It shows how one can rise from the ashes of a family riddled with crime, pimps, pushers, drug/alcohol addiction, gangster ethics, prison life and mental institutions to overcome adversity against all odds through laughter. The show has gotten a lot of praise from people of all walks of life. The demographic is wide, literally 8-80 yrs of age. LA WEEKLY honored the show with their coveted “Pick of the Week” and did a full spread Q&A interview, which has been an awesome highlight. Writers in Treatment utilized the show as a fundraiser for their program that helps writers who are struggling with addiction. I’ve been performing the show for more than a year at various venues, but it’s at the Hollywood Improv in the Comedy Lab on the last Monday of every month.
Recovery Comedy: Is your family supportive of your comedy career?
Stevie Mack: My family loves to laugh and is excited about me being in comedy. My wife attends mostly all my show, calls in to my radio show religiously and supports my career 100%
Recovery Comedy: Is comedy part of your healing process?
Stevie Mack: Comedy plays a major role in my healing process on a daily basis. It is my therapy. I’m not on stage yelling my frustrations at the audience; I have a way of turning my frustrations into something we all can laugh at. For me comedy is a tool not a weapon…unless you’re a heckler.
Recovery Comedy: What was your worst experience performing comedy?
Stevie Mack: Have not had it yet. If I did, I didn’t know it. Wait, there’s one: I was booked to perform at a show in a venue that was more suited for a kung fu movie than comedy. All the people were hidden away in these two-tiered Japanese cubbies with rice paper screens separating them from the performance area, which was really just a big dace floor. Every now and then folks would peek out, look down and see me, chuckle at me, then duck back inside to enjoy their sake, sushi and fish head soup. This could have been a horrible experience, but I made my whole routine about that very aspect; the kung fu dinner theater set up. I got laughs from behind the rice paper I was satisfied, until I got paid in fortune cookies and rice cakes! I always take what’s bad in a situation and make that very thing work to my advantage. My fortune cookie said, “It’s best to be seen and not heard” Oh, if that were only the case, at least I could have mimed!
Recovery Comedy: What was your best experience performing comedy?
Stevie Mack: My best experience performing comedy happens when I’m on stage, the audience is getting it, interrupting me with applause, sometimes I have to wait for people to catch their breath, then at the end I get a standing ovation. Those moments are golden, don’t happen all the time, but when they do, they are the golden treasures at the end of the rainbow.
Recovery Comedy: What is your favorite joke?
Stevie Mack: My favorite jokes are the ones I make up daily on Facebook and twitter:
DMV eye test for people over 75 Years old: “Can you see ME? ..good, you pass!”
We now return you to our regular programming of “Snooky just had a Honey Boo Boo on Jerry Springer”
Why do weather reports sound so sexual: Gonna be hot and wet with a huge swell rising down south creating lots of moisture…better wear some protection!
Recovery Comedy: What is your comedy dream?
Stevie Mack: My comedy dream is to have a sitcom as funny and successful as Malcolm in the Middle, Kids in the Hall, the Cosby Show, and to have that same level of success in movies, radio and stage. Everything is rapidly changing in the world as to how people get their entertainment, so I’m moving with the flow, creating my own brand and marketing me to the ever-changing world on all the platforms available for delivery and a nice big slice of Stevie Mack!
To find out more information about Stevie Mack or to book him for your next Recovery Convention just click here!
Drink coffee like a cool kid at your next meeting with the Recovery Comedy Coffee Mug, “One Sip At A Time!”
If you like what we are doing here at Recovery Comedy please tell your friends and help us spread the word. Without you and your support none of this is possible. Also, don’t forget to follow or like us on these lovely social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and YouTube
"*" indicates required fields