Pregiving Pre-Saturday Night Live Comedy Analysis

To guide Martin through the unforgiving Pre-Saturday Night Live comedy circuit, a mentor would allow Martin to focus on other aspects of his professional career, instead of stressing over a “tough crowd.” For instance, Martin stressed for many hours following performances due to every crowd’s different reaction, and in a metaphor, he shares, “The comedian’s slang for a successful show is ‘I murdered them,’ which I’m sure came about because you finally realize they are capable of murdering you” (2). Clearly, being a live performing comedian in this era (which takes place between the ‘60s and early ‘70s,) can prove to be harsh and unforgiving, especially for a young man with no real guidance. A mentor with years of experience in stand-up comedy

“After the shows, however, I experienced long hours of elation or misery depending on how the show went, because doing comedy alone on stage is the ego’s last stand” (1). Obviously, Martin is passionate and concerned about his craft. Although, this passion would keep him up for many hours at night following a performance, and while not always in misery, is still a self-destructive trait. The irony of this is that while Martin’s profession is to make other people laugh and enjoy life, it makes him at times miserable depending on the show. A mentor, however, would be able to teach Martin the ability to look ahead and not completely dwell on the latest performance. Rather than losing confidence in his entire comedic act and sometimes even questioning if he is actually funny, Martin would be guided by a mentor to not get too high or low spiritually following

Specifically, Martin’s personification reveals just how he is longing for someone to be in his life to guide him and reassure him. Martin recalls a certain feeling of performing that, “A forgotten line would hang in the dead air, searching for someone, anyone to say it” (60). Here, Martin reveals his somewhat subconscious thought of “searching for someone” to help him. While having a distant relationship with his family, mostly his parents, Martin has nothing to fall back to. A perfect replacement for this void would be a caring mentor who has Martin’s best interest. In the comedic world, confidence is a major key, and a mentor could restore Martin’s confidence by simply being there for him in times of loneliness and doubt. Moreover, while reminiscing on venturing out to travel the country alone like a comedic pioneer, Martin, in an ironic statement, reveals to the reader, “There were no mentors to tell me what to do; There were no guidebooks for doing stand-up. Everything was learned in practice, and the lonely road, with no critical eyes watching, was the place to dig up my boldest, or dumbest ideas and put them onstage” (132). Undoubtedly, Martin explains to the reader in his journey to success in show business that he had no mentor, and no one to tell him yes or no. He also refers to his metaphorical and physical journey as a “lonely road,” and emphasizes he had