April 15, 2009 was a very different time. The #1 song in the country was "Poker Face." "Hannah Montana: The Movie" was #1 at the box office. Some people actually thought President Obama's birth certificate was a fake! And four SF comics started an experiment: a two-hour show, split four ways, every week at a theater in the Mission. Originally, Bucky Sinister was just going to rent a storefront so he could stand in it and just talk to passerby. When Alex Koll heard this idea, he thought it was crazy, and he decided he wanted a piece of that storefront plan. Eventually, the storefront became a theater and two people ranting for an hour each became four people ranting for half an hour each - much less crazy.
Over the years, the show evolved: more guests, more games, different Businessmen, bigger crowds, out-of-town shows, a "Best of SF" nod, and a franchise in Los Angeles. We've done nearly 200 shows, welcomed more than 200 guest performers, from comics to writers to clowns to musicians to burlesque dancers, and eaten roughly 200 pounds of refried beans. It's been a great ride - though that storefront might have REALLY been something.
Our guests:
Baron Vaughn is a dynamic performer whose standup involves song, dance, impressions, beatboxing, characters, and rock-solid joke writing. He was born in New Mexico, raised in Las Vegas, and came of comedy age in Boston. You have seen Baron as one of the Awkward Kings of Comedy, acting in "Black Dynamite" and "Fairly Legal," at the Bridgetown Comedy Festival, the Aspen Rooftop Festival, doing standup on "Conan," or on his podcast, Deep Shit.
Isaac Fitzgerald is the managing editor of The Rumpus (therumpus.net), the cultural website that's full of reviews, interviews, advice, music, film and poetry. He's also the co-founder of Pen & Ink (http://penandink.tumblr.com/), a Tumblr devoted to tattoos and the stories behind them, which is soon to become a real-life ink-and-paper book. Mr. Fitzgerald also hosted the Rumpus live events at the Make-Out Room, and still emcees Rumpus shows on both coasts.
Dandelion Chocolate is a small bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturer in Dogpatch, which recently opened a store on Valencia Street, just a block away from the Dark Room itself. Their chocolatiers will sit down for an interview with the foodiest Businessman of all, Nato Green, though we urge audience members not to share their secrets with Mr. Slugworth.
So this Wednesday, come commemorate four years of Business. BYOBPHAP (Bring Your Own Burritos, Party hats, And Pinatas). Bucky, Nato, Caitlin, and Sean will be there in the flesh; Alex Koll, Chris Garcia, Chris Thayer, and Mike Drucker will be there in spirit. Please no gifts: your presence is your presents, along with five bucks admission.
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