Sinbad, one of Comedy Central's Top 100 Comedians of all time, will be in Grand Rapids for LaughFest 2012.GRAND RAPIDS – Comedian Sinbad, ranked by Comedy Central as one of the top 100 stand-up comedians of all time, will be in Grand Rapids for LaughFest 2012.
“The Bob & Tom Comedy All-Stars” hosted by Kristi Lee will be back for the second installment of the festival of laughter in March.
The 10-day festival of seriously funny stuff also announced today also the return of three showcases: Best of the Midwest, Stand-up Comedy Competition and the Clean Comedy Showcase.
Gilda's Club of Grand Rapids, creator of LaughFest, last week announced headliners Whoopi Goldberg, Kevin Nealon and Martin Short would be in town for LaughFest 2012, March 8-18.
IF YOU GO
Gilda's LaughFest 2012
When: March 8-18, 2012
Where: 40 venues in Grand Rapids plus Holland and Lowell
Tickets: Packages go on sale Friday; single tickets go on sale at a later date from Ticketmaster.
More info: Call 616-735-HAHA (4242) or go to laughfestgr.org
A native of Benton Harbor, Sinbad starred in such films as "Jingle All the Way" with Arnold Schwarzenegger and "Houseguest" with the late Phil Hartman. Recently, he was seen in the third season of NBC-TV's "Celebrity Apprentice," and Comedy Central aired his stand-up TV special last February.
Sinbad appears March 18 in Fountain Street Church.
Comedians performing during The Bob & Tom Comedy All-Stars include Drew Hastings, Tommy Johnagin and Jimmy Pardo on March 17 in Fountain Street Church. Returning as host is Kristi Lee, a cast member of "The Bob & Tom Show," a nationally broadcast show that's a leading outlet for top comics and developing comedians on the circuit.
The Best of the Midwest Showcase will welcome 10 comedians – Mike Bobbitt, Mike Brody, Sean Flannery, Felicia Gillespie, Michael Malone, Floyd Phillips, Lyndel Pleasant, Amber Preston, Mike Stanley and Dan Telfer – all competing for a $2,500 cash prize.
Kristi Lee hosts The Bob & Tom Comedy All-Stars at LaughFest 2012.This year’s Stand-up Comedy Competition, presented by Gun Lake Casino, features another 10 comics -- Nate Bargatze, Chad Daniels, Nikki Glaser, Phil Hanley, Moshe Kasher, Matt Kirshen, Vince Morris, Collin Moulton, Christina Pazsitzky and Reese Waters – vying for a $10,000 cash prize.
LaughFest's Clean Comedy Showcase will include performances by Keith Alberstadt, Jeff Caldwell, Tim Cavanagh, Don Friesen, Rex Havens, Rocky LaPorte, Jan McInnis and Brad Upton.
More than 200 free and ticketed shows, featuring 60 artists at more than 40 venues, are part of this year's LaughFest, inspired by the late comedian Gilda Radner, who died in 1989 from complications from cancer.
The inaugural LaughFest last year drew more than 55,000 people for the 2011 festival. Proceeds support Gilda's Club, which provides support and services for people afflicted by cancer. The non-profit club takes its name from Radner, a native of Detroit and an original cast member of NBC-TV's "Saturday Night Live."
Check out comedian Sinbad at work:
E-mail Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk: jkaczmarczyk@grpress.com