When I was younger and had nothing to lose, I spread my wings and flew to Chicago. I lived there for five years and managed to accomplish a few things.
Took frequent trips on my longboard from Lincoln Park to the Shedd Aquarium to watch the dolphins and belugas through the window.
Snuck six packs onto strangers’ boats at Belmont Harbor in the middle of the night
Discovered the iO.
The iO, or Improv Olympic, is The Second City’s scrappy little sister. They had two stages that showcased the best improv comedy you’ll ever see. It was there that I first saw Tim Robinson and his improv troupe 'The Cook County Social Club. 'To this day, I haven’t laughed harder than while watching those guys on stage every Tuesday night.
The iO also had classes - most of them for improv. I enrolled and I got up to level 3, I think. Truth is, I wasn’t very good. But they also had writing classes. And I ate those up.
I took a few different classes, but the one that stood out to me was the one I took with instructor Nate Herman. Nate’s claim to fame was that he was a writer for SNL in the short interim year when Lorne Michaels briefly relinquished control. The year was 1981 - right after the original cast left, and the show started over.
To be clear, the iO was a business. Chicago was the center of improv comedy. All the greats were plucked from that scene. Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Tina Fey, Mike Myers, Steve Carrell - the list goes on forever. And the iO knew how to make money off of it.
“You’re some kid from Philly who thinks he's funny? We accept Visa and Mastercard.”
But Nate Herman stuck out to me. He was the hidden gem of the place if you were paying attention. Nate had all this unconventional wisdom about writing and spent most of his time turning his nose at the traditional rules. For example, an unwritten rule is that good writing must have action. Avoid talking head scenes.
Nate showed us this video:
One time, Nate paid my writing the weirdest compliment I’ve ever received and I’ve been chasing that high ever since. He twisted a Sherlock Holmes note of never taking the first taxi. In Sherlock’s context it meant 'don’t fall into traps.' But Nate referred the class to this advice to suggest not to be predictable to your audience. Nate simply said:
“Mike, you walk up the block to take the sixth cab.”
His words recalibrated my brain, tilted my compass. I’ll never forget it.
One more thing that I’ll never forget from my time at iO. It was this quote hanging from Martha Graham, hanging in the office:
“There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.”
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