I could see the performer onstage from the side walk, leaning over my roommates shoulder, Pete Doyle. It was Circa 1983 Zanies had not been open not that long. My roommate found out what the cover was and so we decided to leave in outrage. Truthfully, I would have done anything to get inside Zanies Comedy Club...I did get three separate peeks into the showroom from where we were standing...I could hear the laughter pouring out into the street and later, I could see him in the corner, up on a high stage. From my recollection, they may have moved the stage later. Pete and I went back again weeks later, I saw Dan Chopan onstage from St. Louis. I was completely blown away. Bernie Lubbers from Louisville was the M.C.  I remember seeing one comedian who looked like Paul Williams wearing a cowboy hat, receive a lukewarm response. come to think of it, it may have been Gary Kern. I thought it was funny that he thought the Nashville crowds would eat it up.

Out of towers, ha! The menu and on the wall of the club was a giant venue promoting Zanies famous Redamack hamburgers. The night was magical, and I quickly became a regular getting to know the staff. Mike Tidwell was the bartender and also performed on the Tuesday open mics. He consistently got laughs. Eventually, I thought to myself, I don't know if I can be as funny as the professionals, I just hope I can be as good as Mike Tidwell. He kinda reminded me of the Mad scientist from back to the future. He did a joke about stepping in water with your socks on, and it always worked. There was a beautiful waitress named Robin. I liked to talk to her. I met the Manager Burt Haas. His wife performed on the Tuesdays open mics Sally Edwards, she was very professional, always recorded her sets with a big cassette tape recorder that was similar to operating a Jack Hammer in terms of the procedure of operations. Pressing the "on" button could be so challenging..to activate the recording mechanism. Later, I would get to know Billy Seagull who had previously been a high paid record exec and now worked as a bartended. He was funny, real character, like Eric Borgosian, we tended too like the same comedians. Billy would invite everyone over after the shows to his house up the street. He was a party unto himself. Big laugh.

People  all over Nashville had begun talking about Zanies. I had heard it spoken from multiple occasions. I remember a dinner where my girlfriend from Clarkston Michigan was visiting with her family and we all went out to the Stockyards Restaurant for dinner, during the dinner the waiter said to me, "You should be a comedian at Zanies". I had had the same thought and so for the next year I   became a regular, watching almost every show. I remeber peeking into the showroom from the street, and my roomate Pete Doyle said, I'm not paying that much just to see comedy. So we left, but I couldn't get it out of my mind. That was the first time I heard the roar of laughter spilling out into the street. 

I was not there when Ron Douglas died, but I came up the comedy ranks with the staff, crew manager, bartenders, and the gang who were. Whenever we would hang out after the show with the comedians, the name Ron Douglas always came up.    More to come. zanies comedy club zanies comedy club nashville comedy zanies comedy club nashville comedy zanies comedy club