Sept. 20, 2022

Bryan McCree: A Flintstone Comedian With Joy in His Bones

Stand-up comic Bryan McCree shares Flint stories, family humor, and the Michigan grit behind a life on stage.

Is it possible to make Flint laugh?
If anyone can, it’s Bryan McCree — nationally touring comedian, actor, writer, and proud Flintstone. Known for his sharp insight into American culture and his uncanny ability to make us laugh at ourselves, Bryan brings a humor that is both fearless and deeply rooted in real life.

In this interview, Bryan shares personal stories from his Flint upbringing, his family’s remarkable legacy, and clips from his act that poke fun at race, poverty, stereotypes, and the everyday absurdities of growing up in a blue-collar Michigan town. His timing, physical comedy, and stage presence are unmatched — a skillset built partly on the school bus, where he delivered daily comedy routines to his classmates.

Bryan McCree has appeared on Comedy Central, MADtv, NBC, and Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen.
He has shared the stage with Sinbad, George Wallace, Robert Schimmel, and even The Isley Brothers.

Bryan comes from a legendary Flint family.
He is the nephew of Floyd J. McCree, the historic Flint Mayor and Michigan civil rights icon; his father was a jazz virtuoso; and his great-aunt was a Broadway legend. With roots like these, it’s no wonder he became one of Michigan’s most beloved comedic performers.

McCree cut his teeth at the historic McCree Theater, where he honed his stagecraft and learned to turn everyday struggles into laugh-out-loud gold. In this episode, he reflects on life in Flint, blue-collar culture, race, music, family, and why he never gave up on his hometown.

This is Bryan McCree.
Unfiltered. Unapologetic. Unbelievably funny.
A true Michigan original.

👉 Visit Bryan McCree’s Official Website for tour dates & merch
👉 Watch Bryan’s comedy on his YouTube Channel
👉 Follow him on Facebook for upcoming shows

Watch Bryan McCree's comedy shows on his YouTube Channel or visit his Facebook Page.

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Chapters

00:13 - Bryan McCree Talks About Flint

02:35 - Silent Auction Skit by Bryan McCree

03:42 - Is it Possible to Make Flint Laugh?

05:34 - Growing Up in Flint, Michigan

09:04 - My Neighborhood and the Game of Dozens, The School Bus

12:33 - Moving to LA, Comedy Central, Mad TV, Comics Unleashed,

13:30 - Comedy Skit #3 Flint Pimps Ride Bicycles

17:13 - Role Models

21:36 - Does Flint Love and Laugh?

25:37 - The Moment I Decided to do Comedy for a Job

28:23 - What Make You So Funny?

Transcript

WEBVTT

00:00:47.009 --> 00:00:49.009
I am glad to be here tonight with you.

00:00:49.170 --> 00:01:00.850
Um, I live in Flint, so I'm glad to be pretty glad to be alive today.

00:02:13.650 --> 00:02:21.729
My uncle was the mayor of Flint back in 1966 under the weak form of government, which means he was elected from within the city council.

00:02:21.969 --> 00:02:25.090
So there were like eight white guys on the council, and then my uncle.

00:02:25.250 --> 00:02:31.409
And it's almost like the white guys got together and said, It'd be funny if we made the black guy mayor.

00:02:31.889 --> 00:02:33.490
Okay, this is Arthur Bush.

00:02:33.569 --> 00:02:36.449
You're listening to Radio Free Flint, and today we have a treat.

00:02:36.610 --> 00:02:44.689
We have Brian McCree, a comedian from Flint, Michigan, who is here to tell us uh his story.

00:02:44.930 --> 00:02:47.250
He is, I think, I gotta ask this first.

00:02:47.409 --> 00:02:48.530
Are you a Flintstone?

00:02:48.770 --> 00:02:49.330
Am I what?

00:02:49.650 --> 00:02:51.090
Are you a Flintstone?

00:02:51.330 --> 00:02:52.050
All day.

00:02:52.289 --> 00:02:53.090
All right then.

00:02:53.250 --> 00:02:54.689
And he's a Flintstone.

00:02:54.849 --> 00:02:58.530
And it's my honor, Brian, to have you as my guest on Radio Free Flint.

00:02:58.770 --> 00:03:00.530
It's an honor to be here with you, Art.

00:03:01.009 --> 00:03:03.409
Most people don't like to find the prosecutor.

00:03:03.490 --> 00:03:05.650
They usually would prefer not to meet them.

00:03:05.969 --> 00:03:07.409
Especially if they're black.

00:03:10.610 --> 00:03:15.650
But they scared me a little bit because I always had these silent options.

00:04:19.410 --> 00:04:23.250
I wanted to ask you a couple questions now that I got your introduction out of the way.

00:04:23.329 --> 00:04:26.850
If if you have some more things that you want to brag about, let me know right now.

00:04:27.089 --> 00:04:28.209
You got anything else?

00:04:28.529 --> 00:04:29.089
Oh, I don't know.

00:04:29.170 --> 00:04:31.970
I've been doing stand-up comedy for 41 years now.

00:04:32.209 --> 00:04:34.529
Actor, writer, flint native.

00:04:34.769 --> 00:04:37.250
Brian, you've also appeared on Comedy Central.

00:04:37.329 --> 00:04:37.889
I got that.

00:04:37.970 --> 00:04:39.009
And then there's Mad T.

00:04:39.329 --> 00:04:40.449
Is it Mad TV?

00:04:40.689 --> 00:04:41.889
Yep, Mad TV.

00:04:42.050 --> 00:04:44.370
Like Alfred Newman type mad TV?

00:04:44.610 --> 00:04:45.730
Well, you know, yeah.

00:04:45.889 --> 00:04:46.290
Yeah.

00:04:46.529 --> 00:04:47.810
I guess I got that channel.

00:04:47.889 --> 00:04:50.610
I didn't I'm not rich enough to have that channel, I guess.

00:04:50.850 --> 00:04:52.129
Oh, it's Fox.

00:04:52.689 --> 00:04:54.129
I don't watch that either.

00:04:54.529 --> 00:04:55.490
A lot of reasons.

00:04:55.810 --> 00:04:57.569
It has nothing to do with comedy.

00:04:57.810 --> 00:04:59.329
Yeah, it didn't used to be that way.

00:04:59.569 --> 00:05:03.250
My biggest question to you is it possible to make Flint laugh?

00:05:03.490 --> 00:05:03.970
Oh, yeah.

00:05:04.050 --> 00:05:05.649
Flint has a great sense of humor.

00:05:05.810 --> 00:05:06.370
They do?

00:05:06.610 --> 00:05:06.930
Yes.

00:05:07.410 --> 00:05:10.129
How does it compare to some other places you've been?

00:05:10.370 --> 00:05:11.250
I I don't know.

00:05:11.329 --> 00:05:18.930
I will tell you this about Flint that uh Flint as well as Detroit, if they love you, they love you hard.

00:05:19.170 --> 00:05:22.370
If they hate you, they hate you even harder.

00:05:23.410 --> 00:05:25.569
But there's much love in this city.

00:05:25.730 --> 00:05:30.689
Now, does that mean when they hate you harder, does that mean they jump up on stage and slap you?

00:05:30.930 --> 00:05:32.610
I wish I would.

00:05:34.529 --> 00:05:36.850
No, uh, that's a new development.

00:05:36.930 --> 00:05:45.250
I and I've actually been bum rushed before on the stage, but uh been very fortunate to have great weight staff and great security come to my rescue.

00:05:45.490 --> 00:05:49.410
But uh no, they don't tend to jump up on stage like that.

00:05:49.649 --> 00:05:53.009
Well, you you also come from a town with some great boxers.

00:05:53.250 --> 00:05:57.250
So just watching those guys over the years, you had to learn a step or two.

00:05:57.569 --> 00:05:58.529
Yeah, well, right.

00:05:58.769 --> 00:06:03.170
I got pre-existing conditions, so I'll fight you for about eight seconds.

00:06:03.329 --> 00:06:05.009
I gotta get you quick.

00:06:05.889 --> 00:06:07.889
What neighborhood did you grow up in?

00:06:08.129 --> 00:06:13.170
Southside, right up the street from Coca-Cola on Lapier Road.

00:06:13.410 --> 00:06:15.970
And that that just missed the bombing of Flint.

00:06:16.370 --> 00:06:17.970
I don't know about bombing.

00:06:18.290 --> 00:06:19.250
I-69.

00:06:19.329 --> 00:06:27.170
I remember when I-69 went through there when I was a kid, and we used to ride our bikes down I-69 when it was just dirt.

00:06:27.569 --> 00:06:28.850
I remember that too.

00:06:28.930 --> 00:06:39.649
But the bombing refers to I interviewed Norman Bryant, who you probably have heard of before, was former school board president, Flint School Board President, and also the founder of the African American Hall of Fame.

00:06:39.810 --> 00:06:42.290
And he says, Art, they bombed this thing.

00:06:42.529 --> 00:06:44.370
The city was good until they bombed it.

00:06:44.529 --> 00:06:47.009
And uh said, What do you mean Norm bombed it?

00:06:47.170 --> 00:06:51.970
He meant that they they built the expressway through Floral Park in St.

00:06:52.209 --> 00:06:52.850
John's.

00:06:53.009 --> 00:06:55.569
I had never heard this expression before.

00:06:55.730 --> 00:07:07.089
And I found out, interestingly, that it's used by a lot of people of Norm's age, which is now in his 80s, and to describe that period of time.

00:07:07.329 --> 00:07:13.490
But when you look back at it, that single act may have changed uh a whole lot of things in Flint.

00:07:13.730 --> 00:07:17.089
Flint might have been a whole different story if that hadn't have happened.

00:07:17.329 --> 00:07:18.129
It might have been.

00:07:18.209 --> 00:07:21.170
That was quite a little uh community, from what I understand.

00:07:21.490 --> 00:07:30.529
In some ways, that I-69 propelled Floyd McCree uh into the national spotlight with uh fair housing uh activity.

00:07:31.009 --> 00:07:34.129
Fun fact about that my doctor at the time, T.

00:07:34.290 --> 00:07:38.370
Wendell Williams, he was the uh thing that ignited that.

00:07:38.529 --> 00:07:43.009
He wanted to buy a house in this neighborhood, and they would not sell it to him.

00:07:43.089 --> 00:07:45.250
And that started the whole conversation.

00:07:45.490 --> 00:07:48.610
Yeah, then then they all moved to Grand Blanc, right?

00:07:48.930 --> 00:07:53.490
Yeah, or Flint Township, which wants to be something else now.

00:07:53.730 --> 00:08:07.569
The Great White, being known as in French as Grand Blanc, has as virtually an all-African American basketball team, which if you've been around Flint for any length of time, is is sort of makes you kind of chuckle a little bit.

00:08:07.889 --> 00:08:15.250
Yeah, it's ridiculous, but they yeah, we used to have great ball teams, and it's really a shame that it's all moved to the burbs now.

00:08:15.490 --> 00:08:17.810
So, did you go to Southwestern high school?

00:08:18.050 --> 00:08:18.689
Or central?

00:08:19.410 --> 00:08:20.610
No, I went to Southwestern.

00:08:20.689 --> 00:08:25.009
I took uh, but this was back at the time where they were starting the magnet program.

00:08:25.089 --> 00:08:29.810
So I did uh have the pleasure of uh going to Central for a period.

00:08:29.889 --> 00:08:31.810
Uh I had took acting over there.

00:08:32.049 --> 00:08:35.009
And what was there a teacher there that influenced you?

00:08:35.330 --> 00:08:38.850
Yeah, but don't if I had to call their name, I couldn't tell you.

00:08:38.929 --> 00:08:42.850
But yeah, I had a great time over there at Central uh doing plays and whatnot.

00:08:43.090 --> 00:08:44.610
Is there somebody in your family?

00:08:44.769 --> 00:08:55.649
I mean, obviously your uncle's well known uh and I'd even say famous in the Flynn area, but is there somebody in your family that influenced you to become a comedian?

00:08:55.970 --> 00:09:02.289
I would say that uh my neighborhood and my junksta position in the family.

00:09:02.529 --> 00:09:07.809
So I'm the youngest of three boys, uh, the grunt of the litter, as a matter of fact.

00:09:07.889 --> 00:09:09.330
And my brothers were giant.

00:09:09.409 --> 00:09:17.409
You know, my brother, my oldest brother was like, he would ended up being six, seven, but growing up, he was the tallest person any of us knew.

00:09:17.649 --> 00:09:25.409
And then my other brother was tall the other way, he was wide, he was uh 300 pounds, played football, you know.

00:09:25.570 --> 00:09:31.009
So here's this little scrawny kid with pre-existing conditions fighting for his life out there.

00:09:31.250 --> 00:09:34.529
And uh I think that's where my sense of humor came from.

00:09:34.690 --> 00:09:41.250
And, you know, the period of time when I grew up uh back in the 60s, playing the dozens was how we had fun.

00:09:41.490 --> 00:09:52.610
And that's why I attributed a lot of my humor to my neighborhood where I grew up, because everyone was funny, everyone played the dozen, and you had to be able to play the dozen to survive out there.

00:09:52.850 --> 00:09:54.289
Now tell tell us the dozens.

00:09:54.450 --> 00:09:56.289
There's some people might not know what that is.

00:09:56.610 --> 00:10:03.570
Yeah, so for you white folks that don't know what the dozens is, the dozens is your mama joke when you talk about somebody's mama.

00:10:03.970 --> 00:10:06.769
You can get your ass kicked if you're not smooth with it.

00:10:07.009 --> 00:10:11.490
But luckily I was smooth with mine, and uh luckily I had big friends too.

00:10:12.850 --> 00:10:25.649
I had a woman uh on social media who I grew up with, evidently, and actually I grew up with her cousin, and she heard legend about me on the southwestern school bus talking shit.

00:10:25.889 --> 00:10:28.370
So she skipped school from central.

00:10:28.529 --> 00:10:36.929
She told me that she skipped school from central to get on our bus to hear me talk shit in the morning because that's how funny I used to be.

00:10:37.250 --> 00:10:45.090
I guess your roots in comedy go back to your neighborhood, apparently, to your camp or your hut or whatever it was that you guys made over there.

00:10:45.330 --> 00:10:46.370
Yeah, the tribe.

00:10:46.610 --> 00:10:47.409
There you go.

00:10:47.570 --> 00:10:48.210
Yeah.

00:10:48.769 --> 00:10:50.049
We had our own in the south.

00:10:50.450 --> 00:10:52.210
I grew up in the south end as well.

00:10:52.690 --> 00:10:53.730
We had our own.

00:10:53.970 --> 00:10:54.289
Okay.

00:10:54.529 --> 00:10:56.769
I l I grew up on Pengalley Road.

00:10:57.330 --> 00:10:59.730
Yeah, I live I actually lived in Pengalley apartments.

00:10:59.970 --> 00:11:00.850
So you got it.

00:11:01.009 --> 00:11:01.330
Oh, yeah.

00:11:01.570 --> 00:11:07.730
And where Pengalley apartments were was uh was an old wooded part of the General Motors dump.

00:11:07.889 --> 00:11:15.409
In fact, uh I'm not telling any secrets, it ain't already out, but that apartment house was built on top of the dump.

00:11:15.570 --> 00:11:27.250
Oh damn, and when we were kids, and some of that stuff's still underneath there, like hoods and fenders from cars, and they were working their way up through the soil, and we would make camps there.

00:11:27.409 --> 00:11:38.450
We played in this stuff, which was which was a place where the General Motors had dumped paints, lacquers, thinners, other kinds of chemicals laced with lead.

00:11:38.690 --> 00:11:39.889
That sounds about right.

00:11:40.210 --> 00:11:40.690
Yeah.

00:11:41.169 --> 00:11:51.169
So so that's what they did in that playground, and then they came along and cut down all the trees, and then they built the beautiful Pinkelli apartments right on top of the dump.

00:11:51.250 --> 00:11:52.370
So nice.

00:11:52.929 --> 00:11:53.490
Nice.

00:11:53.649 --> 00:11:56.370
Was uh Sicily's pizza over there when you grew up?

00:11:56.529 --> 00:11:58.370
Yeah, I was weaned on that stuff.

00:11:58.610 --> 00:12:01.169
Oh man, it you know it closed, right?

00:12:01.330 --> 00:12:01.970
Yeah, I know.

00:12:02.129 --> 00:12:04.529
And that Patricia just passed.

00:12:04.690 --> 00:12:06.370
Uh Patricia, Patty and John.

00:12:06.690 --> 00:12:12.450
She she and her husband uh owned that place for many years, and she just passed away here recently.

00:12:12.690 --> 00:12:13.970
Is that why they closed?

00:12:14.210 --> 00:12:22.049
No, they closed because they wanted to retire, but and it ended maybe one of the greatest pizza joints in the whole in the whole region.

00:12:22.370 --> 00:12:23.649
The best, yeah.

00:12:23.889 --> 00:12:26.210
Yeah, we were all heartbroken when it went down.

00:12:26.370 --> 00:12:28.450
We had Sisley's at least once a week.

00:12:28.690 --> 00:12:33.250
It made it warmed my heart a little bit to know that you are a true Flintstone.

00:12:33.409 --> 00:12:40.769
And the fact is, I've asked every guest that I've ever talked to on this thing, which is about 140 now or 50 or something like that.

00:12:40.929 --> 00:12:42.850
And I asked everyone whether they're Flintstones.

00:12:43.009 --> 00:12:45.330
I only had one say they were a Flintstone.

00:12:45.570 --> 00:12:49.570
How do you know somebody's a Flintstone is if they pay union dues?

00:12:50.690 --> 00:12:51.169
Yeah.

00:12:51.409 --> 00:12:53.889
Well, I paid different union dues.

00:12:53.970 --> 00:12:55.330
I paid SAGF.

00:12:55.809 --> 00:12:59.889
Do you s do you still pay dues or did you decide that that wasn't necessary?

00:13:00.129 --> 00:13:01.809
Uh I don't pay them anymore.

00:13:01.889 --> 00:13:06.929
I'm not really I'm doing more comedy than acting anymore, but I used to do a lot of acting.

00:13:07.169 --> 00:13:12.370
Actually moved out to LA uh back in 1999 to pursue acting.

00:13:12.610 --> 00:13:13.009
I see.

00:13:13.090 --> 00:13:15.889
Now, did you get in any good get any good gigs?

00:13:16.129 --> 00:13:16.529
I did.

00:13:16.610 --> 00:13:21.649
I got the uh Mad TV when I was out there, uh, made a lot of connections.

00:13:21.889 --> 00:13:29.490
You know, it's interesting though, because uh I've had breaks happen to me that didn't happen for me out there actually happened for me here.

00:13:29.730 --> 00:13:35.889
Like uh when I did uh Byron Allen's Comics Unleashed with uh Byron Allen, I got that from Flint.

00:13:36.289 --> 00:13:36.610
Really?

00:13:36.769 --> 00:13:43.169
Yeah, a buddy of mine had done it, and they were looking for black comics to be on the show, and he referred to me.

00:13:43.330 --> 00:13:54.769
And I actually had to do an audition over the telephone, uh, which was kind of funny because they the producer called me at dinner time, and we're all sitting down to dinner, and he's like, Hey, this is so-and-so from Mad TV.

00:13:54.929 --> 00:13:57.250
Uh wanted to talk to you about doing the show.

00:13:57.409 --> 00:13:59.009
And they were like, Let me hear you.

00:13:59.169 --> 00:14:00.129
I'm like, What?

00:14:00.289 --> 00:14:00.610
Okay.

00:14:00.929 --> 00:14:05.169
So I started doing my act right there on the telephone uh at the dinner table.

00:14:05.570 --> 00:14:07.090
And you can just do it like that.

00:14:07.169 --> 00:14:09.330
It's just all improvisational off the cuff.

00:14:09.809 --> 00:14:12.210
I mean, it's written material I was doing for him.

00:14:12.289 --> 00:14:14.929
I wasn't improving, you know, I was doing my act.

00:14:15.409 --> 00:14:16.929
Let's talk about that for a second.

00:14:17.090 --> 00:14:20.370
Your roots are are in the city, obviously.

00:14:20.610 --> 00:14:23.090
That's the city of Flint in particular.

00:14:23.330 --> 00:14:27.570
You do have, you know, bona fides in in the urban community.

00:14:27.730 --> 00:14:29.970
Is is that reflected in your act?

00:14:30.210 --> 00:14:31.250
Oh, yeah, yeah.

00:14:31.490 --> 00:14:31.809
How?

00:14:32.049 --> 00:14:32.370
Yeah.

00:14:32.529 --> 00:14:35.250
Uh well, I have a bit, and this is a true story.

00:14:35.409 --> 00:14:39.730
Uh I have a bit that goes uh the economy's so bad in Flint.

00:14:39.970 --> 00:14:42.129
Last week I saw a pimp on a bike.

00:14:42.690 --> 00:14:44.129
Good to see you, man.

00:14:44.210 --> 00:14:45.889
Good to be here tonight.

00:14:47.490 --> 00:14:51.330
I'm from Flint, so I'm glad to be pretty much anywhere.

00:14:51.649 --> 00:14:52.289
Yeah.

00:14:53.889 --> 00:14:54.529
Yeah.

00:14:55.169 --> 00:14:55.490
Yeah.

00:14:55.649 --> 00:14:57.409
Where my Flint people at by applause.

00:14:57.570 --> 00:14:58.769
Make some noise, Flint.

00:14:59.970 --> 00:15:00.610
Yeah.

00:15:03.250 --> 00:15:06.769
Look, Flint people just glad to wake up without a bullet in the ass.

00:15:09.009 --> 00:15:11.809
Jesus, yes, we made it through the night.

00:15:14.850 --> 00:15:15.169
Man.

00:15:16.370 --> 00:15:17.090
Flint, man.

00:15:17.169 --> 00:15:20.049
That's my crib, but it's hard living there.

00:15:20.129 --> 00:15:22.929
They make it hard for you to be loyal to Flint now.

00:15:23.409 --> 00:15:24.370
Don't they?

00:15:24.929 --> 00:15:27.090
Water bill so damn high.

00:15:27.970 --> 00:15:30.289
Suddenly I'm bathing in Merlot.

00:15:37.970 --> 00:15:41.889
See, I grew up in Flint when we had the best of everything, you guys.

00:15:42.129 --> 00:15:45.970
I grew up in Flint when we were the home of General Motors.

00:15:46.450 --> 00:15:47.090
Right?

00:15:47.649 --> 00:15:48.610
The Buick.

00:15:49.009 --> 00:15:49.649
Yeah.

00:15:50.210 --> 00:15:53.570
The Buick was invented in my hometown.

00:15:54.210 --> 00:15:54.769
Yeah.

00:15:55.330 --> 00:15:57.169
Now the economy is so bad, you guys.

00:15:57.250 --> 00:15:59.090
Last week I saw a pimp on a bike.

00:16:07.090 --> 00:16:08.529
Ring ring bitch.

00:16:13.250 --> 00:16:15.570
Don't make me put this kickstand down.

00:16:24.370 --> 00:16:30.850
And I don't know the last time y'all wrote a testy with a with a pimp pad on, but that shit is not aerodynamic.

00:16:38.690 --> 00:16:43.169
It is hard to regulate your hoes while you holding your pimp hat on your head.

00:16:47.330 --> 00:16:49.409
You talk to a hoe lately?

00:16:50.210 --> 00:16:53.330
He'll be like, I ain't giving him shit.

00:16:57.009 --> 00:16:58.769
Because that's how hoes walking in.

00:17:04.450 --> 00:17:06.289
Any hoes here tonight?

00:17:11.250 --> 00:17:14.609
And true story, I was picking my daughter up from Eisenhower.

00:17:14.690 --> 00:17:15.809
Uh no, I take that back.

00:17:15.890 --> 00:17:17.730
She was going to Southwestern at the time.

00:17:17.890 --> 00:17:22.049
And we dropped her little friend off near uh Chevy and the Hull.

00:17:22.210 --> 00:17:27.410
And we're coming back up by the point right by La Azteca, Taco House.

00:17:27.650 --> 00:17:38.049
And we literally saw a pimp on a bike, and his girl was in the bike path walking, and he was on his bike talking mad shit.

00:17:38.130 --> 00:17:41.490
Like, you better get my money, like you see on TV, bitch.

00:17:41.569 --> 00:17:42.690
You better get my money.

00:17:43.250 --> 00:17:45.250
So that's how that bit was born.

00:17:45.650 --> 00:17:50.450
Obviously, you're a student of this comedy genre.

00:17:50.769 --> 00:17:52.450
Who's your favorite comedian?

00:17:52.609 --> 00:17:54.769
Richard Pryor is my comedy god.

00:17:55.009 --> 00:17:56.529
No one's funnier than Richard.

00:17:56.690 --> 00:17:58.849
What do you think his funniest act was?

00:17:59.250 --> 00:18:05.490
His my favorite of his, of course, niggas crazy, which was his huge breakout album.

00:18:05.569 --> 00:18:10.210
And we used to sneak down in the basement and we had it on eight-track at the time.

00:18:10.369 --> 00:18:14.450
And we would sneak down in my parents' basement and listen to Richard Pryor on A-Track.

00:18:15.009 --> 00:18:17.250
How'd your mom how'd your mom and dad take that?

00:18:17.490 --> 00:18:18.930
They never they didn't hear us.

00:18:19.089 --> 00:18:21.009
They, you know, though they worked hard.

00:18:21.170 --> 00:18:25.009
My dad had like three jobs, and mom was working all the time.

00:18:25.089 --> 00:18:27.250
So we had a lot of time by ourselves.

00:18:27.490 --> 00:18:30.849
So yeah, we had a lot of time to be able to listen to that stuff.

00:18:31.250 --> 00:18:34.369
Richard Pryor became a great actor over time.

00:18:34.769 --> 00:18:37.410
What was it about him that you liked the most?

00:18:37.730 --> 00:18:39.170
He he was just so real.

00:18:39.329 --> 00:18:40.849
He changed the game, Art.

00:18:41.009 --> 00:18:56.049
I mean, you know, comedy used to be a little stuffy and take my wife, and you know, and one-liners, and uh, he just broke it down to the rawness and just exposed that that rawness of oneself that that we do now.

00:18:56.130 --> 00:19:03.890
Like if you do comedy now and don't share anything about yourself, it's like you're not really even doing comedy.

00:19:04.130 --> 00:19:07.490
Yeah, he has a lot of self-depreciating humor, doesn't he?

00:19:07.650 --> 00:19:09.170
So let me ask you one more question.

00:19:09.329 --> 00:19:18.450
Richard Pryor uh obviously paved the path for a lot of other people in comedy, and along comes uh Chris Rock, who I like.

00:19:18.529 --> 00:19:24.609
And I think my favorite joke of his is that his solution for crime is that we need a bullet tax.

00:19:24.849 --> 00:19:25.089
Yep.

00:19:25.170 --> 00:19:27.329
We need thousands of bullets.

00:19:28.690 --> 00:19:35.730
Because if it was five thousand dollars a bullet, there, as he says, there wouldn't be any innocent bystanders.

00:19:35.970 --> 00:19:36.450
That's right.

00:19:36.769 --> 00:19:38.450
How do you attribute his success?

00:19:38.609 --> 00:19:41.250
I mean, the American people obviously love that guy.

00:19:41.569 --> 00:19:45.410
He uh was fortunate enough to have the co-sign of uh Eddie Murphy.

00:19:45.569 --> 00:19:50.609
So Eddie Murphy uh saw him in New York, from what I understand, and flew him out to LA.

00:19:50.769 --> 00:19:55.250
And uh Eddie Murphy helped a lot of comedians and Chris being one of them.

00:19:55.410 --> 00:19:59.329
Now you worked with some pretty uh well-known people over the years.

00:19:59.410 --> 00:20:00.930
So tell us about that.

00:20:01.089 --> 00:20:05.490
Tell us some of the names of people that you've worked with and maybe give us an antidote or two.

00:20:05.809 --> 00:20:11.009
Oh man, I worked with uh the first uh famous person I worked with was Sinbad.

00:20:11.329 --> 00:20:17.250
And uh Sinbad is was the most down-to-earth comic I've ever worked with in my life.

00:20:17.410 --> 00:20:19.809
And you know, he was pretty famous at the time.

00:20:19.890 --> 00:20:22.369
He had was freshly off winning Star Search.

00:20:22.609 --> 00:20:32.130
And uh I walked in the dressing room to meet him, and he was ironing, you know, he used to wear those big parachute pants, and he was ironing his own parachute pants there.

00:20:32.289 --> 00:20:37.650
You know, it kind of surprised me that someone of his stature would be ironing his own clothes that way.

00:20:37.890 --> 00:20:41.329
George Wallace, George Wallace is an amazing guy.

00:20:41.490 --> 00:20:47.170
Uh met George Wallace for the first time in Kansas City at a place called Stanfords and Sons.

00:20:47.410 --> 00:20:50.450
And uh George Wallace is so fucking cool, man.

00:20:50.609 --> 00:20:52.210
He uh sent word down.

00:20:52.369 --> 00:20:57.170
He was up in the uh green room upstairs at the comedy club that I didn't even know existed.

00:20:57.410 --> 00:20:58.450
So he sent for me.

00:20:58.529 --> 00:21:01.250
He said, send me a feature act up here to meet me.

00:21:01.490 --> 00:21:07.650
So I went up there and talked to George and he had all this soul food, like huge platters of soul food.

00:21:07.809 --> 00:21:09.890
And he he wanted me to eat some.

00:21:09.970 --> 00:21:11.730
He's like, dude, eat some of this soul food.

00:21:11.809 --> 00:21:13.490
I'm like, George, I can't eat that right now.

00:21:13.569 --> 00:21:15.650
I'm about to go on stage in about five minutes.

00:21:15.890 --> 00:21:25.890
He said, Man, wherever I go in the country, these these black church women, they cook for me and they bring these platters of soul food to the show, you know, and I can never eat it all.

00:21:26.210 --> 00:21:31.410
So and uh worked with him again on uh Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen.

00:21:32.049 --> 00:21:33.250
Uh Robert Schimmel.

00:21:33.490 --> 00:21:35.970
Robert Schimmel was an awesome dude, man.

00:21:36.130 --> 00:21:41.410
Uh now Robert Schimmel's Jewish, and we worked together in Dayton, Ohio.

00:21:41.730 --> 00:21:49.250
And as a black comic, people come up and tell you the most racist ass jokes and think that you'll find them funny.

00:21:49.569 --> 00:21:57.250
So one night after a show, this guy comes up and just told me the most racist fucking joke, and uh he walked away.

00:21:57.329 --> 00:22:01.170
And Robert Schimmel was so he was madder than I was because I'm used to it.

00:22:01.410 --> 00:22:02.930
Schimmel was steamy.

00:22:03.089 --> 00:22:05.809
He looked at me like, does that shit happen all the time?

00:22:06.049 --> 00:22:07.970
I'm like, yeah, pretty much.

00:22:09.089 --> 00:22:11.890
But yeah, he Robert Schimmel was a really good dude too.

00:22:12.849 --> 00:22:25.170
You were raised in a home that you know was really an advocate during the heart of the civil rights movement for civil rights and human rights in a city that you know where it was all real.

00:22:25.329 --> 00:22:29.890
As you go around the country and you you do a national act, I understand.

00:22:30.130 --> 00:22:34.930
Um do you see places like Flint or is Flint unique in some way?

00:22:35.170 --> 00:22:46.769
Or do you uh now there are other industrial cities like Flint, but I I have to say Flint is very unique in the fact that uh I don't know, there's just a sense of humor that's different here.

00:22:47.089 --> 00:22:59.009
And I will say this about Flint, even though we had that time in the 60s where things were bad, um, we're in a place right now, especially after the water crisis, where race isn't an issue anymore.

00:22:59.170 --> 00:23:01.490
People don't care about race around here anymore.

00:23:01.730 --> 00:23:05.730
We're we're we're we're trying to survive as a whole community.

00:23:05.890 --> 00:23:12.769
And you might be somewhere else in the country and somebody might yell a racial epithet at you, but they yell something else at you here.

00:23:12.849 --> 00:23:14.769
It's not about race and Flint anymore.

00:23:15.410 --> 00:23:17.329
That's the cool thing I find about Flint.

00:23:17.809 --> 00:23:20.609
Yeah, there's also a sense of activism in this city.

00:23:20.769 --> 00:23:22.769
I mean, it's part of the DNA of Flint.

00:23:22.930 --> 00:23:28.289
I mean, people get here, they get pissed, they don't just start walking away and say that's too bad, or I'm sorry to bother you.

00:23:28.529 --> 00:23:29.410
No, they'll fight.

00:23:29.650 --> 00:23:30.369
They fight.

00:23:30.529 --> 00:23:31.890
Yeah, they did.

00:23:32.049 --> 00:23:37.410
Yeah, that's that's another thing about Flint is uh we're a town full of fighters, man.

00:23:37.569 --> 00:23:44.529
And the other thing I love about Flint art is that we can talk about Flint, we don't let other people that aren't from here talk about it.

00:23:44.609 --> 00:23:48.529
You you can't live out in Holly and talk shit about Flint, you'll get your ass fucked up.

00:23:48.690 --> 00:23:49.569
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:23:50.049 --> 00:23:53.089
Somebody somebody else told me exactly in those words the same thing.

00:23:53.250 --> 00:23:53.970
Rico Phillips.

00:23:54.130 --> 00:23:57.890
I don't know if you know Rico, but Rico Phillips is an interesting guy.

00:23:58.049 --> 00:23:59.009
Oh, the fireman?

00:23:59.569 --> 00:24:05.089
The fireman, and now he works as a diversity, he's a diversity director for the Ontario Hockey League.

00:24:05.329 --> 00:24:06.769
Yeah, yeah, I'm Hiptor Rico.

00:24:07.089 --> 00:24:08.849
Yeah, we don't play that shit, man.

00:24:09.490 --> 00:24:13.250
I was at the Holly Hotel once, and this lady was steaming.

00:24:13.410 --> 00:24:21.009
She comes upstairs and she tells one of the owners, she's like, that comic down there is talking about Flint and she's ripping it to do ass.

00:24:21.089 --> 00:24:25.009
And she looked at him very calmly and was like, Well, he pays his taxes there.

00:24:25.089 --> 00:24:27.809
I think if anyone can talk about Flint, it would be him.

00:24:29.250 --> 00:24:29.809
So yeah.

00:24:30.210 --> 00:24:31.970
So we did lose the Holly Hotel.

00:24:32.049 --> 00:24:33.970
What what impact does that have on comedy?

00:24:34.130 --> 00:24:36.769
They've had comedy out there for a long time, haven't they?

00:24:37.009 --> 00:24:38.049
Oh, yeah, God.

00:24:38.210 --> 00:24:43.890
I uh one of the first comedy stages I was ever on was on was probably Holly Hotel.

00:24:44.049 --> 00:24:46.609
Yeah, I I lost an August date there.

00:24:46.849 --> 00:24:51.329
Yeah, Holly was uh significant in uh comedy around here.

00:24:51.410 --> 00:24:54.529
I mean, you know, people like Tim Allen performed there.

00:24:54.769 --> 00:24:57.730
There was a guy from Florida uh named Jerry Elliott.

00:24:57.809 --> 00:25:00.450
He was very popular at the time, used to come up here.

00:25:00.529 --> 00:25:02.930
But yeah, Holly was everything to comedy.

00:25:03.170 --> 00:25:05.970
Yeah, you know, I had another friend that lost a gig there too.

00:25:06.130 --> 00:25:12.049
Uh Mustard's Retreat, Dave Timolovich and Libby Glover, who's a southwestern grad, uh, were supposed to play there.

00:25:12.289 --> 00:25:17.410
They were all jack jacked up, excited about it now that the pandemic's over and lost their gig.

00:25:17.569 --> 00:25:25.089
Um I did I did actually uh they booked me uh back when they started up again, and I actually did get a date in there.

00:25:25.170 --> 00:25:30.529
And uh if you ever get the chance, they uh they've redone the basement where the comedy club is.

00:25:30.609 --> 00:25:33.569
It is the one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

00:25:33.730 --> 00:25:34.049
Wow.

00:25:34.289 --> 00:25:36.529
So it'll be fabulous when they fix it.

00:25:36.849 --> 00:25:43.890
Who are some of the who are some of the up-and-coming comedians in the Flint area, if if you could give us a couple names?

00:25:44.210 --> 00:25:48.930
Uh man, there's a lot of people that do comedy around here.

00:25:49.089 --> 00:26:00.769
Um not I can't say of anyone really that's doing it on this level that I do it at, but there's definitely a uh underground scene taking place here.

00:26:00.930 --> 00:26:04.450
And I couldn't tell you any names right off the uh top of my head.

00:26:04.529 --> 00:26:07.809
But yeah, there's a lot of people trying to break in around here.

00:26:08.049 --> 00:26:12.369
I mean, what what was the moment that you decided, you know, I think I really want to be a comedian?

00:26:12.450 --> 00:26:16.930
I think I really want to So for me it was all about acting for a long time.

00:26:17.170 --> 00:26:24.849
And a good friend of mine, uh Tony Ennis, who was an actor, uh comedian friend of mine, and actually grew up a block away from me.

00:26:24.930 --> 00:26:30.210
I was on Little C, he was on Shallan, and he was actually my brother's age, four years older than me.

00:26:30.369 --> 00:26:33.730
So I had heard that uh Tony was doing some comedy things.

00:26:33.809 --> 00:26:40.289
Uh he was with a comedy troupe, and uh he came to speak to us at Southwestern when I was still in high school.

00:26:40.450 --> 00:26:42.849
Uh came and spoke at in my English class.

00:26:43.009 --> 00:26:48.690
One of my favorite teachers, Mary Earling, was my English teacher, and he came in to speak to us.

00:26:48.849 --> 00:26:50.849
So he kind of planted the scene then.

00:26:51.009 --> 00:26:57.650
So we ended up doing a play together in 1981 at McCree Theater, a play called The Mighty Gents.

00:26:57.890 --> 00:27:01.490
Uh, I was the protagonist and Tony Ennis was the antagonist.

00:27:01.650 --> 00:27:04.529
And after a rehearsal, sometime we would go down to Doobies.

00:27:04.769 --> 00:27:06.529
You remember Doobies downtown?

00:27:06.849 --> 00:27:07.089
Yeah.

00:27:07.410 --> 00:27:10.289
So Doobies used to have a Monday open mic night.

00:27:10.369 --> 00:27:13.089
And we used to go down there and hang out, have a few drinks.

00:27:13.250 --> 00:27:16.289
And one night, Tony looked at me, he's like, Man, you're funny, Brian.

00:27:16.369 --> 00:27:17.809
Why don't you go up and do some stand-up?

00:27:18.210 --> 00:27:20.529
And I'm like, Yeah, why not?

00:27:20.769 --> 00:27:26.609
So I went on stage and just off the top of my head started doing some things and they liked it.

00:27:26.769 --> 00:27:30.930
So I started coming back weekly, and that kind of wet my whistle, man.

00:27:31.009 --> 00:27:37.170
I always thought I was just gonna be an actor, but then uh I'd always liked comedy, but I didn't know if I could do it professionally.

00:27:37.329 --> 00:27:44.049
But when I saw uh Tony as his friends making some money doing it as a troupe, I'm like, yeah, I can do stand-up, I can make some money.

00:27:44.210 --> 00:27:46.609
So that's what uh made me get into it.

00:27:46.849 --> 00:27:56.450
Now Flynn has had uh a history of having some some people who who made their way to the to the big screen and also uh to stage.

00:27:56.529 --> 00:28:00.049
Uh and they've had some famous and maybe not even so famous.

00:28:00.210 --> 00:28:01.809
Wendell Harris is one.

00:28:01.890 --> 00:28:04.049
Uh Andre Bernhard.

00:28:04.289 --> 00:28:04.849
Yeah.

00:28:05.089 --> 00:28:08.130
Uh and I think of some of those back in the day.

00:28:08.289 --> 00:28:13.329
Uh, but your reputation as an actor in Flint, I mean, that's what I thought you did.

00:28:13.650 --> 00:28:14.529
It it is.

00:28:14.690 --> 00:28:27.970
Uh, but then uh, like I said, back in 1981, uh, I kind of shifted gears and uh was doing a lot of acting and uh wasn't as good at stand-up as I wanted to be.

00:28:28.210 --> 00:28:32.769
So I'm the kind of person that has to focus on something to get really good at it.

00:28:32.849 --> 00:28:41.170
So I kind of pulled back on acting some and started hitting the road doing the comedy thing and get getting my 10,000 hours in.

00:28:41.809 --> 00:28:45.650
Like flying a plane, yeah, you have so many hours.

00:28:46.210 --> 00:28:48.130
Get good, you gotta have those hours, man.

00:28:48.210 --> 00:28:52.369