Whose routine reigned supreme? In the first Iron Comic show, it was Sean Keane who triumphed, with magical material about Wynton and Branford Marsalis, disgusting excuses for missing work, and a joke about ethnic food that suggested that, if you think the term "Indian restaurant" is an antiquated term for a place that serves Native American cuisine, it might be less than polite to try and make a "reservation". More detailed summaries of my winning routine are available via email or a tedious, awkward face-to-face conversation with me.

I won a certificate and a CD called, How To Become Funnier Than You Really Are. I haven't listened to it yet, which might explain why I am really not quite as funny as I am.

The second "Iron Comic" competition was won by Alex Koll. I was rocking 50 Mason that night, strep throat-style, so I missed the show, but Alex Koll has always been quite funny when I've seen him perform in the past. He's also a man of science, at least when it comes to retail dust masks, and I really respect that.

The Third Iron Comic show happens on Friday, April 7th, at the Make-Out Room in SF. Mr. Koll and I will be judging the competition, and performing feature sets while the Iron Comics frantically scribble jokes. They only get ten minutes per topic, this time. I won my event under the 20-minutes-per-topic rules, which makes me feel like a basketball player who won the NCAA title before they had a shot clock, or an old-timey baseball player from the days when it took four strikes before you were out.

The lineup is amazing, with the excellent Nato Green hosting, and five rock-solid comedians competing for the prestigious Iron Comic crown. In Donnie Brasco parlance, they're all friends of mine, though I'd venture that Brent Weinbach and Nico Santos are friends of ours.

After the jump, the official promotional information:

Date: Apr 7, 2006 07:30 PM

Hosted By:
Nato Green

When:
Friday Apr 07, 2006
at 7:30 PM

Where:
The Make-Out Room
3225 22nd St.
San Francisco, CA 94110
US

$7, 21+
Whose routine reigns supreme?

Iron Comic is a live gameshow where 5 comedians rush to write a routine in 10 minutes from topics suggested by the audience. At the end of the night, an Iron Comic will be chosen. Inspired by Iron Chef, each comic is forced to craft jokes while the clock is ticking.

Featuring:
Jacob Sirof, who has worked with the likes of Greg Behrendt and Robin Williams.
Brent Weinbach, who the Washington Post said "awed the audience" at the Aspen Comedy Arts Festival.
Gretchen Rootes, who performs all the time at Cobb's, the Punchline, and Pepperbelly's in Fairfield.
W Kamau Bell, who recently opened for Dave Chappelle, and has been on Comedy Central.
Nico Santos, of the Punchline and one of the funniest people I know,

While the Iron Comics are busy writing we'll have featured comedians entertain the audience. The judges and featured performers will be past winners of Iron Comic, Alex Koll and Sean Keane.