Arts & Leisure
Laugh out loud: Maine comic Bob Marley coming to York
By Melissa Wood
Bob Marley
YORK BEACH - When Bob Marley got up to deliver the eulogy at his father's funeral, he eyed the room, the audience, and the first thing that popped into his head was, "this is a crappy setup."
The comedian can't help constantly finding humor in everyday life, no matter what the situation.
"That's how my brain always works," he said. "I don't even try."
Marley, a Maine native who has appeared on all the late-night shows and recently starred in his own special on Comedy Central, brings his standup to Inn On The Blues on Sunday, April 15, for two shows.
"I look for jokes about situations that everyone can relate to," he said. "My thought is standup comedy is people just kind of commiserating with each other."
In May, Marley will celebrate 16 years as a comedian. Originally from Bangor, Marley lived in Boston, Mass., for two years, then Los Angeles, Calif., for 10, but is now back in his home state, living with his wife and three children - ages 6 and 3 years and 4 months.
"I always tell people that I miss Los Angeles," he said, "but I don't miss it near enough as I missed Maine when I lived in Los Angeles."
Marley said most of his family - from his children to his elderly grandmother - still live in the state, providing an abundant source of material for jokes.
"Do you ever lie to your kids because you don't want to get off the couch?" asked Marley.
He said his daughter recently asked him for carrot sticks, not a cookie, so he couldn't automatically say no.
He told her that "carrot sticks are bad for you."
He joked that his grandmother asked for a ride to Shaw's supermarket the night before a big snowstorm, and he told her the store had burned down. She asked which one, and told her all of them.
"I think it was those Hannaford brothers," he told her.
Marley said some situations make him angry at first, but then he'll start to think it would be a good thing to talk about in his routine.
For example, his wife got her car stuck in the snow in the driveway. He was inside watching television, heard the spinning wheels and so turned the television volume up higher.
He eventually went out to help her. She asked him whether to put it in reverse while he was pushing from the back. He told her to take her Debbie Gibson cassette out.
"Is it just me, or does the person driving the vehicle become retarded?" he asked.
He called his wife one of the funniest people he's ever met.
"My wife and I laugh hysterically at each other all the time," he said.
Marley said he doesn't travel as much now as he used to but is still on the road about 10 to 12 weeks a year. The many places he's performed include Canada, China, Switzerland and Iraq, to do a show for the troops. His first TV special, "Comedy Central Presents Bob Marley," premiered in February. He's been in two movies and 100 television shows.
He enjoys the type of fame where he is well recognized, even if people are not sure exactly who he is. A couple recently walked by him at the airport and the woman asked, "Are you somebody?"
Marley told them that "everybody is somebody."
He is well-known in Maine, something his six-year-old daughter doesn't always understand when people approach to get an autograph or take his photo at the supermarket. When he tried to explain that he is a comedian, she had a more impressive career to relate: her friend's father works at Poland Springs.
"She's, like, 'O.K. Wow. Do you know what my friend Gabe's father does? He makes water,'" Marley said.
His daughter is starting to understand a little better after flipping through the television channels and seeing her dad on both Comedy Central and VH-1.
"She's watching 'Dora the Explorer,' then all of a sudden I show up," said Marley.
She got to see what he did up close at a recent show where he brought the Cumberland Fair to life onstage, complete with cows, goats, a fried dough stand and a giant inflatable slide, which he slid down to start the show. His daughter asked to join him on the slide, and they did a couple of test runs during rehearsal earlier in the day. However, that night when they got on the slide, she was surprised to see 2,000 people in the audience below.
"Oh my God, Dad," she had said, squeezing his hand tight. "What do these people want with us?"
Show times at Inn on the Blues are 6 and 8 p.m. and tickets are $20. With 70 tickets already sold, the shows are expected to sell out fast. Call 351-3221 or order online at www.innontheblues.com.
