“TV Loop Guy” 42+ TV Shows & More! Stan Sellers
This weeks show features an interview and comedy set by Stan Sellers. Stan is a terrific Standup Comic who appeared regularly at my clubs, he has made several TV & Movie appearances; but also made a good living as a “Group Loop” guy…learn more by listening to his interview. And of course, we follow that with a nice comedy set taped live on stage from 1992….Enjoy!
Support the show (https://www.buymeacoffee.com/yourhostandmc)
Podcast Transcript:
Announcer:
This is another episode of stand up comedy, your host and emcee, celebrating 40 plus years on the fringe of show business, stories, interviews and comedy sets from the famous and not so famous. Here’s your host and emcee Scott and words.
Scott Edwards:
Hi, and welcome to this week’s show. Man, we have a treat for you. I know I say that all the time. But I’m so happy to be able to interview this next gentleman, not only a longtime friend and comic entertainer that worked laughs unlimited many times, but a brilliant actor. He’s been in lots of TVs and movies. We’ll talk about that. Ladies and gentlemen, now from Los Angeles, California. Stan Sellars. Wow, the crowd goes wild. Stan, it’s great to hear your voice. Thanks so much for joining us on the podcast today.
Stan Sellers:
It’s good to hear your voice. How’s everything?
Scott Edwards:
You know, we’re doing well. I do miss being a part of the entertainment industry in my kind of semi retirement stage. But this podcast is allowing me to reconnect with great comics and friends like you. And it’s really a thrill to have you on the phone. That just to catch the podcast listeners up. You start off as a stand up comic, originally out of DC, right. Washington DC
Stan Sellers:
as my hometown. Yep. And I go ahead.
Scott Edwards:
No, you go ahead. Tell us how you got started.
Stan Sellers:
Oh, I, I was in the theater in DC way, way back in the day. I was doing a semi professional theater. When I was started when I was 16. Wow. I had within a theater group called back alley theatre started by a lady named Naomi, who started it after the 68 riots. And I had just gotten lucky. And you know, I’ve probably with them for about two years doing every play, they put up for two years. I wanted to go to New York and extend my career. But I didn’t know anybody there, enrolled in university, Maryland. Unfortunately, I didn’t want to go there. But I was doing some playwriting too. And I’d written this play called very much alive. It was like a variety show. And it had sketches. It had a couple of songs. And I mean, it was all over the place. And I didn’t know.
Scott Edwards:
Well, this is fascinating. I don’t know that much about your past because I met you as already as a stand up comic. And what’s interesting as compared to some of the other stand up comics we’ve interviewed on the show, a couple of them have been very successful as actors, but you’ve appeared in over 42 movies and TV shows, definitely an accomplished actor. And I didn’t realize that went back to your you know, age 1617. How did that doing plays, transfer into doing stand up? Or was it from that show you were just mentioning that you wrote?
Stan Sellers:
It was? Because you remember back in the day variety shows Tonight Show all those shows started off with a monologue Saturday Night Live. They all started off with somebody coming out doing a monologue where they show this play that I’ve written. I had an opening monologue. I can’t remember what it was about. But there was a sorority on campus. It was going to university, Maryland, the black smoke sorority, Delta Sigma Theta they were putting on their annual talent show. And I entered doing that monologue. And I got second place. Wow. So I wouldn’t say I was hooked. But I thought I had something the second year I went back and I did another monologue. This time I did it about being on campus. And just campus life being students got huge laughs also got second place in and I figured I might have something so went to a local jazz club. They had an open mic, and it was called Get clubs called Pigfoot. Owned by pianists jazz piano surely on the open mic, but it was mainly for musicians, but I wanted to get up anyway. And I remember standing on side of the stage and the guy was asking what do you do sign? A comedian. Oh, hey, we got we got a we got a Dick Gregory here, ladies and gentlemen. What’s your name?
Scott Edwards:
No, in the past Yeah.
Stan Sellers:
And he couldn’t get my name right when you come up on stage and tell them what you do and give them your name. And I didn’t do well that night. But I had a cousin who lived in LA. And Harry told me to come out to LA. And he said, Look, they got comedy clubs out here. You can act you can do everything you want in LA. Make sense? Oh, I moved to LA in January of 79. And I couldn’t get on the Comedy Store because you had to be 21 hours. It is time. But I did get on at the Comedy Store in Westwood. They had a smaller club there, just south of Wilshire Boulevard on Westwood. Knew it well. Yeah, I used to get up there like every week at the open mic. And the Tim Jones young Michael Richards. Sandra Bernhard was getting their groove on Lotus Weinstock with huge Danny more with the house MC. Well, Byron Allen was still in high school and he was coming down to work tonight show set, killing
Scott Edwards:
funny you mentioned that club and if anybody listened to the very first podcast, I started laughs unlimited after visiting the Westwood Comedy Store as a tourist. And Matt. And I met Sandra Bernhardt. Dave cool, yay. And Dave Coulier introduced me to sag who introduced me to George Wallace. And the rest is history. I mean, really, my club and my 20 plus years as a club owner, was because of that little room, which closed a few years after that. in Westwood. I did not know I didn’t see you when I was there that night. I don’t think I was there on an open mic. I think I was there as part of the regular show. But that’s interesting. That’s where you got your start. And your cousin, I think you said was right, because being in LA, is where do you need to be for comedy. And I mean, a lot of people come out of Boston, San Francisco, New York, but you had the additional interest and experience as an actor, and I think that was a good choice for you.
Stan Sellers:
That helps, you know, I mean, certainly being in front of an audience. You know, the stage experience definitely helped when I got on stage, media. I wasn’t. I wasn’t as nervous. Right? I wasn’t as afraid.
Scott Edwards:
Now. You mentioned that you were doing the open mics and that you’d kind of tried it a couple times and bombed which is how everybody starts. When do you feel like or what year would it be that you kind of felt like you reached your stride or had a set?
Stan Sellers:
Well, I was working a job in LA when I first got here. I was working in warehouse records, and I got fired in March of 79. Plan another cut.
Scott Edwards:
Oh, really?
Stan Sellers:
Thank you. I have cousins all over the place to my cousin in San Francisco said watch come up here check out the thing. So I did. And first club I went to was the punch line down on battery. Right. And I don’t know exactly how the conversation went. But first comic I meet is Bobby Slayton, he was the house MC. Wow. We started talking in a way from Baba Baba blah, oh, he from LA would work with the Comedy Store. And I don’t remember exactly how it went after that. But I remember Bobby going to John Fox in saying John Fox alone in the club. John, this guy from LA what’s commonly thought you got to put him up? And I didn’t have a chance to qualify it. Meaning only do open mic.
Scott Edwards:
They thought you were.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, so I get up on stage and I bombed. So I didn’t get one laugh. Oh. Oh, my God. I remember coming on stage. And Bobby just kind of looked at me because with him who said, you know, put this guy up. And I didn’t tend to do well at all. I heard about this club across the way I was living up on the avenues in the sunset. And I heard about this club over in Richmond on the Richmond side. Golden Gate Park called the holy city zoo. When I went there, and I did well had a great segue got my confidence back and Tony DePaul, who was the everything man at the club. He was the house emcee. He ran the club. He just did everything, right. Yeah, so Tony says, you from DC. I said, Yeah. He said, I’m from DC. Anytime you want to come up, just come down. So I started going to Zoo for five nights a week.
Scott Edwards:
You must run in Carvey and Robin Williams and number of people
Unknown:
robbing Jack Marion, Bob. Got Claire Sterling, a lot
Scott Edwards:
of guys got their start there. And for those of you in the podcast audience, the holy city zoo, going back to the late 70s and early 80s was maybe 18 to 24 seats in this little hole in the wall and the stage was maybe four foot square. And what I always thought was funny was they had the second level, and there was like two chairs up on a little riser. I mean, not a riser, but like a balcony. up in the balcony. Yeah. But it was like two people.
Unknown:
Yeah, and it was dark inside that club. It was it was like I wouldn’t don’t See if it was wood. It’s almost like they had railroad ties for the floor. It was dark
Scott Edwards:
and very rustic. And I think that was one of the charms of the zoo and other early clubs. Now a lot of people don’t realize comedy was being done before these days, but it was more of a filler for strip joints or jazz clubs. And it was in the late 70s, that a couple actual comedy rooms, the punch line was more like your Cadillac of locations, but that there’s not there weren’t very many of those. Even the Comedy Store on Sunset was a pretty junky looking place when you walked in. Everything was dark, and these big billowy booths, you know, without a purple fake leather. And, you know, I mean, there was nothing really nice about them. The punch line was nice in San Francisco, but mostly other clubs. Were I remember the other cafe. I mean, there was a stage in front of a giant pane glass window.
Stan Sellers:
Right? Yeah. The other was a much to look at either. Yeah.
Scott Edwards:
While you’re entertaining, traffic’s going by and people are peeking in the window at the audience. I mean, talk about a distraction.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, there was a guy in North Beach named Lenny Lerner. He opened Lenny Lerner’s comedy cloud that before it was that it was a secondhand clothing store. And basically he carved out a stage in the back. To use clothing. You get to the back, but it smelled like used clothing, you know,
Scott Edwards:
oh, jeez. Well, that reminds me when I first opened my first room, it was in the banquet room of a restaurant. So I mean, it looked like a banquet room and had chandelier is a lot of poles. I literally threw up a little riser, and had a black curtain in the back. And that was the whole thing. When I opened. When I moved over to the firehouse alley location, I had a chance to design that room from the ground up. And it was a I think a premier Comedy Club, low ceiling, to level seating for the audience. Everybody was right up to the stage. So good interaction, but it is interesting. The clubs could be very rustic in the zoo would top that list
Stan Sellers:
of a zoo. Yeah. But it was it was home it was it was a workout room when the punch line was sort of a performance space. He always felt you had to be on your A game, but the zoo. You know, we were all there working out. We were all there trying to figure it out. So it was a great time to be there was a great spot to be in. And like I said, Tony put me up, you know, four or five times a week, you kind of go down and hang out and he’d look up and see was a room and say standing under five minutes. Okay. You do five, I’ll do five. And then I’ll bring up Robin. And you know what, I was gonna do two hours. No, yeah, it was great space. Yeah. I mean, I would get out of the zoo. You know, people would come in and watch the comics and you know, hire you for their gig. There was a guy named Gideon, who was he was a cowboy racing open Oakland. And he would, you know, get comics to come over and open up for him for like, 50 bucks. And, you know, so we were starting to get paid, you know? 79
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, he was open. Now. I opened up a 1980. Do you recall? I don’t recall. I apologize. Do you remember how you ended up at laughs? Oh, yeah.
Stan Sellers:
I had. Actually, I had stopped doing stand up sort of kindness, because I didn’t think there was any money in it. But I was working at Bank of America and Hollywood. And I forget Tim Jones and John Coffey came in to comics that I known, and they cash their checks from the road. And they will make more in a week than I made in a month. In 1819 86, I quit my job at the bank, and I started showcasing for clubs, and I came up to Stockton and showcase for you. And Danny Moore was working that weekend. I think Bob really may have been working with them. But I remembered anymore. I was working that weekend. And yeah, it was either some positive it was 86 I believe it was October of 86.
Scott Edwards:
Well, you quickly became one of our regular acts. Not only a great guy to work with a nice guy, which always makes it nice, but you are funny and available. And I believe for a while there. You were working all three clubs two or three times a year.
Unknown:
Yep. I was Yeah. Just stocked in in birdcage. And then we’d come downtown. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, twice a year for a while.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, that’s it when I found a good solid entertainer, like you are Bob Marley and some of the people who many mentioned Jimmy burns. I would bring them in regularly because I wanted to build up that recognition. So that when I put out a flyer saying, hey, Stan Sellars was coming people go, Oh, I remember seeing him. He’s really funny and they’ll grab their friends and bring them down to kind of show off the talent. And I think that worked for the success of the club. Now you work there for several years. Was there any special moments or stories that came out of it?
Unknown:
Ah, I thought you’d never ask. Yeah, and I guarantee you don’t remember these. But in order, I won’t say. Yeah, well, I’ll just go in order. Well, the first one was fire. firehouse. Yeah. firehouse alley, firehouse alley, over Jerry Seinfeld. Oh, cool. Yeah, Seinfeld, you know, of course, back in the day, he was one of the big comics like Leno and they, you know, travel the country doing one nighters. When you came into Sacramento. He was doing a Saturday night. I was working that week with Danny Johnson. And I went up and open getting medals and Jerry went up and did probably an hour and a half. So
Scott Edwards:
wow, that’s a great experience, especially for a stand up to work. I mean, Danny’s No, slacker either. That’s a strong. Oh,
Stan Sellers:
yeah, that was good show. Second one. And in fact, I had three of my best moments in comedy.
Scott Edwards:
Hey, great to hear.
Stan Sellers:
It was the second one. I opened for Elaine Boosler
Scott Edwards:
She’s genius.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, yeah. You booked that show? Of course I did. And it wasn’t at the club. It was an I couldn’t remember where it was. I don’t know, some civic auditorium or something like that. Is there an opera house there?
Scott Edwards:
Oh, you were part? Yes. You You did one of the concerts I was doing Yes. At the community center theater. And Elaine boozers, one of the funniest comedians ever. Yes. Not really a household name for the average person. But if you’re an entertainment, you know her.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah. Back in the day, she was a strong, very strong comedian, you know, that you’d see on probably every talk show, right? You know, every talk show. Yeah, she was doing them all tonight. Show you name and she was on it. So yeah, she was a strong, strong performer. I remember meeting her beforehand. And I think I did about cheese. I don’t think I did. Maybe seven minutes. I don’t think I did. 10 minutes. So yeah, but it was a good set to be in that space in front of a huge audience.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, that that was a real treat to get in front of those because we always had they were always sold out. And it was a I think it was a 2800 seats in the in that theater. And so you met two great entertainers.
Unknown:
Yep. And here’s the third. I was working a week with Dave quit. Not put him in Bob. Second. I remember him telling Jill talk about two of them working together. Well, this was just a quick. And this was quite a few years after full house and got off the air. Well, I think they was working. He may have been working Friday and Saturday. And I was supposed to work the normal week, which I think was Tuesday through Sunday.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, back in those days. We did a full week. Only Mondays we were dark.
Unknown:
Yeah. Well, I was late coming up that week. I think I learned nothing. But I came up on Thursday because I had just shot an episode of VR. And not only that, but the episode that I filmed of Seinfeld, probably two or three months before that aired that Thursday. So I get up there on Thursday. And here’s my intro from you. You know, this guy was late coming up, because he just filmed an episode of er, and if you take Seinfeld, he’s on Seinfeld tonight. So that was huge man. I had to fresh credits. No offense to Dave, you know, he already had his thing. But mine were much newer than his that we
Scott Edwards:
talked about showing up the star. Oh, man.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, I mean, that was that was probably, you know, my best week on stage. You know, I mean, just as far as you know, intros and not having, you know,
Scott Edwards:
and I’m sure it didn’t bother Dave at all. He was always very confident in his own success. And he went on to co host America’s Funniest videos and many other things. But that’s interesting that in before introducing Dave QA, from Full House here, here’s a guy that was just on ER and the Seinfeld show.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, yeah.
Scott Edwards:
Well, that’s a great transition because it is true that even though you were working my club a lot in the early 90s, and ever since you became a really solid actor in Hollywood, doing drugs. pins in staff 42 appearances in TV and movies mostly TV, right, Stan? Yeah. Yeah. And you mentioned a couple of er, Seinfeld, friends. But the one that really caught my eye was West Wing. In fact, Jill and I are watching the series for like the third time because we think it’s the best writing ever in the history of TV. And the fact that you were on West Wing is just such a feather in your cap. That must have been really exciting.
Stan Sellers:
Oh, it’s huge. Yeah, I had a scene with? Well, most of the shows I’ve been on, I’ve really only get a couple lines here a few shows that I’ve been on where I have more than one scene, but all good. That’s not a complaint. And
Scott Edwards:
it’s a living.
Unknown:
Yeah, exactly. And for the West Wing, my scene was with John Spencer, who couldn’t have been a nicer man. He’d been in the business forever. He’s seen it done at all. extremely professional, no ego, you walk on the set, and he just wants to talk.
Scott Edwards:
He plays, he plays the director for the president at the on this show. And a very, like you said, a very well accomplished actor in his own right. And I saw the scene that you worked with him and you’re sitting right by side by side giving out some statistics. And I just think the way they shot in wrote that show, made it a standout in television history. I mean, other people would argue with me, but we really enjoy it.
Stan Sellers:
I don’t think anybody would argue with the writing. I mean, it’s not like it was a one off for whoever that guy who wrote the show knows Aaron Sorkin, who went on to write who had written some great things before that, and has since gone on to write
Scott Edwards:
more great things. Yeah. Now you’ve been on a lot of different shows. And you mentioned it was a joy to be on West Wing. Tell us a quick story about acting when you go on ER, Seinfeld are one of these other shows. Is there any that really stood out that were extra fun for you?
Stan Sellers:
No, they’re all. I think they’re all fun. Seinfeld was fun. It was the second season. No one had an ego at that time. It was a late night shoot. We were all just sitting around talking. Michael Richards. Funny thing. He and I just sort of hit it off for a moment. And then I mentioned to him that we used to work the Comedy Store way back in the day. And Quincy didn’t remember me, but I remembered some of his been telling you about some of the crazy kids
Scott Edwards:
he used to do. I bet he loved that.
Unknown:
Yeah, yeah. So I had a good I had a upcoming parents at the Ice House two or three days later. And the guy who plays Newman and a couple other guys came out to see me they said on the set, they would love to see me but the effect
Scott Edwards:
is, well, that’s nice.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, no, I don’t think any of them really stand out. You know, it’s, you know, when you’re going into audition, you’re one of, you know,
Scott Edwards:
maybe I was gonna ask for the
Unknown:
one, whatever. And then when you book the part, you’re, you’re extremely lucky to book apart. So
Scott Edwards:
Well, I was gonna say for those out there that maybe are actor wannabes or something or think it’s easy to be an actor. If you’ve done 42 appearances, how many? I would guess 1000s of showcase or interviews or, you know, what’s it take to get seen and known and be able to do these kinds of shows.
Stan Sellers:
You know, for me, it was representation. I booked most of my job during a period when I had I was represented by a little lady who I used to say was uh, she was about four foot five and when she got her hair piece on Thursdays for the weekend, she was about 511
Scott Edwards:
Big hair was in at the time.
Unknown:
Yeah, she was just an older woman who had been in the business for years and but she had a stable she had a group of actors in a stable that were just all character actors and just to go out and book so I got with her. Naturally my confidence went through the roof. And I just started booking because I knew that I was a part of a first stable and she trusted me she felt that I was good enough to be with her. Look also
Scott Edwards:
you may not you may not have had to showcase as many or is maybe somebody off the street you you had somebody kind of setting it up so they only sent you on stuff you fit for.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, she would. The quality of shows change when I got without she Yeah, that’s what I started auditioning for. I’m auditioning for shows, let’s say the top 20. In the Nielsen rating. Wow.
Scott Edwards:
Well, yeah. Yeah. And all the shows you mentioned everybody’s heard of er, Seinfeld. Yeah, West Wing friends. I mean, I mean, there’s not a slacker in there. So you did a lot. Now, I did a little extra research. And I don’t know if this is of interest to anybody but me, but I find it interesting. I also know that you made part of your living doing some like Foley work voiceover work is? Is that something that was a big part of your career? And how did you get that?
Stan Sellers:
Well, actually, that’s been my day job for the last 26 years.
Scott Edwards:
No way.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, yeah, way. Yep. I long, long, long, long story short. My kids born 9496 96. My wife said, You can’t keep doing a stand up thing. And some, I had a small part on NYPD Blue Edition for black men number two, seriously. And I didn’t qualify. I didn’t get it. So it was a during the show that a riot takes place. And they wanted a couple guys that stand in front of the crowd and just yell out stuff, unscripted, GCLs stuff. And that was me and this other guy. Well, there was this thing called a loop group that they wanted me to go down. After they did post on the show. They wanted me to go down with this group and add some additional voices. I didn’t even know what it was. Yeah, I heard
Scott Edwards:
loop loop group before but I didn’t know how people I you know, like Carlos, Alice, Rocky, Dave Coulier a, there’s a number of people that you and I both know that I’ve done voiceover work for cartoons and TV commercials. But the loop group is interesting format to get found discovered in
Stan Sellers:
it. It’s vocal Foley. Yes. We basically and I say we because it is a group, we basically add all of the other voices you’ll hear on a on a TV show or film that are that are done by the principal. And we do everything from fight efforts, you know, death curdle, money taking the last breath. We do cause some courtroom scene we do mumbles and courtroom scenes, call out the prison yard, we do hand clap,
Scott Edwards:
we just be kind of fun. You don’t have you don’t that you don’t have any of the pressure of remembering lines, or how to say something in front of a big big TV or movie star. And yet you’re a key part of a feature.
Stan Sellers:
We are a key part to the sound department.
Scott Edwards:
Okay, but the salary departments a key part to the show? So are you in the same loop group? I mean, is it the same group of individuals? Or does it in each project? They put together a new group?
Stan Sellers:
Each project? It’s a different group, sometimes the group will stay with the show for the entire season. Oh, really? Yeah, sometimes it’ll change from show to show. Wow. That’s been on? I did. I was part of the group for the West Wing. For years. I did ER for years. I did. I did a number of shows for years.
Scott Edwards:
But when you’re doing but you’re doing this loop work. And and, and when for those of you that don’t know in the podcast audience fully work is basically sound effects like foot steps or applause, like you said, coughs and stuff that are only done way behind the scene in the sound department. And but I didn’t realize that the voices are part of the Foley process. And I find it fascinating. You’re not really part of the Foley process. We got it wrong. Okay. A
Unknown:
lot of people, a lot of people know Foley. So we sort of call ourselves vocal polling, but it is a number of names that we refer to it, and we refer to it, but it is mainly covering and adding additional voices. They also call it ADR which is dialogue replacement will would do if they’re replacing a word with let’s say, they call it the airplane version. A lot of swearing in a movie and they want to show the movie on an airplane, and they’ll get an actor to replace.
Scott Edwards:
So you can’t say, you know, let’s say shit on the TV show. So they’ll have somebody go, shoot, and then they edit it in. Exactly. Yeah. Wow. Okay, all right. I don’t want to put you on the spot. But give me an example of something you’ve done or that that makes You might have heard
Stan Sellers:
Oh, God.
Scott Edwards:
I mean, how about a clap?
Stan Sellers:
Here’s another thing we do, which we don’t make public a lot and that we will replace an actor’s entire vocal performance
Scott Edwards:
really quick, but don’t have to get somebody that sounds like the person. It depends.
Stan Sellers:
If we want to that I’ve done that there was a pretty big rapper, they used to make a lot of movies, he was pretty hot for a while. And however, when he would talk, he mumbled a lot. A lot of his words were just mumbled. So I had to go in on a TV episode, he did not on a movie. And I have to sound like him and replace some of his dialogue that we do. But we also let’s say you’re on the screen. And it’s usually for actors who don’t have major parts. But let’s say you’ve got two or three things. And the director doesn’t like your vote. He doesn’t like the quality of your voice. It’ll bring me in, let’s say somebody has to lose all of your life. So you got all your family and everybody sitting around the TV watching your big performance, and not your boy.
Scott Edwards:
That’s got to be strange. Wow.
Stan Sellers:
It is the actor. Yeah. But we do it all the time.
Scott Edwards:
I have two questions. First, staying with the theme. What’s it Sound Like when you want to sound like the muffled background noise? How would you do that? Like conversation? Let’s say you’re in the hospital scene, and the doctor and the patient are talking but you want some background? Light conversation, you don’t actually use real words. What would it sound like?
Unknown:
No, we do we use real words. And yeah, they’ll take the level down. So it just sounds like a mumble.
Scott Edwards:
Oh, but we’re not as much fun. I thought you don’t really
Stan Sellers:
know they used to do that years ago. They would do things like peas and carrots, peas and carrots, peas and carrots, peas and carrots.
Scott Edwards:
And then and then bring down a level. Oh, interest in? Well, that’s probably why Oh, yeah.
Stan Sellers:
No, we’re having real conversations. And here’s the other thing, when we’re depending on where you are in the scene, you will have to have research. You have to have actual words actual jargon. For wherever you are. When a hospital we have to have medical research. We can sound like doctors or patients or what have you.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, you have to be able to say, guy.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah. That FBI Police Department, legal office, wherever we are, we have to sound like me.
Scott Edwards:
I was a 28. Yeah, I get it. That’s interesting. So it’s, well, that brings me to question two. Does it pay? I mean, I know you’ve made a living for 26 years doing it. But I mean, is it is I mean, you’re not getting star pay, but you’re probably not getting scratchpay It’s got to be somewhere in the middle. Is it per gig or is it? How do they do something like that? It’s per gig. Yeah. So so let’s say er, hires you and you’re on set or in the sound department for three days. It’s it’s three days pay? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. And you were able to make a living for 26 years doing that you must have been busy. Been busy. So if you’ve been on if you’ve personally been on 42. TV and movies, TV shows and movies. Your voice has had to be on hundreds? Yeah. Quite a few. Yeah. Wow. That’s interesting. I recently interviewed Tom McTigue, and he’s had, you know, he was on several TV shows and made some movie appearances. But his claim to fame and where he made a living, was doing TV commercials and voiceover for TV commercials. TV commercials, yeah. And he said that it can be very lucrative. Once you get in, like you said, if you have the right agent, you’re getting the right. You know, like some TV commercial might run for half a year, you know, so he’d be getting paid that whole time. It’s running.
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, yep. Yep. That’s pretty much how it’s gone. Yeah.
Scott Edwards:
Wow. That’s, that’s great information. Stan. Thanks for sharing that with me.
Unknown:
Yeah, it’s and look, I wasn’t looking to do it. I remember when people would call and asked me to do voiceovers on on show that turned my nose up at it. Because it wasn’t on camera. I thought I was too good for
Scott Edwards:
a lot of work.
Stan Sellers:
There’s a lot more I can work. Let’s say I may have. I think a couple years ago I had But three on camera gigs. Well, that same Yeah, probably booked. I don’t know, over 100 Voiceover
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, yeah. So that that makes perfect sense. But what’s really fascinating and we can end on this stand is that you’ve really accomplished the trifecta of entertainment, you were able to do stage work as a stand up comic in in plays. You also were able to act. So you were able to be seen on several TV shows and movies. But you were able to take it another level and add to that triad, the voiceover work that created this, what 3040 year career?
Stan Sellers:
Yeah, yeah, that has helped sustain the career definitely,
Scott Edwards:
yeah. Put to college. Come on. That’s not that’s no small feat.
Stan Sellers:
Well, one got a scholarship.
Scott Edwards:
I just got a job instead. I’m just saying that you have been very successful. And we’ve had this conversation with a couple other entertainers, that they may not be famous in the sense that they’re a Carvey, or a Seinfeld or Leno, but they’ve had huge success in entertainment in their own way. And I think that, obviously, I hope you are very proud of what you’ve accomplished. I’m very excited. I didn’t know all the details of your life’s work. I know you as a terrific stand up comic. And I knew you’ve done some acting, but to add all these different dimensions to your talent is really fascinating. Thanks so much for sharing that with us.
Stan Sellers:
Thanks for having me. Yeah, it’s been it’s been a great ride. We’ve grown extremely good friends. manufac. Steve and I met at last. He was working with Carlos I was rocky and I think I was working with Lewis brownstone, and we got together to play basketball one afternoon, and he and I’ve been friends probably for 30 years now. And we always talk about, you know, the ride we’re on and the fun lab and then, yeah, great time.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah, well, and it’s been said a couple of times. But I think we’re all blessed to have been able to make a living in an area that not only was a business, but was also an art form. And we had a chance to be creative. And in this case, Tripoli blessed in for you. So I’m very excited that on how things turned out for you. Now I want to bring it back to stand up comedy. I’ve done a little research and I’ve got a great live set from us. And I’m going to share that with the audience. And we’ll end this podcast show with a terrific comedy set to show people that not only are you a tremendous actor and loop group guy you’re a terrific clean and funny stand up comic. Hey, Stan, it’s been a real pleasure chatting with you today. Any last words for our podcast audience?
Unknown:
No just support stand up comedy soon as we get back to that go out to a comedy club. And as much as you can and support live comedy.
Scott Edwards:
Yeah. And we mentioned that at the end of every podcast man support stand up comedy. It’s one of the last bastions for free speech and comedy entertainment always makes you feel good. Well, ladies and gentlemen, it’s been a real treat catching up with my buddy. Stan, I know you enjoyed the interview. But let’s have a little stand up comedy stand. Thanks for joining us today. Ladies and gentlemen. Here’s some stand up comedy by the one and only Stan Sellars.
Stan Sellers:
Thank you thank you so much it’s good to be here I’m from Washington DC been living in LA for a while DC think LA is a nice place to live you can find the right place to live but LA is so rough the council even warn you even walking on the street one full year so what are you going to store for what get some cigarettes you’re currently going full crime gets abandoned Ellie I’m thinking about moving to New York New York you know it’s there in Los Angeles you get fooled by the palm trees and ocean standing watching the waves come and meanwhile your car is going out. To buy bilingual city you speak English but no Spanish I’m taking Spanish lessons. As a founder speaking English slower does not sound like Spanish. You just sound like you had a medical problem. Okay? Because we’re gradually it was sometimes we think we slow down and doing some movements and body movements. Maybe don’t understand. You just won’t look like this where he did me It’s not that they don’t know what you’re saying they know what you’re saying. They just want to see how far you go. Wait, maybe he’ll dance or something. Oh gotta have a carnival in Los Angeles. First of all, it was a 69 Toyota Corolla which was really strange because they didn’t start making 73 on the freeway in Los Angeles you make the traffic report every 15 minutes. First couple times a nice about it they’ll say stall calm thirdly one on one southbound it’s got traffic back to a few miles but he ought to be out shortly. But third time it’s out of excuses. They just give us your name. Thirdly one on one southbound a Stan Sellers net radius piece of junk he lives in 6943 Feel free to stop by and kick the daylights out of it. You’re tired of driving old cars but it’s been a weird year to live in LA we start the year with floods went from the floods to the right after the right we had an earthquake. I’m just talking about malafide on I think the loop is coming next. When I first started my mother who lives in Washington DC she called me on the phone and told me to come home the world is coming to an end. So what makes you think DC is not included? I think they’d be the first to go my grandmother called me told me to LA was in the Bible. Of course he says that about everything. I said the police the job is in the Bible. She said Christ was crucified Whitney I said yeah she said we don’t LAPD my grandmother’s 85 I don’t argue with her. When I was angry when it first came on I just wasn’t angry enough take a break and throw it through the window of a Payless shoe store and grab a box of those high top and leather tennis shoes two sizes too small which of course is my theory is why the rights continued for so many days people got home took a look at what they had went back tried to get the right side these were people trying to find a match but everybody had a real good reason for being down there if you ask them some people were angry at being enslaved over 300 years ago up to 17 inch color television remote control will help them forget about personal 52 minutes in a VCR for me to get over my cut this one guy come on grocery store he said look many local grocery stores run I got kids and I’m not gonna feed my kids. My car’s broke I can’t get to another store so I think before the furniture now I won’t come down try to get some food for my kids report to say that’s beautiful man but look you got a sofa stuck to your back. So look my kids can eat on the floor personally, I think it’s nice to have a ride every now named for about a week I had no problems merging on the freeway. We did have this one ugly incident at the grocery store just to show you how people’s guilt can get out of hand when it’s Caucasian gentleman assisted and I go in front of him of course I insisted that the Korean gentleman go in front of me was from North Korea who insisted that the South Korean War in front of him this went on and on and on until the Native American person got up to the front of the line and while this was going on ice cream melted the store close we got man we looted the place but they say the less intelligent people go out Ryan loot and burn the vent their frustrations in the intellectual stay home write letters use words and both event there’s I think I fall somewhere in the middle because I went to college for two years so I stayed home wrote letter tied it to a brick
Scott Edwards:
well that was Stan Sellers. Ladies and gentlemen. Some stand up comedy from 1992. I’m sure you enjoy that and his interview. I found it really interesting hearing about the loop group and the sound Foley were just an interesting, great guy. One of the nicest guys in the business. Tremendous stand up comic. Well, thanks for listening to this week’s show. We’ll be back next Sunday with another one. Bye.
Announcer:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Stand Up Comedy your hosting MC. For information on the show merchandise and our sponsors or to send comments to Scott. Visit our website at WWW dot stand up your host and mc.com Look for more episode soon and enjoy the world of stand up comedy. Visit a comedy show room near you
Take a look at the rest of our podcast transcriptions here.