If you saw comedian Tammy Pescatelli on NBC's Last Comic Standing, it's easy to understand why she feels she's being typecast. "Yes, I am Sicilian, but that's not my whole act," she insists. "I asked [producers], Why did you edit it like that? They said, 'We want to make you the funny Tony Soprano.' And I'm like, he cuts people's heads off!"
Still, she's grateful for last summer and fall's TV exposure. "It was the best experience of my life. You just try to focus on [the fun] and not the traumatic aspects of it." After graduating from Kent State University with a degree in fashion design a decade ago, Pescatelli inadvertently launched her stand-up career while visiting her parents in Chicago. She was talked into participating at a comedy club open-mic night sponsored by a local radio station. "I won the contest," she says, "and the next week they offered me a morning show."
Fashion, however, still plays a part in Pescatelli's life: She writes the Fashion Police column for US Weekly. "My mom and dad are glad about that," she says. "They feel they didn't waste that money on my education." Pescatelli performs at 8 p.m. Tuesday through January 2 at the Improv, 2000 Sycamore Street. Tickets are $16 to $25; call 216-696-4677. -- P. F. Wilson
Barbin' and Weavin'
Stand-up night hits hard.
TUE 12/28
Guy Ritchie's heist flick Snatch inspired five Northeast Ohio comedians to dub their routines Gypsy Boxing. "[Brad Pitt and his gang] are into match-fixing, and they travel around and beat the shit out of each other," explains Lakewood comic John Wellington. If people show up at the comics' gigs expecting something like that, they'll be disappointed, says Wellington, "Because it's a joke. None of us can really fight." Every other Tuesday since September, Wellington and four other stand-up comics have been making funny about their wives and kids. "It's odd, because people will go see an amateur band," he says. "But it's like pulling teeth to go watch young comedians." It runs 9 to 10:30 p.m. Tuesday at Parnell's Pub, 2167 Lee Road in Cleveland Heights. Admission is free; call 216-321-3469. -- Cris Glaser
