Lori Ann Rambough

9Apr2021Blogblack comedians, funny woman, Lori Ann Rambough

We Could All Use a Shot in the Arm

Ok, so you know that Sommore is a very funny woman, one of the leading Black comedians today, in our humble opinion, but this is no joke.

You need to get vaccinated against Covid-19. We all need to get vaccinated.

Why You Might Have Been Hesitant

If you’ve been hesitant, we get it. There are some good reasons to be a little reluctant to trust the medical system, especially if you are a member of the African American community. And it’s not just the Tuskegee experiments or the story of Henrietta Lacks (if you don’t know that story, you should check this out – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.).

Systemic racism isn’t limited to the justice system, people. And the medical community has a lot of work to do, but don’t let that stop you from getting the vaccine. Because you know what, Covid-19 is not an equal opportunity offender.

As the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota reports, “Studies have shown that the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affects Black people and other minorities in the United States in severity, mortality, economics, and more.”

WebMD says, “Hispanic, and Native American people are about 4 times more likely to be hospitalized and nearly 3 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than white people.

Yet African Americans have nearly the lowest rates of vaccination among any ethnic group. In fact, white Americans are being vaccinated at a rate 3 times higher than Black Americans.”

Why You Should Get the Vaccine

The best way to protect ourselves and our communities is by getting vaccinated. The science has been proven to be safe and effective. (Seriously people, do you really think all those White people would be lining up for shots, if it wasn’t?)

Studies show that people of color are slowly overcoming their hesitancy and, if you have been reluctant to get jabbed, we hope you will join them. Talk to your pastor or to the leaders in your community. If you have a personal doctor that you trust, talk to them. Ask all the questions you want and do all the research you need to feel comfortable. And then make an appointment to get your vaccine.

We aren’t going to be able to really get back to anything approaching normalcy until we win the battle against Covid-19 and the vaccine is our best tool in that fight. So, protect yourself, protect your loved ones and protect your community by getting vaccinated.

On behalf of Lori Ann Rambough, who you probably know as funny woman Sommore, and all the Black comedians who are looking forward to returning to the stage and to performing in front of live audiences, thank you for considering it.

12Mar2021Blogfemale comedians, funny women, Lori Ann Rambough, Queen of Comedy, standup comedians

Comedy Club Owner Jumps in the Ocean Every Day Until Clubs Reopen

Sommore

Standup comedians and comedy clubs go together like catsup and French fries. Not only do the stages at comedy clubs across the country offer you the chance to enjoy a night of laughs, they also offer funny women and men the opportunity to try out new material and refine their sets.

We would have said that no one was more excited about the prospect of comedy clubs reopening than Sommore, one of the country’s most loved female comedians, but then we heard about Norm Laviolette.

Making a Splash

Norm is a Massachusetts-based comedy club owner and on May 1, 2020, he made a vow to jump into the ocean every single day until his venues re-open. “I’ve made terrible choices in my life, and this is one of them,” Laviolette said when he marked his 300th dip in the surf. He was only joking, kind of.

Our hats are off to Norm, not only has he kept that vow for more than 300 days straight, but he has also turned his daily dunking into a fundraiser for out-of-work actors and artists through his non-profit No Rest For The Wicked Funny Foundation, Inc.

“My daughter challenged me to jump in the ocean by our house on May 1st. It was cold but I thought, ‘Hey, why not do this every day, raise awareness for my clubs, Improv Asylum and Laugh Boston, and give me a little routine,’” he says. “I am an idiot”.

Of course, he never dreamed he would still be jumping into the ocean when winter rolled around again.

Norm has taken the plunge dressed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Indiana Jones and Superman, among other things requested by people making donations to the cause.

Norm has raised more than $5,000 so far. As Norm notes, just about everyone has relied on TV, music, movies and books to stay sane during the pandemic. “Art and music and comedy and drama… they’re literally getting us through this nightmare,” he says. “And so many creative people are out of work and will be for the foreseeable future, I just figured I do a little something to help out.”

He doesn’t know yet when his clubs will reopen, but he is optimistic that the water will start to warm up a little bit this month.

If you would like to contribute to the cause, visit www.improvasylum.com/norest. You can follow Norm’s dunk’s online on Instagram, @beyond_the_norm_and.

And if you want to know when Lori Ann Rambough – aka Sommore, the Queen of Comedy – will make a return to the stage, keep checking in with us here.

10Feb2021Blogblack female comedians, Lori Ann Rambough, Queen of Comedy, standup comedy

The History of the Knock Knock Joke

Sommore

Sommore, one of today’s leading Black female comedians, does not include knock-knock jokes in her standup comedy routines. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t tell a few knock-knock jokes in her youth. Haven’t we all?

You know what we’re talking about, right?

Knock knock.
Who’s there?
Boo
Boo who?
Why are you crying?

These days, knock-knock jokes are pretty much considered something for the younger audiences, but there was a time when knock-knock jokes were the latest thing in humor.

The Heyday of Knock-Knock Humor

It may seem like knock-knock jokes have always existed, but there was a world that existed before they had us all groaning.

“The knock-knock joke has been a staple of American humor since the early 20th century,” NPR said in its Secret History of Knock-Knock Jokes. “With its repetitive set-up and wordplay punchline, the form has been invoked — and understood — by people of all ages and sensibilities.”

Before knock-knock jokes, NPR says people told “Do You Know” jokes. “Writing in the Oakland Tribune,” they said, “Merely McEvoy recalled that around 1900, a jokester would walk up to someone and pop a question like: “Do you know Arthur?” And the unsuspecting listener would reply, “Arthur who?” And the jokester would say “Arthurmometer!” and run off laughing.”

It kind of gives you a new appreciation of knock-knock jokes, doesn’t it?

The evolution from “Do you know?” to “Knock, knock” was complete by the 1930s, NPR says. “Strangers told them on the streets. Businesses staged knock-knock contests. Swing orchestras wove knock-knock schtick into songs,” they reported.

The rise of the knock-knock joke may have had something to do with the presidential campaign of 1936, when Kansas’ Republican governor, Alf Landon, tried unsuccessfully to unseat the incumbent, Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt. Landon’s running mate was a guy named, Col. Frank Knox.

You probably had to be there.

We’re just glad that people found something to laugh about. And Lori Ann Rambough – aka Sommore, the Queen of Comedy – encourages you to find something that makes you laugh during these tough times. Mask up and joke on!

15Nov2020Blogblack comedians, funny women, Lori Ann Rambough

Did the Pilgrims Have a Sense of Humor?

James McCauley

There were no Black comedians on the Mayflower when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. (But that is not at all surprising considering there were no Black people on board at all.) As for White comedians, the proof is not as definitive, but we would be willing to go out on a limb and say there weren’t any seriously funny White guys, either. (We get the idea that those Pilgrims took themselves pretty seriously.)

Hopefully, there were at least a few funny women, though. With 102 passengers crammed onto the Mayflower for more than 60 days, they probably could have used a laugh.

“The boat would have been rolling like a pig,” Conrad Humphreys, a professional sailor and skipper for a recreated sea journey of Captain William Bligh, told History. “The smell and stench of illness and sickness down below, and the freezing cold on deck in the elements, it would have been pretty miserable.”

400th Anniversary of the Mayflower’s Arrival in the New World

You might have been distracted by the pandemic and the elections and not realized that this year marks an important milestone in our nation’s history. “After more than two months (66 days) at sea, the Pilgrims finally arrived at Cape Cod on November 11, 1620,” the BBC reports.

“The Mayflower, like other 17th-century merchant ships, was a cargo vessel designed to haul lumber, fish and casks of French wine—not passengers. The 41 Pilgrims and 61 “strangers” (non-Separatists brought along as skilled craftsmen and indentured servants) who boarded the Mayflower in 1620 made for unusual cargo, and their destination was no less foreign,” History reports.

When they talk about the Pilgrims as “separatists,” they are talking about separating from the Church of England. If you paid attention during history class, you might remember that they thought the church needed to get back to a simpler form of worship.

Now, if you want to really make your head spin, just imagine how very VERY different the history of this country might have been if they had had black comedians like Lori Ann Rambough – aka Sommore! – in the group!