DEBORA SHAULIS | On the Scene Funny thing about Boardman

The Funny Farm is flanking us.
Funny Farm Comedy Club will open its second location Oct. 15 inside Soffo's Cafe, 8586 South Ave., Boardman.
Club owner Dave Robich says he's using the space that was a banquet room when the building was occupied by other restaurants. There's room for about 170 patrons there. The Funny Farm's home base, at Holiday Inn MetroPlex in Liberty, seats up to 250 people, he noted.
The schedules will be the same at both locations: 9:30 p.m. Fridays (smoke free) and 8 and 10:15 p.m. Saturdays. The reservation number will be the same in both cases: (330) 759-HAHA. The acts won't be identical, Robich said. That's good, for variety's sake. After all, even with all of the road construction and detours these days, how hard is it to drive to Liberty?
"Everyone talks about how it's so much fun" to go to a comedy show, Robich said, but when he'd ask some people when was the last time they visited the Funny Farm, they were embarrassed because it had been a while. "They just don't find themselves coming to this side of town. I understand. You get married, you have kids, you don't get out as often. It's not an easy trip to make."
Robich lives in Poland. Some of his neighbors and friends began to ask him about opening a comedy club in Boardman. Then Robich bumped into restaurateur Roy Paparodis of Soffo's, whom he occasionally worked with when Paparodis operated Timberlanes in Salem. They met for lunch and began to discuss the idea. "Both of us thought, 'Why didn't we think of this sooner?'" Robich said. Robich expects the Funny Farm in Boardman to attract patrons from Boardman, Poland, Columbiana, New Springfield and other points south. The Liberty location draws people from Warren, Sharon, Girard and Niles. It's roughly the same distance from Austintown to either site, he said.
When it comes to some of the Funny Farm's most popular visitors -- ventriloquist Jeff Dunham and the singularly named Basile come to mind -- people will just have to drive to Liberty, because that's the bigger room, Robich said. Besides, people already have demonstrated that they will go the distance for those stars, he added.
Christening the Boardman location next weekend will be comedian Dan Grueter, a Cleveland native who is a Funny Farm regular, Robich said. Grueter moved to Los Angeles about four years ago. Since then, he has appeared on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno and "The Late Late Show" with Craig Kilborn.
Also headed for Boardman: "Last Comic Standing" finalist Tess Drake, Nov. 5-6.
Energy in the morning
If you're a faithful viewer of NBC's "Today" show, you saw a segment Monday with energy expert Jon Gordon, author of the book "Energy Addict: 101 Mental, Physical, and Spiritual Ways to Energize Your Life." Gordon is leading "Today"'s "Get Energized" feature, in which three women learn to use diet and exercise to increase their energy levels.
One of the participants is Erin Hood, now of Cleveland but originally from Girard. Her mother, Bonnie Hood, says Erin is studying for a master's degree in business administration at Case Western Reserve University and holds jobs with Sherwin-Williams Automotive and Banana Republic. Sounds like she has plenty of energy, eh?
If you didn't see Hood on "Today," there's still time. "Get Energized" continues on Mondays all this month.
Del Sinchak's pop CD
Del Sinchak of Boardman was a Grammy Award nominee for one of his many polka recordings, but there's more to his music than rolling out the barrel.
"Look At Us" is the first pop CD by the Del Sinchak Band, which will celebrate at a premiere party at 8:30 p.m. Oct. 16 at Kuzman's Lounge, U.S. Route 422, Girard. Reservations are required; call Kuzman's at (330) 545-8521.
Pop in this case translates to easy listening. The band covers several country tunes -- "It Was Almost Like A Song" by Ronnie Milsap and "Funny Home Time Slips Away" by Willie Nelson -- and an Elvis Presley ballad, "Love Me Tender," among others. Keyboard player Ron Austalosh wrote the 12th and final track on the CD, titled "Miss You."
Music festival
Officials at Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum announced plans Wednesday for a new CMJ/Rock Hall Music Fest, coming to Cleveland next June. It'll be a major event June 9 through 11 at eight of the city's concert sites. As many as 100 acts -- both big names and up-and-coming musicians -- could play in Cleveland. The effort will include educational programs, panel discussions and workshops about the artistic and economic angles of the industry. That's in line with CMJ's mission as a publication that covers the college and new music scenes.
Schedules will be announced later. Rock hall chairman Terry Stewart says tickets will be affordable.
XDebora Shaulis is entertainment editor. Write her at shaulis@vindy.com.