Comedian enjoys Valley's support

By John Benson

There’s a certain pattern of audience behavior that has emerged over the past decade or so when Cleveland-based stand-up comedian Mike Jones comes to Youngstown.

“People have a good time, they laugh, they enjoy the set, they tell their friends and they want to see me again,” said Jones, calling from a gig in the Poconos. “I’ve been going down there for years. I’d call it my second home. I’ve always been able to work down there, and people have always supported me.

“Even when I did radio, people would call in. They’re just so friendly. I know it’s not a real big city, but I still have a lot of fun down there.”

It’s a chain of events that Jones hopes takes place again with his upcoming Youngstown shows tonight through Saturday at the Funny Farm Comedy Club.

“Oh yeah, let’s enjoy ourselves,” Jones laughed. “We have too much going on with the economy, so don’t worry about that money. Come on out and see Mike Jones. And for an hour or so, you’ll have fun and forget about all of that.”

Speaking of the economy, working 24/7 is how Jones is making a living these days. When he’s not on the road doing stand-up 30 to 35 weeks a year, the funnyman has successfully ventured into acting. In fact, he’s finishing up two independent features, war movie “Weapons of Mass Destruction” and gangster flick “Spoon.” So what’s his first love?

“I’d say both,” Jones said. “The comedy is fun. Comedy is great, but I like acting. It’s more challenging. I’ve been doing both for 19 years, and I also do a little bit of modeling. I have a billboard up in downtown Cleveland right now. They use my arm.”

A regular guy with a funny slant on life is how Jones, who has opened for the likes of Jamie Foxx, Bernie Mac, Cedric The Entertainer, D.L. Hughley, Eddie Griffin, Drew Carey and more, said he approached his stand-up material.

“Everybody loves my comedy because they can relate to it,” Jones said. “Everybody has been through the stuff I talk about. My comedy style is energetic, wild and I get the crowd involved. I talk about all situations. I talk about your kids, your job, driving to the job, your home situations. There’s so much I talk about like sports, women and men.”

In many ways, Jones considers himself an athlete. You see, he’s a bodybuilder, which means on stage things are different for this comedian. Considering he said he does little to hide his muscular physique, hecklers better think twice.

“Oh yeah,” Jones laughed, “they know when I walk on stage that they shouldn’t mess with this guy.”