Squire delivers laughs from dark side of comedy

October 20, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

If there was ever a sign that Medina native Bill Squire made the right decision seven years ago to dive into the world of stand-up comedy, that came earlier this year when the funnyman won satellite-radio-show program Opie & Anthony’s Car Crash Comedy contest.

“It definitely is a major inroad in my career,” said Squire, who still lives in Medina. “I was a fan of ‘The Opie & Anthony Show’ but hadn’t listened in a while. I ended up submitting an MP3 of my material along with over 300 other people. I was the winner. I won a $2,000 prize, and I got to perform in front of guys like Jim Norton and Robert Kelly.”

From there, Squire, already a busy traveling comedian, learned what it was like to have national exposure. Now he’s playing larger rooms as a headliner or featured comedian. This includes his return to the Youngstown area for two shows this weekend at The Funny Farm. Squire said he’s fond of the Mahoning Valley, where he’s performed many times. This includes opening for Mike Armstrong, Tim Cavanaugh and Drew Hastings years ago at “The Friends of the Bob and Tom Show.”

Since then, Squire feels as though his material has evolved from being edgy to just dark and different.

“I don’t think I’m as good as this guy, but people will give me Louis C.K. and some Dave Attell comparisons,” Squire said. “Those are very flattering. I don’t think I’m anywhere near those guys, but it’s nice.”

Something that Squire often uses as a source for his comedy is his Mormon background. However, lately the comic has been eschewing the topic on stage in hopes of honing his material for his second album, which he plans on recording soon.

“Right now, I’m working on some stuff about just the ridiculousness of just how racism is still a thing,” Squire said. “I’m pulling out some of the stereotypes that are stupid and that don’t make sense anymore — like black people have bad credit. Well, everybody in the country has bad credit. The banks that tell us we have bad credit have bad credit. It’s like the American way. You buy things you don’t need with money you don’t have. And then when the bill shows up, you get mad at China for making things affordable.”

Squire admits that audiences may not agree with some of his jokes, but he’s not iconoclastic as much as just prodding and poking the public for some fun.

“I think my show is for anybody who has a real sense of humor, that doesn’t mind getting made fun of and likes sarcastic comedy,” Squire said. “They can’t be afraid of a few four-letter words. I just try to be funny, and sometimes it goes to dark places.”

Dark places that make you cry or laugh?

Squire quipped, “Definitely laugh.”