Thursday, March 27, 2014
By John Benson
As manic as Greg Hahn appears on stage, the comedian is a bit more laid back in daily life.
That explains why he’s late calling in for a phone interview to promote “The Bob & Tom and Friends Tour,” which comes through Youngstown on Friday for a show at the Ford Family Recital Hall.
“I’m sorry. I’m at breakfast and forgot to call,” said Hahn, phoning from Los Angeles. “I’m having a bacon-ham-egg croissant thing at Whole Foods. I’m chilling out. When you come back into [Los Angeles] being out on the road being crazy, you have to chill into it. So right now, I’m rehashing the past weekend and talking about all of the tactical mistakes made with the ladies. I do things nonstop and wrong.”
While he may strike out in love, he’s a major player in the comedy world. After starting out as a headliner in New York City, the Florida native jumped to television appearing on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “Premium Blend,” “Louis CK’s Pulp Comics” and “Star Search.”
He also has become a regular guest on the nationally syndicated morning show “Bob & Tom Radio Show,” which airs locally weekday mornings on 93.3 WNCD-FM.
When asked what’s the secret to his success with the morning-show duo, Hahn said, “I think for me, I get to the punch line very quickly. That helps. Of course, enthusiasm helps a lot, too.”
Hahn has plenty of enthusiasm when he’s onstage, as well as with an act that’s always been built around the one-liner. However, he admits of late he’s been upping the one-liner ante with hilarious results.
“I like to use absurd comments,” Hahn said. “As a matter of fact, I come out very hyper, and I’ll say something like, ‘My shoes are a little long in the crotch. I’m ready for the show, I had my cat neutered and took a baby aspirin; let’s party. It’ll be a huge night, Jello shots and duct tape, or cupcakes and cage fighting.’ Just like absurd line of words that sound fun. So anything I can blurt out, ‘It’s nice to have you here, my head is waterproof.’
“So I added more and more absurdities. It’s just basically my way of showing love to the audience. Because if they’ve heard me on ‘Bob & Tom,’ they know I’m nuts. They know I can bring it. They know I’m crazy.”
As for the other comics on the “The Bob & Tom and Friends Tour,” Hahn will be joined by Josh Sneed, Dave Dyer and Auggie Smith. He added that what makes these shows so much fun is all of the comedians are not only headliners but they’re all his friends.
“Auggie Smith is the guy who, when the party is ending at 2:30 in the morning, he pulls up with cases of beer,” Hahn said. “You’re like, ‘Oh man, I love that guy.’ Dave Dyer is a new guy on the tour, but he’s been doing comedy forever. So if you get frustrated, you just take a swing at Dyer. Sneed is the kind of guy you can sit down and have a drink with like a gentleman. He’s always looking for the business angle of things. He’s a fun guy. All of these guys are out to have fun. And they’re all married.”
Considering his aforementioned ladies problems, perhaps the fact all of the comedians are married means Hahn, the only single person, will find a love connection.
“That’s right — I’m the only option,” Hahn said, laughing. “We’ll see what happens. I’ll try to find a wife in Youngstown.”