Original hustlers of comedy

Bill Dwyer and Arden Myrin, two of the hardest working comics in showbiz, make their way to Alaska this weekend as part of the four-person St. Patty’s Comedy Festival, which hits the stage at the Wendy Williamson Arena on the UAA campus Saturday night.

Once upon a time, a comedian might have been able to make a comfortable living just doing standup, but no more. Today it’s about hustle and getting your hands in as many honey pots as you can, and few pull off that hustle quite so prolifically as Myrin. Myrin’s name is not a household one, but her face is. She’s one of those, ‘yeah, I know her from somewhere’ faces, but when you look up her resumé on IMDB, there’s no defining role you necessarily associate her with.It’s kind of a little bit of a lot of them, though she’s probably known most recently for portraying William H. Macy’s girlfriend on the seventh season of the Showtime series ‘Shameless’.

“My friends say my act is like the kitty got into the champagne bottle and wants to play. That’s fairly accurate; I’m a real rascal,” Myrin said. “You never know what camp (fans) are from. I’m not sure whether they know me from ‘Shameless’, ‘Chelsea Lately’ or ‘Mad TV’ — it’s usually one of those lanes of the highway, but I did a couple episodes of ‘Psych’ and ‘Fresh off the Boat’, so sometimes it’s those fans.”

In addition to stand up and television, the 44-year-old has had quite an impressive career on stage, as well, highlighted by a performance in the New York opening of David Mamet’s play ‘Boston Wedding’.

She has a dark comedy series coming out on Netflix called ‘Insatiable’, where she plays the villain and later this year, will be appearing in a Scooby Doo spin off movie called ‘Daphne and Velma’.

“I feel grateful to do stand up and do all these things that I enjoy,” Myrin said. “I try to let myself do one thing at a time while I’m doing it… I’m glad it’s not just one thing I do. When I go back to the other one, it just reminds of why I like to do it.”

Ever adapting to new media, Myrin stays busy and relevant online, with her show ‘Take Me Home’ on SpacesTV, a unique take on home design reality TV in which she walks around the streets of New York asking strangers to take her home.

Half the appeal of the show is watching Myrin get turned down repeatedly, which only encourages her to double down on her coquettish, petite blonde seeking sugar daddy shtick.

“I love interior design and this company asked me if I wanted to do that,’ Myrin said. “I was nervous about it — what if nobody took me home. I didn’t want to do hidden camera — prank shows make me panic — but some wonderful people did take me home, and as a small blond woman I could safely go to people’s homes with a camera crew. It’s an adventure; you never know where the day will take you.”

Saturday night, Myrin will be joined by past finalists on NBC’s ‘Last Comic Standing’ on stage by Chris Porter and Jeff Dye, who most recently crossed over into reality TV, starring in ‘Better Late Than Never’, where he was the host and suitcase holder for the likes of William Shatner, Terry Bradshaw, George Foreman and Henry Winkler as they traveled through Asia, as well as Dwyer.

Dwyer is a comic’s comic, cut from the wool of the rolled-up blazer sleeve of a 1980s observational comedian. He’s enjoyed considerable success in that vein, but he, too, has branched into reality TV, game shows, and just about anything he can put his earnest, dad-like face and snark onto.

“I guess it is a different muscle. Anytime you’re acting or hosting you’re involving other people, you actually have to listen,” Dwyer observed. “When you do standup, the only thing you’re listening for is laughs and when you don’t get ‘em, somebody’s making a mistake.”

Dwyer’s credits include host of the Game Show Network’s ‘Extreme Dodgeball’, ‘Dirty Rotten Cheater’, ‘Battlebots’ and all those ‘I love the (insert decade here)’ nostalgia shows.

Dwyer said the key to moonlighting between stand up and hosting often purposely ridiculous game shows, is to never lose sense of yourself.

“If I’ve ever tried to be something different than myself, that’s the wrong thing to do,’ Dwyer said. “I’ve changed my act, written new things, but if you decide to change your act you’re deciding to change who you are. If what you’re doing isn’t working and you’re being true to yourself, then maybe you shouldn’t be a comic. But if it’s true and it’s working, it’s important to be true to yourself.”

Like Myrin, Dwyer credits his coming to Alaska to the influence of legendary Fairbanks-based comedy promoter Jerry Evans.

“Jerry has done such a great job making a thing like this happen,” Dwyer said. “The Alaska crowds are great and I’m not just blowing smoke Fairbanks’ icy cold ass. They really appreciate comics coming up; they know comedy, they know how to have a good time; they drink, of course, but don’t overdrink. They really understand what it means to be a good crowd.”

Friday night’s event at the Blue Loon in Fairbanks is titled ’20 Years of Alaska Comedy’.

“It’s my favorite theater I’ve ever played — it’s really cool,” Myrin said. “If I ever do get to do a (one-hour) special, I’ll do it at the Blue Loon.”