Live at 65
Ron Shock
Stand-up Comedy DVD
Independent Release
37 minutes
Storyteller and stand-up comic Ron Shock always opens with “Glad to be here.” A couple of the routines on Live at 65 his 2008 stand-up comedy DVD partly explain why. These stories, about being a second-story man and his escape from L.A. County, are what really make this DVD.
The camera work in the opening segment of Glad to be Here is bad enough to make even an old salt seasick. This opening segment includes personal favorite Van Seats and the Train Wreck bit that before 9/11 involved a plane. Fortunately things settle down after that.
Next up is .22 Caliber Rifle, the routine that made Ron Shock the last new comic on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. It is a good version but not my favorite.
What I was really looking forward to was the stories about Shock’s less commendable years as a safecracker. This, and the ensuing trial is a really good and of course funny story. Things get even better with the story of Shock’s escape from L.A. County jail.
These two routines alone are worth the price of this stand-up comedy DVD.
The mark of a great storyteller is you always want to hear more. In an ideal world, Shock would record a big-time one-man show with all biographical material starting with the car chase with a crack shot sheriff, the army years with soldier Peter Eaton, the safecracker story expanded, the escape story, and the heart attack bit. This show would include, of course, the Greatest Drug Story Ever Told and the only alluded to years in seminary.
Live at 65 closes with a bonus track with the Oral Roberts 900’ Jesus. I like this version but I prefer it when Shock nails the Jay-Susssss.
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