Throwback Thursday Comedy Showcase: Mal Z. Lawrence on Gambling and Married vs. Singles

Mal Z. Lawrence probably holds the record for most stand-up comedy routines performed in Catskills hotels. When the hotels started to disappear, Mal simply moved his shtick to the casino hotels of Atlantic City and the playhouses of Century Village and other residential communities in Florida.

Lawrence died last September, but his comedy lives on in video clips posted on the Internet. 

Here's one of his great performances which we recently discovered. It was 1993 and appearing in an MDA Telethon in Las Vegas, Mal delivered some of his classic observations about gambling, and how to tell if a man is married or single.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

 

   #Throwback Thursday     #TBT

Remembering Mal Z. Lawrence - King of Catskills Comedy

Last week the world of Jewish humor lost one of its greatest stars with the death of Mal Z. Lawrence, one of our favorite comedians, who brought Borscht Belt comedy and waves of laughter to Jewish audiences in the Catskills, South Florida, Las Vegas, and Midtown Manhattan.

As Neil Genzlinger wrote in The New York Times,

Mr. Lawrence came to prominence in the Catskills in the 1950s but was soon known all over the country, playing Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Florida and other stops on the comedy circuit, where his brand of relatively mild Jewish-tinged humor was greeted enthusiastically. To a Florida audience he might joke about the Catskills; to a Northern audience, he’d poke fun at Florida.

Manny Miller was born on Sept. 2, 1932, in the Bronx and grew up there. “Mal Z. Lawrence,” as he variously told the story over the years, was the suggestion of an early agent, or perhaps several different agents. “Lawrence” was borrowed from a Long Island village where he was appearing. As for the Z, which stood for nothing, “My agent told me I’d get more marquee space,” he said.

As a tribute to Mal, we're sharing a video clip of one of his classic performances. Enjoy! 

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Throwback Thursday Comedy Special: Mal Z. Lawrence on Atlantic City, Florida, and the Catskills

Mal Z. Lawrence probably holds the record for most stand-up comedy routines performed in Catskills hotels. When the hotels started to disappear, Mal simply moved his shtick to the casino hotels of Atlantic City and the playhouses of Century Village and other residential communities in Florida.

And as old as the jokes are, and no matter how many times the audiences heard them, they still laugh their heads off when Mal strides onto the stage and starts his delivery.

We featured Mal back in 2010 doing a few minutes of his routine on a stage in Florida and in a 2013 performance in Los Angeles. We think it's time to bring him back in a longer version of his act for our readers who have been asking for more of him and for our newer and younger readers who are not familiar with his humor. This video is a 25 minute performance on stage in Atlantic City. 

The secret of Mal's popularity is his uncanny sense of timing, irony, and exaggeration. The subjects covered in this routine include hotels and buses in Atlantic City, and the bountiful food of the Catskill hotels.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)


 
#Throwback Thursday #TBT  

Comedy Showcase: 13 Hilarious Minutes With Mal Z. Lawrence

Mal Z. Lawrence probably holds the record for most stand-up comedy routines performed in Catskills hotels. When the hotels started to disappear, Mal simply moved his shtick to the casino hotels of Atlantic City and the playhouses of Century Village and other residential communities in Florida.

And as old as the jokes are, and no matter how many times the audiences heard them, they still laugh their heads off when Mal strides onto the stage and starts his delivery. The 76-year-old comedian is still performing and still telling the same jokes.

We featured Mal back in 2010 doing a few minutes of his routine on a stage in Florida. We think it's time to bring him back in a longer version of his act for our readers who have been asking for more of him and for our newer and younger readers who are not familiar with his humor. This show was in Los Angeles last year at the annual gathering of New York Alumni in California. 

The secret of Mal's popularity is his uncanny sense of timing, irony, and exaggeration. The subjects covered in this routine include hotels and buses in Atlantic City, drivers, malls, and security guards in Florida, and of course, the bountiful food of the Catskill hotels and imagining how gambling would change if casinos ever came there. Mal's description of the Conservative and Orthodox slot machines alone are worth the time and the price of the show.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)