Noted Vandy fan and Nashville native Keith Alberstadt made his triumphant return to the Late Show with David Letterman on April 13, 2012.

Keith’s first Letterman appearance was on February 6, 2009. Here’s that video:

More from Mr. Alberstadt:
KeithComedy.com
Twitter.com/KeithAlberstadt
Facebook.com/keith.alberstadt

Traditionally, on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Zanies puts together an all-star lineup of comedians from Nashville who are off the road and back in town to spend the holiday with friends and family. “Comics Come Home” is a showcase style line-up of the guys (and ladies) who came up through the open mics, starting getting work.. and at some point hit the road to do comedy full time. It’s always fun. If you’re looking for an excuse to ditch your family and go have a few drinks / laughs.. this is the perfect show for you.

This year, our own Keith Alberstadt (“Late Show with David Letterman”, CMT, etc) will host AND headline the event which also features Dan Whitehurst, Dawna Kinne, TC Cope, Chad Riden, Brian Bates and Rick Wey.

Keith Alberstadt grew up the son of a Vanderbilt professor and a craft artist. The result . . . a very clever comic with sharp perception, unmatched creativity, and a treasure trove of unique material. His likable personality and down-to-earth charm invite people into his brand of humor—one that is smart but not brainy and relatable but not hacky.

While performing, Keith takes pride in laughing at himself and his “inner dork”, which he attempts to prove is something in all of us. Current events, popular trends, personal details… Keith shares his witty insight on everything, all the while doing it with a mischievous smile that quickly becomes infectious.

A regular performer for the U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, Keith has been described as “absolutely hilarious” by Armed Forces Entertainment and “a hidden gem” by the Boston Globe. He’s also a contributing writer for Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update, National Lampoon and various online magazines.

Here’s a video of Keith’s Letterman appearance:

“Comics Come Home”
Wed. Nov. 23, 2011, 7:30pm
(facebook event)

Zanies Comedy Showplace
2025 8th Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37204

Tickets are available online or by calling 615-269-0221.

Over the weekend we’ve been digging through the archives and found a couple better quality copies of sketch videos from Nashville comedians that were previously posted on MangyDog.com and YouTube at lower resolution. We’ve uploaded the cleaner versions to Funny Or Die for your enjoyment:

Comedy And You: An Edu-taining Enter-cation film about stand-up comedy

Featuring Keith Alberstadt, Chad Riden, Dave Young and Jesse Perry, a voice-over from Steve Kane and cameos from several other Nashville comics. Produced by MangyDog Productions. Edited by international idiots, inc. on July 17, 2006.

movie trailer: GNATS! “Terror has never been so annoying”

Featuring Jesse Perry, Chad Riden, John Selby, Melissa Young, Robert Tucker, and Bubba. Produced sometime around September 2001.

Growing up the youngest in a big Catholic family in Nashville, Keith Alberstadt quickly developed a sarcastic tongue as a convenient way to get attention.  He delivers that wit on a nightly basis to comedy club, corporate, and college audiences nationwide.  Alberstadt is regarded by both peers and fans as a one-of-a-kind performer with a very clever writing style.  He has been featured on the Late Show with David Letterman and is a contributing writer to Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update.  His new CD “It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’” showcases his humor on everything from naming babies and tolerating meatheads to ruining dates and embarrassing nail salon customers.

Keith says, “The CD, “It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’” was a blast to put together!  Not only does it capture a great night of comedy, but it also features four bonus tracks from shows I did overseas for the troops.  I have always said that performing for the troops was the greatest experience of my career, and I’m thrilled that I’m finally able to share parts of those shows with you.”

Here’s the clip of Keith’s appearance on Late Show with David Letterman:

NashvilleStandUp was lucky enough to get an advance copy of the cd and we’re happy to say Keith has once again made us proud to know him.  “It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’” is consistently funny. The performance is a tight set of high quality, well crafted jokes delivered by a seasoned professional. Alberstadt is easily the most disciplined, hard working comic I’ve ever met. Over the last ten years I’ve marveled at the quality of new, evergreen material he generates. That steadfast dedication to his craft is evident in every track.

The four bonus tracks recorded live while Keith was entertaining the troops in Iraq and throughout the Middle East are very entertaining. It’s interesting to hear his material customized for such a specific audience. His stories about performing in a war zone are funny and fascinating to civilians who may not understand some specific military references – but the reaction from those troops demonstrates how well Keith connects with audiences.. even in troubled war zones.

It’s a fantastic cd, beginning to end. Longtime fans of Alberstadt won’t be disappointed and comedy fans new to Keith will no doubt become fans after a listen.

“It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’” is now available on Rooftop Comedy, where you can purchase a physical copy or download it on iTunes. It’s the perfect holiday gift, especially for anyone you may know serving in uniform.

Nashville area fans are in luck!

Keith is performing at the Roxy Theater in Clarksville – headlining the  “Comedy on the Cumberland” show benefitting the Humane Society. It’s a fantastic cause and an incredible line-up of comedians: Keith, Dan Whitehurst, X-Man and Hank Bonecutter. If you’re in the area, don’t miss it.

The rest of the week, Keith is at Zanies Comedy Showplace in Nashville – headlining Wednesday and Thursday nights and opening for Jim Breuer Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Get your tickets now.

Enter to win a FREE copy of Keith Alberstadt’s “It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’”

Register now to win one (1) copy of the new Keith Alberstadt “It’s Pronounced ‘Jenkins’” cd from NashvilleStandUp.com. We’ll pick a winner on October 17th.

Just in time for your black friday dollars, here is a sampling of some of the merchandise one could buy from Nashville comics & alumni. Kill two birds with one click – support your local comics AND get all of your shopping done without leaving your home!

Chad Riden‘s “mailbox baseball” shirts:

Charles Ives‘ “biggest pile of oeuvre” shirts:

The Dead Dead‘s “Mummified Cat” shirts:

The Dead Dead‘s “Infinite Superdoom” shirts:

Keith Alberstadt‘s “One Night Stand” cd:

Lahna Turner‘s tshirts & cd’s:

The Mangy Dog Radio Hour Whoop-Dee-Doo podcast‘s “best-of” cd:

Scot Nery‘s “I heart pancakes” shirt:

Scot Nery‘s “CatchU” how-to juggle dvd:

Ralphie May‘s tshirts & cd’s:

Keith Alberstadt was on WTVF’s Talk of the Town this morning. The Nashville native talked about his comedy career that’s taken him from local stages all the way to the Late Show with David Letterman. If you missed it, here’s the video.

See Keith this weekend with James Gregory at Zanies!

Keith Alberstadt

The Boston International Comedy & Movie Festival began back in 2000 as a way to showcase New England stand-up comedy talent to bigger audiences and the entertainment industry. Given the long line of successful comedians who got their start in Boston, it seemed to be a natural fit for such a festival. The audience agreed, and the event has grown every year. In addition to the traditional stand-up comedy routines, the festival also includes improv, sketch comedy, and one-person theatre shows, as well as the newly expanded movie portion of this festival.

Over the past seven years, they’ve expanded to over a week of festivities, including outdoor family-friendly events and $10,000 in prize money for the competition winners. The addition of The Boston Park Plaza Hotel as the official host hotel and hub of the event has created a more centralized feel, and partnerships with other sponsors have helped them to include over 30 Boston venues and to bring in stars such as Lewis Black.

This year, over 96 comedians from around the world will compete for the prize money. Improv, sketch, and showcase acts will run throughout the week, and the film exhibition will take place at the historic Coolidge Corner theater.

For more info: www.BostonComedyFestival.com

And now an update from Nashville’s own Kieth Alberstadt:

Keith Alberstadt on set of 'Late Show with David Letterman'

Sports Radio! The “Stadt” Sheet on The Zone

Beginning Tuesday, July 21, I’ll be giving my sarcastic slant on the sports world in “The Stadt Sheet” on Nashville’s 104.5 The Zone. Listen to The Zone’s “Overtime with Brent Dougherty” every Tuesday night at 11:00 PM EST (10:00 PM Central). Nashvillians can listen live on the radio, and everyone else can stream it live online at www.1045thezone.com.

This is going to be so much fun…make sure to tune in!!

Download My CD on iTunes

Looking for a good way to laugh at the gym? You ought to, because abs should be an important part of your workout. You know who you are.

Well look no more. Download my CD, “One Night Stand”, on iTunes!! Simply go to iTunes, search for my name (make you sure you spell it correctly thank you very much), and there you go.

Or, if you would like a hard-copy CD to make your collection at home look slightly more impressive, you can order through cdbaby. My cdbaby bio page is here: http://cdbaby.com/cd/kalberstadt

Humor Writings

Now it’s time to take a break and read some jokes. That’s an order. I’ve been writing freelance monologue jokes for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon for the past several weeks. You can read them here:
http://www.keithcomedy.com/columns.asp

Teaser: “A runway at JFK airport was shut down Wednesday morning after 78 turtles crawled onto the tarmac. So let’s recap: Geese taking down jets, turtles shutting down runways, pigs spreading the flu…I’m starting to think Old MacDonald is a terrorist.”

I also posted two humor columns since my last newsletter. One’s about bachelorette parties, and I believe every female in the country should read it, pretty please. You can access it through the same link above.

Finally, my latest column is about my time in Nebraska during the Great American Comedy Festival and Tornado Scare. What a fun week that was, but frightening too. Same link.

Future Shows and Web 2.0

I’m back on the road the next two months. Atlanta at The Punchline, then to Buford, GA at the new Buford Variety Theatre, and then off to the Funny Bone in Richmond, VA. All of these are fantastic clubs so spread the word.

For my full tour schedule, check it out here: http://www.keithcomedy.com/tourdates.asp

Finally, while you’re in front of the computer, why not become a fan on my facebook fan page?

And follow me on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/KeithAlberstadt

They’re both good ways to get DAILY updates and jokes, as well as photos from the road and stuff. Thanks again for the continued support! I hope to see you at a show sometime soon.

Sincerely,

Keith Alberstadt
keithcomedy.com

Nashville-native nationally touring comic Keith Alberstadt continues to amaze and astound us with the quantity and quality of projects he’s working on. He is featured in “Stand Up 360” – a movie about New York stand up comedy, has been invited to the Great American Comedy Festival, and has been filmed for Byron Allen’s “comedy.tv”.

Keith recently wrote a guest article for Rooftop Comedy about the comedy.tv project:

It was a big surprise to get the call, especially since in my emails to the producers, I kept calling him Brian Allen. I felt like my mom, who calls comics things like Kathy Mandarin (Kathleen Madigan), Jack Jergensen (Jake Johannsen), and Bill Saguine (possibly Conan O’Brien).

The only bad thing about this whole experience was the timing. I got the invite Thursday last week and had to be in LA Sunday. A trip cross country, connecting in Detroit, sitting in the middle seat between two middle-aged women who laugh out loud at the in-flight movie “Bridal Wars”. . . All of these things are tolerable. What’s not is finding a reasonably-priced plane ticket with only two days notice.

The best rate I could find was $410 which I paid for with 10,000 shares of GM stock. But it was well worth it.

Forty-two comics doing six minutes each. Of course not everyone stuck to six minutes, because there’s still a mentality of “hey, I’m killing so that red light in the back of the room can suck it”. But overall it was amazing. Events like this are fun because it’s like a comedy convention. Comics from all over can catch up on what they’re doing, where they’ve been, and which comedy condos have been de-loused lately.

The Great American Comedy Festival takes place June 14-20 at the Johnny Carson Theatre in Norfolk, Nebraska. Created as a tribute to the legacy of native son Johnny Carson, the festival’s competitors were booked by Late Show with David Letterman‘s Eddie Brill. This year’s line-up features Keith along with 24 other fast-rising comics including Nashville’s own Jesse Case and friend of N’Sup Pat Dixon.

“Stand Up 360″ is a series of new big screen productions in theaters now. It’s hosted by Caroline Rhea and spotlights some of the best comics in New York City. Keith’s part of the series will be in theaters June 1-14. Visit www.Stand-Up360.com for more information and to purchase tickets while they last! Check your local listings for select theaters, dates & times of the limited engagement showings.

For more from Keith, visit KeithComedy.com.

There are several friends of NashvilleStandUp mentioned in today’s announcement of the list of the 24 stand-up comedians who will be competing for the top prize at the Great American Comedy Festival this June in Johnny Carson’s hometown of Norfolk, NE.

“These are some of the brightest, most intelligent and creative minds in the industry,” said Eddie Brill, the executive producer of the festival and the talent coordinator for the “Late Show with David Letterman.”

Brill and Lora Young, executive director of the festival, auditioned comedians in 10 cities across the United States — including New York City, Dallas, Seattle, Denver, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Boston and Chicago — to select the top 24 who wanted the chance to compete in Norfolk.

“As a result of the incredible success of last year’s festival, the good word has spread rapidly throughout the comedy community,” Brill said. “The high quality of comedians who auditioned for the Great American Comedy Festival made it so difficult to narrow the list down to just 24.”

The list includes: Keith Alberstadt (Nashville native, now living in New York City), Jesse Case (Nashville native, now living in Seattle), Pat Dixon (currently living in New York City.. he is not from Nashville, but was almost murdered by a crazy chick from here, so we claim him as our own), and Tim Harmston (from Minneapolis, who is a very good friend of our own Mary Mack).

The 24 comedians will be split up so that six perform at each of the four preliminary rounds of competition at the festival on Wednesday, June 17, at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and Thursday, June 18, at the same times.

Congratulations to everybody selected!