Kailua’s Jonah Ray has come a long way from the nights when he played in punk bands and read funny poems between sets. Back then, in 2001, Ray enjoyed wailing on the drums, but what he wanted most was to make people laugh.
When he ditched rock ‘n’ roll for a stand-up routine two years later in Los Angeles, Ray launched himself on a path to comic stardom. He’s become a regular face at comedy venues across the country and has written and performed on TV shows including "Adventure Time," "Human Giant" and "The League."
As co-host of "The Meltdown With Jonah and Kumail," a weekly parade of comedians in a converted storage room on Sunset Boulevard, Ray has been part of one of the funniest live shows on the L.A. comedy scene.
"Meltdown" was so popular that Comedy Central shot eight performances there and began airing them last month — but with a twist. The cameras not only recorded Ray, co-host Kumail Nanjiani and their guest comics; they went backstage to give viewers a look at how the show is made.
Their venue is a room at the back of Meltdown Comics, a comic book store, that seats about 150. A pair of tiny rooms nearby serve as the backstage nerve center.
Ray likes the realism best of all because a lot of today’s comedians are performing in unconventional venues — porn shops, corner bars, even living rooms.
"I think the strength of our show is it shows more honestly the way that comedy has been happening in the past 10 or 15 years," he said in a phone call from L.A.
"Every time you see comedy on TV, it is nicely shot and well lit with the camera floating from one side of the theater to the other. Sure, it looks pretty, but I see shows standing in the back of a room."
The 32-year-old Ray was born and raised in Hawaii, where he still has a lot of family. He attended Saint Louis School and graduated from Kalaheo. Ray is actually his middle name; his real last name is Rodrigues. He said he can trace his family roots to the earliest arrival of Portuguese plantation workers.
When he moved to Los Angeles in 2001, Ray learned by doing.
"Comedy is that thing where you have to flex that muscle and you have to work it out," he said. "Lucky for me I had stand-up. I looked up open mics at coffee shops and any place I could get into."
The gigs led to job offers. Turns out there’s a huge demand for joke writers. That led to TV and touring.
Material can come from anywhere, but the funniest material has a grain of truth to it, Ray said.
"When I say something that makes someone laugh, I try to make a mental note about what it was that made it funny," he said. "It can come from anywhere, but it has to be from your perspective. It has to be specific. You can’t just sound like anybody else. It has to be personal."
For all the humor, being a comic is an emotional roller coaster. And when no one laughs, "it’s crushing," Ray said.
"I have always said this about myself and comedy: It is the best/worst thing I have done with my life. You only ever feel as good as your last show. If I did a show last night and it was great, I will be in a good mood today. If I do a show tonight and it’s doesn’t go great, I will be in a bad mood tomorrow."
Comedy Central hasn’t decided whether it will record additional performances of "The Meltdown With Jonah and Kumail," but Ray said he’s OK with that. The ride has been fun and he’s in a good mood.
"Whatever they decide, it’s their call, but there’s no denying that they did something really special for us and the show and the comedy community," he said. "To get a second season would be amazing because there are all these things I want to do. But the fact that we got to do it is good enough. That’s perfect. That’s more than I could have ever dreamed or asked for."
"The Meltdown With Jonah and Kumail" will air next at 9:30 p.m. Aug. 27 on Comedy Central.
AND that’s a wrap …
Mike Gordon is the Star-Advertiser’s film and television writer. Read his Outtakes Online blog at honolulupulse.com. Reach him at 529-4803 or email mgordon@staradvertiser.com.
