Photo courtesy of Justin Leon
Justin Leon has not been one of the many comedians who have continued to bring audiences to laughter through shows mediated by social media and teleconferencing. His rationale for avoiding that kind of show touches the heart of how comedy can be beneficial for comedians as much as it is for the audiences for who they perform.
“The first time I got on stage at an open-mic, it wasn’t the words that I said the hooked me, it was the audience’s response,” Leon remarks. That immediate gratification cannot be duplicated through an online show. It’s just not for me.” With that in mind, Leon, who has been a Milwaukee resident for about a year and a half, adds, “I didn’t do any online open-mics or Zoom shows since I knew it would not feed the monster in my head.”
His monster should be eating heartily on Friday, July 17 and Saturday, July 18 when he plays 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. shows at the post-lockdown reopening of The Laughing Tap (706 B S. 5th St). But it’s not as if Leon has been starved for activity since March. Being a dad has made that a certainty.
“My time has been occupied with fatherhood. I have an 11-year-old from my first marriage who lives in Kansas, a two-year-old and a three-month old, who I am hands-on in raising. My son, the youngest, was born during the pandemic,” he explains. In elaborating a bit on his role as an involved parent, he offers a bit of the family-based humor that comprises one of the pillars of his act. “Needless to say, that was a turn of events in our household. I am being kept busy with dirty diapers and ‘Baby Shark,’ both of which are filled with doo doo doo doo doo."
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Family Story
Family settings helped nurture the comedic gift he now plies for a living. “I come from a large family on my mother’s side. Sunday dinners at my grandparent’s house was usually filled with laughter,” he recalls. At an early age he learned to use his ability to amuse to his advantage. “I realized that a good laugh could get me out of trouble. The situations that were thrust upon me were usually self-induced and laughter trumped punishment."
The tenor of the tumultuous times that find Leon playing The Laughing Tap go beyond the relative triviality of familial hijinks to issues of greater gravity facing the world. Leon is up to handling those in his comedy as well. “Finding the funny can be difficult,” Leon observes regarding the killing of George Floyd and the protests in his death’s aftermath, “but it is not impossible. Most good comedy originates from some type of painful truth. The more pain, the more potential for a professional to mine the funny.”
Hemp Farming
With two decades of experience on civilian stages and military bases, Leon certainly qualifies as a comedy professional. But in other pursuits, he’s an enthusiastic dabbler. His interest in growing a crop he has long consumed is one such interest.
Leon elaborates, “I’ve been a consumer of cannabis for most of my adult life and I’ve been fascinated with cannabis for years. It just so happens that my sister and brother-in-law own a farm in Northern Wisconsin. We all decided to grow hemp this year. My curiosity of how it grows and is cultivated allowed me to be hands-on in the process, from tilling the acres before planting, to seeding, to weeding, watching the crop grow has been fascinating. We will harvest our first year’s plants in September.” Being Farmer Justin. however, won't get in the way of his humorous pursuits, “I don’t consider myself to be a bi-vocational comedian. I am first and foremost a comedian, but I’m willing to try anything, even farming.”
But don't try going to see Leon at The Laughing Tap with your face uncovered. COVID-19 precautions are in effect there. Or as Leon puts it. “I hope people do what is best for themselves. If they feel comfortable enough to come out to shows, by all means, please do. But you need to wear a mask or stay home. It is your right to choose from one of those two options. We will all get through this together, even if we have to do it kicking and screaming.”
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