It's Monday night at Bear's Place Ale House and Eatery, 1316 E. 3rd St., and as people funnel through the dimly lit bar toward the back, they pass a short corridor without glancing at the autographed portraits lining the walls. They've all come to see Comedy Caravan, a bi-weekly Bear's staple that has been a part of Bloomington history for longer than most of these people have lived in the city, and within these walls is a history of comedy older than some of the people shuffling past it. \nComedy Caravan, now in its 22nd year, is the longest running one-night comedy show in history. For those outside of the stand-up industry, a one-night comedy show is a stand-up show held at a venue that isn't a nightly comedy club. With that kind of distinction, it isn't surprising that Comedy Caravan at Bear's Place appeared in USA Today's March 31 list of the top 10 places to see stand-up in the nation. It was the only one-nighter in a list which included comedy clubs like Atlanta's Punchline and Los Angeles' Laugh Factory.\nThough Bear's Place is regarded as one of the greatest one-night comedy venues by stand-up comics from coast to coast, Bloomington residents seem to be completely unaware. Brad Wilhelm, emcee for the event for the past eight years, says the show has blended into the woodwork of Bloomington because of its longevity and consistence over the years.\n"It's one of those things that's always just here, like the Kinsey Institute or Little 5," Wilhelm says. "It's something that's just Bloomington -- one of those things that's easy to take for granted."\nBut within these walls, some of the greatest stand-up comedians, including Roseanne, Ellen Degeneres, Sinbad, Steve Harvey, Paula Poundstone, Darrell Hammond and Jim Breuer of "Saturday Night Live," Jeff Foxworthy and Tim Allen, have honed their crafts. And as these stand-up fans shuffle past their pictures, much like the 250,000 people that have come to shows like this one in the past 22 years, they are unaware that the acts they are about to see could join the ranks of these superstars in years to come.
Stand-up start up\nComedy Caravan is bigger than Bear's Place. TSM Entertainment, the company responsible for booking and promoting Comedy Caravan shows, runs similar shows all over the Midwest. But Tom Sobel, president of TSM and the mastermind behind Comedy Caravan, says the shows at Bear's Place are undoubtedly special.\n"It's a much bigger thing than Bloomington pays attention to," Sobel said. "This isn't some amateur comedy hour. The people you see on 'The Tonight Show' and Comedy Central are coming to Bear's Place."\nWhile some of the acts that started at Comedy Caravan went on to fame with sitcoms and movies based on their stand-up routines, Sobel contends that some of their most innovative work was showcased at Bear's and clubs like it.\n"The funniest people in America are not household names. By the time they become household names, people have heard their jokes already and they want to hear new ones," he said.\nWhen Sobel approached former Bear's owner Ray McConn with his idea for a one-night comedy show in 1983, McConn originally saw it as a good way to compete with "Monday Night Football," which was just gaining popularity. But McConn says it didn't take long for the shows to become a Bloomington favorite.\n"When you go out for a couple hours, have a couple drinks and leave laughing then you want to come back," McConn said.\nAnd it didn't take long for the little Bloomington bar to start attracting stand-up's "road warriors" -- comics who spend their days traveling across the nation from comedy club to comedy club. Sobel says Bloomington's location can be credited with luring these veterans to Bear's Place. Bloomington became the perfect place to stop between Saturday nights in Chicago or Columbus, Ohio clubs and Tuesday nights in Indianapolis clubs.\n"We were finding someplace to keep the acts busy on their off nights," Sobel said.\nOn its first night, Jan. 12, 1983, there was only one show. Every Monday since has seen two separate shows to two separate audiences -- one at 7:30 and one at 10:15 p.m. Originally tickets were purchased for $2; since then, the price has raised to $5 for Monday night shows. Tickets for the Saturday shows, which were added later as a result of the Caravan's success, are $7. Other than that, Wilhelm says, the show has been the same year in and year out.\n"In the eight years that I've done it, this show is unchanged. The price has gone up a few dollars, but other than that it's the same every week," he said.\nCurrent Bear's owner Gary Neumann, an IU alumnus who bought the bar more than three years ago, says even the décor has remained constant in the cozy back room of the bar. He points out the curtain that provides a backdrop for performers on the stage.\n"About every other comedian makes a joke about that curtain," he says. "It's really an ugly curtain, but we'll never change it."
Making magic\nWhile geography may have been responsible for its initial success, Sobel says the show has become a tradition for the "road warriors" of comedy because of the uniqueness of Bear's Place.\n"The layout is perfect for a comedy club. We have a large stage in the corner which means the walls lead focus to the stage and there is seating in three levels so there's a view from all seats," Sobel said.\nBut Wilhelm says its success can be attributed to something less structural -- and less tangible.\n"This room can be magic for people," Wilhelm said.\nComedy veteran Ron Shock, who has been in the business long enough to have appeared on "The Tonight Show" during Johnny Carson's reign, has felt that magic. He says it isn't just the room, but also the audience members, that keep him coming back.\n"The audiences are bright and appreciative. I've played one nighters in college towns all across the nation, but this is more than just a college town environment. There's a special something to Bear's Place. It feels right in there," Shock says. \nShock believes that comedians want to perform at Bear's because the environment there is fun not just for the audience, but for the comic.\n"It's right up there with major clubs as far as the quality of the audiences and the fun that the entertainer has on stage and I've played everywhere. It doesn't matter how good the club is; if the IQ of the audience doesn't add up to 100 you have a problem, but you never have that problem at Bear's," Shock said.
Continuing comic traditions\nOn this particular night, the portraits of comics past are not being ignored. Wilhelm, Neumann and this night's acts, Rob Busboom of Indianapolis and John Evans and Minneapolis, stand in the corridor looking at the pictures and reflecting.\nEvans, the headliner for the evening, says though this is his first time at Bear's, he is well aware of its reputation.\n"I have friends who've (performed here) before and they say it's the best one-nighter," Evans said. "It's exciting to be part of this history."\nBusboom, a Caravan regular, has been performing at the club for about seven years. Tonight he'll be the feature comic, which means his act will come between Evans' and the opening acts. Until then, he preoccupies himself by making cracks about the now outdated portraits of comedians he knows.\n"I know some of the guys now that were here 20 years ago. It's funny to look at the pictures. People change; people get old," he said.\nBut he affirms Wilhelm's sentiment, claiming that the show itself has remained the same.\n"There's a lot of tradition here," he says. "The audience is still the same as it was 21 years ago." \nAnd with no knowledge of Neumann's earlier observation on Bear's décor, Busboom carries on one of Comedy Caravan's oldest traditions by adding slyly, "And the curtains on stage, I believe, are original"
