Clean Comedians
Clean Comedians is a comedy booking agency,[4] entertainment bureau,[5] speakers bureau, and event-planning company[3] that represents comedians, speakers, magicians, jugglers, emcees and entertainers who avoid using profanity and other objectionable material in their performances and speeches.[6] The company was founded in Los Angeles, California in 1990 by comedian and author Adam Christing.[7] Clean Comedians is known throughout the United States[3] and has been profiled in publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Daily News,[1] Southwest Airlines Spirit Magazine, and Chicago Tribune.[6] The organization works with over 100 performers[3] and operates under the motto "It Doesn't Have to Be Filthy to Be Funny."[6] The company provides meeting and event planners with "Laughter You Can Trust."[8][9] Company historyClean Comedians was founded in 1990 largely as an alternative to comics and entertainers like Andrew Dice Clay and Howard Stern, who used profanity extensively in their performances.[1] Adam Christing noticed the trend of more vulgar comedians and felt that there would be a sizable market for curse-free performers.[1][10] He drafted the "10 Commandments of Comedy," which were essentially "clean" guidelines for performers offered to meeting and event planners.[1] He would later devise the "NO G.R.O.S.S." pledge, which stated that performers could not incorporate gender bashing, racist jabs, obscenity, sexual innuendo, or swearing into their acts.[11][12] These guidelines must be followed by entertainers featured on the Clean Comedians roster.[5] The company started out with a small number of performers including Christing, Cary Trivanovich, Scott Wood, Guy Owen, Jason Chase, and impersonator Steve Bridges. The company made approximately $100,000 in its first year of operation and approximately $200,000 in its second.[6] The entertainers and variety artists mostly performed (and continue to perform) at corporate events, associations, sales meetings, and large church events.[1][8] In 1996, the company was granted a federal trademark for the name "Clean Comedians" for recordings and for booking live performances.[13] By 1999, the company had an active roster of 49 performers and several thousand booking clients. They gave over 640 performances in that year.[5] In addition to standard performances, Clean Comedians has also provided fundraising opportunities for many schools and non-profit organizations.[14] In 2005, Christing sold Clean Comedians to Ford Entertainment to pursue other entrepreneurial ventures.[4] He returned as owner and president of the company in 2012.[3][7] The company has also booked shows and appearances for conventions and events at major corporations like Canon,[15] Johnson & Johnson, Insperity, and HP.[3] References
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