Who’s the funniest generation?
Are sarcastic Gen X’ers, the latchkey veterans who battled AOL dial-up and stern parents, the comedy champs?
Or are mellow Millennials, breezing in with the speed of Tik Tok and the earnestness of avocado toast, the clear heroes of humor?
Generational conflict has plagued humanity since the Garden of Eden. But relief – comic relief – is finally on the horizon, or more exactly, on stage at Second City on Saturday nights in April … if you’re lucky enough to nab tickets.
Standup Throw Down is the brainchild of Todd Glover, a Gen X’er who grew up in Des Plaines. A wine salesman for twenty-four years, Todd turned a sudden job loss into a fulltime comedy career just before Covid hit. He became an in-demand performer at venues like Zanies and The Laughing Academy in Glenview.
As his standup career advanced, he came up with a fresh and original concept. What if Gen X’ers competed against Millennials for the title of funniest generation? Todd pitched his idea and got an immediate green light from Second City where the show is now in its amazing tenth run in a coveted Saturday night spot in Judy’s Beat Lounge. Tickets sell out quickly.
But wait. We have questions. A Millennial and a Gen X’er walk into a bar. Do they laugh at the same punchlines? Does one prefer over-snarking to oversharing? What does each generation laugh about, laugh at, and contribute to comedy? You will get answers to all these questions at Standup Throw Down, a sparkling generational experiment you won’t find anywhere else.
The show is so popular that when Standup Throw Down is not at Second City, it’s touring. There are upcoming gigs at the The Laughing Academy and Todd has even taken the show out of state. Recently, tickets have been bought up by a dating website, a gaggle of hot grandmas, Boomers, Gen Z’ers, tourists, a 60-year-old’s Bachelorette party and of course, Gen X’ers and Millennials. Everyone of every age wants to know: which generation will win the war of wits?
Todd kindly zoomed with me for a behind-the-scenes look at how he created this hit show for the ages.
IN THE BEGINNING
Teme: How did your comedy career begin?
Todd: I started doing standup when my college had a talent show. I spent a lot of time preparing for that first show. It was in front of five hundred people. I was absolutely hilarious and I crushed it. I thought comedy was easy. Then I found out the truth. It’s the hardest thing you could ever do. Absolutely brutal. I’ve probably stopped doing it three different times. Then right before Covid, I got fired from my job and decided to spend that time doing standup.
Now it’s going really well and I love it. I have little pieces of paper all over my house with little chicken scratches. I’m producing at Second City. My dad was never supportive of me doing standup, but now in his older age, he’s proud and says, “How many people can actually say they do it?”
Teme: How did you develop your ability to see the world through a funny lens?
Todd: I was always really shy and the only way I could get people to like me was to do funny things and be silly. My mom and dad are both funny, although they’re different. My dad does more shtick. He would do other people’s bits. My mom is a little goofy. I just picked up my mom from a cardiac rehab facility. She has a heart condition that could be fatal, but she’s cracking jokes. I was like, “Still funny, mom. Still funny.”
Growing up, I watched a lot of Billy Crystal and Brian Regan, the comics that did family stuff, so that’s what I thought comedy was. Now I’m branching out more. I do a lot of dating material because I’m fifty and still single. I’ve got all these crazy stories.
THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
Teme: Producing a show at Second City is pretty awesome. How did it happen?
Todd: When you walk into Second City, it’s such a magical building. All I wanted to do in college was graduate so I could come back to Chicago and take classes at Second City. But then at the end of the program at Second City, they give you a certificate, a free t-shirt, and they’re like, “Good luck out there!” I was mad about that and I didn’t step foot on a Second City stage for twenty-seven years.
One night after a show at Zanies, I was having a drink at a bar across the street from Second City with a friend who teaches there. She said, “Hey, did you ever think of producing at Second City?” I was like, “No, not with those guys. Forget it!” She said, “You should! Do you have a show idea?” I said, “Yes, I’ve had this show idea where you take Millennials and Gen X and you pit them against each other and then you vote on which generation is funnier.” She looked at me and said, “How are you not pitching this to Second City?” I pitched it and Second City gave me a four-show run. Then they gave me another four-show run. If you would’ve told 22-year-old Todd, “you’re going to have a show at Second City”, I would’ve been like, “no way.” We’re now in our tenth run at Second City.
Each show is completely different. There’s a little game we do at the end when we vote. There’s a big surprise twist at the end of every show. I can’t reveal more, but people come up to me after the show because they want to talk about it. I’ve got friends that had zero interest in watching my standup, but they come to all these shows. My friends are still talking about our last show, “we loved the guy who has ADD and didn’t take his medication. He should have taken his medication! Oh my God, he was covered in dog hair!”
Another comic they’re still talking about, I told them, “He’s a generational talent. Remember you saw him on my show!” It’s a great thing when someone is discovered on my show. There’s a comic that I use a lot, and he just messaged me, “Zanies just brought me into headline. They got to look at me because of you.” They would’ve found him eventually. But that’s another fun part about producing a show. I get to look at some of these comics before the big clubs. At my recent show at the Kenosha Comedy Club, the manager looked at me and asked, “How do I not know any of these guys? They’re all hilarious!”
I stand in the back of the room and people find me after the show to say it was a great time. I love that, even if my set wasn’t the greatest. Sometimes during my set people are still getting settled or walking in. I want them to do that while I’m on stage. I can handle it. Seen it, done it. I was at a show where a guy had a heart attack and fell off his chair.
Teme: Wait, what? While you were on stage?
Todd: Yeah.
Teme: Oh my goodness. What did you do?
Todd: They stopped the show. Best part about that was the lady who was with him. I said, “I’m surprised you didn’t go with your man in the ambulance.” She goes, “No, it was just a date. I’m pissed now I got to buy my own drink.” I was like, “Wow. You’ve got to be kidding.”
Teme: Jeez! He dodged a bullet with that heart attack.
Todd: Right. He probably faked the heart attack to get out of that date … I think we just wrote a joke.
TALKIN’ ABOUT MY GENERATION
Teme: What was your inspiration for pitting Gen X against Millennials?
Todd: I couldn’t be any more Gen X. When I graduated from college, my dad said, “You need to get a job! You need to save money and you need to buy a house!” It was very instilled in me that you need to work hard.
Then this Millennial generation comes up and they’re like, “I don’t get paid time off? I’m not working there!” “I got to work in the office on Friday? Not happening!” “Move out and rent an apartment? I can live at home and eat my parents’ food for free.”
Once as a kid, I called my dad a dick, and before I got to the “k” in “dick,” I was flat on my back looking at the ceiling. I don’t even know how he got me on the floor. You just didn’t mouth off to your parents. Now these kids are like “I want a new cell phone.” When the answer’s no, they’re like “You suck. You’re the worst mom ever.”
I saw such a generational difference. I don’t want to say it’s laziness, but it was just a very different view. I feel like as Gen X, we take things to heart. We’re more serious. We’re a little more motivated. I think the gap is narrowing as we get older, but I felt that Millennials were soft.
Teme: How does the show unfold?
Todd: It’s usually two Gen X’ers versus two Millennials. Sometimes I’m one of the Gen X’ers. The show isn’t a roast. It’s pure standup. At the end, we vote. Which generation is funnier? And there’s that big twist that I can’t tell you.
I want the audience to come out and have a fun experience and get to see different comics who are each so unique. The audience will also realize that there are differences within the generations. Some Millennials are close to the cut-off for Gen X. Some Millennials are really young and close in age to Gen Z, so even the material that they do is a little bit different.
Teme: Has anyone ever surprised you by going against generational type? What generational differences do you see?
Todd: Well, I don’t have any Millennial who’s like, “Oh my God, my cholesterol!” The older Millennials are more serious and focused on their future. They have material about being single and relationships, while the younger people are like, “God, life is so hard.” There are differences in the way they look at life. The older you get, the more you’re like, “I have to focus on saving money and being an adult.” But when you’re young, you’re more like “I’m indestructible. I have all the time in the world.” I’ll look over at Gen Z during my set and they look like “We’re not really sure what he’s talking about…”
If you have good comics, the show is always going to be fun. That’s the best part about it. I’ll experiment, too. I’ll throw in an alternative comic and even though they’re not rip-roaring funny, they’re still funny and their jokes are “thinking jokes.” It’s the younger people who are usually more creative, where a guy like me is going to be more like setup-punchline-laugh because that’s the era I grew up in.
Teme: Do different generations laugh at different things?
Todd: Boomers get it all. Sometimes I push the envelope and my Gen X’ers will like it, while sometimes Gen Z does not and wants to cancel it. I think it’s Gen Z who’s the most sensitive, but that’s why I book different comics and I also go up first, so I have the toughest slot. It’s not always about being the funniest. It’s also about setting up the show.
THE COMEDIANS
Teme: Who are some of the regulars on your show?
Todd: John McCombs is fantastic. I’ve known him for years. I first saw him at an open mic. He just got back from doing a fifty-show tour in Europe. He’s also excellent at reading a room, which not all comics can do.
I have Brandon Kieffer on my show. He’s hilarious. I couldn’t even get him on my show all last month because he was booked. One of my favorites is Lindsay Porter. She has been a friend of mine for years. She’s one of the go-to “Bad Momz of Comedy.” Zoe Dotson is also a rising star.
Ty Riggs is really, really funny. I’ve had him on the last couple of months. I’ve got him coming up in April. He was a finalist in the World Series of Comedy in Las Vegas, so I’ve been grabbing him.
A lot of comedians from Laugh Factory are doing my shows. I get really good comedians because my show is at seven o’clock and it’s an hour commitment. As soon as the show’s over, they drive over to Laugh Factory and do two shows over there. Sometimes they’ll come from Laugh Factory, do a set at my show and then go over to Lincoln Lodge.
Teme: What do you look for when you’re booking comics for the show?
Todd: I have to think they’re funny. Not too dirty or too specific. Some of the comics who are on the border of Gen Z and Millennial, I’m not even sure what they’re talking about. If I don’t know what you’re talking about, my crowd’s not going to know. I don’t do too much political. In Chicago, we have a lot of social justice warrior comics, but that’s not really for Second City. This show is more about “I’m a young dad and my kids say this and do this.” or “I grew up doing this.” Relatable humor.
Most of my customers at Second City are from out of town, so I like to have comics who know how to relate to everybody. That’s what I had to learn, too. Hey, this edgy joke, save it for somewhere else.
I always try to have one person close it out who I know will be like, boom! Consistency is a big part of it. I tell comics, “You need to come with your ‘A’ jokes, otherwise I can’t use you.” I like tighter comics who can get you laughing quicker, and when a comic kills, I rebook them right away.
Nick Cobb is a comedian who was doing really well in LA. His wife got a job in Chicago and that’s why he moved here. People here don’t know who he is yet. I know who he is, so I’ve been grabbing him and putting him on my shows. Very consistent, very chill. His closer is hilarious. Every time I hear his closer, I’m just dying laughing. It’s a perfectly written joke. I look for that consistency.
A UNIQUE APPROACH TO HECKLERS
Teme: What’s your approach to crowd work and dealing with hecklers? I’ve noticed you’re great at both.
Todd: It’s experience. You get experienced at having hecklers throw you off a little. Sometimes hecklers get mad if you shut them down. I’ve had them get mad at me after the show because I made them the butt of the joke and now everyone’s laughing at them, not with them, but it’s just comedy. Once in a while they’ll get mad and I think, “I might get punched after the show.”
Teme: Has that happened?
Todd: No one’s ever punched me, but I’ve had club managers say, “Why don’t you just go ahead and go home now so these guys don’t beat you up after the show.” That happened when I was younger, not recently.
Teme: Do you have a favorite crowd work story?
Todd: I’ve done some crazy crowd work. Recently, I was headlining a show. The comic who was featuring got some information from the crowd. I get up there and I start tagging my jokes with those people. That way the crowd is really into it. If you look at pictures of me, I’m always pointing to people. That’s one of the things I found, too. If I direct a joke at you as if I’m telling you personally, everyone listens more attentively.
Teme: That’s so smart. Do you plan it out before you get on stage?
Todd: When I first started, I didn’t even realize I was doing it. I like people. I love to be on stage. I love to talk to people and I love to hear people’s stories. I have a joke about grandmothers because when you and I were kids, grandmas looked like grandmas. My grandma had a purse with $20 and that grandma gum and grandma candy, and she had rolls that she stole from the table.
When I was hungry, she’d pull out a roll with a piece of gum on it, pull the gum off and hand it to me. But now? Grandmas are all good looking and they’re in yoga pants and they’re hot. So I was like, “What happened to grandmas?” Then I found out there were grandmas in the audience and they loved it. I made them part of the whole show.
You asked about heckling. I was doing a show in Kenosha when an old grandma on a scooter rolled up to the front row. Put her foot on the stage and started heckling me – except she could only talk out of half of her face. I thought, oh my god, this poor woman just had a stroke and now she’s heckling from the front row? Good for her! That’s where I want to be. I want to be the 80-year-old heckling grandma. But you realize if you’re a comic with a brain in your head, you don’t attack this woman. She’s having a good time. A lot of comics attack the audience, but I bring them in. A lot of times it makes for a rowdy show.
GENERATIONAL DIVIDE
Teme: Are generational differences ever a barrier between comics in the Chicago comedy scene?
Todd: I’m tighter with the Gen X, Boomer and older Millennial comics. I have more in common with them than some of these 22 or 25-year-old comics. I’m old enough to be their dad and when I walk into a room, some of them say things like, “What’s up, old man?” I’m like, “I don’t feel old. I’m hanging out with you people!” There are also comics in their seventies like Bill Gorgo and Larry (Uncle Lar) Reeb. I work with Uncle Lar a lot.
I did a show with Jan Slavin. She’s absolutely hilarious. In the car on the way to the show, we were doing bits which I was recording and sending to her daughter. Jan and I always joke because I sort of went on a date with her daughter and Jan’s like, oh, I would’ve loved to have you as my son-in-law. I’m like, how much fun would we have! There’s a bond between comics where age doesn’t matter. You know what each other has been through.
SECRETS TO SUCCESS
Teme: Tickets to the show regularly sell out, you’re touring, and you’re in demand at Second City and tons of other venues, too. How would you sum up Standup Throw Down’s secret formula?
Todd: Most important, it’s generational. It’s very relatable. There’s something for everyone in this show. It’s a competition, which we all like. If the Gen Z kids don’t really love me, they love the other comics, and I think that’s great. You get to compare the different comics, you get to vote at the end and then when you leave, you end up discussing the different types of comedy on the way home. Everywhere we take it, people love it and are shocked by how funny it is. The ending of the show is my favorite part because it happened by accident. I didn’t plan it. It just came out naturally as a riff and I realized, “That’s the ending of the show!” I never reveal what it is. You have to come to the show.
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Todd Glover’s Standup Throw Down: Millennials vs. Gen X is at Second City on April 12th, 19th, & 26th at 7:00 p.m. in Judy’s Beat Lounge, 230 W. North Ave., Chicago. Tickets here.
Just announced: Second City has added Standup Thrown Down: Millennials vs. Gen X to its summer season. Tickets available soon for shows in July and August.
Todd brings Standup Throw Down: Millennials vs. Gen X to the Laughing Academy in Glenview on May 9 at 8:00 p.m., 3230 Glenview Road, Glenview. Tickets here.
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