The fun of being an emcee

I emceed a show last week where there were over 10 comics on the list.  Being an emcee, it was my job to open the show, then bring up each and every one of the comics.  They drew numbers, as it was a contest.  As I was writing the names one by one, one of guys said, “My name is Mark.  Mark with a C!”  I started laughing instantly.  One thing to keep in mind is that not one person would see this list except me, yet it was very crucial that I spell his name correctly, lest I pronounce Marc and Mark differently, which no one on earth does.  “Mark with a K?  Isn’t that pronounced Guillermo?”

Even better for me was right after getting all the names, the last comic approached and started giving me his entire intro, which was long.  There’s kind of an unspoken rule, if it’s a paid show, the emcee has to do whatever the headliner wants.  For an unpaid show, not so much.  As he started telling me the details, I asked if he could wait until later, since there was no chance in hell I would be able to perform, bring up the entire lineup and remember it.  About 15 minutes later, he sauntered up just before I was going on to start the show in front of about 150 people.  He started with the bio again.  I repeated myself, to which he muttered, “I know what you’re doing.”  I was about to argue, then realized the fruitlessness of doing so when the desired result had been reached.  Granted, I was expecting to get stabbed the rest of the night, but it would have been worth it not to hear the full bio again.