The Laff Stop was a

comedy club A comedy club is a venue—typically a nightclub, bar, hotel, casino, or restaurant—where people watch or listen to performances, including stand-up comedians, improvisational comedians, impersonators, impressionists, magicians, ventriloquists, ...

, with locations in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

History and venues

The Laff Stop was created by Michael Callie and originated in

Newport Beach, California Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island, Newport ...

and featured comics such as

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominated ...

David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman' ...

Bill Hicks William Melvin Hicks (December 16, 1961 – February 26, 1994) was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, satirist, and musician. His material—encompassing a wide range of social issues including religion, politics, and philosophy—wa ...

and

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian. Known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and come ...

. There were also Laff Stop clubs in

Montclair, California Montclair is a city in the Pomona Valley, in southwestern San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County, California. The population was 36,664 in the 2010 United States Census. History The earliest known inhabitants of the area wer ...

Palm Springs, CA and

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

(which changed its name to Cap City Comedy Club in 1996). The location in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

was open since 1977, and was one of the most successful clubs through the 1990s. It closed on December 19, 2009, in a surprise announcement.R.I.P., Legendary Laff Stop: Saturday Was The Day The Laffter Died By Dusti Rhodes Dec. 21, 2009
/ref> The Houston Laff Stop changed locations a few times during its existence, the last stop becoming an upstairs strip mall location at Waugh and Allen Parkway. The previous location on West Gray Street is now a bar called Local Pour. The club later served as a starting point and hometown club for such acts as

Ralphie May Ralph Duren May (February 17, 1972 – October 6, 2017) was an American stand-up comedian and actor, known for his extensive touring and comedy specials on multiple media platforms. Early life May was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee and raised in ...

and Brett Butler.

In media

Albums and videos recorded at the Laff Stop include: *

Mitch Hedberg Mitchell Lee Hedberg (February 24, 1968 – March 30, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian known for his surreal humor and deadpan delivery. His comedy typically featured short, sometimes one-line jokes mixed with absurd elements and non seq ...

's '' Strategic Grill Locations'' CD: recording of a performance at The Laff Stop comedy club in Houston, Texas from September 7, 1999 *

Dane Cook Dane Jeffrey Cook (born March 18, 1972) is an American stand-up comedian and film actor. He has released six comedy albums: ''Harmful If Swallowed''; ''Retaliation''; '' Vicious Circle''; '' Rough Around the Edges: Live from Madison Square Garde ...

's ''

Harmful If Swallowed ''Harmful If Swallowed'' is the first CD/DVD set from American comedian Dane Cook. It was released on July 22, 2003. The attached DVD contains Dane's appearances on ''Comedy Central Presents'' (both the edited-for-television and unedited hour-l ...

'' CD/DVD *

Joe Rogan Joseph James Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly ...

's '' I'm Gonna Be Dead Someday...'' CD *

Doug Stanhope Doug Stanhope (born March 25, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, author, political activist and podcast host. His stand-up material favors caustic and often obscene observations of life in the style of Bill Hicks and Bill Burr, which he del ...

's ''

Sicko ''Sicko'' is a 2007 American political documentary film by filmmaker Michael Moore. Investigating health care in the United States, it focuses on the country's health insurance and the pharmaceutical industry. The film compares the for-profit ...

'' and ''

Something to Take the Edge Off ''Something to Take the Edge Off'' is the third comedy album by Doug Stanhope, released in 2000 by Stand Up! Records and recorded live at The Laff Stop The Laff Stop was a comedy club, with locations in Texas and California. History and venues ...

'' *

Ron White Ron White (born December 18, 1956) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and author, best known as a charter member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour. Nicknamed "Tater Salad", he is the author of the book ''I Had the Right to Remain Silent But ...

's ''

Drunk in Public ''Drunk in Public'' is the first CD released by American comedian Ron White. It was released on November 3, 2003 on the Hip-O Records label. The album has been certified gold by the RIAA. Track listing All tracks written by White. # "Sunglasses" ...

'' CD *

Louis CK Louis Alfred Székely (; born September 12, 1967), known professionally as Louis C.K. (), is an American stand-up comedian, screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker. C.K. won three Peabody Awards, three Grammy Awards, six Primetime Emmy Awards, and a ...

's "Live in Houston" *

"Sane Man"

References

External links

Cap City Comedy (former Laff Stop in Austin, Texas)
Culture of Houston Defunct comedy clubs in the United States {{Houston-stub