By Amelia Nielson-Stowell
?I do a lot of traveling and once in a while, I have to stay in these places that don?t have a lot of amenities,? comedian Ryan Hamilton begins his hotel ?wake-up call? joke.
?I was in one of theses places, and I called to get a wake up call. The voice on the other end says, ?You?re 28 years old, you make $6,000 a year and you haven?t had a decent date in months.? Yeah, I guess that is a wake up call isn?t it. I?m just going to set the alarm.?
But despite Hamilton?s joke, the stand-up comedian is at the top of his game. The BYU alumnus is one of the top-five national finalists in Sierra Mist?s ?America?s Next Great Comic? search.
The Ashton, Idaho, native, who currently calls Pleasant Grove home, started comedy soon after his April 2001 graduation. He became a full-time comedian two years ago and works in comedy clubs all over the nation.
?At first it was an adventure I was going to do until I hit a dead end,? he said. ?But I haven?t had to stop.?
And while most comedians rely on cuss words and dirty jokes to carry their act, Hamilton is completely clean.
?I try to create an act I can use at a ward party or any comedy club across the nation,? he said. ?I try to be original and fresh and still be clean.?
Hamilton, who describes himself as shy, was not the typical class clown in high school. Instead, he made prom king.
?I?m funny if there?s an opportunity,? Hamilton said. ?I?m not on all the time. People think that about a lot of comics. I just try to be me as much as possible.?
Being himself is Hamilton?s guiding philosophy. As a freshman at BYU-Idaho, Hamilton studied broadcast journalism. He decided to switch to public relations because ?it seemed more stable.?
?But then for some reason I became a standup comic,? he said, laughing. ?I?ve just decided you have to do something you really love ? where you don?t have to motivate yourself constantly.?
After college graduation, Hamilton worked in what he called his dream job at an advertising agency in Salt Lake City. But after a year, it became difficult to focus and hard to be in an office all day. He was working comedy at night and thought about his act at work.
?I?m lucky that I?m in a position where I can do and believe something I love,? he said. ?If you don?t try then, you?ll never know.?
Supporting a family was Hamilton?s goal in switching to comedy. Although the pay isn?t amazing, Hamilton said he doesn?t think he?ll have to go back to a desk job.
Because of his public relations background, Hamilton markets himself. He books his own shows, writes his own news releases and manages his own Web site.
?It?s like running your own business,? he said. ?And you have to learn how to take a lot of ups and downs in this business.?
And Hamilton has had his fair share of ups and downs.
In 2003, he placed in three national competitions: a semi-finalist in Comedy Central?s Laugh Riots, a finalist in the Las Vegas Comedy Festival Mainstream and a semi-finalist in the Seattle International Comedy Competition. Hamilton auditioned for a CBS sitcom in Los Angeles in 2004 and was called to do a studio test but didn?t end up landing the role.
?You just kind of learn to take opportunities as they come,? he said.
Keith Stubbs, owns the Utah-based comedy club chain Wiseguys, where Hamilton began his act through amateur nights and is now a regular. Stubbs told Hamilton about the ?America?s Next Great Comic? search and said he thinks Hamilton will win.
?He?s worked hard, very hard,? Stubbs said. ?If you saw him at the beginning and now, it?s night and day.?
Stubbs said Hamilton?s comedy is like a more animated version of comedian Jerry Seinfeld ? which Stubbs said the audience loves.
?He?s clean and smart, which is very appealing,? Stubbs said. ?there?s only a few people who can pull that off in this market and he?s one of them.?
John Schefer, owner of Provo comedy club Johnny B?s where Hamilton has headlined twice, also thinks Hamilton and his ?squeaky clean? comedy will give him the ?America?s Next Great Comic? title.
?I think Ryan?s above this competition anyway,? Schefer said. ?He?s pretty new in the business and I hope Ryan does win.?
Schefer said Hamilton?s clean act is less stressful to deal with than other comedians because most comedians have to change their act for the clean comedy club. Hamilton finds his clean act more marketable as well.
?It?s easier to do that because comedy is all about getting a reaction and those get a reaction,? Hamilton said. ?It?s kind of a shortcut. I have to be more creative. ? I think that sets me apart.?
Voting for ?America?s Next Great Comic? search is done through the Web site www.nextgreatcomic.com. Voting ends Friday.
Who: BYU alumnus Ryan Hamilton
What: America?s Next Great Comic search
Where: www.nextgreatcomic.com
When: By Friday, April 1