Standard News

Hide Advertisement
  • Business
  • Culture
  • News
  • Technology
  • Trending
Site logo
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Dying on stage: comedian Marx has come closer than most

By Reuters 3 min read
Advertisement - Continue reading below
Comedian Carey Marx performs at the Up The Creek Comedy Club in Greenwich, London

By Robin Pomeroy

GREENWICH, England(Reuters) – Like most stand-up comedians, Carey Marx has stories about “dying on stage”, but in his case they are almost literally true.

Advertisement

Just weeks after a heart attack at the age of 46 which he put down to smoking, drinking and poor diet, economic necessity forced Marx back to work. But the crowd reacted badly when he tried to make jokes about his illness, chanting: “Die! Die! Die!”

He shuffled off stage and into an ambulance. He survived but only after a second operation to keep his arteries open.

“I tried to do material about the heart attack and I think if you do material like that badly you just embarrass the audience,” Marx told Reuters ahead of a gig in south London.

“And I was also was genuinely afraid of hecklers, and that’s when comedy becomes frightening. You should never be afraid of the heckler. When you feel your heart racing and you’re aware that you could go down at any moment then it’s pretty scary.”

Just hours after his heart attack, Marx told hospital staff he intended to get to a gig that evening. The doctor, astonished that he was contemplating rushing back into such a high-stress occupation, inadvertently gave him his first heart joke.

“He said: ‘You can’t do comedy.’ What he hadn’t bargained for is I’ve been told that loads of times!” Marx says in “Intensive Carey”, a show about his heart attack which he performed at the Edinburgh Festival and BBC radio.

These days the Londoner, a combative, confident performer who is both lauded and criticized for his “dark” subject matters, rarely does material about his heart attack, partly because “I don’t want to ruin their night” but more because it is so personal.

“I found it embarrassing to talk about at first. I am able to criticize the world and behavior and rules normally (during my comedy) because they don’t affect me personally and I don’t mind how the audience react to it.

“But if I had an audience I didn’t really like, I didn’t want to tell them the story, because it was personal. I felt like I had an investment in it.”

One of the most touching stories in “Intensive Carey” is when Marx recalls walking to the local shop to buy a bag a sugar.

Severely weakened by his heart disease, he has to clutch it desperately to his chest as he staggers home, aware that people around him must be thinking: “Look at that poor old man. He really loves sugar.”

Research published in the “International Journal of Cardiology” (http://tinyurl.com/gkpbuyc) that found standup comedians were particularly at risk of fatal illness, with “an inverse association between comedic ability and longevity”, is something of a double-edged sword for Marx.

“Should I be putting ‘has had a heart attack’ amongst the reviews on my flyers?” he asked.

Marx rejects the idea that stress levels and personality traits are to blame for comedians’ poor health, and says it is more to do with lifestyle.

“Nowadays there’s a lot of very healthy people on the circuit. When I started it was a lot more rock and roll.”

Rather than grabbing a greasy kebab after a late-night gig, he says: “Lots of comedians arrive with their packed lunch. I have never been that good a person.”

(Editing by Angus MacSwan)

tagreuters.com2016binary_LYNXNPEC6L0GR-VIEWIMAGE

tagreuters.com2016binary_LYNXNPEC6L0GS-VIEWIMAGE

tagreuters.com2016binary_LYNXNPEC6L0GT-VIEWIMAGE

Advertisement - Continue reading below

Nation’s Emergency Physicians Urge Congress To Vote ‘No’ on American Health Care Act
News
Jason Owen 2 min read

Nation’s Emergency Physicians Urge Congress To Vote ‘No’ on American Health Care Act

Obama responds to critics in conversation on race and police
News
Reuters 2 min read

Obama responds to critics in conversation on race and police

South Carolina church shooting suspect OK after jail attack
News
Reuters 2 min read

South Carolina church shooting suspect OK after jail attack

United scores first joint deals with flight crew, mechanics
News
Reuters 3 min read

United scores first joint deals with flight crew, mechanics

California gets go-ahead to vote on legalization of marijuana
News
Reuters 2 min read

California gets go-ahead to vote on legalization of marijuana

Two bodies found in area burned by California wildfire
News
Reuters 2 min read

Two bodies found in area burned by California wildfire

Southwest Airlines flight blows tire, returns to Los Angeles
News
Reuters 1 min read

Southwest Airlines flight blows tire, returns to Los Angeles

‘Don’t Breathe’ wins again as summer ends on strong
Entertainment
Reuters 4 min read

‘Don’t Breathe’ wins again as summer ends on strong

5 Tips and Tricks to Make the Most of iOS 11
Business
Brian Delpozo 3 min read

5 Tips and Tricks to Make the Most of iOS 11

Atlanta Gym Owner Sparks Outrage With Controversial ‘No Cops’ Rule
Culture
Nick Nunez 2 min read

Atlanta Gym Owner Sparks Outrage With Controversial ‘No Cops’ Rule

load more Loading posts...

sidebar

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

sidebar-alt

  • About Us
  • Imprint
  • Contact Us
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • For Advertisers