The Online Reflector

Junior communication major Brent Terhune was telling jokes about school lunches at the age of 16, in coffee house events at his high school, while other students were performing music and reciting poetry. Now he’s performing in various clubs, interning for “The Bob & Tom Show” and furthering his career as a comedian.

Terhune performed at a comedy club for the first time when he was a junior in high school.

“When I was a junior in high school, I did my first open mic at Crackers Comedy Club in Broad Ripple,” Terhune said. “You got three minutes to perform. I did probably four and a half minutes and got cut off, but that was my very first comedy club experience.”

According to Terhune, his biggest comedy influences are George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Mitch Hedberg, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle.

Terhune said he started telling jokes because he liked to make people laugh and enjoyed the attention.

“I was funny, so I tried it. People liked what I was doing,” Terhune said. “Part of being a comic is that you want a lot of attention. That filled the attention factor up.”

He feels that being the younger of two children has an impact on his comedy and his need to make people laugh.
“They say that the youngest people in a family are comics,” Terhune said. “So I guess we are fighting for attention. We just like making people laugh.”

Writing jokes is not always the easiest thing for Terhune, but he has many different techniques for doing so.

“If I have a good premise, I’ll take that and write it down and sit on it for a week or two so it will be fresh in my brain every time I see it on my wipe board. Sometimes I sit and type out something,” Terhune said. “So there are all kinds of ways that I come up with jokes. Sometimes it’s an ad lib on stage that is funny, so it’s going to stay in the act,” Terhune said. ”It’s a very varied way of writing.”

Terhune helps with writing at his his internship at “The Bob & Tom Show.”

“I go through news stories every day, usually about four hours of writing, and find the ones that are funny and I’ll write a few lines for that story,” Terhune said. “I then submit it to Tom Griswald and if he thinks it’s funny then he’ll do it on the
air.”

As with most internships, there is a hope of employment following completion. For Terhune, this is a definite goal.
“My hope is that it will turn into a job. I know that that’s the best possible scenario. Even if I don’t get a job there, I know that I can do that [work for a radio comedy show].”

For now, Terhune feels that the internship, even if it doesn’t turn into a job, is going to help build his writing skills.
“I think it’s something that I want to do to supplement the standup, because I don’t think that you’re going to make enough money, at least starting out, to support yourself financially,” Terhune said. “If nothing else at least it [the internship] will help me in my own writing.”

Through comedy, Terhune has made many friends and connections over the last few years at his performances.
“I know Brent through comedy. I met him when he first got on stage at Crackers. We have done many shows together. I plan on working with Brent a lot in the future as well,” said fellow comedian and friend Matt Holt. “I think our styles match very well, and we always have a great time working together.”

Terhune, along with fellow comedians Holt and Jeff Oskay, hosts a podcast called “The Interweb Podshow,” where the three talk about current events, their daily lives and comedy. The response to the show, while a bit surprising to the three comedians, has been good.

“So far, I think we have gotten a very positive response and feedback to the podcast. We have people who really look forward to each new episode and we’re having a blast doing it,” Holt said. “There’s nothing better than three really good friends sitting around talking about what’s on our minds, and people want to hear it, so it’s perfect.”

Holt sees Terhune as not only a great friend but also a great up-and-coming comedian who isn’t planning to go anywhere for a while.

“I would say that Brent is truly a great comic. He is easily one of the best writers I know. He has a very quick wit and always manages to make me laugh…and laugh hard,” Holt said. “He is one of the most likeable guys I know, and that trait will take you very far with an audience. I think he has a long and successful career ahead of him. I consider him to be a peer but more importantly, one of my closest friends.”

Terhune will be performing at Crackers Comedy Club in Broad Ripple March 9-12 and Crackers Comedy Club Downtown March 30-April 2. For more information about Terhune, go to brentcomedy.com or check out the interwebpodshow.podbean.com.