See 'Comedians With Criminal Records' Perform This Saturday

See 'Comedians With Criminal Records' Perform This Saturday

Hannibal Thompson, one of the Comedians with Criminal Records. (Photo via Hannibal Thompson)

Geri Koeppel
Published on April 17, 2015

Crime is no laughing matter—unless it's Comedians with Criminal Records, a lineup of local comics sharing stories of their subversive pasts.

Tony Sparks will host two shows on Saturday at 7:30pm and 10pm at the 500-seat Great Star Theater, 636 Jackson St. in Chinatown. It'll feature comedians who have been arrested for everything from stealing a four-pack of Red Bull (Daniel Bernahicks) to possessing a burglary tool (Hannibal Thompson). Other comics include Chris John (multiple D.U.I.s), Mario Hodge (assault) and #HellaFunny rising stars Dirty Mike, Chey Bell, Feel Woods and Tim Young.

To balance it out, former criminal defense attorney Stefani Silverman will take the stage, too.

Great Star Theater in Chinatown was built in 1925. Photo: Thomas Hawk/Flickr

"You’d be surprised how many compelling comedians have criminal pasts." said Johnny Funcheap, the online entertainment calendar founder who's organizing the show with Stroy Moyd. "We could be doing this show till the end of time and never run out of comedians."The show will be "half normal stand-up; half the story of their crime," Johnny said. "Did they turn their life around? Did they learn their lesson? Did they not?"

In the case of Hannibal Thompson, born and raised in the Plaza East Apartments in the Fillmore, the answer is yes, he definitely turned his life around. He was arrested about 10 years ago for selling weed and possession of a burglary tool: A spark plug, commonly used to break car windows. "I didn’t even know it was in my pocket," he said.

"I haven’t been in trouble probably in six, seven years, ever since I started doing comedy," Thompson added. "One of the reasons I really, really like doing comedy—and it’s not just comedy, it’s anything positive—is to influence the kids in the neighborhood in the Fillmore. There’s a big old world out there to see." He travels throughout the U.S. and Canada extensively to perform.

Thompson is also going to talk about getting shot "once in my left leg, once in my right leg, three times in my butt cheek and once in my groin," he said. "I laugh about all that stuff now. It’s long gone." All six happened during one shooting. "It's always eye-popping when I talk about it with anybody because I don’t look like a dude that was in the streets and got shot," he said.

Johnny said even the show's DJ has been arrested. "I may be the only one involved in the show who has not been arrested, but I should have been," he said. "I’ve done my share of graffiti when I was younger, I just wasn’t caught." 

Tickets are $5 with a code on sf.funcheap.com. Regular prices is $10 in advance; $15 at the door.