How long has it been since John Henton was last year? Well over a year because I tried to find a picture of us where I had the facial hair and couldn’t find any. Has it been that long? Henton loves Tahoe because he’s not used to clean air where he lives. I told him the more one gets booked up here the longer one’s life span is. John’s been on several high profile television shows that earned him accolades from the NAACP’s “Image Award.” Other prestigious credits included being nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Those series included playing ‘Overton on “Living Single” and the character of ‘Milsap’ on “The Hughleys.” In fact, when he last appeared up here he called himself “an out-of-work comedian.”

Henton has been working cruise ships lately in addition to theaters and clubs. He has appeared on television but usually as walk-up parts. John needs another series built around him as he is so damn funny it would be a hit immediately. Henton has a lot of television credits under his belt including “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” and he’s one of the few comedians who appeared both on “NBC’s “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson and Jay Leno. In fact, after John had finished his set on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” he was called over to take a seat on the coveted couch where Carson asked him if he had an agent. To John’s reply of “no,” Carson mugged, “Well you will after tonight.” It was a performance that John says gave his career, “a serious jump-start.” Soon after John appeared on “The Bob Hope Young Comedian’s Special” and eventually got his own special, “John Henton: Comedy With An Attitude” on Showtime.

Henton has opened for a multitude of great entertainers including Little Richard, Paul Rodriguez, The GAP Band, The Pointer Sisters, Kool & The Gang, Kenny Loggins and Kenny G. to name but a slice of the performers he has worked with.

John is one of those comics that if you followed him around for a day you’d be cracking up probably more offstage than on. That’s not to diminish his stage act because it’s pretty damn funny. Still John is always humbled when he least expects it. John once told me about a really cute girl in her 20’s who was being all nice to him after a show and couldn’t wait to talk to him. When she got an opportunity she asked him, “You’re that guy who was on “Living Single” right? When John said, “Why yes, I was” she said, “Oh my! My mother loved that show!”

Brett Walkow

Some guys are funny on stage and some are even funnier when they produce bits for the world to see on the Internet. After a decade of performing on everywhere from “The Tonight Show” to around the country, comic Brett Walkow decided to fully produce, write, direct and edit, music and star in his viral hit, “Carmageddeon.” One year and 6 million views later, Brett has caught a lot of folks’ attention. With stints on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “E! TV,” “Comic Relief” and a bunch of other TV credits Brett’s been touted as a young Conan O’Brien and even has his own weekly chat show interviewing everyone from big name stars in the flesh and big name animated characters as well. We’re lucky to get him this week.

And to think it wasn’t that long ago that Brett was picked to be in the prestigious Just For Laughs Festival as one of 22 comics from around the world to be included in their “The New Faces Of Comedy” portfolio.

He even has his own production company, Clown Town which seeks out and books other talented performers as well. This is only his second time up here and hope we will be able to get him back even more in the not-so-distant future.