ABOUT ME

Whenever someone asks me the terrible question "What do you do?" I feel a sense of panic. The short answer is that I'm a writer. But I work in numerous creative disciplines — sometimes several at once. Some of my work is done for love, some for money; I wish more of it was done for both. Oh, forget this; it's turning into a starving-artist manifesto. Let me start over.

I live in New York City. I'm a writer, performer, and designer. I write books, plays, songs, sketches, and essays. I perform in theatrical productions, mostly my own, and as a comedian and public speaker. I play characters. I play myself. I sing a little. I do not dance a little. I’m a graphic designer. I'm a cartoonist. I'm an occasional director and producer. I'm a filmmaker and video editor. I'm a podcaster. I'm a New York City tour guide.

A lot of my work involves the Marx Brothers. I researched and adapted I'll Say She Is and have played the role of Groucho Marx in this and many other productions. I wrote Gimme a Thrill, the definitive history of I'll Say She Is. I am a founding member of the Marxfest Committee, and a co-host of The Marx Brothers Council Podcast. I've written and lectured extensively about the Brothers and their work, including in my multimedia comedy lecture The Marx Brothers on Broadway.

I wrote and illustrated the daily comic strip Love Marches On. I wrote and performed the stage show 400 Years in Manhattan, and wrote the book based on it. I co-wrote, co-produced, and appeared in the Nero Fiddled political musicals with Amanda Sisk, my partner in life and art. You want more? There's more!

It sounds pretentious when I try to convey in a few words that I work in several creative disciplines. There's no simple, straightforward way to put it. Renaissance man is self-aggrandizing. Hyphenate is vague and confusing. Nobody knows what polymath means. Same issue with protean.

Now this is becoming a cop-out. Instead of telling you about myself, I'm telling you about the challenges of telling you about myself.

I'm a writer.