Travis Tapleshay making the rounds with brand of stand-up comedy
BY L.J. GAMBONE
APPLE VALLEY REVIEW
The best jokes are often born in the strangest places, according to locally based comic Travis Tapleshay. The Fontana native admits some of his best material has come to him while sitting in church or walking on the treadmill at the gym.
Regardless of how or where it shows up, Tapleshay says he’s grateful for the comedic inspiration, as well as the talent to be funny even before the toughest of audiences.
“People can be tough and they have to like you in the first two minutes or you’ve lost them,” said Tapleshay, 28, who will host a comedy show at Fat Jack’s Bar and Grill in Apple Valley at 8 p.m. March 21 featuring WWE Superstar Rob Van Dam. “But I have a really good ability to come up with stuff off the top of my head, which helps me to keep a crowd engaged. To be a great comic, you have to be able to think on your feet.”
Tapleshay says he started thinking about becoming a stand-up comic around the age of 10. The Hesperia resident spent his Saturday evenings watching “Saturday Night Live” and dreaming about following in the footsteps of the show’s popular cast members Jim Breuer, Darrell Hammond and Will Ferrell.
Fortunately for Tapleshay, he says his mother had a larger-than-life personality and provided a lot of material for him to hone his chops on.
“My mom was always comedic so we just had a lot of humor in our house in general,” said Tapleshay. “I find that life itself makes for the funniest stuff.
“Still, there’s only so many topics you can talk about, so you have to put your own spin on them. My goal has always been to be as original as possible.”
Although Tapleshay has a day job as a small business account specialist at Chase Bank, he said he hopes to eventually become a full-time comic. He believes that goal isn’t far off, as he’s already headlined at the Improv and Comedy Store in Los Angeles, as well as the Ice House in Pasadena.
Tapleshay also has appeared at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas and Flappers Comedy Club in Burbank.
“So far, doing comedy has been something I do for fun but I would love to do it full-time,” said Tapleshay. “I’m still young enough to make it big. And Rodney Dangerfield didn’t make it until he was 40, so I’m feeling like the sky’s the limit.”
Along with his stand-up gigs, Tapleshay also hosts a weekly talent show at 8 p.m at Fat Jack’s Bar and Grill. The show is open to everyone from singers and songwriters to comedians and spoken word artists. The Grand Prize winner will receive $2,000.
“For myself and other performers, the key to success has to a lot to do with hard work but also just getting yourself out there as often as possible,” said Tapleshay. “It’s important to use social media, too. I have gotten quite a few gigs through online connections and also just by networking with people. It’s a very competitive business but anyone can be successful if they keep working at it and stay true to themselves.”
Visit Tapleshay on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Travis-Tapleshay/274554452574956. Fat Jack’s Bar and Grill is located at 19123 Outer Highway 18. For information about upcoming events at the establishment, call 760-242-5225.