By Dianne Anderson

If ever there was a time in San Bernardino when folks needed to remember what real funny sounds like, it’s right now. Even if they’re not in the mood for jokes, they might want to turn out for Nazareth at the mic for a come one, come all, family fun.

Best of all, it’s free, and most of all, it’s clean.

Unlike a lot of comedy shows where the kids have to cover their ears, Nazareth has built an international reputation for being smart, hilarious, and completely curse-free. It’s a nice excursion from the usual witless shock value and cheap laughs on streaming media.

Whenever and wherever comedian Nazareth performs, his top-of-the-line clean comedians open the event, and they always reflect the community. This time around, he’s bringing a Mexican American, African American, and a white guy.

Some of the comedians have a huge following.

He believes it’s because the diversity resonates with real people, and true comedy is all about respect and family.

“Before Richard Pryor, comedians would go up on stage and make fun of everyone, African Americans, Mexican Americans, Arabs, Native Americans, but then came the genius Richard Pryor. He said no, we make fun of ourselves and we call ourselves the names we want to call ourselves. You don’t have that right,” he said.

On Saturday, November 1, the free event runs from 6:00–8:00 p.m. at the California Theatre of the Performing Arts at 562 West 4th Street in San Bernardino. Doors open at 5:00 p.m. Options for donations and “Pay It Forward” tickets to support others are available at laughterforall.org.

Initially, his whole vision of Laughter for All was about giving fun time away for those having a hard time just paying the bills and needing some stress relief. With so many families not able to afford to bring their kids to the movies, or even the grandparents, he wants to lift everyone up.

Over the past 30 years, he has toured with B.B. King, the Temptations, as well as many Christian performers. Even as a young dad, he knew what it felt like to be on a tight budget and how getting entertainment was slim or none.

“At the time, the comedy clubs wanted a two-drink minimum, or Christians had to pay $25 to see me. There’s a lot of people that can’t even think about that,” he said.

Fun these days costs more than many families can afford. Even though the event is free, he’s not shy about accepting donations to support the cause.

“Some people might say, is this just for people that don’t have money? No, if you want to come and give $100 or $50, that’s fine. It helps us cover the costs,” he said.

When God first put it on his heart to start Laughter for All, he wanted to take comedy where it’s really needed most for hurting people. At that time, it was in San Bernardino County because it was the most low-income county.

By faith, he went to rent the stadium and asked how much it would cost.

“They asked how much are tickets? I said it’s free. They said how are you going to pay?” he said. “I said God will send the money, and they laughed at me—and He did.”

A friend wrote him a check to cover 5,000 people that came out for free, and at that time, the community got free food and toys.

Starting in 2013, the event was at San Bernardino Theatre of Performing Arts and drew about 1,800 people.

These days, it’s stressful not knowing if housing is stable, if food is affordable, or how expensive tomorrow will get. He hires and sends his other comedian friends into churches, homeless shelters, and to people who can’t afford entertainment.

It’s all about giving back.

He wants to reach more people and always asks them to bring their friends to enjoy the moment.

Probably one of his proudest accomplishments is when he found out that they were playing his comedy at a cancer chemotherapy center.

“When you go to a comedy show, you laugh for an hour. That’s so good for your body and your heart. If during that show something against your values was said, it removes all benefits of that comedy,” he said.

But in August 1992, while performing in Las Vegas and even with good management, it was a tough time for a Middle Eastern man in America. He was seriously thinking about quitting. He prayed, and suddenly, everything went right almost overnight.

It all expanded exponentially. The money and demand started rolling in. He was able to employ other comedians and give the people what they need to laugh for free.

What goes around comes around. Sometimes he makes zero, but last week, he did a show in Orange County where he made some decent money, enough to give some more away.

“Most of the comedians have been doing it for over 20 years. I guarantee you people are going to laugh as hard as any other comedy event in the country,” he said.

To RSVP and, or, help someone else laugh, pay it forward with tickets at:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/laughter-for-all-with-comedian-nazareth-tickets-1587946985179?aff=oddtdtcreator