Jake Johannsen made his comedic debut at San Francisco's Cobbs Comedy Club during an open mike night. In 1986, he won the 11th Annual San Francisco Stand Up Comedian Competition. Jake has appeared on "The Late Show with David Letterman" 45 times. He has appeared in the "HBO Young Comedian's Special" and PBS's "Comedy Tonight" series, and was the host of Comedy Central's series, "Two Drink Minimum". He has also been nominated as "Best Male Stand-Up Comedian" for the American Comedy Awards.
With a subtle and intelligent comedic style, With his ability to give the most common element new meaning. Jake quickly became one of the most respected comedians in the country. Not many comedians will devote six minutes to a single subject, especially one as seemingly mundane as a toaster or as strange as his conviction that extraterrestrials are working among us. Jake His bizarre take on life has prompted critics to observe that he "conjures up some of the strangest imagery this side of Gary Larsen's comic strip, The Far Side."
In 1992, he starred in his own HBO Comedy Special titled "This'll Take About an Hour," which premiered to rave reviews, and was named #36 in TV Guide's "The 100 Greatest Moments in Television" for that year. Jake also received an Ace Award nomination for best writing in an Entertainment Special for his work on that special.
Other television credits include comedy specials on HBO, Showtime, and Netflix, with a new one set to launch in December of 2014.
Man vs. machine, extraterrestrials and relationships are just some of the eclectic themes that Jake reflects upon. If anything is his trademark, according to Johannsen it is his longer, convoluted stories. "I'm talking about things that everybody can relate to and I think I have my own idea of where the problem is. I don't feel I make them deliberately bizarre."
Johannsen has established himself as one of the country's most prominent comedians and continues to headline across the country.
I’ve been going to see Jake Johannsen with my bff once a year for 25 years. He is consistently hilarious and always has new material. I don’t know how he does it. Love him
We been seeing Jake just about ever time he comes by since the ‘80’s. He is a level above just about everyone else. Not sure why he doesn’t play larger venues like Jim Gaffigan, but he’s that funny. You’ll be crying.
I see Jake every year at Punch Line and he always brings a new hilariuos act.
I see Jake as often as I can. He always brings new material and has me and my friends laughing out loud.
Great show! Jake is smart, witty and very funny. Downloading JakeThis podcasts to hear more Jake!
Jake caught me totally off guard. I saw a few YouTube clips and thought he was ok. Friends still pushed to go and I am so glad they did. This guy is so much better than what you might find on the Internet. He's clever and entertaining and I would highly recommend catching his next show.
One word, hilarious. All 3 comedians were good, but Jake rocked it. We laughed constantly.
All three comedians were hilarious and Jake just killed it. Fantastic night of comedy
Very enjoyable evening, Jake Johannsen is so very funny. Laughed so hard brought tears to my eyes. Needed more than one tissue. Punchline is a great club, friendly staff, comfortable seating.
Great place to see a show. And of course, loved Jake as always.