An Evening of Comfy and Compassionate Comedy

Nechama means “compassion,” and a group of the same name held “A Night of Compassionate Comedy” Monday to benefit AIDS services in L.A.’s Jewish Community. More than 100 guests paid $25 apiece for two hours of stand-up laughs at Igby’s Comedy Cabaret in West L.A.

“My, my, my,” said comic Richard Rothenstein, taking the microphone. “Super Bowl Sunday. Nechama Monday. Where does it end?”

The 4-year-old Nechama coordinates care and offers counseling for people with AIDS as well as education in AIDS prevention and awareness. It’s under the wing of Jewish Family Services of Los Angeles.

Also on the bill were comics Bobcat Goldthwait, Al Lubell, Mark Schiff, Chance Lankton, Pam Stone, Paul Zimmerman and Fritz Coleman. Judd Apatow was the emcee. The evening was produced by Paul Bennett, director of promotions for the annual Comic Relief benefit for the homeless.

It was a loose, fast and comfortable evening, largely because of a lack of speeches, pretense, sentimentality or political harangue. No one got misty-eyed or tried to get the audience to hold hands and sing. There were a few Bill Clinton jokes, but judging from the number of times condoms were mentioned, the prophylactic has replaced airline food as a staple of every comic’s repertoire.

Nechama President Phyllis Flushman says it was the group’s biggest benefit yet. Asked how the various branches of L.A.’s Jewish community have responded to the AIDS crisis, Flushman said, “We’re getting better. The Conservative movement is falling into it, and we’re beginning to make inroads in the Orthodox community.”

The evening was a good start, but by now, the worlds of fashion, sports, movies and theater have all produced major benefits and created foundations to fight AIDS. Isn’t it about time for the multimillion-dollar comedy industry to make a major effort similar to Comic Relief?

Coleman, who has participated in several AIDS benefits, said the support for a big benefit is there among comedians. “It’s not a big sacrifice for us to donate a little of our time on Monday evening to combat something that’s such a horrific plague.”