Berger Provides Comic Relief

“Whenever the director says, ‘Cut!’ I talk,” is how Claire Berger, whose business card simply identifies her as “funny,” explains her job.

Berger works as a warm-up comedian, a rare breed of performer in charge of keeping live studio audiences enthused before, during and after the taping of such series as “Seinfeld,” “Murphy Brown” and “Stand by Your Man.”

During a typical assignment, Berger might field questions about the show, chat with audience members during breaks and explain the complicated process of taping. It’s a job that requires the talents of cheerleader, tour guide and stand-up comic, says Berger, who spent three years with the Chicago comedy troupe Second City, then went on the road before moving to Los Angeles seven years ago and getting steady work almost ever since.

“I get kidded about having the most exotic life in comedy,” she says, explaining that what she likes best about her job is it affords her plenty of time with her husband and two young children. “I break that stereotype of the road-warrior Peter Pan comedian.”

Berger, who has worked on 25 series in the last five years, earns from $800 to $1,200 a night and admits that some jobs are tougher than others. “I worked on the second episode of ‘Good Sports’ (the CBS sitcom that starred Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O’Neal),” she recalls. “We started taping at 6:30 p.m. and got done at 1:30 in the morning”--and it was her job to try to keep the audience from leaving.

“By the end, there were 20 or 30 people still in the audience. I got a lot of hugs and pats on the back from them. I really felt that they appreciated my efforts.”

Berger aspires to being more than a warm-up comic--perhaps moving on to a sitcom of her own. But she’s in no hurry: “I really have confidence that it will come.”