Paula Poundstone

Date: 2/20/2015
Time: 8:00 PM TO 10:00 PM

13350 FSW Parkway
Fort Myers, FL 33919

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Event Description: 32 years ago Paula Poundstone climbed on a Greyhound bus and traveled across the country -- stopping in at open mic nights at comedy clubs as she went. A high school drop-out, she went on to become one of the great humorists of our time. You can hear her through your laughter as a regular panelist on NPR’s popular rascal of a weekly news quiz show, Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me. She tours regularly, performing standup comedy across the country, causing Bob Zany with the Boston Globe to write: “Poundstone can regale an audience for several hours with her distinctive brand of wry, intelligent and witty comedy.” Audience members may put it a little less elegantly: “I peed my pants.” While there is no doubt that Poundstone is funny, the thing that separates her from the pack of comics working today and that has made her a legend among comics and audiences alike is her ability to be spontaneous with a crowd. Poundstone says: “No two shows I do are the same. It's not that I don't repeat material. I do. My shows, when they're good, and I like to think they often are, are like a cocktail party. When you first get there, you talk about how badly you got lost and how hard it was to find parking. Then you tell a story about your kids or what you just saw on the news. You meet some new people and ask them about themselves. Then, someone says, "Tell that story you used to tell," and then someone on the other side of the room spills a drink, and you mock them. No one ever applauds me when I leave a party, though. I think they high five.” Paula recently did commentary on CBS Sunday Morning. Her editorial pieces can be heard on NPR's All Things Considered. An avid reader, Paula signed on as the National Spokesperson for the American Library Association’s (ALA) United for Libraries in 2008 – a role she continues to this day! United for Libraries is a national citizen’s support group that works to raise funds and awareness for their local libraries. Said Paula, when she was chosen, “It’s funny that we think of libraries as quiet demure places where we are shushed by dusty, bun-balancing, bespectacled women. The truth is libraries are raucous clubhouses for free speech, controversy and community. Librarians have stood up to the Patriot Act, sat down with noisy toddlers and reached out to illiterate adults. Libraries can never be shushed.” As part of her duties, Paula recorded a public service announcement for United for Libraries and helps raise funds. For the last four years she has also been the headline panelist at the ALA’s annual conference for their “Laughs On Us” panel of writers. To quote Sally Reed, the ALA Nat'l Director: "...you'd have to come to one of these events to see how adored Paula is by librarians. We love her and it's never repetitive." Paula's incredible spontaneous humor is the perfect fit for the voracious appetite of the social networks: Follow her on: Twitter@twitter.com/paulapoundstone; Facebook: facebook.com/PaulaPoundstone. And enjoy her website: www.paulapoundstone.com


Directions:
Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall

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