Playtone Productions, which is owned by Tom Hanks is looking to do a film partially based on Mitzi Shore, Pauly’s Mom, and founder of L.A.’s Comedy Store.
According to Pajiba, the narrative is based on the book, “I’m Dying Up Here: Heartbreak and High Times in Stand-up Comedy’s Golden Era” by William Knoedelseder. The book focuses on the late 70’s when Shore wasn’t paying comics in order to make a fortune off their performances. Shore justified this by calling the Comedy Store a training ground and in turn the only thing the comics got was free drinks.
Sadly, things took a turn for the worst. The comedians went on strike against Shore and one of the comedians, Steve Lubetkin killed himself by jumping off a hotel building. They found a suicide note from Lubetkin saying, “My name is Steve Lubetkin. I used to work at the Comedy Store.”
For those who aren’t familiar with the Comedy Store, the venue is a part of comedy history. Many comedians got their start there: Eddie Murphy, Tim Allen, Chevy Chase, Jim Belushi, Jim Carrey, David Letterman, and Jay Leno.
This project sounds like it could be something very worthwhile. For the most part, I’m down for anything Tom Hanks gets involved in. It would be an added bonus if he would direct this film. He recently decided to get back into the directorial game with LARRY CROWNE, in which Julia Roberts will star.
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