L-Word.com News Stories

By B&TF

I always tell myself that I’m funny, despite the fact that most of my friends and strangers I meet don’t really think so. People that had met me in real life will attest that they laugh at my jokes but when tortured, majority will admit that they do it so I won’t feel bad about not being funny at all. Either way, I keep telling myself that I am funny because I have nothing else going for me. I have no hidden talents or remarkable skills so my humor is the only thing I can hold on to.

But even if I was funny, I still wouldn’t have been confident or brave enough to do something like a stand-up comedy or write a funny book and that’s why this little piece is not about me but about a real comedian and a lesbian, Bridget McManus.

I first met Bridget last November when I went to POWER UP Gala in Los Angeles. Bridget hosted that event after she appeared on the cover of Curve Magazine and ranked in the national poll as the third funniest comedian. To be perfectly honest, before that I haven’t heard much about her and the only two lesbian comedians I knew very well were Ellen DeGeneres and Suzanne Westenhoefer.

As Bridget hosted POWER UP, she was funny and entertaining and I also learned that she was actually involved in a lot of things, not just a stand-up comedy. She’s busy with writing blogs, hosting galas and shows, acting in Web series, and filming her weekly and very popular vlog “Brunch with Bridget” (http://www.afterellen.com/taxonomy/term/3016)

“Brunch with Bridget” usually involves Bridget in her pajamas interviewing guests she finds in her bed, also in pajamas. After the interviews, she usually challenges them to a pillow fight. She did a few episodes with several The L Word ladies, such as Guinevere Turner, Elizabeth Keener, and the director Jamie Babbit. I watched the one with Guin Turner and the both ladies were hilarious.

I saw Bridget again at Mia Kirshner’s “I Live Here Benefit” in Los Angeles last month. It was very nice of her to attend this event and show Mia her support. I chatted with Bridget for a few minutes and she reminded me that another annual POWER UP Gala is coming this November. POWER UP is the only non-profit gay studio run by volunteers that soon will announce their new 2009 List “10 Amazing Gay Women in Showbiz” and its awardees. I already know that among them is Liz Feldman, another funny lesbian comedian who, until recently, had her vlog “This Just Out” on AfterEllen and who’s now working for Jay Leno.

And here are a few facts about Bridget McManus to help you all to know her a little:

- When she was growing up, she was being made fun of because of her weight issues, so humor became Bridget’s defensive mechanism. She herself describes her humor in a Curve Magazine interview as “dark, defiant, random and has too many musical numbers.”

- Bridget is originally from Connecticut and after working in New York for awhile, she packed up two suitcases, computer, and a guitar and drove to Los Angeles to start her life over. As Bridget says it, “Now, five years later, I’m in the exact place I want to be with my life.”

- Bridget began doing stand-up comedy after compiling a list of open mic venues and going there every night to perform a three minute routines. Bridget big break happened in 2007 while performing in a gay show at Hamburger Mary’s restaurant. That show was being filmed and Bridget was noticed and asked to host a new show “Daily Jam” on Peoplejam.com

- In 2007 Bridget was interviewed for an article on AfterEllen, titled “Five Lesbian Comics You Might Not Know But Should” and two months later she was asked to substitute vlogger on AfterEllen show “We’re Getting Nowhere”. The episode was received very well and Bridget was asked to create her own show, which resulted in “Brunch with Bridget.”

-  The teddy bear, featuring in every episode of “Brunch with Bridget”, is named Baby Bridget.

- Bridget’s best pillow fight on her show was with the cast of “South of Nowhere”, Mandy Musgrave and Gabrielle Christian. Bridget’s dream pillow fight competitor is Ellen DeGeneres.

- Bridget’s blog is called “Comedy Double Standards” that is reflected on the fact that most careers are male dominated and stand-up comedy is no different in that aspect.

- Bridget played a role of ‘the checkout girl’ in the movie “Wanted” with James McAvoy. As Bridget sarcastically describes it, “We did it a couple takes as James and I bantered back and forth and the end result is me onscreen for 10 seconds scanning peanut butter in silence and one shot of the back of my head. My mother is so proud!”

- Bridget had a recurring role in the Web series “3Way” (www.3waytv.tv)

- Bridget’s future projects involve hosting Daily Jam; continue with her vlog “Brunch with Bridget”; and guest-starring in a Web series for Warner Brothers called “Joni & Susanna”, which will be out on WB.com

To find out more about Bridget McManus, check her website http://www.bridgetmcmanus.com/

Tags: Bridget McManus, Lesbians

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 17th, 2009 at 3:09 pm and is filed under Lesbians, The L Word. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.