Tommy Johnagin

St. Louis stand-up Tommy Johnagin proves it’s possible to enjoy a night of observations about some dude’s girlfriend, cat, and car, and not leave your local comedy club slathered in mouth-breather slime. Perhaps because he’s a prim fellow who works clean, Johnagin manages to come off almost classy behind his old-school verbal turnarounds that faintly recall Woody Allen: “I’m the only person that’s ever fought a guy and came in third,” he once said during a Late Show With David Letterman set. He doesn’t necessarily shy away from sexual or sick bits (he’s got a good one about hitting a deer with his car), but, in sticking to the non-shocking basics, he sets up an admirable challenge for himself. His style seems to be producing results, as evidenced by his second-place finish on the last season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing. His latest effort, Stand Up Comedy 2, was released in 2011 by Comedy Central.

Updated 01/18/2012