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Corporate megastores are spending millions lobbying D.C. politicians on one sided policies that send small businesses tumbling. They want to enact harmful credit card mandates that take resources away from your local credit union and community bank, leaving Main street businesses with less access to credit, making it harder for your family to pay for everyday goods like gas and groceries. Tell Congress to guard your card and oppose the Durbin Marshall credit card mandates.
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Paid for by Electronic Payments Coalition Foreign and thanks for listening to another episode of the Celebrity Jobber Podcast, which is currently number three on the Apple Podcast Music Interviews chart. Thank you so much for your support. We're streaming on Spotify, Apple Podcast, iHeart, wherever you listen to podcasts. So please subscribe. Would love a five star rating and please leave a review. You could check out past guests guests and episodes online@celebrityjobber.com and you can also follow our YouTube channel which is YouTube.com theat signce celebrity jobber and on IG celebrityjobberpodcast. Think about this for a second. What if you and your high school buddies form a comedy troupe and continue screwing around like you did back when you were in high school? Practical jokes on people and think about making millions and millions of dollars a year doing it, being famous, having a TV show, these sold out cruises, seeing the world with your best pals from high school. Well, my guest today is living that dream, you know, and it wasn't an overnight success either. There's a lot of in between stuff which we're going to talk a lot about, you know, like what you do after college and the jobs you had before your big break. And what was that break? You know, what was your first job? These are all the questions that I'm going to ask today's guest, the final member of the Tenderloins that I haven't spoke to yet. The Tenderloins, a comedy troupe from Staten Island, New York. And you know them best by their TV show on TruTV and TBS, Impractical Jokers Brian Quinn, James Murray, Joe Gatto. And the last one I haven't talked to yet. Impractical Joker's Sal Volcano is my guest this week on Celebrity Jobber, the Celebrity Jobber Podcast with Jeff Zito. If you like what you hear, please subscribe, give a five star rating and leave a review. Check out all our past episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you pod. What if these celebrities weren't famous? What would they have become? What was their first job? We're about to find out. Sal, this is like you're completing the set for Me, you know, it's like buying a happy meal and getting all the different toys. I've spoke to all of your friends in the past for, for this podcast, so I'm excited to have you today.
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Oh, absolutely, man. Right on.
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B
So a little bit of backstory, if you don't mind. I was just kind of curious, you know, tell me a little bit about when you're in high school and you got all these friends that you're still friends with today. You work with them today, you make a living because of your stand up, your improv. What was it that got you guys interested in forming an improv group in high school?
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A
You know, we had an improv club in high school that we, that we joined. We weren't all boys Catholic high school, but we had sister schools that were all girls. And so those activities worked together. So it might have been to see if we could meet girls.
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B
Okay.
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A
In high school. I was like, hey, we could join this club and meet girls from other schools and stuff. But we quickly took to it in high school, really, really enjoyed it. And so then we all went to college. We were kind of doing it separately still. And when we all got back from college, we kind of ran into each other and we were all still acting and performing and writing and doing improv and stuff. And we said, hey, you want to try to do it together? And so we did. We just started doing it together. And in 1999, we formed our comedy troupe called the Tenderloins and we started performing locally. And then I guess 11 years later, we got a chance to pitch a television show. And that's how jokers got on the air.
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B
Unbelievable. It's such a great story. And that all friends, all good friends in high school can do this for a job. It's gotta be a dream come true. But back in high school or even college, when you went to St. John's you could of in your wildest imagination thought that, hey, me and my three friends over here are going to have an improv comedy troupe and make lots of money and this is going to be our job. So my question to you is, when you were going to St. John's what were you focusing on and what did you think you were going to do for work when you graduated?
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A
That's a good one. I have a degree in finance.
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B
Right.
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A
I have a bachelor's degree degree in finance. And I honestly did not know what I was going to do. I mean, when I got out of college, I started working at Prudential securities in New York City. And I worked in the mutual funds department and good people there. I knew immediately, though, I could not do that for a living, and I wasn't going to stay there. And so after, I would say, 99 to 2, maybe 3 or 4 years, I volunteered to be laid off and I started.
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B
That's bad. I'll do it.
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A
Yeah, yeah. They were, they were doing, like, cutbacks, and like I said, let me have someone keep their job because I know I don't want to be here. And. And I started. I took up bartending so that I could have a flexible schedule to work on comedy. And I just started working on comedy full time at that point. And it's been a long road, you know, like, a lot of people don't necessarily know, you know, they, you know, what, what, what, you know, where exactly we came, how long it was. But, yeah, I just kind of stuck with it. And I guess it's just like opportunity meets luck meets preparedness. I was one of the lucky ones to have those three converge and, and have something sustainable come out of it.
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B
Sal, any kind of pushback from your parents who, you know, you go to St. John's you get a degree, you get out of college, you go into finance work for Prudential, and then you go, hey, Mom, Dad, I'm going to quit this job and go be a bartender and work on my comedy rout. Did they give you a little pushback or were they supportive in your. In your dream?
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A
Yeah, no, you know, my parents are really great that way. They were. They were supportive of anything I wanted to do. I really, like, was a studious kid, and I always got, like, good grades, and I always was kind of very diligent and responsible with my work, and I think that afforded me some freedom and credibility from there. And then I think that, you know, when I graduated college and I got this degree and I was successful there, I think that they understood, understood that, like, I, you know, I, I could have work if I wanted to, but I think they. I wanted to be like a comedian. Zomba, little kid, you know, So I just never really thought that was something real that could happen. And. And then when I started to do improv and sketch comedy and put up shows and this and that, like, I, you know, I had a job, I was bartending so I could, you know, I have income, but.
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B
Right.
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A
I just was shifted. Shifted focus and, and they came to see me and they would love the shows, and I think they just always fel. Had a grasp on my life and control of it and I think they respected that. And, you know, they've been my biggest fans. And so, no, they came along for the ride with me. I mean, when I left Prudential and I. About six months later, they called me back to offer me work as a consultant, and it was, like, nearly double the pay I was getting. I had to sit down with them and tell them that, and then they were like, wow, and you're going to turn that down? I was like, I think I am. It's not really about the money.
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B
Right.
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A
I don't really want to be there, you know, so. So, no, they. They've always been really supportive.
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B
Wow. Sal, things would have gone so much differently in my house if I was you coming. You know, that. Be unbelievable. So. So you're just the Celebrity Jobber Podcast with Jeff Zito, Celebrity Jobber. You're telling me about all of your jobs, you know, that, you know, after college and what led. You know, led up to impractical jokers. Can you. Can you remember what your very first job was?
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A
Oh, for sure. I've only had, like, five jobs in my entire life. So, like, I started working at 14 years old when I got my working papers at, like, a little neighborhood deli. And I was there for four years, and then I was all through, like, high school, and then I went to deliver pizza for four years, all through college. A block away from the deli.
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B
Right.
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A
And then. And then out of. After college, I went to Prudential securities, and then after Prudential Securities, I bartended and started college comedy. And then I eventually made my way into television, and I've had. And I've been a comedian ever since. I've been working since I'm 13 or 14, and I've had those four or five jobs.
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B
The deli, though. The deli was your very first gig?
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Yes, sir. I remember vividly. I made $4 an hour.
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B
Was it under the. Oh, not under the table. They paid you on the books, huh?
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A
It was on the books, yes. And it was my neighborhood, you know, that I grew up in and stuff. And actually, a lot of my friends from school and friends that I have to this day, we work together. So it was like a really fun. It was almost like that clerk's experience in Kevin Schmitz, you know, it's kind of. That kind of thing kind of ran the story.
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B
Yeah. And on tour, doing your comedy, you know, solo, you know, not only do you get together with the boys and do that whole thing with the cruise and the big tours, but you also go out on your own and do comedy. And I just want to let all of our listeners know. Let's see, in New York, in New Jersey, Sal is going to be at the beacon Theater on December 27th.
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A
Yes, sir.
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B
And then also in Atlantic City, for my listeners down the Jersey shore, we've got Sal going to Ocean casino resort on February 28th in Fort Myers, Florida. The Barbara B. Mann performing arts center is coming up in. I believe it's May. That would be May 17 for the Barbara B. Man. And my listeners in Tampa, Orlando would be the closest. Over at steinmetz hall, that's January 11th. But salvolcanocomedy.com is where you can get a list of all of Sal's tour dates. It seems like, Sal, you're the. The one guy in the group that has a little bit of a conscience. They could tell all the other guys, you know. You know what I mean? They could tell all the other guys to do something ridiculous, say something outrageous to somebody. You'll be like, nah, I'll take the loss. You. You won't do it. You will you. You seem like you have a little bit more of a conscience than the other guys.
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Either that or I'm just a more of a scaredy cat. I definitely have been. I definitely lost the most episodes. That's well documented and told to my face by fans all the time.
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B
I find it. I like it, though. It's like, oh, here's a good guy. Not to mention, you currently have a special on HBO Max running right now, don't you, Sal?
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A
Yes, my special, terrify. My first Sam comedy special was released on YouTube last year, did very well, and then Atro Max picked it up. So right now it's streaming on HBO Max called Terrified. If you haven't seen it, please, you know, check it out. It's. I'm really, really proud of it. And the tour I'm doing now, it's called the Everything's fine tour. I'll be doing it all the way through 26, and then I am going to film my second special based on this tour.
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B
Oh, great celebrity jobber. This is the story of the 1.
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A
As a maintenance supervisor at a manufacturing.
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B
Facility, he knows keeping the line up and running is a top priority. That's why he chooses Granger.
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A
Because when a drive belt gets damaged.
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B
Grainger makes it easy to find the exact specs for the replacement product he needs. And next day delivery helps ensure he'll have everything in place and running like clockwork. Call 1-800-GRAINGER click.
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A
Grainger.com.
- [13:15]
B
Or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done. The celebrity Jobber podcast with Jeff Zito. What do you think, Sal? Was there a moment that kind of like you. You thought changed your life forever? Like a big break, maybe, or just like some. Something. Whether it was the deal with impractical jokers or just remember a phone call or. I know you mentioned earlier, you know, it wasn't an overnight success. You worked hard at this for many years. But was there a turning point and something that you can kind of take us back to and think about as being a moment in your life that stands out, changed everything for you?
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A
Yeah, I can, actually. So there was this competition online called it's your show that was run by NBC, and my friend's girlfriend alerted us to it. And basically what it was was they would give a topic and you'd film like a sketch or a short film or sketch, and you'd upload it. And then anyone who uploaded a sketch based on that topic, they'd have online voting for which one was the best one. It was way I found out of finding talent cheap, you could win a thousand dollars if you're video.
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B
Thank you, guys. Right. Okay.
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A
Well, this was. Well, this was, you know, this was in 2007.
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B
Okay.
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A
And I also, you know, so I was, you know, pretty broke. And, you know, so she. So we did this, you know, and we won. And then there was weekly. It was every week. And so we did it again and again and again. And out of like, like maybe 25 or 30 weeks, we won 11 times.
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B
Oh, wow.
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A
And so we won $11,000. And then what happened was they ended up. This was their way of finding talent for a television show. They had a pilot called it's yous Show. And they took the five best sketch comedy troops that they found from that online competition, and they invited them to come on and all submit one piece of and battle against each other for a grand prize of $100,000. And it was like a very big, shiny studio show. Like, deal.
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B
No deal.
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A
Carson Daly hosted it. And they didn't have the comedy troops fly in, but they had an audience there voting. And they showed all of our sketches, and we made the pilot episode and we won, and we won $100,000.
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B
Wow.
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A
After the 11,000, you know, that we won online, and this pilot never aired. Okay. Never made it to television, but, you know, legally they won, and they paid us that money. And from that, the producers on that show introduced us to our agents, and that's how we Got an agent, and then those agents got us pitch meetings later on. And this is how we pitch through tv. So if we didn't join that competition, I don't know really if you know how we would have broken in. But that's literally how we got representation. And that representation allowed us to get into meetings and pitch what eventually became impractical. So just entering, entering these little online, silly little competitions, these little sketch competitions. Yeah, that was it.
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B
That was the springboard. Celebrity jobber. The Celebrity jobber podcast with Jeff zito, Sal volcano comedy.com on tour across the country. And great talking to you, Sal. I really, really do appreciate it, man. And, you know, like I said, I was excited to complete the set. I was like, hey, I got. I got all the jokers, man. This is perfect. So I'm a big fan. And. And. And you. You. You deserve it. The success, all of it. You deserve it. You guys are regular dudes. And it's. It's great to see. You know, it's great to see people that are friends, and it's so cool. It's such a cool things. Great story.
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Well, I really can't say thank you enough. That's so kind of you. And I take it to heart. So I just. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me and help me out, and I really, really appreciate you.
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B
Salvolcano comedy.com Great, Sal. Thank you so much, man. Have a great day.
- [17:35]
A
You too. Thank you, bud.
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B
So I thought it was pretty funny that I said sal's probably one of the only guys with a conscience, because he seems like the one. If they ask him to go up to a strange and say something or do something outrageous, he'll just take the loss. And I was like, you know, maybe you're like the only guy in the group with a conscience. He's like, yeah, that or I'm a scaredy cat. I thought that was pretty funny. So he mentioned his big break. In high school, Sal formed a comedy troupe with three of his buddies, which he said he did, to get girls, which I thought is funny, because usually when you're in high school, you'll either join a band or a sports team to get girls, not a comedy troop. But regardless, in high school, he forms this comedy troupe, and they're called the Tenderloins, you know, and the comedy troupe stayed together for a lot of years past high school, and they started producing comedy sketches together, posting them on YouTube and MySpace. And then, you know, Sal talking about his big break was like, this online competition, which was like, Sponsored by NBC, and it was called it's your show. And they ended up winning, like, 11 different weeks for $1,000 a cl. And I think the winner was supposed to get, like, a grand prize and their own TV show on NBC, but I don't think that panned out. But what the guys did do was use a lot of that footage for a sizzle reel and then pitched it as a TV show, which ultimately got picked up. And he kind of credits that as his big break. I mean, you see impractical jokers on TV every single night. Whether it's true TV or tbs. I mean, the show is really everywhere. You know, I'm thinking to myself, okay, if I'm going to college at a prestigious school like St. John's University, and I come out with a degree in finance, and I start selling, you know, securities, mutual funds for Prudential, and then, you know, after a few years, I say, this isn't for me. I'm going to quit this job, start bartending, and work on my comedy routine with my high school buddies. My father would have hit the roof. So to hear Sal tell me that story and say, like, his parents were very supportive and were very encouraging. I just. I'm putting myself into that situation. And I know he laughed hysterically, but not a lot of people know Matt Zito, okay? He definitely would not have been supportive in. In my dream. Yeah, pop, you know, I decided I'm going to quit this job being a stockbroker, and I'm going to start bartending and working on my comedy routine with my high school buddies. He would hit the roof. I'm telling you, I thought it was cool that Sal said he only had five jobs in his whole life. His first job, he worked at a deli on the books. He made sure I knew that. He said he then delivered pizzas while he was in college. After college, of course, he got the gig at Prudential. Then a bartender and one of the impractical jokers, a comedian, five jobs. And just an FYI, I have spoke to all of the impractical jokers. Q Murr, Joe Gatto, and now Sal, I want you to know that Q and Mer are on the same episode. That's episode number 74. Joe Gatto is episode number 108. If you wanted to go back and check out those episodes. Celebrity jobber.com. thank you so much for checking out another episode of the celebrity jobber podcast number three on Apple podcasts music interviews chart. And we're streaming everywhere. Whether it's Spotify Apple Podcast, iHeart, wherever you listen to podcasts. So please subscribe. Would love a five star rating. And please leave a review. Some great guests coming up in the near future like don Barnes from 38 Special and John Tesh. Thank you so much once again for listening the Celebrity Jobber podcast. Until next week. I'll see you then. I'm Jeff Zito.