Comedian quintet brings jokes to Longboat listeners

Five comedians performed on April 16 at the Town Center Green as part of the Arts in April programming this year. Funds benefited the Longboat Key Garden Club.

Susan Phillips, board chair of the organizing Longboat Key Foundation, thanked attendees for supporting the month-long celebration of local creatives.

Arts in April launched last year, and with support from the foundation, Comedy Night returned for another evening of entertainment, for which the performers donated their time.

Emceeing the event was returning performer Al Ernst, who opened the show with a set on post-Easter snowbird migration, his own ill-fated flooding preparations ahead of Hurricane Milton and life as an entertainer.

"I am the best comedian in my price range," he introduced himself, garnering some early laughs from the crowd. "When you are playing the Longboat Key Garden Club at 5:30, your career is on damn fire."

The Georgia-born comedian performs regularly at area venues, including McCurdy's Comedy Theatre. He has worked for 36 years as a full-time comedian and is an instructor at the comedy school.

He then introduced fellow performers Eric Wilder, Joe Mahoney, Cliff "Gerry Atric" Hornsby and Greg Shwartz. Ernst didn't stray far though, often giving his fellow performers the biggest laugh of all the listeners.

Hornsby, another familiar face for attendees of last year's inaugural Comedy Night, is fresh off recording his first streaming special. He launched his stand-up career at 82 years old and is now almost 87.

The hometown comedian sported his U.S. Navy hat that evening, paired with patriotic socks. He recently recovered from a stroke and jovially introduced himself as the night's "sit-down, stand-up comic."

He also shared what his continuing career in comedy has meant to him.

Wilder drew from his 22 years of military service for his set, joking, "Freedom still rings for me every day... in my ears, because the hearing protection sucked."

Mahoney, married for 40 years, offered his insights into family life, and Shwartz shared his exploits in online dating and as a former teacher in New York.

Arts in April concludes April 24 with Dinner and a Movie at Longboat Key's Bayfront Park.