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Ten years ago John Kawie turned his back on 17 years in the aerospace
industry, sold his company and moved to New York City to pursue his dream
of doing stand-up. He then worked in concert with some pretty respectable
names - like Dennis Miller and Howie Mandel.
Being the only Arab-American comic, at the time, he brought a unique
perspective to the Middle East specifically, and to the world in general. John
co-produced a multicultural stand-up show called "Those People" which was
featured in Alan King's 1995 Toyota Comedy Festival in New York City.
As a writer and performer he was a regular on "The David Brenner Radio
Show" and a contributor to Bill Maher's monologue on Comedy Central's
award winning show, "Politically Incorrect". He also wrote for Dennis Miller's
show on HBO. And became a substitute host for Dick Cavett on his radio talk
show. Stand-up was just the tip of the iceberg. Wanting to explore acting,
John began getting spots for TV commercials.
John experienced a life altering stroke at the age of 47. While undergoing
therapy he was a consultant with Robert DeNiro for his character in the Joel
Shumacher film "Flawless". Being a proponent of turning lemons into
lemonade he focused his energy into writing his solo show, Brain Freeze.
It's his journey through the stroke and it's aftermath. Brain Freeze has
been performed Off Broadway and at hospitals throughout the country.
Brain Freeze won Best Solo Show in the 2003 International Fringe
Festival in New York City (FringeNYC 2003). John is currently developing the
stage performance into Brain Freeze the book. He is also working with
Lumina Films on the creation of a documentary based on the show. |
