GENERAL MEETING REVIEW – January 8, 2011

ENTERTAINER: BEN KURLAND

SUBMITTED BY DELLIE ROSEN, Co-President

When Ben Kurland took center stage on Sunday morning at our January meeting, approximately 300 members and guests had no idea how hysterical they would be within minutes.

With Ben growing up at 58th & Larchmont in West Philly, just around the corner from Marlon Brando, he was quite in his element at a Philadelphia Social Club meeting. His Philly accent was most obvious and he was pure delight, to put it mildly. The audience LOVED him!

First Ben told us about the time he visited his grade school many years later and carved into his old desk were the words, “Ben Kurland slept here.”

This was just the beginning of his side-splitting and entertaining act. For the next 45 minutes, there was continuous laughter as he relayed one zany story after another, tickling many a funny bone. At one point, I laughed so hard the tears ran down my leg and I suspect I was not the only one.

From the reaction of our audience, Ben Kurland was a 5-Star Hoot who certainly lived up to his reputation. Not only has Ben earned the Best Philadelphia Monologist award from the Philadelphia Comedy Awards, but he was also named “Philly’s Favorite Comedian” by The Philadelphia Inquirer. And THAT says it all.