On being at The Paramount, he said, “I am loving every minute of The Paramount so far. They showed me The Founder’s Room, which is the most incredible thing I have ever seen. They should do a period piece on this. I would love to be a part of all that. If I could call the Film Commission of New Jersey and New York and make this a set. It would be cool to do a ‘Boardwalk Empire Long Island’ here, with a scenic background like The Paramount, and it would be easy to make a movie.”
Marino added, “I am looking to seeing tonight’s comedy show. The host seems like a great guy. My partner, Sunda Croonquist, is going to get up on stage at 9 p.m. and knock this place apart, because she is really, really funny. Then, I am going to go on stage and have a field day with how long it took me to get here from New Jersey.”
He went on to praise Greek diners in his native New Jersey. “Now that I live in Los Angeles, I tell people in California all the time that the only place to get good coffee is a Greek diner. You go to a Greek diner, you will get a great cup of coffee and you are going to get great food,” he said.
Each day, Marino is motivated by his dedicated fans. “Fans keeps you going,” he said. “You do a show somewhere, and somebody sees it and they write you a tear-jerking letter on what you have done for them. The fact that they get joy from what I am doing is really great.”
The New Jersey Comedy Hall of Famer added, “Then you come in to a theater like The Paramount and they treat you like gold, and everybody is in a great mood. To see how they recreated this place backstage is insane.”
Marino’s plans for the future are to continue performing and hopefully, to never stop. “Making movies, making TV shows and running for president,” he said.
On the key to longevity in the comedy industry, he said, “Don’t stop. Never let them see you sweat. Don’t let anything bad keep you from going forward. Be happy.”
For more information on comedian Mike Marino, check out his official website.
