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comedian at Roy Thomson By Carol Baldw in ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR If laughter is the best medicine, then you'll want Jim Bibby around whenever you're feeling down. The Oakville comedian's one-lin­ ers will elicit, at the very least, a groan and a smile. His jokes, he says, have been around for years, and he's been telling them to audiences, large and small, since the Second World War. "I was a prisoner of war in 1942 in North Africa. For about three years, I was in different prisoner-of- war camps in Libya, Italy and Ger­ many," says the 78-year-old comedi­ an. "In each of the three places, we had little shows between our­ selves...In Libya, we didn't have beds. We'd lie on the floor with a blanket at night, and from when it went dark until we went to sleep, people told jokes and sang songs." After the war, says Bibby, he went to school for psychiatric nursing - a career that he practised for over 30 years and that certainly profited from his sense of humour. However, while he was trying to support a wife and young daughter on student wages, Bibby began moonlighting at clubs to supplement his wages. It was a comedian friend of his who got him his first audition, which was at the British Legion on a night when various club secretaries were in the audience. "He told me to get an act together - a song to get on (stage) with, some jokes, and a song to get off," he recalls. "If the secretaries liked you, they'd give you a booking. I got about a dozen bookings." His friend also suggested that Bibby create some kind of gimmick. So, he bought a false moustache and two different sized bowler hats that he made into one, which moved up and down whenever he moved his forehead. However, it was Bibby's nervousness that turned out to be his best gimmick. "I had the bottom button of my suit jacket fastened. I was so nervous that I grabbed hold of (the cuffs of) my sleeves and started pulling. The coat was coming off my shoulders, a bit at a time, and people thought it was part of the act," he recalls with a laugh. "Later, my friend said, 'That's a good gimmick.'" That night, Bibby also gained his signature one-liner - "It's true, you know," a line that he continues to use, often after a joke or two, while pointing to a specific member of the audience. It usually gets an extra chuckle from the crowd. The senior, who no longer suffers from stage fright, says it took him years to lose that nervousness, but he hasn't lost a crowd yet. And some crowds he's had to entertain with four spots a night, each about 10 minutes long. "I've never died a death on stage. One of the reasons is being able to sing...I can do 40 minutes of comedy any time, but I sing as well," he says, noting that he would tell about 40 stories from his repertoire of "hun­ dreds of jokes" in that time frame. "I get a silly song to get on with, do some comedy, then I sing a bal­ lad...Seniors love sing-alongs, so for the last 15 minutes I will do a sing- along." Bibby says his stand-up comedy shows began to dwindle after he immigrated to Canada in 1957, but began rising again after his retire­ ment in 1981, and increased even further after he began spending his winters in Florida. "In 1993 I was asked to audition for a seniors' show on Vision Cable - the Senior Star Talent Show - and I got on as one of the final 10 on the show. I did it from '93 to '98," he explains. "Last year they said those who were on the previous year couldn't go on again...I was the only Canadian on the show at the time." Bibby says he loves getting people to laugh, seniors in particular. With the older age group he tells a lot of jokes about seniors and about the armed forces. The latter, he says, bring back memories for many of them. During the nice weather, when Bibby is in Oakville, he tours with a Mississauga group called the West­ minster Chimes. "About 10 of us go around Ontario and entertain seniors. I just do comedy with them," he says. "And this year will be my seventh show with the Seniors Jubilee (at Roy Thomson Hall). I'm on four days out of five. I started with one and went up progressively." He says over 1,000 people enter­ tain in the Jubilee each year, and each act must audition to qualify. One of the things he loves about entertaining, no matter where, is the people he meets on stage and off. And he's met many at the Seniors Jubilee, now in its 11th year. This year the Seniors Jubilee will present 1300 performers from 75 communities including singers - solos duets, quartets and choirs; dancers - ballroom, flamenco, folk and chorus lines; musicians - brass bands, dance and fiddle bands, banjo and mandolin bands playing classi­ cal, ragtime, country and folk music; comedians; storytellers; vaudevil- lians; and magicians. Other Oakville performers will include the Celtic Cloggers, the Har- moni-Chords, the Kerr Street Big Band, Frank King, Doug and Shirley * 0 5 0 ANY FILM VC. ANY TIME CINEPLEX ODEON I g g g i0 CINEMAGUIDEShow times effectite Aug 13 - Aug 19.1999 "OAKVILLE MEWS 171 SPEERS AT KERR 844-4840 ^ EN TRA PM EN T (PG) FH.-THURS. 7:30,9:45 SAT. & SUN. MAT 1:30 M STM CT(A A) FRL-THURS., 7:10,9:30 SAT. 4 SUN. MAT. 1:00 TH E MUM MY (PG) DTS Digital FRI.-THURS. 7:20,9:40 SAT. 4 SUN. MAT. 1:20 McConnell with the Show Time Cloggers, the Oak-town Steppers, the Happy Tappers, and Gloria Saarinen. Billed as Canada's premiere show­ case for senior entertainers, this entertainment extravaganza will run from Aug. 16th to 20th at Toronto's Roy Thomson Hall. Entertainment begins in the lobby at 11 a.m. daily, with informal strolling musicians and comedians. It continues with the for­ mal stage show at 1 p.m. Tickets are $14, $23 and $26, with a special rate for groups of 20 or more, and are available at the box office or by calling (416) 872-4255. M ATRIX (AA) DTS Digital FRI.-THURS. 7:00,9:25 SAT 4 SUN. MAT 1:10_____________ D RO P D EA D G O R G EO U S (AA) FW.-THUFtS. 6:50,9:15 SAT. 4 SUN. MAT. 1:40 "Think fast!" COGECOa Home high speed Internet access over cable is up to 100 times faster than dial-up. 3095 includes -- m°dem . - rento/ Sign up now and win big! Sign up for COGECO@Home before August 31, and you'll be automatically entered to win one of 5 great prizes: Compaq' Computer system Samsung DVD player Samsung MP3 player Samsung Digital Camera ■ Samsung- Fax/Scanner/Printer To enter, purchase COGECCXgHome by August 31,1999 and have it installed by September 30,1999. Official rules and regulations available by calling 1-877-8-ATHOME, visiting our website, or at any of our retail centres. No purchase necessary. Contest closes August^ 31.1999. Go further. Go faster. G o ... HomeI V U j ^ u o I : V a V m l lC a i - ; ' , . Illlirillinil -877-8-ATHOME www.cogeco.ca/hom e COMPAQ. "For basic cable subscribers. $49.95/month for non-subscribers. Trademarks and Logos are the property of individual companies and are used with their permission. Seventh year for Oakville Wednesday, August 11, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Oakville comedian Jim Bibby will entertain with his humorous tales, and maybe a few songs, at the Seniors' Jubilee in Roy Thomson Hall next week. Seniors' Jubilee r http://www.cogeco.ca/home *050 ANY FILM VC. ANY TIME CINEPLEX ODEON 3095 Sign up now and win big! Home -877-8-ATHOME