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Charlie
Prose is the favorite funny man for America's Seniors--and a favorite
bus-riding companion It isn't that the hilarious and highly talented Charlie has actually taken all of those bus rides. He's just been a passenger in the form of his best-selling CDs and videotapes. The result is that he has become the favorite funny man of America's Seniors with top-selling CDs and videotapes that highlight his comic and musical talent. Charlie says that years ago he noticed
busloads of seniors exiting bus after bus in Atlantic City. He
inquired as to what was going on and was told that it was the touring
seniors from across the nation. Charlie is a comedian from a bygone era. He tells stories--free of vulgarities and foul language (but with a double entendre many times)--that make people laugh. He does good ethnic humor free of any bigotry or making fun of any group, but still the type of humor that we enjoyed before the Politically Correct Days imposed upon us now. He especially enjoys telling about his childhood days as a boy in Mt. Carmel, PA where he worked in his father's Italian grocery store. (That's right, Prose is not his real name, and one of his funniest routines is a take-off on his Italian name...you'll have to buy the CD to hear it.) Charlie is also a gifted musician, having started his own band with a second-hand saxophone purchased by his father, when Charlie was only 15. Now, at 58, his voice has a poignant quality that can bring tears to your eyes when listening to him sing "Immigrant Eyes," a tribute to his Grandfather. Charlie loves seniors. It is evident in the tapes and CDs. He has a winning way that only a person who can really relate to his audience projects. "Seniors are just such great people," Charlie explains. "They have accomplished so much, and they have a lifetime of experiences from which to draw." Charlie relates to his audiences because he is not only a senior, he is a grandparent. And he has stories about his grandchildren as a part of his act. Does he notice anything about his senior audiences? "They're all getting younger," he reflects. "It isn't just because I'm getting older, I mean they have a zest for life that lets you know they're enjoying every minute of everything they do." Throughout his act, Charlie expounds his philosophy of laughing through life and its therapeutic effects. "Laughter is great," he says. "It helps us to stay healthy and 'young'...that's why I love what I do, performing before these very special people." Charlie shared some of his CDs and tapes with us. I played them for friends and they laughed and laughed. But, they also found themselves nodding in agreement at some of his stories about the wonder of living in this country, the beauty and joy of marriage, and the pure fun of his jokes, told in an almost-boyish manner that said, "Let's just laugh and have some fun." Charlie opens his shows with the song 'On the Road Again...' it's a fitting tribute to this great comedian and favorite traveling companion for seniors, so the next time you see a seniors bus tour, be sure to peek inside and see if Charlie is there...it might make you wish you were on that bus. |
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