Opinionated. Passionate. Athletic. Honest. These are just a few of the many qualities friends used to describe the late and legendary Comic Strip Live Booker Lucien Hold Hold worked at the Comic Strip Live in a number of capacities for nearly 30 years before dying from scleroderma in 2004.
“Ultimately, because he was honest in a business where honesty was rare and bar help was often short-changed management moved him to be the talent coordinator,” said Joe Bolster, a comic who befriended Hold in 1978.
It was in the ‘70s when stand up first began to blossom. At first comics were not paid, and then they started to receive nominal salaries. They also got the opportunity to serve as emcees, deciding who would get gigs and when. The first emcee at the Comic Strip was a guy by the name of Jerry Seinfeld, who you may have heard of.
In the book "Seinfeld: The Making of an American Icon," Hold said Jerry was very dependable and normal, who wrote every day to hone his craft. In the 1980s, Hold took responsibility for who would “pass”—those allowed to go on stage.
“Like anybody, he developed comedic likes and dislikes and he was not always agreed with,” Bolster said. “It’s a tough job. He knew he was similar to a baseball umpire—that not everybody would like him.”
“He was very devoted to his friends,” Bolster said. “He maintained friendships with comics even after they left the club (The Comic Strip was a springboard for so many comedians before they went on to television and film). He stayed in touch with Jerry, Chris Rock, George Wallace, Adam Sander, etc.”
While the comedy business lost a giant when Hold passed, only the Comic Strip Live could house a giant of Holds status along with Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Murphy, and 100 other legendary comedians. He’s still greatly missed.
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