The Few, The Proud, The Humorous

by Brian McKim & Traci Skene on November 20th, 2004

Ya think ya know someone. A press release bouncing around the WWW heralds the return of James P. Connolly to Iraq to entertain the troops. We’ve met Connolly and worked with him once, but we had no idea of his history:

…Retired U.S. Marine Officer turned Stand-Up Comedian James P. Connolly… formerly with Camp Pendleton’s 1st Marine Expeditionary Force and a veteran of Operation Desert Storm, will leave Los Angeles for Iraq this Sunday, November 21st. His mission– to brighten the spirits of troops overseas and let them know they’re appreciated back home…

Connolly grew up in San Mateo, California, graduated from Harvard University on a Marine Corps ROTC scholarship and then served four years as a Marine Infantry Officer.

Turns out Connnolly, while enroute to the first Gulf War, was asked to write one-liners skewering fellow officers for a dinner roast hosted by his Commanding Officer. A classic story! He sees the Colonel kill with his material and is thereafter determined to become a comic and deliver his own damn jokes. The rest is history. (Any chance the press release writer might name the other four comics Connolly’s touring with?)

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