MINNEAPOLIS — Twin Cities-based comedian and comedy impresario Scott Hansen, who influenced several MST3K cast members’ careers, died September 5 at a hospice here of multiple organ failure. He was 66.
“In terms of comedy in Minnesota, Scott is at the top of the list, said Patrick Strait, author of “Funny Thing About Minnesota: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of the Twin Cities Comedy Scene.” No one did more to help grow stand-up locally.”
In 1981, he selected Joel to be the headliner for the grand opening of his new comedy club, the Comedy Gallery. The move gave his career a boost. He also mentored Frank and J. Elvis.
“I got my start working for Scott Hansen at the Comedy Gallery,” Frank said on Twitter. “I tore tickets, I seated people, I mc’d the shows. Got on stage every night, learned the craft. Thank you, Scott. Rest In Peace.”
Calling Hansen “one of the founders of the Mpls. stand up scene and one-time comedy don of the Twin Cities, Weinstein recalled, on Twitter, that he “first did a set at his club when I was 16 and hundreds after that in his many rooms for the next few years before moving to LA. Thanks, Scott.”
