George Willborn has been making Chicagoans laugh for two decades. His loyal supporters tune in every weekday to hear him on the nationally syndicated afternoon radio show, “The Michael Baisden Show.”
George Willborn has been making Chicagoans laugh for two decades. His loyal supporters tune in every weekday to hear him on the nationally syndicated afternoon radio show, “The Michael Baisden Show.”
But what may not be well known is that, unlike many other comedians, Willborn was not the class clown.
Born on the West Side, but raised on the South Side, Willborn, dubbed “The Stress Reliever,” attended Alexander Dumas Elementary School and Chicago Vocational Career Academy high school, formerly known as CVS.
As a child, he liked to make people laugh but didn’t really think of being a comedian as a career choice.
He recalled a time when he was 10 years old and he stacked a pile of dominos into a “Chinese” block of ice. He slammed his head into them so they could break in half, as he’d seen many times on television. When the dominos fell, the laughter rolled, Willborn said.
“Even though I had a little trickle of blood coming from my forehead, just the feeling I got from making my entire family roll on the floor with laughter was something that I would crave for,” the married father of two told the Defender.
And while he kept his family in stitches, he knew he couldn’t do the same in school as he got older. He knew what kind of student he was, and there was no time for games.
“I certainly wasn’t the class clown. I had to be very serious in high school. I was one of those types of students that had to work hard, unlike my son, who’s 10, who has all As and one B. I wasn’t like that. I didn’t have the luxury of being the class clown. But I caught up after high school,” Willborn said, laughing.
In March, he celebrated 21 years in the industry.
Since his first time on stage in the late 1980s and being named the winner of the Crown Royal comedy search, Willborn’s comedic star has continued to rise.
He served as host at several comedy venues in Chicago including All Jokes Aside, Isaac Hayes presents on Wednesday nights, and Jokes and Notes. He was a featured comic many times on Black Entertainment Television’s “Comic View,” “Showtime at the Apollo,” HBO’s “Def Comedy Jam” and Comedy Central’s “Comic Justice.”
He was also the season one winner of TV One’s “Who Got Jokes” competition.
When he’s not on stage at a comedy spot near you, he’s still making people laugh on the radio and on TV.
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