
The reviews are in on Patrick Combs' Man 1, Bank 0:
"This guy's got STAR POWER." says Hollywood's Variety Magazine. "One of the FUNNIEST, most FASCINATING and FASTEST moving solo plays to hit New York in many a season. Ninety minutes of NONSTOP LAUGHTER, it's also an EDGE OF YOUR SEAT ADVENTURE loaded with UNBELIEVABLE real-life surprises," said BroadwayWorld.com "Combs has his STORYTELLING DOWN TO AN ART." wrote TimeOut NY. HILARIOUS and AMAZING. This is - by far the BEST PERFORMANCE I saw. I can't recommend it enough." raves the Orlando City Beat. “If there were a PEOPLE'S CHOICE award, judging by it’s SELLOUTS, Man 1, Bank 0, would likely win.” said the Winnipeg Free Press. "JAW-DROPPINGLY FUNNY...literally had us SCREAMING WITH LAUGHTER. Patrick is a BRILLIANT STORYTELLER." said Janet Munsil, director of UNO Festival. "An INVIGORATING ROLLER COASTER RIDE presented by a bona fide, ballsy jester. Combs is the underdog-- he is us." said the Victoria Times Colonist. "In this TRIUMPHANTLY TRUE story, Patrick Combs poses the question: is found money your money?" noted the San Francisco Guardian. "More than just 'A HELLUVA TALE'... With WELL PLAYED VILLIANS AND HEROES, Man 1 is something of a comic reworking of DAVID VERSUS GOLIATH, or even, maybe, 1984" wrote the Charleston City Paper. “See the performance. Combs is DESTINED FOR BIG THINGS.” said the Orlando City Beat.
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"A wiry, likable West Coast dude who combines hippie earnestness with skateboarder cynicism, Combs has refined his storytelling to an art, using a screen projector, a minimum of props and abundant energy to relate a tale about which he still seems incredulous -- and gleeful... the comedy value of watching a bank beg for its cash back is priceless."
-Time Out NY
"Patrick Combs did something stupid, got into a whole lot of trouble for it, lived to tell about it, and fortunately is a talented enough writer and performer to have turned his uniquely twisted tale into one of the funniest, most fascinating and fastest moving solo plays to hit New York in many a season. Not only is Man 1 Bank 0 ninety minutes of nonstop laughter, it's also an edge of your seat adventure loaded with unbelievable real-life surprises. Top of my 'Ya gotta see this' list."
- BroadwayWorld.com
“What makes this more than just “a helluva tale,” what makes it actually something worth touring around and building a career out of, is its look at the smothering of humanity by the modern-day bogeyman: “faceless corporate culture.... With well-played villains and heroes, Man 1 is something of a comic reworking of David versus Goliath, or even, maybe, 1984.... More than simply a good story with jokes and drama, Patrick Combs' one man show Man 1, Bank 0 has something to say about the crazy idealist notion of being decent and human."
- Charleston City Paper
"You basically sit there for 90 minutes laughing your ass off, sharing Patrick's still-genuine disbelief at the lunatic chain of events that followed."
- Bob Harris.com
"Gold Medal...both hilarious and amazing. On its own, the story is marvelous. It's the type of tale that inspires the phrase, "Only in America." But no story can be properly be told without a gifted storyteller. Combs fits the bill.... He captivates the audience with a story so staggering, they're forced to immediately invest themselves in the character... I encourage anyone reading this to see the performance. Combs is destined for big things. Man 1, Bank 0 is only the beginning of what I assume will be an illustrious career. Final word: This is – by far – the best performance I saw. I can't recommend it enough."
- Orlando City Beat
"Man 1, Bank 0, is so absurdly inspiring and personal in detail that after seeing this show one cannot help but feeling a whole lot better about the future of our kind... It is writer, director, and performer, Patrick Combs' inventively playful take on his own life that takes his audience on a outrageous joyride, one replete with wide-eyed wonder and slack-jawed glee."
- HowToRockStar.com
"Jaw-droppingly funny...literally had us screaming with laughter. ... Patrick is a brilliant storyteller."
- Janet Munsil, organizer of UNO, the Festival of Solo Performance
"Combs is the underdog-- he is us... An invigorating roller-coaster ride presented by a bona fide, ballsy jester. Required viewing for anyone who has been treated high-handedly by their bank."
- Victoria Times Colonist
"Amazing tale ... wild ride... as unbelievable as they
come.... edge of your seat."
- Orlando Sentinal
"I have to tell you that I have not laughed so much in a one month period as I did within your 60 minutes. Absolutely Fantastic."
-Joel Dyer
"Patrick Combs will keep you in stitches with his true story of a hoax-gone-awry-turned-morality-tale. His engaging personality has the audience on his side from the get-go. Get out and go see his show."
-Mallory
"Excellent show. Nearly aerobic in its laugh content."
-Victor
"Patrick Combs is a great story-teller in the tradition of the extraordinary syndicated radio personality from the 60s, Gene Shepard. How do I know Patrick’s great? When the hour flies by as he spins his yarn about one event, and you never once look at your watch. When you can feel your eyes widening every time a nuance of the story is introduced. When you feel you’re not in a theater at all, but sitting across a kitchen table from him, as he tells you about this thing that just happened to him. When you feel he’s talking just to you. And who couldn’t be fascinated with a story about depositing one of those bogus checks from a publishing house – and it clearing! Story-telling is one of the world’s oldest crafts, yet so few know how to master it. Patrick knows."
- Vince Vitale
"A wonderful surprise! It was like watching someone recount a story for the first time. Felt like he was speaking just to me. Full of enthusiasm and sincerity. Such a pleasure to watch. Combs has the rare ability to tell a story. Kept me enthralled and laughing for an hour. Don't miss this one."
-Jennifer Trobridge
"Patrick Combs was sensational!! I remember this story from the papers and
talk shows, and couldn't believe it was the same guy. And the way that he
weaves the whole thing together made me feel like I was living the
experience myself. His comic timing is impeccable and his energy is
contagious. I highly recommend the show and believe they will sell out
fast."
- Greg Pless
"Patrick Combs has the ability to make really fine acting not look like
acting at all. He seems to be telling us(just us) this really interesting
story about something that he almost can't believe happened to him. And he
makes it seem as if he's remembering the details as he goes along. And we
laugh,and we are in suspence, and we are moved, and most of all we are
thinking "what next?,what happens next?" Great show!"
- Jeff Thompson
"Funny! Funny! Funny! I was laughing so much. What a great story told by a
fantastic storyteller. My friend dragged me to this show and I am so glad I
went. It's a true-life story that makes you think. Highly recommended."
-Melissa Furman
"An awe-inspiring feat of non-fiction storytelling. Combs takes you on a
hilarious, thought-provoking journey with him that reveals insight into the
individual's role in a world of faceless corporations. His daring and
tenacity to probe the depths of his accidental windfall are a lesson to us
all in how to look at the world we take for granted all around us. A+++"
-Corey Rosen
"What would I do? Is the question I kept asking myself. What makes this show
so fantastic is the fact that it's true story. Comb's does a brilliant job
re-counting his experience in cashing a $95,000 junk mail check.
Riveting and entertaining. I would highly recommend this show."
- Tom Wollman
"I've seen many fringe shows in the last few years and this one is one of the
best I've seen. A truly entertaining story. Combs is a fantastic story
teller and this show is one you don't want to miss!"
- Angela
"Mesmirizing production of a guy who receives a "non-negotiable" phony check
for just over $93k in his mailbox. One of those, "you too, can be a
millionaire" type promotions that people way too many of in email today.
Combs puts a happy face on the back of the check, and deposits it in his
ATM. It clears, and the adventure ensues!"
- anonymous
"Hilarious recounting of the subsequent events following the deposit into
Comb's checking account as Comb's recounts his inner turmoils about, "what
do I do?" and his subsequent search for respect and resolution from the
faceless powers that be at First Interstate Bank. What makes this production
work is the fact that it's all true."
- Darryl Henry
"I wasn't sure if a third show in a row would be Fringe overload - but I'm so
glad I stayed for Patrick Combs' one man show. He was so real & fresh - it
was as if he were telling the story for the first time. He conveyed not only
humor in his recounting, but palpable excitement, stress, anger,
incredulity. He was terrific See it!"
- Kim
"Obviously there are lots of vicarious thrills and dry absurdities in this
true story, in which trickster Patrick Combs jokingly deposits a junk-mail
promotional check and then finds that it has cleared. There is also more
suspense than I expected. You wonder what *you* would do in such a
situation, and at the same time the story is progressing and the tension
mounting. The best part is in the telling. Combs is wry, expressive, and well-paced,
so that I was fully engaged throughout the performance, as those around me
seemed to be, too. And I doubt any of us will ever look at those junk-mail
promotional checks the same again."
- j kanuch
"Very funny and entertaining performance. This guy can tell a story. A true
fringe show. The hour went by far to fast. Take yourself down and see this
show it is very much worth it."
- Jack
"delightful and involving monologue... With easy charm, Combs delivers a well-told, consistently amusing, and actually fascinating account of an adventure that started with a hefty junk mail check and the local ATM.... true tale of a sort of everyman who gave the system a terrific run for somebody's money."
- Bay Area Guardian
"An outrageous tale that really happened.... Hearing him describe a bunch of bumbling, meanminded suits trying to get their money back is worth the price of admission."
- SF Weekly
"I'm not sure if it's okay for us to speak about this incident yet as all us tellers were banned from doing so at the time, but I'd just like to say that Patrick's story is very funny, but even funnier if you knew what it was like to actually work at First Interstate Bank, which you'll notice is abbrievated FIB."
- Wally, a former teller in Mill Valley,
"Viva La Revolucion!!"