Greg Howell: Greg Howell is one of the brightest dark stars in the Bean, so going on the nature of race relations in this city, he brings the def jam. As a regular at Dicks Beantown Comedy Vault, Howell is aligned with New England heavy-hitters which suggests Bostonians are finally catching on to the black comedy wave thats been sweeping the nation for 40 yrs.

Dennis Fogg: When Fogg isn’t working as “owner, bottle washer, maker of sandwiches” at Uncle Andy’s, you can find him on stage, sharing humorous stories about life’s absurd moments and that comedy goldmine we all have in common: family. When a Massachusetts law-maker proposed an anti-spanking bill last year, Fogg envisioned parents outsourcing the job to fourth graders on the playground. Evoking Marlon Brando’s strained voice in “The Godfather,” Fogg says, “How much would you charge to whack my son?” Fogg’s first professional performance was 18 years ago at The Comedy Connection in Portland. Since then he has performed for diverse audiences throughout New England and his material has changed along the way. “Usually my first jokes were a lot of blue humor and things that I thought were funny,” Fogg recalls. “When I was younger, I thought it was all about the shock value.” Once he figured out who he was on stage, it was difficult to continue with the swearing and the sex and religion bits, Fogg says. He now thinks of himself as a storyteller and a gentle jokester.