Spring Break
He's money: Vaughn and company fill Stepan
Comedy show sells out, entertains students
Joe Piarulli
Issue date: 10/10/05 Section: News
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Vaughn emceed the event, which began with Ahmed Ahmed, a comedian originally from Egypt who joked about his difficulties as an Arab American - especially in terms of getting on an airplane.
Following Ahmed was the first guest of the night, producer Peter Billingsley. Billingsley played Ralphie Parker in the 1983 film "A Christmas Story" and is one of Vaughn's best friends. The two acted out a scene from an ABC After School Special they acted in together, in which a young Vaughn confronted Billingsley about steroid abuse.
Sebastian Maniscalco then took the stage and generated big responses with jokes ranging from shopping at a lousy store to having a "text message war."
Vaughn's second guest was actor Justin Long, known for his roles in films such as "Jeepers Creepers," "Galaxy Quest" and "Dodgeball." Vaughn called up two students from the crowd to take their best dodgeball shots at Long, who managed to avoid all attempts but one. The two actors then reenacted a scene from Vaughn's breakout film, "Swingers," with Long playing Trent (Vaughn's character) and Vaughn playing Mike (Jon Favreau's character).
Ohio native John Caparulo and New Jersey Italian Bret Ernst rounded out the comedic lineup, putting unique spins everything from dogs to the bar scene to roller skating.
Vaughn's final guest was actor Keir O'Donnell. O'Donnell played Todd Cleary, a homosexual painter who takes a special interest in Vaughn's character in the 2005 box office smash "Wedding Crashers." Vaughn coaxed O'Donnell into painting crowd-suggested images, such as "Booty Call." Vaughn signed the final painting, entitled "Celebration," and gave it to a member of the audience after acting out the scene from "Wedding Crashers" in which the "Celebration" painting plays a major role.
Vaughn brought the night to a close himself, leading the audience in a karaoke performance of "Sweet Caroline."
According to Student Union Board (SUB) Manager Jimmy Flaherty, there were about 1,900 people engaged in that sing-a-long - judging by the number of tickets sold to the event, a vast majority of which went to Notre Dame, Saint Mary's and Holy Cross students.
SUB and the Student Activities Office (SAO) made the show possible. According to Flaherty, the show was essentially a rental to a promoter doing a tour. The Student Activities Office negotiated the rental fee to offset the costs of production.