It’s early Tuesday morning, and the cargo plane bound for Chicago contains two pilots, bushels of returned checks and an aspiring, young neighborhood comedian.
The time on the comedian’s watch reads 1:30 a.m. In a little more than two hours, the plane will land in Chicago, where the pilots will turn over the returned checks to the Federal Reserve before heading back to Dallas.
The comedian makes his way to the pilot’s lounge to catch a few winks. He awakes at about 9 a.m., straps on his backpack and finds his way to the train, a day of exploring the Windy City ahead of him.
As the sun begins to duck behind Chicago’s skscrapers, neighborhood resident David Wilk makes his way to comedian school – the Second City Conservatory, a prestigious training ground for some of the world’s most famous funny people.
“Second City is kind of like the Harvard for comedy,” says Wilk, who has been making this weekly pilgrimage to Chicago for several months.
“You stand and perform on stage and can’t help but get the feeling of ghosts.”
Among the famous comedians who received their start at Second City are John Belushi, John Candy and Dan Aykroyd.
After an evening of class, Wilk usually socializes with other Second City comedians at a nearby pub before setting out for the airport and a 3:30 a.m. flight back to Dallas aboard the cargo plane.
Wilk flies free-of-charge thanks to his father, who owns Corporate Aviation, the company that provides returned check delivery service for the Federal Reserve.
After the 24-hour marathon, Wednesday is usually a wash. But Wilk says the experience of exploring Chicago and studying at Second City is well worth the Wednesday hangover.
“The whole day is this growth,” says Wilk, who used to go to Second City each year for his birthday just to watch the performers.
Then, says Wilk, “I was like a kid in a candy store; I was blown away.”
“Now I see it differently: I’m not a kid in a candy store anymore, I’m working at the candy store, and I can have a little candy, too.”
Wilk auditioned for Second City’s conservatory in December and has ascended to the third of five levels. He plans to finish by the New Year. And that’s when he’ll have to make some choices.
For the past seven months, Wilk has been performing every Friday and Saturday in Fort Worth with Four Day Weekend, an improvisational comedy troupe he helped found. During its run at Casa’s Theater in Forth Worth’s Sundance Square, Four Day Weekend has earned a big following, performing before sell-out crowds and garnering favorable media reviews.
“We started off averaging 55 to 60 (audience members) a night,” says Wilk. “Now we’re turning people away. It’s incredible, just incredible.”
Wilk says he’s committed to the continued success of Four Day Weekend, but once he’s completed his education at Second City, he’ll be eligible to audition for Second City’s touring troupe, a launching pad for successful comedy careers. “Saturday Night Live” and others perennially pluck their casts from the elite troupe.
Wilk says the chances of making the troupe at the first audition are rare, and many times those who make the troupe are selected on thei r second or third try. But he’ll audition anyway.
“I think I owe it to myself,” Wilk says. “I owe a lot to these guys (in Four Day Weekend), and they owe a lot to me.
“If I made it, I’d have to go, and everybody involved would say: Dave, you have to go.”
Four Day Weekend performs every Friday at 10 p.m. and every Saturday at 11 p.m. For more information, call 817-226-4DAY.
