Handing out flyers in Galway's pubs and restaurants was hardly the ideal introduction to the world of stand-up comedy for the man who now fronts Ireland's longest-running international comedy club.
Mr Gerry Mallon, the man behind the Murphy's Comedy Club at the GPO night club, jumped at the chance of taking over as MC when regular compere Little John Nee failed to turn up in 1992 and he hasn't looked back since.
The affable Mayo man, now a renowned comic in his own right, can take the credit for giving Perrier award winner Mr Tommy Tiernan his first break. Mr Mallon has embraced the comedy world since club founders Cillian Fennell and Pierce Boyce gave him his first break at the Warwick Hotel.
His weekly Sunday night club has featured some of the biggest names in the business, including Ardal O'Hanlon, the late Dermot Morgan, Jo Brand, Dylan Moran and Patrick Kielty.
Mallon believes Galway is just big enough to sustain a weekly comedy club. Over the years, he has noted the growing confidence of Irish audiences.
"The foreign comedians love the club," he says. "They find that Irish audiences are much more receptive than their counterparts in England." Mr Mallon has developed a full routine of his own and he regularly tours both Britain and Ireland. Like Tiernan, he does not see his West of Ireland base as a disadvantage.
"Irish guys are huge over in England at the moment, but I would not like to be based in England. There is enough work in Ireland with the club to sustain me, however, along with the occasional tour."