Today we’d like to introduce you to Victor Martinez Jr.
Hi Victor, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The High Tonight Show was an idea I had been holding onto for a while back in 2016 when I was approached by a television studio in Los Angeles. The main producer asked if I had an hour to air on their new station, and I had told him my dream of being the ‘Jay Leno of Weed.’ My goal with the show is to break the prejudice of cannabis-use. I always wear a suit, we bring in industry leaders as special guests, and we are accompanied by practicing comedians and musicians pursuing their dreams in the arts. The High Tonight Show began smoking out the tv studio until the station shut down and the show continued as a self-produced project in my garage for a couple of seasons. Finally, the show was set to continue in an LA-based theatre, where the Season 3 Finale was filmed, but COVID halted any thoughts of production for the 4th Season. I had a joke about reaching Season 4 Episode 20 but It wouldn’t happen in LA.
In 2020, I visited some family in Austin and I was happy to see people out from lockdown and surprised to the comedy scene was growing at a rapid rate. I started joining the Austin comedy community and reaching out to local businesses. I met my Executive Producer Matt Alvarez, and we’ve been working to make this show happen on a recurring basis.
Our first episode was shot here in Austin, it hosted our main sponsor Geremy Greens, who is a local CBD farmer and staple in the Austin Cannabis Industry, a good friend of mine Keith Ray who just filmed a special at the Creek & the Cave, Geoffrey Eggleston who just released an album, and we hosted FX and Comedy Central’s Niles Abston who was on a national tour through Austin. I’m just surprised there isn’t anything else like this, but luckily that makes us the longest-running 420 talk show in production. Since the first episode, we have gained lots of support and sponsorship and we hope to only go up from here!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has not always been smooth, every episode is a beat on its own. Our biggest struggle has been finding a stable home for the show, that has been our biggest struggle since even in LA. The other struggle we have is the legality of cannabis, but luckily weed has become more and more legal as the show has evolved. I like to think we had something to do with that, but it is so nice that Austin is a cannabis-city, even officially decriminalizing possession this year.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am an entertainer, a talk-show host, and a comedian. I specialize in hosting comedy events, many of which are my own. I perform Stand-Up in LA and Austin. I am most notably known for hosting the stand-up show: GARAGEMIC in Hollywood from 2016-2020. I take pride in treating every show, event, and mic I host with all of my efforts, bringing the professional aspect to anything I do. I talk about my life and my family, so everything comes from the heart and to the audience.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Technically doing the show at all while using my name and likeness is a risk, but luckily we try to break stigmas on our show, and the laws are working with us as time progresses.
Contact Info:
- Website: thehightonightshow.com
- Instagram: @thehightonightshow
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HighTonightShow/
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/5FVoJYDmDjmiRyN4bpED9u
Image Credits
John Becker
