The Comedy World Just Came Together For A Chicago Comic Who Was Harassed

By Stephen Gossett in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 14, 2017 10:22PM

Rebecca O'Neal / GoFundMe

From open mic to improv, the comedy world is often portrayed as a self-serving arena of cutthroat survivalism. But the last 24 hours or so have offered some corrective evidence, proving how the scene can also overflow with support.

Chicago standup Rebecca O'Neal—probably best known for co-hosting the famed weekly open-mic at Cole's in Logan Square, and also the host of The U's One Night Stand Up—was only hours past having been granted a hard-fought, court-ordered protection against an ex, who stalked and harassed her for months, when she put out a call for support on Wednesday. O'Neal's sole source of income is comedy, but she'd been unable to perform leading up to her day in court for fear of further harassment. And she needs to leave Chicago—the city she's from, loves, and where she cut her comedy teeth—to distance herself from any potential additional intimidation.

The response was "overwhelming," said O'Neal, who watched as her relocation fundraising campaign raised more than $8,000 in less than 24 hours.

Support poured in, as big-name comic Kristen Toomey, improv queen Susan Messing ("Co-Ed Prison Sluts," "Messing with a Friend"), Jackie Kashian (who was featured on a Maria Bamford bill on which O'Neal also performed) and Conan staff writer Laurie Kilmartin were among many from the comedy world and beyond who donated, shared the word, or both.

"Every share has helped," said an audibly moved O'Neal, who said she faced harassment ranging from a rock through the window of her apartment to death threats. The legal process of obtaining a protection order "is not a very supportive process," she said. (Her attempt stretched out for ten months.) "It's a legal procedure, so it doesn’t take into account how vulnerable people are. To experience such warmth after so many months of that is incredible," she said.

Not only have comics had her back in helping O'Neal fundraise, they went to court on her behalf too. Four Chicago comedians—two of whom her lawyers selected (Bill Bullock and Jason Earl Folks)—came forward to testify for O'Neal after the harassment culminated in a November incident at the Beat Kitchen's Chicago Underground Comedy.

The folks that comprise Chicago's comedy scene are "the best group of people I've ever met in my life," said O'Neal, a South Side native who's been performing comedy for five-plus years. "They gave me spare keys to their houses if I was afraid and gave me door-to-door rides for shows."

O'Neal said she hopes women who are left feeling similarly worn by the arduous legal process will find hope in her tale. "I have seen a lot of women who don’t have my visibility or resources get denied [protection]. Hopefully it can shed light the process and help people who don’t have as much as I do get though this."