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Shawn Wayans' lips were sealed before he arrived, but not once he and the rest of his posse, including Bruce Fine, appeared live Thursday at Capt. Brien's Off the Hook Comedy Club.

Fine opened the show for Wayans — and likened himself to Wayans' Little Man. Fine's comedy shined when he talked about such things as his height (he stands less than five feet tall) and discount clubs, like Costco and Sam's. He said the discount stores were the new Disneyland.

"It's like a cult, once we get that card, we can't stop going," Fine said. "But I don't like being the smallest thing in the store," Fine said. "I could be the prize in a cereal box at Costco."

Fine asked people who use Bluetooth headphones while grocery shopping what they were doing: "Who're you talking to? You getting your shopping list from Capt. Kirk?"

Once the crowd was warmed up with Fine's family-style humor, Wayans took center stage.

Wayans opened with jokes about today's rap music: "I feel sorry for our generation because of the music that we've got. Can you imagine 20 years from now, sitting around with your baby saying, 'Yea, this is our song right here — smack that, give me some more.' "

Submitted photo

Shawn Wayans appears Oct. 18 to 21 at Captain Brien's Off the Hook Comedy Club on Marco Island. Tickets are $32. Call 389-6900 or visit offthehookcomedyclub.com for reservations.

Another joke Shawn uttered: "Am I entertaining white folks on a slave ship? I feel like this is the last show before the Titanic went down."

Wayans mentioned the rigors of being famous, and said that the average people would enjoy the perks of fame for one day, but would then grow tired of always having to be on their toes.

"You always have to be on. ... Being famous keeps your life grounded," Wayans said. "If not you end up shaving your head and checking yourself into rehab."

Wayans also talked about the journey of being in a relationship and the difficulties of marriage: One day you're sleeping next to Halle Berry, then five years later, you're sleeping next to Chuck Berry.

Marco Islander Caleb Voight who has seen Shawn Wayans' stand-up comedy on television saw Wayans perform live Thursday night for the first time.

"It was awesome," Voight said. "There's nothing like seeing him live. I think that any time you get to see somebody live it's great because you get to see their interaction with the crowd, as oppose to sitting there passively watching."

"It was awesome," said Jane Eck, who was visiting Marco Island from Philadelphia. "I enjoyed it. I think (Wayans) was in his element. His crowd was not African American, and it could've been tough for him, but it wasn't. It was a good show. ... His focus was enough to let everyone have a good time."

Marco Islander Bianca Born had to work during Wayans' performance, but she waited in the meet-and-greet line afterwards for an autograph and T-shirt from the star.

"He's really friendly, and he seemed interested in all his fans," Born said. "I would've loved to go to the show."

"It was awesome, you know, a great comedy crowd," Fine said after performing Thursday's show. "They know their comedy out here. They come to laugh. I'm from the East Coast originally, and I sense that they like the East Coast stuff, and Shawn's from New York. It's our first time here, and we've been all over the country, so it's great."

"We're just getting started. ... Just gettin' rollin'," Wayans said after Thursday's show. "Tomorrow night and Saturday night, come out."