Austen Tayshus is the stage name of Alexander 'Sandy' Gutman, born Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on March 17, 1954. He is a Jewish Australian comedian.

Early years

His early material usually consisted of light puns. His stage name is an example - a play on the word ostentacious. He became famous for sending up Australian cultural icons.

One of his earliest routines was called Hada Tock Merry Can, ie How to Talk [with an] American [accent]. During this routine, he appeared with pen and paper, establishing wordplay on the page. For example, he would write and then pronounce Armour bit pair staff with you (I'm a bit pissed off with you).

It was first performed on seminal Australian TV show Hey Hey It's Saturday. He later performed the routine for talk show host Don Lane, an Australian television host from the United States.

Tayshus achieved resounding success and popularity. He indulged in alcohol, cigarettes and drugs including cocaine. He later admitted to having been affected by cocaine during most performances.

Australiana

He is best known for the release Australiana in 1983, a comedy single which became the top-selling Australian single of all-time. The routine was written by Billy Birmingham, and consists of a sequence of puns on Australian cultural icons (such as how much can a koala bear?), and it is still highly popular.

In 1986, he and his girlfriend had a car accident, during which she received severe head injuries. They survived, but Tayshus/Gutman was changed forever.

Later years

He branched out into highly political, controversial humour, often drawing on his Jewish background. He appears on stage wearing a black suit and dark sunglasses. He is often moody, taunts his audience and insults venue staff. He might now be compared to 'controversial' comedians such as Bill Hicks.

Whereas insult comics are generally acknowledged to be performing an 'act', Tayshus' off-stage personality is similar to his on-stage persona. He is known for burning bridges with venues and other comedians.

A biting comment made by one Melbourne comedian was: 'I think the general consensus is that the outcome of Sandy’s car accident was indeed tragic'.

In 1989 he produced a second album, Put Down That Stubbie. The album did not achieve the success of Australiana.

In 1991 he married his wife Emma, with whom he had three children.

Revival

He returned to standup comedy in the late 1990s. He soon received a lifetime ban from Channel 31 for using profanity during a live show to express his opinion of Prime Minister John Howard.

Footyana

In 1999, he released "Footyana", a comedy piece in the style of "Australiana" which he performed on television show Live and Kicking. It includes such lines as 'Is Stephen Tingay or something?' and 'We passed Liam the Burger Rings. Come on Liam, Pickering'.

External links

• Austen Tayshus - Official Website
• An interview
• Media profile on Austen Tayshus