Format
In the early rounds of the competition, NBC talent scouts Ross Mark and Bob Read held open casting calls in various locations around the United States. At each casting call, Mark and Read identified comics to participate in callback auditions in front of live audiences. Mark and Read then selected a predetermined number of comics from each callback, who were invited to participate in a semifinal qualifying round.
The comics who advanced to the semifinal qualifying round were divided into two groups. In Season Four, 40 comics were divided into two groups of 20; these comics performed and competed against each other at the Alex Theater in Los Angeles. During the semifinal qualifying rounds, a panel of celebrity judges, and the show's producers, selected the comics who would move forward to the final qualifying round. This determined who among the comics would be "in the house." While this was usually a regular house, in season four, the comics were chosen to live aboard RMS Queen Mary in Long Beach, California.
Once "in the house," the comics participated in some type of comedic challenge each television week. Past challenges included performing stand-up at a local laundromat, working as a tour guide in Los Angeles, participating in a roast at the Friars Club of Beverly Hills and performing comedy on a specific subject with little preparation time on a radio show. The winner of each challenge is usually rewarded with immunity from being eliminated from the competition for that week, while the remaining comics are vulnerable to elimination through a "head-to-head" standup challenge.
As the conclusion of each television week drew near, each comic selected one other comic whom they believed they could defeat in a head-to-head challenge. The comics were sent off individually to a secluded booth, and named the person selected using the phrase "I know I'm funnier than _____." The comic who received the most nominations participated in that evening's head-to-head competition, and selected their opponent from any of the comics who had challenged them.
The head-to-head competition occurred in front of a live studio audience. The comics performed for an equal amount of time, and the studio audience voted electronically for their preferred performer. The winning comic remained "in the house" for at least one more television week, and the losing comic was eliminated from the competition.
When only five comics remained, the format changed again. All remaining comics performed for a large theatre audience as before, but now the decision-making power shifted from the studio audience to the television audience. Viewers cast their votes for their favorite comic by phoning a specific number, by voting online at the network's website, or both. Unlike some other "audience-vote reality" programs, the producers imposed a maximum number of eligible votes per originating phone number and email address. The comic who received the lowest number of votes each week was eliminated from the competition, until there was one "Last Comic Standing".
The "in the house" concept was dropped for season 7, and each week consisted of all remaining comics performing in front of a theater audience and being voted on by the television viewers to determine who leaves and who remains. It was essentially identical to the "final five" format used previously.
Winners: Dat Phan, John Heffron, Alonzo Bodden, Josh Blue, Jon Reep, Iliza Shlesinger, and Felipe Esparza.
Read more about this topic: Last Comic Standing