12 L.A. Comedy Acts to Watch in 2013

Diwang Valdez

9. Dave Stone
Conan's Rory Scovel on the Beards of Comedy and Squidbillies vet: "The drive to constantly get better as a performer, a writer, a stand-up comedian, an artist. Knowing that such a pursuit comes with great sacrifice and an amazing amount of passion and respect for the craft with which he is trying to succeed. To me this is who Dave Stone is...a successful comic, but it is his unwillingness to settle in this success that inspires others to work that much harder. Dave lives in a van so he can do comedy full-time. To me, that is the bar that all artists should live by: whatever it takes." (Full disclosure: the author of this article works with the Beards of Comedy in a production capacity.)

Lenny Gilmore

8. Cameron Esposito
TheComedyBureau.com's Jake Kroeger: "Chicago transplants like Pete Holmes, Kyle Kinane, Hannibal Buress and T.J. Miller are at the top of the comedy world right now. In that tradition, Cameron Esposito just relocated to L.A. and in addition to Just For Laughs Chicago, SXSW, the Bridgetown Comedy Festival and NPR's The Sound of Young America, she's been featured on several big podcasts including many episodes of Jesse Thorn's Bullseye. She's also taking the reins of Put Your Hands Together at UCB, filling the slot vacated by the legendary Comedy Bang Bang. Esposito's stand up is both truthful and delightful, leaving a smile on people's faces as big as the one she always wears."

Punching the Clown

7. Henry Phillips
Says comedian Doug Stanhope: "I am baffled that Henry isn't a household name. In a day where most comics have to bash you over the head with it, Henry gently sneaks it straight up your ass, without ever letting you know that you're the bottom." That oversight will come closer to being corrected come 2013, which holds not only a comedy special and a second album, but the development of a Showtime series executive produced by Sarah Silverman and based on the guitar comic's Slamdance Film Festival-winning, pseudo-autobiographical film Punching the Clown."