Shirley, I love supporting other women comedians because we do face a bit of a struggle getting some men to take us as seriously as they take themselves. It is just like every other career, there are some who think we ladies are not as good as the fellas.
I think it is great to be a woman in comedy because women really love to laugh and I connect with them on so many levels. I am so glad when women come up to me and say things like thank you for what you do for women. I just melt!
It's fun backstage sometimes, when some male comics who have not seen me, will barely talk to me, just talk to the guys and then I get offstage and they start talking to me because they respect my work. I was recently told by a booker in Las Vegas that I could not bring a woman to feature for me because he does not put two women on the same show. I think the prejudice is going a way, but I do still notice it and one day hopefully it will be gone completely.