Louis Ashamallah Five comedians and the Thousand Oaks Kiwanis Club will present Comedy in the Conejo III next month.

Thousand Oaks comedian Louis Ashamallah will be among the five hoping to tickle funny bones for the benefit of local charities on Sun., Aug. 9 at The Canyon club, 28912 Roadside Drive, Agoura Hills.

Frazer Smith will be the master of ceremonies. First California Bank is a sponsor of the event.

Ashamallah, a financial planner, family man, father of twins and Kiwanis Club member, doesn't need to look far for his material.

"I find humor everywhere in life," he said.

He's opened for TV personality Jay Leno in Las Vegas and other comedians around Los Angeles over the years—each time for charity.

He's even funny when he's not on stage.

"Humor is a mechanism for dealing with stress," Ashamallah said.

In these economic times, he finds it helpful to use his talent to keep his financial clients smiling as he advises them on where to invest their money.

The man of Egyptian descent grew up in the mostly Jewish Fairfax District in Los Angeles listening to comedians George Carlin, Richard Pryor and Bill Cosby. He was bright in school, got his work done early and used his spare time to entertain the other children. Seeing how much extra time Ashamallah had on his hands, his teacher recommended he skip fourth grade.

That didn't put a dent in his need to make people happy. In high school he was still the class clown.

In college he answered the phone at a crisis hotline. Although using humor was not appropriate, it was another way he found to help people.

Ten years ago Ashamallah took a comedy class. For his final he had to perform for five minutes at the Improv Comedy Club in Los Angeles.

"I wowed the crowd," he recalled.

That positive experience created a desire to take the stage again, and a new comedian was born—as was a way for charities to get needed funding.

Ashamallah has raised money for the Los Angeles Free Clinic, American Heart Association, schools in Africa and the Thousand Oaks Kiwanis Club by doing four or five shows a year.

He spends time every day on his passion—writing comedic material and setting up shows.

Joining him onstage for the Kiwanis at The Canyon will be comedians Steve Bruner, Michael Kosta, Quinn Dahle and Rudy Moreno.

The Thousand Oaks Acorn is an in-kind sponsor for the event

Doors will open at The Canyon in Whizin's shopping center at 6 p.m. for a social hour and silent auction. A live auction starting at 7:15 p.m. will be followed by the show at 7:30 p.m. The cost for the show is $30. For dinner, which includes reserved seating, add $35.

For more information, call (805) 496-1904 or go to www.tokiwanis.org.