Michael Orensteen: Pilot Turned Comedian Celebrates One Year of Laughs
From the airlines to the spotlights, the Shakopee club owner has made his dreams soar.
If you would have told Michael Orensteen 20 years ago that today he would own a comedy club, he wouldn’t have believed you. “I’ve always been funny, off the cuff,” he said. “But I never would have thought I’d have gotten into it (comedy).” But a combination of events in his chosen career—that of an airline pilot—led him to change altitude with the MinneHAHA Comedy Club, in Shakopee. “I knew when I was 5 that I wanted to be a pilot,” said Orensteen, now a 44-year-old who lives in Eagan. “My favorite part of vacations was being on the plane.” Orensteen, who moved to Edina from Connecticut when he was 13, joined the U.S. Navy after high school. But because his eyesight didn’t meet the requirements, he was more of a flight navigator while in …
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