Mark Kikel

Mark Alan "The Mustard Man" Kikel of Gresham passed away on Wednesday, March 12, after a long battle with cancer. Mark was born to Floyd and Sharon Kikel in Albany on January 26, 1962. The family later moved to Gresham. He spent his younger years active in Little League and discovered a passion for stand-up comedy while attending Gresham High School. After graduation he spent most of his time performing stand up and participating in open mics.
Mark held multiple other jobs to support his comedy ambitions, including several years as an asbestos abatement specialist. In 1988 he met and married Carrie Cruickshank; their daughter Kelsie Ann was born in 1989. He and Carrie divorced several years later.
His career took an interesting turn when he was a guest on KGON's Mark and Brian show in 1994. They were looking for people willing to do outrageous things – and Mark agreed to drink a 32-ounce bottle of mustard live on the air. That same night, he drank another 15 ounces of mustard at Harvey's Comedy Club – at which point Brian said "Boy, you sure are a mustard man" and the name stuck. He repeated the trick on The Tonight Show in 2005, becoming the only Portland comic to appear on the national talk show, albeit not to perform comedy.
For more than 30 years Mark continued hosting and producing comedy shows at clubs including Harvey's, the Gresham Inn, Roscoe's, the Bagdad Pub and Poker Pete's in Kalama, Washington. He worked other jobs as needed but remained focused on a career in comedy.
He is credited with giving many Oregon comedians their start on stage and is remembered fondly by all who worked with him. He developed several lifetime friends in the business, include Ron Osborne, Kevin-Michael Moore, Kris Shaw, Bj Johnson and Tere Joyce. He was also an avid collector, amassing reams of baseball cards as well as Hot Wheels and other collectable toys.
Mark was completely devoted to his daughters Kelsie and MacKenzie (from a later relationship) and was happiest when spending time with family and friends.
He was preceded in death by his mother Sharon and father Floyd. He is survived by his daughters, sister Leeann Harmon and brother-in-law Ken Harmon of Gresham, ex-wife Carrie Kikel of Canby and several other family members.
A celebration of life called "Roast in Peace: A tribute to Mark 'The Mustard Man' Kikel" is scheduled at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 23, at Curious Comedy Theater (5225 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd., Portland).