Carrey's first stand-up comedy experience took place in 1977 at the age of 15 with his father trying to help the youngster put together a stage act, driving him to downtown Toronto to debut at the recently-opened Yuk Yuk's comedy club operating one-night-a-week out of a community centre's basement on Church Street. For the performance, the teenager had his attire—a polyester leisure suit—chosen by his mother who reasoned "that's how they dress on "The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast"". Pubescent Carrey's conventional impersonations bombed, proving ill-suited for a club with a raunchy Belushiesque comedic sensibility and giving the youngster doubts about his potential as a professional entertainer. Decades later, recalling young Carrey's stand-up debut, Yuk Yuk's owner Mark Breslin described it as "bad Rich Little". His family's financial struggles made it difficult for them to support Carrey's show business ambitions.