Q: When/Where was your first show? A: Halloween night, 2001 at the Addison Improv Q: Who are some of your favorite comedians? A: I have a ton; Aunt B (Beth Donahue-Weedman) for reasons beyond comedy, Brett Butler, Kathleen Madigan, Ellen Degeneres, Brian Regan, Jim Gaffigan...I also think Fred Willard and Jerry Stiller are two of the funniest men alive. Q: What made you want to get into comedy? A: From as far back as I can remember, I've loved making people laugh. Especially if I can tell that someone is down or sad; I feel like I HAVE to make them feel better. It kinda runs in my family too, making jokes and whatnot. You know how they say people cope in different ways and even use the example of people that laugh at funerals? That's my family. We're not big cryers; we cope with jokes and by making each other laugh. I guess I just wanted to take it to the next level and actually get paid for it! Q: Do animals that lay eggs have belly buttons? A: No, I don't think they do. Q: What's the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you since you've been doing comedy? A: I busted my lip trying to pull a mic that was stuck out of the stand; I pulled on it pretty hard and it popped out and hit me in the mouth. It's hard to tell jokes when you're fighting back tears and you have a fat lip. Q: What's the coolest thing that has happened to you since you've been doing comedy? A: Growing up, I idolized Brett Butler. She was southern and sarcastic, just like me. Her comedy was about her life and I felt like I could relate; there was alot of dysfunction in her past and she managed to make it funny. That's exactly what I'd always done...anyway, I got to meet her a few times and she even bought my friend and I dinner and sat and talked with us for about two hours...she's one of the nicest people I've ever met. That was pretty cool...oh, and Steve Harvey told me I was funny. I dug that too. Q: If you were in a hot dog eating contest with a bear and that skinny guy from China, do you think you could hold your own? A: I like hot dogs, but not enough to eat more than one or two, so my money is on the bear. Q: Where do you hope to be in 5 years, career wise? A: I don't care about being famous; I just want to be able to do what I love, which is making people laugh and be successful enough at it that my family doesn't end up living in a refrigerator box on the side of the highway. In 5 years I'd like to be an established act on the Christian comedy scene...and I'd like to be 50 pounds lighter, but I don't think that's what you meant. Q: What is the hardest thing about comedy? A: The politics. And, as a new Christian, I feel like I'm being held under a magnifying glass. I didn't start out my comedy career as a Christian and I wasn't raised in church. People that have known me for a long time; people that know that way that I was, have a hard time accepting that since truly handing my life over to God, things are different for me now. I have to work twice as hard. I have to make sure that God's presence is represented in everything I do, because people truly are watching. I try to remember however, that being a Christian doesn't mean I'm perfect...it just means that I'm forgiven. That's why I say I don't care anything about being famous. I'm too nice, I think to ever claw my way to the top. I figure any success I have will be what God grants me and that suits me just fine. Q: If you're a Christian and a comedian, then does that mean you only perform at churches? A: No, I play both. I do want people to know though, that when I perform at a club, it is the same act as if I were at a church. I really have to keep myself in check and accountable that way. I can't have a "church set" and then a "club set." I have to honor God, no matter what the setting is. Q: Are you going to eat that last chicken finger? A: No, you can have it. Q: What is your biggest fear? A: Being eaten by a shark. Q: No, I mean what is your biggest fear, comedy wise? A: Oh, Okay...being onstage and being eaten by a shark. Okay, this interview is officially over. That's okay, I have to pee anyway. |
