From the January 11, 2002 issue of The Gazette Weekend Entertainment Guide
Joe of all trades
Piscopo's done it all — TV, stand-up, theater, film
By John Kenyon
Gazette staff writer
Joe Piscopo has been into a little bit of everything since his stint on "Saturday Night Live" ended in 1985, but it’s on a stage doing stand-up where he feels most at home.
Piscopo plays Penguins Comedy Club tonight, Saturday and Sunday. While driving to his Newark, NJ office a couple of weeks ago, he talked about the varied career he’s enjoyed over the past few decades. He says he stumbled back into stand-up after a long layoff.
“I went out to a casino in Palm Springs to do this Sinatra-type show, and they wanted me to do a comedy show,” he says. “I went up there, stood on stage for an hour and a half and I had the time of my life.”
That “Sinatra-type show,” of course, is Piscopo’s impression of “Ol’ Blue Eyes,” something he perfected on “SNL” and now is just another in his deep bag of tricks.
Piscopo was part of the second-round cast of “Saturday Night Live,” and while that distinction has been a blessing and a curse for many of the show’s “Not Ready for Prime Time Players,” Piscopo says it has been an unbelievable benefit for him.
“I’ve always just been grateful go be on it, because once you’re on the show you work forever,” he says. “You can do with that reputation whatever you want.”
Since leaving television’s pre-eminent sketch comedy show, Piscopo has appeared in several films, acted on Broadway, filled serious roles on other TV shows and followed any number of non-performing avenues both in and out of the entertainment industry.
“But comedy is my first love,” he says. “That’s where I feel most comfortable.”
That’s why an offhand remark to his agent after that Palm Springs show- “I said, ‘You know, maybe I should go out and do something like this,’ ” he says- led to several dates this fall and winter at comedy clubs across the country, his first comedy tour in years.
“I’ve been going out and having an absolute blast,” he says.
It’s a wonder he has the time. While Piscopo isn’t as visible now as he once was, it’s not for a lack of effort.
He took an acclaimed turn on NBC’s “Law & Order” recently, playing a serious role for the first time. Equally challenging were an appearance singing the National Anthem before a Kansas City Chiefs football game this season and a role in the Broadway production of “Grease” as DJ Vince Fontaine, two things that he says were “scary.”
Beyond that, Piscopo is producing projects, including television shows for his own Positive Impact Foundation, and a film, “Last Request.”
He also appears in a new independent film called “Bartleby,” a modern update of Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby the Scrivener.”
If that seems like a lot of work, it is. But Piscopo has powerful motivation. He was diagnosed with thyroid cancer while on “Saturday Night Live,” and was cured in 1991.
While his reaction to advice from his doctor to make himself stronger is obvious to anyone who had seen a beefed-up Piscopo pitching health-care products, he clearly took the advice to heart when it comes to his work, as well.
“Ever since then, I’ve just been grateful to be alive,” he says. “I’ve never wanted to be a superstar, never got obsessed about me career. As I go through life, I take things gratefully.”
Someone with Piscopo’s name recognition can play arena shows, but he says he likes comedy clubs the best. Anything goes in a club, he says.
“My favorite part of the show is talking to the audience, meeting them,” he says. “You can’t write that. Americans are so funny.”
“I just did one with a guy who does bathrooms,” he adds. “I learned more bout acrylic tile that I really wanted to know.”
He is obviously grateful to have the chance to perform stand-up shows. It’s something he can always go back to, he says, and something he always enjoys, particularly in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack.
“I go to these clubs and meet these people who are really just my neighbors and your neighbors,” he says. “Now, everybody is so solid, so joined together as a team. They’re not flippant.”
He’s doing the same kid of show he’s always done, with Bruce Springsteen and David Letterman impressions, music bits and jokes about his native New Jersey. But he’s updated his material as well, doing jokes about Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida.
“The interesting thing about right now is, America is ready to laugh,” he says. “We are the strongest, most formidable people in the world.”
|
|
|
