LOUIS C.K. hosting at JUST FOR LAUGHS, with MIKE WILMOT, MIKE BIRBIGLIA, JIMMY CARR, TOMMY TIERNAN and TODD BARRY at Massey Hall (178 Victoria), Saturday (July 10), 9:30 pm. $51.42-$89.84. 416-872-4255. Toronto.hahaha.com.
All great stand-ups help define their era. It’s hard to imagine the 60s without Lenny Bruce, the 70s without George Carlin or Richard Pryor, the 80s without Eddie Murphy or Sam Kinison, or the 90s without Chris Rock. (Robin Williams? Kind of timeless. The guy’s an extraterrestrial.)
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These days, it’s hard to imagine life without Louis C.K. The shitty economy an environment that’s more polluted with every BP gallon dissatisfaction with shiny technology: these all lay the groundwork for his angry rants.
“I get passionate about things onstage sometimes, but I have an overall optimistic view,” says C.K., on the phone from L.A. half a day after a decent Tonight Show appearance that should get middle America to tune into his new FX sitcom, Louie.
“Hey, I like people. I’m a pretty affable guy. I think that comes through. But there are people who don’t like me. I get people walking out, and I can see that they’re thinking, ‘Boy, this guy’s an asshole.'”
To be sure, the bald, bearded, burly C.K. can come across as gruff and blunt. But the joke’s always on him. When he complains about the fact that we’re living in an amazing time but it’s wasted on the “crappiest generation of spoiled idiots” ever – as he did in a Late Show With Conan O’Brien interview a couple of years ago – he implicitly includes himself in that group of jerks.
We know the type because we’re one of them, too. People who complain that their cellphone’s too slow or that their plane doesn’t have internet access.
“I felt like that guy in the movie who crawls underneath a car and finds a ticking bomb,” he says about that Conan interview, which went viral online. “I scraped my back on the pavement and had the pipes under the car burn my arm a little bit, and then I was staring right at the bomb and told everybody to run. I found a way to say some things, and a lot of people were annoyed by it.”
His devoted stand-up fans recognized the bit from his act. But C.K. wasn’t prepared for the reach it would have or the way it would be interpreted.
“I’ve been told by some people that their pastor showed it to them or that their company’s CEO made everyone watch. Some took it as a conservative rant, others as an anarchistic rant, and others saw it as this spiritual idea.”
One thing’s clear. When your rants affect that kind of cross-section, you know you’re onto something. But C.K. shrugs off the idea that his comedy is so time-hooked.
“Go through any time in recent history and there are always things to complain about,” he says. “There was the war going on in Iraq. Bush was president, and people were saying it would be a comedy Shangri-La. But I never cared about what he was doing, so it never really helped me.”
C.K. might know how to complain onstage, but on the eve of the debut of his new show, which he directs, writes, stars in and executive-produces, he’s savvy enough not to badmouth his experience on the short-lived HBO show Lucky Louie.
“I had a conversation with my daughter about the new show,” he says, choosing his words carefully. “She knew what Lucky Louie was like. She said, ‘Are you going to have a group of writers on this show or are you going to write it all by yourself?’ I said I was going to write it all myself, and she said that was good, because it would be easier. I asked her why. ‘Because on the other show you had to explain to 10 people what you wanted, and here you just get to do it.’ And that’s exactly what it’s been like.”
He’s not too fond, though, of a certain Toronto International Film Festival programmer who turned down his concert movie Louis C.K.: Hilarious last year, before it later went on to great success at Sundance.
“I wanted to go to Toronto with it because I’ve had great crowds there with my shows,” he says. “I thought if I showed this film in Toronto, my crowd would come out to see it and prove that it’s a sellable movie.
“But the programmer there said” – here he puts on a whiny voice – “‘It’s just angry guy comedy, and I’m a David Cross fan and I’m not into this.’ That’s what he said! And David and I used to be roommates – we’re still good friends. That was just funny.”
With the sitcom on air in the U.S. (the pilot is fantastic and completely true to his stand-up sensibility), a funny five-episode arc completed on Parks And Recreation and a new comedy tour this fall, the guy frequently dubbed a “comic’s comic” is breaking through.
Does he feel it’s about time?
“Everything’s happened on schedule,” he says. “I think it takes 20 years to make a comedian worth watching on a concert level. If I had got this exposure earlier, it would have been a disaster. But then again, I will probably say 10 years from now that this was too early, too.”
He also says that, contrary to the adage that comedy’s a young person’s game, comedians get more interesting as they get older.
“I think comedians over 40 are usually funnier than those who are 25. You’re just more compelling. A lot of young people are hilarious, but growing up and going through life changes you. When you get to 42, divorced, with two kids, you kind of don’t give a shit what people think any more.”
Having written for years for Letterman, Conan, Chris Rock and even Cedric the Entertainer, C.K.’s in a good position to comment on this year’s talk show wars.
“Honestly, I think it worked out for everybody. Conan’s TBS show will be the best thing he’s done it’s a great home for him. TBS is like FX, a very creative place. The talk shows on major networks always have constraints.
“It hurt Jay, which is unfortunate, because Jay earned that show. He took it from Carson so many years ago and kept it at number one forever. I grew up having him as a stand-up hero. He came from Boston, where I came from, and when I started out he was this fucking great comic who did Letterman all the time and hosted The Tonight Show when Johnny was tired. And now he’s hosting it.”
In the end, though, he says he watches Letterman more than anyone else.
“He’s a badass. He just makes me laugh.
“Leno’s the best comic. Conan has the best show, because he’s smart as a whip and is really creative and innovative. But Letterman’s the best host. He’s just so great at delivering a monologue and keeping you interested.”
Interview Clips
Louis C.K. on comedy as sculpture:
On comparisons between his TV series Louie and Seinfeld:
On his series Louie and Annie Hall:
On his acting ability:
On his creative control over his new series:
glenns@nowtoronto.com
