Kathy Griffin hits the road for the first time since Trumpgate
Kathy Griffin doesn’t need much of an introduction, so we’ll begin right in the middle of this rant from our recent interview with the comedian…
That fucker tried to ruin me! Tried to decimate me, damnit, and this is my comeback! I’m so excited to be coming to Boston, and I’m going to spill it all. I was under a fucking two-month federal investigation, and I still have people that send Bibles to my house on an almost daily basis to save me. I hope you know who my neighbors were during this trauma because, magic. Their names are Kim Kardashian West and Kanye Kardashian West. I know this is all crazy, but … I’m going through this whole Trump thing and it’s super crazy, and my sister is dying of cancer and I shaved my head in solidarity, and then there’d be days when my mom came over one day and she’s just really depressed—she’s going be 98—and she was just feeling like, “Oh, I’m not going to live forever”—typical Maggie until I get her her boxed wine. I know this is hard to believe because God knows I’ve made my career doing things like calling the Kardashians filthy whores—but sure enough in the middle of all this crazy shit I text Kim Kardashian—who I’m not best friends with, I’m not acting like I am—but I just said, “Can you send the kids over? I don’t know where you are on the planet but my mom’s really depressed.” Sure enough, she’s like, “No problem.” A half an hour later the nannies arrive and the two kids come over, and my mom got to babysit them for an hour and it was hilarious, so all sorts of crazy things have been going on at this time. As crazy as this journey has been, and it continues, there really is a lot of comedy in it.
Taking back your apology for the photo is the most badass thing that you’ve ever done.
Thank you. I definitely took that apology back, and I take it back tenfold because, you know, I was in such a swirl and when my comedy friends gave me shit for making an apology … I always say, “Well, I tell you what—when you’re under a federal investigation” and—by the way—they wanted to charge me with—wait for it—conspiracy to assassinate the president of the United States, I say to my friends, “When that happens to you, you talk to me about not apologizing.” But in that swirl I wanted to apologize. I’ve performed in warzones. I’ve performed in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as Kuwait and Uzbekistan, if you really want to know, so it definitely hurt that the veterans turned on me. Let’s face it—everybody turned on me. Yesterday someone sent [me] an email, and it said “Kathy Griffin, you are an American trader.” T-R-A-D-E-R. That’s the Trump fans. Or, by the way, that could have been Trump himself.
It totally could have been.
It could have been Tiffany, who I’m a little obsessed with. The model who’s really a car model, but, let’s go with model. And then Ivanka and Jared, I mean, the fact that they’re called Jivanka … this can’t continue.
It seemed to me like the outrage from liberals was not genuine.
Oh, that’s what hurt the most. I had friends that came at me that day: Debra Messing, Don Cheadle, Jeffrey Wright, and I’m looking at my Twitter feed like “holy shit!” When people say I’m like the Dixie Chicks I always have to correct them. [They] had the full support of the artistic community, they were on the cover of Time magazine, they were on the cover of Entertainment Weekly; they were glorified by the left. Everybody turned on me, so that’s why I’m making my comeback, if you will, and I don’t mind if people call it a comeback, I’ll take it. But to sell out Carnegie Hall in one day is just really gratifying. And honestly, there are parts of this story that are funny. I read one of my death threats on stage—
[laughs]
Thank you for laughing! Because the grammar alone is funny.
When tickets went on sale for this tour, did you just kind of hold your breath?
Oh, absolutely. And let me tell you, none of the men on my team supported it. I had to fight like an animal to get Carnegie because the promoters and stuff said, “You can’t do it,” and I said, “Look, it’s a risk and I’ll do it for $1, I don’t care” and then it freaking sold out in a day. They didn’t want me to play the Kennedy Center and I just kept fighting. I’m going to play the Kennedy Center in September because I thought it would be fun to play DC closer to the midterms.
He’s going to be so mad.
I know.
If he’s still around.
That’s right. Like I said, I’m hoping for at least house arrest. Don’t be fooled, don’t think that President Pence is going to be an improvement. That one’s crooked, too. Have you seen Pence’s chief of staff? You should Google him. I think when you do you’re going to wonder what those two are doing on the weekends.
Oh!
You heard me. You can’t pray the gay away.
What is the balance like between the serious stuff and your usual pop-culture commentary?
My mandate is funny first. I’m saying with this particular tour, there is some meat on the bones and a couple of serious moments. I’m not going to brag, but overseas I did get a standing ovation after every show. I’m very proud.
KATHY GRIFFIN. 6.21 AT BOCH CENTER’S SHUBERT THEATRE, 265 TREMONT ST., BOSTON. NORTH AMERICAN TOUR THROUGH 10.26. KATHYGRIFFIN.NET
Theater critic for TheaterMania & WBUR’s TheArtery | Theater Editor for DigBoston | film and music critic for EDGE Media | Boston Theater Critics Association.
