‘Delco Proper’ creator to appear with Tommy Highland in Springfield
SPRINGFIELD » The co-creator of the Comedy Central web series “Delco Proper,” Tommy Pope, returns to Delaware County to showcase his witty repartee on stage at the Red Iron American Pub, Saturday, June 10. Doors will open at 7 p.m. and the show kicks off at 8.
Also featured in the special comedy event will be Tommy Highland, a longtime national comedian, who was a featured actor in the original online pilot of the “Delco Proper” series. Saturday’s event, promoted by Eddie Gallagher and Jessica Dyson, will take place in the Crimson Lounge, which is located above the Pub.
Pope, a Drexel Hill native who’s now living in New York City, was named “Philly’s Phunniest” by Philadelphia’s Helium Comedy Club. He continues to appear at Helium about three times a year, but usually he can be found traveling the national comedy circuit. Pope’s comedy pokes fun at the region. Pope began his career at the Helium Comedy Club, when his brother signed him up for a slot in 2008.
“I was 28, working in advertising, and I’d just left engineering,” says Pope. “I was miserable in every job I took, and I knew I wanted to pursue something creative,” the Monsignor Bonner High School alumnus, Class of 1998, said.
Former Bonner students may not recognize the comedian by his current name. Pope’s birth name, Papa, was already taken by another comedian, which proved problematic for managers, fans and even family members. Even Pope’s own mom once saw a billboard for a show by the other Tommy Papa and mistook it for her son.
“I had to come up with something unique that I felt connected to, identity-wise, and that sounded the same,” he laughed.
Over the years as his comedy career grew, Pope made appearances on Last Comic Standing and Funny or Die. He did a sketch with Steve Martin on “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.”
Recently, Pope accrued countless fans after the debut of “Delco Proper,” a Comedy Central web series, that he co-created with fellow area native, John McKeever, drawing on their experiences growing up in the Philadelphia suburbs.
“No one’s ever done a show about Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs,” explained Pope. “We just wanted to make an affiliation with our hometown— it’s so much more specific, in terms of culture and attitude, than Philadelphia. We thought it would be a perfect opportunity to expose the blue-collar opinions of men and women from the area.”
The genesis for Delco Proper was “The Real Househusbands of Philadelphia,” a multi-part sketch created with his troupe, Bird Text. In addition to spotlighting the signature Delco accent, the sketch highlights area residents’ generalized traits, including their obsession with sports teams and musicians.
Audiences can expect just that sort of humor — and a dose of the unforeseeable — at Pope’s Springfield show, the comedian promised.
“I’m always unpredictable, both purposely and accidentally,” he said. “I like to talk to the crowd, tell some jokes, do some weird things. Every show should be different.”
Comedian Tommy Highland grew up in Northern California, moving to the Philly area in 2005 to marry his wife. Finding east coast life funny, he said, prompted him to start doing comedy in 2008.
“I am a lifelong study in all things handy and blue collar,” he said in describing himself. “I am a painin-the-#@& husband and the goofy father of two cute daughters, with hands that are strong like a man but a heart that is soft like a girl.”
Highland has opened and featured for many national headliners. He is a two time finalist in “Philly’s Phunniest Person Contest.”
Highland also had a role in Comedy Central’s “Delco Proper,” where he played the father of the deceased son and gave a speech at the funeral.
Pope said he is looking forward to working with Highland again when they both appear at the Red Iron Saturday night.
“Tommy Highland is a great actor and he really is a super funny guy,” Pope shared.
Saturday’s comedy night will also feature special guest Brian Rule, who will be performing as well.
Comedy Central initially debuted “Delco Proper” as a limited-run digital series with a single episode in 2015.
“We crushed them on the web and on Facebook with our shares and views,” Pope said unmodestly and excitedly.
Created by and starring Pope, McKeever and Tim Butterly, “Delco Proper” follows a group of friends who have worked together in the same Delco lumberyard for much of their lives. Three more episodes, each running about six minutes, were released on the web in February 2016.
Currently, Pope and McKeever and the “Delco Proper”
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