The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Don’t be shocked if you bump into Jim Gaffigan at Panini’s
Popular funnyman can be seen lots of places — possibly including Panini’s
Grammy-nominated comedian, actor, writer, producer, two-time New York Times best-selling author and top-touring performer Jim Gaffigan is one busy guy. ¶ In addition to releasing his latest special, “Cinco,” earlier this year, Gaffigan has been showing off his acting chops. After wrapping up two seasons of his critically acclaimed semi-fictitious television show “The Jim Gaffigan Show,” he makes an appearance in major feature film “Chappaquiddick,” which is due out in 2018. ¶ Gaffigan also recently wrapped production as the leading man in the comedy “You Can Choose Your Family” and in the drama “Them That Follow.” ¶Now Gaffigan has returned to his first love, stand-up comedy, with the “Noble Ape Tour” coming to Northeast Ohio for a show Dec. 1 at the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University.
The News-Herald talked to Gaffigan about late-night eating, dramatic acting and poisonous snakes.
QFans are excited about your return to Northeast Ohio. What are your memories of the area?
AYou know, I just spent three weeks in Youngstown filming “Them That Follow.” Youngstown isn’t Cleveland, but there is something about Cleveland. I come from a Rust Belt area in the country, so it feels familiar. I remember just after I asked my wife to marry me 12 or 13 years ago I promptly brought her to the Cleveland Improv to do a New Year’s Eve show. So Cleveland is about romance to me. And I always associate Cleveland with Panini’s. That’s kind of what I think of, the mistakes of eating late at night.
QWill you be eating an oversized sandwich when you’re here?
A: You know, I don’t really go out and drink like I used to, so I don’t know. You can’t be in your right mind when you’re eating one of those things. Also, it doesn’t travel well. It’s like, “Someone made this three hours ago, I guess I’ll eat it now.” You kind of have to eat it immediately.
QJust saying, the Wolstein Center is less than a mile away from a Panini’s.
A: There you go. I don’t know. When it comes to food, I don’t have the best judgement, so I’ll probably be having one after the show, yeah.
QSpeaking of not having the best judgement, literally once a week I think of your old joke, “Did I eat at Wendy’s twice yesterday?”
AOh, thanks. That’s true, right? There are plenty of times when my wife will say, “You realize you had a meal like an hour ago.” I’m like, “All right, but I like food, and we’re walking by it now.”
QCongratulations on your movie projects, which seem to be mostly in the dramatic vein. Was that a conscious choice to seek out those roles?
ALook, this is the perception industry, so you do what is presented to you. Being known as a comedian, people didn’t really consider offering me dramatic roles. I’ve gotten lucky as of late that kind of perception changed. I love acting. It’s just the process of getting acting jobs. Auditioning is kind of like stripping, except for you don’t get a dollar. Also, 10 years ago I was a guy that did specials on Comedy Central. I don’t think when they were looking for someone to be in some docudrama they were looking at me. Maybe I’ve just kind of proven I can act over that period. I’m not sure.
QIn terms of material, what can we expect from your current show?
AMy wife had this brain tumor, so that’s one of the things I’ve been really kind of talking a lot about and finding humor in that. Obviously not everyone has had to deal with a brain tumor, but we all eventually have this interaction with hospitals and the medical community. And I’ve been focusing on some of my travels and mundane experiences that sound rather bland if I listed them, but I think are really funny.
QFinally, “Them That Follow” is about a small Appalachian community where believers handle poisonous snakes. Did you get bit while filming?
AI didn’t get bit, but I’ve handled snakes before. And it’s rigged. I have kids, so I’ve been to a petting zoo. So I was like, “OK, I’ve done this before.”