Family continues to drive comedian Louie Anderson to the stage
Louie Anderson delivered a warning before talking about his upcoming comedy act at the Laguna Playhouse.
His June 12 show will be laced with plenty of F-words.
“You know, family, food, fun, over 50, fat, food and food,” Anderson said in a phone interview from Minnesota. “Father too.”
For the overweight comedian, “father” has been as much a burden at times as the excess pounds. But Anderson has managed to take his abusive upbringing with an alcoholic dad and turn the experience into popular books and funny comedy bits.
“There’s so much humor in a family,” said Anderson, who is the 10th of 11 siblings.
His dad died in 1979.
The two-time Emmy Award winner and New York Times’ best-selling author said he is happy to have secured a date at the Laguna Beach theater after reconnecting with friend and fellow comic Rita Rudner. The two comedians had worked together 20 years ago and reunited last year. Rudner invited Anderson to her Laguna Beach family home and suggested he entertain local audiences.
“I have never played in Orange County, and that’s what intrigued me about coming there,” Anderson said. “It’s a cool gig because it’s an intimate venue as opposed to a big hall. I can look out and see everybody.”
Anderson, who has been performing stand-up for more than 30 years, was named one of Comedy Central’s 100 Greatest Stand-Up Comedians of All Time.
He began his career at a comedy club in his native Minneapolis. His friends dared him to get up onstage, and he hasn’t wanted to step off since.
Anderson’s big break came in 1984 when he appeared on “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” and the host asked him to take a rare second bow. The comedian’s “clean” stories about everyday life and growing up in the Midwest launched his comedy career and paved the way for television and movie work.
After appearing in films such as “Coming to America” opposite Eddie Murphy, Anderson was selected to serve as the initial host of the second revival of game show “Family Feud,” a gig he called “spectacular.”
And when he wasn’t before a camera, he penned three books, including the best-seller “Dear Dad: Letters from an Adult Child” and “The F Word: How to Survive Your Family.”
He won Emmys for his work as executive producer and creator of Fox’s animated series “Life with Louie,” also based on his childhood with a difficult father.
The book to his late father, in a series of letters to the man, revealed his poor and abusive upbringing in East Saint Paul. The memoir touches on Anderson’s personal account of facing his own insecurities and guilt to understand the parent he hadn’t been close to. The final letter ends with “I love you.”
He doesn’t speak so much of the childhood trauma but of the closeness he feels toward family, whom he says he sees eight to 10 times a year. “I spend as much time with them as I can.” he said.
Anderson added, “My family was always thrilled for me. I have so much to be grateful for and I love what I do.” Putting on a show for President Reagan was a shining moment in his career.
Aside from his plans to poke fun at himself and his family at the Laguna Playhouse, Anderson said he will add new material, particularly jokes about the state’s drought.
“The poor kids will grow up saying they didn’t have a lawn. They had AstroTurf,” he said. “I can’t imagine my dad around without being able to cut the grass.”
Anderson gives back to the community whenever he can.
He co-founded H.E.R.O., whose mission is to help reduce homelessness. Instead of just giving away money, Anderson wanted to create an organization that would reach out to those in need those in a personal way. The foundation’s mission is to empower people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness to be self-sufficient. The organization offers a goal-setting training program geared toward employment.
Throughout his career, he’s seen and delivered the funny lines, but one story remains a favorite.
He was rising to fame after his appearance on “The Tonight Show” and was surrounded by celebrities and veteran comics in a party room.
“This guy comes up to me and says to me, ‘Are you Louie Anderson?’ And I said, ‘Yes, I am. Nice to meet you,’ and he says, ‘I don’t want to meet you. I want you to move your car.’
“I think that pretty much sums up show business,” he said.
If You Go
What: Louie Anderson
When: 7:30 p.m. June 12
Where: Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach
Cost: $45
Information: (949) 497-2787 or visit lagunaplayhouse.com