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BACK ISSUES INTERVIEWS Stand-Up Comedians Jim Norton Robert Kelly Donnell Rawlings Brad Stine Tammy Pescatelli Leighann Lord George Sarris Nick DiPaolo Russ Meneve Shang and more By Tasha A. Harris, NYC Comedy Journalist STAGE TIME The Magazine That Stands Up For Comedy |
The Emancipation of ROBERT KELLY Find out how the Tourgasm star's new outlook on life boosted his comedy career, how you can be happy right now and the fastest way to build a loyal fan base. By Tasha A. Harris, Editor-in-Chief |
My way of joking is to tell the truth. That's the funniest joke in the world. - Muhammad Ali
Robert Kelly looks cool and relaxed even in the
sweltering heat. He is dressed in a T-shirt, blue jeans and sporting dark oversized shades, his cell phone is glued to his ear as he finalizes the details of a lucrative comedy gig without breaking a sweat. The cutting-edge comedian is basking in the success of the HBO's Dane Cook's Tourgasm, a documentary starring Dane Cook, who invited three comic buddies -- Kelly, Gary Gulman and Jay Davis to join him on the road to perform at 20 colleges in 30 days.
sweltering heat. He is dressed in a T-shirt, blue jeans and sporting dark oversized shades, his cell phone is glued to his ear as he finalizes the details of a lucrative comedy gig without breaking a sweat. The cutting-edge comedian is basking in the success of the HBO's Dane Cook's Tourgasm, a documentary starring Dane Cook, who invited three comic buddies -- Kelly, Gary Gulman and Jay Davis to join him on the road to perform at 20 colleges in 30 days.
The popularity of the series prompted Kelly, Gulman and Davis to launch a national tour this past summer. Life is good for Kelly, though it was just four years ago when he made the critical decision to leave Los Angeles for the Big Apple to revitalize his career. During those years of growth, Kelly trained like a world champion boxer in the making, sharpening his act at the Comedy Cellar and updating his resume with TV appearances on Last Call with Carson Daly, Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and The Job. And along the way, he also found time for self-examination through therapy, which led to his renewed commitment to becoming a better comedian.
| Photos: LaMott Jackson |
How did you get started in comedy?
(Laughs)
I have to ask.
I know. (Laughs)
I read your answer.
Really, what did it say?
You were raped by a rodeo clown.
Well, that’s not true. I don’t like people emailing me, relating to me like I’m some
inspiration of hope because they were touched by a clown at a circus too. That never
happened. I started in college. I was at a community college in Boston getting my degree
in Fine Arts so I could transfer and get a bachelors to be a teacher, and I did an acting class
with a couple of cool dudes and we were all idiots like the center of attention drama mamas.
They had this talent show and we had no talent except for our personalities, so it’s like,
“Let’s do improv.” Improv is the perfect thing for someone who has no skills but a lot of
chutzpah – to go in and do an improv thing and be funny. That’s what we did and we
actually won the talent show.
It was the first skit we did. I knew where the laughs were supposed to go. I think we just
had so much fun being idiots and writing stupid things and making ourselves laugh that we
didn’t know if it was going to work.
(Laughs)
I have to ask.
I know. (Laughs)
I read your answer.
Really, what did it say?
You were raped by a rodeo clown.
Well, that’s not true. I don’t like people emailing me, relating to me like I’m some
inspiration of hope because they were touched by a clown at a circus too. That never
happened. I started in college. I was at a community college in Boston getting my degree
in Fine Arts so I could transfer and get a bachelors to be a teacher, and I did an acting class
with a couple of cool dudes and we were all idiots like the center of attention drama mamas.
They had this talent show and we had no talent except for our personalities, so it’s like,
“Let’s do improv.” Improv is the perfect thing for someone who has no skills but a lot of
chutzpah – to go in and do an improv thing and be funny. That’s what we did and we
actually won the talent show.
It was the first skit we did. I knew where the laughs were supposed to go. I think we just
had so much fun being idiots and writing stupid things and making ourselves laugh that we
didn’t know if it was going to work.
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