Steven Wright and his trademark brand of deadpan comedy was bringing the house down at Symphony Hall, and I couldn’t stop laughing. At the time the frizzy headed Wright was one of the hottest comics on the planet.
Fast forward to 2013 and Wright retains the same M.O. His blank expression hasn’t changed in the past 26 years, but if anything, his surreal observational humor has just gotten smarter. In fact it’s probably become as warped as Dali’s melting clocks.
His recent show at Atlanta’s Variety Playhouse proved Wright still has, well, the right stuff. For me, the particular occasion was soaked in irony. I had only seen Wright live once in my life, and I was 17 at the time. My second show was the Variety Playhouse gig, and this time I had my own 17-year-old son in tow.
Wiping the tears away from our eyes after nearly two hours of non-stop laughter, my son, Max, and I headed to meet Wright. I had interviewed the comedian for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and we got on so well that he invited me backstage.
Meeting Wright in person was further proof that his real-life persona isn’t too far from the on-stage character. Although he does in fact manage to smile, he’s still predominately monotone and subdued.
But that soon changed.
Wright was chatting with us about the venue when Max chimed in.
“I’ve actually performed here before,” Max said.
When Wright asked about his performance, Max, who happens to have dwarfism, explained that he has done shows at the Variety Playhouse with Big Mike Geier and performed as an elf alongside Santa Claus.
I told Wright all about the local phenomenon that is Big Mike.
“Is he nice?” Wright asked Max.
“Who?” Max said without missing a beat. “Big Mike or Santa?”
Wright’s stoic face lit up and he burst into laughter.
“You got me,” he told Max.
Nearly 30 years later and my face is still hurting from the laughter caused by Steven Wright. Interestingly enough, my own son’s face now aches for the same reason. And thanks to Max, Steven Wright’s laughing, too.
Here's a link to my interview:
You can listen to my radio show, which features more of the conversation with Wright:
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