Mind behind 'Fashion Police' bringing lightning wit to Boystown
Thu. July 24, 2014 9:18 AM by Andy Ambrosius
tony tripoli
photo credit // tonytripoli.com
The Divine Decadence Series with Tony Tripoli, Friday, July 25
Chicago, IL -
"I've never done stand-up in Chicago before, but I hear Boystown is just great. I usually perform in theaters that do all drag, and I'm usually the only person on stage that doesn't have to duct tape my penis back. I mean, I still do, but I don't have to," laughed Tony Tripoli, joking about his upcoming performance on North Halsted.
Now the head writer on Fashion Police on E! with Joan Rivers, Tripoli is headed to Boystown for the first time to perform his stand-up show on Friday at 7 and 9 p.m. at Circuit Nightclub, 3641 N. Halsted St. It's all a part of The Divine Decadence Series, a four-show extravaganza hosted by The Cabaret Project's Amy and Freddy, and featuring upcoming shows with the likes of Miss Coco Peru and Miss Conception.
Besides dishing up insider secrets about Joan Rivers on Fashion Police and his time on My Life on the D List as Kathy Griffin's main gay, Friday's shows will be brimming with Tripoli's razor-sharp wit – even for straight comedy lovers.
"I have opinions on everything, regardless of whether I have any information whatsoever on the topic," said Tripoli. "I'm so grateful that I discovered standup comedy because literally my job is to go on stage and complain for an hour and they give me a check. And I love it when people bring their straight friends. I don't mind performing for straight people. I can talk slower for them."
But Tripoli's road to comedy came after growing up in in Phoenix, Arizona where he says being picked on by peers drove him to pursue a career in entertainment. Tripoli spent nearly his entire life traveling the world as a professional singer before moving to comedy, albeit some gigs were better than others.
"I grew up as the girliest little boy in the history of Arizona," laughed Tripoli. "I was just teased mercilessly and had a really rotten childhood because of it. But while I was picked on at school, after school I went and did shows with adults who really loved and recognized me. I learned very quickly that what I needed to do for approval was just to be funny.
"It really is funny how your path in life is determined very early," he continued. "I didn't even start doing standup until I was 36. I made my living as a singer until I was 31, performing at every theme park and cruise ship you can possibly think of. I even spent an entire summer singing for the American Plumbers Association. Yeah. So the next time you look at a prostitute working a street corner, remember they have so much more dignity than I did standing up on stage singing with a dozen toilets and bidets."
After doing standup for free around Los Angeles, executive producers of E!'s hit show The Soup contacted Tripoli to write for a new show they were developing called The Dish. While on staff at the E! Network, Tripoli was contacted by producers of Fashion Police saying Joan Rivers was developing the show but didn't like the script.
She wanted three funny gay guys to help revive it.
"The next day I found myself at Melissa [Rivers'] house in the dining room, sitting at the table with Joan, and we got on immediately," Tripoli said. "She changed my life. She pulled me aside after and said, 'You're the head writer of this show,' and she meant it. She made it happen. Now the show has been on for nearly four years and almost 200 episodes."
The comedy dynamo behind all the wisecracks – who also opens for Rivers' stand-up tour – will be showing Chicago his true colors on Friday at 7 and 9 p.m. Tickets are available at www.cabaretproject.org.
Now the head writer on Fashion Police on E! with Joan Rivers, Tripoli is headed to Boystown for the first time to perform his stand-up show on Friday at 7 and 9 p.m. at Circuit Nightclub, 3641 N. Halsted St. It's all a part of The Divine Decadence Series, a four-show extravaganza hosted by The Cabaret Project's Amy and Freddy, and featuring upcoming shows with the likes of Miss Coco Peru and Miss Conception.
Besides dishing up insider secrets about Joan Rivers on Fashion Police and his time on My Life on the D List as Kathy Griffin's main gay, Friday's shows will be brimming with Tripoli's razor-sharp wit – even for straight comedy lovers.
"I have opinions on everything, regardless of whether I have any information whatsoever on the topic," said Tripoli. "I'm so grateful that I discovered standup comedy because literally my job is to go on stage and complain for an hour and they give me a check. And I love it when people bring their straight friends. I don't mind performing for straight people. I can talk slower for them."
But Tripoli's road to comedy came after growing up in in Phoenix, Arizona where he says being picked on by peers drove him to pursue a career in entertainment. Tripoli spent nearly his entire life traveling the world as a professional singer before moving to comedy, albeit some gigs were better than others.
"I grew up as the girliest little boy in the history of Arizona," laughed Tripoli. "I was just teased mercilessly and had a really rotten childhood because of it. But while I was picked on at school, after school I went and did shows with adults who really loved and recognized me. I learned very quickly that what I needed to do for approval was just to be funny.
"It really is funny how your path in life is determined very early," he continued. "I didn't even start doing standup until I was 36. I made my living as a singer until I was 31, performing at every theme park and cruise ship you can possibly think of. I even spent an entire summer singing for the American Plumbers Association. Yeah. So the next time you look at a prostitute working a street corner, remember they have so much more dignity than I did standing up on stage singing with a dozen toilets and bidets."
After doing standup for free around Los Angeles, executive producers of E!'s hit show The Soup contacted Tripoli to write for a new show they were developing called The Dish. While on staff at the E! Network, Tripoli was contacted by producers of Fashion Police saying Joan Rivers was developing the show but didn't like the script.
She wanted three funny gay guys to help revive it.
"The next day I found myself at Melissa [Rivers'] house in the dining room, sitting at the table with Joan, and we got on immediately," Tripoli said. "She changed my life. She pulled me aside after and said, 'You're the head writer of this show,' and she meant it. She made it happen. Now the show has been on for nearly four years and almost 200 episodes."
The comedy dynamo behind all the wisecracks – who also opens for Rivers' stand-up tour – will be showing Chicago his true colors on Friday at 7 and 9 p.m. Tickets are available at www.cabaretproject.org.