As any comedian will tell you, every late-night TV appearance and media mention represents thousands of hours of toil, often playing to small, hostile crowds in dank bars and strip-mall clubs.
Sitcom deals? National tours? Right. Most working comedians are lucky to get steady gigs, let alone acclaim.
Still, every once in a while the talent and crowd-appeal align to skyrocket one comedian past the rest, capturing imaginations by subverting and stretching them like taffy.
“It’s funny what funny is, because everyone’s style is so different,” said Denver-based comedian Josh Blue. “But if you don’t put forth the effort, you’re not going to get anything back.”
As someone barely in the minor leagues a few years ago, Blue appreciates how it feels to be at the top of his game. Literally.
The winner of last year’s “Last Comic Standing” on NBC is also a globe-trotting soccer player and successful visual artist. His homecoming shows at Red Rocks on Monday and the Paramount Theatre on July 13 are the culmination of years of work, but the last two have seen his star rise exponentially.
Thanks to his “Last Comic” win, which saw Blue soundly trounce 11 other contestants, he’s one of the country’s hottest young comics, gathering widespread accolades and regularly selling out shows.
“My goal was always to sell out theaters,” Blue admitted. “When it happens you never expect it to be like it is, but you know it feels right.”
There’s one thing people immediately notice about the 28-year-old Blue, and that is his cerebral palsy. It causes his right arm to curl unnaturally and his speech to slightly slur. Much of his act revolves around his disability, and he immediately uses it to disarm audiences.
“I had a crazy day today, man,” he said on one “Last Comic” episode. “I went to hail a taxi and I caught a pigeon. (pause) I didn’t even know I had it until I was in the cab. I was like, ‘Oh no, I’m turning into a magician.’ (pause) I hate magicians!”
Blue began using comedy as a child in order defuse awkwardness. Born in the west-central African republic of Cameroon and raised in St. Paul, Minn., he endured his share of ridicule. Other kids would mock him, but he’d serve it right back.
The idea to try stand-up popped into his head as a sophomore at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash., a school that also birthed “Simpsons” creator Matt Groening and comic-strip artist Lynda Barry. Blue was studying theater, creative writing and visual arts but one night decided to try an open-mic event at the campus housing center.
Although he began drawing exponentially more people (25 one week, 75 the next), he walked away from stand-up until a senior-year theater project rekindled his interest.
That lasted another few months as he played local coffeehouses and clubs, but he quit again when he graduated and moved to Denver, working as an Easter Seals counselor and with developmentally disabled adults.
Lighting the fuse
After six months Blue felt a burning need to return to stand-up. It was slow at first – winning $25 here and there at comedy competitions, opening for touring comedians.
“It’s a hard road to hoe, doing one-nighters,” he said. “I remember doing VFWs in Madison, Wisconsin. Those were pretty rough shows. Those guys don’t laugh at (expletive). I’m like, ‘I’ve got cerebral palsy,’ and they’re like, ‘Yeah? My leg’s blown off.”‘
Eventually Blue took a stab at open-mic nights at Comedy Works – the best possible thing he could have done. Comedy Works owner Wende Curtis, a nationally respected player on the scene, took a liking to Blue. A buzz developed about his confident stage presence and self-
deprecating jokes.
“Josh walked into my office in 2003 with a videotape and said, ‘I just wanted to make sure you’re aware of who I am,”‘ said Mike Raftery, director of operations for Comedy Works Entertainment. “He only had 20 minutes of material, but I kept a close eye on him until he’d developed to the point where he could do a whole set.”
Raftery booked Blue at shows around the state, including corporate events and colleges, where he regularly killed. In 2004, Blue started headlining Comedy Works. That same year he earned $10,000 at the Las Vegas Comedy Festival as Grand Prize Winner of the Royal Flush Comedy Competition.
The next year he earned rave reviews and more credibility on the college-tour circuit. In 2006 he toured 3,000-seat clubs with Carlos Mencia, host of Comedy Central’s wildly popular “Mind of Mencia.” He also made appearances on that show, giving him a national TV profile. He played the prestigious U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, one of the few Denver comics ever to make it there.
Then “Last Comic Standing” happened.
Capturing audiences
Blue riveted audiences on the fourth season of the NBC reality series, usually garnering standing ovations after each brief set. The show also portrayed his personal life, which included traveling to Athens in 2004 as part of the U.S. Paralympics soccer team.
“I don’t think there’s any limit to Josh’s upside in this business because any time he’s put on camera he just shines,” said Raftery, his manager. “I can’t think of a better show for Josh to have been a part of because not only did it showcase his stand-up, but his personality.”
The offers and auditions began pouring in after Blue’s win. He’s since been touring to mostly sold-out crowds across North America. He recently performed as the first-ever stand-up on the “Ellen DeGenres Show” and won Best Reality TV Guest of the Year on “Live with Regis and Kelly,” beating out guests from “American Idol” and “Survivor.”
He is discussing a half-hour special with Comedy Central and has shows booked as far out as April 2008.
“It’s weird to see how people come out of the woodwork now,” Blue said. “People are writing me from high school saying, ‘Remember that time when we passed in the hallway?’ But they never gave me the time of day. I have more relatives than I knew. I’m like, ‘Where are my Chrismas presents from the last 28 years?”‘
More than disability
Addressing and shattering stereotypes is one of Blue’s biggest strengths, but not all of his jokes concern his cerebral palsy.
“I just heard about a guy in Florida who got attacked by an alligator (while) trying to save his girlfriend’s dog,” he said on “Last Comic.” “I wouldn’t even wrestle an alligator to save my girlfriend. That’s a dinosaur. Teeth beat boobs every time.”
His passion for soccer and visual arts keep him constantly busy. In addition to showing and selling paintings, Blue splits his time between stand-up and the U.S. Paralympic soccer team.
“I can’t think of two more different avenues to go down,” he said. “One person stays up late and tells jokes in a bar, and the other person has to get up at 6 in the morning and jog.”
Blue will travel to the ParaPan Games in August and the world championships in November, both in Brazil. He also has visited Argentina and Chile as part of the U.S. Paralympic soccer team.
“It’s a tricky balance with all the things he has going on, and as important as all of them are to him,” said Raftery.
If Blue had to choose, though, he would pick comedy.
“I’m a much better comedian than I am a soccer player,” he said. “I reach more people, and it’s ultimately easier on the body. Although maybe not the liver.”
Staff writer John Wenzel can be reached at 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com.
| Josh Blue
STAND-UP COMEDY|Paramount Theatre, 1631 Glenarm Place; 7 p.m., Friday; also Monday at Red Rocks for Film on the Rocks ($10, TicketsWest)|$27.50|
