Sinbad first sprang into the spotlight as part of the 1980s comedy boom, a gifted physical performer with a loose, charismatic style and a restless stage presence that lent itself to the small screen.
After a career high in ’90s sitcoms and movies like “Houseguest” and “Jingle All the Way,” he took a lower profile, although the 52-year-old Michigan native (a.k.a. David Adkins) has remained busy producing, touring comedy clubs and lending voice work to various projects.
We chatted with Sinbad in advance of his Comedy Works shows tonight through Sunday about the critical flak he’s endured, his Denver past and the curse of the clean comic.
Q: A lot of children of the ’80s remember you from the successful “Cosby Show” spin-off “A Different World.” As groundbreaking as it was, why do you think it doesn’t get mentioned much these days?
A: I don’t think Hollywood respected it because they had a problem with “Cosby.” That show kicked Hollywood in the butt and broke every rule. It was supposed to die. “The Simp- sons” was supposed to take it out. So when Bill put (“A Different World”) together and it was so successful, Hollywood got an attitude with it. But it still stands and holds its own. It was a good show. It brought America into black colleges.
Q: You started doing comedy in the 1970s but didn’t get serious until the early ’80s. What prompted that?
A: I was just fooling around. I thought I was going to be a drummer at the time, but I just did it because people said, “Hey, try it.” There was no HBO or cable back then, so to have a career in comedy was something that was magical. I came from the Midwest, and I didn’t know how that all worked.
Q: I understand you also attended the University of Denver from 1974 to 1978.
A: I had an uncle that lived out there so I came out to visit the Air Force Academy. I turned down basketball scholarships to come out to Colorado, but when I tried out for the (Air Force) team they turned me down.
Q: But you ended up getting a scholarship to DU and lettering two years in a row for their team, right?
A: Yeah, I had a good time, man. I used to hang out in the black community out there, around 35th and Holly. There was another side to Denver in the ’70s. It was crazy, and I really came to enjoy it.
Q: You’ve also taken a lot of heat from critics and comedy fans for your lack of “edgy” material. Why do you think that is?
A: I can’t figure out why people think I am what I am. First of all, people always think that what they see on TV is really that person. For me, when I started being a clean comic, I had no idea as to the importance it would have. People thought you’d be weak and you wouldn’t have a point of view. That’s not really what I am.
Q:How would you describe your stand-up?
A: I never had a problem with the edge. If you haven’t seen my stand-up set you don’t really know me. Stand- up is like jazz. It’s free-flowing. I think sometimes people are freaked out when they see that kind of (comedy). I hold nothing sacred and think it all needs to be talked about. I’m a lot more militant than people think.
Q: What’s been keeping you busy lately?
A: I’m putting some new TV shows and movies together. My daughter’s 23 and a singer, and she has an album coming out. She acts, and my son is a recording engineer and filmmaker, so I’m helping them take it to the next level and showing them how to own their own product.
Q: Did you encourage them to get into entertainment?
A: Of course I had some influence on them, but they have their own interpretation of it, and it’s great. My daughter wants to move to New York soon, and I said, “Only for a year!”
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com
Sinbad
Stand-up comedy. Comedy Works South at the Landmark, 5345 Landmark Place, Greenwood Village. Today through Sunday. Various times. $20-$30. 720-274-6800 or
