The has been pilloried so many times by critics and comedy nerds it’s become a badge of honor for certain folks to identify with it.
Brilliantly honing in on an underserved market, the original 2000 tour united stand-ups , , and for a night of redneck-loving, southern culture-leaning jokes.
“The Original Kings of Comedy tour (which featured African-American comics) was coming to Atlanta and there was an article in the paper saying it was a show for ‘the urban, hip audience,’ ” said Foxworthy, on the phone last week from his home in Atlanta.
“I remember calling Bill Engvall and saying, ‘Man, that leaves a lot of people out. A lot of people aren’t urban or hip.’ And he said, ‘What would you call it?’ And I said, ‘The Blue Collar Tour. For all those other people.’ “
Those other people have made Foxworthy one of the richest entertainers in the world, with a reported net worth of $100 million. He’s also the top-selling comedy recording artist of all time, with more than 13 million albums sold, and the author of more than a dozen books — many themed around his “You Might Be a Redneck If…” one-liners.
But even as Foxworthy’s brand remains strong, with licensed hunting and fishing products, a and, at one point, , he’s still eager to write new jokes and climb on stage. This fall, he’ll embark on a series of shows with Larry the Cable in a quasi-Blue Collar Comedy reunion.
And on Sept. 12, he’ll play a benefit for the at the Colorado Convention Center’s Bellco Theatre.
“If I don’t work for a couple of weeks my wife will go, ‘You need to get on stage somewhere,’ ” Foxworthy said. “It’s like looking at Seinfeld or : they’ve got all the money they would ever need, but there’s a part of you that just craves it.”
Foxworthy had an especially strong craving while recuperating from neck surgery last year. The 57-year-old wrote new material that continued to step away from his famous redneck jokes, but still hammered away at the differences between men and women.
“I keep a file of things I see in the paper, and there was an article about teaching women how to pack for a 10-day trip in a carry-on suitcase. It’s one of those beautiful little things that’s timeless,” Foxworthy said with a chuckle. “Whether you’re talking to a guy that’s 70 or a guy that’s 20, there’s no way either one of them have a woman that can pack for 10 days in a carry-on. What woman are we talking about? Barbie? Hell, my wife can’t pack for a nudist colony for 10 days.”
That riff grew into a 10-minute bit in Foxworthy’s act, which avoids profanity, overt political statements (although he has made a few recently) and current events for durable subjects that play well to broad audiences.
Still, the longtime host of the quiz-game show “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” frets about being funny. The veteran of 35 “Tonight Show” appearances, eight full-length specials and multiple national tours only considers himself as good as his last few sets — a common malady among stand-ups, in which audience approval is the only yardstick of success.
“It’s easy to fall back on stuff that always gets laughs,” Foxworthy said of his set-closing redneck material. “But I didn’t want to do that. After (the surgery) I went back to the old clubs again with the notecards, and golly, but the audience is always right.
“I was interviewing Rita Rudner the other week and she said, ‘It’s not like audience got together before show and said we’re not going to laugh at that mother joke.’ This is the only job you can do for 30 years and still not know what’s going to work until you do it.”
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642, jwenzel@denverpost.com or twitter.com/johnwenzel
JEFF FOXWORTHY Stand-up comedy from the Blue Collar Comedy kingpin. 8 p.m. Sept. 12 at Bellco Theatre in the Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th St. $45-$65, 800-745-3000 or .
