One thing about comedian Jim Breuer: He’s not a boring interview.
“Anyone who calls themselves news,” Breuer says to a newsman he’s just called for a chat to preview his May 1 performance in Mankato, “is an enemy of society.”
“Well, that’s … that’s me,” the newsman replies, somewhat sheepishly to avoid awkward confrontation but feeling compelled to point out the obvious.
“Yeah, well, you’re doing something,” he says, “but at the end of the day, I’m sure I can look back and whoever you’re working for sold a war or they sold that you have to get vaccinated or they sold violence.”
You may remember Breuer from his 1995-98 stint on “Saturday Night Live,” where his memorable contributions included the Goat Boy character, or for his memorable impressions of Joe Pesci (a skill that earned him work in 2014 as the voice of Pesci on “Family Guy”).
His career post “SNL” included appearances in a variety of sitcoms and films, and his own “The Jim Breuer Show” on MTV, a sketch comedy show that lasted one season.
Throughout his career, however, Breuer has continued to do standup comedy tours, which is what brings him to Mankato next week (with opening act Joe Sib). The tour is called “Survival with Laughter,” a title he says directly addresses the tensely divided and toxic nature of American discourse.
“I named it that because I think we’re going to need a lot of that this year,” Breuer says.
If you’re unfamiliar with Breuer’s work, 10 minutes of YouTube searching will give you a fairly decent idea of where Breuer is coming from. While he quickly challenges the notion his material is “political,” the opening moments of a recent comedy special is some of the most raucous commentary on Joe Biden that you’ll ever see.
Still, he insists his material comes not from a political agenda, but rather something much more important.
“I think a lot of us get lumped into the word ‘political’ when, technically, it’s common sense,” he says. “I don’t lean towards any side. I think it’s all professional wrestling, but I don’t sit there and say Democrats are this or Republicans are that. What we’ve become as a society is everyone has to join a team, or thinks they’re part of a team, to make themselves feel important. And that is very dangerous for one’s own morals.”
He offers an example, one ripped from the headlines.
Imagine you find out a baseball player on your favorite team has been accused of assaulting his wife. He says that, for most people — because that player is on your favorite team — the initial reaction isn’t disgust or outrage but more along the lines of, ‘Well, let’s get all the facts first and hear what he has to say.’
“Because you’re a fan, your morality gets thrown out the window. You wouldn’t even hesitate if it was your mother, your sister, your daughter. If you consider yourself left, right, conservative, liberal — you’d be willing to put up things that you would never do in your lifetime with your morals. Why are you willing to put up with such nonsense, with such confusion? It’s just a disaster of moral thinking.”
Breuer says comedy has been the key to his life for as long as he can remember, calling himself “a street corner kid” who found a way to heal through laughter.
He says he admires, and models his style after, the work of the late Richard Pryor.
“With Richard Pryor, he says and acts it. And he makes everything come alive,” Breuer says. “Everything is a character. The chair is a character, the situation’s a character. He imitates everything. That’s basically what I do.”
Breuer began performing stand-up comedy in high school. By 1989 he says he was fully committed to the craft and dedicated to making a living with it. He signed up for open mic nights and got booked in comedy clubs. He moved from Florida to New York and continued grinding.
Then in the mid ‘90s, his big break came: He auditioned for “Saturday Night Live” and earned a spot on the cast.
He says it was exciting. And frustrating.
“It was everything you can imagine. Competitive. Totally satisfying. I got to rub elbows with the greatest A-listers in the world, music and actors. It was a great moment in time for me. Was it perfect? No, but I don’t have any regrets. Or any ill feelings.”
He says his favorite “SNL” memory wasn’t a particular sketch or the fame he earned. It was the simple conversations he’d had with SNL creator Lorne Michaels.
“Anytime Lorne (Michaels) wanted to personally talk to me and asked me about something, I took that with great pride. ‘He’d ask me ‘What do you think of this person?’” Breuer says. “And honestly, the favorite thing he said to me before it ended was ‘Jim, you’re too nice for this industry.’ And I kind of giggled and laughed. ‘You’ve got a big heart. So thanks. If you need a producer, let me know.’”
The current tour, he says, is going well. Recent comedy specials as well as appearances on “The Joe Rogan Experience” — the most listened-to podcast according to several lists. He says that kind of exposure — combined with his new material and the current state of national affairs — has resulted in more people than ever wanting to hear what he has to say.
But he concedes that, while an appearance on Rogan’s podcast or any of the late-night talk shows might sell tickets, the onus remains on the performer to execute.
He recalls years ago being on Howard Stern’s radio show. After the show, ticket sales would light up, and then the pressure was on to deliver a performance people thought was worthy of the ticket price. Lately, he says, audiences appear to react as though his act was worth the price of admission.
“I think it’s 100% who I’ve become the last couple of years,” he says, “and what I’ve been putting out there.”
As he wraps up his critique of the media, Breuer pauses.
“I’m sorry if, in the beginning, if you took offense. I absolutely don’t mean anything towards you, but I do have issues with news overall. Not with people like yourself; I don’t know your intentions at the end of the day. I’m sure they’re very good. So I didn’t mean any harm,” he says. “But yeah, if you’re gonna ask me about media, I’m always gonna have some sharp to say.”
“No offense taken, Jim,” the newsman says.
“Awesome.”