No more 'D-List' for Kathy Griffin
"I woke up one day and realized I was different," she says. "I sell out Madison Square Garden and the Kennedy Center."
Did she feel soiled for having swum in the reality television pool for so long?
"I've been feeling soiled for decades," she said. "you bet."
It's not surprising for a celebrity whose claim to fame is ragging on other celebrities. No one is off limits — not Renee Zellweger, Justin Bieber, Jennifer Aniston or Anderson Cooper. As a result, at various times she's been banned from "The View," "Late Show with David Letterman" and CNN's annual New Year's Eve celebration.
But now, before anyone confuses her permanently with teen moms or celebrity rehabbers, her "D-List" run has come to an end. in her free time, she's producing four Bravo stand-up comedy specials.
"They asked me, 'can you do more specials?' and I said, 'As long as the Duggars keep having more children ("19 Kids and Counting"); as long as Lindsay Lohan moves next door to her ex-girlfriend DJ Samantha Ronson, I've got plenty of fodder.'"
Before Griffin drops by the Wells Fargo Center, where she taped a Bravo comedy show in 2007, she took time out to talk about her mom, Sarah Palin and Kenny Rogers:
Q: What are you up to today?
A: Today I'm with my mother who is a national treasure and the breakout star of "Kathy Griffin My Life on the D-List" and this is a really exciting day, so get ready: My mom who is 90 and enjoys her box wine, she's staying here with me and she just declared that she wants an outing. So I'm taking her with me to the foot doctor, and then I'm going to get a bikini wax.
Q: She's not partaking in this, right?
A: No, but she doesn't know this is her outing. I know those crazy Russian chicks are going to freak her out at the bikini waxing place so I'm gonna take a minute and tell her she's next, but then tell her I'm just kidding.
Q: but with no cameras following you around anymore, who's more upset about the cancellation of the show — you or your mom?
A: My mom is not speaking to me. She's livid and she feels I am trying to crush her as she is a rising star. and I've been trying to tell her, you've gotta know when to fold 'em. I've had conversations with Jerry Seinfeld and George Lopez about how you know when to end the show and why.
Q: and don't forget Kenny Rogers.
A: Kenny Rogers definitely knows. If there's one thing he knows, except when it comes to his dental work, it's when to fold 'em.
Q: Who has better plastic surgery — you or Kenny Rogers?
A: oh, I have way better work than Kenny Rogers. I think he went a little cuckoo, and I've toned mine down. He looks like a guy who is playing Kenny Rogers.
Q: are you sad about hanging it up? I mean is it mutual, or did they just come to you and say, "We've had it"?
A: No, I went to them and said, "you know, I think we've kind of done everything we can do in this genre, because six years for a reality show is kind of a long time." but a lot of restrictions came up over the years that we just couldn't do because of the restrictions of a reality show — meaning you can't always clear a location or a person, you can't obviously take dramatic license because it's reality. So I've been stockpiling all these episode ideas.
Q: What was the biggest one that you were dying to get on the show and your producers said never, no way.
A: Anything where I'd be on a union set or another show. I was just at The People's choice Awards yelling at Johnny Depp, saying we can't understand him, because he was mumbling. Stuff like that we could never film for "D-List" because it's not in our budget. I wouldn't be able to get Johnny Depp or Queen Latifah or Jennifer Aniston to sign the release. but if I did a hybrid type of show, I could cast actors who would be a Johnny Depp type so that the audience would know clearly I was referring to Johnny Depp.
Q: What about new year's resolutions — not for you but for other people, like, say, (homeless man turned celeb of the week) Ted Williams?
A: well, he has to stop getting into altercations in hotels with his daughter. What a short memory he must have.
Q: How about Miley Cyrus — smoke more salvia?
A: Maybe she can get different colored bongs? Maybe she can get one with some stenciling on it.
Q: How about the Palins?
A: People like that are perfect fodder for the show. and by the way, Sarah is taking a page from the Kathy Griffin playbook. She's trying to get into Twitter wars with everybody.
Q: Anything to throw out to fans before the show?
A: well, if you're someone who walks around carrying a bible all day this probably isn't your show.
Q: although you'd probably have fun with them, no?
A: I'd have fun with them, but they probably wouldn't have fun with me. I would say if you want to blow off some steam and you have an open mind and you're not afraid of cursing – because there will be quite a bit of cursing – then come on down.
Bay Area freelancer John Beck writes about entertainment for The Press Democrat. you can reach him at 280-8014, john@sideshowvideo.com and follow on Twitter @becksay.
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