HE LETS IT FLY But Burr can't let it go.
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July 29, 9:40 am ET: Acclaimed standup comedian Bill Burr is running late for our scheduled half-hour phone interview, where we plan on talking up his upcoming appearance in Newport, along with any other topic lobbed at the red-headed, "shockingly Caucasian" pride of nearby Canton, Massachusetts. He filmed his latest Letterman appearance the night before and remains on fire following a call-in appearance to a DC-area morning show seeking out his spirited, shit-talking analysis.
"Sorry I'm late, man," Burr says before his recognizable elevated delivery kicks in, "but I'll stay on the phone with you all day long, I got 1700 tickets to sell in Newport! Let's go!"
As far as a background Q&A session or clearing up odd Wikipedia entries (formerly a hygienist? Still scared of the ocean because of the movie Jaws?), Burr wants no part of it, countering by breaking my balls with continuity like a pro. I still have no idea whether or not he's serious about multiple references to scuba diving ("Some guys get their pilot's license, I like to scuba dive, I'm tellin' you, I go to Cozumel every year, big barracudas and all sorts of shit. I'm gonna go snorkeling off Nantucket next week"). But lob a topic and off he goes. On Mel Gibson: "Yeah, Mel, like she was never after your money, she just wanted your gray pubes . . . Mel Gibson is a raging alcoholic with 58 children, and he left his wife for a little golddigging whore!" I asked if he remains loyal to New England sports since moving to LA, which resulted in Burr wildly (and accurately) recalling stats from the NBA Finals: "Sheed brings it on himself, but those calls were total bullshit!" He does break character when sincerely acknowledging his big break during the second season of Chappelle's Show in 2004. Do yourself a favor and find the Law & Order spoof, with Burr casually nailing the line, "And then she put her titties in my hand, your honor."
"Chappelle's Show was so early in my career and I was just really fortunate to get that opportunity," he said. "It was an incredible experience."
Burr reports a TV pilot is in the works alongside comedian Kevin Hart and Kids In the Hall alum Bruce McCullough, and he continues to co-host the Sirius | XM Radio show "Uninformed" with Joe DeRosa. A new one-hour special, Bill Burr: Let It Go, will debut on Comedy Central on September 18 at 11 pm (previous specials, Why Do I Do This? and Emotionally Unavailable, are at BillBurr.com). And for those who caught his act at the Comedy Connection last summer, Burr reports he has a full hour of new material for the upcoming Newport gig.
For the uninitiated, Burr likens himself to "that guy in the bar alone in the corner, yelling about this and that, with absolutely no factual evidence to back anything up," he said. "First they believe it, then when they realize you're full of shit they just sit back and laugh with you."
