Don’t miss Mario Cantone’s one-man Broadway hit Laugh Whore, airing on Showtime Saturday, May 28 at 9:00 p.m. EST.
Actor and comedian Mario Cantone, from Sex and the City fame, is the latest in a distinguished line of entertainers who, in their own individual way, dare to push things to the edge.
The multitalented actor stars in Showtime’s Laugh Whore, his critically acclaimed one-man Broadway show captured on film. It’s two hours of biting commentary on New York cab drivers, the gay subtext in “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” and growing up in an Italian-American home. He also delivers dead-on impersonations of such music legends as Judy, Liza, Tina, and Cher, and several show-stopping original songs highlight Cantone‘s musical range.
Here are some other notables:
The Theatrics
Andy Kaufman: The late Kaufman‘s inspired lunacy pushed the envelope of comedy way beyond line that had separated reality from imagination. His performance art sparked a nervous laughter from audiences who were never quite sure where the character ended and Andy began. Kaufman‘s outrageous antics included sleeping through his entire act on stage and reading from The Great Gatsby until every last audience member got up and left. He made a name for himself with his numerous Saturday Night Live appearances as well as his lovable Latka on TV’s Taxi. But nothing provoked more spectator ire than his misogynistic wrestler, arguably the highest expression of his unique brand of absurd theater. When Kaufman was stricken with cancer, bald and with tubes hanging off of him, people just assumed it was another one of his acts. Unfortunately, it was not and his life was cut tragically short in 1984.
Whoopi Goldberg: Known for her outstanding array of movie roles, Whoopi actually started out as a versatile stand-up comedienne and performance artist. Her eponymous 1984 Broadway show of character sketches started her on a path to a long-lasting career in Hollywood. She starred in the controversial Steven Spielberg movie, The Color Purple prior to her Oscar-winning performance in the 1990 film, Ghost. Her trademark dreadlocks, gravelly voice and blunt, hip, yet compassionate style made her an unconventional star. Through her career highs and lows, she remains true to herself.
What’s up next: Whoopi has been taking it easy lately. Her last movie, Racing Stripes, used only her voice, as she played a motherly goat on a Kentucky horse farm.
John Leguizamo: Versatile writer-performer Leguizamo won acclaim early on in his career for his satirical one-man show, Mambo Mouth, in which he created a panorama of Latino characters including Agamemnon, a macho public-access talk-show host; a transvestite; a 13-year old homeboy called The Sperminator; and a wanna-be Japanese crossover king. He has been in such movies as, Brian De Palma‘s Casualties of War, Baz Luhrmann‘s William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, in which he played gangster Tybalt Capulet, and most recently, Assault on Precinct 13. He returned to his theater roots in 1997 starring in the one-man show Freak: A Semi-Demi-Quasi-Autobiographical Comedy. Featuring 39 separate characters, Freak opened on Broadway to much critical praise, earning him two Tony nominations.
What’s up next? Leguizamo heads back to the big screen in George Romero’s Land of the Dead, opening June 24. He will also lend his vocal talents once again as Sid, the sloth, in Ice Age 2.
The Stand-Ups
George Carlin: Carlin began his career as a relatively “straight” stand-up comic. But this veteran performer evolved from a suit-clad, clean-cut social observer to a shaggy counter-cultural commentator. Carlin made his first TV appearance in 1965 as a guest on The Merv Griffin Show, but he achieved fame and influence only after letting his hair and beard grow in the mid-60s, while moving his act to folk clubs and coffee houses frequented by the young and the restless. Carlin has recorded over 15 albums including the Grammy-winning FM & AM, Class Clown, and Occupation: Foole. He’s also made some memorable on-screen turns in films such as Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Dogma and Jersey Girl.
What’s up next? Carlin will also join the voice-over club, taking part in Happily N’Ever After, an animated compilation of Grimm fairy tales.
Chris Rock: The vibrant comedian, actor and writer, whose stand-up material has often dared to take on the establishment, Rock became the favored comic de jour after distinguishing himself on NBC’s Saturday Night Live from 1990-93. On the show, he lampooned black leaders, impersonated figures like Michael Jackson and created comic characters like the militant talk show host Nat X and the rapper I’m Chillin’. Following Saturday Night Live, Rock headlined two HBO specials and launched his own smash hit talk show on the cabler, The Chris Rock Show, in 1997. Rock‘s respect in the industry and reputation for bringing articulate edginess and unpredictability to his fiery, high-energy live performances earned him one of Hollywood’s most coveted–and risky–gigs in 2005 when he was tapped to host the 77th Annual Academy Awards. He pulled it off without a hitch.
What’s up next: Rock will star with buddy Adam Sandler in the remake The Longest Yard, as well as lending his vocal talents as a zebra in DreamWorks’ animated Madagascar. Both films open May 27.
Richard Pryor: Easily the foremost comedian of his generation, Pryor brings a distinctively ribald comedy tradition to mainstream audiences. Often cited as a major inspiration by a roster of younger black comedy writer-performers, including Eddie Murphy, Pryor‘s influence has transformed American comedy by expanding our notions of what may be perceived as funny. Pryor‘s material is profane and socially reprehended, all the while provoking thought, anger, and laughter. He often focuses on such marginal members of the black community as bums, winos, junkies and street corner philosophers. He is also a veteran of over 40 films, including his hilarious pairing with Gene Wilder in Silver Streak and Stir Crazy. Pryor has been suffering from Multiple Sclerosis since 1986 but was recently named No.1 on Comedy Central’s 100 Greatest Stand-Ups of All Time.
