2 minute read
JIM GAFFIGAN
JANUARY 21 MR
DEADPAN
Top comedian Jim Gaffigan brings The Fun Tour to Abu Dhabi, taking mundane topics and wringing them dry
For over three decades, Jim Gaffigan has stood onstage before audiences laughing at his jokes as if he were the funny relative at a dinner table.
His humour is clean by stand-up comedy standards and “normie” (of the mainstream). His observations, which have the feel of an introspective child standing in a corner, are delivered with the cutting deadpan confidence of a middle-aged man who’s lived a hearty life — because that’s precisely what Gaffigan is.
His stand ups comment on pedestrian topics like being overweight and food. One of his most famous riffs is about American fast food dish hot pockets.
But after becoming a father — five times over — and supporting his wife through treatment for a brain tumor in 2017, his material turned toward parenthood, faith and family. Some comics may have retreated from the industry, but Jim did what comedians do best — find humor in life’s greatest challenges.
During the pandemic, Gaffigan promised to upload a new video to his YouTube channel every day “until the world ends.” In July, 2021, the six-time Grammy-nominated comedian kicked off his latest tour, The Fun Tour, which took him to 27 cities by the end of last year, before making his stop in the UAE capital. Here are some of Jim’s funniest jokes over the years… ON FOOD:
“[Food] delivery is a combination of my two favourite activities: eating and not moving.”
ON BEING SLEEP DEPRIVED:
“There should be a children’s song: ‘If you’re happy and you know it, keep it to yourself and let your dad sleep’.”
ON EXCESS FOOD:
“It would be embarrassing trying to explain what an appetiser is to someone from a starving country. ‘Yeah, the appetiser –that’s the food we eat before we have our food. No, no, you’re thinking of dessert – that’s food we have after we have our food.’” ON SEAFOOD:
“You know God’s up in heaven going, ‘What do I gotta do to stop them from eating the crabs? I gave it a rock-hard shell. I put it on the bottom of the ocean. I named a disease after it.’” ON RETURNING GIFTS:
“I can’t believe we’re still giving clothing as a gift. Cause whenever you get clothing as a present, you always open it up and you think, ‘Not even close.’ And the person that gives it is always like, ‘You can take it back if you don’t like it.’ ‘That’s alright. I’ll just throw it out.’ Don’t give me an errand.”
ON PARENTING:
“Raising kids may be a thankless job with ridiculous hours, but at least the pay sucks.” ON GRAMMAR NERDS:
“Whenever you correct someone’s grammar just remember that nobody likes you.”
ENTRY RULES All attendees must show vaccinated status (on Al Hosn) and present a negative PCR test valid for 96 hours
