I’ve gotten the chance to interview a lot of famous people over the years. I don’t really get nervous. They’re just people, right? With better hair and more money than me and all that.
But I’ll admit, I got super nervous interviewing Craig Ferguson. Why? I think he’s hilarious. I watched “The Late Late Show” from the very beginning, and he’s still tied with 1990s Conan as my favorite late night host ever. I’ve seen his totally underappreciated 1999 comedy “The Big Tease” more than twice. I read his wonderful memoir, “American on Purpose,” also more than twice, and have watched all his standup specials. Suffice to say, I’m a fan.
I’ve never had the chance to see him do comedy live, however, tragically missing his show in Portland earlier this year. So when I heard he was going to perform at the Collins Center for the Arts in Orono on Tuesday, Sept. 29, the first thing I said after “Eeeeee!” was “I shall interview him!” And thus, I did, doing my level best to not sound like a nervous weirdo during our phone conversation, despite totally being a nervous weirdo. I think I did OK.
This will be your second stand up show in Maine in the past year. What do you like about New England? Got any connections or stories?
Well, first of all, I have family here. My wife is from New Hampshire, so I have lots of family. All the in-laws, so I can visit them when I’m here. It’s also just a nice place to be. You’re there — you know what a beautiful part of the country it is.
After getting done with late night, you’ve since moved on to the world of game shows [“Celebrity Name Game”]. What drew you to hosting one? Did Drew Carey, “Price Is Right” host, put you up to it?
Ha! Well, Drew and I are friends, of course, but that’s not what it was. They came to me years ago, and CBS wanted to do it, but they ended up deciding not to make it. Then they came back years later, and I thought, “Yeah, that’s something I’d like to do.” I’m not moving into the world of game shows, certainly, and after this one I probably won’t do anymore. But for now, it’s fun. You know what it is? It’s like food. I like healthy food, and I like candy. This is candy. It’s easy and fun to do, and it’s a funny game and sometimes people win money and have a laugh. Am I learning anything? Not a whole lot. But it’s fun.
You have some devoted fans out there, myself included. Would you say there’s any similarities they tend to share? Some defining characteristic?
Well, I have to say, I’m slightly uncomfortable with the word “fan.” Fans are for sports franchises. But people that like what I do and connect with it, I think there is a connecting thread. I think they are people that are a little outside of the mainstream. They’re nonconformists, whether they’re teenage girls that like “Dr. Who,” or they’re old ladies who like “Matlock.” It’s an odd thing, but it tends to be people who are free thinkers.
One of the things that I loved about your CBS show so much was its silliness and whimsy, and what seemed to be an improvisational element to much of what you do. How do you contrast that kind of improv-based stuff with doing standup?
It’s actually exactly the same way that I do the show — it’s scripted, but not really. It has a set of bullet points and a bunch of things that I will do, but it goes off from there. Nothing is set in stone … if I did a joke the same way every night I’d get bored. I feel in a way it’s kind of in the Celtic storytelling tradition. You talk to anyone in a bar in Scotland, and they’ll tell the same story over and over again, but there’s always a slight embellishment.
You’ve got a new show set for the History Channel, “Join Or Die,” in which you’ll discuss history with a panel of experts. What’s one historical period or event that holds particular interest for you?
What happens with me, because I’m not an academic but an autodidact, is there are a lot of things that I know a little bit about. I tend to do things like find an old photograph or painting of a king or queen, and it’s not them that interests me — it’s the person in the background. It’s not Napoleon; it’s the guy that’s four people away from him. What’s that guy’s story? Well, he was a cheesemaker, and he made this fantastic cheese, and Napoleon tried it and loved it and said, “If you know this much about cheese you can probably help me.” Things like that. Everyone knows King Tut, but what people don’t know is his father, Akhenaten, attacked the heretics that bankrupted Egypt and changed their entire religion, and f—-ed it up in such an extraordinary way that it’s likely that his son, King Tut, was probably killed by the high priest. And his official mother was Nefertiti, but his real mom was a courtesan. It’s a fascinating story. That’s what interests me. The stuff that’s off the beaten path.
Finally: What did you keep from the Late Show set?
Oh god, I kept all of it! It’s all my stuff! Geoff Peterson is in my office, and I have my Tardis. That’s my Tardis! I’m keeping that! And my snake mug. That’s somewhere. That’s all my stuff. That’s not going anywhere.
