Ari Shaffir claims ignorance when it comes to making it in show business.
“I don’t want to be a celebrity in any way,” said the Los Angeles-based comic. “I’ve seen my friends go through it, and there’s no draw for me there. But what do I know? I took one marketing class in college. I’ve never really done TV and I don’t know the power of it. I just have no clue.”
Despite that, Comedy Central has premiered a pair of Shaffir’s TV shows this month: “Paid Regular,” his second hour-long stand-up special, on Jan. 16, and the TV version of his late-night storytelling show “This Is Not Happening” — which made the jump from Comedy Central’s digital network to broadcast on Jan. 22.
In addition to his regular tour dates, which bring Shaffir to Comedy Works at Larimer Square through Jan. 31, he has also been drawing fans to his podcast “The Skeptic Tank,” which averages about 100,000 downloads each week.
And the secret to the former orthodox Jew’s success?
Letting it all go.
Q: This is arguably your biggest month ever in terms of mainstream exposure. How important is that to you?
A: I don’t want to be a household name, I just want people to come see my shows. I’m just stand-up, and that’s all I’ve ever been. Ideally, I’d be like Daft Punk, where people come see my shows in the middle of nowhere.
Q: And maybe you’d get to wear a futuristic helmet, too.
A: If it helps get people to the shows, then great. I gave up on TV, and that’s how it got better. I had a big talk with Louis C.K. in Montreal at Just for Laughs a few years ago, and he said, “Dude, they’re never going to take you. You’re a dirty comic. You don’t fit in with them at all. Either quit or figure out another way.” And I really took that to heart, and then it became all about the material and the joy in writing and developing that. I made a CD and dropped all my material after that, and all this other material just flowed out of me. The old stuff was working, but it wasn’t getting me ahead.
Q: Storytelling shows are everywhere these days. What makes yours different?
A: Mine has a comedic sensibility. I’m not trying to be like, “And that was the moment I knew my innocence was lost.” I’d rather this be more like the stories you hear at parties. Like when your friend is telling people about the that crazy time he went to China. It’s just entertaining. I don’t know how different it is than everybody else’s, but we’ve been doing the show for five years in February and it’s still my favorite show to watch in L.A.
Q: You’ve got a solid list of guests on the TV version, including Keegan-Michael Key, Marc Maron, Rob Corddry and D.L. Hughley. How did you decide who to include?
A: It’s a mixture of having a topic — like psychedelic drugs, family and friends, hookers, whatever — and asking people I respect comedically to do it. And then having heard so many of these stories over the years, I’m sometimes booking the story itself for a particular episode.
Q: How heavily edited is it for TV?
A: For TV there is a time issue, so I tell people, “Just do your story as is and we’ll find a way to cut it or put a commercial in the middle of it.” But I’m sort of a purist, having started without TV at all, so I stopped thinking about what’s dirty and what’s clean. It just doesn’t apply to a live show, so I don’t even think in those terms.
Q: Does your religious background, including spending a couple years in a yeshiva in Israel, make you more or less likely to attack Judaism in your act?
A: Way more. People like me, (Kurt) Metzger and Pete Holmes, we all come from religious backgrounds and we’re the ones who are angry about it. This comic Big Jay Oakerson, who just happens to be Jewish but hasn’t had any Judaism in his life, said, “I don’t get why you guys are so upset. Just ignore it.” But we think about it all the time!
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642, jwenzel@denverpost.com or twitter.com/johnwenzel
ARI SHAFFIR. Exquisitely profane stand-up. 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. Jan. 30-31. Comedy Works at Larimer Square, 1226 15th St. $23. 303-595-3637 or comedyworks.com.
