8 DAYS | 13STORYKI’ERN TANThere was a lot of backlash about that photo
of the fake bloodied, severed head of President
Trump. Your tour got cancelled, you were dropped
by advertisers, you were investigated by the Secret
Service, and you and Anderson Cooper are no
longer friends. On hindsight, was it worth it?
That photo cost me everything
and turned my whole life upside
down. Everything was over, but,
honestly, if it weren’t for that
photo, I wouldn’t be able to do
this world tour. You know, when
the Dixie Chicks got in trouble for
saying they were embarrassed
that George W Bush was their
President, the government
turned on them, but the artistic
community supported them. It’s
the opposite for me. I didn’t
get Dixie Chicked — I got Dixie
D*ed. The government and
artistes turned on me, but
Cher was like, “Why didn’t
you call me first, b***?
I would’ve told you how to
handle it better.”
Why do you think you were
singularly targeted?
’Cos I’m a woman in a male-
dominated field. Johnny Depp
got drunk and talked about
killing the President, but he
was back on the Pirates of the
Caribbean franchise ’cos he’s a man.
Bill Maher used the ‘N’ word and was
back at work four days later with the
full support of his network [HBO]. I have
no problem with people not liking that photo,
but it’s not against the law. Donald Trump Jr went on
national television and said he wanted to decimate my
entire life. It was a coordinated campaign against me
and that has never happened to a comedienne in the
history of this country. I can’t tell you how bizarre it is
to have to tell your 97-year-old mother that you’re not
in ISIS.
You apologised but then rescinded the apology.
Why the change of heart?
I was under federal investigation, so I wasn’t exactly in
a position to be sassy until I found out what my legal
rights were. All that outrage about my photo was phony
bulls meant to distract from all the shady s***
they were doing. We have a bunch of crazy characters
in the White House now. For a comedienne, it’s a great
time ’cos there is so much material. I liked Barack
Obama, but there wasn’t a lot that was funny about
him.
Being away from the US must be a welcome
reprieve from the madness back home.
I’ve been doing comedy for 25 years. I have two Emmys,
a Grammy, and I’ve done more televised specials than
any comedienne. But I’ve never done comedy in a
time like this. It is different. I’m shunned in my own
homeland. Nobody was going to help me get out of
this, so I asked my agent where
I could go to make fun of Trump.
He called me back and told me I
can make fun of Trump everywhere
else. I’m curious how I’ll be received
in Singapore. It’s the one country
I’ve been warned about. Everyone’s
saying I have to be careful there. But
you can’t say I can’t make fun of that
ridiculous Cheeto orangutan. He is
not off the table. If I can’t make fun of
Trump, I’m not coming!
Is there really an unspoken line in
comedy or is everything fair game?
I think it varies from person to person.
I do admit that comediennes see the
world through a twisted filter. Comedy is
such a subjective art form. I personally
don’t believe there should be limits on
comedy. I’ll say all the good and bad things.
A comedienne should be able to just cut
through the bulls*** and shine a light on
the situation. It’s part of our job to have
fun with it.
Do unpleasant remarks about you
on social media ever get to you?
Yes, and no. It changes daily. Some
days I have a thick skin and some days
I’m curled up in a ball crying on the floor.
It’s completely human and unpredictable, but
I try to be consistently fearless and honest with
the work I put out there. That’s why my act changes
every night. I do take a lot of risks and I try a lot of
new material. Audiences are going to get an evening
that’s unique and improvisational. It’s not going to be a
monologue that I’ve memorised.
Would you rather be trapped in a room with
Trump or have your jokes fall flat?
Wow, that’s a hard question. I don’t like to bomb and I
obviously can’t stand Trump. Okay. I’d be willing to sit
in a room alone with that idiot if it gets the audience
to clap. That is how much I want to please them. I’d
truly do anything for a laugh. I shaved my head ’cos
my sister has cancer and I wanted to make her laugh.
I look like a boy now. You can call me Miss or Mister. I
don’t really care as long as you laugh at my jokes.Catch Kathy Griffin’s Laugh Your Head Off World Tour at The Star
Theatre on Nov 3. Tix from Sistic.Once upon a time:
Kathy Griffin in happier
days with her CNN New Year’s Eve
co-host Anderson Cooper. The
decapitation stunt cost Griffin her
CNN gig as well as her friendship
with Cooper, who were among the
many stars who publicly denounced
the photo. Griffin felt betrayed when
Cooper tweeted, “For the record,
I am appalled by the photo shoot
Kathy Griffin took part in. It is
clearly disgusting and
completely inappropriate.”PHOTO: TPG NEWS/CLICK PHOTOS