42 May 9 • 2019
jn
R
oseanne Barr is a lot of things: a
comic, the driving force, creator
and actor from one of the top 20
TV shows for nine consecutive seasons,
Roseanne, a mother, a grandmother, a
Golden Globe and Emmy award winner
— and always controversial. Last year,
she was removed from her show for
a tweet she made that was considered
racist.
The original “domestic goddess”
brings her live standup tour, “
Alive and
Kicking,
” to Detroit Sunday, May 19, at
the Fox Theatre, and says she is ready to
make America laugh again.
This reporter had a pre-Passover
phone interview with Barr from her
macadamia farm on the Big Island of
Hawaii.
RB: Hi, it’
s Roseanne. She could be
picking up her dry cleaning. It is nasally. It
is unimpressed, and it is legendary.
JN: Hello, Ms. Barr, how are you?
RB: I’
m good.
JN: Are you getting ready for Pesach?
I just made my matzah “crack,
” so I am
ready to go.
RB: Is that the one with the choco-
late toffee? Of course, I have heard of
it, are you kidding me? It’
s so good.
JN: It is so good. I don’
t know if it
is going to make it to the seder table
tomorrow night.
RB: It’
s the pre-seder seder.
I think God would approve of that. I
will go with it. Laughing.
RB: I’
m looking forward to coming
to Detroit.
JN: We are looking forward to having
you. Tell me a little bit about your show
and why we need to see it.
RB: Well, because it’
s hilarious. It’
s
really got some good writing and good
jokes that I want people to hear. I still
feel like I have stuff to say and so I keep
on saying, and it’
s fun. I love standup.
That is really what I am. It’
s cool to
be able to still to do it. It is a great art
form.
JN: When is the last time you per-
formed standup?
RB: I was doing a Canadian tour as I
was doing the Roseanne promotion, it’
s
been a little over a year.
JN: Do you test out your material in
smaller venues before you go on tour?
RB: No. I’
ve got a great 90-minute
concert. I’
ve been working it for a
number of years off and on, and it’
s
finally really great. I love it.
JN: Do you prefer that kind of con-
nection with your audience vs. TV?
RB: Oh yeah, it’
s right off the top of
your head. There is always the element
of surprise, and it’
s fun to see people
laughing.
JN: What do you find funny late-
ly? Who are your inspirations in the
comedy world? Did you always know
you could make people laugh?
RB: There is nothing I don’
t find
funny. These are hilarious times we are
living. It’
s a laugh a minute.
Here comes her famous belly laugh,
rolling out what we all heard in the open-
ing credits every night from 1988 to 1997.
It is contagious.
RB: It’
s upside down and backwards
in every which way. We need to laugh.
A lot. This political climate has fired
up a lot of comics to come out and
start doing their thing; and you know
that is what is great about having a
Republican president — I just think
they are funnier. There is more materi-
al. When we have a Democrat, nobody
laughs at anything. It’
s good to laugh.
That’
s why I voted for Trump.
JN: It’
s like President Obama. He is a
gentleman, cares about people and the
planet and loves his wife a lot. I can see
that. There is not a lot of material there.
RB: The truth is hilarious. Just to
see the look on people’
s faces when it
dawns on them they have been tricked
is so funny. Laughing helps you swal-
low a lot of shame.
JN: Yes, my Baba (Yiddish for grand-
mother) always said, “If we don’
t laugh,
we will cry.
”
RB: Right. There is so much to
laugh at, and Obama is hilarious right
now. I have a great Obama joke. It is a
show-stopper.
JN: Do you want to share it with us?
RB: Oh, hell no!
JN: OK, we will let that be a cliffhang-
er.
RB: Let that be the trailer. I have
been touring with my act and, at first,
people were mad and would not laugh,
and then I kept on doin’
it and then
they would laugh and then would
really laugh and then they would roar
at things they thought they were not
supposed to laugh at — and that’
s the
comedy
arts&life
‘We Need
to Laugh’
Roseanne brings her “Alive and
Kicking” standup show to the Fox.
SARA EAKER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
Roseanne in action
during one of her
standup concerts
FMHT STUDIOS