Tracy Morgan began our interview by yelling “take your shirt off!” You think I’m kidding, but I’m not.
Boisterous and cartoonish, Tracy Jordan is a conceited, absurd, unpredictable clown. He’s also one of the funniest things about NBC’s Emmy-winning sitcom “30 Rock,” which returns for its fourth season on Thursday.
Just don’t confuse Tracy Jordan with Tracy Morgan. “Tracy Jordan is a part of me, but Tracy Jordan is a character,” Morgan said over the phone from New York during a break in taping the new season. “When I’m acting, I like to put the same amount of energy that I have into being myself, so it’s easy to play.”
That energy will course through Denver when Morgan plays three shows at Comedy Works South on Saturday and Sunday.
Morgan’s stand-up comedy is far more dangerous than his TV characters, which most of us were introduced to during his seven-season stint on “Saturday Night Live.”
“This show is very, very dirty,” Comedy Works’ website declares, and Morgan agrees.
“I’m gonna put it down flat,” he said. “It’s based in reality. It’s not going to be anything you’ve seen on TV, because they’re two different vehicles, and I love it. When I do stand-up, I do stand-up, so I hope people don’t come looking for (‘SNL’ character) Brian Fellow and all those things. Tracy Morgan is way more interesting than those guys.”
Like most entertainers, Morgan’s personal life is far more complicated and less amusing than his act. His new book, “I Am the New Black” (out Oct. 20), charts the 40-year-old’s rise from the projects of Brooklyn into the upper echelon of the entertainment world.
“Growing up where I come from in the Coney Island ghetto, in the hood, there’s a lot of broken dreams. There’s a lot of deprivation,” he said.
Morgan’s first break came while performing at the Apollo Theater in 1984. He would endure years of bit parts on sitcoms and in movies before joining the cast of “Saturday Night Live” in 1996. There he perfected his blend of frank, surreal monologues and impressions of Maya Angelou, Louis Armstrong, Mike Tyson and Al Sharpton.
But Morgan also transcended caricature with his bizarre wit, chucking social commentary for joyous inanity. His creations, ranging from Brian Fellow and Dominican Lou to Astronaut Jones and Benny the Bengal, remain some of the show’s most memorable.
“It was hard, dude. It was scary,” he said of his first few seasons on “SNL.” “It was juggling on a high wire with no net at the bottom. But it makes you better.”
Unlike most “SNL” alumni,Morgan returned to host his first “SNL” episode in March 2009.
“I thought it was awesome, but I didn’t know it was that much work,” he said. “When you’re a cast member you’re only in one sketch, but it’s a lot of work when you’re in everything. Now I know how Will Ferrell felt. And it was sweet revenge for everybody who said I couldn’t do it.”
Despite Morgan’s troubles over the years — including a divorce and repeated battles with alcohol and diabetes — he’s proof of the redemptive and cathartic power of performance. He even met his fiancé, fellow stand-up Tanisha Hall, through comedy.
“As long as it’s possible, me and my lady will pack up the suitcases and go out for a night,” he said. “I love stand-up. It’s my foundation for everything that’s happened to me career-wise. It’s the reason I’m with my fiancé right now. I have a taste for it and success with it. It’s a beautiful thing.”
– TrACY MORGAN —
Stand-up comedy. Comedy Works South at the Landmark, 5345 Landmark Place, Greenwood Village. Saturday, Oct. 17-Sunday, Oct. 18. 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday. $38. 720-274-6800 or comedyworks.com
John Wenzel is the editor of Get Real Denver, co-editor of the Reverb blog and an A&E reporter for The Denver Post. His book “Mock Stars: Indie Comedy and the Dangerously Funny” was recently published by Speck Press.
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