Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Tripoli.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Tony. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Sure thing. And remember, I’m a comic, so everything is going to be jokey, and not super serious. So, get into it! Nobody goes into comedy as a career unless something in their early life went terribly, terribly wrong. I’m pretty sure I know what it was for me. I grew up here in Phx. Went to Central High, in fact. and was just the sissiest little boy anybody ever saw, so…not what you’d call POPULAR. (Well, with the bullies, I was!)
So, you learn to either throw a good punch; or spit out a good punchline. That’s how you survive it. And, honestly, I wouldn’t change any of it.
I moved to LA after High School and lived there for 30 years, so…I’m better than you. I had a pretty varied career, as most people in entertainment do: I sang on cruise ships, was Aladdin at Disneyland, was a Chippendale for a few months…you know, the usual. By the way: You haven’t lived until you’ve seen two steroided-out hetero bros fist fighting over a waterproof mascara: It’s surreal.
I had a few friends in comedy- one of whom got really famous. I’d say something funny when we were hanging out, and she’d say “I’m using that!”. later, I’d see her do my joke on stage, and it was thrilling. I figured that would be that. But, my Mom was always telling me I should be doing my own jokes in my own standup, and, let me tell you: MOMS ALWAYS KNOW BEST, so don’t fight it. The first time I finally did a set, I walked off stage, and though “How many years have I wasted?”…I was 38.
I kicked around LA, doing little free shows for eight drunks who weren’t listening. But, it was fun. And, at one of the shows, the Executive Producer of the TV show, THE SOUP was there and though I was funny. They were about to start a spin-off with a female angle, and he thought having a gay guy in the mix would be fun, so they gave me a job writing jokes for TV. And, that started my television career.
It was luck, mixed with being in the right place at the right time, mixed with a stranger seeing potential in me. You really never know who is in the audience with the other seven drunks.
And, three years later, I’m sitting at my desk at the E channel, and the phone rings. It was the promotions department. The network was bringing back FASHION POLICE, with Joan Rivers. They told me Joan didn’t like any of the promo spots they’d written, and wanted three funny gay guys to come to Melissa’s house the next day to write better stuff. That phone call was one that I will never forget.
The next day, I showed up, having stayed up all night scribbling little one-liners, like “Fashion Police: Just Because It Zips, Doesn’t Mean It Fits”….That was the first time Joan laughed at something I wrote. Now, I have to tell you: Joan was a childhood hero of mine. The first comedian I ever paid money to see. I was 16 years old, and I bought one ticket and sat in the balcony at Symphony Hall downtown. I’d seen her probably 10 more times over my life but never met her. So, knowing I was going to write with her ONCE was a dream come true.
Joan, however, had other plans for me. About ten minutes after the writers’ meeting started, Joan pointed at me and said: “Kid, I need to speak to you in the kitchen”.
I thought “Oh no. I screwed this up. She thinks I’m horrible, and not funny, and she’s going to tell me to get lost…”
Well, we got into the kitchen, and what she actually said was: “Look, we need to get rid of these two assholes, and get to work. By the way, you’re my new head writer.’ And, just like that, my life changed overnight.
She called the next day with my contract, and FASHION POLICE was on the air a month later. It was the hardest, most fun job I will ever have. And, I loved it! Joan asked me to be her opening act on the road, as well as a producer on her specials, her reality show, and her interview show. I don’t think I slept more than three hours a night for years. Five years later – August 14, 2014, she went into her throat doctor for a routine procedure, and never woke up.
That whole period is still kind of a blur. Losing someone you love that the entire world feels like they know is a unique experience. But, the love that everyone had for her was a big comfort. I have her ashes in my house, and a cue card from her standup. I have notes she wrote to me on my pay stubs (she signed all her checks herself), and even the Altoids tin from her purse. And, memories. Memories, and SO MANY stories…
FASHION POLICE returned after Joan’s death, but, it was never the same. After the show was canceled, I moved home to Phoenix. I have three nieces here, my sister, my parents. It is great to be a part of their daily lives for the first time since High School. I love it.
My Dad passed this May, and I am so grateful I had two years live right down the street from him. Phoenix is just the greatest city; the people are amazing, the comedy scene is top-notch, and there’s way less LA ASSHOLES. You know, the Insta-famous “influencers” who walk around having their phone conversations on speakerphone, so you can be impressed with how important they think they are. I don’t miss them one bit.
Now, I do shows all over town, opening for stars like Mary Lynn Rajskub, Jen Kirkman, and Michael Kosta. I do a Joan Rivers tribute show with her favorite Joan Impersonator, called “Joan Rivers: Back, and Bitter Than Ever!”, which tours all across the country. I really love living in Phoenix and getting to travel to do my comedy. Come check out one of my shows; I’ll make you pee your pants, I promise.
Has it been a smooth road?
Listen, nobody gets to work in show business without sacrificing their dignity for a paycheck. I once had a gig singing for the American Plumber’s Association.
I’d go from city to city, wherever there was a plumber’s convention, and put on a tux and sing Cole Porter songs. To plumbers who did NOT want to listen to some queen in a tux sing Cole Porter songs. You just sort of have to leave your body- just go somewhere else in your mind, and get through it.
It’s funny NOW, but believe me, at the time, it was so humiliating! Also, do you have any idea how hard it is to find a tuxedo that shows butt crack?
Tell us more about your work.
My comedy is all 100% true. I’m too lazy to make stuff up. I talk about politics, sex, dating, family, and pop culture. I like being the first gay friend a lot of people in the audience have. It’s kind of like being an ambassador, in away.
So, yeah, I search out straight crowds. The straighter, the better! I always say “I’m happy to perform for Heterosexuals; I don’t mind talking slower…”
Contact Info:
- Website: tonytripoli.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tonytripoli/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TonyTripoli
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TonyTripoli
Image Credit:
Jordan Southland (except performance shot)
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