In May 2010, Whitney Cummings appeared at the Stadium Theatre in Woonsocket in Charlie Hall’s Girls Night Out. This September 22, Whitney’s new show – Whitney – debuts on NBC. Travel back a bit to when Whitney visited the Ocean State.
This article originally appeared in The Valley Breeze. Reprinted with their permission.
Charlie Hall saw Whitney Cummings on one of Conan O’Brien’s last “Tonight” shows. “I thought she’d be great for my show at the Stadium,” says Hall, who is once again producing Girls Night Out in Woonsocket.
He visited her web site, and saw that she’d been the comic from the Joan Rivers roast on Comedy Central who looked at Joan and said, “Loved you in ‘The Wrestler.’”
“A Mickey Rourke reference. It killed the audience, it killed me.”
Whitney Cummings & co-star Chris D'Elia
He learned that her agent was Barry Katz. “Barry was my booking agent for years,” says Hall. Katz booked several comedy rooms in New England in the 80s, including Periwinkles in downtown Providence. He is now better known as the creator of “Last Comic Standing.”
Hall and Katz talked, and they struck a deal. “It worked out great, because the next night, Whitney’s taping a Comedy Central special in Washington. This show will be the perfect way for her to tune up.”
“It’s a really important night for me,” says Cummings, talking about Girls Night Out. “The night after, I’m shooting my hour special. This show will help me decide if I’m in a state of panic.
Originally from DC, Cummings is coming to Rhode Island for the first time. “I went to school in Philly, and spent a lot of time in New York. Everyone I knew went up to Rhode Island for summer vacation, but I never made it up there.”
Cummings says she never decided to be a stand up comedian. “It’s not something you decide. It decides you’re going to do it.” Usually, says Cummings, “your childhood decides for you. How much attention your parents give you ordains whether you become a comedian.”
After college, she ended up in California and worked on Ashton Kushter’s “Punk’d.”
“One day, someone made a flippant comment. ‘You should do stand up.’ And I said, I’m a stand up. I hadn’t even been on stage yet.”
Her first show was at the M Bar in Los Angeles. “There’s a great sub-culture of really crappy comedy rooms out here. In sushi restaurants, bowling alleys – there are open mics just about everywhere. You’ve got to be resourceful with your stage time.”
She landed her first TV spot fairly quickly on “Last Call with Carson Daly.”
“That was a great training ground – not a lot of pressure. Not a lot of people watch it. You literally have to set your alarm clock to get up to watch it.”
Cummings thinks comedy is harder for women, because they get opportunities quicker than men do. “We get in the spotlight sooner than we’re ready. I was still doing training wheels when I did Carson Daly’s show. From there, I built my way up.”
Now 27, Cummings has been working at comedy for five years. “The more you write, the faster you’re going to get what you want. You can only get better when you’re actually on stage.”
And you have to be ready to fail. “You should only do this if you enjoy failing at it. That’s the only time you can survive this.”
She’s got plenty of “bad” memories – all part of the building process. “Two AM slots, five drunk people are the audience, doing shows for free, driving 30 miles to do a three-minute spot. But I had some amazing moments too, like opening for Dane Cook with 25,000 in the audience. I did ‘The Tonight Show’ – that’s an amazing memory too.”
She draws her comedy from her life. “I recently got a brand-new car, and a week after I got it, I filled it up with diesel fuel. I didn’t even know what diesel fuel was. No one every told me that it was bad for your car. Women are not given survival skills. Why was I sitting around playing with Barbie dolls? Someone should have told me diesel would blow up my car.
“Every time I make a mistake, I instantly have this ping of gratitude, because I know I can use it in my work. If I get stuck in traffic, if someone breaks up with me, I get in a car crash. I’ve got a great bit. It’s like being a journalist. ‘There’s an earthquake in Chile? Great. We have material.’”
Cummings’ list of comedy influences is a bit unusual. “Lucille Ball. Paul Reiser. I read his book ‘Couplehood’ when I was 12, and it got me thinking like a comedian. Watching ‘Three’s Company’ growing up. And ‘The Three Amigos’ on VHS. Those are my comedy influences. Surprising, huh?”
“I like bringing in new acts,” says Hall. “I like to be sort of a talent scout.”
Local favorite Mary Ellen DePetrillo will also appear on the show. “She was there last year. She killed,” says Hall. And Boston comic Sarah Blodgett, who Hall spotted locally at Catch A Rising Star, will open the show. “I liked her. She has some nice stuff, clever. I thought she’d fit in with the night.”
Channel 12 news anchor Karen Adams will once again host. “She’ll introduce the acts, and have a couple of schnarky remarks, as she always does, towards me and life in general,” says Hall.
