Veteran comic Brian Regan masters in making people laugh
By Bruce R. Miller Journal staff writer | Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008
Brian Regan left college 10 credits shy of graduation. Later, he got the diploma that somehow slipped away.
Did you hear the one about the comic who didn't finish college?
Fifteen years later, he went back for a class reunion and was afraid they'd have to serve him drinks in the parking lot.
Then, says Brian Regan, one of the professors in the communications and theater arts department at Heidelberg College suggested they could "work something out."
He went to the school for a meeting and was all ready to get a list of the books he needed to read. The professor looked at him and said, "You know what this is all about, don't you?" "And I didn't," Regan admits. "I was so naive."
Without the degree, he had become a headliner. A well-known commodity. A promotable asset for the Tiffan, Ohio, college. Being able to say he was one of theirs was in Heidelberg's best interest. So, in 1995, the prodigal son returned to get his degree. He flew his parents in for the ceremony, wore the gown and completed some unfinished business.
"It was very satisfying," he says of the accomplishment. "It was an incomplete part of my life."
In 1980, though, Regan was doing pretty well on the stand-up circuit. Comedy had begun to dominate his life and he didn't want to miss the opportunity. After all, "I didn't even think of comedy as a career path until I got into college and realized I could do it."
Growing up in Florida, Regan knew he liked to make people laugh. "We got a tape recorder for Christmas one year and I thought it was the most unbelievable toy. I did fake interviews. I was the interviewer and the interviewee. I'd play the tapes for my family and they'd just howl. 'Brian, you're nuts.' I remember getting a charge out of that." One thing led to another and, in college, he started working comedy clubs.
When he told his parents he wanted to leave school -- 10 credits shy of graduating -- they were "unbelievably cool."
"Like most parents, they said, 'We feel you should get the degree so you have something to fall back on. But it's your life. If you want to do it, we love and support you.'"
Now, as the parent of an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old, Regan doesn't know if he'd be as calm. Son Christopher, in fact, is his toughest audience. "At night he'll say, 'Do one of your jokes,' and I'm more nervous in front of him than I am in front of an audience. He's such a kind-hearted soul."
Fatherhood, in fact, changed Regan significantly. "The day Christopher was born I decided I would only work every other week. Instead of every week, I do four one-nighters, Thursday through Sunday, and then I'm home for a week and a half. The kids are only young once. I don't want to say, 'If I had to do it over, I would have stayed home more.'"
The approach may have cost him stardom on a larger scale, but Regan's fine with his place on the comedy food chain.
He got the Holy Grail -- an appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson -- and tasted big-time success when he opened for Jerry Seinfeld during the heyday of "Seinfeld."
"At one time I wanted to get a sitcom because it would increase your visibility. When I realized I didn't need that -- I had already made the jump -- it wasn't that important anymore. Standup was always the goal. I never wanted to abandon it."
Today, he's a fixture on Comedy Central, a regular in David Letterman's stable of visiting comedians and a performer that parents can take their children to see without wincing.
"I like to work clean because I see the creative challenge," he says. "I kinda get painted too easily as a 'clean family comic' and that's not how I see myself. It's a constant struggle with my manager and my publicist to make sure I'm not promoted that way. It's like a 'G' rating on a movie. You might not go if you think it's one certain thing."
Regan's work touches on common issues -- "stuff a 70-year-old couple and an 8-year-old kid can laugh at" -- filtered through a quirky mindset.
"One thing I've tried to avoid is painting myself in a corner with something that's too easy to hang your hat on. I never wanted to have a hook or a thing where people go, 'Brian Regan is the guy who does...." Whenever I'm identified with a specific thing, I write away from it. It may hurt me, but that's the comedy I'm interested in."
And Heidelberg College? On its Web site, Regan can be staring out as one of the memorable alumni. "Recruited to play football at Heidelberg," it reads, "Brian quickly found his niche when he figured out he could make people laugh."
Curiously, there's no mention of the 15 extra years it took to get the degree.
Fifteen years later, he went back for a class reunion and was afraid they'd have to serve him drinks in the parking lot.
Then, says Brian Regan, one of the professors in the communications and theater arts department at Heidelberg College suggested they could "work something out."
He went to the school for a meeting and was all ready to get a list of the books he needed to read. The professor looked at him and said, "You know what this is all about, don't you?" "And I didn't," Regan admits. "I was so naive."
Without the degree, he had become a headliner. A well-known commodity. A promotable asset for the Tiffan, Ohio, college. Being able to say he was one of theirs was in Heidelberg's best interest. So, in 1995, the prodigal son returned to get his degree. He flew his parents in for the ceremony, wore the gown and completed some unfinished business.
"It was very satisfying," he says of the accomplishment. "It was an incomplete part of my life."
In 1980, though, Regan was doing pretty well on the stand-up circuit. Comedy had begun to dominate his life and he didn't want to miss the opportunity. After all, "I didn't even think of comedy as a career path until I got into college and realized I could do it."
Growing up in Florida, Regan knew he liked to make people laugh. "We got a tape recorder for Christmas one year and I thought it was the most unbelievable toy. I did fake interviews. I was the interviewer and the interviewee. I'd play the tapes for my family and they'd just howl. 'Brian, you're nuts.' I remember getting a charge out of that." One thing led to another and, in college, he started working comedy clubs.
When he told his parents he wanted to leave school -- 10 credits shy of graduating -- they were "unbelievably cool."
"Like most parents, they said, 'We feel you should get the degree so you have something to fall back on. But it's your life. If you want to do it, we love and support you.'"
Now, as the parent of an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old, Regan doesn't know if he'd be as calm. Son Christopher, in fact, is his toughest audience. "At night he'll say, 'Do one of your jokes,' and I'm more nervous in front of him than I am in front of an audience. He's such a kind-hearted soul."
Fatherhood, in fact, changed Regan significantly. "The day Christopher was born I decided I would only work every other week. Instead of every week, I do four one-nighters, Thursday through Sunday, and then I'm home for a week and a half. The kids are only young once. I don't want to say, 'If I had to do it over, I would have stayed home more.'"
The approach may have cost him stardom on a larger scale, but Regan's fine with his place on the comedy food chain.
He got the Holy Grail -- an appearance on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson -- and tasted big-time success when he opened for Jerry Seinfeld during the heyday of "Seinfeld."
"At one time I wanted to get a sitcom because it would increase your visibility. When I realized I didn't need that -- I had already made the jump -- it wasn't that important anymore. Standup was always the goal. I never wanted to abandon it."
Today, he's a fixture on Comedy Central, a regular in David Letterman's stable of visiting comedians and a performer that parents can take their children to see without wincing.
"I like to work clean because I see the creative challenge," he says. "I kinda get painted too easily as a 'clean family comic' and that's not how I see myself. It's a constant struggle with my manager and my publicist to make sure I'm not promoted that way. It's like a 'G' rating on a movie. You might not go if you think it's one certain thing."
Regan's work touches on common issues -- "stuff a 70-year-old couple and an 8-year-old kid can laugh at" -- filtered through a quirky mindset.
"One thing I've tried to avoid is painting myself in a corner with something that's too easy to hang your hat on. I never wanted to have a hook or a thing where people go, 'Brian Regan is the guy who does...." Whenever I'm identified with a specific thing, I write away from it. It may hurt me, but that's the comedy I'm interested in."
And Heidelberg College? On its Web site, Regan can be staring out as one of the memorable alumni. "Recruited to play football at Heidelberg," it reads, "Brian quickly found his niche when he figured out he could make people laugh."
Curiously, there's no mention of the 15 extra years it took to get the degree.
Story Comments
Read More and Post Comments 0 comment(s)
Please note: The following are comments from readers. In no way do they represent the views of The Sioux City Journal or Lee Enterprises. We will not edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to not post or to remove comments that violate our code of conduct. No comment may contain potentially libelous statements; obscene, explicit or racist language; personal attacks, insults or threats. Terms of Service
