Get Out! GAY Magazine – Issue 546

ISSUE #546
COVER:
KATHY GRIFFIN
PHOTO CREDIT:
JEN ROSENSTEIN
PUBLISHER MICHAEL TODD
MIKE@GETOUTMAG.COM
DESIGN AGOTA CORREA
AGOTA@GETOUTMAG.COM
CELEBRITY INTERVIEWER EILEEN SHAPIRO
@EILEENSHAPIRO3
NYC’S NIGHTLIFE AWARD WINNING BLOGGER/
WRITER & INTERVIEWER JIM SILVESTRI
NIGHTLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER WILSONMODELS
JEASO86@HOTMAIL.COM
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BY EILEEN SHAPIRO
CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT
PHOTO CREDITS : JEN ROSENSTEIN
Kathy Griffin
“My Life On The PTSD-List”
TOUR INCLUDES STOP @ CARNEGIE HALL
Emmy and Grammy Award
winning powerhouse
comedian, best selling
author, television
personality and advocate,
Kathy Griffin will be
performing at Carnegie
Hall in NYC on October
26 as part of her “My Life
On The PTSD-List” Tour.
This marks her sixth show
at the prestigious venue,
breaking a record in that
space previously held
by the legendary Joan
Rivers. Kathy will also be
performing at the Wiltern
in Los Angeles and the
Chicago Theatre.
Her show is a celebration
of resilience, humor and
the power to laugh and
heal after a rough six
years that’s included lung
cancer, which resulted
in the removal of half
her lung. Also a divorce,
an addiction to pills,
loss of her mom and an
investigation by the U.S.
government, which left
her on the no-fly list and
unable to work. (In 2017,
Kathy posed in a darkly
comic image with a replica
of Trump’s severed head.)
But she’s back now in full
force and ready to rock n’
roll.
Kathy Griffin: First of all, six times that this little D lister, who was canceled by the President and
the Attorney General and the Department of Justice, is going to break the freaking record of the
most times a single comedian has played Carnegie by herself. The record was previously tied
between myself and my beloved, who I miss every day, Joan Rivers.

INTERVIEW
I love Joan Rivers. But I think
that you are funnier.
Oh, my God. Did you ever
interview Joan?
You know what, I didn’t, and I
really regret that.
Well, you missed out. Because
she was such a mensch . And I
am Irish Catholic, but I still know
what that word means. She was
a sweetheart . She had such a
tough life. But I think about Ellen
DeGeneres not having her on
and how great it would have
been if she had been able to
show her respect.
Well, the thing is that nobody
knew she was going to die.
Because we thought she’d be
around forever.
Exactly.
By the way, I feel like I am
following in those footsteps
because I don’t want to
encourage any of the Trumpers
that stalk me, but at this point I
feel like I can’t die. This is really
annoying. I have tried pills. I had
cancer. I had an implant in my
left vocal cord because during
my lung cancer surgery, even
though I never smoked, they
must have run that tube down so
hard that they permanently killed
my left cord. So, my next show
back after a six-week break is
Norwalk, Connecticut. And I get
to do my first show with my full
vocal cord implants. I should be
studied.
After everything you’ve been
through, isn’t it a little bit hard
to be funny?
Honey, you have to. I’ve been
through such dark shit. I talk
about it in the show. I talk about
my suicide attempt. And I have
to tee it up. I’m like, “OK, you
guys, it’s going to sound like I’ve
lost my mind and this is going to
be dark enough funny–I promise
to make it funny.” One of the
things I’m loving about this show
is honestly, for the first time in
my career, I’ve put together a
show. And the reason I say that is
because folks have been coming
to see me all these decades, they
know that I’m going to do two
hours or sometimes two hours
and 25 minutes. They know I’m
going to improvise like a half hour
of it. So this time, because the
topic is so specific and I have
complex PTSD, I was like, “You
know what? If I’m sending out
a 5150 cycle and I’m detoxing
and shaking and sweating like a
normal average junkie, dammit,
someday this is going to be
funny. So I talk about cancer. I
talk about recovery. And I also
talk about going to Paris Hilton’s
Christmas party. Because you’ve
got to lighten it up a little when
you’re laying heavy stuff on. So
I still sprinkle all of your favorite
Kathy Griffin on brand topics, if I
could speak of myself in the third
person. But it is a show. It has a
beginning, a middle and an end.
That’s new for me. And man,
Carnegie, that’s the freaking
place you want to do it. Even
though whenever I’ve played
there, the audience has been
magical, I really hope they like
this tour.
How could they not?
Everybody wants to laugh.
Well, come on down. I’m the oneand-a-half
lung wonder. You tell
that to John Mulaney and Dave
Chappelle with their two lungs.
You know, I loved you before,
but I love you even more now.
Even when I’m half a lung down?
YES.
That’s it. I’m getting the other one
taken out today. If it’ll get me from
the D list to the C minus, honey,
I’ll go into emergency surgery. I’m
going to stop eating right now.
Oh my God, I want to see this
show.
You better. Hold on. I hope you
don’t think I’m going to give you
a comp. Because let me tell you
something, sweetheart. I made
my brother buy tickets. I got
those agents up my ass saying I
sold out every show. And I said,
“You know what? No comps.”
Because they would never do
that to the dudes. They would
be like, “Oh, you’re at Carnegie
and you’re at 84%. That’s
awesome.” But for me, they’re
like, “Every ticket must be sold.”
So, Eileen, it’s not personal, but
I am certainly not paying for your
goddamn ticket.
Haha, I love you
I’m direct, Eileen.
You know what? I manage
a composer named Randy
Edelman. He’s a big film
scorer and his wife is Jackie
DeShannon. I got him in
Carnegie Hall for December 8th
and I am going to comp you,
so you should come.
I live in Malibu. It’s a big anti-vax
area, but there are a lot of new
Malibu kooks that I can make
fun of now that I’ve moved here.
In L.A., Malibu is considered a
different state. It’s one of those
things where if there’s no traffic,
you could be here in 40 minutes.
But if there is traffic, you could be
here in an hour and 40 minutes.
But I love it and there is a whole
new group of celebrities here that
often don’t leave Malibu and now
they run from me. You think Mel
Gibson wants to run into me? He
doesn’t. And everyone clenches
their teeth onto that portrait of
the baby mama. Well, I’m not
going to say I would punch Mel
Gibson if I saw him, but I would
punch Mark Burnett. You know
what’s great about me? Making
enemies with the most powerful
men in the industry who could
hire me and I’m bitching about
why I’m not getting work and
yet saying shit like “If I see Mark
Burnett, I’m going to punch him in
the face”. Well, then, you’d better
come to the show. Because I’m
still blacklisted in Hollywood.
I’ve got no special offers. I’m not
streaming. I’m not on low budget
cable. Which, of course, was my
area of expertise. I lost my health
insurance. I haven’t done union
gigs. I mean, I am biting and
scratching my way back, baby.
Practice, practice, practice–that’s
how you get to Carnegie.

You know, I also rep Mickey
Burns. You should go on his
show. He interviewed Joan
Rivers–and Joan Collins.
Honey, what about Joan Collins?
She still has the young husband.
I’m all about it.
But she’s beautiful. Did you see
her picture?
Kelly Osborne used to live in
that building with Sharon. And
they live in this famous building
called the Sierra Tower. It’s funny
because it’s all millionaires. And
so, Kelly told me on more than
one occasion that she’s seen
Joan posing in a bikini while her
husband photographs her. And I
thought, “I can make that work.”
Whatever their arrangement is,
I’m all for it. All I’m asking for is a
guy to photograph me in a bikini
by the pool. Is that too much,
Eileen? Is that too much to ask?
Have you seen my body? I could
be a mature lady bikini model.
You know Toddlers and Tiaras? I
think they should come up with a
category called “63 and Above”
and I don’t think the competition
would be as fierce, but I’m just
telling you I could nail that shit.
When you have been canceled by
the government, you think of all
sorts of alternate ways to make
money, and mine would be going
from pageant to pageant for a
mature lady contest. Got to pay
the bills, honey. Even though I
don’t have a penny of debt. Did
you know that?
That’s pretty good, actually.
Right. And I’ve been out of work
for almost seven years. My good
pal Suze Orman–remember her
show? She has been my pal for
many years. And she actually
legit, for free, out of the goodness
of her heart–she’s going to kill
me for saying this–but she’s like
guiding me. Also raised by my
mom, Maggie Griffin, who you
could see by watching My Life
on the D List again on Peacock,
where I am thrilled it’s streaming.
People get to see my mom and
dad again. But between my mom
and Suze Orman, I am very
proud of the fact that I socked my
money away. I lived in a crappy
studio apartment for seven years
till I moved up within the building
to a crappy one-bedroom for five
years and socked money away.
And I took a little picture. You
may have heard of it. The Donald
was upset with me. And when the
Donald is upset, he tends to sic
the Department of Justice on you.
Cut to Jane Fonda saying to me,
“Sorry, kid, this is what’s going to
be on your tombstone.”
And then, another girlfriend of
mine said, “You know what? You
don’t take crap from anybody. You
are Kathy Griffin. You’re in the
history books.” And I go, “Yeah,
as a cautionary tale.” And she
goes…“But still.” Those are my
friends. I’m on a tombstone and
I’m a cautionary tale. Oh, and
I’m a verb. Other comedians are
afraid to be Kathy Griffinned.
But guess who didn’t Kathy Griffin
me? Carnegie Hall.
Well, Carnegie Hall and the
people that work there are the
nicest people on the planet.
They are the best. It’s just one of
those venues that you wouldn’t
think of to go to a standup show.
But believe it or not, it is amazing
for stand-up. The acoustics are so
good, especially for someone like
me that has voice problems. You
almost don’t need a microphone
at all. Although now, I wear a
very sexy headset microphone,
almost like Michael Jackson or
Janet. And I often feel like Janet
Jackson with my microphone
headset, but the acoustics are
great. The way the audience
shows up at Carnegie. People
get dressed up. It’s an event. And
I get it. I’m going to give 1000
percent. You’ve got the babysitter.
You’ve made dinner reservations.
You got dressed up. You’re on a
date. You go to the men’s room
and there is an hour wait because
of the line. A Kathy Griffin tip: Go
to the women’s room. It’s going to
be empty. Don’t get me banned
from Carnegie. I feel like you’re
the devil on my shoulder, Eileen.
I might be. I swear to God,
if you mention my name to
anyone in Carnegie Hall, they
will give you 10 shows.
Guess what? I’m going to try that,
bitch.
Do it. And you can do the same
at Lincoln Center.
You want to hear something
funny? I have played the Kennedy
Center in D.C. five times. Yet they
wouldn’t let me play during the
Trump administration because…
Did you know that during the
President’s term, hopefully soon
to be Madam President, but up
to now it’s been all guys…As
long as the President is serving,
the President’s spouse is on the
board of directors at the Kennedy
Center. And Melania kept me
from performing for years. Then
they try to do it this time. And they
politely…how should I say this…it
was a hard pass. So I don’t know
if I am banned from the Kennedy
Center or maybe they think I
can’t sell it out, which I don’t take
personally. But I just thought
you should know that during the
Trump nightmare, fucking Melania
was no innocent. Don’t fall for her
Slovenian bullshit. Eileen, are you
single or gay?
No, I’m not gay, I live with my
gay soulmate and I don’t have
a boyfriend by my own choice
because if someone tried to tell
me what to do, I’d kill them.
Eileen, I want to get there. I want
to be where you are. I’m still sad
from my divorce. But I want to be
like you. I want to be one of those
chicks where…You know what? I
have four dogs that I love. I have
a beautiful house in Malibu. I
host these amazing parties that
I call my salon. They are either
a lunch or dinner and there’s a
guest of honor. And it’s catered.
And I’m back at work after being
canceled. But I’m still not at that
place yet like you or like when I
talk to Jane Fonda, she’s there.
Sharon Stone is there. Kristen
Johnston is there.

And I want to be one of those
chicks of a certain age that’s like,
“I don’t need no man”. They’re
just going to try to tell me what to
do. Fuck that.
Here’s the thing you’ve got to
be–fun for yourself. And when
you are, people feel that. They
feel that vibration.
I know you’re on to something.
Because by far, leaps and
bounds, the only time I don’t feel
my complex PTSD–and I know
this sounds stupid, but something
happens to my mind, body and
soul where the minute my Doc
Martens hit that stage, I just calm
down and I’m actually having
fun myself. But the audience
vibration on this tour is like no
tour I have ever felt. And I’ve
been trying for decades. On this
tour, whether I was in Omaha,
where we only sold 58%, or in
Long Beach, where I sold out,
the audiences have been on
their feet. There is something
about these audiences, where
they know I’ve been through
shit. They know about the Trump
picture. They know about the
cancer. Like I’m just going out
there and I get to have fun with
them. And that’s the moment
where I’m fine by myself. I’m
totally okay. I wish I could feel
that offstage. But I get what
you’re saying. Because it kind of
reminds me of how I feel when
I’m working. I like to say I’m not
by myself, I’m with myself. That’s
my little mantra. I’m honestly
thrilled that My Life on the D List
is back on Peacock. I just came
off 40 cities. I played the real
America. And a couple of those
states were red. But there’s only
one Carnegie. The whole time
I was canceled and those four
chicks in my Zoom would have
to hear me say, “I don’t care if it’s
Judy Garland’s. No one would
love to play Carnegie Hall as
much as me.” Honestly, not to be
corny, but I cannot believe I get
the honor of playing Carnegie.
If you could have me ask you
any question on the planet, what
would it be and how would you
answer it?
Okay. I have been doing
interviews a long time. Never
have I got this one. Hold on, I
need a minute. Oh, I got one. It
would be, “Why didn’t the concert
movie that I made–Kathy Griffin:
A Hell of a Story–get distribution?
So what I did was, when no one
would touch me, I made my
own special. I funded it myself.
It cost me a million dollars. And
20 minutes of it is documentary
and 10 minutes stand-up. I did
festivals with it. I did Q&As with
some of the big names, blah blah
blah. But when it came time for
someone to just simply distribute
it, just put it on a platform, no
one did. So if I could ask one
thing of you, it would be to watch
that movie and get people to
watch that movie. Because it
really does answer all of the
Trump questions. By the way,
I’m grateful you didn’t make this
interview about Trump because
most people always want to ask
me to tell them about that day. I
want you to watch Kathy Griffin:
A Hell of a Story because I am
proud of it.

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