Kathy Loves Anderson

It's no holds barred when Kathy Griffin comes to town


Kathy Griffin, known for her rants about celebrity behavior and reality TV, says there's no lack of material for her show.
By Cloe Cabrera | The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 31, 2012
Updated: May 31, 2012 - 8:41 AM

She's got fiery red hair, a razor-tongue, and can rattle even serious newscaster Anderson Cooper.

"I'm a tenacious mo-fo," Kathy Griffin said during a telephone interview. "I'm like Cher and a cockroach, I will be here after the apocalypse. I love what I do so much. You can't stop me from doing it everywhere and anytime I can."

Griffin returns to Ruth Eckerd Hall at 8 p.m. Friday and she wants fans to know she's bringing a lot of bite with her.

"As much as Bravo gives me a very long leash, I can still hang myself," said Griffin referring to her new show, "Kathy," on Bravo. "There is something that always gets bleeped, (on stage) I can trash talk all I want and get away with it. I can be even more uncensored."

Griffin, who is known for her rants about celebrity behavior and reality television, said there's no lack of material for her show.

"There's Miley Cyrus not wearing any pants, the Kardashians multiplying, Mark Zuckerberg not being the catch we thought," she adds. "Really, some of my material writes itself."

The "Housewives" franchise on Bravo is a big favorite, too, particularly the "Orange County" and "Atlanta" series.

" 'The Housewives of Orange County,' come on," she laughs. "Alexis, they call her Jesus Barbie, she thinks Costa Rica is a city in Mexico. She's an idiot."

Griffin has had a successful career as a female comic.

She won two Emmys for her Bravo reality series "My Life on the D List," she's a New York Times bestselling author, a four-time Grammy nominee and has more than 10-critically acclaimed specials to her name.

Her new show, "Kathy," which airs at 10 p.m. Thursday on Bravo, allows her to rant about whatever's on her mind, and that's plenty.

The show doesn't' feature celebrity guests, only what she calls "civilians," and that's just the way she likes it.

"If a celebrity comes on my show they have to know they are coming to play," Griffin said. "This is no holds barred. I have my 90-year-old alcoholic mother on the show. Even I can't believe the stuff that comes out of her mouth."

Griffin talks about an incident on the show when her mother, Maggie, commented that Mexicans love soccer. Griffin's Twitter page blew up with tweets from Mexicans supporting the comment.

"Somehow, it's kind of adorable when she says this stuff," Griffin adds. "(The show) is totally unscripted, from hot firefighters to brides who are getting married in 48 hours."

Despite her success in the world of comedy, Griffin said the comedic playing field remains very uneven.

"(Sexism) still exists in the industry," said Griffin about the number of male comedians vs. female comics. "The ratio is still about 100 to 1. Call up any comedy shows and you will have eight or nine boys — and one girl. I do believe female comedians have to work harder and jump higher than the boys."

Griffin, who has a huge gay fan base, says she connects with her gay fans and has a deep appreciation for them.

"Gay audiences are just better," Griffin said. "I don't mean to insult the heterosexual people, but gays and I found each other. I was the girl who dated that guy in high school who turned out to be gay while we were dating. (Griffin says they are still friends and he now works at Disney World.) I call them my unshakeable gays because they've dealt with so much, nothing I do can shock them."

Griffin also says her rapport — and friendship — with CNN's Cooper, is the real deal.

The two co-host CNN's New Year's Eve special, in which Griffin unexpectedly stripped down last year.

"Were pretty tight," she says of the relationship. "He lives in New York and I live in Los Angeles, but we have dinner and go out for pizza and hang out. He's become a good friend. We have a lot of fun on New Year's Eve. He lets me do my thing, he doesn't ask me what I'm going to say and he doesn't put restrictions on me. He's this super smart straight news guy and I'm not and (CNN) puts us together and just lets us go. I just love it. And it works."