My Inner Kathy Griffin

Do you remember the character Griffin played on Seinfeld? As a stand-up comic, she used real encounters with Jerry in her act. It deeply embarrassed him. When he appealed to her to stop, that became a bit, too. That was a character but the real Kathy Griffin is also outspoken, honest and unafraid. No matter what she does or who she offends, I kind of love her.

I’ve often said that given another go at a career, I’d choose stand-up comedy. It’s my favourite form of entertainment by a long shot. I’ll watch and read just about anything to do with stand-up; writing, performing, attempting, failing, succeeding – it’s all gold. And it’s not lost on me that I stifle my inner stand-up comic on a regular basis.

I wish I could use the real names and stories of people in my life, or say the sometimes dark, always funny-in-my-head comments that immediately spring to mind. But I can’t, of course, if I want to have friends and family who are willing to have me around! Don’t worry if you’re one of them – it’s an unspoken agreement that I won’t air your laundry; dirty, clean, or soaking in stain remover. But the dishy, dark-humoured side of me – my inner Kathy Griffin – would just love to.

There are escapades and adventures and stupid decisions and all sorts of goings-on that I suppose exist in every family, if it’s big enough. You can tell a semi-private anecdote to a couple of people at a party – that’s safe. But you can’t broadcast it for public consumption unless you want to suffer the consequences.

Then there’s Kathy. Whether a celebrity encounter was good or bad, no matter what dumb thing a member of her family has done, she will tell all and tell it with verve. She’s a great story-teller. On the surface, it seems like pure gossip. Underneath it all, it’s pure gossip! But it’s so entertaining and she’s so bold, I can’t help but be drawn to her.

In a sometimes funny, sometimes serious interview last month, she told Stephen Colbert about the fallout from the infamous Trump-head-photo and why timing had a lot to do with it. Yes she went too far and it was macabre and in bad taste. But it didn’t change my love for her. People make mistakes and unless those mistakes involved murder or genocide, they should – with exceptions – be allowed to repent. Somehow, she managed to come back from it, when almost no one thought she could. I love different celebs for different reasons, and I love Kathy for the size of her balls!