Political Humor From, Not About, a Clinton

Washington, D.C., won’t have Clinton to kick around on Inauguration Day--Kate Clinton, that is. The comedian (no relation to Bill), whose biting political commentary resounds from stages across the country to the news desks at CNN, will kick off her 20th year in show biz at the Long Beach Center Theatre on Saturday, coincidentally coinciding with festivities in the nation’s capital.

“It was either come to Long Beach or get some bail money together and go to D.C.,” Clinton jokes, on the phone from her Manhattan apartment. “I think it’s good to have some longevity, and there will be other opportunities for protest.”

Indeed. The Southland audience will be the first to officially hear Clinton’s missives for the new millennium. Among the topics that have her seething are the partisan high jinks surrounding the recent election: “I heard it on Fox, so it must be true, that the Supreme Court has declared that the Baltimore Ravens have won the Super Bowl.”

While Clinton is an admitted Gore supporter, the Republicans’ return to the White House provides a new Cabinet full of comedic potential. Whatever truths, observations or scenarios Clinton has conjured up for her 2001 tour, after 20 years on the road, the self-described “fumorist” is best known for combining natural humor with a feminist agenda.

“I certainly love making people laugh and I love entertaining, but I guess I do have a little agenda--oh no!” she says, feigning surprise that those opposing her might have a point.

While drawn to feminism and politics, her topics range from sports to the media to gays and lesbians, which used to be her most controversial topic. “I did a show in Palm Beach [during the election recount] and, this is weird, they were laughing at the gay and lesbian stuff but got really nervous during the political stuff.”

Clinton rattles off policy issues and political hot potatoes like a Beltway insider. Her knowledge of the players and the workings of Washington is culled from hours spent scanning newspapers, surfing the Internet and monitoring televised news reports.

Humor Politicized by AIDS Crisis

A former high school English teacher, she taught for eight years in upstate New York until the urge for a change drew her to the stage. At the time--the early ‘80s--Robin Williams was sizzling on the comedy circuit, and Roseanne Barr and Paula Poundstone were paving the way for female comedians. Clinton carved out her own niche in gay clubs, focusing on issues regarding women and equality. She was not particularly political early on, but two events would change that.

“What really politicized me was the AIDS crisis,” she says, “and also meeting my partner.” Her partner of 13 years is gay activist Urvashi Vaid. Vaid’s work supplied Clinton with a wealth of material and Clinton “got her to laugh a little more.”

“[Vaid] says we’re the marriage of tragedy and comedy,” Clinton says. Still it was what she perceives as the tragedies that eventually lighted her political fire. “A lot of times my [material] does get fueled by anger. Coming from a nice Irish Catholic family, we weren’t allowed to get angry or we were sent to our room.”

She works many rooms with ease these days, funneling her anger into snappy one-liners and comical observations.

“Colin Powell, Dick Cheney and George W. all appeared down at the ranch in Texas in brown shirts,” she says, sharing her impressions of the new Cabinet. “It seemed like a very fascist moment. I thought, ‘Oh my god, do they know they’re all wearing brown shirts?’ ”

Clinton herself is fond of dark suits, and wears her hair short and neatly cropped. “I still look like an English teacher,” she says, explaining why she doesn’t seem to inspire hecklers.

A former writer for the “Rosie O’Donnell Show,” Clinton is on the road about half the year, and often takes weekend shifts as what she calls a “third-string commentator” for CNN, offering her take on the news. On Saturday, Clinton is releasing her sixth CD, “Read These Lips.”

In her free time, she likes gardening and jogging. “I am so slow, I call it slogging,” she quips. “People walk by me.”

New Administration, New Prospects for Laughs

She is still studying the new regime in Washington for suitable subjects for her comedic wrath. “I have to be nice to Dick Cheney because he has a gay daughter--and a heart condition,” she says.

Laura Bush, however, is in line for further scrutiny after an article Clinton read earlier this week in the New York Times. “It actually said something like, ‘There’s a place for everything and she knows her place,’ and it seemed like that was OK with her,” laments the ardent feminist. If ideologically painful, the changes in Washington at least mean new opportunities for humor.

“I believe that comedy can easily carry a serious message,” she says. “I am happy and thrilled that people laugh, that’s the basic thing. If it’s something they laugh about now and think about later, all the better.”

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Kate Clinton, Long Beach Center Theatre, 300 E. Ocean Ave., Long Beach. Show time is 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $20, $25 and $35 through TicketMaster, (213) 480-3232, or the box office, (562) 436-3661. General information: (310) 578-8888.