Gaffney and Najimy pose ( left ) and entertain._________
Let us now give thanks to the apartment fire that brought together the stars of the classic HBO Kathy and Mo Show specials.
The recent release of The Complete Kathy and Mo Show two-DVD set provided an occasion for Windy City Times to talk with Mo Gaffney, one half of the insightfully hilarious duo ( the other half being Kathy Najimy ) . The first time Najimy came with mutual friends to Gaffney's apartment, when both were in their early 20s, Gaffney thought Najimy 'talked a lot and was really nosy. She asked a lot of questions.' Then the apartment building Gaffney lived in burned down, and her roommate said they were too old to go back and live with their parents, so her roommate suggested they go live with Kathy Najimy. That first night in Najimy's house, Najimy and Gaffney stayed up all night and talked. There was an immediate connection.
The two quickly discovered a propensity to make each other laugh and began inventing characters for and with one another. Najimy, who was responsible for booking talent at a local coffeehouse, asked Gaffney to do a piece with her there one night. Their friends loved it. Eventually, they put enough material together to do a one-night show. It sold out, so they added another night. And then another. And another, until they had done a two-week stint together. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Speaking of history, part of what makes the DVD set so extraordinary is that it contains never-before-seen footage from Najimy and Gaffney's private collections—from their performances at the Old Town Theatre in San Diego in 1983 to the Henry Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles in 1994. 'I loved those girls,' Gaffney says affectionately, referring to her and Najimy's earlier incarnations. 'They were so earnest.' Gaffney notes that they were under the delusion that all they needed to do to right wrongs in the world was to point them out to people. 'Don't you see...!' she demonstrates, in an impassioned voice.
Alongside their two HBO specials ( Parallel Lives and The Dark Side ) and two new sketches recently taped at the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center in 2005, this early footage gives a unique glimpse into the evolution of a comedy powerhouse. Gaffney chalks up the evolution to maturity and having more to say—and to the realization that not every word they write is precious and must be saved. In short, they learned to edit.
One thing that hasn't changed are the warm and loving references to gays and lesbians in their sketch comedy. Even from the start, this seemed like an easy choice, Gaffney asserts, since so many of their friends were queer. Giving voice to concerns of the LGBT community never made them fearful or nervous: 'That was our lives. Those were our friends.' And, she adds, 'we have always felt very supported by the gay and lesbian community.' The only time she's ever felt safety concerns, actually, is when confronted by the rage of some protesters at benefits supporting a women's right to choose. But compassion resonates throughout their comedy. Drunks, the elderly, gawky teens, fat people—even right-to-lifers and bigots—are treated with equal sympathy and three-dimensionality. 'Women historically have been disenfranchised. ... We know how it feels' to be the underdog.
Though Gaffney finds that working and writing with Najimy falls into easy rhythms, even after so many years—she attributes this to their friendship on stage and off ( both were present for the birth of each other's children ) —she has also worked with many other gifted comedic actors over the years, from Paul Reiser ( as therapist Sheila Kleinman on Mad about You ) to Tracey Ullman ( in Tracey Takes On ) . Of those with whom she hasn't yet had an opportunity to work but would like to, topping the list is director/writer/actor Christopher Guest ( Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind ) tops the list, along with his many regulars, including Jane Lynch and Jennifer Coolidge. 'But he hasn't called me yet,' she laments. With other movies she is content to wait for the DVD, but Guest's movies are a must-see at the theater for Gaffney the minute they come out. She also dreams of working with friend Lily Tomlin someday and regrets she will likely never have an opportunity to work with the elderly Jonathan Winters.
Currently, Gaffney is doing a daily radio show with best friend Shana Wride. On WomenAloud, available on the Internet at www.womenaloud.com from 2-5 p.m. CT, the two take on everything from what they hate about summer to Hugh O'Brien's recent first marriage at age 81—at Forest Lawn Cemetery ( 'just in case' ) .
In the meantime, we can console ourselves with the 230 minutes of The Complete Kathy and Mo Show DVD from Image Entertainment, with its new skits from their most recent Broadway reunion, the 2004 Afterbirth: Kathy and Mo's Greatest Hits—'true story,' as Kathy Najimy's Maddy Samuels character might say.
