Lisa Lampanelli will probably forever be known as "Comedy's Lovable Queen of Mean." Known for not pulling her punches over the years, this stand-up comedian has roasted a variety of people, including Pamela Anderson, William Shatner,and Donald Trump.
Lampanelli taped Long Live the Queen for HBO in 2009, and followed that with another one-hour special, Dirty Girl, for Comedy Central. Its recording was nominated for a Grammy along with another comedy album she did, Back to the Drawing Board.
She competed on television's The Celebrity Apprentice, raising $130,000 for the Gay Men's Health Crisis in the process. She even added author to her extensive list of accomplishments, with her autobiography Chocolate, Please: My Adventures in Food, Fat and Freaks.
She called Windy City from the road before her latest tour date.
Windy City Times: Hey, Lisa. Good to talk to you again.
Lisa Lampanelli: You, too. What is up with your bad self?
WCT: Living the dream in Chicago.
LL: I love Chicago and Skokie—what?!?
WCT: Kathy Griffin is from Skokie.
LL: Is she really? She is my spirit animal so it works out.
WCT: This is the second time in a year that you have been in the Chicago area.
LL: I love it. I have some friends that live right in Logan Square and they have a really nice renovated townhouse so guess who is staying for free, bitches?
WCT: Let's talk about your new hair hairstyle.
LL: You are the first person that I am going to update about it. You are going to love it, as a trendsetting homo. I got blonde hair with blue roots. It looks so edgy that even Japanese girls are stopping me on the street about it. Wait until you see it. It is so cool and nobody has it.
WCT: What is inspiring the hair changes?
LL: Honestly, when I got the surgery and lost all of the weight, I have kept it off for four years thanks to running and bulimia—just kidding. I have only been running and dieting. I feel so much younger so I have fun with the hair and the makeup. I have more confidence to pull off a blue hairstyle.
Get this: This woman in Starbucks saw the blue hair and asked, "Is your hair for autism awareness?" I just went with it because I wanted her to think I have a good heart!
I love that we can talk about this because straighties never want to talk about hair.
WCT: Tell me about the show Stuffed, which you have been working on.
LL: Unfortunately, all of you little bitches in Chicago will have to travel to New York to see it in the fall. There are four actresses in the show. We are in the middle of casting right now, which is so cool. It is about women's struggles with food, weight and body image. While it is funny, it also resonates with anyone who has had those kinds of issues. I love that the stories are combined with humor and heartfelt stuff.
It opens off-Broadway in the fall. You guys get to see me before I stop touring. I am going to stop touring when I am busy with Stuffed, so you are welcome, Chicago!
WCT: Did you see Hamilton?
LL: I was there opening night. I was shocked that I was invited to opening night, and I will tell you why. My good friend's dad is a big fan and knows the producer. I thought maybe he wanted my J. Lo tickets or something; then, he did the same thing for the Tony party. Sometimes these old guys with money are your best friends because they invite you to things. I was very honored.
I have been twice since and I love it.
WCT: It is coming to Chicago, and [is] a big deal.
LL: I was talking to a friend at lunch today who wanted me to see a play. I can't because I am not going to cheat on Hamilton. Once you see this play, it is all you need to see for the rest of your life.
WCT: Do you feel Trump has changed since you knew him on Celebrity Apprentice?
LL: When you are on Celebrity Apprentice, you don't have a lot of contact with him. He gives you an assignment; then you go off to work and he judges you. It is sort of like a wife: She sends you off to work, then demands a paycheck.
He was very affable in the boardroom—he was never mean, and super-cool with me. I got lucky because he considered me one of the guys. He really liked my work ethic so that is why I stayed on so long. I stayed on every single episode.
I still kind of like him as a human being. We did charity stuff together. I don't talk crap on Trump. America will speak for itself and we will have to live with what happens. I am praying for the best and I think you can imagine what that means.
WCT: Is your dog, Parker, coming with you on this trip to Skokie?
LL: No. He's sitting with me right now in the car with his car seat. He becomes a little diva when he's traveling. He wants the special bowl and eats a lot. He is very demanding. He's staying with the babysitter at home.
His rider is too extensive!
WCT: What topics are you covering at the Skokie show?
LL: I just started doing a Q&A and I love it. I have an opening act with Frank DeCaro, who is from The Daily Show when it first started. He also had a show on OutQ on SIRIUS for years. I gave him the microphone and suggested we do a Q&A since he is a great interviewer. We open it up to the audience to ask anything they want.
I answer everything, whether it is about the divorce, weight loss, dieting, emotional stuff, makeovers or sobriety. I do a 45-minute Q&A unless we get carried away with it. Basically, I am an open book. If I open up about my life in a funny way the audience seems to respond and enjoy hearing the real stuff about me. I talk a lot about the divorce, Trump, my terrible dating habits in the past—sort of anything that comes up.
WCT: So I will tell the gays to bring their questions.
LL: Totally!
WCT: Are you still the "Queen of Mean," or are you nicer?
LL: Not on stage, because people have always known I didn't mean anything I say on the stage. When I focus on different races, which I still do, that is all jokes. If people misunderstood that it is on them, not on me. You know me, I only make fun of the people I love. That is why I never make fun of the French, because the French are horrible.
I still do some of the insults but I have opened up more to tell people more of what is going on with me. I tell all of my faults now. I am not afraid to admit the crappy ways I acted and the wife I was. I am not meant to be married. I was a terrible, neglectful and nonsexual person.
So I am still an insult comic but with a little extra me added in there.
Look for Lampanelli at North Shore Center for Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, on Friday, July 22, at 8 p.m. Stuffed comes to New York City's Women's Project Theater Sept. 23-Nov. 6.
More information on tickets for both shows can be found at InsultComic.com .
