Bill Engvall, Comedian, Talks About Retired from Stand-up, Greatest Fears and How the Will Smith Slap Changed Comedy Forever
Bill Engvall It’s time to say goodbye to stand-up comedy.
Fox News Digital asked Engvall why he believes now is the right moment to take a step back. He also explained how his friend, comedian Bob Saget, died and prompted him to consider what other options were available.
“I had a friend of mine call me the other night, ‘what do you retire for you’re at the top of your game?’ And I said, ‘that’s when I want to go out.’ I never wanted to be that act that people watching go, ‘you should have stopped last year,’” Engvall stated.
He spoke of retirement “is a good thing,” Because he already has “achieved every goal (he) set” For himself, Engvall starred on his sitcom and appeared on other popular sitcoms. Engvall said “there’s really nothing left for me to do.”
Bill Engvall talks about his retirement and says he has accomplished everything he had hoped for at the beginning of his career.
(Bill Engvall)
“I used to tell my wife that one of my fears of was dying on the road, and when we lost Bob Saget and some of these other guys, I (thought), the longer you do this, the odds are greater that’s going to happen. We’re never able to cheat death, but I’ve I got grandkids now, and I want to be a part of their life,” Engvall explained. “There’s just more out there for me to do. And listen, it’s been a 42-year blast journey. I loved every moment of it, and that was why I wanted to go out loving it too, not hating it.”
Engvall made the decision to retire now because of the dramatic shift in comedy over the past few years, most notably after the incident that occurred at the 2022 Academy Awards ceremony where Will Smith and Chris Rock were involved.
“I don’t think he has any idea what ball he set in motion, but when Will Smith walked on stage and slapped…Chris Rock, he unleashed this box that people feel like they can do anything now,” Engvall explained. “There didn’t used to be this fear in the back of your head of like, ‘is someone going to come out of the darkness of the stage or the theater or something?'”
He shared a terrifying moment last year while he was sharing a joke about the time he had given his son a Swiss Army knife. Then, someone came up to him and placed a knife onto the stage. “I was just flabbergasted,” Engvall spoke out about the incident, leaving him in doubt. “at what point did he go, ‘this would be funny’?”
“I could have had him thrown out of the theater or anything, but I didn’t. I just said, ‘well, you know, you don’t toss stuff on stage.’ It’s like you almost have to talk to him like a little kid,” He said. “Especially now, you can’t even make any jokes politically if just because they’re just ready to pounce.”
Bill Engvall claimed that comedy has evolved since he started. The audience seem to be waiting for Engvall to make something that will offend.
(Bill Engvall)
Engvall said that comedians find it especially difficult because they only can see the first two rows of the stage and all beyond that is darkness. They may not be able to properly react when they see something approaching them.
“My job is to make you laugh, make you feel better than you did when you got there, and if I can’t do that because I’m stressed or scared that somebody is going to do something crazy, then you know, then it’s time to get out,” He elaborated.
“When I first started back in ’80s, you know, comedy was just booming. I mean, people wanted to go to the clubs. They were laughing and stuff. And then recently there’s been a shift in the world, and I don’t know where it started,” He elaborated. “I always say that comedy used to be the release valve, and now it’s become the instigator. It’s almost like people go to shows wanting you to say something that’s going to offend them or give them some reason.”
Engvall explained that comedians would soon have to share their jokes to a review board before performing. This is to ensure there isn’t anything that could offend anyone. “I guess it’s time to call it in.”
Bill Engvall grew up admiring comedians such as Steve Martin, George Carlin, Steve Newhart, and Richard Pryor.
(Bill Engvall)
Engvall made it a priority throughout his career to keep his act clean. He said that people might enjoy Engvall’s work, but he doesn’t want them to be. “edgy comedy” Hearing “a dirty joke, they don’t want to hear 90 minutes of it.” He began his career. “way dirtier than (he) needed to be,” Soon he realized that he had to expand his appeal in order to reach everyone.
“I always tried to write my act in a way that, ‘would my wife sit through this for 90 minutes,’ because, and I also think after a while, an audience member goes, ‘can you do anything else’?” Engvall stated. “I looked at guys like Bob Newhart and Steve Martin and these guys, they feel there’s nothing wrong with being clean. And the other thing is to be relatable. People want to know you’re like them.”
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Engvall was inspired by Martin and Newhart when he was a child. He did however look up to Jay Leno and Garry Shandling once he had started his own business. “I was fortunate and blessed enough to grow up comedically with them.”
“Those guys were the ones that taught me how to write and act, how to put together a show. And so I really got to learn from the best and that that was very helpful to me,” Engvall stated. “That was one of the things that I always was grateful for, was that they kind of, I wouldn’t say they necessarily took me under their wing, but I could talk to them, and they would tell me this and that.”
Bill Engvall appeared in Tim Allen’s sitcom “Last Man Standing” In a recurring role. This is something he hopes to do after retiring from stand up comedy.
(Nicole Wilder/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Engvall has also worked with Engvall in recent years. Tim Allen On his sitcom, “Last Man Standing,” Saying he is Reverend Paul “had a blast doing that.” He claimed that Allen and he have been best friends ever since. “the club days,” Add that “while we’re two completely different personalities, we seem to hit it off on camera.”
“The dream job would be to get another gig like that where I’m like five out of ten episodes and I fly and do my stuff and leave. That would be great. I would love that,” He elaborated. “I learned a lot from Tim, even on the acting side of it, just how to be yourself, on your build your character and that that Reverend Paul was just such a fun character.”
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Engvall announced that he is leaving stand-up comedy but said that he would love to make guest appearances on Fox News Digital in the future. Engvall stated that he had realized he was not a comedian after the COVID-19 lockdown. “wasn’t missing the road” And that he “never thought (he) would do this for the rest of (his) life.”
Engvall performed his final stand-up performance on December 31 at Eccles Theater, Salt Lake City. He admitted that he was sad about this part of his career. He is not going to miss certain aspects of his job, but he is glad to be done with it.
Bill Engvall claimed that nothing is better than seeing the audience react to his jokes.
(Photo by Barry Brecheisen/WireImage)
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“There’s nothing better than when you’re on stage, and you and the audience are on the same wavelength, and you’re just pounding them and just the rolls of laughter that were coming on that,” Engvall explained. “I’ll miss that rush, but I won’t miss being in a hotel for 23 and a half hours while I’m waiting to go on stage. That gets old.”
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