Chicago Sun-Times: 'Dysfunktional' comedy helps rev up demand for Griffin

Eddie Griffin is the type of comedian who puts the "diss" in dysfunctional. No one and nothing is immune from his mouth.

Start with the war. "I knew we'd go to war with Iraq if George Bush had to walk over there himself to start the war. The boy is stuck on stupid.

"He got one brain cell and it's stuck on stupid," he says.

Griffin says that the war has provided him with both heartache ... and material. "Now, we're bombarded with war info. CNN has a permanent title called 'War in the Desert.' It's like a new TV show. It's replacing reruns of 'The Cosby Show.' "

Other hot topics? Michael Jackson. "Well, at least we know that Michael Jackson has a sense of humor. I mean, just look at his face," he says. "Soon, he's going to evaporate."

On the other hand, Griffin is facing one of the best years of his professional life. He's prepping to star as Sammy Davis Jr. in a big screen biopic produced by Davis' widow Altovise Davis. Before that happens, his stand-up show has been turned into "Dysfunktional Family," which is in its opening weekend. It was partly filmed at the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville. "Why film it outside Chicago? I just knew that we had to roll cameras because when I was walking out onto that stage, I was on fire," he says.

While performing in the Midwest, Griffin journeys home to his hometown of Kansas City, Mo., to find his roots and deal with the trio that raised him: Uncle Bucky (who spent more time in the Big House than in Eddie's house); Uncle Curtis (who introduced him to film, including porn) and Moms (who once got so agitated that she tried to run Griffin down with her car).

"Family is love which is why they wanted to be in the film. They didn't hit me up for $500,000 or a trailer. Now you'll probably be seeing Uncle Curtis on HBO with his own series. My Mom had two white Zinfandels and she was ready for the cameras," Griffin says.

"I had camera crews following me around 24 hours a day, and as I walked around K.C., I bumped into just about all of my family members. Curtis, Moms, everybody. They kept saying, 'Hey, we're in the movie aren't we?' "

Griffin got his comic fodder from this odd lot while growing up in Kansas City. "I don't know what was better comedy training-- my family or watching Richard Pryor live," he says. Cut to one night when he was a teen at Sanford and Sons comedy club. "I was in K.C. at this comedy club and they were having an open mike night. My friend leaned over to me and said, 'Man, you're funnier than these fools. I'll bet you $50 you don't have the guts to go on stage.' "

Griffin needed the cash. "I was on for 40 minutes and then I got banned for 'being a little too wild for the Midwest.' As soon as that happened, I went around to some of the slower bars in town and asked the owners, 'What's your slow night? Let me start a comedy night. If I bring even two people to sit in the audience, you're winning."

Soon, Griffin bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles, where he took his stand up act around town. That led to movies including "Undercover Brother" (2002), "The New Guy" (2002), "John Q" (2002), "The Mod Squad" (1999), "Deuce Bigalow" (1999), "Armageddon" (1998), "Jason's Lyric" (1994), "The Meteor Man" (1993), "The Last Boy Scout" (1991), and on TV's "Malcolm & Eddie" (1996).

Griffin will next be seen in "My Baby's Mama," a comedy about male- female relationships. He will also star in "Scary Movie 3" and "Enter the Hood," a comedy he wrote about a black martial arts star. "Everyone in the film is black with Asian wigs on. The entire movie will also be subtitled."

Griffin has also been tapped to star in "Blast," his first big budget action film, with Vivica A. Fox and Vinnie Jones. "It's basically 'Die Hard' on an oil rig. I'm a tugboat captain and Vinnie is an environmentalist. He's a terrorist and takes over an oil rig at Christmas. So, I have to save the situation."

Griffin sighs and says, "That wasn't easy because I had to do my own stunts. I mean, the stand in had 40 pounds on me, and it didn't make sense to have this fat man running jumping around trying to look like me."

Most of all, Griffin wants to upset people with his comedy.

"I want to push boundaries," he says. "Richard Pryor was the father of comedy. He knocked down doors and really gave us freedom of speech. He came at a time when you couldn't even say mother------ on TV without going to jail. Lenny Bruce got locked up for saying the "f" word. We've come a long way for our verbal freedom, but there is still a ways to go.

"I still have executives saying to me, 'Are you sure that's not going too far?' And I have to reply, 'That's how they talk in my hood and I have to keep it real."

Is it ever too real? "Getting on stage is hard. I live and die on every word that comes out of my mouth. This is the most dangerous type of entertainment," he says.

"It's like playing verbal Russian roulette because if I ever sat back and thought about what I was about to say, I probably would keep my big mouth shut."

Distributed by Big Picture News, Inc.