62
Arts
October 4 – 17, 2014
www.SanTanSun.com
Comedian Whitney fondly remembers Arizona BY LYNETTE CARRINGTON
Performing in Arizona has meaning to comedian Daniel Lawrence “Larry” Whitney, otherwise known as Larry the Cable Guy. He’s good friends with Arizona Diamondbacks legend Luis Gonzalez. Too, Larry the Cable Guy’s trademark sleeveless flannel shirt has roots in the Valley, having been created out of necessity when the first “Blue Collar Comedy” movie was shot in Phoenix. “I wore red flannel with no sleeves because it was hot,” he says. “No particular reason…not because I was trying to make a fashion statement or whatever, but then when that movie got really popular, people knew me as the ‘guy with no sleeves.’” Whitney is returning to the Grand Canyon State for two shows at the Chandler Center for the Arts on Saturday, Oct. 18. “I enjoy Arizona. There are a lot of Nebraskans that live in Arizona,” says Whitney, who hails from Pawnee City, Nebraska. “It’s like a suburb of Omaha or something.” He’s looking forward to performing here so he can have an afternoon out with Gonzalez. “One of my best buddies lives in Scottsdale—Luis Gonzalez,” Whitney says. “Every time I come to the Valley, me and
Luis gotta go golfing and go get something to eat.”
Evolving character Larry the Cable Guy has changed a bit over the years. “The character is just so unique,” he says. “It’s one of those things that you can’t just sit down and draw up and say, ‘Hey, I’m going to do this and make it popular.’ It evolves and happens,” says Whitney. Before Larry the Cable Guy debuted on stage, Whitney tested the waters by calling into his buddy’s local radio show and pretending he was a cable guy. The character of Larry was born, and Whitney’s act is one of the most popular in the nation. “When I first started doing it, it was a complete character,” he says. “Then I got married, and I had kids, and I had to bring them into it. And I breathed a little more realism in to the character. I did such a good job that critics think that’s who I am.” Larry the Cable Guy garnered a new generation of fans thanks to his voiceover work in the animated film “Cars,” as Mater, the lovably oafish tow truck. “When I do Mater, I just put on an accent—make it a country-fried truck. The way Mater acts in that movie is basically my personality to a ‘T’. And that’s why my wife loves that movie because it’s literally my personality that’s in that truck,”
GIT-R-DONE: Blue Collar comic Daniel Lawrence “Larry” Whitney brings his Larry the Cable Guy persona to Chandler Center for the Arts in two shows at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18. Submitted photo
Whitney explains. Larry the Cable Guy has universal comedy appeal, and Whitney encourages everyone—even the skeptics—to come out. “If they would actually come to a show, they would enjoy the show,” he insists. “It’s all goofy one-liner type stuff and nonthreatening. It’s funny, and I just enjoy what I do. I enjoy being Larry the Cable Guy.”
Daniel Whitney performs at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18, at the Chandler Center for the Arts, 250 N. Arizona Ave., Chandler. Tickets are $55 to $100. For more information, call (480) 782-2680 or visit www.chandlercenter.org. Lynette Carrington is a freelancer for the SanTan Sun News. She can be contacted at lynette@santansun.com