Jane Condon: Traveling Comic Mom (part 2)

TMOM: And I understand you have quite the busy schedule as a mom comedian?

JANE CONDON: One of my comedian friends calls me “a road warrior”!

TMOM: Walk me through one of your latest trips.

JANE CONDON: Well, let’s see.  I started in Chicago on a Monday.  A family had hired me to perform at a 60th birthday party – it was fabulous.  They flew me out there and sent the longest limo in creation to pick me up from the airport.  There was so much alcohol inside!  It was totally wasted on me though – all I wanted was a Diet Coke.

TMOM: How do you prepare for a gig like that?

JANE CONDON: I interview several family members and friends of the person being honored so that I can prepare the right material – it’s a lot of work but a lot of fun.

TMOM: That was Monday…

JANE CONDON: Right.  Flew back home on Tuesday. Unpacked. Then on Wednesday morning I had an interview on WRKI radio about an upcoming show, and the only problem was that it took place at 7 a.m.  That’s cruel and unusual punishment for a comedian, especially because I had a show in New York City on Wednesday evening.

TMOM: How about Thursday?

JANE CONDON: Thursday was a benefit event in Madison, Conn., for the organization “Circle of Care” which helps support cancer patients.  The concert’s organizer was the mother of a girl my younger son used to date.

TMOM: Used to?

JANE CONDON: Yeah, she broke up with him, which bummed me out because I really liked her.  Once during their winter break from college, she came over to help us decorate our Christmas tree.  She walked in the house, and all of a sudden my boys started acting all nice to me.  Saying please and thank you.  Everybody wore underpants.

TMOM: But they broke up?

JANE CONDON: They did.  I got a good joke out of it though.

TMOM: Let’s hear it.

JANE CONDON: OK. After  I explain that this girl had come into our lives and turned my boys into civilized human beings, I say, “And then she dumps my son.  My son?! So I call her up and say ‘Look! Can we still see each other?’”

TMOM: Good joke!

JANE CONDON: So anyway, the benefit show – that was Thursday. 

TMOM: Do you enjoy doing benefit shows?

JANE CONDON: I do.  I love all-women shows and cancer fundraising events.  We have a lot of cancer in my family so it’s a cause that’s close to my heart.

TMOM: Do you find it difficult to address such a sobering topic with comedy?

JANE CONDON: Not really.  I actually like to tell a few cancer jokes when I’m doing a cancer show.  Some of the organizers discourage this, but I figure that if you’re not laughing, you’re crying, right?  Besides, all the women attending these shows have this one thing in common.  It’s what brings them together.

TMOM: Do you have a favorite comedic moment from over the years?

JANE CONDON: Actually, one of my favorite moments ever came during a cancer show.  I was doing my rap thing, and all of a sudden this kid starts calling to me from the crowd.  He’s saying “Hey lady, can I come up there and rap too?”  I told him sure.  I figured he was there visiting a cancer patient.  But when he came out of the crowd, I saw he was hooked up to an IV. 

TMOM: What happened?

JANE CONDON: He got up on stage and I asked his name.  He said it was Leroy.  So I said, “Where are you from, Leroy?”  And he said, “Pediatrics.”  That got a big laugh!  Anyway, Leroy from pediatrics just started busting a move all over the place, IV and all.  He was singing James Brown, “I feel good! So good, I got you!” And my heart just cracked in half.  I thought, this is why I do these shows.  Although rapping with Leroy did make me late for my sister’s Fourth of July barbecue that year.

TMOM: Was she angry?

JANE CONDON: She understood.  Especially when I told her why.  My family is very understanding about my job, especially my sons.

Read:  Jane Condon:  Family & Career

Read Jane Condon:  Traveling Comic Mom