Q&A: The Diceman is on a roll

Sunday, May 21, 2000 | 8:23 a.m.

Potty-mouthed poet/comic Andrew Dice Clay recently signed a two-year deal with the Venetian hotel-casino and is working on a new comedy album that will be a springboard for a major American tour after it is released this summer.

He just completed two motion pictures that will be released this year, a black comedy called "One Night at McCool's" with Michael Douglas and "My Nine Wives" with Rodney Dangerfield.

It is typical of the X-rated stand-up comic's 22-year career. Sometimes he's hot and can't miss a pass; sometimes he's cold and rolls nothing but craps.

Clay is betting on his future.

"In the next six months I'm going to be hotter than I've ever been as a stand-up comic," Clay said during a recent telephone interview that, surprisingly, was void of vulgarity -- perhaps signaling a softening of his image:

Las Vegas Sun: Some people criticize your comedy. They say it degrades women.

Andrew Dice Clay: I receive a lot of criticism from everybody, but it comes with the territory, with being a rebellious comic. That's the whole controversy. I call things the way I see them on stage.

I don't think I say anything bad about women. I talk about sex, and normal sex to me is being with a woman. But I have to make it outrageous. I have to make it funny. I have to make people see the humor in day-to-day lovemaking. So I just take it to a level where people never think of it (in that way).

Sun: Tell us about your deal with the Venetian.

ADC: It's an incredible move. The Venetian is an incredible hotel ... It's really got a night life going on, which I like personally. I always liked, after a show, to be able to go into a lounge and have a drink. I just like that (the hotel) has got that feel to it. Even though it's new Vegas it's got that feel of, you know, old-time Vegas with the (gaming) tables going, the music blasting out into the casino. It makes for an exciting trip to Vegas.

Sun: How many times a year are you going to play there?

ADC: I don't know. We keep adding dates. I do a lot of other things. I tour the whole country. And I'm getting an album ready to come out in the summer through EMI. It will probably be the biggest album I've done in five or six years. The record company seems to think it will be the biggest album I've ever done, and when you do an album that big you should go out on tour and give your fans a chance to see you live.

Sun: Has comedy changed since you started in the business?

ADC: I think people are more used to hearing shock comedy. The way I deliver material is very hardcore, but I wouldn't call myself just a dirty comic. I know that's hard to understand in a few words. I know there are guys who come out and tell dirty jokes and that's what they do, and I think that's terrific. I think there are clean comics out there who are funny, guys like Jay Leno, but I do comedy through different eyes, through the eyes of somebody with no (restrictions). I tell it the way it is.

Sun: Has your act changed?

ADC: Yes. We live in the computer age. Now there's computer sex, there's e-mail sex. It's all observation comedy, taking it down to street level.

Sun: It's rumored you are softening your act.

ADC: That's all old press. I've never, ever toned down on stage, ever. As a matter of fact I think the act is more hardcore than it's ever been.

Sun: Who are your favorite comics?

ADC: I don't really follow comedians. I'm really into what I do as a performer. When I'm done onstage I like people to walk out saying, "I've never seen anything like this."

To me, it's like a Broadway show. It starts at zero and by the end of the show goes to 100. It's like a buildup, almost like a composer putting together a great work. Yes, it is X-rated, but it's funny.

In a lot of comedy movies today what I notice is the toilet humor. By toilet humor I mean bathroom humor. I can't even explain it. It's like doing disgusting things just for the sake of doing them, like the famous (masturbation) scene in ("There's Something About Mary"). To me it had no effect because of what I do on stage. I've been talking about it for the last 22 years; now you're just seeing the visuals.

Sun: Where is your favorite place to perform?

ADC: No matter where I tour, I find Vegas the most exciting place to play. My favorite part in Vegas is when it's starting to get dark. You look out from your hotel room when the lights first come on and the sun is going down. I can't believe I'm playing this city. I can't believe I've accomplished this. It's almost unreal.

It's a city where the greatest of the greatest perform. I hope I'm considered that in the years to come. I would like people to say, "This is the biggest stand-up comic ever to play this town." I would like to be a staple in this city, like Sinatra and Elvis were and the way Wayne Newton is. It would be great to be part of that history.

Sun: You're doing a lot of things right now. Your career seems to be on an even keel.

ADC: My career is a complete roller coaster with peaks and valleys. Mine has had more than its share. It's exciting. If you go to the top and really stay there a couple of things happen. You either lose your mind from everybody kissing your (buttocks), or you lose your mind because you can't believe what you've done and you never come down from there. A lot of these guys -- and I love them -- have made it, like Jim Carrey and Jerry Seinfeld. But a smooth ride like that, with constant (buttocks)-kissing, it's like nobody ever telling you, "That's a wrong move," because everybody's afraid they'll lose their job -- the manager, agent, publicist. It can drive you crazy.

At least with me I've always kept my feet on the ground. I've seen too many people who have turned to drugs or alcohol. All those things can destroy your life.

Sun: How did you manage to avoid the pitfalls?

ADC: It's taught to you when you're very young. It's called good parenting.

Jerry Fink is an Accent feature writer. Reach him at jerry@lasvegassun.com or 259-4058.

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