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I was having problems deciding what my topic for today would be, until I received an email informing me that Eddie Izzard was starting his new tour—STRIPPED. Since I would have written a column about him eventually, this seems like the time.
I have to admit a certain amount of bias here. I am typing this under a giant Eddie poster. It is complemented by a blown-up picture of one of my very bestest friends dressed up as Eddie. My boyfriend has to live with the knowledge that if, by some miracle, Eddie happened to glance my way, I would fall into a swoon and never recover.
The first time I saw Eddie perform, I had a migraine. I took some pain meds that would knock me out when they kicked in and turned on the TV to distract myself until then. I happened upon Eddie's performance of DRESS TO KILL on HBO. I remember laughing very hard and trying to fight the drugs to stay awake. Since then, I have seen Eddie perform several times—in the U.S. and in London, written a paper about him for a conference, and driven down to L.A. just to see him perform in a reading of Eric Idle's play, WHAT ABOUT DICK?
I have also managed to incorporate clips of his performances in most of the classes I teach*. Eddie can be used to teach the comic genre, linguistics, constructions of nationality, sexuality, history, Venn diagrams, transitions, argument, and to illustrate the pythonesque. John Cleese once described him as the funniest man in Britain. He is also a wonderful example of the postmodern, in his mixing of high and low culture (how else do you describe a routine about dog food done in front of a page from MACBETH?), his self-referentiality, his sense of play, and his revising and resisting of traditional forms and of endings.
For those of you who don't have any idea who I'm talking about, Eddie Izzard is a magnificent comic from across the pond. He was born in Yemen, speaks several languages (despite being mildly dyslexic), and is a transvestite. He apparently has a hell of a time going through airport security. Some viewers have speculated that he is not a transvestite—that it's part of his act. This is patently false, especially considering that his act is never about what he's wearing. I should also disabuse you of the common misperception that transvestite=gay. Take it from Eddie: "Most transvestites fancy girls."
He has several performance films (I'll just deal with those available in the States). If you're going to watch them all, do it in chronological order. The later pieces are so much stronger that you don't want to 
He's my definite article! |
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go backwards. If you're only going to try one to see if you like it, go for DRESS TO KILL (take it twice and then call me in the morning).
UNREPEATABLE (1994): This is early Eddie. Great riffs on cat doors, survival in the water, Star Trek, and what it means to be a transvestite approaching the 21st century. Favorite lines: "Some people are widely read. I'm thinly read." "I have no problem with homophobia. As long as they do it behind closed doors." "I appreciate your applause, but I don't do it for applause. I do it for cash... it's much better."
DEFINITE ARTICLE (1996): Okay, I'm an English teacher, so how can I not love a man who comes out for his performance on a big book and then projects literature behind him? He takes pages from various works (like the aforementioned MACBETH) and projects them behind him with the definite article (aka "the") replaced with its grammatical name. This is the routine that encompasses grocery shopping, DAS BOOT, dog food, the Roman Empire (and Hannibal's Elephants), St. Paul, Latin (the language), his clarinet teacher, and Pavlov. From Pavlov's diary when he was experimenting with cats: "Day 1: Rang bell, cat fucked off. Day 2: Rang bell cat went and answered door. Day 3: Rang bell, cat said he eaten earlier. Cheeky bugger. Day 4: Went to ring bell but cat had stolen batteries! Final day, day 5: rang bell with new batteries but cat put his paw on bell so it made a 'thunk' noise. Then cat rang his own bell! I ate food."
GLORIOUS (1997): Perhaps the most impressive aspect of this is that he translated the show into French (which he learned in school) and then performed it in France! (France, you should know, doesn't really "do" stand-up, so this is a big deal.) I love this routine, for all its ravings on the Flood, the ILIAD, toasters, bee keeping, and bird strikes: "The birds aren't striking. It's an 'engine suck'!" If you get this DVD, make sure you check out the mockumentary it includes (LUST FOR GLORIOUS), in which Eddie and his handlers try to "man" him up so he can perform in the States. He must be moody, drive fast, have threesomes, and be from France (in lieu of Yemen).
DRESS TO KILL (1999): I know the words to this by heart. So does my son, which is why I keep him. This routine would be especially useful for those who want to bone up on their European history, THE GREAT ESCAPE, the space race, puberty, pronunciation differences between the U.S. and the U.K., and STAR WARS. Watch this and you'll be saying "Ciao" for approximately two weeks.
CIRCLE (2002): If the 
Eddie in Revengers Tragedy |
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last routine was about history, this one centers on religion (or, more precisely, blasphemy). I think enough time has passed that we can laugh about the Spanish Inquisition, can't we? There's also a return to the Death Star (check youtube for a fabulous rendition of this routine done with legos).
While I will always long for Eddie's stand-up, he's also an actor. In fact, he was nominated for a Tony a few years ago. Many of you may know him from his current role as a Southern American Gypsy in THE RICHES (for those needing a fix, season two begins on the 18th). Eddie's role was written specifically for him and he's an executive producer, so you get a nice mix of the character and the Eddie we know and love.
If you want Eddie on film, try these:
SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE (2000): I am one of the few people who find this movie both moving and hilarious. Its premise is the filming of the silent film NOSFERATU (a DRACULA adaptation). The director hires an actual vampire to play the leading role, promising him the lead actress at the end of the shoot. Izzard plays one of the actors who unknowingly has to do scenes with undead.
THE CAT'S MEOW (2001): This is another movie based loosely on truth. Eddie plays Charlie Chaplin aboard Hearst's yacht in 1924 when there was a mysterious death of another famous passenger.
ALL THE QUEEN'S MEN (2001): This is a funny and charming film about a bunch of misfits who are sent to infiltrate a German factory in an attempt to steal an Enigma (coding) machine. As the German men are all enlisted, the factory workers are all female. Eddie has to teach his fellow spies to be transvestites. He also gets to speak German.
REVENGERS TRAGEDY (2002): What is this doing in a column on comedy? Well, all tragedies have their moments of comic relief. This is a Jacobean tragedy (meaning it was written just after Shakespeare's time). The language is the same, but the time has been changed to a dystopian future England. Christopher Eccleston (the first season Dr Who from the new incarnation) stars as the revenger. Eddie is brilliant as one of the people who is going to suffer. Check this out!
Of course, you can see Eddie in more conventional films: MY SUPER EX-GIRLFRIEND; OCEAN'S TWELVE and THIRTEEN; MYSTERY MEN; VELVET GOLDMINE; THE AVENGERS; ACROSS THE UNIVERSE. He's also doing a lot of voice-over work lately. However you see him, see him. And buy tickets to the show!
Ciao!
* As to the rumors that I offered my students A's if they were to hook me up with Eddie—I was . . . um . . . kidding.
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| Comedies with Dr. Karma |
Every other Wednesday
Dr. Karma discusses all things comic, from the classics to what may become classics. Laugh with, but not at, her, please.
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| Karma Waltonen |
Dr. Karma is a silly, nerdy know-it-all, but in a good way. She brings all her overeducation to discuss that which truly matters: comedy. As some famous guy once said: “And if I laugh at any mortal thing, ‘tis that I may not weep.” Or something like that.
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