Tony Tripoli Interview: Comedy

 Tony Tripoli is a stand up comedian and actor.  He has appeared on Kathy Griffins: My Life On The D List, Two and Half Men (which he talks about), Fashion Police and other tv spots!  This interview, again, was done several years ago (hence the MySpace and Ugly Betty References).  Tony is a good friend of my friend Chris and was generous enough to do this interview!  Check out his site: www.tonytripoli.com and enjoy the interview below!

John:   Has acting/modeling always been a passion of yours?

 

TT:      I think, as the girliest little boy in Phoenix's history, I had no choice but to start performing; it’s the only place I wasn't risking an ass-kicking. On top of that, I actually excelled, and got praised. 'Shit, count me in....'

 

John:   What about dancing?  I know you played a dancer way back in 1990 on 'How to Murder a Millionaire'-is dancing a favorite of yours as well?

 

TT:      I used to sing and dance on cruise ships (stop laughing), and let me tell you - those bitches work HARD. Dancers work a thousand times harder than actors or singers, and get none of the stokes. They impress me so much. I mean, think about it: they devote their lives to something that will almost certainly not make them a star, and that they can realistically only get paid for while they are young and sexy. A singer or actor can continue doing their thing into old age....So, yes, dancers are really heroic in some ways. And, THAT SHIT HURTS believe me!!!!  I played a 'salsa dancer' in that TV movie with Joan Rivers.... how happy was this gay guy to Lambada with Joanie?  That was a fun gig.

 

John:   I know you were just on 'Two and a Half Men'-which is so funny-how was that working on that set?

 

TT:      2 1/2 men was HUGE for me. I played half of a same-sex couple (my TV husband is the Purple Grapes in the 'Fruit of the Loom' ads) with an adopted Chinese son. We are Holland Taylor (The Mom)'s best friends. When I booked the job, I called everyone I know, and said "I’m gonna be on TV!!!!!!" and they said "Great, what show?" and I said "Two and a half Men” and every person was like '.....oh.'

It turns out, even though this is one of the highest rated comedies on TV, NO ONE I KNOW WATCHES IT.  Ouch.  But, I had a great time, and have a bunch of amazing stories from it (You'll have to come see me do stand up, to hear the dirt!!)  But, here's one: Charlie Sheen fucking LOVES me.  I don't get it, but all week long, everywhere I went, there was Charlie. Always being my shadow. I don’t have any beef with him; he seemed like a really nice guy. I just didn’t go into it thinking he would want to be my new BFF. I mean, what is it about ME that CHARLIE SHEEN would be into hanging out with? By the 4th day, I was like "Charlie, Honey, I don't have any weed...."

 

John:   'Fashion House' was fantastic and I laughed my ass off watching it that must have been a good time filming.   Do you still talk to any of the cast members?

 

TT:      Fashion House was the greatest thing EVER, for so many reasons. First of al, I got to spend the whole summer with Bo Derek and Morgan Fairchild. Oh My God, those two are amazing.  Bo is a huge Republican, but I want to stress that I’m certain that, unlike many, when she passes a mirror, she does in fact have a reflection.  She is really into Gay rights, and we discussed gay marriage, and she has been to more than I have! Not surprising, I guess: you don’t get to be her age and look as great as she does unless you have a few fags on your team.

Morgan Fairchild is one of my all-time favorites.  She is a force of nature!!!! One of the smartest women I’ve ever met- she's HUGELY into politics, military conflicts, aids research, gay rights....hell, that woman is a HERO. I didn’t ever get to be in a scene with her, but because we shot so much everyday, I gat a great deal of time with her. And, I totally fell in love with her. My friend DOUG SPEARMAN (Noah’s Arc) wrote a screenplay foe he and I to do, and I asked if I could have a mother, and if it could be Morgan. He wrote a great character for her, and she has signed on!!!! We are waiting for a start date, but hopefully will be getting to work in March or April. It’s called "hot Guys with Guns", and it’s smart, funny, and SEXY!!!  I still hang out with a few of the folks from Fashion House- The cast all really did get along so well. Its funny, all these hunky young actors are just so totally cool hanging out with gay guys, -they al have gay friends,- so nothing I could do freaked them out. It’s quite a change. When I started working, the straight leading men were so afraid that anyone would think they were gay, that they wanted nothing to do with the out gays on the set. But, on FH, those boys were amazing to us. Often trying to fix me up!!! I guess that’s sweet, huh? "Hey, Tony, I have another gay friend....." They mean well.  Robert Buckley, who played MICHAEL the hunky photographer, is one of the hottest, kindest, funniest guys I have ever known. I wish I could say mean things about him; he so good looking, but honestly, his looks are just the tip of the iceberg. He's a doll. He is co-staring in "LIPSTICK JUNGLE" on NBC Feb 7th, and he tells me he only has a shirt on half of the time. I told him, if he could get that number down to 15 or 20 percent, Id set it as a TIVO SEASON PASS.

 

John:   Talk about 'Screening Party'.  You play a singing waiter and it looks so funny.   When is that coming out or available to be seen? 

 

TT:      Screening Party is a short film / TV Pilot of a great sitcom written by my roommate and best friend, Dennis Hensley. It’s based on his novel of the same name. Its about he and I (as ourselves), and some funny friends, getting together once a month to watch really iconic, touchtone movies like "Pretty Woman", "Jaws", "The Sound of Music" and, even "Glitter".  It’s a riot, and the film version played in the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival here in LA last summer, and the producers will start shopping it around whenever this fucking strike winds down.

The strike is really killing all of us. I hope they come to same conclusion soon, and pay the talent what they deserve. It’s criminal that a writer should get 4 cents per DVD of a show they CREATED, when the studio charges 20 bucks for each DVD. C'mon, guys!!!!

 

John:   If you could be on any television show or have the role of a lifetime-what would it be and why?

 

TT:      It’s hard to say which show is the 'Dream Job', but THE VIEW does come to mind. I really miss Rosie. The show was my favorite thing on TV for the 9 months she was on. Even when I disagree with what she said, I loved seeing someone being passionate and sincere on TV- we never get that. I don’t hate Hassleback, she is a bright lady. I just don’t agree with a single fucking thing she says. EVER. But, to me, the worst is Shari Sheppard. I’m heartbroken!!!! I loved her as a guest host, but once she got the gig, it’s like she got REALY DUMB. I don’t know what to do, I’m so sad over it. I felt duped. I un-friended her on MySpace, Ill tell you that. That'll show her, huh?

 

John:   You have a lot of fans on MySpace-has MySpace sucked you in and turned you into a closet MySpace junkie like so many people have become? (I just lost another friend to MySpace lol)

 

TT:      I swore Id never be on MySpace, because I’m not in college, and not a pedophile.

But, Fashion House was owned by FOX, and FOX bought MySpace, so they came to us and told us if we didn’t have one, they would make one for us. Well, that’s gross- someone else doing a Myspace page AS ME.  Hell, no.  So, I set it up. And, I have to say, I LOVE IT. I have heard from so many people from my past, which is great, and I am surprised everyday by the amount of people, especially outside of the USA, who see Fashion House, and want to send a note. It’s really touching. I have corresponded with guys in Turkey, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Russia, the Ukraine, Poland.....it’s incredible. And, it makes you grateful that you live here in the US!!! When a kid writes that he knows he is gay, but is afraid to tell his Muslim family, for fear of being kicked out of his home, or worse, it really puts your petty problems in perspective!

 

John:   I think a great show to see you on would be 'Ugly Betty'.  Do you watch it?   It's so funny.

 

TT:      I do love UGLY BETTY, and would love to get on that show. My friend, ALEC MAPA was on 7 eps, and loved it. They have done a lot for gay visibility, so GOD FOR YOU, ABC! Now, call me.......

 

John:   All time favorite thing to do on the weekends?

 

TT:      Weekends for me are pretty much the same as weekdays, since I have no 9-5 work schedule. It’s begging for work, and worrying about bills, just like Mon thru Fri.....

 

John:   What is in store for the future?  What future projects can we expect to see from you?

 

TT:      I have been doing a lot of Stand Up, so watch for me coming to your area. I am hopeful that "Hot Guys with Guns" will start shooting in the spring. Aside from that, it’s the regular cycle of auditions, meetings, and, frankly TEARS.

Oh, and Dennis and I are hosting the MR GAY INTERNATIONAL CONTEST (I’m not supposed to say PAGEANT) this weekend, so, you can check out the hotties on MySpace.