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Veteran stand-up Dave Attell brings new act to Borgata

By Joe Szczechowski

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Jul. 16, 2009

Mr. Mustang: Attell

From 2001 to 2004, comedian Dave Attell had what some would consider a dream job. As the host of Comedy Central's Insomniac with Dave Attell, the Queens, New York, native would wander the streets of an American city in the wee hours of the morning, frequently stopping at bars, clubs and third-shift workplaces to drink, interact, and crack jokes with the average folks he stumbled upon. As the night progressed, the hilarity factor would usually rise along with Attell's blood alcohol level.

The 45 episodes of Insomniac are still re-run on Comedy Central, securing Attell's status as a cult hero in the pantheon of frat-boy humorists. But as a comedy veteran who has spent over 20 years on the stand-up circuit, Attell, who performs Saturday, July 18, at Borgata's Music Box, says he's especially gratified when audiences respond to his material and not just his Insomniac persona.

"The people that come up to me and talk to me about my HBO special, or one of my CDs or DVDs -- those are the ones that really keep me going, because I realize that they're really legitimate comedy fans and they follow what I'm doing," the 44-year-old Attell tells AC Weekly. "Otherwise, I'd feel like I'm just D-level reality TV guy that people know."

Fans might be familiar with Attell's work from a number of HBO comedy specials, frequent talk-show guest appearances, or any number of Comedy Central programs, including the Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn, or the short lived update of The Gong Show that Attell hosted. But Insomniac remains the show with which Attell is most closely associated.

"I love that the people who liked that show come out to see me, but I know they're a little disappointed when they see me just doing jokes," Attell says. "I can't do on stage what I did on that show -- I'd get arrested."

Insomniac's increasing popularity was one of the reasons the show stopped production. By the third season, attempts to film the type of spontaneous interactions that had made it so unpredictable and funny were regularly interrupted by fans who recognized Attell and wanted to be on the show.

Atlantic City Insomniac

Unfortunately, Insomniac never filmed an episode in Atlantic City. Attell says he wanted to, but the show stopped production before the plans were finalized.

"Atlantic City would have been the ultimate," Attell says. "We did Vegas and Reno, and if we had continued on to the next season, we would have hit Atlantic City.

"The problem was that we were always shooting in the winter. Freezing weather in Atlantic City would've been nothing but me and the homeless."

It's almost a clich� when a performer says how much he likes a town in which he's appearing, but when Attell talks about his love for Atlantic City, he seems sincere -- in a Dave Attell kind of way.

"I feel more at home in Atlantic City than I do in Vegas just because every other guy there looks like me," he says. "I love Atlantic City because it's one of the last truly rough-and-tumble towns. It's like a Wild West town. They can put up a Borgata here and a yacht club there, but at the end of the day you don't want to be outside on the street. It reminds me of that show Deadwood -- 'There's gold in the hills and there's plenty a chance of being shot on the street.' Atlantic City has that really cool, edgy vibe."

If you miss Attell's show in the Music Box on Saturday, you might spot him at the poker tables later that night.

"I'm excited to get down to A.C.," he says. "I finally did a poker show on the Playboy Channel, so now I feel like I know what I'm doing." -- JS

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