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 Howie Mandel entertains at the Au Theatre du Casino du Lac-Leamy in Hull, Quebec. The Deal Or No Deal host performed at Casino Rama last night. |
RAMA -- Howie Mandel had issued a language-and-content warning about his live standup show.
Namely, if you have fallen in love with that silly, goofy, all-ages-acceptable host of the popular game show Deal Or No Deal, do not make the mistake of thinking Mandel adopts that same persona during his standup act.
"Don't bring the kids," the veteran Canadian comedian said in an interview. "Please don't.
"Unlike Deal Or No Deal, which is a family show, my standup show is not for the entire family."
Last night Mandel played the first of two shows in the 5,200-seat concert venue at Casino Rama. Originally Mandel was booked for tonight only, but last night's show was added due to demand.
Deal Or No Deal has become my catch phrase," Mandel said during one of his frantic, quasi-ad-libbed routines. "The other night my wife was lying naked on the bed, and I said, 'Open your legs (rather than "open the briefcase"). There is one box left unopened.'
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"I don't know what you people are laughing about, because she said, 'No f---ing deal.'"
Mandel also asked the audience, "Can you grow hair on your ass? Well, you never can change the style, because it always will be parted in the middle."
The evening began in typically weird Mandel fashion, even before opening-act John Mendoza took the stage.
Some tacky Lawrence Welk-era film of an old guy singing a lumbering love song, looped so that it extended to a full 10 minutes, both annoyed and amused the crowd.
"I don't know what you people are bitching about -- I have to listen to this (bleep) every night," Mendoza said.
Mandel, of course, was in Toronto last week for the taping of five episodes of Deal Or No Deal Canada. The TV premiere will be on Sunday, immediately following the Super Bowl on Global (between 10 and 10:30 p.m., most likely).
Mandel, who maintains a home in the Toronto area, did not stay in Ontario over the past week, though.
Once the taping of Deal Or No Deal Canada was done, he immediately flew back to Los Angeles and taped some more episodes of the American version of the show. Mandel then performed a live show in California on Wednesday night before rushing to Rama.
"I do 280 live dates a year," Mandel said.
For someone who has been in show business as long as Mandel has, it's somewhat surprising to hear that he remains as passionate about the standup circuit as he ever was.
"I love that immediate reaction, and that's actually what I love about Deal Or No Deal, too," Mandel said. "But standup is where I started, this is my roots.
"There are no rules, there are no boundaries. I don't have to throw to commercials. I can go anywhere and do anything. I don't edit. It's just my primal scream at the end of each day. It's mostly ad-lib, my standup, and a lot of interactive. The audience is a big part of it."
Casino Rama, of course, is a good hour and a half north of Toronto, at least. Mandel was asked when he's going to perform a show in Toronto proper.
"When I'm invited," Mandel said.
"The lovely people at Global invited me to come and do Deal Or No Deal in Toronto, so I did it. If someone invites me to do a show in Toronto, I'll do it.
"You can't just show up without being asked. It's like having a party by yourself."