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He's got the look

Jim Gaffigan is often recognized from his standup comedy and TV roles. But many fans don't know his name, and he understands why.

By JAY CRIDLIN
Published December 7, 2006

Jim Gaffigan is the total package: He's pudgy, balding and extraordinarily pale.

Wait a minute. That doesn't sound like the total package.

"I'm a character actor, which is a nice way of saying 'not attractive,' " says the 40-year-old comedian.

Appearance aside, Gaffigan has become one of the most bankable standup comics touring today. His film and TV resume includes guest roles on That '70s Show, Sex and the City and Ed, and he has dozens of late night talk show appearances under his belt. You may have seen his "Pale Force" animated shorts on Late Night With Conan O'Brien.

He's also starring in the new TBS sitcom My Boys (Tuesdays, 10 p.m.), playing Andy, the cuckolded brother of a tomboy sportswriter.

On Saturday, Gaffigan will perform two sets at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, at 7 and 10 p.m. He recently chatted about free underwear, Hot Pocket jokes and his, um, unorthodox good looks.

On your MySpace page, you refer to yourself as "That Guy." Which is so true, because you pop up on all these TV shows and commercials. But at this point, do more people recognize you as Jim Gaffigan, or as "That Guy"?

Probably more of "That Guy." There's people who know me as the "Hot Pocket" guy. When I'm in the airport, people will go (singing) "Ho-ot Pocket!" Which is weird, because I never know how to respond to that. "Thank you?"

Then there might be someone who's obsessed with Sex and the City, so they'll be like, "You're the guy who went to the bathroom with the door open!"

Your look has a lot to do with your success: blond, pale, balding and slightly pudgy. When did you first realize that your appearance could be an asset to your career?

When you do standup comedy, addressing how you appear is vital to developing a level of intimacy with people that you're talking to. When I started in New York City, I would go to these clubs in Brooklyn or Jersey City, and the only blond person they knew was John Tesh. So I had to diffuse possible perceptions of it: "I know that I might look like a Republican. I know that I might look like a Mormon." It diffuses any hesitation people might have to opening up to my material.

Does your appearance play a critical role in your career now?

I don't know. I've auditioned for indie films where they're like, "Sorry, we cast the kids, and the kids all have black hair, so you can't genetically be the father." So I'm not really getting any roles because of my appearance. But I am a white-bread guy, and it's kind of like, "Look, the dopey white guy!" And being a character actor, you have to be comfortable with that.

Who has the best green room gift baskets in the talk show business?

Some of them have gotten rid of them. Conan used to have one, and they don't have it anymore. In the gift baskets are stuff that people are trying to market, not to people like me, but to people like David Duchovny and Nicole Richie - a certain aftershave, or a bottle of vodka. When I call up, they're always like, 'Oh, all right. I guess we did promise we'd send it to anyone." I did The View, and in that gift basket, they offer you a pair of shoes from some shoe company. I've submitted the card five times, and I've never gotten a pair of shoes. And then there's a vodka company that'll send you a case of vodka, which I've done a couple of times. (pause) Now it sounds like I'm drinking vodka like it's going out of style.

Buying shoes, too.

And there's always a huge packet of Altoids, with every type of Altoid they've ever created, and a T-shirt, and I think at The View, there was some Hanes underwear. It's nothing like the gift basket you might get at the People's Choice Awards, but still, free stuff's always impressive to me.

Preview

Standout standup

Jim Gaffigan performs at 7 and 10 p.m. Saturday in Ferguson Hall at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $34 plus service fees. (813) 229-7827 or www.tbpac.org.

[Last modified December 6, 2006, 10:35:00]