Gallagher’s reputation as a watermelon- and cottage cheese-smashing comedian was forged in the ’80s on the strength of his cable specials and highly interactive performances. But the North Carolina-born performer is the first to admit that that was a long time ago: Although he’s stuck tenaciously to his guns and released three specials in the ’90s and two this decade (the most recent being 2005’s Tropic Of Gallagher), at 63, Gallagher says he’s now “bored” and “bitter” about the current landscape of comedy. While on tour, Gallagher talked to The A.V. Club about inventing the mosh pit, losing his insurance, and the rise of mediocrity forcing prop comedy into extinction.
Gallagher is very, very angry
And also, kind of insane. "I told you: an emphasis on the mediocre. You're giving the audience what they want, but, that's, I guess, a reflection on our society. It's so thin, it's a veneer, it's not deep, it doesn't have a moral direction. 'Cause we really don't know, we don't know."