Celebrity Interview: Attell storms Duke City

Published: Thursday, November 20, 2003

Comedian and scholar of intoxication Dave Attell says that Jack Daniels could easily beat Captain Morgan in a fistfight.

"Jack Daniels has the heart, but Captain Morgan has the wind," Attell said. "Captain Morgan's the kind of guy who would not beat you that day, but would find you a week later and beat you in the head with a hammer. Jack Daniels will get you on the ground right now and put a knife to your eye."

Attell, the star of late-night TV's "Insomniac with Dave Attell," will bring his mix of off-handed vulgarity, tongue-in-cheek wise cracks and guaranteed laughter to Albuquerque for the Comedy Central Live tour. He will shoot his mouth off with fellow comedians Lewis Black and Mitch Hedberg.

A New York native, Attell travels from town to town on "Insomniac," delving deep into the annals of nightlife, barhopping and nocturnal debauchery. Accompanied by alcohol and a camera crew, Attell's late-night antics have taken him to the far stretches of Dublin, Amsterdam, Canada, Tijuana - which he claimed was the worst smelling city in the world - and nearly all of the major American metropolises, including the Duke City.

During his epic journey, Attell has encountered many hydras. He's worn a prosthetic penis on his chin, been kissed by a man, consorted with prostitutes and eaten at numerous greasy spoons.

"Insomniac," now in its fourth season, is a favorite among cable-watching night owls. But despite its popularity, Attell said he still encounters resistance when shooting in a new town.

"The research people on the show will go out and see what's available in the town, and they always start out with the wish list: 'We'll go to this town where you get to ride a tiger or fly an F-14 Phantom Jet.' And I'm always like, 'Wow, that's great!' And then a week or two later the research people will go, 'Well, they don't want us to come and do the show there' or 'they don't want us to be around the tiger, but there's a place where you can hold a puppy."'

Although Attell said the goal of the show is to stay up all night and not get drunk, the tenured drinker said he's never actually thrown up on the show.

He said the best cure for a hangover is to "keep drinking." He also noted that before landing a successful network series, he sobered up by actually going to work rather than calling in sick. Hangovers be damned, now Attell can get drunk at work. The cameramen of "Insomniac," however, don't get to partake in the festivities.

He noted that at times, being plastered in front of the crew can be a little embarrassing.

"It's kind of like watching your dad get drunk at Thanksgiving," he said. "Everyone else is playing a part. They're eating and talking and they're there for this big celebration and then there's this drunk guy at the end of the table who's got a carving knife in his hand."

To all the concerned parents who think he is not a suitable role model for children, Attell said, "Stop judging because we know while your kids are away at school you're (expletive) in their beds."