Shauna Jackson lives in Alaska, where comedy is nonexistent. For a school project she was instructed to interview someone of importance to her. She chose Rich Vos. From then on her one life mission was to continue on with her interviews. Shauna has been published in Two Drink Minimum Magazine, and was featured on Jim Norton Fans. 

Cringe Humor is honored to feature some of her work

Shauna: Since Last Comic Standing, your career has really taken off. How has that changed your life?

Rich: Better gigs, more money. It hasn't changed my life, it's changed my career. Well I guess it has changed my life because of the better gigs and more money. Just different things. I bought a house; I'm closer to my kids.

SJ: You often talk about your daughters. Do they like your career or is that something you don't really want them to be around?

RV: There's times they like it. I guess it was cool when I was on Last Comic Standing for them. But I'm still their father and it's still my job. You can be the President of IBM, and how impressed are your kids going to be? They were happy and proud. As long as you're a good father, that's all that matters no matter what you do. It doesn't matter if you're on TV or a landscaper or a plumber or a doctor, it's whether you're a good parent or a bad parent, that's what your kids want.

SJ: Since you were a celebrity judge for LCS this year, do you want to say anything about the Vegas controversy?

RV: I wasn't there so I don't really know. It's a show. A show should be cast to some extent. They want to get as many viewers as possible so they try to get as many different types of people as they can. I don't know what the judges knew...They're going in part comedy, and part character. I'm sure all those reality shows are like that. It's not Americas Funniest Comic; none of them are the funniest comic. But that's what makes it a good show. People from different walks of life have a higher viewership. TV wants to develop numbers. I don't know what they told Brett or Drew, maybe it was miscommunication, but I knew when I was there just for humor. That's what I thought and that's what I tried to give. I wasn't there but I think it was probably just miscommunication, that's all.

SJ: You're on Tough Crowd a lot; do you think that's helped your career?

RV: Well yeah, everything helps. That's my favorite show; I think it's a great show. Colin is great at it. I can't think of a better show, besides myself. Comedy Central is great for comedians. They've done a lot for me, I'm really happy with them. You can do a lot more on Tough Crowd and Comedy Central than you can on other networks, besides HBO or whatever. As long as it keeps going and I keep doing spots it can only help, it can't hurt. This weekend I did Baltimore and a lot of people came, and a lot of them knew me from Tough Crowd.

SJ: Colin burns you a lot on the show, does that ever get on your nerves or do you just roll with it?

RV: I roll with it. I get him too! Listen, as long as he keeps mentioning Vos, that's all people remember, the name. He could talk about me every night even if I'm not there, as long as my name is out there. I'm good friends with him; it's just a part of the show. I don't mind it. Opie and Anthony used to fuck with me, but I'd go back and get them too. It's comics that take everything too seriously. Its fun, everyone trashes everyone on that show. Bottom line is whenever they interview Colin at the end of the show, he always goes, "Well Vos is funny, and that's why he's on the show."

SJ: You mentioned Opie and Anthony, and since their Viacom contract is up, do you want to be on the show when it's back on?

RV: I want to be on the first day and every day. I love their show and I love those guys. They're great man. They're funny, down to earth; they give comics a break, and a chance. They're too funny not to be on the radio. Those guys are great. If I could do that and Tough Crowd for the next so many years, I'd be content. Of course they'd both be in New York so I'd never have to go anywhere.

SJ: Do you like doing road shows and traveling, or would you rather just stay in New York?

RV: Some places I like. I just did Baltimore and it was great. When I was with Dave and Cory we had a great time. Sometimes I work with a comic who's on Last Comic Standing II, Bonnie McFarlane. It depends where I'm at and what I'm doing. I had a great time at Baltimore this weekend, it was great crowds. Next week I'm at Indianapolis, we'll see how that goes. I've been in Indianapolis and had good times there. It's not the area you go to as much, its leaving my life and kids. It's tiring. It's a lot of airports and fucking traveling. Hotels and whatever. It wears you out. It's a lot better now than it was before LCS. But Ill always be a comic, that's what I love to do, so these are the venues I'll be in.

SJ: Do you think there's a such thing as a bad crowd or is that just a comic having an off night and needing someone to blame that on?

RV: It depends. This isn't ego. I've been doing this so long. There's usually no crowd I can't get. Some are harder than others, some are drunker than others. Some clubs might not be set up as well as others, just not like a club setting. Usually when people come see me now it's because they know me. And it's always better when you have people who know you come see you because they're fans. So for some reason they like me, or they just have low self-esteem. They want to have a good time. You get drunks or late shows. I can handle it. I see some comics who can't handle it, but that's their style. I can work a fucking knife fight, I don't care.

SJ: Are there any cities or areas you don't like to perform in?

RV: Yeah, ones that don't pay me the money I want. They give me the money I want, I love their city.

SJ: A lot of people say West Coast Comedy is hackish or just trying to get sitcom deals 

RV: You can't generalize East Coast and West Coast. A lot of people do that. There are a lot of great comics in Los Angeles, I mean they're all from New York, but there are good comics in New York, and Boston, and all over the country. Nobody knew who Dave Mordal was and he's a great comic. You just can't generalize. I mean, you go to LA to land TV stuff because that's where the business is. You can't blame people for going out there to get a TV gig, because that's what you want to do. If you want to do TV and movies, you're not going to go to Rhode Island for that, you gotta go to California. There's a lot of comics who only have 5 or 6 minutes. They're using comedy to get to TV, but they get weeded out. True, good stand up comics will be around whether they get TV or not, whether a club around the country or closes or not. If you really want to be a stand up, and you've been doing it, you'll always do stand up. I've had clubs close, comics pass me, and comics drop out, but I'm a comic. Everything else is a bonus. I get a TV gig, that's a bonus because I'm a stand up comic. There's actors struggling to get one or two lines on show on TV, then they've got to go bust their ass waiting tables or whatever. But a good comic will always work. If that's really want you want and work hard, you'll make a good movie. And if something else comes along it comes along. But if you're in LA there's a better chance of that coming along, but you're not going to make the money as a stand up like an east coast comic because there's more places on the east coast to make a living. So you have a sacrifice on each side.

SJ: So with all of that in mind, would you want a regular sitcom job, or just a few spots here and there?

RV: I would love to have a regular sitcom job if it was taping in New York. I mean if it was in LA of course I wouldn't turn it down. I'd also love to be a reoccurring character on a show. Doing a sitcom is a lot of work, but I wouldn't turn it down in a second. But what I want in life, my ideal gig is to be on a TV show in the beginning, a reoccurring character, that films in Queens or whatever, with my character being strong enough for me to make a living off TV and also be near the comedy clubs. There are people who have been on TV for five years and can't draw people to the clubs because of their character of show. But with the right character and show that led into my own sitcom, that would be great. But I'll still be doing stand up either way. Or I'll just marry a rich girl.

SJ Are there any things you would change about your career so far? Anything you would take back or do over?

RV: Everything I've done seems like I was where I was supposed to be at that time. I don't know. I do things better now, showcases and auditions, festivals or whatever. Experience and not being as worried. I still get nervous sometimes when I'm in certain places or things are on the line or a certain industry is there. It's normal to get nervous. I don't know what I would change. Of course if you could change anything in your life everyone would go back and change something. Look, where I am now, if you believe in any sort of higher power or anything, I'm supposed to be where I am. You are where you're at when you're supposed to be there. I can't say I don't deserve what I have, I work hard. I've been doing this for 21 years. I've done some shitty gigs and years on the road, one-niters, hell gigs, nightmares. Everything I get I work for. It wasn't one of these overnight things. Its just hard work and dedication and not being able to do anything else. This is it.

SJ: Well had this not worked out are there any other careers you would have wanted?

RV: I would probably be in sales or something. Who knows? I'd be doing sales, fast-talking.

SV: Selling used Mercedes maybe?

RV: No, I'd be doing something that would make me a lot of money. Probably the stock market or something. I'd probably be in jail for something like insider-trading. Who knows what I would have done? I'm happy with how things are going.

SV: Where do you want your career to go? Is there going to be any one landmark that lets you know you've really made it, or are you just going day by day?

RV: When my head in on Mount Rushmore then I've made it. No, I could quit comedy right now and know I've made it. I've done enough stuff in this business, right now if I stop, I've had a great career. I've done HBO, I've done a million TV shows, I get a lot of respect from a lot of comics, and I hosted Woodstock '99. I've done enough stuff. Everything is a process. It's a process that just goes along. It's tough to follow Last Comic Standing because that was a primetime network show. To follow that I would have to have my own show. So I have to be content with the stuff I'm doing and have it all add up. I don't know how you say if you were successful. I am successful. I'm 18 years clean, I'm a good father, I own a house, I have good kids, I go to my daughters games. They're good in school, they're good students. Success is being divorced and not running out on your kids. So many parents are fucked up. I know comics that will go on the road for 3 months. What the fuck? What it boils down to is your kids are the main thing. The rest of this is just bullshit. I'm in a good relationship with my girlfriend, so yeah, that's success. If I start drinking and doing drugs then I throw everything out the window. That's what people do all the time; they think life's a party. Success is sitting in the stands at my daughters' basketball games and watching them score a rebound or block a shot and getting excited from that. That's a successful feeling.

SJ: You've got a really great attitude about that. I know a lot of people who just have a regular job and still their kids aren't the main focal point of their lives and it's really great that even though you are in the show business you still have all that in line.

RV: I guess this is not a regular job, but it's a job. It doesn't matter, like I said before, you still feel love for your children or love for your spouse, it doesn't matter what you do. You're not a good person or a bad person just by what you do. A good parent or a bad parent, it doesn't really fucking matter what you do. I travel, but sales people travel. I try to make the best of it. I bought a house two miles from my kids; I live two miles from them. I'm not a kid; I'm an adult so I have to act like it. I can't be living in some shitty apartment somewhere or going town to town.

SJ: When you were starting out did your family support you or would they rather you have a more stable job?

RV: They didn't care. As long as I was off drugs, that's all they cared about. But I mean, what parent wants their kid to go, "Oh I want to be a comedian!" That?s like a daughter going, "Hey, I'm going to be a stripper." My father didn't give a fuck as long as I was happy. Parents have dreams for their kids, but they better have a back-up plan as a parent because it?s usually not going to happen the way you want it to. As long as my kids come home with white kids I'll be happy.

SJ: Marry a nice Jewish boy?

RV: It doesn?t matter if they're Jewish, just white. Of course you want them to be Jewish. I just don't want to know they won't suffer in life, and they'll be happy and have all the best things. I guess my parents are pretty happy now.

SJ: Since you're in a good relationship with your girlfriend, does that mean that all the stories about failed pick-up lines and rejections are coming to an end?

RV: Nah, I'll still use those, I'll just say it was before I had a girlfriend.

SJ: So when is this DVD of yours going to be coming out?

RV: Ugh, fuck. I taped five shows at the Stress Factory, and I'm going through them now to pick out the material I want to have it edited. I've gone through one and a half shows and it's almost impossible to watch because I hate watching myself. By the time I pick the stuff out of the shows, I probably won't use all five, Ill just use three or four. I want to get as much material that's not on my CD. I want to get at least half, half or more, to be stuff that wasn't on my CD. There will be some stuff that was on my CD, but you know. It'll probably take, I don't know how long it will take, two months. And it depends what else I throw in there too. I did the Bonarroo Music Festival, down in Nashville, and me and another comic, Bonnie who I mentioned before, were driving around interviewing people at the festival. Just a bunch of kids on pot and I want to get some of that footage onto my DVD.

SJ: You're first CD was really good, so are you going to have another CD come out anytime soon or just the DVD?

RV: Just the DVD. I don't want to sit and have a show outside my store like Norton. Ok, like that sell-out douche bag. Sells shirts, posters, CDs, DVDs. Why doesn't he just selling the fucking flesh off of his fat head. Its so funny how he used to trash me for having a CD, and next he'll just be selling furniture out of his house.

SJ: Well he's got another CD that?s almost done now. He's having his fans come up with the cover design with a $500 contest.

RV: That fathead's having a $500 contest! Jesus Christ, he's holding on by a thread. That'll be four fucking people, his fans. His fans, please!

SJ: He posted it up on Cringe Humor, so it's going to get some publicity.

RV: Ugh. I like Cringe Humor, those fucking idiots. And those guys piss me off too. I'm not a cringe comic, they were saying.

SJ: Yeah, that was actually my next question. I want you to clear that up for everybody. Are you a Cringe comic?

RV: If anybody, I was the fucking first at cringe comedy! These fucking watered down hacks that copy me, what are you talking about? Cringe comics, please. I'm more offensive than any of those assholes, when I want to be. Bobby Kelly, that fucking bloated piece of shit that fucks a chair, who cares?

SJ: Well I agree that you're a cringe comic. I love your CD; I listen to it all the time.

RV: Cringe comedy. Who do they consider cringe comedy, those douche bags?

SJ: I was just talking to Patrick today and he says the people who don't think you're cringe go by what they see on LCS and NBC when you can't be as cringe.

RV: Tell them to come see me live in a club. Whatever. There are just things I say that nobody else will say. AND I get away with it, because I'm very likeable. Tonight there was a guy at the show working at the club, a black busboy, and he was wearing white gloves. I go, "How black do you have to be that they make you wear white gloves when you're picking up drinks so you don't scare the white people or sneak up on 'em." How many people would get away saying that? But my goal is not to be cringe. I like Patrick, and that's probably one of the best comedy sites on the internet. They're honest, they're good. A lot of it is your opinion and they won't know the real deal behind some stuff, but Patrick really is into comedy and really tries to do as much research as he can and get as close and honest to the story as he can without being right behind the scenes. It's a great website. When I'm on the internet I check it at least three, four times a week.

SJ: Would you be interested in doing the Cringe Humor shows?

RV: I did the first show. But the shows are every other Thursday, and I'm out of town so much. And Thursdays I'm always gone. I usually go on the road Wednesday through Monday. I did the first one but it wasn't a big success because it was the first one. If I could do it, I'd love to. I like those guys. He's not making any fucking money off that website, and he's doing a lot for comics. Anytime you put comics out there like that you're helping them out. He's not getting paid.

SJ: Are there any other big shows you'd like to mention?

RV: What do I have coming up? I have Caroline's July 1, 2 and 3. Me and Bonnie McFarlane. Tough Crowd in the next couple weeks. Obviously, waiting for the return of O&A. And whatever else comes along. And maybe one day I'll be lucky enough to be a Cringe Comic, that's how you know you're successful.

SJ: Patrick mentioned that he wanted to have an audio debate with you; I don't know who it would be against. Maybe some of the people who don't think you're a cringe comic or shouldn't be mentioned on the site?

RV: I shouldn't be mentioned on the site? I'm the biggest act on that fucking site!

SJ: I'm not disagreeing with you. You and Robert Kelly and Jim Norton are my 3 favorite comics. And Colin, but he won't put out a CD or DVD so...

RV: Ok, here's the deal. Maybe you could use Jim Norton's name in the same sentence as mine, but don't EVER say Rich Vos and Bobby Kelly in the same sentence. You might say Rich Vos and Jim Norton, and of course my name would be first, then you might say, Bobby Kelly, and who's the fucking chink on the site?

SJ: Steve Byrne

RV: Yeah, maybe Bob Kelly and Steve Byrne, you can put those two in the same category. But the only time Bobby Kelly, Norton and me in the same category is when you do like a before and after picture or something. But that's pretty much the only time a person can do that.

SJ: Well he was voted the breakthrough comic of the year.

SJ: Yeah, I don?t think that's quite what she's going for. No one likes her at the site. Natalie actually just wrote a report on how awful she was in California.

RV: Yeah, I read that. But whatever, I don't care about what other people do in this business because I'm not competing. Who cares what other people do, unless they steal your character or persona. But we have to wrap this up soon because I've got to pull over and piss.

SJ: That's all my questions anyway.

RV: I think that was probably your best interview.

SJ: Alright, thank you. I've done others, this is my 6th.

RV: Who else have you interviewed?

SJ: You, Mordal, Norton, Colin, Bob Kelly, and you again. But yeah, thank you for doing this over.

RV: Oh yeah, thanks again. I hope everything is cool and I'll talk to you later

- Shauna Jackson