Bill Engvall's Down South Jukin' Interview
A few weeks ago I Emailed Bill to inform him I had added him to our Southern Humor section and asked him to look it over. He graciously came by the site and Emailed me a very nice note. I asked him if he would consider doing a short interview and again he showed his awesome kindness and agreed. We have corresponded back and forth over the last few weeks and I will tell you he is just a very down ta earth guy and a joy ta talk to. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this interview as much as I enjoyed doing it.. ... Bruce Wall 2004
Bill, First off, let me thank you taking time out of your hectic schedule to check out our web site and do this interview. All of us at DownSouthJukin.com are big fans and are honored by your hospitality.
How did the Blue Collar Comedy Tour Movie come about?
The movie Blue Collar Comedy tour came about from the success of the Blue Collar Comedy tour. Our manager had the idea for the movie. In fact we just finished filming the second Blue Collar Tour movie it will be released in December it is called Blue Collar Tour rides again.
Can't wait to see it!!
I noticed a good portion of the first movie was filmed here in Arizona (I particularly liked the Fiesta mall skit, I shop there, lol). Why did you select Arizona as the back drop for the Movie?
We were filming the actual concert at the Dodge theatre in Phoenix because we all have a great fan base in Arizona, it was truly a great experience.
It must be all us rednecks out here
Bill, I have to ask this since we are a Lynyrd Skynyrd/Southern Culture site. Who came up with the idea to close the movie with the “Don’t Ask Me No Questions” Music skit? Why did you pick the Lynyrd Skynyrd song?
If you were to ask all four guys individually who their top five bands were I believe that all of us would have Lynyrd Skynyrd in that top five, so it was a natural choice.
Good answer, lol
I’d like to congratulate you on the success of both Blue Collar Comedy Tour and your new Blue Collar TV. This, by the way, is the best half hour on TV! Jeff, yourself, and Larry are the stars of the show. Ron White does make some guest appearances. Why was Ron not part of the permanent cast?
Thanks for the nice compliment, the only reason that Ron is not a member of the permanent cast is because he had is own deal for a television show.. However I am sure that he will be making many more guest appearances.
Well we sure look forward to seeing his show.
Do you three write the Blue Collar TV skits, or do you have writers doing it? If it is writers, how much creative control do you have over the material?
For the most part we have a staff of writers, but we submit sketches and ideas to the producers and have a great deal of input creatively.
How different is doing a variety show to doing stand up? Which do you prefer?
They are two completely different animals, Sketch is fun because you get to play several different characters. I still love the rush of stand-up though, I believe that you dance with who brung you and I will never stop doing stand-up
Well we hope your dancin' ta Skynyrd, lol
Personally, I find it refreshing that you guys can make me laugh without using bad language and shock value topics. Not to mention I am a Blue Collar Redneck, so I am kinda partial, lol. That being said, why do you think the type of humor the Blue Collar boys are doing has become so popular?
I also believe that if you work clean not only do you reach a wider audience but you will work longer. I believe that one of the reasons for the success of Blue Collar is that we have tapped an audience that has been largely underserved by the media.
I'll second that!
I know you have a new DVD coming out this month can you tell us a little about that?
Yes, Here's Your Sign live is my first DVD and it was a live concert filmed at the Grove in Anaheim. It is available at my website (www.billengvall.com) and in your favorite video store.
A couple of members of the site asked me to get these questions to you:
First off.. I think you are great & thanx for the laughs..time & time again. I read that you were the “Class Clown”.. I always loved the “Class Clowns” growing up. Mainly cuz they made me laugh, but partly cuz THEY were the ones to get in trouble lol. My question is.. Did being the “Class Clown” cause problems for you in school or did your teachers see the possible “success” for your future & support it? Clementine huh? Cute hehe…………. Sincerely, Jacque Kincaid (aka skynyrdfan)
Hey Jacque, You know being the class clown had its ups and downs. Yea sometimes it got me in trouble but I never really did any mean pranks, so consequently the teachers just thought I was a fun kid.
Hey Bill, have you ever given someone a real sign? This is a question one of my son's friends wants to know… Sincerely, Janet Vaughn (aka janet)
Hey Janet, oh yea, in fact when I was doing the club circuit I used to sell signs after the show that said I am Stupid. They were a dollar a piece or two for five bucks. LOL
LOL, I will take a dozen.
Finally, are there any more Blue Collar Tours in the works?
I dont know if there will be any more actual Blue Collar tours because everyone has started doing their own tours, but never say never.
Well, I don’t want to impose on your awesome hospitality so I will cut it off there. Besides, don’t want your fingers ta get tired typing the answers to these, lol. On a personal level I would sincerely like to thank you and the other guys for not only some great laughter, but this interview has made me a hero to my kids, wife and folks, lol. I owe ya one… Thanks for doing this it was a real treat for me….
Please Check out Bill's Website
Do yourself a favor,, go out and pickup a copy of Blue Collar Comedy Tour and Here's your sign! You will never laugh so hard.....