Jim Norton is vile. Honestly vile. He’s like that uncle that’s just a little too frank, the one that pounds beers at noon, and elicits social discomfort at the family reunion like it’s his job.
Except, this really is Norton’s job. His brand of biting stand-up is unique because he's so self-loathing, he’ll just as soon take jabs at himself as at his external annoyances in his acts. We’re not talking typically cutesy, self-depreciating anecdotes either; more along the lines of bizarre sex stories, disdain for his own meaty breasts, and tales of hookers, lots of hookers.
Aside from stand-up, Norton has written two New York Times best-sellers and regularly works as the third man on the Opie and Anthony radio show. I recently got a chance to chat with Jim before his string of performances August 5-7 at the Tampa Improv, and we got into politics, The Jersey Shore, and the principles of comic hackery. This could get ugly…
So, you describe yourself as “relatively amusing in a child molesting/stomach cancer kind of way” and are notorious for your self-loathing and vulgarity. How did you first get the balls to go up in front of a crowd and talk about things like picking up hookers and vigorous masturbation?
To me, as a comic, if you’re not honest you’ve got nothing. I mean, what gives me the right to attack other people? I love to attack other people, but I think if I don’t attack myself first then I’m being kind of phony. If I make fun of myself I’m being true, and if the truth ever comes out they can’t really hurt you with it anyway because you already told them.
Being a Jersey native, have you seen The Jersey Shore? How do you feel about it?
Ah, it’s fine. It’s amazing how governor Christie paints a bad image of them. It’s a bunch of dopes gelling their hair and fucking chicks in hot tubs. The Sopranos gave Jersey a bad image. They were murdering each other. It doesn’t bother me at all. J-Wow’s got great tits. So they’re morons. Who cares?
This article appears in Jul 29 – Aug 4, 2010.