Comedian Tracy Morgan to stop in Columbia on comeback tour
Tracy Morgan is back, and he’s coming to Columbia.
The comedian and star of NBC’s “30 Rock” has returned to stand-up after being seriously injured in a car accident in 2014.
Fresh from his October reappearance on “Saturday Night Live,” where he worked for seven seasons, the comedian is embarking on a nationwide winter tour. The “Tracy Morgan: Picking up the Pieces” tour is set to begin Friday, Feb. 5, with warm-up dates November through January. Morgan will stop at The Comedy House in Columbia Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 3-5, for five shows.
“I’m really blessed to get him and to have this opportunity to bring such a big headliner here,” Comedy House owner David Whigham said. “As far as I know, he’s never been to Columbia.”
Mayor Steve Benjamin will give Morgan the key to the city at the 8 p.m. show Thursday, Dec. 3.
Whigham was in the process of booking Morgan for a show a year and a half ago when the limo Morgan was traveling in was rear-ended by a speeding truck. The crash left Morgan in a coma with near-fatal injuries and killed his friend James McNair, a fellow comedian known as “Jimmy Mack.”
At his Oct. 17 guest appearance on “SNL,” Morgan said he felt “so good to be back” and even made light of his injuries.
“People are wondering, ‘Can he speak? Does he have 100 percent mental capacity?’” he said in his opening monologue. “The truth is, I never did. I might even be a few points higher.”
A born-and-bred New Yorker, Morgan grew up in the Bronx and the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant. He had a troubled relationship with his parents and when his dad died of AIDS as a result of heroin use, Morgan started dealing drugs to get by. It wasn’t until after the death of a close friend that he turned to comedy.
Appropriately, his first stand-up performance post-accident was at the Comedy Cellar in New York City.
My first time on stage in 16 Months at the #ComedyCellar! Picking up the pieces! pic.twitter.com/T2uD2Zndot
— Tracy Morgan (@RealTracyMorgan) October 13, 2015Morgan’s stand-up performances are typically very funny and R-rated, Whigham said, with a mix of jokes and storytelling.
“I’m anxious to see his new standup,” he said. “I know it will be funny, but I know there will be some seriousness to it, too.”
Whigham said Morgan ranks in the top five acts The Comedy House has gotten over the years, which includes Chris Rock, Kevin Hart and Mike Epps.
“As the owner I feel honored,” he said. “(Morgan) going to get out there and do something he loves to do.”
If you go
Tracy Morgan stand-up comedy tour
WHEN: Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 3-5
WHERE: The Comedy House, 2768 Decker Blvd.
COST: $40
INFO: http://comedyhouse.us/tracy-morgan/, (803) 798-9898
This story was originally published November 30, 2015 at 1:41 PM with the headline "Comedian Tracy Morgan to stop in Columbia on comeback tour."