It’s a Wednesday morning, and Josh Blue is writing jokes while revisiting old haunts in Washington state.
His girlfriend’s along for the road trip, as he shows off his old college stomping grounds in Olympia and the beach where he used to camp every spring break. He’s also got some stand-up shows along the way in Tacoma.
And of course, there is comedy to be made as they drive the highways and byways. It lurks everywhere, Blue says, even in the not so humorous details of life, such as the unusual vision problems his girlfriend is experiencing.
“We tried to figure out what it was,” Blue said, “and it evolved and now the bit is, ‘Oh, my vision is getting worse and I can’t pinpoint when it started, but it was shortly after the solar eclipse.’ Jokes can come out of anything. My girlfriend going blind shouldn’t be funny.”
Blue will perform Friday and Saturday at Loonees Comedy Corner. His name is likely familiar to many, thanks to a long career that began more than two decades ago. He won “Last Comic Standing” in 2006 and came in third on NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” in 2021. His last comedy special, “Broccoli,” was released in 2020 and is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and other streaming services.
Blue also has cerebral palsy, which he references regularly in his act: “Everything comes from the perspective of a guy with a disability,” he said.
He likes that he’s helping educate people about what it’s like to have a disability, but that’s not his first intention.
“I want to be a good standup first and if I’m doing that that’s where the education comes from. I don’t have to beat you over the head with the message. It’s within the humor. You don’t realize you’re learning.”
But he hasn’t always felt this way. In the beginning, he didn’t want to talk about his disability in his comedy, but people kept trying to make him into an aspirational character.
“Now as I get older and am in a position of being someone who’s done a lot, I feel comfortable in that role,” Blue said. “I hate cheesy, woe is me stuff. When people tried to pigeonhole me into you’re so inspirational it was like OK, whatever. Now I’m actually really good at what I do and you saying that takes away from the value.”
These days, Blue relies on his everyday life to provide funny nuggets. He’s got two kids, 16 and 14, and being a dad to teenagers provides endless material.
“The new one I say is when I die please donate my children to science,” he said. “I actually haven’t done it on stage yet. I told both of them, and they did spit takes. They’re in on the jokes.”
What’s surprising him most about kids is how ill-prepared he was for parenthood.
“When you think of having a kid, you think of having a baby and not much past it,” Blue said, “where there should be a weekly seminar you have to attend.”
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