Comedian Brian Posehn Still Laughs at Fart and Wiener Jokes

Fart and wiener jokes may reek of immaturity, but comedian Brian Posehn’s wittiness toward his material has always created a more sophisticated appeal to what could be deemed childish.

Posehn, who comes to the on Saturday, has held roles in numerous sitcoms and movies including Just Shoot Me, Friends and Seinfeld, and on HBO’s Mr. Show, a sketch comedy show featuring up-and-coming comedians during the 1990’s.

“That show (Mr. Show) really made me laugh when we were doing it,” said Posehn, who was featured on 28 episodes and was a contributing writer.  “It was like, you know, this is something for everybody.”

Although the will be his first appearance in Ferndale, he’s no stranger to Michigan. He was in Detroit and Ann Arbor recently filming a movie written by Jason Segal called The Five-Year Engagement set to release next year.

“It’s really funny,” he said. “It’s one of the best films I’ve ever been in. I haven’t really been able to break fully into comedies yet, and this is my first step in that.”

Posehn isn’t a stranger to films though, as in recent years he’s been in Rob Zombie’s The Devil’s Reject, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Sex Drive.

His most recent album Fart and Wiener Jokes, which came out last year on Relapse Records, showcased a collection of his brightest stand-up material, his take on Kenny Rogers (The Gambler) and an original song called More Metal Than You.

The latter and the record label itself key in on a major point to Posehn’s character -- The guy loves metal.

His son is named after the late Randy Rhoads (early guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne), and he got Scott Ian, bassist for Anthrax, to play on his record.

Lately, he has been pressed on the Internet about whether he is indeed "metal" or not.

After confirming to perform at the Gathering of the Juggalos this August (it's an event worthy of a Google search) he was lambasted by fans across social networking sites claiming the decision was “not metal.” Posehn retorted on Joe Rogan’s June 13 podcast of The Joe Rogan Experience by saying “getting a paycheck so my kid can go to nursery school next year is metal.”

He’s nonetheless extremely looking forward to "the Gathering."

“(I hope to) not get hit by anything that hurts me,” Posehn said. “I do have the fart and wiener jokes, which I have a feeling might work with the Insane Clown Posse crowd. I’m gonna be dirty and silly and hopefully we’ll have a good time. It’s gonna be an experience, and as a stand-up anything you do can be turned into a joke.”

Posehn also said he’d recently stopped smoking pot after almost 20 years of use, at least for the time being.

“It’s a thing I thought about for a long time,” he said. “It wasn’t so much I hit a real low or anything. It’s not like I quit forever, I’m just taking a long break. There are a lot of different reasons that came into it, like I have a young child, and I wanted to try something else and see what happens and get clear-headed for once. It’s been great for my stand-up. I’m way more present on stage, and I’m writing a lot more recently.”

After going to San Francisco this week to continue shooting Five-Year Engagement, he said he’s really looking forward to his first experience of Ferndale and going back to Detroit.

“I think the shows will be great, I’m getting good responses already,” he said. “You know, it’s funny doing what I do. You hear things about cities, (especially) a city that gets a bad rep. But it all depends on the place. I like to experience it myself then just go off what other people are saying. Detroit, I’ve had nothing but good times.”

After coming through the Motor City a few years ago on the occasional stand-up comedy tour “Comedians of Comedy” -- with friends Patton Oswalt and Zach Galifianakis -- he said Detroit was one of the best shows they ever had.  

Eventually, though, Posehn hopes to branch off with goals of a bigger role, which he says he’s working on.

“I’ve done the background thing for years now,” he said. “I love shooting and that experience being the sixth guy that comes in (and) does something goofy and leaves. But I’d love to be doing a lead at some point and be the goofy guy carrying the show.”

After experiencing Slows Bar BQ in Detroit last time here, Posehn is eager to scoop up a meal at one of the surrounding restaurants of the Bag. Leave a suggestion as to which you think is most important for him to check out on Friday.

Brian Posehn performs two shows this Saturday at the Magic Bag. Show times are 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tickets are $18.