I am actually old enough to remember watching standup by Sam Kinison when I was a kid. Based on his comedy (which I have revisited since the age of ten) I probably shouldn't have been. I blame my parents. I was a latch-key kid. Just kidding. My parents probably would have killed me if they had found out I was watching Sam Kinison at that age.
But I digress.
Kinison's entrance into comedy was odd to say the least. The guy went from being a Pentecostal preacher to a prolific comedian with a ton of television show appearances, small movie roles, and comedy specials. (My personal favorites were his appearance as an angel on "Married With Children" and as a crazy professor in Back to School.) He also had the most distinctive scream in the comedy profession, that's for sure. And his willingness to talk about his alcohol and drug induced adventures as part of his comedy was innovative. In an age of many high profile comedians, Kinison was maverick, and a successful one at that.
Lives like Kinison's, especially tragically short ones (he died in a car accident in 1992) are excellent fodder for Hollywood. According to "Deadline," the toast of Broadway Josh Gad will take on the role of the late comedian in an upcoming biopic to be directed by Larry Charles. Rich Wilkes will pen the script which will be based on the book "Brother Sam" by Bill Kinison. The film will be set mostly in the 80s when Kinison transitioned from the pulpit to the comedy stage.
Gad is a talented and funny actor and I love the pick. He's always been good in supporting roles like 21 so it will be intriguing to see him as a lead. He's definitely got the physical make up to play Kinison and when you are one of the headliners in "The Book of Mormon" it's practically a given that you have the comedy chops.
No timetable has been set on when the Kinison biopic will begin shooting. In the meantime you can next see Gad as Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak in Jobs on August 16th.
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