Dave Attell knows that his show is no “”West Wing.”” Ask him about his successful late night comedy show, “”Insomniac with Dave Attell,”” and he’s likely to say, “”It’s a cross between ‘Girls Gone Wild’ and ‘Cops.'”” As the show enters its third season, Attell remains realistic about the success and the limitations of his show.
“”In a sitcom, like ‘7th Heaven,’ they get to try it many different times ’til they get the right ‘Father, what’s wrong?'”” Attell says of the unscripted nature of the show. “”I can’t do that.””
Of course, there is some sort of method to the madness of “”Insomniac.”” The show starts with a brief snippet of Attell’s comedy act in the city in question, then follows him as he roams through the local bar scene and mingles with the townsfolk, concluding with Attell spending quality time with various night-shift workers. Attell, an avowed alcoholic, says that he has seen every drunk situation imaginable, so the night jobs, from sewage treatment to airport runway workers, are the most interesting part for him.
The new season of “”Insomniac,”” which premieres Dec. 5 at 10:30 p.m., will feature Attell in a variety of new situations and locations, such as probing the haunted Shanghai Tunnels in Portland, Ore. Upon hearing about apparitions of prostitutes, Attell asks, “”What does a dead hooker say? ‘Boo! Let’s Party?'””
Attell’s down-to-earth but eager-to-please attitude propels the show. He mixes well with people from every walk of life, from drunken bikers to bored college kids. Credit his respect for “”late-night people”” and his willingness to poke fun at himself along the way.
Of course, “”immersion”” might be a better word to describe this relationship. Attell is constantly dodging bullets while firing them at the same time, some of them aimed at himself. In one instance, Attell makes a few midget jokes because he claims that his best friend is a midget. A diminutive, drunken woman becomes visibly angry with him, and Attell is forced to call in a “”little security.”” Later, he is back to making fun of his “”rolls of fat.””
Attell gives off the feeling that this is what he loves doing and would be doing it even if he weren’t getting paid.
“”It’s the comic lifestyle,”” he says. “”In the ‘Seinfeld’ movie, he doesn’t end up drunk at a Denny’s, talking to a toothless waitress.””
In many ways, hosting “”Insomniac”” is a dream job for Attell. He briefly landed a job in the ’90s working for “”Saturday Night Live,”” but he knew it wasn’t where he belonged.
“”I wanted a job where I traveled, but I thought it would be exotic places like Thailand and Hong Kong,”” Attell says. “”I didn’t know I’d be going to like, Boise, Idaho, or Dayton, Ohio.”” So “”Insomniac”” basically combines all of Attell’s loves: traveling, socializing and boozing. Attell says that the show has probably run its course, but he seems content to continue with it as long as Comedy Central will let him. With an MTV contest on the way in January, in which “”Insomniac”” will pay a visit to the winner’s hometown, and a new season that takes him all the way to Europe, it seems that Attell will be spending all the late nights he wants running amuk with bikers and hooker-ghosts.
Insomniac
****
Starring Dave Attell
Comedy Central
New season: Dec. 5
10:30 p.m.
