Pauly Shore has seen the top of the mountain and he’s plumbed the valley of despair with a career that skyrocketed to megastardom in the early ’90s with a show on MTV and several hit movies, then fizzled just as quickly with a failed FOX sitcom and an ever-diminishing box-office for his films.
Pauly’s father, comedian Sammy Shore, opened for Elvis in the 1970s. At about the same time, his mother Mitzi opened the legendary Comedy Store on Hollywood’s Sunset Strip, giving her son the rare opportunity to hang out with such rising talents as Robin Williams, David Letterman and the late Sam Kinison, who became his mentor.
With the 2003 Sundance Film Festival debut of his self-mockumentary Pauly Shore Is Dead, actor Shore is gunning for a return to respectability and a chance to reach a new generation with his singular breed of comedy.
Long bitch-slapped by the media — one relatively gracious journalist dubbed him “the dethroned king of dumb-ass comedy” — no one understands better than Shore himself the fleeting nature of fame, fortune and relevance. Yet in this semi-autobiographical dark comedy, which marks his feature directing debut, he is more than willing to flog his own misfortunes as he satirizes the perils of Hollywood. The film follows Shore as he loses his sitcom, house and girlfriend (Jaime Bergman), leading him to fake his own death in a quest for post-mortem adulation.
The comedy is fueled by Shore’s self-depreciation and dozens of cameos including Todd Bridges, Tommy Chong, Ellen DeGeneres, Snoop Dogg, Fred Durst, Heidi Fleiss, Kato Kaelin, Tommy Lee, Chris Rock, Verne Troyer, Vince Vaughn and more.
BadMouth got a chance to interview him via cellphone days before the movie made its U.S. premeire here in Sacramento.
Pauly Shore I’m in a taxi with a whole bunch of people. They’re molesting me.
BadMouth In a good way or a bad way?
Pauly Shore In a good way. Oh, touch me there! Touch me there!
BadMouth Tell me about the movie.
Pauly Shore It’s called Pauly Shore is Dead. And you know that I wrote it and directed it and all that stuff, right? I’ve been working on it for about four years. And it’s coming out. Sacramento is the first spot. Then L.A. and New York on October 1st.
BadMouth Why did you chose Sacramento to premiere the movie?
Pauly Shore I have family there. No, I’m just kidding. I’ve been playing Sacramento for a long time. And every time I played up there it’s been really good for me. And the Crest Theater is a beautiful theater.
BadMouth There are a staggering number of cameos in this movie. And really big celebrities, too. How did you get everybody rounded up for this?
Pauly Shore That’s why it took so long, you know what I mean? That’s why it took four-and-a-half/five years. I was just kind of tenacious. Is that the right word?
I was kind of anal about it. I just wanted to make sure that I filled it with as many familiar faces as I could. I was lucky enough that the people that I pitched, the celebrities, they got the joke. They thought it was funny, and they loved the fact that I’m paying for it.
It’s my baby. When other artists hear that — you reach out to them — they feel more apt to do that, as opposed to getting a call from a studio head or someone like that.
BadMouth Is it fair to say that in the film you poke fun at your career a bit?
Pauly Shore Yeah, I’d say a lot.
BadMouth If you could go back in time would you do things differently the second time around?
Pauly Shore Well, probably. But at the time I really wanted the work. I was in an office to do studio movies. I thought at the time that the projects were right, but then you look back and what I did at the time was create something that was bigger than life. Anytime someone does that, its going to slow down. I kinda slowed down and went away for a while. This is like my — I don’t want to say it’s my “comeback movie.” My whole life, the last 36 years, is in that movie.
BadMouth When the movies were over and you had your down time. There were a lot of people waiting to kick you when you were down. Was it hard not to take that personally?
Pauly Shore Of course you’re going to take that personally.
BadMouth I saw the MTV Punk’d where they went after you. That seemed over the line to me.
Pauly Shore I was used to people dissing me. But that show is set up to dis people. I got set up. I got fucked. I got punked. They punked me. It’s hard to look cool in a situation like that. It’s like stepping on a banana peel.
BadMouth When your girlfriend Shannon Wilsey [porn-star "Savannah"] died, you told an interviewer “Don’t become your character.” Was there some advice in there for yourself, too? Because people have a hard time separating Pauly Shore from “The Wiezel.”
Pauly Shore I would say so. But in reality I did and didn’t [become the Wiezel]. Because if I did become my character, I’d probably be homeless right now. I’m Jewish. I’ve always had a thing where it’s okay to dance with the devil, just don’t become the devil. Even at my peak, I never went too over the top.
You’d think when you saw my old MTV stuff that I was always drunk and high and all that stuff. I wasn’t. It was actually my producers and directors and editors. They were all fucked up.
BadMouth So you didn’t become the Wiezel, but do you think producers and directors had a hard time seeing you as someone outside of that character you were playing?
Pauly Shore Oh, definitely. That’s been my biggest problem. But at the same time, it wasn’t a problem, do you know what I mean? I had an unbelievable run. I starred in like six movies. You have to go away to come back. That’s just normal. That’s with bands, actors, comedians, everything.
I just think that if this movie takes off, and if it’s seen and it’s pushed out there and it catches fire — it will be the first of its kind.
BadMouth It’s pretty daring what you’re doing — poking fun at your career and the Hollywood fame machine. You’re laying it out there in a way I really haven’t seen before.
Pauly Shore With the movie, I wanted to appeal to my audience — the Midwest people who love the Wiezel and goofy stuff — and I also wanted to appeal to people who never liked my stuff. There’s a lot of people out there who didn’t like my style of comedy. So this movie is for both audiences.
BadMouth Were there a lot of people who didn’t like your comedy? I always felt like everyone liked you for a while, then it suddenly became uncool to be into Pauly Shore.
Pauly Shore You look at Seinfeld and guys like Dennis Miller and Bill Maher, those guys are more highbrow. Their comedy has always been that way. So this movie appeals to that audience. It’s very Curb Your Enthusiasm. The comedy comes from the situation, as opposed to me bumping into a wall or jumping off of a table and falling down.
BadMouth Is this an evolution of your comedy style or are you just getting to express some versatility in a way that you weren’t able to earlier in your career?
Pauly Shore I think it’s just kind of like me making fun of a period in my life when people didn’t see me around for a while. Anytime someone in this business is very much out there and then they’re not out there? Immediately people think something bad happened. They’re like, “Where are you? What happened?”
So in the movie I made it like something bad happened. It’s all make-believe. Like Carrot-Top moves into my house. That’s not real. That would be really funny, because — I don’t want to say that he’s my arch-enemy or whatever, but people think that Pauly Shore, Carrot-Top, Adam Sandler, [David] Spade — all those guys are kind of in that — you know what I mean? It’s pretty funny casting-wise to have Carrot-Top move into my house and kick me out.
BadMouth I enjoy your stand-up. And I’ve always thought that the material you wrote for yourself was better than what they gave you in the films. Is the movie going to be a chance for you to show what you can do as a writer?
Pauly Shore Yes, definitely. It’s definitely a showcase for me writing, directing and acting — all that.
BadMouth In an interview with your Son-In-Law co-star Carla Gugino (Spy Kids) and she said this about you: “He’s a really funny guy and maybe an example of a guy who got into a rut with a certain type of role because I actually think he’s more versatile than what we’ve seen him do.” Is the movie going to be our chance to see some versatility?
Pauly Shore Definitely. I’ve gotten good reviews so far, which has been pretty great, because I’m not used to getting good reviews.
BadMouth So this may be the movie that gives you critical as well as box office acclaim — because your movies always did really well.
Pauly Shore I hope that people pay to see it and that they get it. And that they tell their friends. We’re counting on word-of-mouth. People gotta leave saying, “God, I want to see that again,” or “I got to tell my friends about that.”
BadMouth You self-financed the entire movie?
Pauly Shore Yeah.
BadMouth That’s pretty brave.
Pauly Shore That’s crazy. That’s the biggest rule in Hollywood: “Don’t spend your own money.” But people applaud me for spending my own money. Every time I give speeches about the movie or talk about it, they always mention the fact that I spent my own money.
BadMouth Was this in some ways an effort to take back control of your own career?
Pauly Shore Hold on one second — (aside) 46th? You can’t take me there? Okay. How much is it? Hold on. I’m lost in New York. I gotta get out of the cab. I’m lost in New York which is my next movie.
BadMouth I think the Olsen twins got that covered.
Pauly Shore (Laughs)
BadMouth In the past you’ve cited Tom Hanks as a role model for you as someone who was able to transition from goofy roles (Bosom Buddies) to being a more serious actor. Is the movie a move in that direction?
Pauly Shore You look at someone like Hanks or Robin Williams, and they were regarded as goofballs at the beginning of their careers. All they got was an opportunity. That’s it. They got an opportunity to do something different. They got an opportunity to work with a great director.
Weirder things have happened. Hopefully, the movie will set me up for an opportunity for a director to say, “You know what? I’m going put Pauly Shore in a role that people would never expect him to be in.” I don’t have to star in it. Just something different. Something like what Sandler did in Punch Drunk Love.
It didn’t do great at the box office, but it was critically acclaimed. He came across really cool.
BadMouth Was self-financing a necessity? Hollywood might have given you some money to make Encino Man 2, but would they have given you money to do this?
Pauly Shore Exactly.
BadMouth Is there any other question that I should be asking about that I wasn’t bright enough to ask?
Pauly Shore Um-um-um-um — No, that’s cool. The main thing is that this thing came from the heart. I was down-and-out. I couldn’t get it financed. No one would step up. I got so frustrated and pissed off, I was like “Ya know, ‘Fuck everyone. I’m going to do this myself.’ ” And I just started writing checks.
I just kind of learned along the way. When I came at it with that attitude, everything started falling into place. It’s like God saying, “This is how you need to make this thing.”
Encino Man — Encino Man was a sleeper. I didn’t think it was going to do as well as it did. It turned out to be a cult classic.
Son-In-Law — Son-In-Law was kind of my crossover. It was the movie that brought me out of the MTV audience into the mainstream.
In the Army Now — Every comedian does an army movie. And that was my army movie. Working with Andy [Dick] was great.
Jury Duty — I thought Stanley Tucci and myself…there was some really funny stuff. I think it could have turned out better than it did. But I also thing that that’s when “my thing” whatever “my thing” was, started slowing down a little.
Bio-Dome — I wanted to just be retarded in a movie. I wanted to be over the top. Goofy with Stephen Baldwin. Kylie Minogue was in there. It was a funny concept to me.
Curse of Inferno — I really loved working with Janine Turner and Max Perlich and Steve Tobolowsky. Ned Beatty. It’s pretty cool. It’s a little bank heist movie that Showtime made. It was never supposed to be a big studio movie, but it’s a great acting piece for me.
September 20th, 2004 at 12:00 am
links for 2004-09-19
adot’s notblog*: one million downloads Firefox is being downloaded like crazy! (categories: Geek Web) News.com Extra | CNET News.com Lots of super cool geek news. (categories: Geek News) interview: pauly shore | badmouth.net Really good interview with…
September 20th, 2004 at 8:27 pm
Do you *know* this guy, or did he just plug his own site by showing that he had put up a link to yours?
How the HELL to you link up with these celebs, anyway? Is California just one big incestuous cesspit of love-ins, and you happened to see his phone number scrawled on the hairy ass reclining on the pillow next to you?
Damn, I’m jealous.
September 20th, 2004 at 8:37 pm
I don’t know him. It’s called a “trackback” (note the red “tb”). It’s a built in function of MovableType that allows you to link to another blog. I’ve integrated the Trackbacks into the comments section.
As far as the celebrities go, California is where they live. Sacramento is a lot closer to L.A. than St. Louis, where I used to live. There are opportunites to meet these guys. You just need to take them. Most people weren’t ever aware Shore was coming. I found out early and started calling his agent.
You’d be suprised what you can get if you just ask.
September 22nd, 2004 at 4:01 am
Especially from Pauly Shore.
October 10th, 2004 at 4:22 pm
David Letterman is nice …
http://toxicle.mydefcon.org
October 16th, 2004 at 5:08 pm
pauly mentioned in the interview that at one point “it was not cool to like pauly.” i have always been a fan, and have always proclaimed to be. if this movie is half as good as i know that pauly really can be, then he’ll double his funding for the movie, at the very least. can’t wait to see it. does anyone know the DVD release date?
December 14th, 2004 at 5:43 am
Where Have You Gone, ‘Poop Chute’ Ruth?
Picking a favorite Crank Yankers moments is choosing a favorite son, not that god has any plans for me to reproduce in the near future. Not that you can really fault him for that. Anyway, for as much as…
December 18th, 2004 at 9:52 pm
I still think Pauly Shore is a dickwad that couldn’t act his way out of a used condom, without his families help that is….
January 9th, 2005 at 5:34 pm
Don’t be hatin’ on the Wea……sel brother. HEhe. Nice site.
January 19th, 2005 at 2:26 pm
Your looks great, awesome layout. Content could use work, but overall you got a great blog. I like that your blog is funny, too many serious blogs.
http://www.jmaximus.blogspot.com
January 25th, 2005 at 3:29 pm
Hey pauly um… we are having to do a power point presentation about someone we admire and I chose you. I just need info on you n stuff. Well if you can help e-mail me. It is xxmonkymadnssxx@aol.com
yours trully,
Sunny
February 2nd, 2005 at 2:54 am
Hahaha- You I like! Nice place you got here
February 28th, 2005 at 2:43 pm
HEY!
I had to write a strange poem for you for english.. and dont worry this ones not my good copy..just thought i would share
Paulie where did you go?
Youve been gone so long, have you been left out in the snow?
Your known for you wacky, crazy and tacky frizzy haired kind of guy
but you came back on top, and you said that you d.ied.
Oh well at least you tried,
So many things you did to raise to the top,
Even when you had hair like a mop,
you just totally #%*@($ rock!
I love you and the COMEDY SHOP!
February 28th, 2005 at 8:07 pm
I LOVE THAT POEM IT ROCKS MY SOCKS OFF!! LIKE TOTALLY!! TOTALLY!!
PAULY SHORE..YOUR GOING BIG I TELL YA..BIG
*someome..write a nother poem
March 3rd, 2005 at 11:28 pm
and i think pauly shore is wayyyyyyyyyy toas……………y
March 7th, 2005 at 6:23 pm
Oh Pauley Shore…..wouldn’t you love me if I wasn’t a whore? Yes I know you do…cause I said
“I love you ” and then you said “I love you too”
Pauly Shore has rocked ALWAYS, just cause we didn’t see him rockin’ doesn’t mean he didn’t rock steady all along ya’ll
I missed his show here in Austin, I was late and it was sold out but I got to see him and tell him I love him…Keep bein’ true to you Pauly! I’ll see you eventually.
March 9th, 2005 at 10:11 pm
I LOVE YOU I AM A BIG FAN OF YOUR I THINK YOU ARE SO HOT I LOVE THE MOVIE BIO DOME I WATCH IT EVERYDAY I REALLY LOVE YOU I THINK YOU ARE REALLY FUNNY PAULY !!!!!!!!!!!! E-MAIL ME BACK PLEASE THANK YOU!!
ALENA
March 12th, 2005 at 9:52 pm
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. I LOVE THAT MOVIE SON-IN-LAW! IT WAS GREAT..YOU WERE SO HOT IN THAT MOVIE AND SO SWEET. YOU ARE ALSO A REALLY FUNNY AND GREAT GUY. EVEN THOUGH I HAVENT EVER MET YOU I THINK YOU ARE JUST THE GREATEST GUY. OMGOSH YOU ARE SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HOT..EMAIL ME BACK PLEASE..JUST TO SAY HEY..THAT WOULD BE SO COOL..
March 17th, 2005 at 2:35 am
Pauly….I met you at the Austin show…I was the short girl in the red shirt standing by your bus before the show….anyways…I am working on a fansite for you…I hope to hear from you. I have been a loyal fan through it all…
Love ya…there will be more later…hint…
Tracy
April 24th, 2005 at 6:42 am
I really love you, i have almost all of your movies and an autographed picture even though i have never seen you.
Love ya
(seriously)
April 26th, 2005 at 8:20 pm
I just have always loved Pauly’s work.One time while i was working at Six Flags MM he made my day,week,…YEAR!, just by paying for two tickets from me at the cashiers both, if he had just stayed like one sec more i just wolud have given him thoes tickets for free, just becuase he my fav. Pauly Shore is the best!
April 26th, 2005 at 8:39 pm
oops, i ment to say “just becuase (he’s)he my fav. Do you notice how many bad spellers or peps w/h Dyslexia we have here? oh,”if Pauly Shore ever reads this”,” I realy hope that you just have the best time of (you,Yo, yours), YOURE life. I hope to see you one more time, Pauly your soo cool.YOU ARE the Best in my misspelld book, w/h lov JaYme.
May 10th, 2005 at 5:00 pm
pauly is the best… he rock and i love the way he talks nam i tlked like that fer a long time
May 10th, 2005 at 5:03 pm
pauly is the best… he rockz and i love the way he talks man i tlked like that fer a long time
June 12th, 2005 at 1:59 am
PAULY SHORE IS THE MOST AWESOME PERSON IN THE WORLD~
June 19th, 2005 at 1:14 am
HEY!!!Pauly your the coolest.all ur other movies were gnarly and so is this one. ur gonna be BIG and if u dont turn out to be big then evryone screwed up big time because ur the coolest guy in the movie/comey busness.
June 23rd, 2005 at 5:08 am
OOOH MAN PAULY SHORE IS A GREAT ACTOR I WISH I COULD MEET HIM SO I COULD TELL HIM IN PERSON THAT HE IS THE BEST FUNNY ACTOR THAT I HAVE EVER SEEN I HAVE SEEN ALL THE GREAT MOVIES HE WAS IN LIKE
( Encino Man, Son-In-Law, In the Army Now,
Bio-Dome and Jury Duty) I HAVE EVERY ONE EXCEPT
JURY DUTY AND SOME OTHER ONES AND I WISH HE CAN GO BACK AND MAKE MORE MOVIES HE IS THE BEST ACTOR REALLY HE IS AND NOBODY CANT TAKE HIS PLACE HE HAS A GIFT FOR ACTING AND I STAND BEHIND HIM AND I GIVE HIM CREDIT FOR THE WORK HE DOES IT DOESNT
MATTER WHAT IT IS OR HOW BAD IT IS I WILL BE THERE WATCHING EVERY ACTING HE DOES
LIKE THERE IS THIS TV SHOW COMING IN JULY CALLED
(Minding the Store) I CANT WAIT TO SEE IT I HOPE ITS A GREAT HIT SERIES
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK PAULY YOU HAVE A REAL FAN HERE THAT ADMIRES YOUR WORK
DONT GIVE UP YOUR ACTING
June 25th, 2005 at 4:58 am
I saw Pauly in the Vegas airport about a month ago, he was being pursued by a large-bottomed woman who was merciless.
At first I thought it was an act, because I heard his voice and then looked up and almost ran into him. (Pauly looked like he’d been up for at least 40 days and 40 nights.)
He was making a huge scene and everyone in that part of the airport was laughing.
He said “get away from me, you’re a freak.” and then he ran and hid in the bathroom. It
was so funny, even his tree-trunk body-guard guy couldn’t do anything but laugh.
July 9th, 2005 at 3:29 am
Pauly Shore is the hottest guy alive! and he`s really funny!
July 9th, 2005 at 4:00 am
I LOVE PAULY. he’s hillarious, and ya’ll no it, thank god he’s not dead!!!!!!!
July 25th, 2005 at 7:48 pm
Pauly is hot… I have always said that I would marry him in a heart beat! Pauly if there’s any chance you read this I’m wanting to chat sometime. I have already mailed a letter with my pictures, I do beleive you’ll like. You say you want to find someone to settle down with!? Well you really should consider me… I know how to treat a man right!
August 17th, 2005 at 5:14 am
Pauly Shore is an awesome comedian! Leave him and his bad acting alone.
August 17th, 2005 at 5:16 am
Me again…..id do him to
October 7th, 2005 at 11:00 am
You rock!! i got to see your tour to Knoxville Tn on october 3rd. You are as funny as ever it is just that some people are so uptight that they can’t get over the fact that you have grown up. People are just jealous that they can not just get loose and hang out and be funny just by observing the world and seeing the humor in it and that is what you do. You’ll always be #1 in my book. Besides who can be funny and sooo damn sexy too. Not many. Love you pauly.
June 27th, 2006 at 6:53 pm
I LOVE PAULY SHORE!!!!!!! HE IS THE BEST COMEDIAN EVER BORN(that is to me..)
Pauly rocks
June 27th, 2006 at 6:55 pm
hey..
id love to meet him AND marry him!!!!!
February 27th, 2007 at 9:19 am
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