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Pauly Shore: a little older, a little wiser, dude

BY MATT MUNOZ Bakotopia.com editor
mmunoz@bakersfield.com | Wednesday, Dec 07 2011 04:18 PM

Last Updated Wednesday, Dec 07 2011 05:00 PM

If you can recall when MTV actually played music videos, chances are you remember the antics of comedian Pauly Shore.

A fixture on the cable network during the '90s and host of his own comedy show, "Totally Pauly," the lovable misfit was impossible to avoid. His character, "the Weasel" -- part surfer dude and Sunset Strip social butterfly -- became a pop culture phenom. Along the way, Shore starred in a series of B-comedies like "Encino Man" and "Son in Law," filmed partly on the outskirts of Wasco.

Nearly two decades later, Shore remains active on the stand-up circuit, doing what he does best (or worst, depending on your point of view): being himself. His new live show, "Pauly Shore and Friends," stops at Fishlips Thursday. Older and wiser, the 43-year old comedian/actor said in a recent telephone interview that fans might be surprised by his latest incarnation as a seasoned prankster.

"It's just more in the pocket, more relatable, and just more stripped down Pauly. More personal stuff, now I'm older, now I got that kind of Bill Cosby-esque vibe where I can kind of look back and talk about my life, you know? And I think the autobiographical stuff is what people are really feelin' more nowadays."

Shore grew up basking in the genius of comedians like Richard Pryor and Robin Williams, who performed at The Comedy Store, a Hollywood club owned by his mother, Mitzi Shore. Not that he cares to showboat about his upbringing. On the contrary, Shore said he paid his dues just like everyone else, with no preferential treatment.

"You know, whether my mom owned the club or not, I was inherently a funny kid. I stayed away from The Comedy Store for years when I first started working around town as an adult. I didn't wanna be known as Mitzi's son. I actually almost had to become famous before I became a paid regular. She made me work pretty hard for it."

Still, not too many people can boast that Sam Kinison was their baby-sitter.

"I was around guys like that -- Letterman, Eddie Murphy -- all the time, but I knew I was destined to do this. One thing about my mom is that if she likes you and thinks you have something, she'll let you work at the club as a phone person or parking the cars or seating people. That was her way of saying, 'You're funny, but now the work begins.'"

And work he did, which eventually landed him at MTV, which gave the comedian a shot at producing his own show with only a few years of stand-up under his belt. Young and fearless, Shore packed up his friends and a video camera with no plan but to "find the funny."

"I literally just said, 'Let's go on the street, and we started filming.' It started with 'Sunset Strip week' to show everyone where I grew up. We went back to see the tape and said, 'This is going to be the worst piece of (expletive) ever, or it's going to be really funny.' Luckily it was funny."

Acting as "the Weasel," Shore would introduce music videos between improvisational street skits featuring random celebs and passers-by.

"It was almost like that Reese's Peanut Butter Cup commercial where two things collide and work. The Weasel character literally started on the show. I was like, 'Woo-hoo, I'm in a video, bro.' That was it. It was the first reality show MTV ever had. Nothing was planned."

But after five years of spring break parties and groupies, the network pulled the plug on the show, sending Shore on his next adventure: movies.

"It was the perfect segue, because I told them they had to come to film 'Totally Pauly' on the movie set when I was just starting to get going. It was seamless. You're a kid in your 20s starring in films. I was stoked. It was like Willie Wonka, man."

While "Bio-Dome" won't be remembered for being anything close to Oscar-worthy, Shore has continued writing and producing, plus making regular appearances on the club circuit. Content with the niche he's carved out for himself, Shore said his life could have been yours, dude.

"I was just another kid who was watching MTV and said, 'I gotta be on there.' You keep pushing for something, it'll happen."