PJ Walsh: Shaved his mullet for the military, cleaned Bill Clinton’s teeth, toured with the Blue Collar comedy team, and will now perform at NYC’s Fringe Festival, with his own one-man show, “Over There: Comedy is His Best Weapon.”

FringeNYC is one of the largest multi-arts events in North America and takes place over a two-week period in August. Founded in 1997, the Fringe Festival uses a jury-based selection process, with about 220 shows being performed out of a much larger pool of applicants. It’s literally a HUGE deal in NYC and a HUGE deal to all of those who enter and get accepted. Comedian, PJ Walsh, submitted just an outline of his one man show and was invited to perform, proving that his ideas and experiences alone were powerful enough to get him into this fabulous festival.

At 18, PJ Walsh was convinced there was no chance of a war coming to fruition and enlisted. From there he eventually became the Dental Technician for President Clinton and traveled to some of the most incredible places in the world. Realizing the comedic skills he truly possessed, PJ made a career for himself as a stand-up comedian, touring with well known performers such as Larry the Cable Guy, and now PJ will take on the stage using both his acting and comedic skills to share his experiences with the audience of the NYC Fringe Festival.

My interview with PJ Walsh proved to be more than a back and forth of questions and answers. I did ask questions and I did gain answers but I feel that to simply transcribe them here would be an injustice to the entire experience. PJ Walsh opened a humble window into his life for me. He enabled me to realize that before anything else, he’s a storyteller, and an inspiring one at that.

PJ Walsh

“I was just a kid who had a Camaro and a mullet from Brewster, New York,” said a modest Walsh as he smiled and adjusted his Yankees baseball cap.  He went on to explain that growing up he was always surrounded by “characters,” funny guys who he shared his high school cafeteria with, chased after girls with, and called friends. After joining the military and making a reputation for himself as a “storyteller” Walsh was hit with a realization that has helped to get him where he is today, he realized that he is undoubtedly, funny.

IMM: Was it a good feeling to realize you’re comedic skills?
Walsh: Oh yeah. You want to know the God’s honest truth? Back then it was even better. I was purely funny. I wasn’t being funny for money. Once you choose to do something professionally it kind of kills the purity of it.
IMM: Do you feel like your experience in Navy helped you to develop your sense of humor and comedic release?
Walsh: The Military showed me everything. It got my brain working.

As a kid who just wasn’t very good in school, Walsh knew the military was one of his only options, but beyond that simple fact, he described himself as being filled with the incessant feeling of needing to serve. “Everyone I looked up to had it in their history,” said Walsh. The comedian wanted to fulfill this unswerving feeling, but he also wanted his own stories to tell. Boy does he have them now! His experiences in the military paired with his background in touring with individuals like The Blue Collar group’s Jeff Foxworthy, have not only added to his comedic skills and provided him with the history and confidence needed to perform, but have also made him wise.

The questions I had originally prepared for PJ Walsh were forgotten once we got to talking because of all the inspirational tales PJ had to share. I was not only cracking up throughout our entire interview but also silently taking mental notes on how I could achieve my own goals, big and small.

IMM: How has your family viewed your interesting career change?
Walsh: Oh, I’ve got a really cool family.

With support from family and an overflowing bucket of ambition, Walsh has taken his life experiences  and what he’s learned from them and has put together a show that he will passionately present to an audience of lucky viewers. “The show is about me going to the edge, and realizing that I can do whatever I want,” said the jokester.

If he uses just a quarter of the gusto he expressed himself with during the hour I spent talking with him, members of the audience will leave being convinced of the same, that they can do whatever they want.

“If you really shoot for something, you’re going to get it in some fashion or close to it. I got to the White House. I wasn’t the President, I was his Dental Technician. I played Radio City. I didn’t sell it out, I was the opening act for Larry the Cable Guy, but I played Radio City…” – Walsh

Walsh hopes to do more than make the audience laugh with his show. He wants to reach them on a deeper level. He wants to show them, through comedy and acting, what it means to be “Over There.”

If you’re looking for laughs in the humble form of true talent and motivation, then check out PJ Walsh at the NYC Fringe Festival. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll leave ready to conquer the world, or at least a small part of it.

Show Details:
Venue: The Players Theater, 115 MacDougal St. NY., NY.
Showtimes:
Friday, Aug. 13th @ 9:45 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 18th @ 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 21st @ 2:45 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 22nd @ 6:15 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 25th @ 9:45 p.n.

Photo Credit: Lindsay Schneider