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WWE legend turned comedian Mick Foley to perform in Baltimore

Posted: Oct 11th 2012 By: mikeiles

Former WWE wrestler, author and now, comedian, Mick Foley grew up in Long Island, and is a lifelong Yankees fan. Hell of a time for him to be performing in Baltimore.

?Who would?ve thought that would?ve been an issue?? Foley said of his upcoming performance at the Baltimore Comedy Factory at 8 tonight, likely starting at the same time as Game 4 of the American League Division Series between the Orioles and the Yanks.

?I?ll charm the Baltimore faithful with my stories about going to Memorial Stadium as a kid. That was the one series we?d go to every year, Yankees-Orioles, so I?ve got great memories of being in the stadium and have met several of the players over the years and had a chance to tell them how much meeting them meant to me as a youngster.?

Foley fancies himself a storyteller, whether with his body as Mankind or Cactus Jack in some of the most brutal wrestling matches of his time, with pen and paper in his numerous New York Times best-selling autobiographies and children?s books, or now as a spoken word comedic performer.

?I?m a storyteller, not a joke teller. So if somebody is looking for punchlines, they are plenty of other people who do that. But yeah, I tell stories,? Foley said in a phone interview with the Times during a signing for his new children?s book, ?Most Mizerable Christmas? at a New Jersey bookstore Tuesday.

?Once I left full-time wrestling, I had a chance to address several dozen universities across the country and even a few overseas due to the success of a couple of my books; I guess that made me a credible college speaker. That lasted six or seven years. When it dried up I felt like I missed it. So I welcomed the opportunity to address people in a different forum, and that turned out to be from the comedy stage. So while everything I do up there isn?t comedy, I guess it does still fit under the broad category of comedy.?

The Hardcore Legend, as he?s known in the professional wrestling world, recently performed at international comedy festivals in Montreal and Edinburgh, two of the largest in the world. He?s befriended comedy acts like Judah Friedlander and Brendon Burns, who he said are like mentors to him in comedy. His performances draw on his experiences as a professional wrestler, considering diehard wrestling fans make up a majority of the crowd, but still, he?s gotten praise for his work from non-wrestling fans at those festivals, a sign that maybe there is something to this comedy career.

?Anyone can go and enjoy it. I was really pleased after I did the Montreal and Edinburgh comedy festivals ... that reviewers went out of their way to say you don?t have to be a wrestling fan to enjoy this. There was one that kind of summed up my show perfectly, written by a non-wrestling fan, that said if you?re interested in wrestling you?ll love it, and if you?re not you?ll like it. I really can?t ask more than that.?

Wrestling fans will more than get their fill. Foley tacks on a Q-and-A session to the end of his set and will likely do a meet and greet after the show, where fans can ask about his most recent appearance on WWE Raw to a potential WWE Hall of Fame induction at this year?s WrestleMania. While performing in front of hundreds of thousands of people in a main event of WrestleMania is still the most nerve-wracking thing he?s ever done, because he?s still new to the comedy world, Foley isn?t afraid to admit he still gets butterflies, even when performing in front of much smaller crowds.

?There are always nerves any time you are outside your comfort zone. So my first couple comedy shows were filled with tension. It reminds me of when I used to do independent wrestling shows and every night is your most important night,? he said. ?I still feel that way when I get on stage, not that I?m as nervous anymore, but that every night is the most important night. I try to give people the best show I possibly can on every given night.?