Kathleen Madigan is an exception. Over the past three decades,
most comedians haven’t built and sustained the sort of touring and specials
business she has without some sort of major TV show or movie role. Coming from
a long line of Midwestern union workers, Madigan has always approached stand-up
as a job, and by doing so has established herself as one of the most successful
road comics ever as her career continues to explode.
In addition to touring, Madigan has released six stand-up specials
including her most recent 2023 special, “Hunting Bigfoot,” on Amazon Prime. The
special won the Interrobangs’s 2023 Comedy Special of the Year as voted on by
fans. Her previous special, “Bothering Jesus,” released on NETFLIX, became the
highest selling album and most played comedy album on streaming services since
2015. Last April, Madigan filmed her highly anticipated 7th stand-up
special at the Pabst Theater in Milwaukee, WI. The special will premiere later
this fall with a date to be announced soon.
Over her career, she’s squeezed in over 40 appearances on
late-night & day-time talk shows, appeared on “Comedians in Cars getting
Coffee” with Jerry Seinfeld and has multiple comedy specials airing on Amazon,
NETFLIX, MAX, SHOWTIME and Comedy Central.
In 2020, taking advantage of time off touring on the road because
of the pandemic, Madigan created “Madigan’s Pubcast” which has garnered over 13
million streams and over 200 episodes. She shares her thoughts on everything
from Taylor Swift to Area 51. It’s equal parts silly and sincere and feels as
natural and comfortable as chatting with Madigan herself.
After a recent performance at the Chicago Theater, The Chicago
Tribune wrote, “She has all but perfected the art of crafting and delivering a
perfect joke. That singular dedication to the craft shows in both the evolution
of her material over the years and the way she can make a complicated joke with
a hidden nub of wisdom seem both effortless and offhand.”
“I just wanted to tell jokes,” she said. “I didn’t start doing
open mic night to become an actor or a celebrity. Those things never crossed my
mind. For a few of us working, telling jokes was our main and only goal. I
don’t have any more goals. Can’t you just have a goal, reach it and enjoy it?
Why do we have to set more? I don’t get it. Grab a beer and enjoy what you’ve
done.”
She’s won the American Comedy Award for “Best Female Comedian” and
the Phyllis Diller award for “Best Female Comedian.” She’s done multiple USO
tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. “The USO shows are the best. Trust me, no crowd
is more appreciative and fired up to see a show. I’m glad I have the chance to
give back for what they do for all of us.”
RECENT ACCOLADES:
“She has delivered consistently excellent stand-up for over three
decades. She is very good at her job.” – VULTURE
“It’s hard to say what we love more, Madigan’s jokes of her
delivery because both are so honed, so sharp and yet feel absolutely off the
cuff, as if Madigan is just holding court in the corner of a local pub over
pints. Kathleen is a national treasure and Hunting Bigfoot should be high on
your list of specials to watch.” —THE INTERROBANG
“Madigan’s mix of the mundane and somewhat absurd is what makes
her act fell fresh and fun, even after decades of touring.”—ST. LOUIS MAGAZINE
“Madigan has the heartland appeal of Roseanne Barr and the
cultural mindset of Chelsea Handler but exists somewhere between the two of
them while not like being either one of them.”—DECIDER.COM
“She’s small, practical and fun. She makes a lot of sense but not
too much sense. Just enough to be hilarious.” —JERRY SEINFELD
“There’s nobody better than Maddy. Smart and just crushes it every
time. She’s not just one of the best “female” comics, she’s one of the best
comics period.—RON WHITE
“She’s the fun lady at the end of the bar with a lot of opinions
and only half the information. She’s one of the best comics working today. And
she beats me in golf which is just bullshit.”—LEWIS BLACK
Madigan splits her time between Nashville and the Missouri Ozarks
and originally hails from St. Louis, Missouri.