GALLAGHER
After graduating from the University of South Florida with a chemical engineering degree in 1969, Gallagher began working as comic/musician Jim Stafford’s road manager. Stafford and Gallagher went out to California in 1979 and Gallagher decided to take the stage himself. He began honing his own comedy act while hanging out at both The Comedy Store and the Ice House.
Gallagher was one of the most popular and recognizable American comedians during the early 1980s. He produced at least one special a year from 1981 to 1987, all of which were carried by Showtime cable network and then re-broadcast numerous times throughout the year. To date he has done sixteen specials.
His signature schtick is the “Sledge-O-Matic,” a large wooden mallet that Gallagher uses to smash a variety of objects, including computer keyboards, containers of cottage cheese, cartons of chocolate milk, tubes of toothpaste, pound cake ("I guess it does"), Big Macs, and, most famously, watermelons. Given the messy nature of this portion of his act, it is usually saved for the finale of his shows. Show attendees in the first two or three rows are usually provided with plastic sheeting for protection, and many fans bring their own additional protection (raincoats, umbrellas, and so on). Gallagher performs other prop-food gags including a demonstration of constipation using a jar of Jif peanut butter and an explanation of the difference between men and women using a sausage wrapped in a banana peel.
Gallagher claims he originally developed the sledge-o-matic act for George Carlin, but it was rejected so Gallagher used as the center piece of his own act.
In addition to the Sledge-O-Matic, Gallagher’s act features a variety of props, including a large trampoline designed to look like a couch, an adult sized Big Wheel, and a cap with a fringe of hair attached to the back.
In particular, while the Sledge-O-Matic act works as an example of physical prop comedy, Gallagher frequently uses this portion of his act as a subtle (or overt) criticism of America’s consumer culture. The act itself is a parody of the hype-filled, low-budget ads for kitchen gadgets such as Ginsu knives that permeated the American television airwaves during non-primetime hours in the late 1970s.