Clean comic John Crist jokes about the absurdities of life

Jun. 24—Comic John Crist isn't married and doesn't have children, but he nails parents at their most absurd when cheering or jeering their kids on at sporting events courtesy of his YouTube clip at youtube.com/watch?v=HurkqYAQYJ4.

"The parents at sporting events video was one of my favorite ones to make," Crist said while calling from his Nashville home. "I guess I just see things in the world and in the culture and satirize them as a way with coping with my own feelings.

"I would sit at these games, either for my siblings or for friends' siblings, and I'd hear these parents screaming from the bleachers and having no idea what they were talking about.

"So I made my own version. I feel like when satire is done correctly, people can see how silly they really look and hopefully have a laugh, too!" Crist, 37, pokes fun at Disney, as well, at youtube.com/watch?v=HurkqYAQYJ4.

After watching a TV advertisement, Crist wondered why he failed to experience what brings great joy to youngsters today at America's premier theme park.

"Oh man, I think comedy has always been about seeing the truth in things," Crist said. "I remember sitting on my couch and watching a Disneyland commercial. It was so overly sweet. Like there were happy children licking ice cream cones, hugging their parents, and everyone was enjoying the park at the perfect temperature with no crowds.

"And my comedy brain just saw that commercial and thought, 'OK, my parents took me to Disney when I was a kid, and it was nothing like that. So, I flew down to Orlando, bought a ticket to the park and made my own version. And people related."

Crist, who will perform Friday and Saturday at the Spokane Comedy Club, is a clean comic who happens to be Christian. However, he would like to avoid labels. "Look at music or movies, and you see it's more comfortable for people to put things in categories, easier for the brain to define," Crist said.

"This is a country song, this is a rap song. This movie is suspense, this one is a romantic comedy. But of course now we see country artists collaborating with rappers. And romantic comedies have suspense. That's part of it. I grew up in the South. My dad was a pastor, and we were home schooled. I'll always create content from that perspective."

Crist has no problem milking his upbringing. "I make a lot of Christian-related jokes. It's certainly fair for someone to tag me with the Christian moniker. Is Dave Chappelle a Black comic or just a comic who is Black?" Crist said. "Is Jerry Seinfeld a Jewish comedian, or is he just a comedian who grew up Jewish? It depends on what box you want to put him in.

"I do think comedy and Christianity go very well together. There are of course some things that are deeply sacred to our faith that I probably wouldn't joke about, but there are a lot of things about our subculture that need to be joked about, to help everyone make sense of it all, just like the Disney video."

Shortly after reaching adulthood, Crist had an epiphany after catching outrageous comic Katt Williams. "I watched his comedy special, and it changed my whole life," Crist said. "I wanted to be a comedian from that day forward. Along the way, I've been influenced by lots of comedians, Cedric the Entertainer, Tim Hawkins, Bo Burnham, Dave Chappelle, Sebastian Maniscalco and Sasha Baron Cohen."

Expect Crist to be topical when he makes his Spokane debut. "There is plenty to talk about," Crist said. "Coming out of COVID and everyone just now finally leaving the house. There is lots to discuss. I feel like we've all been kind of observing the culture and think the world is a bit out whack.

"We come together and have a good laugh about it, and everyone feels better. Family group texts, wild things celebrities have said on the internet, trying to date in 2021. We cover it all."