Celebrity connection: Leanne Morgan

Good humor

Leanne Morgan brings The Big Panty Comedy Tour to Hilton Head

Story by Leslie T. Snadowsky

From sharing Jell-O recipes to telling stories about her new grandbaby, Morgan’s housewife stories let her laugh all the way to the bank while remaining a stay-at-home mom. ©RICK DIAMOND

This Southern charmer can light up a room with her thousand-watt smile, and make you belly laugh so hard you may have to excuse yourself. It’s happened! See Question 3.

Leanne Morgan is an actress, writer and stand-up comedian who has garnered more than 1.5 million followers across social media, and her popular stand-up special, “So Yummy,” has reached more than 50 million views on YouTube.

On Monday, May 16, she’s bringing The Big Panty Tour to Hilton Head’s Arts Center of Coastal Carolina as part of a 100-city theater run across the nation.

Morgan’s home-grown whimsy is derived from her housewife life, and her relatable hilarity, from breastfeeding mishaps to hemorrhoidal humor, continues to make crowds roar with uncontrollable laughter.

She has appeared on ABC’s “The View,” Nick at Nite’s “Funniest Mom” and toured with the Southern Fried Chicks. Morgan revels in her 50-something foolishness and proves it’s never too late to make ’em laugh.

[LocalLife] You’re bringing The Big Panty Tour to 100 city theaters across the U.S. and are performing at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina in Hilton Head Island on Monday, May 16. Why are people from the South funny? [Leanne Morgan] I think Southerners have a more colorful way of storytelling. Growing up in the country, you have to be more creative with ways to entertain yourself, so maybe that sparks imagination and humor.

[LL] When on Hilton Head, are you looking forward to doing any sightseeing? Any favorite places you want to give a shout-out to? [LM] I love Hilton Head Island! I have vacationed there with my family many times. I will definitely stop by Hilton Head Health to see my friend of many years, owner Elizabeth Taylor. She went to high school with my husband and they took AP classes together. She loves me even though I can’t do math. She knows I’m on tour and I need to take better care of myself. I can recharge there at that wonderful place.

[LL] You didn’t start out as a comedian. You started selling jewelry at parties in Tennessee and cracked so many jokes you actually made someone laugh until they peed on a couch. That’s some endorsement! Is she still your number one fan, and did she buy the party host a new couch? [LM] Ha, ha! This is so crazy that you asked about her! We just reconnected after 20 years. She works for my eye doctor. She remembers tinkling on that couch. We were all young moms on a tight budget. I bet someone got an all-purpose cleaner and dabbed it. I told her the other day, ‘When you peed on that couch, that gave me the courage to give comedy a try. That was an ‘aha’ moment.’ We hugged and jumped up and down in the eye doctor’s office.

[LL] That jewelry company you worked for realized you were a diamond in the rough and encouraged your comedy and booked you to speak at company events. And when you moved to San Antonio, you launched an official career in stand-up comedy. What’s the biggest challenge and what’s the biggest thrill when striving to make a live audience laugh? [LM] My biggest challenge was, and is, balancing a career and being a mom first and foremost. I couldn’t go the traditional stand-up route traveling for several days every week and not raising my own children. I just couldn’t stand leaving them for long periods of time. I had to carve out a nontraditional path. That looked very different, but it worked. The biggest thrill in getting laughs is getting an unlikely audience on my side. I’ve seen young men in their 20s in my audience and thought “oh, no!” If I can win them over at 56 in menopause, that’s a thrill and a relief.

[LL] Fans can enjoy listening to your latest album “Are We Gonna Eat Anything?” exclusively on Pandora. What was your inspiration behind this project? [LM] The inspiration behind my new album was the material I have loved and didn’t really have it produced yet on audio. I hope people enjoy it on Pandora, Sirius XM, etc. I love doing that material. A lot of it is about my kids.

[LL] Your stand-up special, “So Yummy,” has reached more than 50 million views on YouTube. You focus a lot about your life, your family and being a woman and a mom. What’s your secret to making mundane topics filled with humor? [LM] Thank you for noticing. That was wild how many people that reached. I really could have been a storyteller at a festival where the women don’t shave their legs. I like to spin a yarn. I’ve raised three children, and I’ve been married a long time. That’s all I know, so that’s what I like to talk about. I think people like to laugh at everyday life with raising kids and keeping a marriage going. Life can be real hard and, on the other hand, real fun. I also think I cope with the hard times through humor in my own life. Did I answer that, or am I rambling?

[LL] If you were stranded on a desert island with other comedians, who would they be and why? [LM] If I were stranded on a deserted island, I would want to be with comedian Karen Mills, my dear friend.