Jeremy Piven talks ‘Entourage,’ new comedy special, and stripper names ahead of Seattle stand-up show

Actor and comedian Jeremy Piven is making his way to Seattle’s Neptune Theatre Saturday, July 12, as part of his stand-up tour, but not before stopping by “Seattle’s Morning News” on KIRO Newsradio.

“You just shot your stand-up special over the weekend, how’d it go?” “Seattle’s Morning News” host Charlie Harger asked Piven.

“It was incredible. You’re the first people I’m talking to about it,” Piven replied. “I’m actually in St Louis. I just finished a show here, and I’ve been doing different cities every day. I went home to Chicago and filmed (the special) in front of my people, a couple of sold-out shows at the Vic theater. The whole thing was a miracle.”

Career-defining turn as Entourage’s Ari Gold

Piven became an overnight sensation after appearing as Ari Gold in the comedy series “Entourage,” for which he won a Golden Globe Award and three consecutive Emmy Awards across 96 episodes.

“With ‘Entourage,’ my job and, my God, was I lucky to have it, my honor was to take the written word, every single word, and make it feel improvisational,” Piven said. “Make it feel like, ‘Oh, man, this guy’s just making it up,’ because everyone thought I was just making it up, and what a great compliment that is.”

But his dedication to the character Ari Gold and the lexicon of profanity that came with it eventually caught up to him, as producers became convinced he wasn’t even acting.

“An agent actually said to me one time, ‘I’m having trouble getting you work on your hiatus because everyone’s saying there’s no way that’s acting,'” Piven said. “And I’m like, ‘I’m sorry, wait, what?'”

Piven’s love for Seattle

“I love Seattle,” Piven said. “My memory of Seattle is filming with Cameron Crowe in Seattle. I did ‘Singles’ and ‘Say Anything’ with Cameron, and then I did a music video with him in Seattle.”

One part of the Seattle leg of his tour that Piven is particularly excited about is performing at the Neptune Theatre, a historic 104-year-old venue with a 1,000-person capacity in the University District. In 2014, the theater was designated as a Seattle landmark.

“It’s a great venue,” Harger said. “I’ve been to a couple of shows there. In fact, I brought my daughter to a concert there once, and they brought us up on stage. I danced on stage there. It seemed like a lot of people were judging me and my dancing.”

“And, by the way, that feeling is very common. That’s what everyone feels the first time they really enter into a new arena like that,” Piven said. “If you wanted to be a professional dancer, and I don’t suggest it, my good man, I don’t know if you have it in you. I think if you were a stripper, your stripper name would be ‘Vanilla Drizzle’ or ‘Put some ice on it.'”

Piven’s show is happening July 12 at the Neptune Theatre. Show starts at 7:30 p.m., with doors opening at 6:30 p.m.

Listen to “Seattle’s Morning News” with Charlie Harger and Manda Factor weekday mornings from 5-9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio. Subscribe to the podcast here.