You may remember comedian Jim Breuer from “Saturday Night Live” as memorable character “Goat Boy” and for his spot-on impression of a hot-tempered Joe Pesci. Or you might recall his memorable cameos and voiceovers in movies like “Half Baked,” “Family Guy” and “Zookeeper.” Now, the comic is perfectly happy to be delivering his unique brand of comedy that is laugh-out-loud funny, and shockingly, nearly 100% family friendly through his standup routines. “Comedy Central” has prestigiously declared him among the “100 Greatest Standups of All Time.”

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Check any preconceived notions about typical standup comedy at the door. Breuer says of his routine, “It’s a lot of family stuff, and it’s also a little bit of current events that usually hits whatever’s going on in the first 10-15 minutes, and then from there, it’s everything that everyone can relate to.” He encourages everyone to go online and check out his YouTube clips for a small taste of what they can expect at one of his shows. 

“I don’t curse on stage. I don’t swear,” Breuer explains of his live shows. “I like that people can bring teenagers and those 12-and-over.” Although he confesses that he doesn’t mind dirty humor, he prefers to get a giggle or laugh from the audience that originates from nothing more than the joke, instead of a bad word. 

Jim Breuer keeps it clean

Breuer explains that in 2008, he made the decision to keep his comedy clean, in part because he had kids. He felt that for his own comedy, cursing came across as juvenile. He was also persuaded by the observation of a woman who approached him back then. He explains, “She said, ‘Oh, you’re the guy from TV and stuff… You’re really blue when you’re live, right? You’re really dirty, like you’re the drug guy!’ … And I went, ‘What?!?’”

“It made me mad, but it also made me realize, if she thinks that way, who else thinks that way and why do they think that way. If you just grew up watching ‘Saturday Night Live,’ or the movie ‘Half Baked,’ you just know a screen persona. You don’t know the son, the father, the husband, or the married, moral family faith guy.” Breuer is proud of his comedy and tackles familiar and relatable subjects in a thoughtful and relatable way in his live shows.

The comedian’s three kids are mostly grown, but still provide Breuer with a constant source of material for his routines. “It never ends… As long as they’re in the house and even after,” Breuer laughs. “I will never run out of material! I will never run out of material being married!” He currently lives in an HOA community that provides yet another source of material for him, and he says the jokes almost write themselves.

Breuer is committed to touring and doing standup and has left TV and movies in his rear-view mirror. “I left that world back in 2000, says Breuer. “I didn’t want to be in that world anymore. I wanted to be in a world where I could control my destiny with standup and starting to put out what I wanted to put out. I don’t have desire for that grind. I’m not a big fan of that world. There’s not a lot of good morals that go along in that industry.”

About a year-and-a-half ago, Breuer started “The Breuniverse” podcast, in part as a response to what he calls a “monopoly” controlling venues and ticket sales. The podcast is available through membership platform Patreon.

Breuer’s Freedom of Laughter Tour brings him to The Venue at Farnsworth Hall Friday, April 21, and Harold’s Cave Creek Corral Saturday, April 22. Tickets are available at JimBreuer.com.