Emmy-winning comedian Dom Irrera, KC comic Mike Saccone gab ahead of Comedy Club of KC show

Dom Irrera// Courtesy of Dom Irrera

Emmy award-winning comedian and entertainer Dom Irrera is joining his friend and local comedian Mike Saccone Sept. 27 and 28 at the Comedy Club of Kansas City. The jokester pair will be joined by other fellow comedians as Irrera answers questions about his long-spanning career, while Saccone and comedians Kate Quigley and Billiam Cornell will perform acts.

Irrera, who has appeared on popular sitcoms Seinfeld and Everybody Loves Raymond, the hit movie The Big Lebowski, and popular kids shows Hey Arnold! and Back in the Barnyard, has enjoyed a decades-long career for his relatable bits as an Italian-American. 

Saccone laughs as he tells me how his better comedic half stole the role of Duke the Dog, which won the actor an Emmy, from an actual dog. Irrera smiles and barks in response.

Saccone is a locally-based comedian who won the $100,000 grand prize after competing on Star Search in 1989. A comic career that began in Westport, Saccone has traveled across the country doing shows before returning back home to Kansas City. For the last decade, he and Irrera have performed alongside each other in Vegas.

The pair’s friendship isn’t just one for the stage, either; it is clear from our conversation that Irrera and Saccone’s relationship runs deeper than just being colleagues. The Missouri native even talks about their plans of “steak and Chiefs” for Irrera’s upcoming weekend visit.

Irrera and Saccone first became acquainted decades ago in southern Philadelphia. Their paths then crossed again, after Saccone’s wifes’ tragic passing—This time their encounter forging a closer bond.  

“Dom was opening for Cher. He said, ‘Hey, man, I heard about your wife. I’m really sorry to hear that. After the show, let’s go out. I’ll take you out to dinner, have some drinks, and I’ll try to show you a good time.’ He’s asking me what happened and he starts bawling uncontrollably. Then we both started laughing, crying,” Saccone says.

The KC comedian elaborates on the specialness of his friendship with the famous Italian icon.

“It wasn’t Hollywood bullshit. A lot of times you’d hang out with comedians and they go, ‘Hey man, I’ll call you and we’ll do this again,’ but then they never do. It was genuine,” says Saccone.

Some odd years later, now Saccone is returning the favor to his friend after a devastating medical discovery.

Irrera—who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s three years ago—is heading to Kansas City for one final show. Nonetheless, the professional funny man hasn’t lost his flair for bits—Despite his illness, Irrera still makes jokes throughout our entire conversation. The retiring entertainer even takes breaks from his own interview to question me, asking about my own career goals and personal life.

“Dom, got this Parkinson’s, which was slowly, kind of diminishing his mechanisms to work. He’s just as funny as he ever was. But the mechanics of going through the motions have been diminished because of the disease. We have been trying to plan this show in Kansas City for a while,” says Saccone.

“They love me,” Irrera says jokingly, yet seriously. 

To catch Saccone’s next act and hear from the award-winning comedian and voice actor Dom Irrera, visit the KC Comedy Club website. You can purchase tickets for Dom Irrera and Friends from this link.