A famous entertainer, whose face is shown on the mural behind the Cozy Theatre, plans to perform in Wadena.
Louie Anderson will be doing a comedy show 8 p.m. at the Wadena VFW Sept. 8.
Anderson said his new show is called "Big Baby Boomer", adding that he will also bring up some of his older material.
"I'm going to talk about food. I'm going to talk about being fat. I'm going to talk about being over 50," Anderson said. "I'm going to talk about all the f-words that you can bring your family to see. It's a completely clean show."
Anderson also said he will talk about his family life and growing up in Minnesota.
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Anderson travels around the US doing stand-up comedy. He hosted "Family Feud" from 1999-2002, and is the author of "Dear Dad: Letters from an Adult Child", "Good-bye Jumbo... Hello Cruel World" and "The F Word: How to Survive Your Family".
According to a press release sent to the Pioneer Journal, Anderson has also guest-starred in sitcoms like "Grace Under Fire" and dramas like "Touched by an Angel" and "Chicago Hope". He also acted in the comedy film, "Coming to America", which starred Eddie Murphy. Additionally, Anderson was in the classic "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". He also hosts "Comedy Showcase", the late-night series that follows "Saturday Night Live".
In 1995 Louie put his creative energies to work on the Saturday morning animated series "Life with Louie."
Along with other entertainers who have ties to Minnesota, Anderson is painted on the back of Wadena's Cozy Theatre.
"I did not know that I was on one of the murals," Anderson said. "I can't wait to go there and take the picture of me standing next to the me in the mural. What's more fun than that? What's a better Facebook post than that?"
Anderson, calling from Las Vegas, said he was looking forward to visiting Minnesota again. He was born and raised in the Twin Cities area.
"I don't miss the humidity, I don't miss the ice cold weather, but I love those two weeks of autumn," he said.
Diane Vry at the Wadena VFW said this is the first time Louie Anderson has performed in the Wadena area, but he works with another comedian who has been in Wadena before.
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"He's friends with Scott Hansen, who has performed with us before," Vry said. "He thought that our location would be a good location."
VFW Manager Joe Randall said he started to work with the Minnesota-based Hansen about a year ago.
Anderson said Hansen arranged for the Wadena appearance.
"I did a few VFWs recently in Minnesota, and Scott Hansen's dad has a VFW in his name. We found out that the VFWs could use support," Anderson said, adding that his father was a veteran of both World War I and World War II, and he wanted to honor his father and other veterans this way.
"Scott and I have been doing this for 34 years together," Anderson said. "I had some time off, I'm going to be in Minnesota, and he said, 'Book some stuff. It'll be a lot of fun.' And I said, 'Let's do all the VFWs.'"
Other Minnesota towns where Anderson will perform include Ham Lake, Litchfield and Ada.
Tickets for the Sept. 8 Wadena performance are $35 general admission or $50 VIP Gold Circle, and can be purchased at www.brownpaperticket.com or by calling 1-800-838-3006.
The Wadena VFW can be contacted by calling 218-632-6951.
