One of Forbes’ highest-earning comedians is coming to Boise for arena show

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) – The last time food-obsessed comedian Jim Gaffigan visited Boise, you know he was loving the venue name: Taco Bell Arena.

After all, this is the dude who wrote The New York Times bestseller “Dad is Fat” and also “Food: A Love Story.”

Months after Gaffigan’s performance, the building was renamed ExtraMile Arena. But that won’t stop Gaffigan from returning — and thousands of Idahoans from heading out for some Sunday-night laughter. The popular funny man will headline Dec. 12 as part of his 2021 The Fun Tour.

Tickets to the 7 p.m. show will range from $39.75 to $89.75 at Ticketmaster. The presale starts at 10 a.m. May 11, while the general ticket sale happens at noon May 14.

A six-time Grammy nominee, Gaffigan has become one of the biggest comics on the planet. Pulling in $30 million, he ranked No. 3 on Forbes’ list of the “Highest-Earning Stand-Up Comedians of 2019.”

Known as a “clean” comic, Gaffigan’s observation-based humor has wide appeal. It’s no wonder he moved on to Boise State’s arena after previously doing sellout shows at the smaller Morrison Center.

Gaffigan recently dropped his eighth stand-up special, “The Pale Tourist,” on Amazon, which was nominated for a Grammy, according to a press release. In 2020, he became the first comedian to hit a billion streams on any audio streaming service — in this case, Pandora.

Gaffigan will spend a good part of fall and winter touring, but he’ll also be a familiar sight onscreen. “Up next,” the press release says, “Gaffigan will be seen as the lead in the Sci-Fi dramedy, ‘Linoleum,’ and will star (in) the role (of) Mr. Smee in Disney’s ‘Peter Pan and Wendy,’ opposite Jude Law and Yara Shahidi. He will also be heard in Disney/Pixar’s highly anticipated film, ‘Luca’, opposite Jacob Tremblay and Maya Rudolph, which is premiering June 17.”