"Concerned about ticket sales for his concert Sunday night, the Sledge-o-matic comic has cut his ticket prices in half (offering a two-for-one deal) and promised to provide twice as much fun.
"I'm doing this because you have to have a good laugh...and because money isn't important any more," he says by phone from his home.
The tide turner? A heart attack June 5. While watching the Lakers play, the cable TV mainstay felt what he thought was heartburn or "a really good pizza with sausage." The following Monday, "I had a slight tingling sensation on the outside of my left arm and I still had the indigestion. I didn't feel good," but he did go to the emergency room. True to form, he didn't want to bother anyone. "I thought I was taking up time that could have been given to people who were really sick."
A quick blood test revealed the problem: a blocked artery. "A cardiologist whisked me away and inserted a mesh spring. I watched them put it in with a wire. It was like opening up your car."
Because doctors weren't sure what caused the problem ("I weigh 160, I'm 5' 8 1/2" and I only have 15 percent body fat" and his cholesterol levels are good), Gallagher has been like a man on a mission, searching to discover what went wrong. "Until I find out what the problem is, I don't know what to have for lunch," he says. "I didn't eat meat or dairy for two months and then I thought, 'This isn't helping my heart repair itself.'" He continued his self-diagnosis, searching the Internet for clues, reacting like a lab rat. "I'm going crazy," he says.
But he's not stopping the comedy.
Gallagher, in fact, has begun sharing the secret of his Sledge-o-matic, letting audience members wield the mallet and spray the food.
"You've gotta go over your head," he insists. "You've gotta hit flat. Strength doesn't do it. You've gotta add speed, right near the end."
Which means, what? That you will get wet if you're sitting in the front rows of the Municipal Auditorium. Gallagher says he hasn't dropped his signature bit, but he has added all new jokes. "I'm in rare form," he says. "After you almost die, you get a new perspective. I don't have to prove anything anymore. I just want to have fun."
...................................
Sounds like a man on a mission.
KOD
