Comedian's ready to break out 'W'

John Morgan's act started as sort of a fluke.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
President George W. Bush will not be making an appearance at Winter Jam 2007 Saturday at Wolstein Center.
However, nationally renowned impersonator-comedian John Morgan will be in attendance, meaning audiences will be able to enjoy plenty of George W. hilarity.
"As I say in President Bush vernacular, when it comes to corn, I'm the kernel," said Morgan, calling from his Orlando, Fla., home. "I'm a corny guy and it's funny now to think about it because I never saw myself as a comedian. And here I am tickling people's funny bones."
But does he consider himself a comedian?
"I do," Morgan laughed. "It was God's best-kept secret, and I was the one who didn't know and here I am."
Morgan feels he was a born performer, but it took decades before he discovered his true talent. Roughly two decades ago, he launched a career as a Christian pop music singer but success wasn't in the cards. He returned home to his family hardware store business happy for the experience and the opportunity.
How it came about
"That's where I remained happily for the next 25 years or so," Morgan said. Then fate stepped in when Morgan volunteered at a George Bush campaign stop in Orlando in 2000.
"I was just setting up chairs and one of his full-time staffers looked at me and said, 'Did anybody ever tell you looked a lot like W?'" Morgan said. "And that was the first time I heard the use of W."
From there, the seed was planted but it wasn't until a few years later when his wife did an Internet search for George Bush impersonators and discovered such performers could make a decent living mimicking the President.
That's when he started watching as much Bush footage as possible until he felt confident enough to start performing. So far he's found much success in the corporate world of conventions and conferences.
"I'll do a 20-minute standup or I can actually do an entire keynote speech giving a lecture on leadership, which is hilarious but it leaves you with inspiration and good material," Morgan said.
There's a line
Laughing with the audience and not at President Bush is the fine line Morgan walks every time he takes the stage.
"Like most comedians, I don't take my humor from bashing other people," Morgan said. "I just pretty much talk about funny situations the President might get into. It's very slapstick. It's very surreal. It's not anything anyone takes seriously but it's very funny."
Still, he is impersonating a government official, which means it's political. And with politics, not all audience members may agree. It's for this reason that Morgan shies away from performing in comedy clubs, where conflicts could arise. Nevertheless, hecklers exist everywhere.
"One time I was doing a show and some guy said 'Boo'," Morgan said. "And I just shot back 'Boo-hoo.'"
Light and funny is what Morgan hopes to provide audiences at the upcoming Cleveland show, where he'll be singing his George W. Bush song "I've got the Red White and Blues."
As for what audiences should expect, Morgan -- in his dead-on George W. Bush voice - said, "I was hoping you'd ask, amigo, because that's all part of my strategery. It's my hope and prayer that all Americans will come out to this awesome 'Winter Jam' concert and be blessified."