Dylan Postl, formerly known as Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Hornswoggle/Swoggle, certainly has plenty of stories to tell, and fans will get a chance to hear a few of them at his comedy show, “An Evening With Hornswoggle” on November 12.
Hornswoggle is no stranger to performing; he was prominently featured at various points throughout his 10-year run in WWE. Still, in a recent interview with WrestleZone, he expressed nervousness heading into the show, which will be held in his hometown of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Though he’s excited, he noted that doing comedy shows is much more “nerve-wracking” than anything he did as a WWE Superstar. That being said, Hornswoggle also emphasized that knows it’ll be a fun show, and he’s looking forward to it.
“This will be like the sixth or seventh one I’ve done of these, and it’s nerve-wracking, man,” said Hornswoggle. “And these are the most nerve-wracking and nervous things I ever do. Especially this one, because this one’s in my hometown, where it’s not gonna be just wrestling fans. It’s gonna be like family and friends, and it’s just weird. It’s just a completely different thing than I’m ever used to.
“But I’m excited. I really am excited, and it’s gonna be a really, really fun time. And a few of the stories are in the book, Life Is Short And So Am I, that I’m sure we’ll talk about later, but a lot of the things aren’t, and are things that are reserved just for nights like these. So it’s gonna be a lot of fun.”
To elaborate, Hornswoggle explained that there’s more pressure, on an individual level, with comedy shows; with wrestling, there’s always at least one other person to share blame when something goes wrong. But if he tells a joke that doesn’t hit when he’s on the stage, the fault lies exclusively on his shoulders.
“If something goes wrong in a match, I can blame the other person,” said Hornswoggle. “If something goes wrong in the comedy show or stand-up night and doesn’t get a laugh, it’s only on me. I can’t pass the buck at all. And it’s all the focus is on me, more than ever in my career. There’s no one else there. There’s no dance partner so to speak. It’s just a different thing. It’s a very different feeling. Like I said, these, I get more nervous for these than I’ve ever gotten in a match, ever.”
Part of this concern, specifically as it relates to “An Evening With Hornswoggle,” is that some of the stories Hornswoggle wants to tell aren’t “Grandma-rated.” He recalled how, at a previous show, he unexpectedly performed in front of his parents, and while his mom told him that she was proud of his performance, she noted that some of his content isn’t exactly family-friendly.
“So I opened, Dolph Ziggler does the stand-up nights too, and I opened for him two nights in a row right outside my hometown for his Appleton show, his Appleton, Wisconsin shows. And I didn’t know my parents were coming. And as I’m headed to the stage, I see my parents and I go, ‘Sh-t.’ And I just, I’m going through my head like the jokes I have and the stories I have, and it’s like, man, some of ‘em aren’t for my parents, and aren’t PG-ish or 13-ish. And then at one point, I just stop and I see my parents, and I go, ‘And I’m saying all of this with my parents in the venue, watching me for the first time. And oh, they couldn’t be prouder, I’m sure.’
“But I get a text from my mom the next morning, and saying, ‘You did a great job. I’m very, very proud of you… those weren’t grandma-approved.’ So it’s just fun and it’s those kind of things where I know they’re gonna be there and all that, so it makes it even more nerve-wracking and even kind of harder to judge what it’s gonna be like.”
It’s fair to assume that at least some of the more wild stories Hornswoggle tells at these shows stem from his wrestling career. In order to balance the content so that it’s not purely tales from this side of his life, Hornswoggle described how he often utilizes experiences from other aspects of his experience. He named the challenges of traveling alone and generally navigating the world as someone who’s admittedly “not a normal human” as some of the rich sources for his material.
“I like to do it where it’s wrestling stories and daily life stories,” said Hornswoggle. “Let’s be honest here, I’m not a normal human. I’m not a ‘normie’, as I say. Traveling alone presents challenges that the normal average adult doesn’t go through, that I go through. And it’s just like how people react to me since I’ve been a child and to this day. Whenever something happens, I immediately put it in my phone. And I have just a thing of notes.
“And it’s just of things that have happened, and a lot of them are during my travels on planes, boarding planes, throughout airports and that kind of thing, where it’s just like, man, this world isn’t made for me. And I’m okay with that. I’m fully okay with that. And it makes me happier than it’s not.”
Anyone in Hornswoggle’s shoes could view their situation with a negative mindset and focus on the downsides, but the former WWE star made it abundantly clear that he’s happy with the fact that he has to face any number of challenges every day. He pointed to something as simple as getting into a bed that’s too high as an adventure. Through this brief glimpse at what he calls “another day in the life,” Hornswoggle explained that he always enjoys it.
“It’s awesome, absolutely awesome,” said Hornswoggle. “I love it. When I get into a hotel and they have a very high bed, I literally think to myself, ‘How the hell am I gonna do this?’ And it’s like a running start. And it varies from the bed size, or I’ve tried to move the ottoman to near the bed, and it’s just a day in the life. That’s what I literally call it, another day in the life. But it’s the best. It’s the absolute best.”
“An Evening With Hornswoggle” will be held on November 12 at the Time Community Theater in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the show starts at 7 p.m.
