Steve Rannazzisi is best known for playing the commisioner on the fantasy-football sitcom "The League," which means fans checking him out this weekend at Rick Bronson's House of Comedy might be expecting a stand-up routine centered around pigskin.
But during his first night at the Mall of America club, Rannazzisi barely mentioned the game. He did bring up the Vikings, but only to segue into a bit about how his 9-year-old son transformed into a mini-Matlock after suspecting his younger brother had urinated in his t-shirt drawer.
Rannazzisi's appearance Thursday was almost exclusively about the trials and tribulations of fatherhood, a once common source for material on the circuit that is ripe for a revival. Rannazzisi proved he's ready to lead the comeback with clever bits about his wife's obsession with salvaging the kids' baby teeth to the pointless practice of hiding Elf on a Shelf during the holidays.
Rannazzisi did name drop his sitcom, which ran from 2009-2015 on FX and FXX, but mainly so he could talk about how uncomfortable it can get when day-drunk fans accost him in public when he's out with his sons.
His stint at the House of Comedy continues through Saturday with two shows nightly. Visit https://moa.houseofcomedy.net/shows/ for tickets.
