D-list celebrity disher Kathy Griffin put out her 2008 album, "For Your Consideration," for the sole purpose of getting a Grammy nomination.
She got the nod, but lost out to comedy king George Carlin.
This year, she landed her fourth career Grammy nomination for her Universal Network Television production "Kathy Griffin: 50 & Not Pregnant."
Griffin was not above lobbying for votes.
"What is appalling to me is that many of the artists that I know, that I tried to lobby - Cher, Stevie Nicks, Dave Grohl - every single one of them said, 'Oh, I don't vote.' I thought I had gotten to a point in my career where I know actual Grammy winners, and none of them vote," Griffin complained during a phone interview a week before the Grammys to chat about her Tucson show tonight.
She's a little bitter when it comes to awards. She's won a Gracie for her Bravo show "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" and was nominated for six Emmys; she won two. Grammy has been elusive; she lost Sunday night to Louis C.K.
"I was robbed of my Tony nomination," the 51-year-old quipped. "They actually took the entire category away. It was a heartbreaker for me because a year before Liza Minnelli won for 'Liza at the Palace,' which she did something like 10 shows. So I did the same thing; let me be your Liza. I did 10 shows on Broadway, and they took the category away. Of course, I blame Ryan Seacrest."
Too bad they won't be recording tonight's show at Tucson Music Hall. If the show is half of what she promises, it surely could get her a fifth Grammy nod.
"I'm going to go too far," she predicted. "You know, I don't feel that I've done my job until at least a few people have left in a huff."
The show, her first here since 2007, is something of a warm-up for her new Bravo show, an hour-long weekly talk show called "Kathy" that launches April 10.
"Bravo has told me it's the no-holds-barred, uncensored week through my eyes," she explained. "It's going to have elements of what you saw with me and Anderson Cooper."
In case you missed it, Griffin co-hosted the New Year's Eve ball-drop from Times Square with the CNN personality. At one point, Griffin stripped to her panties and bra.
Will she bother with a wardrobe for "Kathy"?
"I don't think so. I'm going to decide. But no one can force me to wear clothes, as long as they blur me."
The show will include chatty elements and a weekly roundup of pop culture news, with her trademark celebrity dish and inside glimpse of her private life.
"And, of course, the network has once again mandated that my mother is on every episode," she said. "My mother tests higher in focus groups than I do."
Mom'll be dressed, right?
"It's the oddest thing: I can't get my mom to wear her signature muumuu anymore. She has this total, gone-Hollywood attitude about it. It kind of throws me off every time I see her in an outfit," Griffin said of her mother, 91. "Believe me, the minute the cameras are gone, boom, it's muumuu. She's got the pocket full of waded-up Kleenex, the booze is flowing."
Griffin and her mom are sure to clash over some of the celebrities.
"I am very straightforward about the Kardashians: They must be stopped. My mother, however, is very fascinated by the Kardashians and Kendra (Wilkinson)," Griffin said.
"I'm still reeling from the final episode of the Kardashians where I feel that they did not acceptably answer the question that we as a globe have about why she (Kim Kardashian) wanted out of the marriage (with basketball star Kris Humphries) after 72 days. I'm going to go out on a limb and say I'm Team Humphries."
We'll be hearing a lot about the Kardashians and Griffin's favorite go-to-wacky-celeb, Paula Abdul, who, she often says, has prolonged her comedy career. Griffin said she has plenty of theories why Abdul was fired from "X-Factor" that she wants to share.
"We're going to be going deep in Tucson," she promised. "Basically, because I was on one episode of 'Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,' I am going to be your investigative reporter for all things pop culture."
This could be an award-winning show, she adds.
"There's going to be more swearing than I think anyone has heard at the Tucson Convention Center per square inch per capita," she pledged. "I love an award, so I would at least like to win some kind of award for most swearing."
If you go
• What: Kathy Griffin in concert.
• When: 7:30 tonight.
• Where: Tucson Music Hall, 260 S. Church Ave.
• Tickets: $48 to $78 through www.ticketmaster.com
