It seems like they’ve known each other their whole lives. However, Steve Martin and Martin Short didn’t meet until 1985, when both were well into their show business careers.
“We met when I went to Steve’s house to pick up a script for Three Amigos,” Short explains, referring to their popular 1986 comedy western.
“We talk about it in our live show,” Martin adds. “Although we’re not sure what we’re going to talk about, because that will be on the Netflix special and we’re going to try and have a lot of new material for these new dates.”
Indeed, for the past several years Steve Martin and Martin Short have toured together, along with the musical group Steep Canyon Rangers, in a show that features comedy bits, songs and banter between the two entertainers. The upcoming special on Netflix was recorded during last year’s tour. (They will be at PNC Pavilion on Sunday.)
Their popular Martin-squared live pairing all started as a small run of shows back in 2011. “It was very successful,” Short says. “But more importantly, we had a great deal of fun doing it and we realized, of course, we have this natural chemistry and we’re very close friends. So we started evolving the show and adding music and bits, and it continues on.”
They both laugh at the same things, yet when it comes to delivering a joke they have a unique understanding of which one of them should deliver the punchline and when. Martin explains, “We haven’t analyzed it much for fear of ruining it. It’s like when you’re named one of the hottest couples in New York and a year later you’re divorced.”
Both performers are widely regarded as comedic icons, but it was a general interest in entertainment that inspired their career choices. “I think I gravitated toward show business,” Short says. “I didn’t think I’d ever do comedy. I saw myself as doing musicals and plays and being an actor. It wasn’t until I joined Second City in Toronto that it veered more into the character-comedy world.”
Martin adds, “I’m the same. I was always interested in show business. I loved comedy, and I knew I couldn’t sing or dance, so there was only one thing left. It was such a pipe dream though, I didn’t consider it seriously until I was fifteen or sixteen.”
Despite the lack of confidence in his singing voice, Martin had a top-20 hit song in 1978 with “King Tut,” a track that sold over 1 million copies. “I’ll tell you something. There’s a big difference between having a hit single and being able to sing,” he says with a laugh.
Before teaming up with Short, Martin toured as a banjoist with the Steep Canyon Rangers in the early 2000s and occasionally did vocals. He feels that experience really improved his vocal pipes. While driving with Short recently, Martin tried doing a little vibrato, to which his friend responded, “Not bad, but there is a thing called tone.”
Short has been singing for his entire professional career. “I did musicals the first seven years of being an actor in Toronto,” he notes. “Then in Second City it was comedy, but I would play singers or I’d play some character who could sing, but that wasn’t the point of the piece. It was a side thing.
Short also is known for developing characters that, no matter how whack, really resonate with audiences. This has always fascinated Martin. “I find Marty’s characters so bizarre,” he says. “They’re real and yet from outer space at the same time, and I have never been able to figure out where that insight comes from. I admire it. It’s just not like anybody else doing a character.”
Putting all of these elements together in their live show is a challenge. As Martin explains it, “We come up with bits or think up stuff we want to do and then figure out where it should go. I think we’re both very aware of tempo and timing and the shape of the show. But sometimes we think of something and there’s no place to put it.”
The live show, with its emphasis on standup, has allowed them to do things they haven’t done for awhile. “One of the things about stand-up is if something doesn’t work, the next night it’s gone,” Martin says. “If it does work, the next night it’s developed. I haven’t been able to do that for a long time. It was all or nothing in the movies. You make it and a year later the audience sees it.”
Short concurs. “More often than not when Steve and I leave the stage and the audience is still applauding…”
“If,” adds Martin quickly.
“Yes, if,” Short continues. “Assuming they are, we’re already discussing what worked and what didn’t work. That’s the joy of it.”
Feeling in an experimental mood at this point, Martin blurts out a total non sequitur in the hopes it works as comedy. “Can I ask you guys something?” he says over his phone to Short and me, who are elsewhere. “Does it feel dark in my apartment? It feels dark because it’s cloudy outside, but I was going to ask your opinion.”
Of course, since we’re not there with him, how would we know? That’s meant to be the punchline. “This is the kind of joke that wouldn’t make the show,” Short quips.
“Oh, boy,” sighs Martin. “I’m now determined to win with that joke. I’m going to do it on stage.”
“You know what I’d do before you do it on stage?” Short advises. “Rewrite the joke and throw it away.”
You’ll have to attend the Sunday show to find out if Martin takes Short’s advice.
Steve Martin and Martin Short perform at PNC Pavilion at 8 p.m. Sunday. Tickets/more info: riverbend.org
