Billy Gardell, actor and comedian, will deliver a stand-up comedy performance at the Island Resort & Casino on Sept. 20. (Courtesy photo)

ESCANABA — Billy Gardell, a comedian and actor perhaps best known for starring as one of the titular characters in the sitcom “Mike and Molly,” will take the stage at the Island Resort & Casino Showroom in Harris for a live stand-up comedy show Saturday, Sept. 20.

An amiable Gardell recently spoke with the Daily Press to offer a little insight on his career. The Pittsburgh native explained he began doing stand-up in December of 1987 and did 10 years on the road before moving to California.

“Ten years later, I got a break on a sitcom, and I was an overnight success after 25 years,” he joked, chuckling.

In the early 2000s, Gardell appeared in a number of TV shows, including “The King of Queens,” “Judging Amy,” “Monk,” “Desperate Housewives” and “The Practice.”

He had larger, recurring roles in “Yes, Dear,” “My Name is Earl” and more recently, “Young Sheldon.”

But the series that springboarded Gardell into greater renown was “Mike and Molly,” a show about two people — played by Gardell and Melissa McCarthy — who first meet at Overeaters Anonymous in Chicago. The show then follows the lives of the couple and those around them, with a focus on love and happiness amidst everyday challenges. The series, which aired from 2010 to 2016, resounded with audiences and won two Primetime Emmy Awards.

“Turns out love and kindness is pretty cool. I think we’ve just forgotten that,” said Gardell, remarking on the show’s popularity.

It wasn’t just viewers who were touched by “Mike and Molly.” Gardell said it was his favorite project to work on.

“It was so life-changing; I mean it. That cast was wonderful. We still all talk, and we get together once a month and, you know, have lunch and talk about what parts of our body hurts and how our kids aren’t listening to us,” Gardell said. “But that job was like — all of us kind of experienced success at the same time together, and we were really like a little family as that happened, and I’ll never forget those times.”

He called the experience “a real love affair” between the whole cast, from McCarthy — whom he said was like a little sister — to Reno Wilson to Louis Mustillo to Rondi Reed and Swoozie Kerr, all of whom had a role in each of the 127 episodes.

In March 2016, when “Mike and Molly” was running, Gardell came to the Upper Peninsula and delivered a comedy routine at the Island Showroom, the place he’ll soon perform again.

In addition to television roles peppered throughout his career, Gardell has snagged film roles over the past 20-plus years. After being seen in “Avenging Angelo” with Sylvester Stallone in 2002, Gardell has also been on the silver screen in “Bad Santa,” “You, Me and Dupree,” “Jersey Boys” and others.

The second series to cast Gardell as its star was “Bob Hearts Abishola,” another feel-good comedy. In the show, Gardell plays Bob, a cardiac patient in Detroit who falls for his nurse, a Nigerian immigrant, and initially courts her with quality compression socks. The series ran on CBS from 2019 to 2024.

During and after “Bob Hearts Abishola,” Gardell made his health a priority.

“I lost 174 pounds and got into a good rhythm,” he said. “I had to change some things in my life so I’d be healthy, and that way I can annoy my wife and child for another 20 years.”

The transformation has him feeling far better, he reported.

“I’ve gotten to do some things I never thought I’d get to do. I’ve been horseback riding and surfing and hiking. To be able to embrace that at 56 years old, is — there’s a lot of gratitude that comes with that,” Gardell said. “Those are things I never thought I’d be able to do. … It was a long, long journey. I wish I’d have took care of myself way earlier, but, you know, you knock them down in the order they’re killing you.”

After having taken a break from comedy for a while, Gardell thought he was done with stand-up.

“But then, you know, I was at a friend’s show — my friend Ian Bagg — I was watching his show, and I don’t know, I got that little twitch in my shoulder and thought, ‘You know what, maybe it’s time to go back.’ And I’ve been enjoying it ever since,” he said.

This time, Gardell said, he’s returning to the stage because he loves it, and it’s a different situation from when he first started out.

“It took a minute for people to find me as a stand-up, and people are still finding me,” he said.

As far as coming up with jokes, the comic said: “It’s like any writing. You have streaks where you add new stuff, and then you have those valleys where there’s nothing, and then you just keep wading through it until you find that next creative moment, you know, and that’s been the fun of getting back on stage.”

Another exciting prospect for Gardell is the pursuit of new acting roles.

“The fun of it is the fishing for the roles,” he said. “When you’re lucky enough to have had some success, this part is just gravy. Now it’s just about looking for projects that inspire you.”

He’s already begun breaking into a new world, having recently starred in a well-received drama about an addict called “The Vortex,” which is darker than the other projects he’s been a part of.

“I’m in this new body,” he said, “so I’m eligible to audition for some other roles. It’s just reintroducing myself in this particular body. Because, you know, once you’re kind of known for one thing in Hollywood, they keep you in one thing. So you kind of got to show them that you can do something different.”

Interestingly, Gardell’s newest film role places his character in a casino setting.

On Saturday, Sept. 20, Gardell will emerge on stage at the Island Showroom at 8 p.m. for a stand-up performance coordinated through Bonkerz Comedy Productions.

“If I remember correctly, they have a great steakhouse at that casino. So I’m sure I’ll be investigating that. And I’ve been known to peruse the tables a time or two, so I’ll probably be doing that, too,” Gardell said.

To people considering attending his show at the Island, he shared: “If you’re coming, thank you, and I’ll see you there, and let’s win some money!”

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R. R. Branstrom can be reached at rbranstrom@dailypress.net.