Home for the Holidays

Lavell Crawford walks onto the stage in St. Louis looking noticeably lighter, having lost over 150 pounds after realizing his physical “check engine light” was starting to flash. Rather than pivot to the boring routines of a fitness convert, he keeps his focus anchored on the domestic chaos of his childhood. Introduced by his mother, Crawford spends his hour taking a cynical look at the commercial hostage-takings that constitute the American holiday calendar.

Filmed at The Pageant in August 2017, the special frames every major celebration as a struggle against financial strain and family eccentricity. Crawford traces the realities of growing up poor in Missouri, where the popcorn on his Christmas tree attracted roaches and his best Secret Santa gift, a Hardee’s gift card, came with a catch. Thanksgiving, his childhood favorite, gets the most detailed treatment, complete with a story about a cousin ruining a bowl of peach cobbler.

The set also targets the inescapable guilt of Mother’s Day and the logistical misery of a family road trip to Disneyland. At this point in his career, Crawford was enjoying a profile boost from playing Saul Goodman’s bodyguard Huell on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.