Kid's got spunkKid's got spunk

Racy humor, like father like son

Dad of pre-teen ‘America’s Got Talent’ comedian Josh Orlian lives vicariously through him with saucy jokes

Josh Orlian (center) sits with his parents before taking the stage on 'America's Got Talent,' June 17, 2014. (screen capture: YouTube/America's Got Talent)
Josh Orlian (center) sits with his parents before taking the stage on 'America's Got Talent,' June 17, 2014. (screen capture: YouTube/America's Got Talent)

Those taken aback by the sexually charged comedy routine of kippah-wearing 12-year-old Josh Orlian on “America’s Got Talent” now have one more reason to be surprised: He took some of the material from his dad.

Josh appeared on “America’s Got Talent” Tuesday night, wowing the judges with racy jokes. In one bit, Orlian said that after attending circus camp, he wanted to learn “sword swallowing,” but his mother objected. To which, he said, his father replied: “I’m not surprised. Your mother hasn’t been interested in sword-swallowing since we got engaged.”

Asked about his wife’s reaction to the jokes, Josh’s father, Joey, responded that “she just heard them for the first time.”

Except that may not be true.

In 2011, Joey Orlian had his own stand-up comedy debut at New York City’s Gotham Comedy Club. And three minutes into the act, he makes the same joke, almost word-for-word.

“The trick my son wants to learn this summer is sword-swallowing,” the elder Orlian said. “And he came to me one day after camp and he was kind of upset because his mother said, ‘Look, you can do other things, but you’re not doing sword-swallowing.’ So, you know, I felt bad for him, but I told him, ‘Look, your mother hasn’t been interested in sword-swallowing since we got engaged.’”

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