When I got into comedy at 27, I had a turn back moment man it was the day I was gonna
quit. Cause I had had enough man I was living in this car for 3 years man I ain’t got
no money and I was gonna call my mom and dad and ask them could I come home and just stay
in the attic for about 4 months till I find a job. My father told me you can’t come
back home. Once you leave my daddy’s house you gotta figure that out. So I knew it was
gonna be hard. But they had put an answering machine in the attic for me. And so I was
bathing in a hotel in Pensacola Florida and the way I used to bathe was I used to go to
hotels that had those bathroom doors that went floor to ceiling, I would go to real
fancy like Ritz Carlton’s and stuff like that cause they had linen towels wrapped up
in a basket. And I would take a bunch of them in there run hot water on them and I’d take
them in the stall and shut the door and I’d take my bag and I’d soap up. Then I would
wait till the coast was clear and I’d run out and get a bunch of more rags and soak
them up and come out and wipe it off. Then I’d stand there and dry put my clothes back
on that’s how I bathe every other day man. And so I was in there one time and they had
a convention in town. And when I got all the stuff I soaped up, this convention let out
and men was just coming in the bathroom and I couldn’t go out. So I couldn’t get the
soap off. So I let the toilet seat down and I’m sitting there man I just started crying.
I said man I can’t take this no more. I’m fitting to quit. I’mma go call my daddy
and just ask him can I come home and I can’t do this no more. So before I called him, I
called the answering machine and I got a message. And it said Steve Harvey this is Chuck Sutton
from Showtime at the Apollo. We saw a tape of you if you will come to New York Sunday
night, this was a Thursday, come Sunday night, we gonna put you on TV. Showtime at the Apollo.
Put me on TV. That was my dream. But I had a problem. I had 25 dollars and I couldn’t
get to New York. How was I gonna get to New York with 25 dollars? So I said man I went
back in my car and I’m crying again. I said man god, I finally get a shot to get on TV
and then I can’t even go. I said how could you do this to me? And I’m 30 something
now and I’ve been waiting my whole life and you get me here? So I said man let me
call this machine back and just see if he said this Sunday. And I called it back and
it said Steve this is Chuck Sutton from Showtime at the Apollo. We saw a tape of you, we have
an opening for you Sunday if you can get here give me a call let me know, we’d love to
put you on TV. So I got ready to hang up, And I heard *Beep* you have another message.
And I punched in the code, and the message says Steve Harvey this is Tom Sobel from the
Comedy Caravan. I don’t know where you are now but I have a gig available for you in
Jacksonville Florida to pay you 150 dollars Friday night if you can make the gig let me
know. I’m in Pensacola. So I call Tom Sobel, He sends me to this gig to make $150 dollars.
I go the next night I make $150 dollars but I was so funny the club owner said if you
stay the next night I’ll pay you another 150 dollars. I got 300 dollars. I call Tom
Chuck Sutton back at the Apollo and said hey man I just got this message. If you still
got room for me in New York I’d do it. He said yeah come on. So I went to Eastern Airline
bought a round trip ticket for 99 dollars, from Jacksonville Florida to New York, performed
on Showtime at the Apollo, wrote the joke that made me famous, Mike Tyson hit this fighter
Mitch Green in the eye, and his eye start talking. And I wrote that on the way to New
York. Got a standing ovation on the Apollo. I have been on television ever since that
night right there.