Perry Frank "Francis" Caravello
Early life
Originally from the northwest suburbs of
Chicago, Caravello was born in Park Ridge and lived there before moving to
Des Plaines, Barrington, Palatine, and Arlington Heights.
He moved with his family to Southern California in 1974. In 1979, three weeks after getting his driver's license, he was injured in a car accident that put him in a
coma for three weeks.
As a result of the accident, Caravello suffered
brain trauma.
Career
Caravello started acting and standup comedy around 1988, performing in an aggressive style inspired by his idol
Sam Kinison, which earned him the nickname "Scary Perry". Early in his career he was trying to get standup spots at The Comedy Store, when an
open mic host named Don Barris gave him a challenge to shave his own chest onstage with a razor and no soap. Caravello did the stunt and was given a regular spot at the comedy club.
This was the beginning of frequent comedic collaborations between Caravello and Barris, along with
Tony Barbieri (aka "Mole"), all of which were typically at the expense of Perry.
Caravello has alleged that in 1992 he was coerced into giving a
handjob to a male casting director, where in turn, he received
fellatio in order to receive three SAG vouchers and a role in a movie.
In 2003, Caravello starred in the Comedy Central reality movie Windy City Heat, directed by Bobcat Goldthwait, produced by comedians Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla under their company Jackhole Productions (with TV/film producer Daniel Kellison), and written by Barris and Barbieri. All three co-starred as well.
He had roles in the Adult Swim shows Hot Package and Smiling Friends, as well as , and Virtuosity and was also an extra in Austin Powers in Goldmember where he can be seen multiple times during the prison rap scene.
After Windy City Heat, Caravello started working with Richard Heene on a project called Psyience Detectives in which they played storm chasing detectives. The project ended during production in 2006 when the two men got involved in a physical altercation while filming.
In 2010, Caravello, Barris and Barbieri started a weekly comedy podcast called The Big 3 Podcast, on Adam Carolla's ACE Broadcasting Network.
Perry was prank-called by The Jerky Boys on the track "Perry's Slacks" on the 2020 album The Jerky Boys.
Perry Caravello Live
In November 2020, Caravello launched his own live stream on the platform Twitch (and later expanded to
YouTube) with the help of his publicist Tom Brennan. The following Caravello obtained from
Windy City Heat proved to make his streaming channels successful and began streaming 3 to 4 days a week.
This also brought him a new audience.
Mousetrap lawsuit
On June 1, 2007, Caravello filed a lawsuit alleging that Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Carolla, and
Johnny Knoxville had promised him ten million dollars if he agreed to place his genitals in a mousetrap during an episode of
The Adam Carolla Show. The lawsuit was initiated after Caravello suffered an injury during the stunt, did not receive the promised payment, and was not provided with an account of profits and royalties from DVD sales of
Windy City Heat.
2020 presidential campaign
In a May 2019 episode of
Simply Don The Podcast, Caravello revealed that he would be running for President of the United States in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.
Caravello has stated that he would run as an independent on a platform that included abolishing money, building a wall across the Canada–United States border, providing free universal healthcare, and legalizing medical marijuana. He also supported abolishing
gay marriage, criminalizing
homosexuality, and said he would like to turn San Clemente Island into a gay
prison.
He announced he had abandoned his run (which he claimed was a joke) on July 18, 2020.
Filmography
|
|
| 1994 | Across The Moon | Extra | | |
| 1995 | Virtuosity | Popcorn Vendor | | |
| 2002 | Austin Powers in Goldmember | Extra | | |
| 2003 | Windy City Heat | Himself/Stone Fury | | |
| 2007 | | Sherlock Helms | 1 | |
| 2013 | Hot Package | Himself | 2 | |
| 2022 | Smiling Friends | Simon S. Salty | 1 | |
| 2025 | The Wild Western | "Screaming" Silas Kane | | |
External links
