Ten to 15 years ago, it seemed like Larry the Cable Guy was everywhere. As part of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour with Jeff Foxworthy, Ron White, and Bill Engvall, he entertained millions at stand-up gigs with his down-home comedy and catchphrases like "Git-R-Done!" and "I don't care who you are, that's funny, right there." He starred in a string of big-screen comedies, including Delta Farce, Witless Protection, and Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector, and has released 10 albums, including the platinum-certified The Right to Bare Arms. He even had his own travelogue show, Only in America, and was the subject of a Comedy Central roast. But what's become lately of the guy born with the name Dan Whitney? If you've missed him, you're not alone—and this is what he's been up to.
The Real Reason You Don't Hear From Larry The Cable Guy Anymore
He's a Pixar superstar
While Pixar's delightful animated movies are suitable for all audiences, the studio's Cars films are pretty much kid stuff. Maybe you haven't seen the movies about anthropomorphic automobiles, but they're insanely popular with kids, and so is Larry. Whitney is a superstar in Pixar land, having used his Larry voice for Mater, the dim-witted, buck-toothed, kind-hearted tow truck who becomes the best friend of famous race car Lightning McQueen. Mater was the breakout character of Cars, a box office smash, so he (and thus Whitney) was the focus of Cars 2. The plot: Mater inadvertently becomes a James Bond-style international spy.
He's a very busy commercial pitchman
Bektrom Foods, a company that makes Hamburger Helper-style dinners and other shelf-stable foods, licensed Larry's likeness for use on a line of products sold in grocery and drugstores. Larry has endorsed a few dozen items for Bektrom (and been paid handsomely for his trouble), including Larry the Cable Guy Spicy Corn Muffin Mix and Larry the Cable Guy Cheesy Tuna Dinner. (Ironically, Whitney-as-Larry has also been the longtime pitchman for Prilosec, an over-the-counter medication to treat heartburn.) A snack food company called Shearer's has also paid Whitney for its Larry the Cable Guy Glazed Almonds & Pecans and Larry the Cable Guy Caramel & Peanuts. Or for those who prefer to prepare their meals from scratch but who also like Larry the Cable Guy, Whitney sells a line of kitchen knives, including a "Melon Cuttin' Knife," a "Bonin' Knife," a "Slicin'" Knife, and a "Tater Peeler."
He's a charitable guy
Whitney has made millions off of his Larry the Cable Guy act, and he hasn't been shy about donating that money to causes he believes in. In his hometown of Pawnee City, Nebraska, he donated money for the city to buy statues along its walking trails, and gave enough cash for his old high school to buy new curtains, lights, and a soundboard. He's also a major patron of the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and its International Hip Dysplasia Institute going back to 2007, when Whitney's son Wyatt was born with hip dysplasia. Doctors there completely cured baby Wyatt of the issue, and Whitney quietly donated lots of money to the medical complex through appearances on celebrity editions of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? and Family Feud. In September 2010, he donated a whopping $5 million to the hospital, which how boats a Wyatt Whitney Wing. Whitney also co-founded (with his wife Cara), the Git-R-Done Foundation, which gits-r-done, charity-wise, for causes affecting veterans and children.
He walked away from Only in America
In 2011, Whitney started starring in Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy. The History Channel reality series found Whitney traveling around America, going to interesting places and doing interesting things, sort of like a populist Anthony Bourdain. Among his adventures were going behind the scenes of a circus, making moonshine, digging for gold, and riding with the Hells Angels. The show was a huge hit for History, but it was abruptly canceled after three seasons—mainly because it's hard to make Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy without Larry the Cable Guy.
There were two reasons he quit. The first was an episode in which he had to clean portable toilets at a music festival in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. "I didn't want to do it. I mean, that was one of the nastiest things on the planet," he later told a reporter. (During the episode he called it "probably one of the most disgusting things I've ever done in my life.") The other reason he walked away, as if he needed one, was that the show required him to be on the road—which, combined with a career as a touring stand-up comedian, pulled him away from his family for as many as six days a week.
He broke a guy's arm
Whitney is a Nebraska native, and so of course he's a hardcore fan of the University of Nebraska Cormhuskers football team. He tries to get to as many home games as he can. He attended a game in 2016, and while watching from in a luxury suite, another guest challenged Whitney to an arm wrestling match. Whitney won…by too much. The comedian managed to break the guy's humerus—his funny bone. The poor challenger had to have arm surgery and get a metal plate installed…all because of an arm wrestling match with Larry the Cable Guy.
He's still making movies
While he's no longer starring in big-screen fish-out-of-water comedies like Health Inspector or Witless Protection, Whitney is still making movies. It's just that now most are direct-to-video efforts, many of them sequels to theatrical releases. In addition to an appearance in A Madea Christmas, Whitney took over for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in Tooth Fairy 2 and for Arnold Schwarzenegger in Jingle All the Way 2. He also recently reunited with his Blue Collar Comedy Tour compatriot Jeff Foxworthy for the Netflix original We've Been Thinking.
He does a lot of corporate gigs
It's a little-discussed but incredibly lucrative side of professional comedy: well-known comedians can get paid a fortune for "corporate gigs" where they're hired to be the entertainment for a huge company's convention, annual meeting, or managerial retreat. Even comedians who aren't as popular as they once were can pull in some serious cash on this circuit. Larry the Cable Guy makes a lot of these corporate appearances, and for his trouble, he's paid at least in the neighborhood of $150,000 to $299,000—for each performance.
What's next for Larry the Cable Guy
Whitney has certainly found his niche with his Larry persona, who's become one of the most memorable characters in comedy history. Millions of fans don't really care that he's not as hot as he once was, because he still does a lot of shows and packs theaters across the country. In the meantime, he's pursuing new avenues to stay fresh, such as starring in projects for Netflix. All that, and the fact that he's set to reprise his role as Mater in the upcoming Cars 3, means Whitney is about to Git-R-Done as Larry the Cable Guy all over again.
