Who is Dena Blizzard? You may remember her from the “Target Mom” video that went viral a while back, about the hilarious mom who was shopping for her kids’ back-to-school supplies. From staplers to microwaves, the mother of three and comedian was tired of teachers being unappreciated and most importantly, wanted them to know how much she truly understood.
Since her video made headlines around the world, she’s still making people laugh with her weekly live Facebook chat, Tipsy Tuesdays. It involves engaging with viewers, making them laugh, and yes, she does it with her drink of choice! Now, she’s got a new drinking game called Chardonnay Go, so naturally, we had to catch up with her and get the scoop!
How was Back to School this year for you and the kids?
“Back to School was fabulous and it went well for me and the kids. It’s nice when the universe agrees with you and everything went well getting back.”
How has the feedback from the video been since it went viral online?
“It’s been great, thank you! The universe finally agrees with me. No one ever used to listen to me and now people are starting to pay attention to what I have to say.”
Did you really buy the teachers all the stuff you showed in your video?
“I did, I did. We put all the teachers’ names in a bucket and got them binders, mugs, a microwave, luggage—stuff like that. It was fun and around the world, I got emails about it! We’re used to hearing teachers complain, so my sister and I wanted to help. We have all these days for different things and teachers get nothing. I swear if one of you makes one up another holiday, I’ll punch you in the face [laughs]!”
Tell us about your new project! How did you come up with it and what was that process like?
“Chardonnay Go is based on my first viral video from last summer that struck a chord and things needed to be said. It had millions of views and I said to my husband, ‘Why is it that it went crazy? People must understand that women love wine and that’s how it started. I made the board game last year and you don’t have to drink, the whole point is to connect using the game. Everyone’s so busy it’s nice to get together. We as moms always feel like we have to feel guilty when we go out so it’s good to have something like a classic board game with a twist. I like to think of it as the female Cards Against Humanity.”
Did you always know you wanted to be a comedian?
“No, I really thought it wouldn’t happen. I was a stay-at-home-mom at the time, I had two kids and 30 hit me hard. But my husband bought a comedy pass so I went and the owner of the club picked guest spots for me and I just loved it. It was good for me—my husband was in the Air Force and it was the only time I’d see adults. So my mom watched the kids and I would say whatever in front of the crowd.”
Which comedians would you like to work with in the future?
“I’d love to work with Jim Gaffigan, he’s a clean comic—which I’m not [laughs]—and I love Ellen DeGeneres. I think it’s hard to be clean and funny all the time and when you first start it’s all dirty jokes. Then you can learn to write clean and funny but I like it. My son, Dean, is trying out standup, too. I love it, even though I tried to talk him out of it. I went to see him perform. It’s a hard business and I wanted to protect him from it but he’s good but we’re also looking at colleges right now, as well.”
Now that you have a platform, what do you hope to accomplish for other moms?
“Well there’s nothing easy about this job starting out and the job that moms have, and I want people to realize that there are a lot of funny people out there. We live in this universe where we walk by people and don’t even know they’re funny and we should all be able to connect in some way. Sometimes when I see people, they recognize me from my Tipsy Tuesday videos and actually think about what I said and how it made them laugh. When I worked for Anderson Cooper, he talked about his mom and he always said to be kind to everybody.”
Be sure to check out Dena Blizzard online and if you’re a mom yourself, you’ll defnintely be able to relate to the clips on her YouoTube channel; they’re absolutely hilarious! Check out the video below of the viral “Target Mom” herself to see exactly what we mean! Chardonnay Go is available now online at ChardonnayGo.com, so order now while quantities last. And don’t forget the wine!
