Louis C.K. returns to Parks and Recreation before national comedy tour

Louis C.K. may be more famous for his TV show “Louie,” but Parks and Recreation fans enjoy him as “Officer Dave,” the old flame of Leslie Knope who returns for season 5 on Sept. 20.

The big joke on the "Parks and Recreation" set is comedian Louis C.K. – who plays Leslie Knope’s (Amy Poehler) awkward boyfriend police officer Dave - turns 45 on Sept. 12, just a week before the show returns Sept. 20, at 9:30/8:30c, for a fifth season. Professionally known as Louis C.K., the star of the FX comedy series “Louie” is actually Louis Szekely who calls himself a “Mexican American stand-up comedian.” But, a recent Entertainment Weekly cover story about C.K. states he’s much more than “just a stand-up act,” by dubbing him “The World’s Greatest Comedian.” In turn, ew.com reported how “soon Louis C.K. is going to be everywhere. After only 45 hours, his upcoming stand-up tour – that kicks off in October – sold 100,000 tickets and raked in $4.5 million in sales.” Also, the story explained that “C.K. kept the tickets cheap at $45 per seat by bypassing Ticketmaster and selling tickets directly to fans through his web site.”

Moreover, the story noted how C.K. sold downloads of his comedy special “Live at the Beacon” directly to fans last year through his web site for $5; “a move that’s been adopted by other comics, including Aziz Ansari. It made more than $1 million in 12 days. He ended up donating much of that sum to charity.”

Louis C.K. nails “Dave” role on Parks and Recreation

Fans of his “Officer Dave” role on Parks and Recreation - premieres Thursday, Sept. 20 at 9:30/8:30c – state in comments on the show’s website that Louis C.K. is “delightful” as Leslie Knope’s boyfriend “and we hope he marries her in season 5.”

However, Louis C.K. – whose C.K. stage name is derived “from an approximate English pronunciation of his Hungarian surname, Szekely," stated a story in the New York Post – is super busy these days.

In addition to his Parks and Recreation role, C.K. will continue with his FX show “Louie" - while also producing his stand-up comedy tour that kicks-off in October - as he’s being touted by famous comedians for being so funny.

For instance, ew.com noted that he toured with Jerry Seinfeld, and “Woody Allen wrote him a fan letter, which is framed on his desk.”

Louis C.K. then notes: “That letter (from Woody Allen) is my prize possession,” while also announcing that he’s been cast in Allen’s next film.

In turn, Parks and Recreation co-star Amy Poehler, a longtime personal friend in re-life, told Entertainment Weekly last month that, “The secret to being cool is to not care if you are. Being cool is just not important to Louis. He’s a real person, and people are attracted to his realness.”

Louis C.K.’s “realness” may mean wedding bells on Parks

Although it’s a close-kept secret, there’s chatter on the Parks and Recreation website and Facebook pages that “Officer Dave and Leslie Knope will tie the knot” during season 5 of the show that’s suffered from declining TV ratings during last year’s season 4 when C.K. had some interesting bits about relationships and commitment.

In turn, C.K. has been given leverage to “just be himself” on Parks and Recreation; while the star old Entertainment Weekly last month that being himself is his strong suit.

“I’ve always felt compelled to say things that most people don’t want to hear. They’re either offensive or weird, but my goal has always been that anybody can enjoy them.”

For instance, C.K. made headlines – during a 2008 USO tour in Kuwait – when, during an interview with then Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on the “Opie and Anthony radio show,” C.K. famously asked Rumsfeld whether he is in fact “a reptilian space alien who eats the poor.” In turn, Rumsfeld “declined to comment.” C.K. is also known to fans of “Saturday Night Live” for those “TV Funhouse” shorts for the show that focus on politics and surrealism.

C.K. likes to hang in Pawnee and have dinner with Leslie

Though C.K. stresses that his appearances on “Parks and Recreation” are fictional, what’s based on real life, he said during the ew.com interview, is he has fun “struggling and not sure where you’re headed. That’s a youthful feeling.”

Also, last season featured lots of classic C.K. moments where - as one fan pointed out - "C.K. really seemed like he was Officer Dave, that's acting."

In turn, fans of the show may recall from last season how “Officer Dave” enjoyed having dinner in one of his Pawnee haunts with Leslie Knope who appears to be afraid of entering into a serious relationship.

Parks still features "officer Dave"

It’s now been three years since the Parks and Recreation writers brought C.K. onto the show to plays Knope’s awkward boyfriend Dave.

Meanwhile, Poehler told ew.com last month how it was “back in the ‘90s, there was a feeling that we were all doing our work for each other, in front of each other, and everyone was experimenting. Louis has always maintained that spirit. Creatively, he takes risks. He’s not afraid of change. He’s kept that sense of adventure that you have inherently when you’re young but you have to hold on to when you get older.”

Thus, one of the ways C.K. says he stays fresh for Parks and other roles, is his stand-up act.

For instance, C.K. has been nominated twice for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (2011 and 2012) for his “stand-up act” on the FX series “Louie.”

In turn, C.K. told ew.com how “stand-up has always saved my life, because you don’t need show-business het to work as a comedian, you just need a good track record on the road.”

C.K. also told Late Night With Jimmy Fallon recently that he’s not sure where his role on Parks and Recreation will go; while the new season of the show returns Sept. 20, at 9:30/8:30c, for a fifth season.

Image source of Louis C.K. during a 2008 USO tour for the troops in Kuwait. Photo courtesy Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_C.K