These days, James Daly has a lot to laugh about.
But that wasn’t always the case for the Phillies "dancing usher," who suffered a near-fatal beating on a South Philly street last year.
Now Daly, 23, is focusing on his up-and-coming comedy troupe, as well as singing and dancing as a solo performer.
Daly’s comedic streak runs deep. He writes, directs and performs with the group Comic Energy. The troupe consists of two women and seven men who perform skits � la Saturday Night Live, said Daly.
"I’d like to take the troupe and get exposure. Just roll with it. If I had a wish, it would be to turn this into a warm-up show in Philly for SNL," he said.
Just then, Daly takes out a pair of lavender-tinted round sunglasses from his coat pocket and breaks into a dead-on impersonation of Ozzy Osbourne. True to his real-life subject, the first few seconds of monologue are completely indecipherable.
Fresh back from a show at Manhattan’s Gotham Comedy Club, Daly and the rest of the troupe look forward to performing for a hometown crowd. They will take the stage for a show called Christmas in Philly tomorrow through Sunday at the Shubin Theater, 407 Bainbridge St.
A year-and-a-half ago, no one thought Daly would return to the stage as he lay in a hospital bed with a fractured skull and a battered body.
No one, that is, except Daly himself.
"I just wanted to get healthy and get back to work, so I could show [my attackers] that you can’t keep a good man down. That was the only revenge I was after," he said.
Daly thought he was going to die that night — April 28, 2001, when he and his friend Teal Anderson were ambushed by a gang of six teens on the 1900 block of South 12th Street.
One of Daly’s attackers smashed a bottle against his head, fracturing his skull. The others kicked and punched him. Anderson managed to escape and summon help.
Shielding his face and head as best he could from the relentless blows and kicks, Daly prayed to God for mercy.
Then he blacked out.
The next thing he remembered was everything inside the ambulance spinning — like a bad nightmare, he said.
It would be days and weeks before Daly — whom many locals knew as the Phillies "dancing usher" — would remember any details about the attack, which allegedly occurred over a case of mistaken identity. Four males have been sentenced in the incident.
Daly said he never asked God after the attack, "Why me?" Instead, he took a philosophical approach to his ordeal.
"I believe we all have to go through certain things for other people to learn from those things," Daly said.
They beat him, but they didn’t win.
Today, Daly is completely recovered from his injuries and said he feels better than he ever has.
"I feel a lot stronger today than I did before it happened. I have so much faith in myself and my abilities," he noted.
Daly credits his team of doctors at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital for saving his life. Neurosurgeons eventually had to place two titanium plates in Daly’s skull. During an interview, he knocked on his right temple to reveal the plates are good conversation pieces.
Daly added the love and support he enjoyed from family, friends, the Phillies organization and even total strangers assisted in his rapid recovery. "I had so much support behind me. People saying prayers, sending me things. I was out of the hospital in one week."
When his Phillies bosses visited him in the hospital, the dancing usher announced he would be back to work for the next home game. Naturally, they didn’t believe him. He had been beaten so badly that even Daly’s doctors didn’t initially think he would survive.
But sure enough, he was back to his old field antics just one month after the brutal attack, and he’s entering his fourth season as an usher. Fans often ask where all Daly’s energy comes from.
"You know, I tell them I’m high on life. I am just happy to be alive. I love to see people smile and happy. I know that may sound corny, but it’s true," he said.
Daly especially likes when it rains at games because his favorite song to dance to is Singin’ in the Rain.
"I grab an umbrella and just do my best Gene Kelly as everybody is ducking for cover," he said with a laugh.
The enterprising Daly, who has a degree in communication arts from Community College of Philadelphia, got his start by doing college productions and performing standup at the Laff House on South Street.
"I like to make people smile. Everyone looks more beautiful with a smile on their face. I like to make people laugh," said the comedian.
It’s been said that attitude is everything, and Daly is living proof.
The horror he suffered last year could have turned a lesser man into a bitter human being. But Daly insists that is just not in his nature.
"There are so many good people out there, and the support I have proved that," he said. "It really outshone [my attackers] and what they did."
These days, the comedian is so busy making others laugh, he doesn’t have time for yesterday’s pain.
"It’s over with. That’s it. The book has been closed. I’m looking for new chapters in my life," he said, with a smile that could light up a stadium.
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James Daly and the other members of Comic Energy will perform Christmas in Philly tomorrow through Sunday at the Shubin Theater, 407 Bainbridge St. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at www.comic-energy.rr.nu.
The fate of his attackers
Over the past year, four young males were convicted or pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the beating of Phillies usher James Daly.
Family Court Judge Abram Frank Reynolds acquitted Mario Mangini, 16, of the 900 block of Mifflin Street, of charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, conspiracy and related offenses. The judge exonerated the teen on the most serious charges because no witness could identify him as one of Daly’s assailants.
Reynolds did find the defendant guilty of misdemeanor assault for punching Daly’s friend Teal Anderson, said Assistant District Attorney Thomas Malone. Mangini — who had been accused of calling his friends on a cell phone and starting the incident — was ordered to attend outpatient anger-management classes.
George Tsikoudis, 19, who authorities allege smashed Daly’s head with a bottle, also pleaded guilty. The 19-year-old from the 2000 block of McKean Street was sentenced to 50 weeks and 23 months of house arrest, followed by five years of probation.
Joseph Denaro, 17, of the 1200 block of McKean Street, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, conspiracy and related charges. Reynolds committed Denaro to St. Gabriel’s Hall, a Montgomery County residence for males in the juvenile-justice system, said Malone. As with all youths sentenced in Family Court, the length of Denaro’s stay will be determined through ongoing judicial review.
After admitting he kicked Daly at least twice as the victim lay on the ground, Michael Vitagliano, 16, of the 1900 block of South Camac Street, testified against his three friends and codefendants. Vitagliano pleaded guilty to all the charges and was placed in a juvenile facility, Malone said.
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–by Lorraine Gennaro
