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Without a doubt, NBC's "Last Comic Standing" changed Ralphie May's life -- and it may have saved it as well.

In addition from his socio-economic move -- from a four-plex at Crenshaw and Adams in Los Angeles to a house in the Hollywood Hills -- May also obtained the financial stability to tend to his health. He's still a big guy, but he's not the morbidly obese funny man that Americans fell for.

"I got something I'd never had before -- insurance," May told The Daily Times this week. "I went to a specialist at Cedars-Sinai (Medical Center), and I got gastric bypass surgery. I've lost 300 pounds. I weigh 385 pounds now, and I'm only 35 pounds away from being able to get life insurance.

"That's something I never thought I'd be able to have, and now I will have it by the end of this year. That's amazing, man."

May's story itself is nothing short of amazing. Born in Chattanooga, he overcame a teenage accident in which he broke 105 bones to make his way to Los Angeles, where he struggled to break into acting and comedy. It wasn't easy -- splitting his time between the two crafts meant he couldn't devote entirely to either one. Acting gigs were hard to come by, and a full-time comedy career would have required too much time on the road to act.

"I was a broke comic," he said. "I was in LA, auditioning and doing everything I could, and I was making less than $2,000 a month. I was barely making ends meet."

He was in Hawaii, doing stand-up, when friend and actor Jay Mohr gave him a call, telling him to come back to Hollywood right away to audition for a reality show about comedians. He did and was cast in the first season of "Last Comic Standing," which aired in the summer of 2003. He came in second, losing to Dat Phan. The results left many fans in fumes.

"I think if the competition had been based solely on comedy, I would have crushed -- but it's a reality show, so they have to put in emotion and backstory to fill an hour of TV," he said. "I became the victim of that reality show slant, because NBC had four months to go back and edit it before people saw it.

"But, by manipulating the editing and getting my storyline in, they created a phenomenon. Not only did people like me, they were like, 'That guy got robbed!' It became an outrage for people. I've met a lot of people who say they threw stuff at their TV."

At first, May was angry as well -- but then he started experiencing the spoils of a moral victory, as it were. He owns two homes these days -- one in California, the other in Nashville. He has a few cars in his garage. And he's so busy, he rarely has time to enjoy them.

"Those are houses I never get to sleep in and luxury cars I barely get to drive," he said. "I have two beds, and I've spent less than 25 days in them this year, combined."

May hit the ground running after appearing on "Last Coming Standing." His first DVD, "Just Correct," was released in 2004 and went platinum; his second and third DVDs -- "Girth of a Nation" and "Prime Cut," both of which were recorded in Knoxville -- have been turned into specials on Comedy Central. (His third special, "Austin-tatious," debuted last year.)

It wasn't easy convincing Comedy Central executives to pony up for tapings in Knoxville, but the Chattanooga boy was passionate about wanting to do the shows in his home state.

"They were very nervous about doing any special in a town like Knoxville, like somehow Knoxville was the hillbilly on the label of Jimmy Dean Sausage," he said. "I told them that I could fill The Tennessee Theatre twice, and in doing so, I assured them two separate audiences and two different hours of material. 'I'm gonna have great, landmark specials for you guys, and if you don't think so, you don't owe me nothing.'

"I was willing to put it in writing -- if they didn't like it, if they didn't think it was funny, if they thought Knoxville was a detriment, then I would just eat the money."

As it turns out, the network liked the specials just fine. Since their debut, the two specials have catapulted May to one of Comedy Central's top comics, behind Dane Cook, Larry the Cable Guy and Jeff Foxworthy. After his two Tennessee Theatre performances, he knew it had been successful -- back home in the South, in the heart of Big Orange Nation, he felt the vibe when he got off stage, he said.

And then he went into his dressing room, and his dog helped his ego from getting too big.

"I went in there, and my dog had vomited on my wife's stuff in the dressing room," he said with a laugh. "I think I'd fed him some barbecue, some pulled pork, and it was just too much for him."