George Lopez
The
“I Am Battle Comic” Interview
with
Kam Williams
Comedy
Icon Talks about Entertaining the Troops on Overseas Tour
Previously, he co-created, wrote, produced and stared on the groundbreaking sitcom "George Lopez," which enjoyed a six season-run on ABC. The series remains a hit with viewers in syndication on both broadcast stations and cable’s Nick at Nite.
In 2006, George received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In addition, Time magazine has named him one of the 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America.
Here, he talks about his new movie, I Am Battle Comic, a concert film about a tour he and 13 other comedians took overseas to entertain troops stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Kam
Williams: Hi
George, I'm honored to have this opportunity to speak with someone so
successful at standup, with a sitcom and hosting your own talk show.
Just mastering one of those would be very impressive, but
accomplishing all three is quite a phenomenal feat.
George
Lopez:
Well,
thanks Kam. Let me say that this is the best start of any interview
that I've ever had.
KW:
I'm not
even factoring in your challenging childhood where your migrant
farm worker father abandoned your mom when you were a toddler. And then
she left you to be raised by her parents. That makes your success
utterly implausible.
GL:
Thank you. You know, my grandmother's been gone since 2009. She
had dementia since about 2005. It was very painful to watch. My
grandfather passed in '88. So much time has passed that, when I think
of him, it's so far back, it feels almost like a silent movie. He's
gone so long that I can't remember ten things we did together. Just
maybe one or two.
KW:
I'm
sorry to hear that.
GL:
Still,
when I reflect on my life, I wouldn't change one thing. I feel that
like in the movie Slumdog Millionaire, everything has a purpose. I
believe that everything that happens to you is currency for you down
the line. Now, it all makes sense.
KW:
What interested you in I Am Battle Comic? I don't remember ever
crying so much while watching a standup comedy film. It was really
moving.
GL:
That
project is amazing. I've known [co-star] Don Barnhart forever, and
Bob Kubota, Jordan Brady and all those other comedians, a long, long
time, too. In the movie, they talk about Bob not being successful
after almost 30 years in the business. But you know what? If you're
going to war zones to entertain the troops, you are successful. The
culture may put a superficial value on celebrity, and associate
success with fame. But success really has much more to do with your
character and behavior beyond the limelight. It,s not only
successful, but honorable, for those guys to go over there to
entertain the troops in such dangerous conditions.
KW:
How do you tweak your standup act when performing for G.I.'s?
GL:
It has
to be clean, and there a certain subjects you need to avoid, like
jokes complaining about how hard your own life is, because their
lives are at risk 24/7. But it's pretty easy to make the adjustment.
Normally, the #1 worry of any standup comedian is: how am I going to
do? But that doesn't matter when you're performing on a military base
in a war zone. Your just showing up is greatly appreciated. That's an
unspoken standing ovation. Since I had the TV shows, I've been
getting a lot of letters from soldiers asking for autograph pictures
or this and that. And I've always sent stuff to them. So, when I show
up in person, they can't believe I'm there, and they're 're so
appreciative of that that there's no need to worry about how much I
make them laugh.
KW:
Editor/Legist
Patricia Turnier asks: Has there been any soldier you really
connected with?
GL:
Sure.
One from years ago was a corporal serving in Afghanistan named David
Wheat. He'd been burned over 90% of his body after being ejected from
a tank and landing in a pool of fuel. I went to visit him while he
was recuperating in the hospital He was burned worse than anyone
I've ever seen. I gave him my email and we've stayed in touch ever
since.
KW:
Patricia
was also wondering whether your visits change the mood of the
soldiers you entertain?
GL:
Of
course, by taking them away from themselves for a couple of hours or
so. During that time, they're not thinking about how dangerous their
their situation is, people they miss back home, or lost comrades. The
show is an escape, much like going to the movies.
KW:
And she
asks: What did you take away from going on these tours?
GL:
That's
a great question, Patricia, because the country is so divided today,
not only racially, but between the right and the left. I get a ton of
messages from right-wing people who don't like my ethnicity or my
political views. But before this current administration, no one ever
told me they didn't think I was funny. What I take away from
performing for the troops is that their service gives me the freedom
to express myself in whatever way feels right for me.
KW:
The
country is so divided and internet trolls have become so snarky and
hateful, I wonder where the world is headed.
GL:
Kam,
I've been doing standup for 38 years, and I've never seen it like
this. Freedom is supposed to mean being able to express yourself. But
now, inside this freedom ball, you have people pointing fingers,
which is actually anti-freedom, and anti-American. I get hostile
messages every day on Instagram, like "Go back to Mexico!"
How am I going to go back to Mexico. I'm not from Mexico. But I never
started hearing stuff like that until a couple of years ago And I
get it every day now.
KW:
That's
so sad.
GL:
It's
amazing that someone needs to take time out of their life to wish me
bad. And they don't seem to be able to separate humor from reality or
to look any deeper than the immediacy of whatever that message is.
KW:
Patricia's
last question is: Did you have a role model who when you were young
who made you believe that the sky was the limit?
GL:
Yeah,
my high school baseball coach, Steve Marden. When I quit the team my
senior year, we went nose-to-nose. He called me a quitter and told me
I'd never achieve anything in life, because I was a quitter. Then,
when I was an aspiring standup comic, it dawned on me that he was
right. And years later, I went back to the school to apologize to him
for wasting his time. I said, "You were right, and I had to come
and tell you I'm sorry, because I did eventually understand what you
were trying to teach me." He appreciated it, and would call me
whenever he saw me on TV, and ask, "How's my 3rd baseman!"
KW:
Finally,
what’s in your wallet?
GL:
I
always carry an amulet from the Chinese Year of the Ox, that a fan
gave me after a show in 2002. She said that it would bring me good
luck, if I always kept with me.
KW:
Thanks
again for the time, George, and best of luck with the film.
GL:
It's
been a pleasure, Kam.
To order a copy of I Am Battle Comic on DVD, visit:
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