Comedy Salad with Buddah #11 Patti Vasquez

his week on Comedy Salad I visit with one of the sweetest and funniest ladies in standup comedy or anywhere, Patti Vasquez. I first met Patti a few years ago at a club and was lucky enough to work with her recently at my home club, Mason City Limits. Patti is a wife, a mother, a radio talk show host and of course, a standup comic and one of the best in the biz in this man's opinion. Patti is a regular performer at Zanies comedy clubs in the Chicagoland area. You may recognize her from the series "My Life is a Joke", "NickMom Night Out" and the "Bob & Tom Show" which she has even co-hosted. And "The Patti Vasquez Show" a radio show on WGN 720. We actually started this interview several weeks ago. I mention this because I believe Patti Vasquez is one hard working road comic. She recently traveled from Chicago to San Antonio for weekend shows and frequently jets off to LA where she has projects she is working on. I asked Patti six questions and requested that she fire one back to me. Here is what we have for you...



BUDDAH: What made you want to be a standup comedian?



PATTI: I have always wanted to be a standup comedian. When I was a kid my dad used to let me stay up to watch Johnny Carson and my favorite shows were the ones that had performances by comedians. In high school I collected CD's - George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Sam Kinison, Steven Wright. In those days, if you got in my car there was no music, only comedy. But it never occurred to me to try it myself until I got into grad school at Northwestern studying to get my PhD in history that it even occurred to me to give it a shot. I was watching Margret Cho and I thought. "Oh my God. I have to do standup." Her attitude, her humor, her intolerance for injustice-all struck a chord with me and that was it. I dropped out of grad school 2 months later.



BUDDAH: What do you think are the most important elements of getting to the point of being a successful standup comic?



PATTI: I think the most important elements of being a successful comic are different for everyone. I'm working on moving forward, finding new ways to tell my story and I strive to be as honest as possible on stage.



BUDDAH: Do you recall the strangest moment you have had on stage?



PATTI: I think my strangest moment was at the Zanies in Nashville. During the middle act's set we heard a loud crash from the street. The comic made a few jokes and the show continued. Ten minutes later, during my set I saw the manager heading for the sound booth and she proceeded to annouce that a car had hit a gas main. We had to evacuate in case the building, you know, blew up.



I laughed when I saw a few people milling around the back of the club smoking cigarettes. I could barely see them as I was running AWAY.....



BUDDAH: Do you mind working with a blue comic even if you are clean?



PATTI: It depends on the situation. If it's a crowd that clearly is not digging the blue material you need to be flexible enough to change gears. I mind if any comic makes an audience regret their choice of entertainment and makes them never want to see live comedy again.



BUDDAH: Besides your comedy career what else is near and dear to your heart at this time?



PATTI: I feel like fighting for families like mine. Families raising children with disabilities. I am trying to take small pieces of legislation to build a foundation for what we are all going to need in the next few years, in the next few decades. The diagnosis of Developmental Disibilites is growing at a crazy rate and if I can be one of the loud voices drawing attention to it, I'm there.



People flinch at serious topics in comedy clubs and wonder why a comedian would go there but in reality comedy is a commentary on society. Most comedians draw attention to injustice. We just do it with sarcasm and exaggeration.



BUDDAH: Where would you like to take the kids on the next Vasquez family vacation?



PATTI: DISNEY WORLD !!! of course... my older son Griffin loves magic and grandeur. Declan, who has Autism, is in love with everything Disney. They may both implode from the experience but I think we can take our chances!



And now I turn it over to Patti... Buddah - what is your favorite on stage memory?



BUDDAH: A few years ago I would have said performing with a favorite of mine, Maria Bamford. Here's the surprise, sorry Maria, I dig hosting Mason City Limits monthly open mic for one reason. And that is the comradery that develops between the comics. I introduce them and say anything I want which is often laced with sarcasm, humor and even insults knowing they know me and know I am just teasing them. It's fun to watch up and coming comedians grow on stage as performers. That's what it's all about.





It's nice to see Patti and I have something in common. We both loved staying up late to watch Carson and his comedian guests unknowing we would also someday become comics ourselves. I only hope one day to reach the Patti Vasquez level of standup comedy. Hey Chicago peops, you catch Patti right now at Zanies downtown location on Wells. She is there thru Thursday July 25th. Tell her Buddah sent ya!

Patti V. in action

Patti's million dollar smile.