‘Notorious’ hits her comedy stride

Jamie J. Anderson, August 31, 2001
 

When comedian Margaret Cho stands in front of an audience, you never know what she might say next. Fans admit she’s creatively explicit, and critics have called her downright crude. But Cho brands herself as an “honest, straightforward, stand-up comic” who isn’t afraid to tell it like it is. “I have a willingness to tell the truth,” said Cho, who describes herself as a gay man in drag. “I think people appreciate that.” This honesty-is-the-best-policy approach seems to be working for the 32-year-old San Francisco native. In 1999, she stunned audiences with her one-woman show, “I’m the One That I Want,” which focused on everything from race and substance abuse to sex and family. The show was named one of the “Great Performances of the Year” by Entertainment Weekly and won New York Magazine’s “Performance of the Year Award.” Cho’s follow-up show, “The Notorious C.H.O.,” is a window into the life and diaries of the comedian and includes sexually and emotionally explicit humor. The show also touches on the politics of women’s bodies, showing the way society looks at women and the way they look at themselves through the society filter. The show opened in Miami on Aug. 30 and heads to Hard Rock Live tonight. “I didn’t feel the need to top myself with my new tour,” said Cho, the daughter of a Korean joke-book writer. “I just wanted to do good work. It’s a constant growth process that isn’t a burden. It’s a challenge but not a daunting one.” Earlier this year, Cho released her autobiography, also titled I’m the One That I Want. The book gives personal accounts of her lonely childhood, her adult battles with drug and alcohol addiction and her feelings toward gay men. I’m the One That I Want debuted at No. 4 on the Los Angeles Times best-seller list. According to Cho, she wrote the book to help people going through the same ordeals she did as a child. “When you can let people in on personal things, it helps them feel less alone in the world, which is really my goal,” she explained. “I wanted to write my book to the 14-year-old I used to be and to the 14-year-olds out there like me.” Cho believes the book will help fulfill her responsibilities as a role model, something she holds close to her heart. Cho attributes her loneliness and lack of role models as a child with many of her hardships later in life and hopes to have a positive impact on others like her. “It’s interesting to write about the things that happened to me, and it’s the type of book I would read,” she said. “When we [celebrities] are so focused on a certain image, I find we become very boring. You’re limiting people on what they know about you. It’s more important to me to write something that is compelling and thought-provoking than to hide behind an image I’ve created. After all, I don’t want to be boring; that’s too basic.” Although many of Cho’s family members and friends didn’t approve of her revealing book, Cho says if she had it to do over again, she wouldn’t change anything. “It’s hard because when you write about your life, unfortunately, you implicate those that live your life with you,” she said. “They are very private people and didn’t want everyone to know the things that happened to them. But, as an artist, I had to do my work because that’s the most important thing, and the right thing, for me to do. I know in the end, they understood that.” Cho has also enjoyed success as an actress, appearing in the television series Sex and the City and the films It’s My Party and Face/Off. On Oct. 5, Cho’s performance film, I’m the One That I Want, will air on the Sundance Channel and the following week will be released to video. However, her short-lived sitcom career on ABC’s All American Girl was not such a positive experience. According to Cho, who was the first Asian-American woman to star in a prime-time show, her self-esteem was shattered after the show was canceled. “I took it way too personally,” she said. “I loved myself conditionally.” With her career back in full swing and her personal life in order, Cho continues to use her life experiences as a springboard into the world of comedy. “I grew up and went to grammar school on Haight Street during the ‘70s,” she said. “There were old hippies, ex-druggies, burnouts from the ‘60s, drag queens and Chinese people. To say it was a melting pot—that’s the least of it. It was a really confusing, enlightening, wonderful time.” It was the gay men who caught her attention and remain a major influence in her comedy routines and life. She explains in I’m the One That I Want: “I didn’t understand it at first. I thought that men and women were together and that was it. The first thing I felt when I really understood that I was surrounded by homosexual men was safe. I felt utterly calm and protected and thrilled at the voyeuristic possibilities all at the same time. I knew I’d be OK. “My body had started to develop earlier than other girls my age, and I had been the object of keen interest by many of my father’s friends, and a male relative, and had already received countless touches that felt rude and invasive. I was wary of men, especially older ones and did my best to stay away from their leering glances, grabby hands and personal questions. “Homosexuality brought me back to men, made me see they could be trusted and even loved. I never stopped feeling this way.” Cho recently received the Lambda Liberty Award for her work concerning civil rights of lesbians, gay men and people with HIV/AIDS. She was also the first recipient of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Golden Gate Award for being an “entertainment pioneer who has made a significant difference in promoting equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.” She will provide Andy Rooney-like commentary for the series Life 360, premiering on PBS this fall, and will grace the September cover of Rosie’s Magazine. “I just pay full attention to everything I’m doing at the moment I’m doing it, and then I move on to the next thing,” Cho said.