‘All-American’ Cho returns

‘All-American’ Cho returns

Quirky comic performs this weekend in Redondo Beach

By Jeffrey Shore

Ever helpful, Margaret Cho, star of ABC’s "All-American Girl,"
is more than happy to share advice on ways to survive the rigors of
success.

"You know what helps," she suggests, followed by a thoughtful
pause. "Drinking."

Another pause.

"I’ve been drinking Goldschlager."

Cho’s wit have been the retaining wall which has held back the
crushing forces of success in Cho’s young life. After all, this
25-year-old starlet has been carrying the pressures of a weekly TV
series, a vibrant stand-up career, several films, and, as if that
weren’t enough, the hopes of an entire race.

As the first regular television series to focus on Asian
Americans, "All-American Girl," the story of a multigenerational
Korean family, was subject to intense scrutiny. Though based on the
stand-up material of Cho herself, many members of the
Asian-American community felt that the show did not adequately
represent the Asian-American experience.

While the past year has been tough at times (and ratings
mediocre), Cho remains upbeat.

"I think what we accomplished was really remarkable, and
criticism aside … I’m very proud of that," says Cho. But her
diplomatic tenor changes when asked about the attacks made on the
show by members of her community.

"I realize that everyone has their own ideas of racial identity,
but I think that their views are racist in themselves because they
are disregarding my own experiences," adds Cho, angrily.

But Cho is just gathering speed.

"As far as I’m concerned, everything I do is that ‘accurate’
Asian-American experience. Every step I take, everytime I get on
stage … that’s authentic."

"All the criticism of the show has been, ‘Is she Asian enough?’
Well, what is enough?"

Cho stops.

"See, I’m very bitter."

Stuck waiting for ABC’s decision on whether the show will be
picked up for the fall season (which should come by May 15), Cho
has decided to take a rash course of action: doing nothing.

"This is like Sid Vicious checking into a hospital," says Cho,
who feels that she’s definitely cut from the workaholic cloth.
"I’ve got DTs from not working. It really is very difficult to kick
work."

Still, despite the stress of avoiding stress, Cho says that it
is worth it.

"I need to stop working for a little bit" says Cho, reflecting
on her new mindset. "You need to pace yourself. You can’t do
everything you want to do."

Up to this point, Cho has done pretty much everything she
wanted.

"I come from that ‘school of extra credit’" says Cho. "I think
(my drive) is part Asian work ethic … and also part my own overly
enthusiastic need to be wanted or loved. If I work hard enough then
maybe they’ll love me more."

So, she’s been working hard. She got her start doing stand-up
comedy at the club above her parent’s grocery store in San
Francisco. And, while she grew up in a formal Korean family,
according to Cho, her parents were a little more understanding than
one might expect. Her father, after all, is the author of a series
of Korean joke books (most of which, Cho says, she "doesn’t
get.")

A quirky comic with an even quirkier following (Cho counts
Quentin Tarantino and Camille Paglia among her fans), Cho, like so
many stand-up comics, never seems to sit down. But this charming
woman’s chipper comedy turns surprisingly dark when the subject
swings round to herself.

"I’m really happily involved (in a relationship), and at the
same time I can look at the problems in my relationships and
theorize as to why they are there," remarks Cho. "Our neuroses feed
on each other … a dysfunctional yin-yang … a yang-yang, I
guess."

While the world of Hollywood has been good to Cho so far, she
never wants to stray too far from the lonely, tough life of the
stand-up comic.

"Stand-up is my life. The show is a job," says Cho, with total
clarity and confidence. "(Stand-up) is the way I communicate, the
way I move the world. All the people close to me have a stand-up
heart or are stand-ups. We are a special group of people. It’s sort
of a village of the damned thing when we are together."

COMEDY: Cho performing Saturday at the Coachhouse in San Juan
Capistrano, (714) 496-8930 and Sunday at the Strand in Redondo
Beach, (213) 460-5729.