Más Bakersfield

Lovin' La Vida Lopez!

By: Matt Munoz / MAS Staff

Topics: George Lopez, interview, Lopez Tonight, Mas Magazine, Matt Munoz, November 2009, TBS

Lovin' La Vida Lopez!
INTERVIEW: Comedian/Sitcom star gets new gig: late night talk show host! Premieres November 9 at 11pm on TBS!


By Matt Munoz, Bakotopia Editor - MAS Magazine Staff

Comedian George Lopez is boldly going where no Chicano has gone before.

Preparing to throw his sombrero into the ring, TV’s funniest papa is taking his fearlessness into unchartered territory with a new late-night talk show, “Lopez Tonight”.

Premiering Monday, November 9, at 11pm, on TBS, Lopez plans on bringing the party every week with a fierce cast of talent in tow.

From the show’s band leader, Michael Bearden, who previously worked on Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” prior to the singer’s death, to a “secret” list of hot guests, its looking like prime time for Lopez’ next stratospheric step.

Standing among the giants - Leno, Conan, and Letterman, one factor has him making history. He’s the first Latino to host his own English late-night show in the US. And as shocking as it sounds, it’s true. The last time a Mexican-born American sat behind a TV desk was in 1990 when comedian Paul Rodriguez hosted “El Show de Paul Rodriguez”, on Univision in Spanish.

Embraced by American TV audiences, much in part to the popular “George Lopez Show” in syndication, you can’t change the channel without catching a glimpse of the comedian. Recently seen at the White House hosting a celebration of Hispanic musical heritage with the First Family, as well on CNN’s “Latino In America” report, it seems there’s no stopping him. Don’t forget his ever-growing list of movie roles…“Mr. Troop”, anyone?



Like actors Edward James Olmos and Rodriguez, Lopez has always offered to lend a helping hand when needed. Close ties to Bakersfield and UFW co-founder Dolores Huerta remain active today, as well as stating his views on a variety subjects sensitive to the area.

MAS once caught up with Lopez, via-telephone on Oct. 20 to get the inside scoop on “Lopez Tonight”, the blurred lines between stage and real-life, and his own take on possible cuts at Cal State University Bakersfield.

Your list of achievements is impressive, but your appearance at the White House really stood out. How was the experience?

GL: I’m fearless baby! To me, I took it as a challenge. I know Barack (Obama) a little bit, but I thought, “Let me make the President and the First Lady laugh, and I really felt comfortable with what I had. When they laughed, now that’s the top. Now, there’s no one who is more important than anyone I’m going to run into than the leader of the free world.

You were there for President Obama when he ran for office…

GL: Yes, I was.

CNN’s “Latino In America” special report was seen by the world. How do you handle all those projects and being “on” all the time?

GL: I’m “on” all the time, because it’s real. It’s not a caricature, it’s not an act. So, when you’re inherently real – it’s almost like cooking, you don’t have to look at the recipe book to make your favorite dish. You just do it, you just know it. You know how much, you know when to add a little bit more, take a little bit less.

And I’ve learned through success and through failure of what to do. Now, in all of the success that I’ve had, I don’t look at it, like a lot of people do saying, “Why me”?

You know, I work my tail off. That’s probably, “why me”?

In the stars, “Why anybody”? But for hardwork and determination, I understand if you go just by that criteria – why it would be me. I just outworked everybody.

And I did it with two bad kidneys, and now I’m doing it with one good one!

How would you describe your show, “Lopez Tonight”? Your set looks incredible!

GL: The set is badass. I describe it as potentially having the opportunity to be the commander of the brand new space shuttle – something that’s about ready to blast off.

Nobody goes into space by themselves. I’m taking a lot of people with me. I’m taking Michael Bearden, who was Michael Jackson’s musical director for “This Is It”. I’m taking that band with me, and everybody who is on this show – from the writers to the director, to the band…

Entering the late-night TV scene as the first Latino host is very ambitious, how do you “pump up” your team?

GL: I had a conversation Michael Bearden away from the band, as well as with the band last night when I saw them for the first time and rehearsal…We just don’t want to win – we want to knock people out.

Obviously, we (Latinos) always have to prove ourselves, better than anybody else. When somebody gets the benefit of the doubt, we have to create our own benefits, because there’s always doubt. So, we always have to work harder, be stronger, and be more prepared than everybody else.



Hosting a talk show can be full of surprises, how are you approaching being the host to a variety of guest?

GL: One thing that I think that I have being a comedian for 30 years, and just coming off a big HBO special – 14,000 people, is the sense of fearlessness that you need to be really good.

To be really uninhibited when it comes to taking a chance and doing stand-up comedy and doing what is considered a “monologue”.

Every monologue is kind of outdated, but in stand-up, in the beginning, in the introduction of the show, and then being able to sit with somebody and listen to them and also want them to ‘shine’.

I want them (guests) to be funny. I don’t want them to be sitting there, sounding bored, or be a whipping post for jokes. I’m not trying to fire off three jokes while they’re talking about their kids. I want to listen, and yeah, if I have something amusing to say, I’ll throw it in, , take the subject into a different conversation, or digress. How ‘bout that, I’m gonna tray and “digress” a few times.

I understand you will be using Arsenio Hall’s announcer Burton Richardson — how did that come about?

GL: I don’t know that we’ve confirmed an announcer, but I know that Burton has auditioned for the job. I saw him in Bakersfield about a week and a half ago.

Who are some of the popular talent slated for the show's line-up?

GL: TBS wants to make formal announcements, so I can’t say. The first thing they told me this morning was, “You can’t talk about who’s gonna be on the show”.

But they are movie stars, great musicians, and they are very talented people, all of them. And a lot of them are my friends.

How hard is it going to be to get some sleep the night before the show's debut?

GL: I sleep pretty solid. I love to sleep. I’m usually out by 9 o’clock – 10 o’clock pm. 



Do you think you've approached 'Cosby Status' as someone who's transcended the realm of being just an entertainer? People watch and listen when you're on-air, and not just Latinos.

GL: No, no, no…

I don’t think about it like that. I’m not ready for that. I appreciate it, and I know that it’s unique, and it’s one thing…

I created a position for myself that didn’t exist when I first got into this business. Edward James Olmos was an amazing activist, but he’s not in the light as he once was.

Do you feel actors like Olmos had to make certain choices to limit that activism?

GL: Yeah, but my struggle isn’t always about that, but it’s inherently always wrapped in something that I say.

Like The Cosby Show before you – your character on the George Lopez Show has become the surrogate TV father for a lot of kids, especially now in syndication. How do you feel about that?

GL: They’re extensions of what you do, not extensions of who you are. You know, we still have to protect the castle, man. So when I’m not in my suit or I’m not on a stage, I don’t act as much like that George Lopez.

In the beginning when started doing my sitcom, they would say, “Well, how much different is George Lopez on the show than George Lopez in real-life? They were almost the same, because I hadn’t evolved so that there would be different variables of George Lopez.

Now there are - one that would go on Regis & Kelly, and one that would go on HBO – not the same person. The one that did the sitcom is not going to be the one hosting this show.

You are active on Twitter, getting praise and heat for your work – are you okay with armchair critics?

GL: I don’t mind that. One of the beauties of success, is that you get a lot of dissention. It’s nice, because it would have debilitated me in 2001, even before I got into the game.

Now I look at it with a sense of humor, because they (the viewer), know that George Lopez – the comedian, they don’t know thee George Lopez.

You know, they might think my comedy is racist, but then again – is everything for everybody? No.

So when they say, “Hey, you suck, I don’t like your show”. It’s like, that’s the comedian (George Lopez), or that’s the show.

Any plans to move away from performing adult themed comedy routines?

GL: I don’t think so. You know, when I did Showtime, that was a pretty clean one. And then when I went to HBO, HBO was HBO. George Carlin & Chris Rock never pulled a punch, Richard Pryor or anybody who was that genre of comedian. Dice, or Kinison…And it’s HBO, I wasn’t about to go soft on HBO after I waited 20 years to be on HBO.

Maybe it was the rise in profile? Even when I had the TV show, it just stayed very adult.

Have your been pressured to change your stand-up comedy style?

GL: Not at all. Instead of giving in – which I think would have been a mistake. We just put on the tickets and on every sign, “For mature audiences only, 18 & over”.

Then we didn’t put it on me, we put it on the person. If you bring a kid, they’re telling you not to bring kids.

I'd like an opinion on an issue our local, and heavily Latino enrolled, Cal State University is facing. Latino studies programs are facing the chopping block right now, due to our economy - including the popular Spanish dept., Chicano studies, etc., yet other less popular depts., remain safe. You have strong ties to the Central Valley with Dolores Huerta. When you hear something like that, what comes to mind?

GL: What comes to my mind is what’s always perceived to be the weakest link in the chain is what snaps first. So, to the people that are making the decisions – to them, what can they live without?

Well, if you’re probably Anglo, you can live without Chicano Studies. And you can live without the programs that affect “us”.

If I was overweight, and they said, “What are you going to cut out of your diet”? I’d say, “I’m going to cut salads out, and I’m not going to have any fruit”. You don’t give up meat…To them, the meat is what’s traditional to them. They don’t even think twice, it doesn’t affect them. How can something affect you, that you never completely supported anyway?

And the time when times get tough, instead of looking at the overall program – you look at those programs and say, “This is what we’re cutting”. 

And then if you go and protest, it’s like, “Oh, there they go again”. You know “There they go again” for a reason.

If there was a way that I could help them, I’m sure Dolores Huerta would have contacted me. I always have the opening line of communication to her and to that area.

From appearing on everyone else’s talk shows to the stage, you’ve proven yourself a worthy guest. It’s looking the perfect time for you own talk show.

GL: It’s “prime time”, right? And it is hard to talk about something that’s three weeks away, and it’s unproven to most people and you have to convince people.

But I don’t think that this is a show, that’s going to build to success – I think it’s going to happen immediately and we’re going to hold onto it. And I think it’s going to be one of those things that people embrace and get into from the beginning. 
 
Any final message for your Bakersfield fans?

GL: I love Bakersfield, hang in there.

”Lopez Tonight” debuts, November 9 at 11pm on TBS. Check your local listings.

www.lopeztonight.com

*Above story printed in MAS Magazine, November 2009 edition.

-Related Story: 2007 Bakotopia interview "Orale George".