FESTIVAL FEATURED ON CNN'S "AMERICAN MORNING"
Video/Transcript, CNN "American Morning", Nov 16, 2005
 |
View Video
S. O'BRIEN: If you haven't had a chance to catch it, time's running out for the third annual New York Arab-American Comedy Festival. It's been widely successful. And comedian Dean Obeidallah is one of the festival's founder. He's a stand-up comedian who was a lawyer at one point. And he says since 9/11, his comedy has taken a seriously political bent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN OBEIDALLAH, ARAB-AMERICAN COMEDIAN: Pundits have said Arabs are the new blacks. They've said, Arab is the new black. And when I first heard that, I was like, yes, we're cool. You see white kids acting Arab with their friends. And I'm going, what up, Mustapha (ph)? Where my Arabs at? Arab, please.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
S. O'BRIEN: Very funny. Nice to have you. A couple of days left, today and tomorrow, and then the festival wraps up. We'll talk more about the festival in a moment. But I want to know about the politics. Are you always political now, do you think, in your comedy?
OBEIDALLAH: It's become a big part of all the comics who are of Arab American heritage. Because when you get on stage and you say you're Arab, instantly, it instills this kind of political tone to the comedy. And the audiences really perk up. They want to know what you're going to talk about. They want to know if you're really Arab. I have people come up to me, are you really Arab? Like you would make it up in this climate. No, no, I just like to say I'm Arab. I made up a Muslim last name for fun.
So but, you have people who really listen. And there are amazingly so many Americans who come to our shows who are not Arab, love it. They laugh, they understand. Because it's only written from an American point of view. You know, we're Americans who happen to be of Arab heritage, proud of our heritage, yet suffer this kind of weird suspicion in our own country, which makes you very uncomfortable in your country.
S. O'BRIEN: You must have a lot of people, though, saying to you, you don't look Arab. You could be Italian, you could be whatever. You don't look Arab.
OBEIDALLAH: Well, actually, my father is Palestinian. And my father's side, they're very light-skinned. My mother actually is Italian, so I'm mixed. But in reality, if you saw my cousins on my father's side, are Palestinian, same skin color, same looks.
S. O'BRIEN: Did things change for you after 9/11?
OBEIDALLAH: It did. I mean, I think the whole Arab-American community could use a hug, at this point. We need some kind of aromatherapy, like hummus flavor, just to make us relax a little more. The world has changed. You really truly feel self-conscious or suspicious.
And this is true -- I'm paying with a credit card, true story. Guy picks up my credit card, sees my name, becomes hostile. He's like, buddy, what kind of name is this? Well, it's Arab. He goes, what does this mean? I'm like, well, if you would like the English, it means peaceful, friendly Arab. He's like, yes, what country is your family from? So I think of the most peaceful. I'm like, well, we're from the same country that Aladdin is from.
And you just want to use your sense of humor to diffuse tension, and it comes up. And people who look more Arab or have -- or wear Muslim garb, or cover, headcover, they suffer a lot more. And it's really, for them, we try to do this. Try to garner positive attention, try to foster understanding.
S. O'BRIEN: Who has been coming to the shows?
OBEIDALLAH: Well, a lot of Arab-Americans, a lot of white people, as we call them. I know I look pretty white. But a lot of non-Arabs have been coming. They've been laughing. We love that they're there. You know, it's the third annual New York Arab-American Comedy Festival and it's co-founded by myself Neisoon Zai (ph), another comic. And we're really so proud that's it's blossomed into five nights, a thousand people are attending this year.
S. O'BRIEN: It's been really, really popular. You also perform in the Middle East, too. What kind of jokes...
OBEIDALLAH: I have.
S. O'BRIEN: I mean, obviously, you're not telling the same jokes?
OBEIDALLAH: You do -- no, a lot. You know what's amazing, which united people in laughter in Beirut? Haifa, Dubai, and Ermalla (ph)? Jokes about President Bush. Amazingly, he is uniting the world in laughter. And it's because they know who he is. It's more than -- now, your comedy has evolved. Now we are taking on big issues, like joking about the Patriot Act, talking about President Bush. Because our whole community has evolved. Was under siege, and now it's kind of like, we can define who we are now.
S. O'BRIEN: What's off limits? Or maybe nothing?
OBEIDALLAH: Terrorism.
S. O'BRIEN: Really?
OBEIDALLAH: No, no. Victims of terrorism, the event of 9/11...
S. O'BRIEN: Not funny.
OBEIDALLAH: Those aren't. We're talking about things from the American point of view, like the Patriot Act, which any book you take out of the library, the government can find it out. Our question, mine, is, do you think guys in al Qaeda are that short on money they're going to public libraries? Are there books that give them, like, "I'm al Qaeda, You're al Qaeda," or "Chicken Soup for the Terrorist Soul." It scares us. You know, we're Americans first, and all our rights are evolved or eroded away, but especially Arab- Americans are suspicious in this world.
S. O'BRIEN: You have a very funny joke, which I'd like you tell on our remaining time, about identity theft.
OBEIDALLAH: Well, it's hard having a Arab or Muslim name. And people are like, oh, it's difficult, my name's a Muslim last name. But the one benefit, in this world of identity theft, which seven million lost their identity last year, people pretended to be them, take their credit cards. Who's going to pretend to be an Arab or Muslim in this world? Let's see, I can be a Mr. Reynolds, or Abdul Nasr Aman Abdullah (ph). I think I'll be John Reynolds.
S. O'BRIEN: You're safe! See a silver lining right there.
OBEIDALLAH: Yes, that's right. That's what we try to find through comedy, we do.
S. O'BRIEN: We should mention that the Arab-American Comedy Festival continues right here in New York and that's through Thursday night. Today and tomorrow, so you got to run out and see it right now.
OBEIDALLAH: Yes, you do. Please come out.
S. O'BRIEN: Comedian and the festival co-founder Dean Obeidallah. Nice to see you. Thank you very much.
OBEIDALLAH: Thank you. Thank you very much.
S. O'BRIEN: My pleasure. It's great having you -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: Good stuff. Thanks.
CNN LIVE TODAY is coming up next. Fredricka Whitfield is in for Daryn. Hello, Fred.
| |
| ARAB AMERICAN COMEDY FESTIVAL OPENS (May 6, 2010) |
| ARAB HUMOR HITS NYC (May 6, 2010) |
| ARAB JOKES YOU CAN LAUGH AT (Apr 29, 2010) |
| ARAB HUMOR...NO JOKE (May 20, 2009) |
| ARAB-AMERICAN COMEDY IN A POST-9/11 WORLD (May 13, 2009) |
| ARAB-AMERICAN COMEDIANS BREAK THE FUNNY BARRIER (May 11, 2009) |
| FOR ARAB COMICS MORE ROOM FOR LAUGHTER (May 7, 2009) |
| BREAKING BOUNDARIES (May 7, 2009) |
| ARAB COMICS REWRITE SCRIPT FOR OBAMA (May 5, 2009) |
| ARAB-AMERICANS ARE NEVER FAR FROM THE HEADLINES (Jan 14, 2008) |
|
Home >
Press Clips
> FESTIVAL FEATURED ON CNN'S "AMERICAN MORNING"
