AMERICA'S FAVORITE FAG HAG TALKS ABOUT SEX,
POLITICS AND BEING RAISED BY THE VILLAGE PEOPLE

B Y . T O D D . C A M P

Comedienne Margaret Cho has built her reputation by telling it like it is. Shortly after the cancellation of her ABC sitcom All American Girl, Cho spoke freely about her battle with weight and the horrors imposed on her by network executives who told her her face was too big for the small screen. In her autobiography, turned concert tour and feature film, I'm the One That I Want, Cho spoke about her war with weight, her experimentation with her sexuality and her continuing quest to become comfortable in her own skin.

Last year, she released the concert documentary Notorious C.H.O. (the opening night film at Q Cinema's 2002 film festival). She's currently touring with a new show, Revolution, which will eventually lead to two films, a concert picture and a behind-the-scenes documentary. We caught up with Cho shortly before Revolution brought her through Dallas.

Q: So tell us about your new show. . .

A: It's exiting, because it's more political than anything I've done before and I think that it's something everybody needs at the moment, as opposed to focusing on what's going on. This show is really about focusing on what's not going on, what we're not paying attention to because of all of this stuff that's happening, the war and everything.

Q: What are some of the topics you'll be covering?

A: It's basically about the politics of inclusion and how we are distracted a lot by the media on things that are a part of being American. But at the same time, there so many aspects to being American that it's not just about this patriotic, jingoistic attitude. It's also about taking care of everyone in the sense that we all need our voices heard, and I think that at this point in time, there really is only one opinion out there that's really being voiced. This addresses that and the implications of that, while at the same time being hilariously funny.

Q: One of the things I loved about Notorious C.H.O. was that you were unapologetically raw. Some of that stuff was just deliciously nasty and yet you received a lot of criticism for it, largely, I think, because you're a woman and critics (most of them men) think women shouldn't talk about things like that.

A: I went though my total like Madonna Sex book period, I just totally liked exploring what sexuality meant. I grew up from this sort of the '70s, gay, leather sex mentality where you just go for it. You do everything. But when you're raised by the Village People, that has a weird effect on you when you're a woman, because I have no qualms about talking about sex, because to me it's not bad.
I think that's the way I've always talked to my friends and I just look at the audience as being an extension of people that I'm friends with. My friends all lived similar, trashy lives. I mean, I think the trashier you are, the more popular you are. You're always put on a pedestal. Now our sexual morays are very different, due to things outside our control, things like AIDS and things like political shifts in the ways of thinking about the gay community and stuff, but I've always identified as a gay man so it's like I never think of myself as a woman. I really do kind of believe that I'm a gay man. It's kind of weird because I don't know how that reflects.

Q: Does that open approach to sex carry over into Revolution?

A: This show is not as sexual, but it is about some of the politics of sex. It's about really exploring what it means to be gay in America, what it means to be a minority in America, what it means to be a woman here and how subtle things can affect our overall point of view.

Q: I'm assuming your mother will make an appearance. . .

A: Oh yeah, she's great. This is actually the first time we've had a disagreement about something in the show she didn't want, and we finally decided that I was going to do it and she didn't have any say. I explained it to her in the way that, "You raised me, so you deserve it."

Q: Do you ever run any of your more personal, family-oriented material by her for approval?

A: No, no, but usually it's stuff she's said to me before, so it's not as if its like a new thing. Usually if she told be about it, then it's something that I feel like I have complete freedom of retelling.

Q: You've stayed remarkably busy, what with the book, the films and the touring, not to mention coming up with an entirely new act each year . . .

A: I have to do a new show like every year at least, because if I don't really keep it fresh for myself, I get really bored and I can't have that. I have to keep up on my work. I write all the time. I don't have a sense of wanting to rest. I don't know who I am if i don't work. Maybe that's a bad thing, maybe that's a good thing. But I really need that to be able to continue and grow.