Cho does comedic new reality show her way, finally

By Paul Freeman / Entertainment Writer

Margaret Cho's no-holds-barred hilarity has gotten her into hot water. But it's also gotten the San Francisco-raised comedian a hot new VH1 TV series, "The Cho Show."

She and co-executive producer Rico Martinez developed the simple, but scintillating concept. "We wanted to do a reality show that was like a sitcom, but with real people," Cho explains. "It's much more scripted than reality. It's my personal life ... but it's not. It's like a play."

The show centers on Cho and her colorful entourage, as well as her dignified and doting parents. Scenarios are sketched out, then the participants ad-lib the dialogue. "It's close to what they do with the Christopher Guest films or with 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,'" she said. "We know where we're going in every scene, but we improvise how we get there."

Cho is comfortable in this situation, a far cry from her 1994 ABC series, "All-American Girl." Her battles with the network on that show reached epic proportions. She has no interest in a traditional sitcom at this point in her soaring career.

"This was the way that I could exercise all control over the project creatively," she says of the VH1 series, "and, at the same time, be able to cast my parents."

Cho says her parents were nervous at first. "They didn't know what to expect. But they grew to love the process and it makes them feel that they're helping me, which is really nice."

In "The Cho Show" the endearing parents can be seen imploring their daughter for grandchildren. "They've been pushing that with me for so long. That's kind of like the daily conversation. It's not just for the cameras. That's just them being themselves."
Cho's husband, artist Reverend Al Ridenour, chose not to participate. "It's because we want to stay married," Cho quipped.

She would also like to see her bond with VH1 last. "They let us do our thing. They were supportive, encouraging and generous. They allowed us to just be ourselves, which is so helpful," Cho said. "That network kind of caters to women of color, which is really awesome."

She finds the entertainment industry, in general, to be narrow-minded. "The way that racism exists nowadays is not through overt stereotypes or hate speech. It's about non-inclusion. I don't know how to combat that, other than to just keep working and try to get stuff out there. But it's very tough in this business, for people who are different."

Despite Cho's courage and determination, fellow Korean-Americans didn't initially embrace her as a role model.

"When I first came on the scene, Koreans were very alarmed, because of the way I was talking about sex so much and gay stuff. I wasn't what they wanted. I was not a man. I didn't look a certain way. It was very alarming to the Korean community at large. They were rejecting me. It was pretty traumatic.

"Little girls would send me letters, saying that I made them ashamed to be Korean. Korean groups would threaten to protest at my show or on the set of 'All-American Girl.' Bad stuff happened. Fortunately, all those people died. So they're not around anymore. And all their kids, who grew up, are like, 'We're sorry about those letters. We love you. Our parents wrote those letters for us.'"

People tend to either love Cho or hate her. "Throughout my career, the feedback I get is super-positive or super-negative. There's never anything in the middle or lukewarm."
Many people now tell Cho that she inspires them, especially with her current "Beautiful" tour.

"It's all about beauty and loving ourselves. It's a very feel-good show. It's also really raunchy. I love doing this tour. It's fun, but there's also a lot of heart to it."

Fans love the fact that Cho is outspoken. Honesty and candor are key elements of her nature. "I'm not a good liar, because I have a terrible memory. If you lie, you have to remember the lie," she said.

"I have a tolerance for a certain amount of social lying. I have a problem when it comes to lying to the American people, like George Bush. The lies surrounding our involvement in Iraq should not be forgiven. Political lying and posturing is insidious."

Cho attended the Democrats' gathering in Denver. "I feel empowered by what is happening. Barack Obama has brought into politics this whole generation who had never thought about being political before. It's so cool."

Cho does not pontificate onstage. "Tina Fey was talking about comedy, saying that, when you get applause instead of laughter, that's not so great. My political life is important to me, but at the same time, I want to make sure that I'm still funny."

Cho never shies away from touchy, topical subjects, however. "I never see what I do as controversial. The things I believe in, seem, to me, to be totally natural and normal. Like gay marriage - why is that a problem? That shouldn't be controversial at all. Or women having the right to choose what they want to do with their bodies. That to me is such a no-brainer. That's not controversial - that's just how the world should be."

Cho plays Mountain Winery tonight. She returns to the Bay Area often. "My tattoo artist lives in San Francisco. So I go back every couple of weeks. Tattooing is a really serious pastime for me."

Like her unique humor, Cho's tattoos are part of the identity she has carved out for herself. "I know who I am and I enjoy this whole journey. I've been through a lot of struggle, pain and strife. But I don't need to go through all the soul-searching anymore. That's the realm of a younger person. I can just be happy and have fun."