US funnyman Gabriel “I’m not fat, I’m fluffy” Iglesias has declared that we are in need of a revolution – a Stand-Up Revolution.So he is sending three of his finest colleagues to fly the flag on his behalf at this year’s Sydney Comedy Festival. The trio in question are stars of the Comedy Channel’s smash hit television series of the same name, and they’re being pitched as “the craziest men in show business” – Lance Patrick, Martin Moreno and G Reilly.
“I don’t know if we’re the three craziest,” Patrick says, “because Gabriel always describes Martin as the craziest man in show business. But I think we’re probably guilty by association. Just hanging out with Martin, we may spend some time in jail.
“G Reilly is more laid-back. His humour is very observational and intelligent, like the things you’re thinking but don’t say. Martin is the crazy one who’ll say the things you probably would never think and never say, because you don’t want to go to a dark place after you die! I think he knows he’s going there already, so he just says it.”
Patrick is one cool customer – if only out of necessity. His first foray into stand-up was truly a baptism of fire. “Stand-up is the most terrifying thing that you will ever do,” he says. “I would rather go bungee jumping or skydiving. I would rather do a million other things other than stand-up.”
Only five short years ago, Patrick was happy in his job as an online marketer for the Comedy Channel. “It was fun. I’d get to go on tour with these incredible comedians and we’d hang out, you know?”
Looking back, Patrick admits maybe he had too much fun, because it wasn’t long before Iglesias declared it was time for him to get up onstage and show ’em what he could do. After refusing to help with his material, Patrick says Iglesias chose a sold-out gig of 2,000 people at the Hard Rock Cafe in Orlando for him to make his debut – hardly the ideal scenario for a rookie.
“My nerves were doing OK until I realised that all the other comedians – Martin, Gabriel, Alfred [Robles] and everyone that was out on the road – actually had money wagered on whether I would crash and burn!”
It turned out the joke was on them, because Patrick managed to win the crowd over with his slightly adolescent but perfectly timed quips on life, love and Justin Bieber (you may have seen his pseudo sex tape on our screens in 2013). “The Justin Bieber video got two million views in two days,” he explains. “It even aired on The Project. My relatives on the Gold Coast called me and were like, ‘What are you doing on TV?!’ and I was like, ‘Really? That’s what gets me on TV down there?’ If people in Australia don’t know me as a comedian, they’ll know me as the guy who had relations with Justin Bieber.”
All jokes aside, Patrick has always had a special place in his heart for Australia – his first visit here was when he was 13. “You guys know how to party. You know how to have a good time. Looking from the outside in, when you’ve had a Prime Minister who held the Guinness Book World Record for chugging a beer the fastest, it’s like, ‘We’ve gotta get down there!’” he laughs. “Oh, and the other day, someone asked who my favourite Australian comedian is, and I said Jim Jefferies and Tony Abbott!”
See Lance Patrick inComedians Of Gabriel Iglesias’ Stand-Up Revolution World Tour with Martin Moreno and G Reilly at The Comedy Store on Tuesday April 21 and Wednesday April 22.
