Maz Jobrani

get the lead. I'm little Abner and Little Abner and you know, I've been bitt and I loved it and I just wanted to do it. And every time I tell I tell a story, how like throughout my schooling, they would always be like, oh, you've got what it takes to do this. So my parents would come to the shows and the director or the teacher would say, you know, your kids got the thing for this, and my parents, oh, thank you, thinking and we get in the car. My dad would be like, that bitch is crazy.

Don't listen to her. You're gonna be a doctor or a lawyer. Hi, I'm maz Jobrani and I am bald. Hi friends, welcome back here to Off the Beat. It is I your trusty host, Brian Baumgartner. Today I have a very special treat for you, because, as you just heard, my guest is the hilarious actor and stand up comedian Moss Joe Brownie. Now, if you know anything about Moss,

you know comedy isn't his only specialty. He actually studied political science at UC Berkeley and then later dropped out of his PhD program to do what yes, to pursue comedy. It's what all smart folks do. This was a great move for Moss. He now has six comedy specials, a memoir,

and countless TV appearances. Today, we're going to dive into his unique take on comedy, not shying away from hard time tompics like politics and race and why humor has a unique power to make this kind of statement and yeah, okay, we're gonna crack some jokes along the way. This one it is pretty pretty special. Let's jump right in with my friend and yours, Moss Joe Browny. Bubble and Squeak. I love it, Bubble and Squeak. A Bubble and Squeaker cookie every month left over from the Natio. Hi mas,

Hey Brian, how are you? I'm great, how are you? Thanks for joining me, Thanks for having me, buddy. What's going on? Hey? You know what? Not a whole lot, but I'm excited to see. Where are you right now? I'm in Los Angeles. Where are you? Okay? Well, so it's it's it's it's a rainy day in southern California. I'm there as well. It's insane, crazy, right, yeah, And there's nothing more boring than talking about the weather. But it's a reality. That's it's a reality. And it's also

I've been my whole life. I've been in California, like since I was six years old. And the only time I remember raining almost as bad was I think I was like in the fifth grade in northern California and cars were literally like the water was up to the window. Yeah, and it was crazy, and they made us evacuate. We lived on a on a hillside, they made us evacuate. I don't think I've seen it this bad since. And this might be worse than that, I mean worse and

better and all of the above. Yeah, No, it's insane. Cars stopped today, stuck right around my house in rivers of water trying to get through. But it's so nutty. But you know what, it's warm and cozy here between the two of us. I want to talk about your career. I have a little bit of an existential conversation about comedian versus actor. Will do that, but I first want to start back at your youth. You were born in Iran,

but came to California very early on. Is that right? Yeah, So I was born in Iran and then late seventy eight as there was protests. There's protests in the streets of Iran. The leader back then was the Shaw, and the Shaw was a monarch. He was a king. He had helped modernize the country and he had gotten the

country to some level of prosperity. But he had people that didn't like him because he was a king, and so clearly, you know, there were many groups that couldn't be vocal against him, you know, you know, he had a secret police and all that kind of stuff. Okay, so there was all these different groups that were critical of him or opposed him. And what happened was these

protests started started out in the streets of Irun. They got bigger and bigger and bigger, and what would happen is his military or somebody would show up at the protests and they would shoot into the crowd and somebody would die, and then that would cause more protests to

just grow and grow and grow. And so eventually, late seventy eight, my father was on business in New York and he told my mom, He's like, why don't you bring the kids to New York for a couple of weeks, And he said, you know, hopefully things will cool down and we can all return. And we didn't expect to stay this long because really we left my baby brother back there. I came with my older sister, Mariam. At the time, I was six. I guess you must have been eight. And I always like to say we packed

for two weeks and we stayed for forty four years. Now, yeah, you just never went back, whatever back because things got worse and worse, and early seventy nine the Shaw actually left.

Then that's when the revolution really happened. And there was actually a great documentary that was on HBO recently called Hostages that kind of talked about that time and how Ayatollahomeni comes in and really, I think a lot of people at that time, thought, oh, this is going to be great because now that the Shah's gone, will have

a democracy and everyone will get along. Well, actually it got worse because what happened was you ended up with this religious fundamentalist regime that didn't care about you know, women's rights, LGBTQ rights, religious minority rights. They led us. Then we ended up in a war with Iraq, so millions of people died there, and we've seen now more and more recently how brutal the regime is with executing

people and imprisoning people. And just last year they killed Massa Amini, who's this twenty two year old girl walking on the street with her hair out of her job just a little bit, and so it became even more brutal. And it's been hard to be away from Iran for forty four years. And I'm very American. I grew up watching baseball and football and you know, playing those sports and knowing American media. But there's always been a part of my heart that has remained in my childhood home.

And it also breaks my heart to see the young people of that country suffer the way they have. So really, all I could hope for is for a free run where they could be fully democratic, like we are, well, we're kind of democratic, we're going the other way. Would you say, growing up, like, how important was it for your parents for you to feel a connection to Iran or were you just trying to become sort of fully Americanized as a six, seven, eight year old. I mean,

not that you were fully conscious. But looking back, I don't think that my parents have even thought about it like that. I think I think that they were just they were like they assumed because my parents, imagine, imagine being in your at that time. My mom was probably in our mid thirties or so, and my dad was in his mid to late forties. Imagine if that far into your life you had to get up and just go to a totally different country. You don't speak the language,

you know, you know, you barely speak the language. They're there. The good news was my father, since he was a successful businessman, he had the resources financially, he brought a lot of money over which, by the way, he ends up losing them in bad real estate investments, but still to come over here. I don't think that they were consciously going, oh, we must make sure our kids speak Persian. And eat the Persian food and all that. It would

just assume that that's what it was. So they would speak Persian to us, we would speak Persian to them. There were times actually, because my reading and writing in Persian continues to not be that great because I left when I was in the first grade, so there weren't times when they would sign us up for like Persian classes on a weekend and I hated it. I was like, oh God, what I hate this. So but but but really culturally speaking, and for them, it wasn't like they

even had an option. It wasn't like my mom was going to be like, oh I'm gonna my dad wasn't gonna be like I'm gonna watch less American sports so that you become more Iranian. It was just like, I'm only going to speak to you in Persian and you're gonna respond to me in Persian, and that's all there is to it. You know. Okay, what about you assimilating into learning English going to school? Obviously you're learning English in school, right, Yeah. Well, I actually went to an

international school in Iran, so I already spoke English. But coming to America, I mean, you know, as a six year old, and then seven and all those young ages. You don't want to be different, you know what I'm saying. It's like the last thing you want is to be different. And first coming over from Iran to America, Iran I think had some European influence, so my mom would dress me up a little more European e and already in America they're like, you know, what's wrong with you? Why

are you wearing those clothes? And then and then there was times when like just little minor things became big things in our grade. Right, so we had a day called Pizza Day, and Pizza Day was where every kid was going to bring some ingredient to the school. We're gonna cook pizza together. This is I think third grade. And so I was in charge of sausages. So I go grocery shopping with my mom and my aunt and in Persian the word for hot dog is so cease sausage.

So so we're there, I go I need sausages, like, oh, you need so cis. So they give me a pack of hot dogs, which really is like, I mean it's a it's a small sausage. Really, I mean sausages are it is? So I show up with a you know, pack of hot dogs, and of course all the kids hah, he brought hot dogs. I know these are sausages. Those are hot dogs, you know, like ruined my my, my whole life. And I go home and tell my mom these are not this is hot dogs, like this is socias.

Now that story comes full circle when years later I went to study abroad in Italy. When I was in college, I go to pizzeria and they have pizza with hot dogs on it, and I'm like, you bastards. I was right all along. So yeah, so I was just trying to blend in. Man. I just wanted to be American. I mean I played baseball, I you know, American culture. Like that's probably where I discovered listen. By the way. Also, my dad and I think this was just parenting of

the time. But I didn't play catch with me or any of that. I mean, he was a great father. He was very generous, he was giving. It wasn't like let's go outside and play catch, you know. So because of that, like I was learning a lot of stuff from American television. So I'd sit there and watch hours. I'd watch Woody Woodpecker, Popeye, Leave it to Beaver all

these reruns. That's that's how I think I came upon comedy my first you know, like finding Eddie Murphy when I was ten years old and going, what's Saturday Night Live? I want to do this, you know? So, yeah, I was trying to blend in. Yeah, I read Eddie Murphy was one of your first loves. That sounds weird, but yeah, one of your heroes, one of your first heroes. There you go in comedy. When did you start performing? Were

you in school plays or yeah? It was basically so in the seventh grade, they had they had a musical. I went to Delmar Middle School in northern California and Tibron. They were doing The Boyfriend and I don't know why we all decided to do it, but it's a handful of guys decided to do it some girls and went, I go, let's try this. So I go and I auditioned, and again it was seventh and eighth, so most of the leads went to the eighth graders. Seventh graders were

just background dancers. And there was a lady named Shirley bomb Bright. She was our director. And Shirley Bombright said when you're doing a musical. When you're on stage, you always need to be smiling, when you're dancing, smiling and singing and radiating. Oh, and she said. The other things she said is you're part of an ensemble, so you better be here. So one day I go to the rehearsal. I go, Miss bomb Bright, I just gotta let you know. I'm a little under the weather. I got a cold,

but you told me I gotta be here. So I came. I'm here, and then we start the rehearsal and I'm up there, I'm singing, I'm dancing, I'm smiling. And then she stops. The whole rehearsal. Everybody stops stop. She goes, look at him, Look at him. You see him. He's sick, he's here, he's singing, he's smiling. You gotta learn from him. And I was like, oh, that's me. So it was a moment of like positive reinforcement made me feel I can do this. Then the year later, eighth grade, I

come back and I get the lead. I'm little Abner and little Abner and you know, I've been bitt and I loved it and I just wanted to do it. And every time I tell I tell a story how like throughout my schooling, they would always be like, oh, you've got what it takes to do this. So my parents would come to the shows and the director or the teacher would say, you know, your kids got the thing for this, and my parents, oh, thank you. Thinking we get in the car, my dad would be like,

that bitch is crazy. Don't listen to her. You're gonna be a doctor or a lawyer. So they had they didn't see the spark inside you. They were not interested in you pursuing this as a career. Right, Yeah, it wasn't that they didn't see the spark. It's that I think you know again, immigrant parents, that's all they knew,

and it was a previous generation. I was just talking to somebody about how my daughter or twelve now and I'm encouraging her to become a dj okay And I was like, if I went to my Irani dad back then, I want to be a DJ, like a d what you know, You'd be like, what are you talking about it? But you know, we live in a different world where people are making millions on TikTok or whatever, and so back then I don't think they understood at all what this meant or how it went. There was nobody in

my family. There was one. My aunt had married this American guy. He was the only guy who kind of was like, oh, you're interested in this, let's go to the bookstore and get some books on acting. And it was kind of having me look at that. But other than that, they I just think my parents didn't know what this was. And there was a lot of throughout my life. It was a lot of detours, you know, because of my parents. I started political science thinking I

was going to be a lawyer. Then when I went to Italy to study abroad, I thought maybe I'd come back and be a professor. So I got into a PhD program, and then I dropped out of that, and then I was going to go work in advertising. But all along I always would find opportunities to get on stage. I would kind of play a local play here there, and I was always like, I love this. Right then I was like, what am I going to do with it?

I mean, you know how it is. It's like, it's not like you just apply to a school and then you come out of that school and then Hollywood starts hiring you. You know, what I'm saying, Oh, if it was that easy, right exactly. So you mentioned getting into political science. This ends up being a significant thing for you in your career. Were you doing plays at Berkeley or well, because it was Berkeley, were you just finding other other ways to perform? Well, it's interesting you said

that because again at Berkeley too. So I sot some year, I forget what year it was. Maybe it was like my I don't forget what year it was. To be honest with you, must have been senior. One of the years. As I was signing up for classes, I was like, oh, maybe I'll take an acting class, and I remember it was all very last minute. Did one semester of an acting class at Berkeley, and the teacher was like, you

got what it takes. So every time I encountered somebody who was teaching, it was like, you've got what it takes. And I think that just meant like I like being a ham. I was comfortable. I wasn't self conscious. I was up there doing it, you know, And so even there I was like, wow, people could tell them. The people that are in this world keep telling me go for it. But you, within yourself, you didn't couldn't make the choice to listen to them. Yeah, I think you know,

I've I've read about this. First of all, your brain isn't developed till isn't fully developed till like your mid twenties or so, so you have a lot of stuff going on in your head right that maybe you're not I'm always I'm always amazed by comedians who go I started when I was seventeen, I go, what, how did you know? You know? Chappelle started when with fourteen? I go,

why does that even happen? And I had dabbled in it, I kept doing the plays and my parents, I think it convinced me do something legit and then do the plays on the weekend. So I think in my mind, I was like, yeah, that's right. You know, I'll just you know, do the local playhouse and I'll be a lawyer whatever. So while I was in high school, there was a talent show and they said, anybody any talents. I said, I'd like to try my hand to stand up,

and so I would write this material. And back then I'm a teenager, So the materials are mostly sex based. And also, you know, my influenced by Eddie Murphy and all this stuff. So one of the jokes I remember I came up with it was like, why is our genitalia in the middle of our body, which is the least comfortable place, Like it should be on our palm of our hands to just go around high fiving and

having sex all day? And so I would write this and I was like, oh, this is great, and then the next day i'd read it, I go, this is horrible because I'm in my head right, and I ended up canceling. I was like, guys, I can't do this. I just freaked out. And I was actually lucky. I think that I canceled because they said, Okay, if you're not going to perform, you need to at least show up and help run the show, just like by seating people and stuff. So turned out the audience for that show,

we're basically a bunch of juvenile delinquents. So if I went up there and died in front of those guys, it would have probably, you know, quashed my dreams for the rest of my life, right, But I didn't do it, which, by the way, just a side note. Years later, there's a comedian named Jeremy Hats. It was very funny. I saw him doing that joke. I'd never done it. I saw him doing it, which makes you go, oh, a professional did it. It wasn't it wasn't that bad material,

But so I tried. I didn't do it. Then when I was at Cow one day, I was having just this like horrible day, and I'm sitting at this bar. It's called the Bear's Lair, and they say stand up comedy competition and it was already on. It was like we got to watch it, and it was like National Lampoon's Comedian, Young comedian, you know of the country or whatever. And the two guys who went up there I knew one of them, and the other guy I didn't know,

but they were horrible. And I'm watching them and I, oh, my god, if they can do it, I can do it. And I always say I would say, you're inspired by greatness in mediocrity, right, And so then I said, the next time I get a chance, I'm going to do this. So then I was listening to the hip hop station. They go, there's a comedy competition, submit your tapes. So I just came up with a tape of me doing different accents and like like a dating tape, and me

being different characters. I submitted it and then they hit me back. They go, congratulations, you want a sixteen finalists. So all of a sudden, I was in this stand up comedy competition. I had no material, right, and I had to start writing it. And I wrote like this five minute sketch that was just me doing different accents. And then I went to the hip hop station to promote it, and I quickly found out I was the

only non African American comedian and the whole thing. And then while we're promoting it, they start doing yo Mama jokes and they all know each other. They're all on the stand up comedy circuit. I'm not, and they're like, Yo Mama, this is yo Mama that I'm sitting in the middle. IM like what am I doing? And again, Brian, what was interesting was the guy who put this competition together was like a real estate agent who I think

was trying to make a quick buck. So he'd gotten a theater in Oakland and was going to do this show with all these people, and I guess he had trouble selling tickets. And again I think I lucked out because if I'd gone up in front of whatever it was few thousand people African American crowd and done my little stupid act. I would have bombed. It would have been the death of me, you know. And so again I didn't get a chance to do it then. And so then I was like, okay, I've got this in

my back pocket. I see what I do. So then I come down to La I'm working in that summer, and it just so happens that another person working in this place I'm working is Alex Borstein, you know, marvelous missus Mazel and all that. So she tells me, she goes, yeah, I'm doing some standup. You want to come, come with me,

we'll go. So we went to a place called Gallagher's in the Valley and I took that stinky act of mine with the accents, and I did it at Gallagher's and the owner of the club was like, hey, you're pretty good, you know, give me your name and number. I gave it to him. Then I did it at the Improv in Santa Monica, and again it was mediocre. This my two first two times doing stand up. It was you know, you're horrible, but you're you got a

little something right. And then I just went back to school and again with my parents, you could go to grad school and all that, and I just let it go. And it wasn't for another few years until I really got serious with it. What helped you make the decision to be serious with it? So I go to grad school for political science at UCLA. I go audition for their mainstage play. I get in. I love it. It's very avant garde, and by night I'm doing a play.

By day I'm going to my poly CID classes, and all the polysyd conversations are like, what is the purpose of a political scientist? And it's like, well, it's not about teaching. It's about publish or perish. Come up with a thesis, go around the world and defend it, and then write another book. If you're lucky enough, some politician may use one of your ideas to like, you know, this horror. So by night I'm like loving it at the play. By day I'm like, oh what am I doing?

So I drop out of grad school. Then I get a job in advertising, because again I felt like I needed some sort of secure job. While I'm there, I start doing some plays just as a hobby, and then I was in my mid twenties and I was at the advertising agency. There was a guy by the name of Joe Ryan who was in his sixties. And Joe was a producer at the ad agency, one of the nicest people ever, kind of like a guardian angel with

sorts for me. And there was a play I was doing and I was making copies of the tape, dubbing the tape in the dub room to give to the other actors, and Joe happened to be in the dub room and he watches. He goes, hey, you're pretty funny. Have you ever thought about doing this professionally? And I was like, Joe, my middle school teacher told me to do it my high school universe I've been wanted to.

And I said, you know what I'm gonna do, Joe, I'm gonna work for a few more years, you know, put away some money, and then when I'm thirty, I'm going to try it. And he goes, let me talk to you for a second. Took me in his office. He goes, look I'm in. He goes, I'm in my sixties right now. And he goes, there were some things I wanted to do when I was in my twenties and I never did it because we really want to do it, do it. And it was a lightbulb moment.

I was like, you're totally right right then and there I went and signed up for improv acting classes at the ACME Theater, which is where Alex had gone. And then while I was there, Judy Carter, who was a stand up comedian who teacher stand up comedy, she happened to be in the class with me, and she was like, hey, you know at t stand up comedy classes. I go, oh my god. I always felt comfortable on stage, but I just never knew what to write about. So I took her class and then from there I just went

and that was it. I was in my mid twenties and I was twenty four years ago, twenty five years ago. Chase, Wow, were you into did at all in becoming an actor or for you was it about being a stand up comedian? It was both. I love both, you know. So I came from acting, you know, the whole time, as from a kid, I was always acting, acting, acting up and I was like, oh, this is great. You get to work with people, you get to put something up. And then and then once I got into acting in front

of the camera again a lot of fun. But I also was a big fan of stand up. I just I you know the problem. I'd been intimidated by stand up because when you do play, if if something doesn't go right, you can blame the other actors, the director, the right. There's a lot of people to blame. Right when you do stand up, I thought, oh my god, if people don't laugh, this is my soul that they're

not laughing at, you know. But then I've come to learn now that I do stand up, stand up is also a work in progress, so you should never give any set too much weight. Whether you kill or you die, you're gonna get up again that same night or the next night, and you'll go again, you know. I like to compare it to like a canvas of piece of artists never done until you film it, put it out as a special, and then you work on your next canvas. So I love both. I've always loved both. I guess

the immediacy of stand up comedy is pretty amazing. Do you consider yourself a comedian or an actor? I? You know, both? Again, Like I was, just it's interesting because recently I haven't had as many acting gigs for probably multiple reasons. One

is I'm touring a lot. Two is, as you know, it's just like this world seems to have gotten I was just reading an article about how competitive it's gotten past the pandemic, because before the pandemic, that casting director would call in fifteen or twenty people he knew or she knew wead audition and one of us would get it. Now they're getting one hundred tapes coming in from all over the place, so it's even harder to get parts.

And so because of that, I've been acting less. But I was just looking because somebody was asking for my real and I was looking at some acting stuff I did, and I was like, oh, that was fine. I'm pretty good. So I'm confident in what I've done, and I'm confident in being able to do it again, and I want to do it again. And really it just comes down to like a wanted to be involved in quality projects, be getting a chance to do stuff that's fun and challenging.

You know, you know, I took I took an acting gig one time. They were doing this play called Homebody Cobble, which was written by Tony Kushner and the director was Frank Gallotti, and they put it up at the Amindson Center and Maggie Gillenhall was playing one of the parts, and Lindami there was. It was a good you know, all New York actors, and I thought to myself, Gosh, when else am I going to get a chance to do a show at the Amindson Center. And the only

thing was I played this doctor. I do basically like a two or three minute monologue describing the injuries that have happened to this woman. And it's all very technical, and then I'm done, and I got nothing else in a three hour play. And I'll be honest with you. At first, I was, Oh, it's gonna be cool. And then the more I did it, I was like, what am I doing? Because also it was taking away my night because I usually I'm a stand up so I gotta go do stand up. And it got to a

point where I like brought a guitar. I was learning guitar backstage. I was having fun with the other actors. I would go for a run, like around downtown LA while they're acting, while they're doing the play, I'm jogging. A couple of times I left the show went to the Comedy Store, did a set and came back just to take a bow, and I started and then I thought, I was like, you know what, I'm never gonna do a project again because oh, so and so is in it. I want to be in it. It's like, no, you

should do it because it's something that excites you. Otherwise he's just gonna be like a weekend. You're gonna be like, I'm done. You know the Comedy Store you just brought up. Talk to me a little bit about your history with the place and how it affected your career. Comedy Store is like the mecca of stand up comedy. I guess it was like ninety nine or so. And the way you used to become a regular. Mitchie Shore, who's poably Short's mother was the owner of the club, and you

would have to be recommended by another comedian. There was a comedian named Mike Marino. He's still a friend of mine. He I got him to recommend me. And then when you recommended, that means on Sunday night when they're doing the open mic night after all the open micers, which by the way, it's a circus. It's like you get you get like you know, pimps, and you get like crazy people. It's really crazy. After all those you get

the showcasers and so people that have been recommended. So you do three minutes, and if Mitsi likes you, they get word back to you to come back a few weeks later. Do six minutes. You do six minutes. If she likes you, you get somebody gets word to you. She doesn't talk to you, by the way, it's like very mafia. She doesn't talk to you. Yeah, yeah, she's not. She would sit in the back. There's an exit, like a little exit sign right at the back of the

original room. The original room is this dark room, and there's an exit sign at the back of the room from the stage you have to walk through, and Mitzi would sit at the chair right next to it. She'd be eating her popcorn. So every time you're done, you walk past her. But she wouldn't talk to you, like you're not you're you're nobody still, So three minutes, six minutes,

no talking, come back and do ten minutes. If once you did the ten minutes, if she liked you, on the way out, she would grab your arm and then you know, she'd tell you you're a regular, which means now you can come perform there on a regular basis. So I did my three six ten and then I'm passing by her and it felt like a lifetime. Like it's only twenty feet, but it felt like a mile. And then she grabbed my arm and I was like,

oh my god, it's happening. I go this is where Eddie Murphy used to perform, this is where Robin Williams. I'm thinking to myself, this is it. My career is taking off. She pulls me and she goes, you're very funny, and that's how she used to talk. You're very funny. I go, thank you, missy. She goes, I'm gonna make you're a regular. I go, thank you, missy. She goes there every thought about wearing the outfit. I go, what outfit? She goes, you know, the hat in the gown. I go,

hat and gown. Yeah, the hat in the gown. I go, Oh my gosh. She wanted me to wear a turban and a Dishtasha on stage, and I was like, uh, sure, that sounds like a great idea. Walk down the stairs and I go, what did I just agree to do? And I'm freaking out. Oh my god, I got to wear a turban on stage, and I was like, this will be the end. And so then she was old at the time. So I'm thinking to myself, Okay, this is a Sunday night. I go by tomorrow when the

booker calls me. I'm hoping Mitsy's forgotten about the outfit. So the booker calls me. The first thing she says, her name is Corey. She goes, Moss, congratulations, I heard you're a regular. I go yeah. She goes, and Mitzi told me you're gonna wear the outfit. I was like, oh no. So now I'm talking to Corey. I'm like, Corey, listen. I don't know if I should. I'm not. You know what happens if I don't. She goes, do I really have to tell you, like meaning like you're not gonna

get any spots? And then I and then she's tried to convince me. She goes, listen. Mitsy is a genius. She sees something in you. She helped Rosanne Barr create her character Andrew Dice Clay came up with the Dice Man at the comedy store. This is Mitsy seeing something for you. Just do it. And now I'm like debating, how do I get out of not wearing a turban

on stage? So now starting negotiating with her, I'm like, listen, what if I do my act and then at the end I have a character and he puts on the turbans. She's like, that's great. And then I go, what if I do the act and then at the end he doesn't put on the turban, but he's like this, like this, like Palestinian guy whatever. I had all these different characters right. Finally, after a little bit of research, I was reminded, first of all, my father had moved back to Iran at

that point. And then there had also been some Iranian I don't know, commentator or comedian or something who used to go on the Persian TV stations here in Los Angeles, which does everything in Persian and it broadcasts all over the world, and he used to make fun of the Mullahs in Iran. So supposedly he was at an outdoor rally somewhere and some supporters of the mullah showed up and they threw rocks and they blinded the guy. So I took that as my ammunition, and I called Corey

the book or I said Corey. Listen, I've been doing the research. I'm getting the turban together. Just so you know. First of all, my father's in Iran, So if I do this and word gets back that his son is making fun of Mullah's, he might be in trouble. I go. Secondly, there was a guy here who made fun of them, and they threw rocks. They blinded him. So I said, they might even come after me. I go. Worse yet,

they might come after the club. And so she was like, She's like, let me call you back in a few minutes later she calls. She's like, you know what Mitzi said, Where's something comfortable. You'll be fine. So I got out of where the outfit? Man, how do you credit your time there as as launching your career? Do you believe that resolutely? I arm grab by Mitsy change your career absolutely,

because that's where I grew exponentially. Because what happens is, and this is what I tell young comics all the time, you need to grow in uncomfortable situations. So Mitsi used to put me up at like midnight on a Tuesday, and I'd be at the comedy store, like hanging out with Joe Diaz, and there's Joe Rogan and there's like you know, and then Andrew Dice Clay bumps you, and

then Eddie Griffin bumps you. And they're all doing like really dirty material and you got to go up after that and do jokes about the Iraq War, you know, But I learned. I learned so much from that. Like one of the things I learned was to always, you know, if you can, if the comedian before you says something outlandish or something that just kills, reference that because the

audience then knows you were in the room. But if you go up and go did that guy just say blah blah blah and they laugh, that already is a laugh and you're in the room with them, and then you go from there. Yeah, I learned so much, you know. Joe Diaz told me one time that there was another comedian who he saw I think I think he was the laugh factory or something, and there was a comedian that was killing and there was another comedian who was supposed to go next, and the other comedian was like,

oh god, her, I don't want to go next. For those people who don't know Joey Diaz is like it talks like this, he's very gruff like that, and he goes comedy store comics. We just go for it, like And the truth is, because I'd had to go up after these killer comedians, it never came to my mind that, oh, you have an option to go to the booker and be like, hey, I don't want to follow that. It's like you got to follow it, you know. So, yeah, I grew exponentially at the Comedy Store and I owe

that club and Mitzi Shore a lot. And that's why I filmed my special there was because it was really special to me. You've also played a lot of roles in film and television, the West Wing descendence, Malcolm in the Middle. What was the first role in film and television that you feel like helped you to grow in that industry, both in terms of awareness and in terms

of your own work. It's interesting, Brian, because you know, we think we're known for one thing, and then somebody knows us for a completely different thing, right, and you just never know what that thing is going to be. So I did the movie Friday After Next where I played Moley, who was this guy who was a donna shop. I hired Mike Epps and ice Cube to work at my strip mall. And as I did it, you know,

Kat Williams was me. Kat Williams and Terry Crews were the three new cast members that joined the Friday family on that And when I was on set, a lot of people coming up going like, this is this is going to launch your career. This is the thing, man, this is the thing, right And it did help my notoriety or my people knowing me within certain communities, but it wasn't a movie that was seen by the industry

as much. But still like in the comedy scene, when I would go do comedy shows, you know, sometimes I go do like Latino rooms or something and people like, hey, Moley, you know, and like my buddy who was a comedian, goes, you got to bring some headshots. They'll buy them from you. So I was like selling merchandise. After my show, I was like, I'm I was like, I'm nobody, but these guys are buying this stuff. But it was interesting because I'd done Friday After Next and I had also gotten

this commercial. There was a commercial for I think for like Chevy or something where I'm driving a car and the song come on. The song they used to be a song that goes under umm oh up and then now whatever that is. So when that song comes on, I start breaking to the song, like taking breaks and I mean breaking the car. And so the guy's trying to drink his coffee and he keeps and I'm messing with him basically, and it became kind of a popular

commercial was running a lot. So Spike Lee is going to direct the Pepsi commercial and it's for the Super Bowl, and I get an audition for it, and I go there and there's like a thousand people lined up just all the way out, and my brother in law, who's also an actor, I think he was there, and a few other people that are recognized. We're all standing around and we're all standing in line, and then they're on breaks. So Spike Lee has walked out and he's walking past everybody.

Everyone's kind of got their eyes on Spike Lee. They're like, oh, there, there's Spike Lee. And then he walks up to me out of everybody, and he goes And and now so Friday AFTERNXT has just come out, the commercials just come out and Spike Lee goes, hey, man, you're the guy from and I was waiting for him to go Friday. He goes, you're the guy from that commercial, and I

was like yeah. And then and then when I went in to do the audition for him, they would say step forwards, say something about yourself, and then step back. So I stepped forward. I go, yeah, my name is Mojo Briannie. I'm a comedian. And then Spike Lely goes and tell them you're the guy from the commercial. And I was like, yeah, I guess I am. To Spike lee I was the guy from the commercial. Meanwhile, I thought it was gonna be the guy from the movie.

So really it's hard to tell, like, oh that thing, you know that that that led to the next thing. I mean, you know, I was on a couple of TV shows, you know. I did Descendants was a Disney movie. I didn't think anything of. I played Jaffar and it was kind of a small part. And then one day I'm sitting there at a pool at a tennis club

with my kids at the time. They were like, I don't know, eight or nine, I'm just sitting there, they're swimming, I'm like eating a burger or something, and this group of kids they all start kind of like on the in the swimming pool, like five or six kids. They started kind of coming towards me. Yeah, I'm like, what the hell is going This is weird. And then they come over they excuse me, Oh yeah, are you Jaffar? I go yeah, oh my god, you go you're his favorite?

And I'm like there was a small part. I don't know if I think the kids lying bullshitting but okay, but still I was known to them as Jafar. I had no idea. I hadn't even thought about the fact that I was gonna have like eight year old an eight year old fan base, right, right? Did you feel like there was a learning curve once you got on set and we're acting in front of a camera as opposed to you know what at that point you were doing a lot of which was standing up in front

of people and having that immediate response. Well, the first thing I learned. So the first movie I did was a movie named Maryam written and directed by my buddy Roman. Sarah and I had been used to doing plays, and as you know, when you're doing a play, you performed the last seat in the theater, right, It's all very large, right,

and you do it once and you're done. And I remember just like the first day on the shoots an independent film and h and I think we started my first take, I was, you know, like, hey, how are you you know, like speaking loudly, you know, and then it comes back He's like, you can just bring it down a little bit, and I was like okay. And then the next take was like medium level, Hey how are you? Like no, no, like really bring it down. I'm like, hey, how are you? It's like that's perfect.

I'm like really because yeah, he's like the cameras right there and like okay. And then we did like we did the master shot and then go, okay, actress, take a break. You guys this that and I'm walking away. I go that's it, and then come to find out, no, that's not it. There's gonna be this. You're gonna do this same scene fifty different angles. So yeah, that was

the learning curve of it. Um. You know, I think you learn on on set that it's just about getting yourself there emotionally after you've been sitting in your trailer for several hours, right, So that's really what it's about. And then and then there's the live audience was a whole different ballgame performing in front of a live sitcom audience, which is it goes back to a little bit of like playing to the back but also playing within the room. So it's all I love it, man, It's I love

being on sets. I love doing stuff. You know, I could do it all day long. I have heard or read that you have said that there are roles that you would not play, that you and that you have turned down. Can you talk to me a little bit about about that. Well, you know, early on in my career's funny because again I come from this place where as a kid, I played Little Abner. Then in high school we did we did a musical of Batman. It was like our own version of Batman. So I was Batman.

So in my mind, I'm like, Okay, I could be Little Laberner, I could be Batman, I could be a cop, I could be what, I could be everything. And then I come to Hollywood and the first audition I get was actually for a security guard in the TV show Chicago Hope audition And the next my agent calls me, he goes, hey, I got another audition for Walker, Texas Ranger. He's like a European terrorist and then we get calls from both saying you got both parts, but you gotta

choose because they both shoot the same week. I go, okay, I said, let's do the security guard. But then as people find out more and more that you're of Middle Eastern descent, clearly going to be offered parts of Middle Eastern descent. And now we're in the late nineties, early two thousands, so auditions are coming in for terrorist parts. And so I was at a date. I was at my day job at the AD Agency, and I was looking for I was hoping to get enough film and

TV work where I could quit my day job. So I got this. So Chuck Norris was doing a movie of the week called The President's Man, A Line in the Sand, and the audition with the part was an Afghan physicist who's come to Chicago to build a bomb. He wants to this is before September eleventh. He wants to blow up a building. And in my mind, I'm like, you know what, I'll take this part, but the way I will perform it, I'm gonna show through my acting

why this guy has chosen to kill innocent Americans. So in the biography that I wrote, you know, his parents suffered at the hands of the Americans, so he's always wanted vengeance and all this stuff. So I go down to Dallas where they where they filmed this, and I show up and I'm playing I'm gonna being an Afghan in America. And so I go to to the fitting and they go, here's your shirt, here's your pants, here's your turban. And I go, oh, no, no, I go,

Afghans in America don't wear turbans. I go, especially if I'm an Afghan who's thinking of blowing something up, I'm not gonna be walking around with a turban in Chicago. And the lady was like, well, the producers and they all want you to wear it. I go, let them know. I've done my research. You know. If I were like with the Northern Alliance or the Taliban in Afghanistan. Yeah, but I go in Chicago. Trust me, I'm Iranian. I

know Muslims. They don't. I go, maybe a little bit scruff on the cheeks, you know, the beard, maybe a button all the way button up, But the turban is a bad idea. She goes, all right, I'll tell them. Next day, I go to my dressing room there's my shirt, my pants and what looks like a scarf. And I'm like, oh, yeah, see, clearly they want me to wear a scarf. She's like, no, that's a turban. You just gotta wrap it back up. I'm like, oh great. So I did the part and

I felt kind of I felt bad doing it. I was like, what am I doing? So when I came back to Los Angeles, I told my agents, I said, you know, no more terrorist parts. And then the TV show twenty four I just started taking off and they got in touch. And they were notorious for not telling you the plot of the show. You'd get an audition, you'd be like, he's a whatever, he's a guy who owns a laundromat. But there's gonna be a twist. He like, what does that mean? They go, well, we can't tell you.

It's all right. So the audition was for a terrorist and I said no thanks. They go, but he changes his mind halfway through the mission. I go, oh, the ambivalent terrorist. That sounds cool. So that was the last time I did a terrorist part. And then after that I said no more of this stuff. So there's been a lot of auditions that have come in or now my managers and agents know. Like my agent called me one time. He's like, listen, I'm getting ready to pass

on an audition that came in. I just want you to make sure. I want to make sure you're cool with that. I said, sure, what is it? He goes just two words, flight ninety eight or whatever with United ninety eight or the airplane that went down. Oh yeah, yeah. I go, are there any like FBI parts I can play? And he goes, yeah, but they're all white guys. I go, I forget it. I don't want to play therorist. You you've written a film script called Jimmy Vestwood American Hero?

Is this true? Is this? Is this? Is this? No? This was a movie that we actually did a few years did Yeah, we did it. We filmed it. So it was my the first film I ever wrote. I wrote with my friend Amir ohebs In, and then our director was Jonathan Kesselman. It was basically my homage. I was a big fan of Pink Panther growing up, so

it was kind of like my Persian Pink Panther. Because the storyline of a guy who's in Iran he wins the green card lottery to come to America and he's always wanted to be an American hero because back in the day he used to watch Steve McQueen movies. And he comes to America and he wants to be like a cop and save the day. But the best job he can get is working as a security guard a Persian grocery store, and from there he goes on to

get involved in this plot. Anyway, the movie was. It was such a great experience because I got to get a lot of my friends to come on and do the movie with us, and it was just a lot of fun. But it was a lot of work. I have so much respect for filmmakers, you know, because we wrote it together. We crowdfunded the money, so we ended up distributing it ourselves. And the truth is it was

like it wasn't a financial success. But the first week we came out, we were in four theaters and per screen average, we were number four in the box office Mojo after Captain America. That's awesome, And I was like, look at that. I got. I got the I got the screenshot of it and everything, and to this day there's clips of it now that people put on social media. So every once in a while, I'll see it circulating and I'm like, that's my film. So yeah, it was.

It was a cool experience. You've done not one, not even two, but five comedy specials starting with Access of Evil in two thousand and seven. The Access to that started as a tour, right, Yeah, so I've actually done six comedy specials. Six comedy specials. Yeah, I just keep you know that. I think the key is Brian that I keep talking about my life and so as my kids grow, as I grow, as things change, you know,

and also things I'm observing. I think, like, you know, I'm not a sit down and write jokes kind of guy where there are just evergreen jokes that I'm gonna be telling forever and ever So because of that, I've I've been forced to or I just keep I keep getting up at the clubs in LA and I keep, you know, writing new material. And so the Access of Evil Comedy Tour was a tour that actually started at

the Comedy Store Mits. Sure put me and a few other Middle Eastern comedians together, right a little bit before September eleven, she was like, I think there's gonna be it. She was almost she had like an epiphany. She goes, there's gonna be a need for a positive voice for

Muslims in the world. Yeah, and so so she saw that and U and then we toured and then that turned into a comedy special that was an OH seven, and then my first solo special was called Brown and Friendly and O eight and then I've gone on and done. You know, the lie one was called Pandemic Warrior, where I filmed it in Dubai, and now I got the new one coming out that I just filmed at the Comedy Store, which I'm calling The Birds and the Bees. The Birds and the Bees. How do you decide when

it's time to film the special? Is there a date? And you say to yourself, I gotta be ready by now because if not by this date, because if not, I'll just keep tinkering. Or do you wait until you feel like you're you're ready for it? You know, I've been doing stand up comedy consistently since I started in ninety eight and then really touring in oh six oh seven around there just constantly, like all the time. And so you're out, you're doing you know, in town, you're

doing fifteen twenty minute sets. You tour, you do one hour sets and it just keeps chiseling. It's just chisel, chisel, chisel. And then there's nights where you're like, wow, what a night. We should have filmed that, and really, like you know, usually around a year and a half to two years in you've got this nice hour plus I think you start talking to your agents and managers. You're like, listen, guys,

this is ready to go. You're ready now, Yeah, let's find the right place for it's what's gonna make it special. And you know, this time around, like I said, I thought, since I've done I've done I've filmed specials in Dubai, I've filmed the special in Stockholm, Sweden, i filmed the special the Kennedy Center, I've done LA And I was like, I've never done a club special. And I said, this

is where I got my start. So let me go back at the beginning of the special, I tell the story of the whole turban thing again and uh, and yeah it was great. I mean, it's um. You know. The other thing I've learned in this business is you have to create your own opportunities because if you don't, ain't nobody gonna call, you know, So I'm constantly just trying to create opportunities, and it's just in my nature. I can't stop running. I think some immigrant mentality. I

can't just pick my feet up play video games. In case it's not clear to everybody listening now, Mas is an incredibly smart guy. Gave the commencement speech at UC Berkeley in twenty seventeen. I would say that there are two through lines through, if not all, most of your work, which is politics and also your family. As you mentioned before, do you feel like over the last twenty years that are twenty plus years you've been doing it and touring close to twenty years, do you feel like your politics

has changed? Do you feel like how you express your politics have changed? Well, let me go. Let me first of all, thanks for saying I'm smart. I honestly like don't feel smart, like I mean, I think. I think I'm relatively Listen, if you took the country of three hundred and fifty million people, I would probably fall into the smart category. But there's so many people to half. Yeah, exactly, I think I think the median. I think in the

Median I'm in the top half. But I've always been interested in politics and I've always been a very I don't know why, but I've always been a very kind of liberal, bleeding heart, kind of like help, you know, if I can save the world, let me try and

help save the world. Listen, first of all, coming from Iran and seeing what happened there with this religious fundamentalism and how all the rights were taken away last year when the protests happened in Iran, I went to some schools around Los Angeles and was speaking to these students about it, and I said, why should you care about Iran?

First of all, I should care about Iran because they're fighting for democracy, and there is really a battle in many countries around the world of democracy versus autocracy or or or or dictatorships. And then I also said, if you guys think this stuff ain't happened in America, let me remind you that just last year they took away a woman's right to choose and the decision. Clarence Thomas said that we're going to look at gay marriage next.

And so again, whether you whether you're pro or anti abortion, isn't the issue. It's the idea of like do we want to live in a society where people have more freedoms and choices, or do we want to live in a society where someone's traditional or fundamentalist ideology is going to tell me how and what I can do. So I've always been pretty consistent with being very left leaning and and and I've also also been a big fan of comedians who are able to be funny but also

have a statement underneath it. So the truth is I kind of watch Colbert religiously because I get my news from there, you know, John Oliver, I participate myself. I'm one of the panelists from time to time on Weight Weight Don't Tell Me on NPR all of those things, and then you can go also also back to like the George Carlins and the Richard Priors and all those other guys who were making political statements. I'm always I've always been a fan of that what's the best joke

you've ever written? You know, it's funny you say that, because it's not even about the best. It's about it's about the jokes. Sometimes when I'm in my head, because sometimes the jokes are like stories, so you gotta go a while, you get the punch lines in the middle. Sometimes I'm on stage, I'm like what joke can I do right now that's a minute or less that will help me get a laugh and finish the set right. So one joke I do is I do a joke about how the worlds are different now now kids run

the world. I said, when I was a kid, I used to have to play with the kids of my parents friends. Now I have to play with the parents of my kids friends. And I go. When I was a kid, we walk into a party, I was five years old. As soon as we walk in, my dad would be like, go go play with Amir. And I was five years old. I was like, I don't want to play with am Heir. He'd be like, go play with Amir. And I'd be like, I'm here twenty nine years old, and he'd be like, that's not my problem,

that's his problem. He's their son. Till he finds a wife. You have to play with him. So that's one joke that I do. The other joke that I'll be honest with you now that you're asking my favorite, it might be my favorite. I was a big fan of Bjorn Borgs when I was a kid, and a lot of people that aren't of you know, our era, don't know who beyond Borg is Bjorn Borg for those you don't know, was a tennis champion. He was like the Roger Federer or the Djokovic or the Nadal of my era. He

was this amazing tennis champ. And he famously played John McEnroe in a US Open match in the early eighties. He lost, and he said what he did. He didn't wait around for the trophy ceremony. He walked out. He went to his hotel room. He jumped into the pool and he said, I never played tennis again. Like that was it. He was done. Well. He was my tennis hero and I hadn't heard about him in a long time. I'm on tour in Sweden. He's Swedish. By the way. I'm on tour in Sweden. It's this ruling tour with

a different city every night. So I run out of clean underwear. So I tell the promoter, I go, I need underwear. He goes go over there with the airport. He goes go buy it over there. So I go to buy underwear. They have Borg underwear and it hits me, Oh my god, born Borg has a line of underwear. That's what he's been doing all this time. He's got like underwear line. So I buy the underwear. And so when I do this joke on stage, I told that whole story and I go, and I'll be honest with

you guys, I bought this underwear. It's the most amazing underwear. I've been recommending to all the guys. Buy the Borg underwear. It's amazing. I go. Now when I walk down the street, my balls just play tennis with each other. And then I made the sun and I go, and then I go advantage left not I go. It comes with an announcer. So it's a fun bit, and it was. It was. Yeah, So that's one of my fun favorite ones. Oh that's awesome. You all have written it a memoir. Yes, I'm not

a terrorist, but I played one on TV. Writing is hard. I mean, I know you do a lot of it in small form, writing jokes or telling or writing stories. Rewarding for you absolutely. First of all, what was great about writing a book it was like about it's about yourself. Is it's therapeutic because you're writing about stuff in your past. You have to think about it, you gott you talk to your parents about it. A lot of a lot of memories come back and it was it was great.

It was very daunting, and what I would do is so I actually I got a guy, originally as as a touring comedian. I got this guy. I go, hey, his name was John Methven. I said, why don't you We hired him to write it with me. And the truth is, as I got going, I realized, you know, I like writing, like I want to write with my own voice. So I would write it, I would send it to him, he would help, you know, shape it,

send it back and then we'd go. So it was kind of like having an editor before having the editor, and it helped because also I do better if I have a deadline, and if I have a partner, that helps with the deadline, because if I don't have a partner, I've got fifteen projects just swirling in the air and I might not get to it between walking the dog, dropping off my kids, you know, kissing my wife. There's

a lot going on. So so it was daunting, but having deadlines having an outline, So it's about don't look at it as like, oh I got to write a three hundred page book. Look at it as I got to write fifteen chapters and then start with each one and go and go and go, and in the end you're done. Right, You're clearly thoughtful. I wonder you're you're

feeling about this. For me, so much about telling jokes, being funny and stand up is about that live delivery, whereas when you're writing and you're expecting someone to read it. By the way, this is why I think Steve Martin is such a genius, because I will read his books and they still make me laugh. Did you find anything

particularly challenging about that? You know, it was interesting because the first I think my first draft came across almost too serious, okay, and the editor came back and said, listen to you're a comedian. You need to make it funnier. So then I was like, okay, now I got to find ways, like you said, for it to read funny. Right. That's a little bit of a challenge too, because, as

you said, like how does it read funny? But the one thing that it does give you is it gives you whereas in stand up you're going to cut a lot of the fact because you're telling a story. You gotta keep it moving with writing, you know, keep it in. It's even like The Godfather when you read The Godfather, it's very different than watching it because I tell people I go, when you read The Godfather, you find out that Vito Corleone yeared one man and that was Luca Brazzi.

And the only reason he feared Luca Brazzi was because Luca Brazzi was kind of a wild card in terms of his level of intelligence. Now when you watch it, in the movie, they try to convey some of that, but Luca Brazzi is nervous of Vito Corleone. Right, So the thoughts their thoughts, and Luca, you know, you get

to go into that, which is kind of cool. So yeah, being funny was a little a little difficult, but I tried as much as I could, and I think, I mean, you know, for the most part, I've gotten pretty good feedback. I'm always like pleasantly surprised when somebody shows up at one of my shows and has my book. I'm like, oh wow, and I sign it. You know. Yeah, All Things Comedy. You have a podcast on All Things comedy

called back to School? Right, Well, I had I had so done, We're done, because so what happened was I did this podcast called back to School with Maz Jobrani. It was me and my opening act, Tehran, who another fellow comedian, and really it was just like it became an excuse to talk to interesting people. But really it started with my kids asking me questions that I didn't have the answers too. So I was like, rather than

me googling, why don't I bring experts right? So we had like a guy named Frank Figluzzi who used to be an FBI agent. We had a guy named fears Naderi who helped land the rover on Mars. We had a lot of interesting people come on and it was very interesting to me. But as the touring started again, I realized I don't have as much time, and I've

really got to start focusing on dedicating my time. So we basically put it on ice for now, and perhaps I get back into a podcast at some point, but for now, I'm just really focused on the touring and maybe pitching TV show ideas and all that stuff. I know how difficult the touring schedule is. I respect the

hell out of you for doing it. I think I'm in the middle of being on the road for eight consecutive weeks, part of weeks, so I feel you and I want you to know how much I appreciate you coming on here and taking a little time to share with us your your journey and your experience. I wish you all success and congratulations on the sixth comedy special seven seven seven year seven. You said six nowause, let's count them actually evil, brown and friendly. I come in peace.

I'm not a ter. I played one on TV Immigrant Pandemic Warrior and this is The Birds and the Bees the Birds YouTube. It's coming out. It's coming out at the place of your comedic birth. Mosa. Thank you so much for joining me, Brian, thank you for having me. I really appreciate you. Moss, thank you so much for joining me today. This was such a fun conversation this weekend. You know what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna bene watch every one of your specials. Kidding well, kind of maybe, listeners,

Thank you so much for tuning in. I'm going to see you next week. Or another very exciting guest, one that you might say is the opposite of ornate, Well, their name is at least okay, that's a terrible hint. You're never gonna get it. That's okay, because guess what, I'll see you next week Off. The Beat is hosted and executive produced by me Brian Baumgartner, alongside our executive producer Ling Lee. Our senior producer is Diego Tapia. Our

producers are Liz Hayes, Hannah Harris, and Emily Carr. Our talent producer is Ryan Papa Zachary, and our intern is Sammy Kats. Our theme song Bubble and Squeak, performed by the one and only Creed Brett,