what's your name Lebanese man what's
your name Khalid I love it solid where
they go and as your wife also is a wife
a girlfriend what do we what are you
guys wife of 20 years congratulations
way to go guys and are you also Lebanese
just American that's fine she's so sweet
she goes no I'm just American I just a
me that's a good thing for us that's
yeah yeah you you make this legal I mean
it's you you make us feel a lot more
secure you know anything goes wrong oh
we have she's just American she's with
us
[Music]
I'm Jason rezaian an opinions writer for
The Washington Post like most Iranians
in the Diaspora Maz Jobrani is my
favorite Iranian American comedian Maz
and I grew up in the same area in
California
[Music]
recently I picked up Maz at the airport
and we sat down for a kebab dinner
before his Kennedy Center performance in
Washington DC there was so much I wanted
to discuss with them about his comedy
and our shared experiences Iranian
Americans
goodnight thank you
it's face of Persian food is probably
the best food you know I try not to get
too nationalistic about these things
well the word you got a weekend we got
some pretty great food I've never seen
something like this or are you taking a
picture yeah my wife does that a lot
my wife does it every chance she gets
Wow I love that whatever would I
wouldn't have thought of this good huh
any really good pop up their line guys
this is amazing I love being back in DC
and first of all where's my I know my
Persians where's my Persians was my
Iranian yes thank you yes thank you for
coming thank you thank you for yes I
knew you would be here it's part of the
citizenship program every year and a
half you got to come to a module Ronnie
show we check your paperwork and you
keep going you're all illegal how long
it take you to feel like you were
assimilating especially with the
language in Iran I was in an
international school so we would do half
the English half they Persian so I come
to America but I still you know you
speak English but but you're not as not
as well as everybody else and I think
part of it was just trying to blend in
with the kids and I had sports to help
me so I was I was playing soccer in the
streets of Iran so in America
I could play sports I did the kickball
all that stuff was pretty athletic I
used to go shopping with my mom and she
would get a cart full of stuff for the
house and I would get a cart full of
candy right I just had a sweet tooth and
back then it was like Twinkies and Ho
Hos and all that stuff I seems to do a
bit about how Twinkies were so great I
mean that was like that was my entry
into America where you were like oh my
god I'm gonna eat the topping and then
lick that cream middle oh my god so I
would take this stuff so I would go to
school with a bunch of candy and I would
give it to guys and I realized that that
was me bribing friendships at a young
age
yeah that's probably where I also
started finding a sense of humor because
your humor sports and candy yeah that's
how I made friends yeah pretty good
recipe
I rebelled against my father to become a
comedian okay I Republic my father my
mother I rebelled against the Iranian
community when I started 20 years ago
nobody thought we should be doing comedy
I sort of got back then when I started
comedy I think the whole community was
really felt bad for us they were like oh
did you hear about Jobrani son he's
almost a drug dealer imagine tomorrow
you had to get up and move - I don't
know Portugal or Brazil where you don't
speak the language at all and you go
Here I am
yeah and I've got this money here that
I've brought that whatever I've been
able to save I'm gonna figure it out now
I got to figure it out and I'm 40
whatever 46 immigrant parents don't
spend time with anybody
once immigrant parents get you to
America they feel their job is done
I don't remember seeing my parents from
the moment I land it to the time I
graduated we got here my parents ready
go you're on your own we'll see you at
graduation since I came to America I
never felt American enough and I never
felt Iranian enough I remember the hosta
stuff then I remember the iran-contra
happened yeah and in a way I was like
god we're always in the news like can't
we just lay low for a minute and then it
was the movie not without my daughter
anybody who was of that generation
especially women I think really thought
this is how all Iranian men are my dad
came with a lot of money he was a
successful businessman in Iran he had I
he had an electric company and I would
say a lot of Iranians I don't think
realize that revolution was gonna happen
they thought that the Shah was gonna
quash it and so my dad sent from my mom
to bring my sister and I during our
winter break in late 78 to come just to
spend a couple weeks in New York and in
America and I always say we packed for
two weeks we stayed for 40 years just
American
this is 40 years ago in America nobody
liked Iran still nobody likes you right
my contact with Iranians would come
through my parents because they would go
to these you know parties and then it
would take me along and I'd meet some
guns kid I'd be like oh okay that's cool
but then I go to school it was mostly
just American dudes you know I got
bullied when I came to America a lot of
Iranians know when we first came to
America
we were fleeing we were leaving for the
revolution coming to America from from a
revolution we got here
they took hostages and then America
started beating us up yeah and thank God
I didn't get beaten up but I got called
an Iranian I did there was a sixth
grader who called me an Iranian when I
was in the fourth grade he called me can
I ring and I didn't know what what to
say back like what am I gonna be like oh
yeah you're a American at that point was
just telling each other what we were
from I was felt kind of embarrassed of
my parents right in terms of like their
colonists and their language in their
you know they said I love them yeah but
you know when you were around your
American friends you'd be like don't be
so loud you know I remember my dad
embarrassing me a couple of times like
we went to an ice cream store and
Tiburon and there was this girl behind
the counter and I was like I'm not maybe
I'm ten at the time and the girl is
probably like 13 or something I remember
my dad just like really only you know
like you want to marry my son you know
like joking joking with her but I'm like
dad shut up don't ask if she wasn't
marry me what are you talking about so I
had issues with with with you know the
the lack of a gender pronoun and Farsi
you know so we'd go places and yes
around kid with big eyes and you know
very neat full eyelashes and a lot of
bushy hair at all and you know people
would be like oh you know your child is
so cute and my dad would be like this is
Jason she is my sauce
[Music]
I've always been supportive of the
underdog because I feel why do human
beings pick on people that are less
fortunate than them I was an immigrant
when I came to MIT I'm an immigrant I
came to America I got to stand up for
immigrants because immigrants love
America we come here to make America a
better place look at all the people here
and we come here we I think we
contribute to America and we do a lot of
good things for America I think that the
American spirit still exists like that
and I just think it's packed getting
past the fears and and finding those
people that are willing to lend a hand
and bring these people you know for me
it's that kind of buffet of
opportunities of connecting with people
from different cultures it's like the
best thing about living in this place
yeah
what other nationalities are here
tonight what are their national Germany
Germany welcome Germany
thank you for coming are you with an
Iranian or who you with yes a German in
an Iranian yes fantastic Germany you
were in the original axis of evil now
we're an axis of evil
you were the enemy not were the enemy we
have so much in common German where's my
nan Middle Easterners buy applause where
are you nominations there you go
yes where where Armenia there you go
you're kind of Middle Eastern that's
okay our medians are trying to separate
no Armenia we're also I am also in stuff
no I'm just American as well I'm just
American I'm just American from the
Armenian side just to make
you're our neighbors take it easy
everyone wants to back out of the Middle
East these days
[Applause]
Armenia is more like Europe it's more
Europe more Armenia has more Kardashian
you know Kardashian but over here by
Kardashians we're gonna call you just
Armenian when you choose to be generous
then I think you live with less stress
in your life okay if you're gonna be if
you're not gonna be generous then you're
just your whole you holding on to
everything everything like I feel good
like one night when I if I'm able to you
know tip or help somebody it makes me
feel good but again I think that's a
cultural thing that we got feels great
that you know the holes are a streon
thing you know the thoughts good words
good deeds so simple bro okay
hold on a second this person's gonna
come up and you get to tell a joke or
sing a song or something would have some
fun with you in a minute
whoever you are you I hope you're not up
there
Tyson banker banker banker are you over
there I do appreciate everything that
Moz offers in everything that he stands
for and quite frankly if it wasn't for
his humor the chance that a Kurdish girl
and a boy from Illinois would get
together
[Applause]
Thank You Moz thank you mais now I have
to ask Helen would you allow me to tell
the world that you are going to be mr.
Ronnie maker
[Applause]
yeah
live-show love you stay strong Kennedy
Center best theater in the world love
them bye
[Music]