The Comedy Couch - Darryl Lenox Interview

GUY MACPHERSON: When did you move here, exactly?
DARRYL LENOX: September, '96.

GM: From where?
DL: L.A.

GM: And the obvious question: Why? Were you a comedian
at that time?
DL: Yup. I was going through a divorce and I didn't
have anyplace else to go, so I was living on the road,
stopped and did a show here and decided I wasn't going
back.

GM: What was it that made you decide you weren't going
back? Just the physical beauty?
DL: The different level of racial tolerance. It was
like I didn't even know I was black up here.

GM: You talk a lot about that in your act. I don't
know if they were all based on true stories, about the
time the police stopped a guy on the street.
DL: That was all true.

GM: Yeah?
DL: Yeah. I saw them [jack] this guy up right there on
Howe Street, right in front of Fitness World.

GM: And what happened, exactly?
DL: I was coming from one of the clubs and two cop
cars came out and they jumped out and one of them
goes, "Freeze!" So I thought she meant me. And so they
start running and it was this white guy, and he froze
so they jumped him.

GM: And what was going through your mind?
DL: That's what I thought, "This is the best country
I've ever been in my life."

GM: What would have happened if that was in L.A?
DL: I would have assumed it was me, and they would
have ran up on me.

GM: Has that happened to you in L.A. or in other parts
of the States?
DL: Yeah... Yup.

GM: What? Just being harrassed?
DL: They just stop you, check you for ID, go up to you
and your buddies for no reason and all that kind of
stuff.

GM: Has it ever happened here?
DL: No. Not a once.

GM: You speak to people here of different races and
they say there still is racism here.
DL: Yup.

GM: Do you ever experience any of that?
DL: Um, I haven't ever experienced personally any
racial stuff towards me while I've been in Canada but
I've seen it take place as far as with the natives and
stuff like that, some East Indians, some French. But
I've never experienced it.

GM: Why do you think that is?
DL: Population.

GM: The black population.
DL: Yeah, if there was more, then it would be
different. But because there are more East Indians,
there's more Chinese and natives and everything that
it's just part of this particular country's issues and
culture.

GM: I was speaking to Blue Edwards of the Grizzlies
and he was saying that there's not a community, so you
miss that.
DL: Yeah.

GM: You miss being around your own people and the
cultural aspects of that.
DL: I miss that quite a bit.

GM: But obviously not enough to go back.
DL: I'm going back in January.

GM: You're going back to live?
DL: Yeah, I'm going back to live in January.

GM: Why is this? Career move?
DL: Yeah.

GM: To L.A?
DL: Yeah, back to L.A.

GM: And how do you feel about that?
DL: I'm excited. You know, honestly, Guy, I want to be
one of the best comics ever, so the resources...
There's so much issues and strife in that particular
part of the world that I have so much more stuff to
draw from. And then here, it's just like the best
place in the world to relax, but it's hard to draw
social material, social stuff that I like to talk
about here because everything is just so nice and it's
so laid back. It's just different.

GM: So the problems will help you creatively.
DL: Exactly.

GM: So it's a give and take, then.
DL: Yup, it is a give and take.

GM: I assume that when you were performing up here for
the past five or so years, you were still making
forays into the States.
DL: Yeah.

GM: And from seeing you here, most of your material is
about being a black man in Canada.
DL: (long pause) Is that a question?

GM: No, it's not a question. But it's a conversation.
DL: You know, the initial opening parts of my show, I
talk about it just because it's the obvious, but it
depends on where you saw me, because I try not to
spend too much time talking about being black
anywhere. I more like talking about social issues.
Though in Canada they really enjoy the details which
as an American I can pay attention to.

GM: When you then get to the States, all that part of
your act, you can't use that. So then you go more with
the social issues.
DL: Right.

GM: Do you think Vancouver is a real whitebread town?
DL: Yeah.

GM: Even though there are, like you say, Indians, East
Indians, Asians.
DL: Yeah.

GM: How so?
DL: Uh, in a way, it's not a city that has a great
passion. So it's different. Usually, if you go
someplace where there's a real, real high mixture of
dark skin races, it's just incredible. Like in
Montreal and Chicago and even L.A. with Mexicans and
blacks. There's a passion behind the place. But here's
it's, I would say, whitebread because nobody really
gets too excited about anything other than hockey. I
think it's just a place where people like to relax and
just enjoy stuff as opposed to creating. I don't know
how to describe it, but, yeah, I would say whitebread
is the right word for it. The nightlife and
everything, it's just a place where you like to relax
and enjoy yourself.

GM: It's more a westcoast, laid-back feel.
DL: Yeah.

GM: Although why does L.A. have the passion?
DL: All those crazy-ass people trying to make their
dreams come true. And then the fact that you can have
that much decadence right next to that much poverty
and struggle. I mean, that's combustible. And that's
why I say it is what it is.

GM: Do you think it'll be hard for you to go back and
live down there after being here in this safe,
whitebread environment?
DL: No, it won't be hard. Not at all. I spend most of
my time working there anywhere. And it's where I'm
from. So it's not going to be hard at all.

GM: Do your friends and family ask you, 'What are you
doing up there?'
DL: You know what? They saw the results. So they've
seen me mature. I come back and they see the
difference. Now they've all been trying to come up
here just to see if some of that magic will rub off on
them. They all come up to visit, and all my friends
have. It's a special place.

GM: So you're going away but you're not feeling bad
about the city.
DL: No, it's just trying to move to the next level.

GM: You were about to go on the Tonight Show at one
point. What happened with that?
DL: That just completely fell... We just don't see eye
to eye on material choices. So they had to end up
getting a new talent coordinator who's a comic. Before
the guy wasn't a comic. So the old coordinator and I
just didn't get along real well. I wanted to push my
social stuff and he wanted to do a little more I like
to call the Ben Vereen-y kind of stuff. So it just
never worked out. So I'm going to go for Letterman
instead of the Tonight Show.

GM: It's better, anyway. The Tonight Show is more...
Talk about whitebread.
DL: Oh, man, I know.

GM: You were coming off a divorce when you moved up
here. Any success up here?
DL: I'm still single.

GM: How do the people compare in relationships? Is
there a difference between people in Vancouver and the
U.S?
DL: I think Canada is more old-fashioned in so far as
women aren't so career obsessed and me-firstish like
they are in America, where it's all status and it's
all money and it's all, just different. It's just
different. So it's easier to meet people here. And the
people are friendly.

GM: When you're big and successful and famous, you can
have a place in both cities.
DL: Exactly.

GM: And you'll still come back and perform, I hope.
DL: Yup, definitely.

GM: Anything else you'd like to say about the city,
culturally speaking?
DL: It's my favourite city in the world, and I've been
all over the world. By far it's my favourite city. How
come you guys don't do enough talking about standup?
That's the only thing that I don't like about it. It
doesn't support the arts the way I think a major city
should.

GM: All the arts, or standup in particular?
DL: Uh, I don't know any of the arts that get truly
supported, unless you do.