Comic Jameson Gong, on Trump, Hillary and flatulence
The New York-born stand-up comedian who founded The TakeOut Comedy Club in Hong Kong reveals why he hated being Chinese and why he finds news funny
TRUMP ’N’ PILLORY As a stand-up comedian I talk about life. I’m very observational. I talk about my family, my wife, my kid, Hong Kong. My sets are never the same; I use current events all the time because the news is funny. Trump and Hillary. You know what, in four years’ time I’m going to run for president and there’ll be major changes. The White House; yellow. Tiger Balm mandatory in all first-aid kits. Dim sum, especially chicken’s feet, served in all schools. And my VP, Jackie Chan.
So you see my style. Four to six laughs a minute is the comedian’s goal.
ROCKS BY THE RIVER I’m Jameson Gong Pui-hung. Gong is “river”, so I think Pui-hung means “rocks by the”. We’re all named something “by the river”. I was born in 1969 in New York City. My mum was born in Hong Kong, my dad in Guangdong. They met in Hong Kong and my brother was born in Hong Kong and then, in 1967, my parents moved to New York for better lives. My brother and four sisters all live in the US. I’m the only one in Hong Kong. So I’ve come full circle to bring my laughter back to Hong Kong (with The TakeOut Comedy Club).
I grew up in Chinatown next to Hispanic projects, very poor welfare-dependent families. Not the safest areas but laughter kept me sane. We rarely saw a Caucasian person. My wife always tells me off for eating really fast, but if I didn’t as a kid there would be no food. She says: “If you eat fast, you will flatulate.” And I do, it’s natural. She claims women don’t flatulate, which is false because I’ve secretly recorded her flatulating.
COMEDY CENTRAL We started TakeOut Comedy initially to revitalise the nightlife in New York City Chinatown after 9/11. This was in 2003. We have the first poster of our first show in Chinatown right here on the wall (in Takeout Comedy, in Elgin Street) next to my Olympic torch. I was the only licensed tour guide in Chinatown, I also had a full-time job and was big for Asian civil rights, so I was nominated to carry the Olympic torch in 2004 (ahead of the Athens Games). So I crossed the Brooklyn Bridge and gave it to (CNN anchor) Paula Zahn and it was a moment of my life. One of them.