Bobby Collins, famous comedian and UB alumnus, performed a medley of his best stand-up material on Wednesday night at Slee Hall.
"You couldn't get tickets for some concert or something?" said Collins in response to his sold out audience's welcome.
As part of a comedy series organized by UB Alumni Association, Collins rocked the audience with his New York-style blend of comedy revolving around suburban life in Southern California. The evening, a tour stop promoting the upcoming release of his "It's Not The Journey, But the Destination, Stupid," was presented in conjunction with homecoming week festivities.
The animated Collins, born in Queens, N.Y., joked about a variety of topics ranging from the Buffalo weather to the California recall election and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
It was obvious that even after graduating 30 years ago, Collins has not forgotten the harsh Buffalo weather.
"Buffalo is the only place where the weatherman would be outside in the cold and say, 'It is snowing 10 inches tonight,'" said Collins. "We'll be saying, 'Why don't you come inside then,' as we smoked our body weight in pot."
Collins joked and tried to paint the picture of his dysfunctional family.
"One of my daughters is the devil. It is like the aliens landed, dumped her and said, 'See what you can do with her,'" said Collins, laughing. "I tell my wife, 'We love her, don't we?'"
Collins, who now resides in Southern California, summed up his feelings for the recall election.
"Gray Davis is the whitest man you'll ever see in your life and his name is Gray. Doesn't he hope for some pigmentation?" said Collins. "The new Californian governor is an action movie hero. You don't give him short lines like 'I'll be back' and 'Hasta la vista, baby' for no reason."
His commentary on Floridian beachwear was hilarious while simultaneously taking another swipe at Schwarzenegger.
"Fat people (in swimsuits) look like human slingshots," said Collins. "Ladies in thongs just make me go, 'I wanna touch you. My name is Arnold,'" he said referring to Schwarzenegger's sexual harassment charges.
Collins was critical of the Bush administration's plan of action on Iraq in relation to the power outage.
"We have sanctioned $87 billion for Iraq but we cannot give $20 for someone in Ohio not to trip on an electric cable," said Collins. "I was in New York at that time and my wife called and asked me 'what did you do this time?'"
Collins' act reveled in his New York upbringing and integrated his street-smart attitude with a comedic routine.
"I'm a New Yorker. We stare. We even get other people to stare," said Collins as he demonstrated how to point things inconspicuously by pretending to stretch and point.
Collins also feels he still has his rebellious Buffalo side in him, linking himself to the days when students would barricade the north campus in protest. Collins told of a run-in with authorities on an airplane trip he once made, in which he was denied use of a first-class bathroom while flying business class.
"When the plane landed, the Los Angeles Police Department and FBI were waiting for me," said Collins. "I said, 'You either arrest me, and I will use the chance to make publicity, or I shall go and see my family.'"
Collins was appreciative of his Buffalo audience and related to the more matured Buffalo audience on his days on South Campus very well.
"There was a real sense of community (in Buffalo). If you're going to fail, we will fail together. If you're going to pass, we will pass together. You always come home to Buffalo." said Collins. "We're home, we can talk."
He described further exactly what he liked about Buffalonians.
"We have sensibility up here. You have more sense here in your fingertips than the bodies of the rest of the people in this country," said Collins. "Take what you learned here, and take it out there. It is the best d--- ammunition you got."
"Thirty years ago, if you tell me if I would live in Southern California, with three houses, four Mercedes, come back to Buffalo for a comedy series and become a professional comedian," said Collins, "I would say, 'Roll another one.'"
Photo: Breadchastick / Wikimedia Commons
