Frustrated with the way Asian Americans were being portrayed in the media and Hollywood, NBC’s Last Comic Standing star, Dat Phan, decided to finish college and become an art teacher earlier this year. Phan became a Hollywood star in the summer of 2003 after winning the first season of the reality show, Last Comic Standing. Since discovering stardom, the Vietnamese-American comic has toured all of the major cities in the U.S. and racked up hundreds of thousands of frequent flyer miles. At one point during his newfound fame, Phan thought he could slowly transition away from the limelight and return to finish his college degree.

All of that changed upon realizing how he had connected with over 12,000 friends from his social networking sites and inspired so many young adults’ lives across the globe.

“I have fans contacting me through the web from places like South Africa, Europe and Australia,” Phan said. “Not all of them are Vietnamese either. I have Middle Eastern and black kids about ten years old telling me that I’m their hero. Children don’t see color. They see what they relate to, regardless of what you are.”

When he realized art programs were receiving widespread cuts in public schools and he would not be able to promote diversity effectively as a teacher, Phan knew he could make a bigger difference if he remained in the entertainment industry he fought so long and hard to penetrate. As a result, Phan decided to continue with what his instincts have always told him since he was a child, to carry on with his Hollywood career and once again put his college degree on hold again. He wanted to make a statement in the mainstream pop culture. So, he developed an idea for a comedy tour called the “East Meets West Comedy Show.” He would ask fellow comedians to join him on a tour across the United States to showcase each of their unique talents and communicate with people by making them laugh.

The tour is a blend of popular comedy shows like Mad TV, Premium Blend and Blue Collar TV, but with a cultural twist. It features comics from all sorts of backgrounds, including African American, Caucasian, Korean and of course, Vietnamese. Phan co-hosts the show with Cris Clobber, a longtime veteran comedian and friend. The stars of the show include seasoned Hollywood comics, Amy Anderson, Robin Cee and Kenny Kane.

“A few months ago I wanted to go to school because I got tired of how Asian Americans were being portrayed in the media and Hollywood,” Phan said as he reflected on how quickly his idea of a diverse comedy show is coming to fruition.

While toying with the very idea of getting his college degree at the age of 32, the Vietnamese-born comic was contacted by Vivian Lin, founder of Tangent Entertainment in San Diego, whose passion to deliver entertainment and connect to young people inspired Phan’s own modern idea. Phan describes Lin as having the ability to broadcast her shows on television, the internet and also hand held devices, a phenomenon that is changing the face of how people are consuming their entertainment. As Phan looks forward into the future, he sees that targeting the web will not be enough to reach people. Lin’s abilities and goals go a step beyond Phan’s established online community by connecting with people in the palms of their hands to facilitate in getting the Vietnamese comic’s message out.

“I feel very blessed because literally five years ago I was living out of my car and now I have a full blown production company behind me, and my cousin, who’s half Vietnamese and half Irish as my manager,” Phan said.

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