Q&A with Colin Quinn

Colin Quinn is not only the funniest guy in the room but also the smartest.  The silver-tongued comedian burst on to the scene with his memorable characters on Saturday Night Live and parlayed that success into being a bona fide television, movie, and Broadway star. Currently, you can see him starring in the Broadway one-man-show, “Colin Quinn: Long Story Short,” directed by Jerry Seinfeld at the Helen Hayes Theater through March 5, 2011.  Regardless of Quinn’s fame, he’s still the guy you can hang out at the bar with, talking about sports, politics, or history but be warned he’ll most likely outwit you.

Diana Falzone: You’ve been a supporter of the troops for many years now and have even toured with the USO.  Why did you decide to get involved with the USO?

Colin Quinn:  I decided to get involved with the USO because it felt like they needed entertainers to go over there at the time.

Falzone: What was your experience like in Persian Gulf?

Quinn: The Persian Gulf was very similar to Spring Break in Lake Havasu in 1896.

Falzone: Were there any oh shi*t moments while overseas?

Quinn: There were no real oh shit moments really. A few IED's out of range of us and once all the alarms went off in the C 130 we were in but that's not even a typical day for the troops.

Falzone: Would you go over again?

Quinn: I would definitely go over again.

Falzone: You’re currently on Broadway starring in your own one-man show, “Long Story, Short,” which has been receiving rave reviews.  What was your inspiration to write this show?

Quinn: My inspiration to write the show was the whole global situation. In fact I worked out the ending, (the barfight) doing USO shows in Iraq and the Gulf.

Falzone: Fellow comedian Jerry Seinfeld is the director.  I always thought comics were highly competitive with each other or is that a misconception?

Quinn: Jerry Seinfeld was never really competitive but then who would he be competitive with? Bill Gates?

Falzone: What is life on the road like?  Is it similar to the rock star lifestyle?

Quinn: Comedians do have groupies but they're not rock star groupies. They're usually nerdy teenage boys that watch too many comedy central presents in between episodes of Family Guy and they want you to be the message on their answering machine or something. Rock N Roll.