He was a young child when he and his family came to America as refugees from war-torn Vietnam and settled in Buffalo. On Wednesday night, Thom Tran will appear in Buffalo to apply his craft as a comedian to support the International Institute of Buffalo, which helped his family acclimate to their new home.
“When I found out my parents learned English at the International Institute in the '80s, I was like, ‘this is the thing I do every year now.’ I don't say no. I block this week off every year,” said Tran in an interview with BTPM NPR on the eve of the annual Refugees of Comedy night, happening Wednesday evening, Oct. 14 inside the studios of Buffalo Toronto Public Media.
As a child, Tran’s parents wanted Thom and his siblings to have the chance to achieve the American dream. Perhaps become a doctor? A lawyer? An engineer or rocket scientist? A business owner?
“Somewhere along the line, I went, ‘I'm going to join the army,’ and then my life took a drastic turn from there,” said Tran, who enlisted and served with the U.S. Army in Iraq. ”And then for me personally, like, I didn't know what that dream was anymore. You know, I went from being whatever I was in high school here in Buffalo, you know, to being a soldier and then working on radio and television here in Buffalo until I decided to pack up and then go do stand-up comedy in Los Angeles.”
His risk paid off. Tran is a busy entertainer who will, in a few weeks, embark on a tour to entertain military personnel. He has shared a stage with Star Trek icon William Shatner, presenting the latter with an award at an event. He is a member of a Star Trek themed rock band.
“We wear Starfleet uniforms. I've spent an exorbitant amount of money on Starfleet uniforms, and we're actually playing Star Trek: The Cruise in 2027. There's a week-long cruise, 3,000 nerds, and a bunch of the cast members, and I've gotten several to agree to come up and sing with us on the cruise,” Tran said.
But when he comes home to Buffalo for his annual appearance at Refugees of Comedy, he’s looked upon as an inspiration for others who have also passed through the International Institute.
“Tom is an amazing success, and it's great to look and see what he's done with his life,” said Jennifer Rizzo-Choi, the Institute’s executive director. “It’s one example of so many refugees who have gone on to become doctors and dentists and lawyers and teachers and engineers and rocket makers. I mean, we have people going to every walk of life, and the United States and Western New York in particular have benefited from those skills because people landed here and they liked it enough to stay here and make it home.”
Tran quickly interjected, “Can we point out that Jennifer listed all the things my parents wanted me to do: doctor, lawyer, engineer, rocket scientist, and I landed on stand-up comedian?”
When Choi stated he is one of their most famous alumni, Tran quipped, “that’s disappointing,” drawing laughs from both of them.
But all kidding aside, Rizzo-Choi sees Tran as a role model for the more recent clients her agency serves.
“He's a name that people know, and you're inspiring refugee kids that want to look at what their world looks like when they look forward right now,” she said. “We've got kids who are Syrian and Iraqi and Afghan and Ukrainian, and for them the world seems bleak, and it's hard to know what's going to happen. But to be able to look on stage and see somebody who made it, I mean, that makes all the difference in the world.”
Immigration is a hot topic in many political races this election cycle, but Rizzo-Choi notes the show, and the Institute, avoid politics. So what will Tran cover when he takes the stage?
“I get that asked that a lot because my career seems to be micro-focused, but only by the people who know me from that particular genre,” he said. “I'm a military vet. I do a lot of military comedy tours. I'm actually on one shortly, but I'm also like a nerd and a musician, and I play in a Star Trek rock band. So every time I go out, people see me do stand up, and they think that's all I do. When I'm like, no, you're only seeing me for 10 minutes of the 45 minutes I do. I'm all over the place.”
Also scheduled to perform at the Refugees of Comedy is Francisco Ramos, a native of Venezuela. In addition to his own comedy work, Ramos has several film credits including the voice of the lead marmoset in the animated movie Rio.
“America is funny, especially when it's looked at through the eyes of someone who had to come here and figure out how to acculturate,” said Rizzo-Choi. “I've always found it very entertaining. I feel like that's a unique thing we're offering in this event because it's a one-night-only deal in Buffalo. You can't get something like that else in Buffalo for another year.”
“It's comedy that everybody gets, and brings people together in laughter, regardless of where you're born, what race you are now, ethnicity, whatever,” Tran added. “That's the thing about comedy. If it's funny, whatever the topic, everyone will get it, and everyone will come together in laughter, and I think that's the greatest part about this event.”
Wednesday night’s Refugees of Comedy event is sold out.
