Ms Pat keeps her scheduled packed.
The headliner has gone mainstream with her beloved BET sitcom The Ms. Pat Show, and has even dabbled in the reality TV world with her newly launched courtroom series Ms. Pat Settles It. “I’m just trying to stay afloat, child,” the comic says with a smirk.
But nevertheless, the siren’s call of hitting the road to play gigs live remains enticing. “Stand up is the root,” she summarizes. “It’s the only thing I own. They can take my TV shows, ain’t no one can take my jokes. I own Ms. Pat. They only own the Ms. Pat on television. I got to stick to what I know. I gotta stick with what brought me here.”
Audiences checking her out on November 18 at Cullen Performance Hall will get to see that hard work pay off, as she teases a night of material fully original from her recently released Netflix hour Y’all Wanna Hear Something Crazy. “It’s all new,” she assures. “I been doing it about eight months, and it's pretty new. Been trying to build it into a hell of an hour so I can get the next hour popping.“
“I just talk about life,” she continues. “The things I’ve been through. Everything is pretty personal, so if I can keep it personal that’s how I can keep it relatable.”
For some, the time on the road might seem a trial – but for Ms. Pat, it’s a welcome getaway. “I can’t wait to get to Houston. Every city is exciting to me. It’s like a mini vacation. You know I’m married. So I can leave my husband for the weekend and come back and like him on Monday. It keeps the marriage strong.”
With three successful seasons under it’s belt, the comedian’s self-titled series on BET has been an anomaly in this current era of TV. It’s a classically structured multi-cam comedy in the vein of Roseanne, and after 30 episodes is just getting started. “Now the writer’s strike is over, and as soon as the actor’s strike is over, we going into the fourth season of The Ms. Pat Show. This is a show that 98 percent tells you about my life. I enjoy doing it.”
The secret to the Lee Daniels and Brian Grazer produced series seems to come instantly from Ms. Pat. “The first thing is great writing,” she exclaims. “The second thing is don’t use the canned laughter. Ours is an audience all day every day. Our audience be ready to fight you sometimes when the situation get too real. It's something my co-creators grew up loving, the multi cam. They said, let’s do a multi cam! I said ‘In front of an audience? That’s like a play.’ Now we’ve been doing it together so long it’s like a play now.”
Meanwhile on Ms. Pat Settles It, the comic puts herself comfortably in the type of setting that has brought a few TV jesters great fame including Steve Harvey and Lewis Black: namely, a courtroom. “I ain’t gonna be like no judge, I am the judge,” she says, setting the record straight. “It’s like Judge Judy. Think of all those things that Judge Judy really wanted to say, but couldn’t say. I get to say those things. Judge Judy a real Judge. I’m just here to settle it. OK? I’m just breaking up a fight. That’s all. I’m just gonna put things back together in a funny way.”
A series like this has ample opportunity to blur the lines between truth and made-for-TV drama, but according to the comic – her rulings are binding, at least for her staff. “Real case, real money, real people,” she proclaims. “And to tell you how real it really is – I was giving out extra money. The producers were like ‘what are you doing?’ I’m just having fun. They said ‘You messing up the budget!’ I’m like, this crap is real? Yeah!”
With so much going right with her career, it is fair to ask what else she could dream of. Thankfully, Ms. Pat is keeping her sights set high. “Lord yes,” she exclaims when asked if anything remains on her bucket list. “I want to win an Emmy. I want to create another two shows. I want to shoot another hour. I want another book. Don’t ask me – I want a husband with four arms!”
As for who she will scale successes peaks with, Ms. Pat clearly has her head on straight. “I don’t really do stardom, because it’s friends and family. My daughter is on the show, my friend is on the show, my co-host is on the show. They would make you go with some famous comedians or all kind of stuff. I’m gonna rock with whoever want to rock with me.”
