Nanaimo Daily News (British Columbia)
December 17, 2009 Thursday
Final Edition
Ottawa comic loses weight, gains fiancee; Big comedian’s life has
improved along with his health
by Tony Lofaro, Canwest News Service
Things are getting bigger and better for comedian-actor Angelo Tsarouchas.
And we’re not talking about his size.
Tsarouchas, 44, has a TV series being developed based on growing up in
Ottawa in a Greek household, his latest movie is on a shortlist for
the Sundance Film Festival, and he’s graduated from small comedy clubs
to performing in larger venues.
"I’m in a good place right now," says Tsarouchas, a Montreal-born and
Ottawa-raised comic who has toured the world, often as an opening act
for Canadian comedy star Russell Peters.
Tsarouchas, who now calls Los Angeles home, has been a regular at Yuk
Yuk’s for years, cracking up audiences with killer routines on his
large Greek family and their assimilation into Canadian life. While
club appearances have been the staples of his career, he’s also become
a recognizable face in TV and movies, appearing last year in an
episode of Mad Men, the feature films Cinderella Man, Harold and Kumar
Go to White Castle, and the TV series Hotel Babylon.
All this attention led to his first comedy special, Angelo Tsarouchas:
Bigger is Better, filmed for Showtime earlier this year. It received
favourable reviews.
But the biggest news of all is that he’s engaged to Alina Basil, an
Armenian woman who runs a Los Angeles spa.
"The most important thing for me was falling in love with this
beautiful woman and getting married again. It’s really stabilized my
life," says Tsarouchas, who was married when he lived in Ottawa. He
ran a travel agency there before giving up the business and turning
his attention to comedy about 10 years ago.
"It’s not like I was out of control. But I love women like I like
food; I’m not going to hide it. But I was on the road and I got to
travel around the world and it gets lonely," he says.
The other big change in his life is losing 60 pounds over the last
year. He once tipped the scales at 435 pounds, but has trimmed down to
375 pounds.
He says he’s always enjoyed food and, while he tries to eat well, his
constant touring plays havoc with his eating habits.
"I find (that) now that I’m in love and living in California, I tend
not to eat as much. The only time I eat more is when I’m on the road,
because you’re eating in hotels and restaurants all the time."
Tsarouchas says touring is providing plenty of new material for his comedy act.
"I have stories from the road, making some comparisons about living in
England, America and Canada."