Ms. Pat: The American Dream Money Can't Buy
Mick Unplugged
Host Mick Hunt sits down with comedian Ms. Pat to discuss her memoir, 'Ms. American Dream,' and her journey from Atlanta to Hollywood. The c
Key takeaways
- Ms. Pat utilizes 'street knowledge' to navigate professional Hollywood challenges like scripts and table reads.
- She views her acting career as a job rather than an identity, refusing to let fame change her persona.
Main topics
- Authenticity in Hollywood
- Redefining the American Dream
Notable quotes
I don't know how to be nothing but me.
Conclusion
The episode serves as an inspiring guide on finding fulfillment throug
Transcript preview
Speaker 2 (0:00) It was rough. I was in a place that I wasn't familiar Speaker 1 (0:02) with. I didn't know anything about scripts. I didn't know nothing about table read. I came in straight as a comedian. I didn't know no language. I didn't know nothing. But one thing about me, I have street knowledge. So I use the same skills. To this day, I still use everything I learned from the street. Speaker 2 (0:24) Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another exciting episode of McUnplugged. And today's guest is a true bucket list for me. You've seen her on TV. You've seen her in films. You've seen her blessing the comedy stage. You know that she is as real as real can be. But today, we're going to talk about the American dream with the Miss American dream. We're talking to none other than the fabulous, the outrageous, the sincere. Ms. Pat, Ms. Pat, how are you doing today, dear? Speaker 1 (0:56) Just fine. Thank you. I'm just fine. I'm trying to survive in this crazy world. Speaker 2 (1:02) It gets crazier every day, too. Ms. Pat, I've been a huge fan of you forever. And knowing pieces of your story, I feel like I've known you since birth. And we're going to talk about this new book in a moment. But I'm just, one, honored to have you on. But I wanted to personally thank you. for being the human that you are. In a world where it's real easy to be fake and it's real easy to try to do what people want you to do, you've dug your heels and said you are authentically going to be you. And I just wanted you to know that I appreciate every doggone moment of you being you. Speaker 1 (1:42) Well, thank you. I don't know how to be nothing but me. And I tell people all the time, I didn't come to, I came to Hollywood to act, not become something that I'm not. Speaker 1 (1:52) That's it. That is the truth. Speaker 2 (1:54) Ms. Pat, I always ask my guests this first question around what is your because? Speaker 2 (2:03) Right. Like we all know the start with why and what's your why. And sometimes I think that's superficial. What really gets me is your because, your true motivation. Like if I were to say what's your why and then I say, but why, that sentence usually starts with, well, because. And I care about what you say there. So if I were to say, Ms. Pat, 2026, you've done a lot of amazing things in your life and in your career. What's your because? What's that purpose that keeps you doing and giving back and showing up the way that you show up? Speaker 1 (2:35) You know, I just want people to laugh. I want people to know that no matter what you've been through in life, you know, you can come through it. And you should be able to come through it with a smile on your face. Now, you ain't always going to have a smile in the beginning. But in the end, I truly believe that we all can find a way to laugh at some of the ordeals that we've gone through in life. That's my because. I want everybody to laugh. I don't want anything to ever happen to anybody in life to just hold you down for the rest of your life. Because I've seen it happen to so many people in my family and not in my family. So I think my because would be I want people to survive. Speaker 2 (3:10) Yeah, I Speaker 1 (3:11) love that. Speaker 2 (3:12) I love that. When did you know that that was, I'm going to call it, a gift? You have many gifts. When did you know that that was a gift that you had to make people laugh and to do it in your way, which has always been unique to you? Like, nobody can say that they're Miss Pat, right? Like, how did you know that that was your gift? Speaker 1 (3:34) I think it started, I didn't really see it as a gift. I thought I was just blunt and I thought I was saying the things that other people were scared to say. So if you needed to tell somebody off, I wouldn't mind telling them off with a smile on my face. I think I just blended that with laughter. And people say, oh, you have a talent to make people laugh at even the darkest things in your life, in their life. And I think I just probably, you know, once that caseworker told me I was funny because I've been the same person forever. I just I never tapped into the Miss Pat part of the world. I was just Patricia. Speaker 2 (4:12) Yeah, I totally get that. I totally love that. I have this segment on the show that I call the unplugged truth. So I'm going to give you a truth right now because I love giving people their flowers. I've heard you say when we talk about the American dream that was told to us, right? Like big house, white picket fence. Well, what happens when you get that? And then it's like, A, that's not enough. Or this was someone else's dream. My unplugged truth for you is that you continue to build dreams for others through the legacy that you have. And I'm so thankful that you've, A, shared your story with the world. You've shared it in your way with the world. And this book, and I'm holding it up and I know you've got it behind you, Miss American Dream, making or making it no matter what. When did you realize that that was the time was now for that book to come out? This side of this story for you? Speaker 1 (5:20) Well, this is the pickup from Rabbit, which was my first book. And, you know, people kept asking for another book. So I said, well, what am I going to write about? And then when I sat in and really thought about it, I said, why don't why don't I tell them how hard I worked to get the American dream just to get there and realize. There ain't no damn American dream. Speaker 1 (5:42) I'm a little black girl that grew up in the west end of Atlanta. You know, I watched a lot of white TV, Believe it or Be Evil, you know. Lady Speaker 2 (5:50) Bunch. Speaker 1 (5:50) Lady Bunch, all of those things. And they had, it looked like white people were so, were just happy. And as a little black kid, we had good times. And we, I was sick of looking at black people eat oatmeal. So I wanted what they said was the white American dream. And it's not a sustained. The white American dream, I guess for me, would be dead. Because everything it told you to go get going to cost you some money. Speaker 2 (6:16) It was a Speaker 1 (6:17) white picket fence. It's a house. It's a car. It's a family. And I realized, you know, I realized I already had my American dream. I just hadn't tapped into it. And for me, my American dream is my family. You know, walking into that house, hearing my grandkids' voice and my husband's voice. And what I have, you can't buy. And it's called happiness. I know a lot of rich people that's miserable. I know a lot of poor people that's miserable. But when you get happiness in your life, there's no price tag on it. Speaker 2 (6:50) Yeah. Yeah. And so how would Miss Pat define happiness for you? Like when you when you finally exhale. What is that? Taking my wig Speaker 1 (7:01) off, letting my bra down, and walking in the house as Patricia. And nobody cares. I'm not judged in this house. It's just family. We're just happy. And that's what it is for me. I'm 54 years old, and I've had the pocketbooks. I've had the trips. I've had the calls. I've had everything that they say is supposed to make you happy. But the one thing I got for free is what makes me happy the most, which is my family. That's it. Speaker 2 (7:29) And I love when I see your family because you have them with you and the