Comedian Bobby Lee is living proof that fate sometimes smiles on the unexpected. 

Lee grew up in San Diego where he worked odd jobs including a small coffee shop that closed unexpectedly. Without work and little direction, Lee stumbled into the comedy club next door and asked for a job as a barback. It wasn’t until his manager encouraged him to take the mic during Sunday Open Mic Night that Lee found his calling as a standup comic. 

In 1995, Pauly Shore spotted Lee on stage and asked the young comedian to open for him in Las Vegas. It was at that point that Lee met Shore’s mother, the celebrated owner of the Comedy Store, Mitzi Shore. 

Lee has performed standup on “Late Friday,” “Premium Blend” and “The Tonight Show.” In summer 2004, he appeared in the big screen comedy “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,” and in 2007 he appeared in “Kickin It Old Skool” and later played a small role on the movie “Pinapple Express.” Lee was also a regular on MADtv for eight years. The Scene recently chatted with Lee about his accidental rise to fame. 

Scene Q&A

SCENE: How did your upbringing shape your comedic style? 

LEE: I think I was born weird. I was one of those kids that didn’t have a lot of friends and my parents were really strict. I kind of just stumbled into this profession.

SCENE: How did you navigate the industry? 

LEE: I just did my time at smaller clubs and found myself in situations. I went to LA and became a regular at a club and I went on to perform on Jay Leno and other TV appearances. My manager at the time was managing a woman who was a producer for MADtv and she called me. I went in and it was all on a whim. You go into these things (auditions) thinking it’s never going to work out and then it’s happening. I stayed on MADtv for eight years. 

SCENE: Do you ever get starstruck when you meet big name stars? 

LEE: I have been doing standup for so long I know a lot of people like Chris Rock and Martin Lawrence. A lot of rock stars. I’m not really star struck by anyone anymore. Maybe by Vince Vaughn when I first met him. It’s one of those things where you just can’t really get caught up in the fact that these people are celebrities. Eminen asked me to be in his music video a couple of months ago. If I really thought about it I probably would have psyched myself out, but instead I just went and did it.  

SCENE: How would you describe your standup in one word?

LEE: Edgy. Maybe even rock, but I hate that word. 

SCENE: Do you prefer standup or acting in movies? 

LEE: Everyone wants to do movies and I do want to do them too. I have come close on huge roles, but it’s a tough business. I just plan to do standup until a big role comes up. A lot of it has to do with being in the right place at the right time.

SCENE: So when it comes to the industry, is it more luck or hard work? 

LEE: It’s all luck. You have to buy a lottery ticket to win the lottery. I bought the ticket by choosing to do standup. Live comedy is a risky thing. I took the initial risk, but I don’t feel like I won it yet. 

To purchase tickets for upcoming shows, visit www.parlorlive.com.

Parlor Live Comedy Club is located on the third floor of Lincoln Square, 700 Bellevue Way NE. Suite 300.