From Rocko to Reno
The many voices of Carlos Alazraqui
By Chris Jay 02/25/2010
You may not recognize the name but you know the voice. Carlos Alazraqui has provided the vocal talent for beloved characters like Rocko on Rocko’s Modern Life, Mr. Weed on Family Guy, Nestor in Happy Feet and even the imitated-by-everyone Taco Bell Chihuahua. Audiences finally got to put a face to the voice with Reno 911, the wildly popular mockumentary show that was originally passed over by the Fox network, about a bumbling group of police officers in Reno, Nev. It featured Alazraqui as the trigger-happy deputy James Garcia. Reno 911 may be done taping for the foreseeable future, but Alazraqui, along with cast alumnus Cedric Yarbrough, is hitting the road for a live comedy show. The Reporter caught up with the ultrafriendly comedian over the phone during a grocery store run.
VCReporter: So you just got back from Australia?
Alazraqui: Yeah. I just got back from Sydney yesterday. Still got the whole jet lag going. I was there for two and a half weeks to do the sequel for Happy Feet with Robin Williams, Hank Azaria and Elijah Wood. Got treated like royalty. Great hotel, free food, per diems. I wanna go back (laughs). I actually got to do a stand-up show out there as well. Jeff Garcia and Robin Williams and myself. It was a really special night. Everyone did great. Crowd went nuts. It was a cool, cool thing for me.
VCR: What’s that like for you to work with such heavy-hitters. Do you ever pull back and think, “Wow I’m part of this”?
It’s pretty cool ’cause you’re hanging with them and working with them everyday. It’s like, “This is crazy! Robin Williams is taking me to dinner!” We’re going to comedy clubs together, and you pinch yourself. Hank Azaria I had never met, but we knew of each other. He was a fan of Reno 911 and I’ve obviously seen a lot of his films. I’m a big Simpsons fan. Really cool to meet him. Definitely can’t believe I’m working with these guys.
VCR: How’d you start your voice-over career?
It all started from stand-up comedy. I was doing stand-up in Sacramento and San Francisco, and there was a cartoon called Rocko’s Modern Life, a little project they were doing auditions for. I didn’t even have an agent. I had the right voice at the right place at the right time. The show got picked up as a series, and I moved to L.A. and haven’t stopped working since.
VCR: So you were doing Rocko’s Modern Life, a big kids show, without an agent?
I got the pilot on my own, and when it went to series I started shopping for an agent. I had my pick at that point.
VCR: How did that lead to Reno 911?
I was in town doing the Taco Bell Chihuahua stuff from 1997 to 2000. I did some radio work on the old Stephanie Miller radio show, and things like that gave me some profile. I got an audition with Ben, Tom and Kerri [creators of Reno 911] for a sketch show for Fox. We’re doing our table read, and Fox, at the last minute, decided they wanted something different. They said, “Let’s do a show about cops. Go home think about a character.” Next thing I know, I was playing James Garcia. Fox passed on it, and then a year and a half later, Comedy Central picked it up.
VCR: Were you surprised by the success of Reno 911 when it did find a home? It seemed like an underdog show when it started, and then it really caught fire.
Oh, yeah. You always love those sleeper, under-the-radar successes, like when something really organic, that’s just having a good time without anyone’s permission, catches on. Rocko was like that, too. We had no idea it was going to be that popular. It’s pretty cool to be in something that, when you go all the way to Australia, and Hank Azaria says, “You were Garcia on Reno 911. I love that show. You did great work on that.” I’ve done over 38 college shows since 2008. When we come to the campuses and see how excited kids are, you really understand how big the show was.
VCR: So how does your live show work? Is it more than just your Reno characters?
In actuality, the Reno stuff is the last part of the show. I get, um, going. Cedric makes an entrance, does his stuff, we do stuff together, he does stuff by himself, we show some clips from the show, do a question and answer, do a little improv scene and then some physical comedy stuff. Then we spend time taking pictures and saying hello to people. It’s really light, it’s not heavy — we’re just being goofy.
VCR: How did the two of you come about doing it? How come there aren’t other cast members involved?
I was closest to Cedric on the show. Even our characters on the show, Jones and Garcia, were partners. I have been doing stand-up for 25 years, and I knew there was a chance to go out to colleges and use the popularity of the show and get some pretty good-paying gigs. I bent Cedric’s arm. Ben, Tom and Kerri were too busy, writing Night at the Museum and all these movies. We tried to get Wendy to come along but Cedric was the one who was like, “Yeah, I’ll do it.” Been a blast.
VCR: Despite all your success, does it ever worry you that you’ll be forever known as the Taco Bell dog? Do people ever stop you on the street and demand to hear you say, “Yo quiero Taco Bell?” Is that your “Free Bird”?
Most people have no idea, really. Very rarely do I get asked. It’s more Rocko that people associate me with and want to hear, but if people want to yell out for me to the Taco Bell dog . . . I’ll be happy to do it. (Laughs).
Carlos Alazraqui and Cedric Yarbrough appear Friday, Feb. 25, at the Canyon Club, 28912 Roadside Drive, Agoura Hills, 583-8700.
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