Angelus News | May 17, 2019 | Vol. 4 No. 18

ecalled. “He took me for an MRI.”
Doctors discovered he had a tumor,
and Fasline had to undergo a string of
in-depth tests, including EEGs, prior
to his surgery. Although his tumor
was successfully removed, Fasline lost
some coordination and found that his
memory was affected.
However, one relative blessing was
that because the tumor was on his
temporal lobe, on the outer edge of
his brain, he didn’t have to endure
radiation treatments.
“I always grew up in the Catholic
Church anyway, so even if I didn’t
have my super-supportive family, I
always had faith that God put me
here and gave me a plan,” Fasline
said. “It was the destiny that he put
me through. I was terrified the night
before surgery, because I was a kid.
My parents bought me a GameBoy
the night before. I was only worried
that they kept the receipt!”
Fasline’s Catholic school education
and strong sense of faith carried him
through the side effects of his battle,
when he was trying to remain positive,
despite the fact his head was “super
swollen” while he was in the hospital
prior to surgery.
He recalled that he “looked just like
the monster in ‘The Goonies,’ so my
family and friends would watch it with
me later and laugh that he was me.”
“At a surprisingly young age I had a
lot of faith, and I still use it to this day
because this town is so tough and so
dark,” said Fasline. “I don’t know how
I would survive in Hollywood without
it, and I don’t understand how some
people don’t even remotely consider a
higher power. I definitely believe faith
is what keeps me grounded and what
keeps me strong.”
Fasline refuses to make jokes about
religion or God out of respect for his
beliefs, and he also eschews joking
about politics. He credits that decision
to sage advice he received from
another comic at what many consider
America’s best comedy club — the
Comedy Cellar in New York City.
“People like comedy to escape the
rough parts of their life, so I don’t like
to make fun of specific things that
people really care about,” Fasline
explained. “I’ve definitely become
a positive person from my crazy
experience. As much as everybody
else wants to laugh, I need to hear it
just as much. It’s an important part
of my life, it’s an escape, it’s therapy,
it’s freedom.
“I don’t regret having had cancer,
because it made me who I am,” he
added. “I wouldn’t have done standup.
We all go through struggles.
Life’s not supposed to be perfect —
if it seems so, something’s about to
happen.”
To learn more about Vinny Fasline,
and see his performance schedule,
visit vinnyfasline.com. To hear the
full interview this article was based
upon, from the KRLA 870 AM radio
show “Man Up” that Carl Kozlowski
co-hosts with Antonio Delgado and
Ron Pearson, visit https://www.
manupshow.net/episodes/2019/4/10/
episode-006-vinny-fasline.
Vinny Fasline
IMDB
May 17, 2019 • ANGELUS • 27