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This is Fresh Air. I'm Tanya Mosley, and my guest today is comedian Otzko Okatska. Her origin

story might sound like the set-up board drama. She grew up undocumented, was raised by her

grandmother, who she jokes kidnapped her and brought her to the States, as they both dealt with

the instability of watching her mother suffer from

schizophrenia. But Ossco has made a career by turning that story on its head, mining it for sharp,

hilarious observations about mental illness, identity, and navigating adulthood with few life

skills. Here she is in her first comedy special, The Intruder,

where she reflected on the unconventional family dynamic that shaped her.

I've never heard, try to look different.

No, it was always blend in, Otsko, blend in,

keep your head down and blend in as much as possible.

At least that's all my family would tell me.

And then they named me Atsko Okatska.

And then they went on to choose English names for themselves.

I know.

Thanks, Mom.

Or Linda.

That's betrayal, Uncle Paul.

In her new special on Hulu called Father, Atsko goes even further, reflecting on her relationship with her father in Japan,

who was largely a distant figure in her life after she moved to the States.

In 2022, Atsko became the second Asian-American woman after

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