Sharon Lacy

In this interview with Sharon Lacy, she tells how she began her work life as a television newscaster in Washington and later become a classroom teacher. Then she made a midlife decision to go onstage as a stand-up comic based in Portland. Now in  her 60's, she has carved out a successful career while staving off the threat of Alzheimer's. Sharon discusses her recent autobiography during our interview for KBOO.

Listen as Sharon tells how she learned two tribal languages from Ugandan soldiers who were sentries at military bases in Iraq, where she played to U.S. troops. "We became friends, connecting on Facebook," she says. "I learned several words from each soldier, wrote them down, made myself a dictionary and flashcards, and continued adding to the list daily."  She later used what she learned when performing for Ugandan audiences on another comedy tour of Africa:  the Runyankole dialect for the Banyankole tribe and Lugandan for the Baganda tribe.  "Another tactic to fend off Alzheimers!"

This episode includes two novelty songs and a comedy performance from the UBU Radio Theater.