By Mark Rosman
Staff Writer
More than 30 years after taking the plunge into the world of comedy, Vic DiBitetto is an “overnight sensation.” Years spent driving a garbage truck and driving a school bus while he was performing stand-up as an opening act for others have given way to headlining appearances and a full-time job in comedy.
DiBitetto, who lives in Manalapan with his wife and family, will bring his high-energy brand of comedy to iPlay America, Freehold Township, on June 11; to the Borgata, Atlantic City, on June 17; and to the Starland Ballroom, Sayreville, in September.
As he put it during a May 18 interview, “I’m doing a grand tour of New Jersey!”
The personable DiBitetto, 55, is a powerhouse on social media, where his videos and performance clips have combined to receive 120 million views. When he posts a new clip, his fans start posting comments within minutes, he said.
“Without social media, I would not be where I am today. It’s over the top,” said DiBitetto, who appeared on the big screen in 2015 in “Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2” with his friend, Kevin James.
However, it is not only online where DiBitetto is a hit with fans.
“I get recognized on the cold cuts line at Wegmans. I get recognized in traffic on Route 9,” he said. “Just don’t bother me when I’m eating and don’t come to my house.”
DiBitetto, who said he considers Rodney Dangerfield as his inspiration for the persistence the late comedian showed for years before making it big in his 50’s, described his act as being one to which most people can relate because he talks about family, marriage and children.
He said his fans range from millennials in their 20’s to the parents of those young adults.
“I get kids coming up to me saying, ‘Dude, you remind me of my father!’ I get parents sending me videos of their 5-year-old doing my act,” he said.
Although Dangerfield was DiBitetto’s inspiration because of the stick-to-it attitude he showed during decades of struggles to make it in show business, he said it was the work of George Carlin, Richard Pryor and Lenny Bruce that moved him.
“George Carlin was a genius. The way he talked, his inflection, his way with words,” DiBitetto said in a moment of reflection, adding that he keeps the words of Steve Martin in the back of his mind, “Be so good they can’t ignore you.”
Asked if thinks a shot at TV could be in his future, DiBitetto said, “I’m out there (online). There has to be a light bulb that goes off for some TV executive” to come up with an opportunity.
DiBitetto will also be appearing in a stand-up production called “The Three Tenors (who can’t sing).” Information can be found at www.thethreetenorswhocantsing.com.
For more information about DiBitetto, visit http://www.vicdibitetto.net/ or Facebook.com/VicComedy/
