Comedian Gabriel Iglesias said even though his stand-up routine is fairly clean, his main comedic influence is Eddie Murphy.
"I don't build my show on a lot of profanity," Iglesias said during a phone interview from his home in Los Angeles. "But Eddie used a lot of character voices in his routine. And that's what I do.
"Although, to say my show is completely clean is misleading. I will drop an F-Bomb when the time is right," he said. "In fact, you will only hear me cuss twice in an hour."
Rather than use profanity to draw crowds, Iglesias said he uses the character voices to paint pictures and set scenes.
"I always use personal experiences to make people laugh," said the 32-year-old comedian. "I have been mimicking voices since I was 10 years old."
Iglesias copies the voices of family members and friends to get his point across.
"I don't worry about telling too much of myself in the routines," he said. "Because I want people to know who I am.
"When someone comes to my show, I want them to get to know me. What you see and what you hear is what I'm about. Although, I am a little more quiet off stage than on."
Iglesias, a finalist in the fourth season of "Last Comic Standing," has come into his own through various TV appearances on "The Tonight Show," "The Late Late Show" and "Jimmy Kimmel Live."
Comedy Central, which named Iglesias as Comedian of the Year in 2006, has aired three Gabriel Iglesias specials.
"The recognition is always nice," he said. "And it's nice to know that people are paying attention."
One of the reasons Iglesias has been getting recognized is because of his positive vibe.
"When I do a show, I want people to have a good time," he said. "I don't want them going away saying to themselves that I was angry, mad and on a rant.
"I want them to go away smiling and looking at life in a positive way."
Iglesias said the good attitude is important, especially now.
"I think people come to my shows to forget their troubles," he said.
In fact, Iglesias has had many conversations with fans who have told him how important he is to them.
"I have a lot of people come up and tell me that something I said helped them not do something terrible to themselves or others," he said. "They have told me that I have saved their life.
"That always blows me away, because I never knew that I would have such an impact on people."
If you go...
What: Gabriel Iglesias
Where: Capitol Theatre, 50 W. 200 South
When: June 26, 8 p.m.
How much: $29.75
Phone: 801-355-2787, 888-451-2787
Web: www.arttix.org
E-mail: scott@desnews.com