Comedian Andy Bumatai is not yet out of the woods in his ongoing battle with cancer at the base of his tongue.
“I still have some swelling in my throat where they nuked,” said Bumatai on Wednesday. “I have an MRI tomorrow to see if there is a tumor within the swelling. And it’s all affected my voice.”
From the get-go, Bumatai has put his comedic spin on his situation, saying he had new friends in his life: Kimo Therapy and Ray Diation. With an animated lilt in his voice, he is upbeat; his spirit and tenacity remain high. One complaint: “When I talk, I run out of gas. I don’t have vocal energy.”
In anticipation of severe weight loss, Bumatai ramped up to 200 pounds, beginning in May, before undergoing radiation and chemo treatment. “I lost 50 pounds,” he said. “I was a waist 34 or 36; now I’m a 30 and wearing skinny clothes. But I don’t recommend the diet. Cancer has a ravaging effect.”
The disease does have its perks: “I get free valet, free parking,” he chortled. “But when you visit the cancer ward and see the young children, it’s hard to feel sorry for yourself in any capacity.”
Bumatai has been juggling activities to suit his patient lifestyle while generating income to support his family.
“I am the spokesperson for (Pacific Harley-Davidson), and I’m supposed to be there to support the dealers in their efforts to sell Harleys. It’s a dream job, really: I go to parties, I ride the cycles, it’s all cool. I wish there was overtime.”
As a performing comedian, he’s had to tweak his work cycles. “I haven’t been able to do daily shows on my YouTube channel,” said Bumatai. “Instead, I’m doing a daily musical thing, with Vance Morimoto helping with our pidgin English songs, and will do some things on my Facebook page.” (Go to youtube.com/toolinaroundhi.)
He pulled the plug on his weekly KHON show because of his wavering health. “I had to move my sponsors — 32 of them — to YouTube to eke out a living,” he said.
Friends and fans raised $30,000 via GoFundMe (gofundme.com/Bumatai), enabling Bumatai to receive “five months of treatment including 10-day hospital stays,” he said. “I landed in emergency once, dehydrated and on the brink of death. My wife dragged me in, and if I didn’t go, it would have been over. My body was shutting down.”
Bumatai lost his brother Ray Bumatai to brain cancer and sees life as a gift. “Ray lived a rich life in the short time he was on this planet,” he said.
“So many people have been on the brink of death, and there’s no wake-up call in this weird ‘last call.’ When you see friends like Jimmy (Borges) and Kirk (Matthews) die, this puts everything in perspective.”
Bumatai, who turns 63 on Dec. 24, said, “I realize life is short, so I do the bucket-list thing and concentrate on what I enjoy. But I now live each day as if it’s my last.” …
Planet Mars
Bruno Mars has aligned with a Las Vegas casino-hotel beginning in 2017, settling down at MGM Resorts instead of Caesars Palace as earlier rumored. But his is not a traditional residency deal.
Mars will do shows over the next two years under the MGM banner. New Year’s shows will be at the Park Theatre at the Monte Carlo, which will be re-branded Park MGM Grand and NoMad Las Vegas, on Dec. 30 and 31. Mars also sings Dec. 27 as part of the grand opening at Maryland’s new MGM National Harbor; he will return to Vegas March 11-12. …
