Vic DiBitetto I n show business, it’s not “who you know,” but “who knows you.” At least, that seems to be the case for Manalapan resident Vic DiBitetto, who, after 30 years of fighting in the trenches of stand-up comedy, has finally made it big.
“It’s a tough, beautiful, unfair, wonderful business. It really is,” DiBitetto said. “It’s the roll of the dice. It’s ‘right time, right place,’ you know? You’ve got to keep plugging. What’s the alternative?”
For those who are not yet familiar with DiBitetto’s work, now is the time to catch up. In 2015, he will have a supporting role in “Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2” — in which comedian Kevin James revives his dim-witted character — and a co-starring role on the upcoming Hulu series, “Don’t Know Jack,” set to premiere in spring.
But it is the power of YouTube that has landed DiBitetto in the position he is in, as the 53-year-old comedian has gained a devoted Internet following through his thousands of short, crass videos, in which DiBitetto said he provides “the voice of the working-class people.”
In one video, simply titled “Justin Bieber,” he gives a one-minute explicit rant screaming about how the pop star is leading to the destruction of America. The video has more than 2 million views. “People are afraid to say what I say,” DiBitetto said. “When I did the Justin Bieber rant, I had 13-year-old girls telling me to kill myself.”
But perhaps his most well-known video is “Bread & Milk,” which DiBitetto recorded in the winter of 2012. The 30-second video simply consists of DiBitetto crying in a panicked state, “I’ve got to get the bread and milk!” in preparation of a snowstorm.
“I almost deleted it,” DiBitetto said. “I thought it was stupid — imagine that. My wife said, ‘Nah, you never know.’ ”
His wife was right, as the video has now garnered more than 12 million hits and was one of the components that led to DiBitetto being cast in his first major motion picture.
DiBitetto, who worked the comedy club circuit with James in the 1980s, hadn’t heard from the actor in 30 years until one day — out of nowhere — James gave him a call.
“I’m like Ralph Kramden — ‘homina, homina, homina,’ ” DiBitetto said. “I’m like, ‘Oh my god, Kevin. How did you get my number?’ He says, ‘Don’t worry how I got your number. Listen, dude, I’ve been watching your videos on Facebook and YouTube, and I have a small part for you in ‘Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2.’ ”
It was the phone call DiBitetto had been waiting his whole life to pick up — so much so that when DiBitetto reunited with James in person, he promised to give him a kidney if he ever needed one.
DiBitetto said James hugged him and said it was DiBitetto’s time to shine. “And I’ve been on a cloud ever since,” he said.
DiBitetto filmed for six weeks in Las Vegas — which he said was the best experience of his life — alongside actors such as Nicholas Turturro, Loni Love and Gary Valentine.
With the film’s release date set for April 17, area residents still have time to say they knew him “before he was big.” On Nov. 28, DiBitetto will perform at Catch A Rising Star Comedy Club in Princeton alongside New Jersey 101.5’s Steve Trevelise.
“[Catch A Rising Star] goes all the way back to Manhattan. That’s where they all started,” DiBitetto said of comedians such as Robin Williams and Jay Leno. “ … And now we’re lucky enough to have one in Jersey.”
It is sure to be a different environment from DiBitetto’s first stand-up gig in Brooklyn, where he says he was booed off the stage.
“But the needle was hooked,” he said. “And I kept going back, kept going back. And it paid off.”
Check out DiBitetto online at vic-comedy.com, on YouTube at youtube.com/user/vicdibitetto, on Facebook at facebook.com/vicdibitetto or on Twitter at @vicdibitetto.