Franco Escamilla is one of Mexico's best known and most influential comedians. But being a comedian was not always in his plans. 

During high school, he had the idea of becoming a military doctor because he liked "the respect that a doctor gives and the respect that a military man gives kind of merged... The Gogeta of respect," he said in a recent appearance on Yordi Rosado's podcast.

After the surprising confession, he recalled that one of his greatest inspirations in the field was the comedian Polo Polo.

"Since I was a child, I have been a big fan of Polo Polo. I remember so much the first time... everyone at that time admired him for the Hippodrome joke, because it is a very fast text and I would like to think that learning it is quite heavy," said the comedian.

Escamilla also made his way into music by collaborating alongside the band Caligaris in 2019, and appearing in the scenes recorded in Mexico City for the video "Queda en esa noche." 

"I didn't want to be a comedian. In fact I started as a comedian and I was embarrassed to say I was a comedian, I didn't like being told I was a comedian." 

The comedian recalled that his first appareance as a joke teller was by chance, when a comedian didn't make it to the show where he was participating as a troubadour.

"I get on stage that night and out of nowhere I start with people: 'Is there a mechanic here?' I start to let loose and talking for 10 minutes I got four chuckles, and it felt good," he said.

For someone who was initially embarrassed about his foray into comedy, things have turned out very well. Escamilla became the first Latino comedian to perform at New York's prestigious Carnegie Hall.

Currently, some of his stand up numbers can be seen on the streaming platform, Netflix.