However, 20 years later, the movie has not only pointed out the many alternate lifestyles of humans – nerds included – but paved the way for that aspect of humanity to actually feel comfortable for being social outcasts.

Tochi and his fellow nerdlings made pocket protectors and nerdy calculations more of an understandable norm, and the film grew to be a definitive ‘80s comedy – quite impressive for a film that originally flew under the radar and drew somewhat low expectations.

While Tochi has since appeared in an impressive array of TV shows and movies, he reminisced about his "Revenge of the Nerds" days, including the social outcast way-of-life, partying, playing cards and mastering the tricycle.

NERDS' REVENGE ON SOCIETY

Tochi certainly didn’t think "Revenge of the Nerds" would catapult to its current level of popularity, but he certainly seemed satisfied with its effect on society’s viewpoint on nerds, or any type of social outcast.

"Playing a nerd resonates with everybody. Everybody at one point feels insecure," explained Tochi. "Some people are obviously nerd-looking, but we all on occasion feel like a nerd…like we’re not on top of it all. Everybody’s felt that way."

"Nerds" not only pokes fun at the conservative and finely-calculated lives of college nerds, but also made fairly drastic cultural stereotypes that wavered on the line of taboo subject matter. Tochi played Takashi, an Asian student with a thick accent, and another character, Lamar (Larry Scott), played a black homosexual.

"Larry had a tough time amongst friends, portraying a gay character," said Tochi. "I was lambasted for promoting Takashi’s stereotype in the Asian community. But he was a real character that…reflected a positive and good-hearted person. Each character in the film prevailed. People saw the heart in these characters and them ultimately succeeding."

The prevailing victory of the nerds in the film is perhaps what escalated the film from low-expectation comedy to definitive nerd classic. Tochi added that in Tucson, where the film was shot, several of the landmarks from the film have been converted into museums. If a movie about nerds is capable of spawning museums and landmarks, it’s obvious that its message turned a few more heads than originally expected.

"None of us ever thought it’d get that big. We were actually compared to ‘Animal House,’" said Tochi. "We were like the bastard children of 20th Century Fox; they didn’t really care about us, they kind of left us alone. They let us do whatever we wanted to."

NERDS CAN BE FUN, TOO

The young cast, including modern- day stars like Anthony Edwards and John Goodman, ended up doing exactly what they wanted to. Tochi reveled while reminiscing about the film’s shooting in the early ‘80s and the ensuing family-like bond that the cast shared. While in Tucson shooting "Revenge of the Nerds," many of the hired-on fraternity and sorority members of the area joined the cast’s family-like atmosphere with late night "partying and playing," as Tochi explained.

"We formed great relationships with some of the fraternities and sororities, which absolutely added to the movie. We became a family real quick," said Tochi. "We bonded…we were our own gang. Sometimes there are angry sets or egos in the way, and we didn’t have any of that. It was such a pleasant experience. During our first two weeks of rehearsal, it was just, party, play, and then go back to work in the morning. It was a wacky kind of time, drinking into the wee hours."

The party scene didn’t stop at the wee hours of the morning, though. Tochi recalled one scene, a definite trademark of the film: the tricycle race, when each contestant is required to slam a beer in between laps.

"I had the option to drink real beer or soda," Tochi explained. "So I thought, ‘Fuck that, I’ll take beer!’ In the movie, Tim (Poindexter) gives me pills so I don’t get drunk, but we just all got drunker…and drunker…and drunker. By the time you see me winning, I was three sheets to the wind. I was just…so bombed. When you see that smile on my face on that last turn – that’s really how drunk I was."

Plenty of vintage, sober fun ensued throughout the shooting as well. Besides his victory in the tricycle race, Takashi retains laughs throughout the film while innocently donating his poker hands to Booger, played by Curtis Armstrong.

"Most of the scenes with Curtis and I playing cards, the ‘frush,’ all of the poker stuff was unscripted. It’s funny," said Tochi, "because when I was a kid, I’d do exactly what Booger did to me in the movie, and hustle the neighborhood kids with my allowance playing poker." Tochi currently enjoys visiting the Texas Hold ‘Em tables whenever he visits Las Vegas. (Note: Tochi gave no sign of credit to Booger/Curtis Armstrong for any of his poker strategies.)

LIFE AFTER NERDDOM

Tochi has since acted in a slew of other movies and TV shows, and is currently working on his own project entitled "Tales of a Fly in the Wall" with his old poker buddy and fellow Tri-Lam brother, Curtis Armstrong. The 30-minute comedy show is literally hosted by a fly on the wall, played by Armstrong. Tochi, who wrote, produced and directed the show, has high hopes for the series’ success.
"It may win an Emmy, it’s that good," forecasted Tochi. "Curtis’ fly delivery is very Shakespearean, it’s just great."

Tochi has been involved with movies like "Police Academy 3" (and 4), and donated his voice as Leonardo in "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" (all three of ‘em), "Mortal Kombat," "Johnny Bravo" and "Scooby and Scrappy-Doo."

Oddly - or perhaps not so oddly considering his experience as a nerd - Tochi also has numerous appearances on Star Trek under his belt. Tochi said that although he hasn’t seen many of the newer episodes of Star Trek, he still considers himself to be a big fan.

But perhaps none of Tochi’s past characters will eclipse the magnitude of Toshiro Takashi in the now-epic "Revenge of the Nerds." In our current society, the concept of nerds versus jocks has certainly diminished thanks perhaps in part, or full, to Tochi and company’s roles in the film.

"Sometimes it’s cool not to be cool," said Tochi. "And some things were a really big deal at the time in the ‘80s, whereas now it’s almost cool to be gay. Nowadays, that stuff is almost cool. The movie touched a lot of people who felt alienated…and showed us that there’s just a little bit of nerd in everyone."