Patrick Harlan (b. November 14, 1970 in Colorado, United States) is a gaijin tarento, member of the comedy duo Pakkun Makkun, and one of the hosts of the late-night English television show Eigo de Shabera Night in Japan. Though not the first or only foreigner to do Manzai, a popular and traditional style of two-person stand up comedy, Harlan is the best known and most successful foreign practitioner or Manzaishi. He is often referred to by his stage name Pakkun.
A native of Colorado Springs, Colorado and a graduate of Harvard University with a degree in comparative religion, Harlan first came to Japan on a tour with the Harvard Glee Club in 1993. He moved to Fukui that fall to teach English and study Japanese. Having passed the highest level of the Japanese Language Proficiency Test in 1995, he moved to Tokyo in 1996 to pursue an acting career.
In 1997, Harlan joined with Makoto Yoshida to form the comic duo Pakkun Makkun, with Harlan as the boke (funny guy) and Yoshida as the tsukkomi (straight guy). At the time, they were the first international pair on the Japanese comedy scene in decades. They quickly made a name for themselves, winning the Tokyo FM King of Comedy Tournament and making it to the finals of NHK's Shinjin Engei Taisho both in 1999. They were also finalists on NHK's Bakusho Onair Battle in 2000. Also in 2000, Harlan used his voice for the character of Ark Thompson in Resident Evil Survivor.
Pakkun Makkun became regular faces on Japanese television with a daily corner on the popular afternoon show Just on TBS for five and a half years. Their straightforward presentation of daily events and Patrick's informative and often humorous remarks became their trademark style.
After Just went off the air in 2004, Patrick became better known as the host of NHK's Eigo de Shabera Night. From October 2007 he has also been the subhost or "Friday Partner" of Nihon Television's "Omoikkiri Ii Terebi". He also acts as the main host of the show when the show's host, Mino Monta, is on vacation.