A tale of two comedians, both trying to make it in the movie world:
Carrot Top is known as a prop comedy expert, able to invent bizarre gadgets and then attach a joke to go with them (a basketball-like purse that only Dennis Rodman could love, for example). The comic is popular with the college crowd, and thousands around the country flock to his shows.
Harland Williams has been plying his standup trade for 15 years, developing his act in his native Canada for seven years before coming to the U.S. An irreverent, off-center sort, Williams had his own television series, “Simon,” on the WB network, and was seen recently in a solo HBO comedy special.
Williams has had two movies released within the last six months, “Rocket Man” and “Half-Baked.” This Sunday he’s starring in a new Disney TV movie on ABC, “Mr. Headmistress,” which airs at 6 p.m. on WLS-Ch. 7.
Carrot Top has made a few appearances in a couple of low-budget movies, but marks his first starring role (“Except for the porn stuff I did in the ’70s,” he cracks) with “Chairman of the Board,” a new big-screen comedy that was scheduled to open at theaters Friday.
Both comics agree that in order to grow in their craft, they have to take a leap from the stage to celluloid.
“I think it was like the next progression, the next step up,” says Carrot Top, 30 (real name: Scott Thompson), who’s been funny professionally for almost 10 years. “Standup is a great way to make a living, but you need to grow somehow as an artist.”
“Chairman of the Board” features Carrot as an inventor of such wacky contraptions as a hat with a bug-zapper on top and a baseball bat that does the annoying work of adjustment that an athlete often has to do on a particularly confining, personal piece of equipment. He befriends the owner of a manufacturing company (Jack Warden), who leaves Carrot the company when he dies.
While Carrot’s role was tailored for him after he came aboard the project, Williams is going something against type in “Mr. Headmistress,” playing a hard case con who dons a dress to run a girls school while hiding out from various criminal types. Usually Williams’ characters are not too far from his loopy standup persona.
“That’s why I took on the role; I wanted to actually do that, try to do some different characters,” says Williams, 35. “I’ve been trying different roles and trying to put some variety into my roles. So that’s been a real challenge and a lot of fun.”
Unlike Carrot, who wants to develop his acting skills, Williams sees his first movie role as a step toward directing.
“I want to bring my own kind of comedy perception to the screen,” he says. “I think I might have a style and a look that nobody’s ever done before. I really feel like that’s my reason for getting in all this entertainment industry. That’s always been my objective right from the start.”
Carrot Top hopes that “Chairman” gets a hot enough response so he can branch out into other roles. He’s achieved his goal by starring in a movie. Now his next goal is to expand beyond his red-headed, prop-making persona.
“Given the chance, I’m not going to do the prop guy,” he says about the part he plays in this movie, for which he also developed some gadgets. “I may cut my hair and do something completely different. I can be anything; I would like to change characters.”
Meanwhile, Williams says he is about two years away from his own goal of writing a script that he would direct as an independent feature. Even though he wants to sit in that big chair, it would all come under the heading of entertainment, with standup as “the backbone of everything.”
“I just love that (standup is) challenging, and it’s dangerous. You can bomb, or people could love it, or they could hate it. It’s like the tide, you keep moving and flowing. And if you’re lucky, you’ll wake up with seashells in your hair. Whatever that means.”
The standup lineup
Here’s who’s working at the various comedy locations. Current sets are scheduled to run through Saturday, and new acts begin on Wednesday, unless otherwise noted. Lineups are subject to change.
– We told you John Pinette is one of Zanies’ most requested acts. The club added a show at its Chicago outlet (1548 N. Wells St.; 312-337-4027) on Sunday, because tickets were going like hotcakes for his Saturday shows at the club’s Vernon Hills room (230 Hawthorn Village Commons, Vernon Hills; 847-549-6030).
– Diane Alaimo is the latest to teach people how to laugh as part of Elmhurst College’s monthly comedy event. She is performing standup Friday in a free show at the college’s Founders Lounge in the Frick Center. Elmhurst College is at 190 Prospect Ave., Elmhurst; call 630-617-3230 for more details.
– Damon Williams, All Jokes Aside’s Wednesday night comedy-variety show host, serves in the same capacity at the Red Light Restaurant’s District Lounge every Thursday, starting at 9:30 p.m. The venue is at 820 W. Randolph St.; call 312-733-8880.
Yuks on the tube
We know who’s going to win the American Comedy Awards this Tuesday, and we’re not telling. The awards were taped for Fox late last month, but the winners will be announced at 7 p.m. Tuesday on WFLD-Ch. 32.
What we can tell you is that the funniest in standup, television and movies were honored at the 12th annual bash, created by “Laugh-In’s” George Schlatter to be more a loose comedy show than a stiff awards show.
And we’ll tell you that Comedy Central viewers made their choice of best male and female standups from the following list: Kathy Buckley, Bobby Collins, Diane Ford, Jeff Dunham, Maryellen Hooper, John Pinette, Rene Hicks, Dom Irrera, Felicia Michaels and Bob Zany.
