Features

November 13, 2009

Comedian Regan brings off-center humor to center stage

BRAD PATTON For The Times Leader

Known for his off-kilter way of looking at everyday things, stand-up comedian Brian Regan says he doesn’t know why his mind works the way it does.

“I don’t get why my brain sees something and sees the humor in it,” he said in a recent telephone interview. “I’m always looking at the same things (as everybody else) but seeing it in a different way.

“Maybe it’s a form of having a brain that’s not wired properly – or wired too much.”

Local comedy fans can see just how that brain works Thursday as Regan makes his first area appearance at the F.M. Kirby Center.

Without the aid of a sitcom or movies, the humorist, who grew up in Miami, has built a loyal following and gone from comedy clubs to sold-out theaters through endless touring.

“Bands go on the road for like four months or whatever, but I’ve been on the road since 1984. I didn’t know tours stopped.”

He also has appeared more than 20 times on “Late Show with David Letterman,” had numerous guest spots on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and has done two Comedy Central specials that were later released on DVD. The latest, “The Epitome of Hyperbole,” came out in September 2008, while his first (and so far) only CD came out in 1997.

“That came out over 10 years ago, but it continues to sell well,” he said of the album. “A lot of people tell me that’s how they first got into my stuff.”

Regan, whose style has been likened to that of Jerry Seinfeld but with more goofy faces and voices, originally had a much different path in mind when he attended school at Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio.

“I thought I was going to be an accountant. … Yep, I was geared up for one exciting rocket-ship ride,” he quipped. “But after two weeks of classes, I thought you only get one life and I don’t want to spend it doing this.”

On the advice of his college football coach, he switched majors and found his niche in speech class.

“That was the first class I took, and I just started making my speeches as funny as I could.”

Asked about his influences, he said he didn’t really have any.

“There were comedians I liked,” he said. “But when I started, it was before computers – nobody had a computer or even a TV in their rooms. I think one guy on my floor had a radio.

“I came up with my own style by default. I don’t think I really patterned myself after anyone since I wasn’t really exposed to anyone.”

Regan, who was named the “Best Club Comedian” of 1996 by the American Comedy Awards, is considered a “clean” comedian and has been pretty much since day one.

“I never set out to be a clean comic, but I was always 95 percent clean anyway. It got to a point where I thought why not make it 100 percent, you know, just for fun? It’s more about being really anal than being a prude.”

While he has never before performed in Wilkes-Barre, he has been to the area many times. His mother was originally from Binghamton, N.Y., and his father lived in both Scranton and Wilkes-Barre.

“They got married and went to Miami, Florida, and just stayed there,” he said. “And when I was growing up, we would go to Binghamton and Wilkes-Barre or Scranton on vacation.

“I used to see everybody else coming to where we lived for their vacations, and I said, ‘I don’t think Wilkes-Barre is where you’re supposed to go on vacation.’ ”

Come to think of it, maybe that’s where it all started for Regan.

If you go

Who: Stand-up comedian Brian Regan

When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday

Where: F.M. Kirby Center for the Performing Arts, Public Square, Wilkes-Barre

Tickets: $39.50

Call: 693-4100, or visit www.ticketmaster.com

Tweet	Follow @TLnews