Stand-up comedy has become Blair’s lair

Friday, Aug. 23, 2002 | 9:04 a.m.

Who: Dennis Blair.

When: 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., Monday through Sept. 1.

Where: Riviera Comedy Club.

Tickets: $25.74, $42.24.

Information: (702) 794-9433.

When it comes to comedy, timing is everything -- and comedian Dennis Blair's timing is uncanny.

He switched from being a musician to comedy just as the comedy-club rage was sweeping the nation in the early '80s. And with apparent ease he went from being a relative unknown to an opening act for Jackie Mason, Rodney Dangerfield and, for the past 15 years, George Carlin.

No sweat. It was just being in the right place at the right time.

Blair will perform on his own at Riviera Comedy Club Monday through Sept. 1.

"From a young teen, I was thinking I was going to be a performing artist," said the New York native during a recent interview. "Sort of like James Taylor, without the heroin addiction."

During high school Blair played for several bands. His instruments included guitar, bass, drums and accordion.

"The accordion was kind of repelling to the girls," he said.

Blair made a living singing in bars until about 1980.

"I did Top 40 songs," he said. "I was the background guy in nightclubs and wine-and-cheese places. Mostly, I was being ignored."

Blair decided to attract attention by inserting a little comedy into his act.

"I did a parody of the Bee Gee's song 'Stayin' Alive' and I started getting some laughs," he said. "Then I threw in some more parodies."

Within a few months he had enough parodies for a comedy act, at a time when comedy clubs were beginning to open all over the country.

In rapid succession in 1980 Blair was hired as a house comedian by Dangerfield's, a comedy nightclub in New York City. The club was owned by Dangerfield, who was out of town when Blair was hired.

"I opened for Jackie Mason when he was the headliner at Dangerfield's," Blair said.

A month later, Dangerfield came into the club, liked Blair and hired him to be his opening act on the road.

"The movie 'Caddyshack' had just been released," Blair said. "Dangerfield was big."

While with Dangerfield, he co-wrote the script for "Easy Money." He traveled with Dangerfield for almost four years. When that relationship ended he opened for Joan Rivers, Garry Shandling and Tom Jones.

Then, in 1987, Blair decided to move to Los Angeles from the East Coast. Shortly after that he was hired as the opening act for Carlin.

"I moved out West to make it in television and movies, but then I hooked up with George and most of his gigs are back East," Blair said.

He describes Carlin as being more aggressive onstage than off.

"He gets out a lot of pent-up anger onstage," Blair said. "But when he's offstage, he's just funny."

They have become friends over the past 15 years.

"We've been buddies a long time," he said. "But George is not the kind of guy who hangs out. He keeps to himself. He takes care of his business. We do guy things on the road, but once we're not working we don't have much contact."

Blair said Carlin will be going to Broadway in two years with a one-man show.

"Up until recently, George worked so often I didn't have to worry about my career," he said. "But there's no room for an opening act in his new show."

So Blair is looking around for something to do after Carlin. Blair recently completed a script for his longtime friend, Mason. He's perfecting his own comedy routine, and he has several proposals he's working on.

"I have a couple of TV projects," he noted. "One is a topical comedy show done by musical comics -- sort of a 'That Was The Week That Was' type of thing."

Who knows? With Blair's luck when it comes to timing, he could end up running a network.