Friday, Sept. 5, 2003 | 8:37 a.m.
"Don't get a comic angry." This cautionary statement is brought to you by Rick Overton, who is more than a little miffed at the media.
Listen as the comic-turned-actor -- who takes the stage through Sunday at Catch a Rising Star at Excalibur -- rants about the widespread panic caused by cable news-station tickers, along with coverage of epidemic illness and fluctuating terror alert warnings:
"I don't know which is worse now: The news on the main screen, or the creepy stuff printed directly beneath it."
"I want to take whoever puts out the elevated alerts ... and I want just him and me in an alley, and I'm gonna knock him around."
"You know what I say: Let SARS come and get me. Did you notice it never struck in L.A.? I'll tell you why: Because we breathe so much (bad air) on a regular, daily basis, we're all booked up ... In fact, I think Hollywood would kill SARS, starting with its dreams."
Scary sound bites on the nightly news are all a ploy, Overton is convinced, to keep Americans running scared -- in the direction of the nearest pharmacy.
" 'Fear! Death! Is Mars gonna crash into Earth? And now a commercial for some antidepressant.' See the racket? That's what gets my goat, makes me mad as hell.
"They want us scared," he says. "They want us banging into each other, and I refuse to do it. I'm going out swinging both fists -- Irish-style. That's what America used to be about; not being scared."
Talk about biting the hand that feeds you: Television has, for years, helped Overton pay his bills. The seasoned character actor has been all over the tube, with roles on "Seinfeld," "NYPD Blue," "JAG," "Married With Children," "ER," "Charmed" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," among dozens of others.
But sitcoms are an entirely different animal than TV news, he insists. "When you're on 'Seinfeld,' they're not printing down at the bottom of the screen, 'We're all gonna be nuked in 10 minutes.' I want the things that make laughter, not fear."
Given Overton's genes -- he's the son of late jazz man Hall Overton, an arranger for the legendary Thelonius Monk, and Nancy Overton of the '50s singing group The Chordettes ("Lollipop," "Mr. Sandman") -- it seems he'd be better suited to make music than merriment.
As a youngster, Overton says, he was influenced by the stand-up comics who served as the opening acts for jazz musicians. When he was "real little" he saw Lenny Bruce take the stage.
"I didn't know why my parents were laughing, but I thought it was pretty cool," he recalls.
The boy's sense of humor was "dialed in" by his musical father, who would often play the comedy albums of Bob Newhart and Johnathan Winters.
"I think subconsciously he wanted me to get into comedy and fulfill a part of his dream that he didn't do," Overton says.
After spending the bulk of the '70s performing along the East Coast as one half of two comedy teams -- Overton and Pastor, followed by Overton and Sullivan -- the New York/New Jersey native headed west to Los Angeles in 1978 and went solo on the stand-up scene.
Since then Overton has caused chuckles on comedy-club stages, as well as on television and the big screen. In 1996 he won an Emmy for his work penning jokes on the HBO series "Dennis Miller Live." He has been in 52 feature films, including "Mrs. Doubtfire," "Beverly Hills Cop," "Airplane II: The Sequel" and "Groundhog Day."
"I've never played me," he says. Because "I play voices, dialects, characters ... it's easier for me to go up for a district attorney or a bad guy, a good guy, a dad, a starship commander, a rubber-headed alien."
It's not all funny business for the 49-year-old Overton. A major sci-fi fan, he had roles in 1988's "Willow"; the '97 documentary "Trekkies"; and last year's "Eight Legged Freaks." He was a recurring character on the 2000 Sci-Fi Channel series "The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne," in which he also displayed his talent for model building, by designing several whimsical "ships and gadgets" featured on the show.
"They'd be flights of fancy," he says of his creations. He often gives his models away as gifts to friends. "I do it because it's meditation; it's fun."
Overton took a dramatic turn playing a sort of "corporate devil" in "Northfork." The movie, released this summer, stars Nick Nolte and James Woods and is set in a '50s-era Montana town. Its residents are forced to flee their homes to make way for a dam project.
"I am the opposite of the other side of the film, which is about angels and belief and caring and nurturing," Overton says of his character. "I'm about cement and darkness, and my washed-out, colorless world shows that."
Overton recently wrapped production on the romantic comedy "Little Black Book." Due in theaters next year, the film stars current Hollywood "It" girl Brittany Murphy, as well as Kathy Bates and Sharon Lawrence.
In the meantime, at least on comedy-club stages, Overton says he'll continue "preaching the totally nonreligious word of 'no fear,' because no matter how many green drinks you drink every day, or how many miles you jog, guess what's gonna happen later: You're gonna die of something else."
Leave it to a musician's son to come up with such a philosophy: "You may as well live where the laser's hitting the disc ... live in every note. That's what I'm trying to do."
Out for laughs
Ron Sherwood, a local comic and father of four, offers his take on Las Vegas culture when he performs at The Comedy Stop at the Trop on Sept. 15 though Sept. 21.
The same week, guitar-strumming songwriter/comedian Pat Godwin -- whose silly tunes have been featured on such nationally syndicated radio shows as "The Bob and Tom Show" and "Dr. Demento" -- plays Catch a Rising Star at Excalibur. His new CD, "Pure Genius," is set to be released this month.
A bit of trivia about comedy legend Shelley Berman, who graces The Improv at Harrah's stage Oct. 7 through Oct. 12: For nearly two decades, the actor/author has taught writing courses at the University of Southern California. I'm going out swinging both fists -- Irish-style. That's what America used to be about; not being scared."
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