Columnist Jerry Fink: ‘Wild Billy’ is a true joke-and-dance man

Friday, Sept. 12, 2003 | 8:31 a.m.

Jerry Fink's lounge column appears on Fridays. Reach him at jerry@lasvegassun.com at (702) 259-4058.

"How you all feelin'?," comedian Bill "Wild Billy" Tucker asked a friendly audience in his soft Texas drawl at Fitzgeralds' Events Center recently. "Great to be here in Vegas, idn't it?

"I got to warn you though. Vegas is getting dangerous. I got shot at last night. Damn cops."

That's one of Tucker's few jokes that can be reprinted in a family newspaper.

His act is liberally sprinkled with four-letter words and sex-oriented jokes, suited for the adult crowd he has been attracting to the 175-seat showroom/lounge on the second floor of the downtown hotel.

It also is a smattering of dancing and singing, body language and facial expressions and characterizations -- Turkey Man, Tap Daddy, Low Rider.

Tucker has been the late-night attraction at Fitzgeralds for about three months, coming on at 10:30 p.m. Thursdays through Mondays. He shares the roster of entertainers with "Diva-Licious," comedian Larry G. Jones and Elvis tribute artist Steve Connolly, among others.

The price of admission is hard to beat -- a one-drink minimum.

Before deciding to become a stand-up comic almost 15 years ago, the Dallas native spent 15 years as a professional hoofer and vocalist in production shows around the country, including Vegas.

Locally, he was a lead dancer at the Dunes, Stardust and Golden Nugget, among others.

"Then I joined Dance Machine, the hottest street dancing group in town," said Tucker, proud of his success. "I used to go to all the black clubs and win dance contests.

"I'm a dancer, No. 1."

He says he would like to challenge another Vegas dancer-turned-comedian to a contest -- Joe Trammel, featured comic with the "Crazy Girls" at the Riviera, who was once a professional break dancer.

Tucker believes he can out-dance Trammel.

"I'm very competitive," he said.

Which was one reason he got into comedy.

"I was a smartass," Tucker said. "I used to go to the Improv to watch the comics and I thought, 'I'm funnier than he is,' so I started getting up and doing comedy. I wasn't funny at first."

He said he relied heavily on his dancing talent during the early days of his stand-up comedy routines.

"Now, I've got a nice balance," Tucker said. "It's just something I do in the act."

He struggled for the first four or five years in the mid-'80s when comedy clubs were sprouting up around the country like Texas oil wells.

Then, he said, he began earning "headliner money," several thousand dollars a night.

His career was going smoothly until about four years ago, when he developed stomach problems.

"It was stress," he said.

It took him until about a year ago to almost fully recover, at least enough to go on a national tour.

"Because I dance, I run," he said. "I healed myself. I don't trust doctors."

Because he was out of commission for a long time, he decided when he returned to Vegas to try his own room, which is why he is at Fitzgeralds.

"This is my first room in years," Tucker said. "I had the Copa lounge for six months at the Sands before they tore it down."

He said he took the relatively low-paying job at the downtown casino so he would have a starting point.

"Once you've got a job, it's easier to get a job," Tucker said. "When I came back I knew I had to get a room in Las Vegas, and this is the first one that popped up."

His eye is on the Strip.

And his feet are on the move.

Lounging around

Tommy Rocker & Conched Out are performing at a free pool-side concert at the Wild Wild West on West Tropicana Avenue 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sept. 18.

Catch the Coasters at The Club at the Cannery in North Las Vegas, 8 p.m. to midnight tonight and Saturday.

The popular dance band Front Page at the Suncoast's lounge/showroom 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays through Mondays, Sept 18-29.

Impersonator Show in the Cancun Room at the Fiesta Henderson. Showtimes are 5 p.m., 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Fridays. Featured performers include Ines as Gloria Estefan, Lisa Cash as Shania Twain, Lisa Furr as Celine Dion, Gary Corsello as Frank Sinatra, Dennis Kolb as Roy Orbison and Elvis and Friends.

Pianist Bruce Zarka continues at the Bellagio's Baccarat Bar 4:15 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays.

Hats off to Lamar "The Hatman" Harris, who has been packing them in for years at the Westward Ho lounge from 6 p.m. to midnight Tuesdays through Sundays.