Timeless Allen puts on a show for the ages

Tuesday, May 1, 2007 | 7:16 a.m.

ILLUSTRATION BY CHRIS MORRIS

What: "Hello Dere" starring Marty Allen and Karon Kate Blackwell

When: 7:30 p.m., Wednesdays through Sundays

Where: Gold Coast

Tickets: $29.95; 251-3574

Rating: 5 Stars

At $29.95, the Gold Coast is practically giving away tickets to one of the best shows in Las Vegas.

If you aren't already a fan of Marty Allen and his dynamic wife - vocalist/pianist/straight man Karon Kate Blackwell - you will be by the time you leave the showroom.

The couple recently began an open-ended engagement at the Gold Coast.

This is a powerful one-two punch: Allen the tireless comedian who recently celebrated his 85th birthday, and Blackwell, a spirited singer and piano player who takes charge of the stage the moment she walks into the spotlight wearing one of her slinky gowns.

What a contrast.

Blackwell, tall, shapely, groomed.

Allen, short, shapeless, perpetually disheveled and still sporting the trademark haircut that apparently was inspired by contact with an electrical outlet when he was a young man.

They've been together for 23 years.

Allen is as funny as he ever was, but for those who haven't seen the show the big surprise may be Blackwell and how talented she is singing the songs of Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Ray Charles and Tina Turner.

The show opens with Blackwell blowing through songs such as "Johnny B. Goode," "Proud Mary," "Great Balls of Fire," "Alexander's Ragtime Band" - exhibiting not only a potent set of lungs but prowess on the piano.

Allen - who claims to be the love child of comedians Jackie Mason and Phyllis Diller - is still a gem, shining as brightly as ever. Almost 60 years of show business have not tarnished the luster.

He and Blackwell put on a show that is as clean as they come.

While Blackwell changes costumes, Allen fires long bursts of one-liners:

"I was in the elevator with a group of Japanese men who were talking. I said : 'Gentlemen , you're in America now. Speak Spanish.' "

"She was wearing a T-shirt that said 'Guess.' I said, 'Implants.' "

"Guns don't kill people. Husbands who come home early kill people."

"If a guy talks dirty to a girl it's sexual harassment. If a girl talks dirty to a guy, it's $3.99 a minute."

Topping off the fast-paced evening, Allen - who sold dance lessons door to door after World War II - demonstrated he still has a lot of moves in him with a few steps. He's no Fred Astaire, but it was fun to watch.

Bring the kids, the grandparents and anyone else you care about to see "Hello Dere." They will thank you for it.

Postscript: There's no mention of Allen's former foil Steve Rossi in this show. It's almost as if the partnership never existed.