Mon, Oct 22, 2007 (7:14 a.m.)

Who: Craig Ferguson

When: 8 p.m., Friday-Sunday

Where: The Orleans

Tickets: $29.95 and up; 365-7075

Maybe This Time

Duration: 1995-96

Premise: Ferguson starred as a Scottish baker alongside Betty White, right, and Marie Osmond. The show dealt with the relationships among three generations of women and the bakery they own in Haverford, Pa.

The Drew Carey Show

Duration: 1995-2003

Premise: Ferguson played Nigel Wick, the boss of the eponymously named everyman portrayed by comedian Drew Carey, left. In the show, Wick and Carey were briefl y in a same-sex marriage so Wick could get his green card and Carey his offi ce job back.

Late-night talk show host Craig Ferguson, a native of Glasgow, Scotland, hopes to become a U.S. citizen in the near future.

The subject probably will come up when he performs at The Orleans this weekend , as he entertains fans with his offbeat sense of humor.

Ferguson moved to the United States in 1995 to star with Betty White and Marie Osmond in the short-lived ABC comedy "Maybe This Time." From there he went to "The Drew Carey Show." He played Nigel Wick, Carey's peculiar boss, from 1996 to 2003.

In January 2005, he became the host of CBS' "The Late, Late Show," replacing Craig Kilborn.

Q: When will your U.S. citizenship become official?

I think by the end of the year. I've had my background checked on. I guess the CIA aren't as good as they thought they were. Now I just have to pass the exam.

Why is citizenship so important to you?

This is the country that I chose. I feel very patriotic about it. Most people can wake up in morning and say "I think I'll exercise my civil and religious beliefs without fear of incarceration or repression today. I think I'll complain today." I have to fill out a lot of paperwork before I can do that, but I'll do it.

Can you pass the tests?

I think I'll be all right. I'm quietly confident. There's lot of Americans born in this country who can count themselves lucky they don't have to take the test. If they did , I think a lot of them would go to Canada.

Any other big events going on in your life?

Citizenship, that's my main project - that and doing the show every day and learning to fly an airplane.

Flying?

I had a pathological fear of flying for a long time. Kurt Russell was a guest on my show one time, and he got me into it. He said, "You're not afraid of flying. You're just a control freak." So he got me into flying. I've been taking lessons in a little Cessna and I enjoy it.

Isn't it scary?

There's terror beyond belief, but in a much more interesting way.

Are you soloing yet?

I'm 10 hours in. I'm about maybe half a dozen or a dozen hours away from solo.

Have you learned how to use the parachute yet?

There's no parachute. You know how to fly the plane, you don't need a parachute. A good pilot doesn't need a parachute. That's what I'm all about.

You've been performing at The Orleans a lot lately. Is this your only stand-up gig?

No, no. I play a lot around the country.

Why are you working so hard?

I'm an immigrant. We do two jobs, you know. I love doing stand-up. It's such an easy kind of fun way to perform. I really enjoy it. It's what I originally did. Once you're a stand-up, you always are.

You've been doing your talk show awhile now. Has it evolved?

Yeah, I think so. It's changing all the time. But I'm the last person to comment on what the show's like. The way we do it, it keeps changing. We keep tweaking it here and there. It's an organic thing. A daily show is like that. It changes all the time. It depends on any given day. It's how you feel that night and who you're talking to. I don't choreograph the questions. The way it goes is the way it goes. I won't be briefed by any guests or any guests ' publicists about what I can or I cannot talk about. The conversation goes the way it goes. It's not hostile; it is what it is.

So some guests try to direct the interviews away from certain things.

Yes, but if they don't want to talk about something, they're perfectly free to say that on the air, but I won't be prebriefed.

Anything you don't want to talk about?

I can't think of anything off the top of my head. I'm sure there are some things, but if I thought about them and I tell them to you that sort of defeats the purpose of not wanting to talk about them.

Any favorite guests?

Some I love to see. Michael Caine is coming back. People like that, I like. Guys who have been around a long time. I get a thrill out of talking to them. Sometimes the guests surprise you. One of my favorites turned out to be Sir Ben Kingsley. I thought he was going to be a stuffy, boring actor, but he was a lot of fun, very funny and smart and witty and fast. So I try not to have a preconceived notion of the individual. Sometimes I think a musician is going to be boring and then along comes someone who isn't. One that springs to mind is Dwight Yoakam (country music singer turned actor). He's terrific. Billy Bob Thornton was another great guest as well. It's about chemistry, I guess, really. It depends. Some that would do well on other shows might not do well with me, and others that do well with me might not do well with other shows.

Are you a natural interviewer or did you have to be trained?

I don't think I interview people. I think I just talk to them. I don't really give a rat's ass about a guest's policy on this or that. I just talk to them. I don't think I have interviewing skills, I think I just talk to them.

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