It's been ages since Heath Hyche has appeared at The Improv. He's just too busy to be here, I suppose. Heath has a very physical and original act that just adds to the general funniness that comes from his trap.

I guess that comes with being raised in the South. A native of Birmingham, Ala., Heath was bitten by the acting bug when he wore a giant orange costume as his high school's mascot even though the school's nickname was the Vikings. His first big break came when he was at Auburn University and won "The Funniest Person on Campus" contest. From there Hyche performed at an open-mic audition at the Birmingham Comedy Club and has been a working stand-up ever since.

After being discovered by an agent during a gig at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles, his first television role was on Roseanne's "Saturday Night Special." The neophyte (oh yeah a big word there) found himself auditioning for who at that time was one of the biggest names in the business, Roseanne Barr, to cast him on the show. Soon Hyche was back in Alabama preparing for a cross country drive and trying to figure out the definition of a "table read."

Heath is very grounded and still holds a soft spot in his heart for his Southern roots, which must have been one of the reasons he was tapped by Jeff Foxworthy to be a part of his show, the very popular "Blue Collar TV." Hyche has appeared in several television pilots, including "Jack's House," and had a leading role in "Mark of Greatness." In fact, the first time I saw him was a on a rerun of the romantic comedy, "Kiss My Act" which also starred Camryn Manheim and Phyllis Diller. On the big screen, Hyche appeared in "Man on the Moon" and "The Odd Couple II."

Among other credits are an appearance on "Two Guys and A Girl," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and "These Old Broads" with Shirley MacLaine, Joan Collins, Elizabeth Taylor, Debbie Reynolds and Jonathan Silverman and was also a regular on "Style and Substance" with Jean Smart and Nancy McKeon.

Hyche currently resides in Los Angeles where he collects toys from his childhood, including Star Wars memorabilia. Oops. They're called action figures, not toys, because I got in trouble saying that the last time.



Kenny Bob Davis

Appearing with Hyche every night this week through Sunday is Kenny Bob Davis, who is a favorite at the lake and has been performing in the High Sierra for the past 35 years. Wow. With those many years he's a local without even being here. Kenny's a very affable guy and when people ask what is his comedy like it would be a little like if you took the polish of Jackie Gleason and the biting country charm of Will Rogers, mixed with Roy Clark's musical warmth and the energy of General Patton. Then you would "almost" have Kenny Bob Davis.

To his audiences he is an "Everyman." To the entertainment industry Kenny's quite unique. He started in show business as a guitar playing folk singer in the sixties. It was within this atmosphere that he developed his heightened sense of audience rapport and comedic interplay, throwing out some humorous material between his songs. Soon after people started coming for the comedy in addition to the music.

Kenny was raised in Burbank, and played with his group to packed houses and great reviews for years all over Southern California while recording two big selling live albums. He has performed many times at Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm and Six Flags Magic Mountain. He then moved on to many years of SRO audiences in the hotel showrooms and lounges of Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe and Reno. In 1978, thanks to the late Eddie Rabbit, Kenny started a new phase of his career by becoming an opening act at the Montana State Fair as a comedian. Since that time he has opened in concert for many other stars like Kenny Rogers, Alabama and Larry Gatlin.

Kenny has headlined for 20 years all over the U.S. as a stand-up comedian, or a one-man corporate show entertainer. Kenny's relationship with Larry Gatlin and their common love of golf and performing turned Kenny Davis into "Kenny Bob Davis."

Larry also helped him become the "Golf Comic" as he is now referred to in golfing circles. He has performed at or been involved in more than 275 charity and PGA golf events since 1979. He's a great guy and has killer stories about other entertainers.



Dat Phan and Marc Price will come to The Improv Tuesday, Nov. 13 through Nov. 18.