Comedy Notes : Saturday Afternoon Funnies

In an effort to be kid- and community-friendly, the Brea Improv will launch a weekly 90-minute variety show Oct. 29. “Every week will be a different show, with jugglers, dancers, magicians and fire-eaters--all geared toward kids,” said Michael Wulffhart, who’s directing and coordinating the project.

To give the Saturday afternoon shows continuity, Wulffhart is looking for an actor or comedian who works well with kids to emcee the event. The shows will also offer a children’s lunch. $5, plus lunch. Doors open at noon, curtain at 1. (714) 529-7878. . . . Also coming up at the club will be a special night Oct. 28 with Gino Michellini, host of the popular “5 O’Clock Funnies” on KLOS-FM 95.5. Occasionally, Michellini puts on a show featuring the most-requested comics on his program. This night will star Craig Shoemaker, Mack & Jamie and Steve McGrew. $15. 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. . . . For the next several weeks, the club is continuing “Absolute Madness,” but the big news is the show’s community outreach program.

“It’s really been a lot of fun,” Robert Hartman, an Improv regional manager, reported Monday. It’s only about four minutes of the show, but already the club has attracted a woman who plays her nose, a tap-dancing grandmother who also performed something resembling a back flip, an impressionist, a fire-eater and someone with absolutely no talent but who was dying to be in the show. “We rehearsed him once or twice and put him on stage. The audience loved him,” Wulffhart said.

CRAZY GUEST: The Orange County Crazies have scored a coup. Gary Austin, founder of the 20-year-old L.A. Groundlings, will be guest host and perform with the Crazies on Oct. 29 in their new “Romancing the Orange.” The show opens Saturday. Austin directed the Groundlings for its first five years and now spends his time teaching in L.A. and New York. $12. 8 p.m. (714) 550-9900. Meanwhile, the Crazies are seeking nominations for their Orange Peel awards, given to a group or individuals who have distinguished themselves with acts of foolishness or embarrassment at work, home or play. Submit your choices in letter form (signed by at least one witness) or on a VHS videocassette. Send them to: O.C. Crazies, c/o Orange Peel Award, P.O. Box 4444, Santa Ana, CA 92702. One winner per month will be paraded before an audience whenever the Crazies have a show in production.

LAUGHING ALL THE WAY: The Irvine Improv will be offering nothing but pun, pun, pun Thursday when nerd-boy Haywood Banks stops in for three days. Not a household name on the West Coast, Banks, the brainchild of Stuart Mitchell, has been selling out houses on the East Coast. $8-$12. (714) 854-5455.

BENEFITS: Also coming up at the Irvine Improv are a couple of benefits. On Wednesday, the Musical Theatre Company is raising money for its 1994-95 season. Legendary lounge lizards Sal and Amanda Gecko (George Quick and Beth Hansen) will sing selections from upcoming shows. Tickets are $35-$50 for dinner and the show. Reception at 6 p.m. Singing and comedy about 8:30. (800) 990-6874. . . . On Sunday, COPES and the Exchange Club Child Abuse Prevention Center team up to present Evan Davis and Carlos Alazraqui for a night of dinner and comedy. $35. 8 p.m. (714) 721-6633.

HOLD THE TOMATOES: Jerry Mabbott’s Comedy Revue is heading to the Pizza Store, 25610 Alicia Parkway, Laguna Hills, on Saturday. Hosted by Bill Word, the performance stars Ron J. Ruhman, with Dave Carlaw, Tim Roland, Neil Stevenson and Joey Sims. Free. 8 p.m. (714) 951-9011. The local troupe can also be seen at 7:30 p.m. every Thursday at Shoe-Bops in the Buena Park Hotel. $6, with a two-item minimum. (714) 995-1111. . . . Tuesday night comedy shows produced and hosted by Word have found a new home, too. After 92 consecutive weeks at the Blue Marble Coffeehouse in Costa Mesa, the troupe moved to Totally Coffee, also in Costa Mesa, where it celebrated show No. 100 last week. Show No. 101 is tonight, featuring Susan Dinkel, Matt Moore, Guy Roney and others. Free. 8 p.m. (714) 435-9367.