The West Coast Report January 2006 - A Night @ The South Lake Tahoe Improv
 
The West Coast Report is back for 2006, and this time it’s covering the Improv in South Lake Tahoe. The Improv in Harvey’s hotel is a nice, 250 or so seat room, with a HUGE stage. I was awarded two free tickets for a show at the Improv due to my excessive gambling, so I took the opportunity to cash in on a Tuesday night performance, without any knowledge of the comics performing that night. Usually a weeknight would cost $25, and rightfully so (sarcasm), because this place had the best comics Lake Tahoe had to offer that week.
 
First up was the host, Howie Nave. Apparently ole Howie must be sucking someone’s dick on a regular basis, because he has the dedicated host gig. This dude defines hack. He sounds like a gay Bobby Slayton, and looks like an old fat Dave Coulier from Full House. This guy was atrocious. The guy brought a guitar onstage, which is all I need to say.  
 
Next up was the feature, a guy I’ve actually heard of, Doug Benson. I’ve seen him on VH1 and know that he does the Marijuanalogues, which he plugged in the middle of his set. This dude is just as bad as the host. Most of his jokes were pot related, which for a non-pot smoker, isn’t funny. The only thing funny about Doug Benson was his rice bowl haircut and Mr. Potato Head body. I tried to “get him” while on his way off stage by yelling his name out, but I was unsuccessful, as was his set.
 
A little between-set jokes from Howie Nave, and on to the headliner, Kivi Rogers. I saw his picture in the lobby and saw that he was a black dude, so I was hoping for some crazy white vs. black humor. Nope. This idiot was still doing millennium jokes. SIX YEARS LATER. This guy had nothing topical at all. Among the atrocity of his act were his Fire Marshall Bill impression, his Carlton from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air dance, and the talk on his grandparents’ 65th anniversary. The funniest part of the night was the guy in front with a deep distinct laugh. That dude ruled.  
 
All in all, the cool guy laugh and my delicious Shirley Temple were the highlights of the night. I would have rather been stuck in a high altitude snowstorm than see these guys perform again. I beg anyone who bumps into any of these 3 comics to run as fast as they can away from them. I can’t believe some people paid $25 for that shit.
 

 -Vyse