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Tuesday, June 11, 2002

By John Hayes, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

In 1963, promoter Budd Freeman opened a little place off New York's Times Square where Broadway performers could sing after their shows. Comedy was an afterthought.

"The truth is, after I got a liquor license, the comedians started coming in," says Freeman.

The Improvisation was a comedy club before they started calling them that. Freeman's unintentional invention of a nightclub environment tailored for standup comedy sparked the growth of an entertainment genre. Playing The Improv and its satellite locations became a prestige event for entertainers from Marty Allen to Robin Williams to Jamie Foxx. For 14 years, the A&E Channel's "An Evening at the Improv" brought the club's distinctive logo and comedy newcomers into millions of living rooms.

Although the original Improv has closed and copycat clubs have sprouted across the United States and Europe, the "Improv" name remains the biggest in the comedy business. The franchise has spread to include 14 locations, including the newest, which opens Thursday at The Waterfront in Homestead.

"The key for us is tradition, since we're the granddaddy of them all," says Freeman, who briefly worked as a salesman in Greensburg before founding his original club. "We're the innovators. We build better clubs, have better food and spend more money doing it and bring in the best acts available."

Pittsburgh's Improv is part of a U.S. expansion plan to open six new venues this year. Two have been christened in Baltimore and Ontario, Calif., and new locations are scheduled in Cincinnati, Minneapolis and San Jose. The Waterfront Improv will seat 300 at tiered tables set in a semicircle around a stage backed by the trademark brick wall and Improv logo. Following the format that Freeman invented, dinner guests will get preferential seating and finish their desserts before the shows start. Entrees run from $6.95 to $13.95. Light appetizers and drinks will be served during two-hour performances, which generally include a headliner, middle act and host. Comics are usually booked for two shows a day.

The brains behind the aggressive expansion program is Tony Baldino, president of Comedy Club Inc., which absorbed the Improv chain two years ago.

"We're excited to be at the Waterfront," he says. "We thought it was a very vibrant location and that we would fit in well with their other entertainment places. The thing about a comedy show is, it's the only place in the world where you can see this performer play on this particular night."

Pittsburghers who need a laugh have been finding stand-ups at the Funny Bone Comedy Club at Station Square. Baldino says he doesn't anticipate a lot of competition between the clubs, because many Improv entertainers are booked on Improv tours. But a Funny Bone representative said the club was gearing up for a big season that will include top-name talent.

A Mon Valley comedy rivalry could have ramifications for Pittsburgh. If the Improv and the Bone consistently book different acts, the city could end up with twice as many comedians. Competition for the comedy dollar could increase the quality of the experience at both places. But if a bidding war for the same talent should erupt, Pittsburghers could end up paying more for the same tickets, and that's no laughing matter.