Even in a YouTube world where anyone can be a star, for some people there's still nothing quite like being on TV.

Brad Ryan of Crafton is a UPS driver by day, stand-up comedian by night and would-be TV star Tuesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. when low-power station WBGN airs his low-production-value show, "Pinheads."

Ryan sees "Pinheads" as a cross between the old "Bowling for Dollars" program and a stand-up comedy showcase. And really, there's a lot more talking than bowling as Ryan spends most of each half-hour episode interviewing bowlers before they bowl. Most episodes have just three contestants.

Tuesday night at Legacy Lanes in Baldwin, Ryan welcomed Eric Schwab, who works in a real estate closing office on Ryan's UPS route. Schwab also moonlights as a wrestler, Eric Xtasy of the International Wrestling Cartel. He's also appeared on "WWE Raw."

Before bowling, Ryan chatted with Schwab about his life, work and hobby, suggesting his wrestler name should be the Interest Annihilator. Then Ryan asked Schwab to show him a wrestling move. Schwab put him in a headlock.

"We get them to sign a release, but I didn't sign a release, did I?" Ryan said as Schwab made his move.

"You need to work on that stack of dimes you call a neck," Schwab told Ryan after releasing him.

Essentially "Pinheads" is a public-access-caliber show that has a potentially larger reach by airing on WBGN. (That platform was much bigger before Comcast dropped WBGN from its lineup; in addition to broadcasting over the air, the station is carried by Verizon's FiOS TV.)

Ryan, 42, got into comedy about four years ago after taking a class in stand-up comedy at the Community College of Allegheny County. One day he crossed paths at WBGN with Mark Menold, producer of "The It's Alive Show."

Menold, who carries the title of executive producer on "Pinheads" but is pretty hands-off, said he thought of Ryan for a bowling show after seeing his stand-up act.

"He's kind of like Bob Saget," Menold said. "He's kind of clean, but you can tell inside he's deeply insane."

Ryan began shooting episodes in April at Forward Lanes in Squirrel Hill and after 13 episodes moved to Legacy Lanes.

"I want to bring on average Pittsburghers but then extraordinary Pittsburghers as well," said Ryan, who recruits contestants on craigslist.com and at pittsburghpinheads.com, which will eventually host streaming episodes of the show. Contestants who bowl a strike or spare win a prize -- gift certificates for dinners, skiing and whitewater rafting trips donated by local business owners.

Past contestants have included a ventriloquist, a magician, a horror novelist, a race horse massage therapist and a karaoke disc jockey. When he's able to get celebrities to appear -- not always easy: a WTAE on-air personality bailed a few hours before taping Tuesday night -- they bowl for charity, and Ryan tries to convince businesses to make donations to a charity such as the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank on the local celeb bowler's behalf.

"He's always looking for celebrity bowlers or people with special talents that want to get on TV," Menold said. "It's kind of like a Stupid Human Trick thing. We like it when a contestant can do something strange before they bowl. It makes for good local TV."

Tuesday's episode, which will air Nov. 17 and 19, was filmed on two digital video cameras as they all are by cameraman Eric Martich, a 2007 University of Pittsburgh film studies grad who works as a restaurant dishwasher. He said he spends about four hours editing each half-hour "Pinheads" episode. He recently started adding canned laughter and applause to the "Pinheads" soundtrack after a suggestion from WBGN management.

"To my surprise, it made it better," Martich said. "Now when [Brad] makes a bad joke, I can insert some groans. I don't think he's noticed yet."

Other contestants at this week's taping included Julie Cote, who appeared with her seizure alert dog Hannah to promote Epilepsy Awareness Month, and longtime friends/neighbors Gail Hofbauer and Veronica Noceti of Whitehall. On Tuesday night, every roll but one resulted in a gutter ball.

In addition to "Pinheads," Ryan has also posted videos to YouTube of himself doing stand-up while parachuting (do a search for "stand up comedy skydive" to find his videos), and he organized a Boston Tea Party-style protest of the Allegheny County drink tax, dumping colored water from alcohol containers into the Monongahela River.

Ryan has ideas aplenty for "Pinheads" theme weeks: Contestants dressed as Hollywood stars for the Oscars, couples bowling for Valentine's Day and a pierogi-eating contest are in the works.

"I've always been creative, but I stumbled into comedy," Ryan said. "I have never wanted to perform, I always wanted to create. But since I started doing comedy, I really love it. It's a passion. I thought this was a great way to have creative expression and promote myself as a comic."

Ryan sees the TV show as a means to an end.

"It's a tough sell here in town getting people to come out" for stand-up comedy gigs, he said. "I figured people who see this might possibly want to come out and see what else I do."

TV stations don't routinely send reporters out of town anymore unless they're going to follow the Steelers or Penguins in the playoffs, but two sweeps reports have taken Pittsburgh reporters to locales away from home.

KDKA sent David Highfield to Atlanta to visit the Centers for Disease Control for a report on how the CDC tracks the swine flu. It was an OK report, but I didn't come away from it feeling like I gained much new information.

WTAE sent Jim Parsons to Louisville, Ky., for a comprehensive report on how that city successfully got local industrial plants to cut toxic emissions, improving air quality. It was an altogether solid report that not only dissected a significant health issue problem but also provided ideas for a solution locally.

Viewers may have been surprised to see a WTAE winter weather forecast last week that was decidedly lacking in Joe DeNardo predictions for winter weather. Although DeNardo retired in early 2005, he maintained a role with the station as a consultant and returned every year to offer the winter weather forecast. But not this year.

DeNardo said his contract to consult with WTAE has expired, which is why viewers did not see him last week. Instead, the forecast was divvied up among staff meteorologists Stephen Cropper, Demetrius Ivory and Erin Kienzle.

WTAE will pre-empt ABC's prime time for a Steelers game Monday. As usual when this happens, "Dancing With the Stars" will air at 9 a.m. Tuesday. "Castle" will air at 2:05 a.m. Wednesday.

NBC's "Saturday Night Live" returns this weekend after a couple of weeks off with Taylor Swift as host and musical guest. January Jones ("Mad Men") hosts Nov. 14 with Black Eyed Peas, and Joseph Gordon Levitt hosts Nov. 21 with the Dave Matthews Band. ... CBS has ordered five more episodes of freshman sitcom "Accidentally on Purpose."

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This week's TV Q&A responds to questions about "V," "Damages" and a fantastically funny/gross catch in a KDKA promo. Tuned In Journal includes blog posts about "Legend of the Seeker," the "Glee" soundtrack, "Supernatural" and new "Office" webisodes. Read online TV coverage at post-gazette.com/tv.

In this week's Tuned In podcast, online features editor Sharon Eberson and I discuss "V," "FlashForward" and "Sesame Street." Listen or subscribe at post-gazette.com/podcast.

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