Raving success

Williams' bizarre, hilarious rants hit mark on Denver dial

Mark Brown, Rocky Mountain News

Published June 21, 2007 at midnight

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Few guests can render Conan O'Brien speechless, but Harland Williams does it regularly.

"Conan, your words could cut me into 1,000 different pieces and each piece would say 'I love you,' " Williams told O'Brien in his March appearance.

A stunned O'Brien demanded: "Where did you come from? Who are you?"

After Williams noted that "rhinoceroses are just big fat white-trash unicorns," O'Brien concluded the segment with a weary "I never know what you're going to say or what you're going to do. But it's always entertaining."

Denver has gotten an exclusive taste of that bizarre humor for the past year from the Dumb & Dumber/There's Something About Mary actor and comedian. An appearance on 103.5-FM The Fox's morning show with Lewis and Floorwax led the station to ask Williams to be a DJ.

A year later the show is burgeoning, with Williams holding down the 3 to 7 p.m. weekday slot, recording his bits from his California home with long-distance help from Fox creative services director Roger King.

The Denver audience and streaming listeners online get hours of his bizarre, hilarious rants every week, such as Bob Barker's last show being commemorated by The Price Is Right wheel barreling into the audience and killing scores. He shares his secrets with Rocky music critic Mark Brown.

How did the radio show happen?

"I was doing an interview with those guys and I guess they thought I sounded amusing - or sexy, as I like to think. They approached me and said, 'We've been looking for an afternoon guy for like two years.' I kind of did it based on how I'd like to hear a funny, entertaining and original show."

Why take on so much work in addition to your comedy, TV and movie work?

"The opportunity to be in radio. I've always had a very active imagination. I paint, I write, I draw, I act, I do stand-up. My imagination never shuts off. One of the beautiful things about radio is I can create this imagery and take people to these places just using my voice. I love it. I create scenarios like strapping leaf blowers onto my back and lifting off into the ceiling fan. I love creating worlds and imagery and comedy. Radio's like the last real frontier where I can do that."

And Roger King enhances it with sound effects?

"Roger's my second half. We've got a real good dance going. I do my bits and I can hear the sounds and the music in my head. I throw them over to Roger and he magically fills it in exactly the way I hear it. He kicks (rhymes with sass)."

Are you able to use the rest of your career in the show?

"What's good with me is I've been working the stand-up circuit for over 20 years. I have relationships and friendships with so many of today's top comics. Two nights ago I was at the Improv working on a set. I bumped into my friend Dane Cook, who's the hottest (comedian), and I said, 'You wanna come do the show next week?' I'm able to tap into these really funny people."

Your fan base is growing and your ratings are going up.

"You get the odd person who calls in and just hates it. I get a big kick out of that. I figure if someone hates it or loves it you're getting a reaction out of them. Ninety percent of the calls we get people say, 'We love it, it makes my day, I get to drive home at the end of a hard day and have a good laugh.' "

Producing 20 hours of radio a week is a lot of work.

"It's almost like coffee for me. I've never drunk coffee. I've got to get my mind going every day to work on movies or write stand-up or do my kids books or whatever. This is the first thing I do in the morning. I go in the studio and start doing these characters and improvising these characters, doing comedy, getting my energy up. This kick-starts my day. I was worried it could be a burden, but the reality is I love it. Every day it challenges my mind . . . It's like someone throwing a bowl of boiling clam chowder in my face and I find it tasty."

What was it like on Tom Green's show when Tommy Chong pulled out a pipe and lit up on live TV?

"I was waiting for the door to get kicked open and get dragged away in handcuffs."

Hear and there

You can listen to Harland Williams from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays on 103.5-FM The Fox. He's also appeared in several movies. A selected filmography:

• Dumb & Dumber (1994)

• Rocket Man (1997)

• There's Something About Mary (1998)

• Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)

• Employee of the Month (2006)

Brownm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2674

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