Carrot Top, Las Vegas Sun, July 1, 1996

The salad days Lisa Sciortino Monday, July 1, 1996 | 11:59 a.m. The man on the line apologized repeatedly for the bad connection his temperamental cell phone was causing. "I'm sorry. Can you hear me now?" he politely asked again and again. After each crackly interruption, he happily rephrased his thoughts and continued demurely reflecting upon his skyrocketing comedy career. It's only been a few years since Scott Thompson hit the stand-up scene, yet audiences already have earmarked their favorite gags of his. And he's always "much obliged" to do them upon request. What a nice guy! OK, now put Carrot Top on the phone! Ah, but Thompson is Carrot Top: the zany, redheaded comic famous for the trunks full of homemade gadgets that are the meat and potatoes of his act. There's the Monica Seles tennis racket that sports a rear-view mirror and a bayonet. A rubber duckie attached to an electrical cord: Dr. Kervorkian's bath toy. A dog leash equipped with an airbag? "So if they get hit by a car, they'll be OK." But on a recent afternoon, it was less the crazy Carrot Top and more the mellow Thompson calling from the Los Angeles set of his first movie, "Chairman of the Board." He had just enough time between takes to grant a quick interview to promote his week-long gig at the MGM Grand that begins on Thursday. Forgive him if he sounds a little tired and not completely focused. Thompson has been on the set since 6 a.m. He's also trying to choose his words carefully. "I'm surrounded by 300 extras and they're all staring at me," he says. For the most part, the transition from comedy clubs to the big screen "is going so wonderfully." "It's 10 times better than I thought it would be, and I'm doing 10 times better than I thought I would." Still, "Doing movie stuff is different than doing the comedy," he explains. "You do the line that they give you and ... sometimes you get a reaction from the crew. Or the joke is so far gone that the spontaneity is gone." On stage, however, "You're in front of 2,000 people and you get an instant response." It helps, though, that the character he's playing, Edison, "is basically Scott. I am who I am in real life." No wonder, since Thompson wrote a big chunk of the script. Edison is a young inventor who takes over at a failing corporation and becomes "a pompous jerk wrapped up in the environment of business." The role is not without its challenges. "It's so hard to be cocky and mean, so I'm having a hard time with that." Admittedly, his stand-up act has taken a back seat to the movie role and other projects in recent months. He's stayed busy starring in "Carrot Top's A.M. Mayhem," the No. 1-rated daily show on the Cartoon Network. The animated/live-action show has managed to broaden his fan base to include even the tiniest tots. He's also launched his own Web site (http://www.carrottop.com), featuring current Carrot Top tour and merchandise information as well as tongue-in-cheek TV and film reviews from the goofy guy himself. Thompson sees cyberspace as a venue to "just keep my fans informed." And finally, look for a Carrot Top CD-ROM game and an illustrated catalog of his props, "Junk in the Trunk ... Some Assembley Required" (Simon & Schuster), to hit stores this fall. Credit the mass marketing of Carrot Top to the 29-year-old Thompson, who holds a marketing degree from Florida Atlantic University. "It's been all my idea. I kind of steer the ship that way," he says. So it's no surprise that Thompson hasn't had much time recently to devise many new props. "It's been so hard to think of anything but my lines," he says. Looking back on his kooky creations, Thompson sees how they've evolved right along with his act. But the one staple he just can't seem to shake is his Wendy's schtick. He looks a lot like the freckle-faced redhead of fast-food fame, doesn't he? One of his early bits was about going to the restaurant's drive-through, causing employees to do double takes. Audiences still clamor for it. "With a joke, they just want to hear you say it," he says. "Sometimes you (agree to) do it and go 'If I do this, you bette