Nealon to pump campus up

The Social Planning and Events Committee is ready to pump . . . (clap) . . . students up for Spring Fling this week. And they hope Kevin Nealon, the castmember of Saturday Night Live who made those words famous, is the man to do just that. Nealon will perform at Irvine Auditorium tonight at 8 p.m. as a "kick off for Fling," according to SPEC Comedy Club Co-director Wai-Sum Lee. Half of the proceeds from the show will go to Students Against Driving Drunk, an organization founded to encourage responsible drinking. Nealon will be the fourth SNL castmember to perform at the University in two weeks, after Adam Sandler, David Spade and Rob Schneider took the same stage for a benefit concert for Comic Relief in Irvine last week. But Nealon said he isn't worried about following his co-stars. "I am the funniest," Nealon said last week. "I am also the tallest -- even combining Spade and Schneider together." Nealon said he is looking forward to the concert because his roots are with stand-up comedy, even though in addition to working on SNL, he is currently writing a screenplay for a romantic comedy. "My real forte is stand-up," he said from his home in New York. "That's really what I enjoy doing the most. I was doing that long before SNL." Famous for co-starring with Dana Carvey in the weekly show's "Hans and Franz" weightlifting skit, Nealon also plays the popular "Mr. Subliminal" on the show. He said he will perform each character and "some of the attitude stuff I do on the show." "I hope people aren't laughed out down there," he added. Nealon is a veteran of the college circuit, having performed at several West Coast and Boston-area colleges. He said he especially enjoys playing to a college audience. "They're a little more intuitive than a night club crowd," he said. "If you're in a college, you can get across more clever material, more current topical material." Lee said last night that ticket sales are going "pretty well," with over 100 sold yesterday alone. Tickets are still available for $2 on Locust Walk until 5 p.m. At 5:30, students will be able to purchase them at the Irvine Auditorium Box office.

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