Tsunami aid in Cross hairs

Paul Saitowitz

Running from the police wearing nothing but his jeans and a trucker

cap to keep his mullet from blowing in his face, Ronnie Dobbs is the

archetypal white-trash wunderkind centered in the seedy underworld of

“Cops,” the schlock TV show focused on the exploits of its moniker.

An atypical underdog -- his crimes are never that bad -- spewing

curse words in a high-pitched, Southern drawl, Dobbs’ predilection

for getting busted doing just about anything makes him impossible to

root against. He’s also hysterical.

Dobbs was one of the many characters brought to life by comedian

David Cross on the now-canceled HBO sketch comedy show “Mr. Show.”

Cross, the balding, bespectacled funny man who is now a regular on

Fox’s “Arrested Development,” will host a comedy benefit at Detroit

Bar in Costa Mesa on Sunday night to aid those affected by the

tsunami in South Asia. Also on the bill will be Patton Oswalt -- a

regular on “The King of Queens” -- Jimmy Pardo, Dave Anthony and

Kristian Vallee.

Detroit Bar soundman and booking agent Chris Fahey first met Cross

when he worked with him on his latest comedy album.

“Chris is a friend of mine, and he always wanted me to play his

bar,” Cross said. Cross’ self-deprecating, twisted sense of humor

mixed with outwardly weird concepts makes him somewhat of a comic

savant. Some of his sketches on “Mr. Show,” including his takes on

‘70s children’s TV show “HR Puff N’ Stuff” and the gay-bashing gay

metal band Wicked Sceptre, bordered on surrealism.

He has been subletting an apartment in Los Angeles while filming

“Arrested Development” and hasn’t worked on too much new stand-up

material due to the grind of the show.

With no plans to tour or put out a new album in the foreseeable

future, the Detroit Bar appearance will be an opportunity to work out

new material in an intimate setting.

“I try to play alternative spaces whenever I can, because it gives

me the chance to get up in front of different audiences,” Cross said.

“At this point I don’t have an hour’s worth of new stuff, so I’ll

host the night and work in some lines here and there.”

All the proceeds from the show will go to Direct Relief

International, an aid group focused on providing essential health

resources around the globe.

At $30 per ticket, Fahey hopes the night will raise between $5,000

and $6,000.

“We had a benefit a little while ago where we raised a

couple-thousand dollars, and this show is already 75% sold out, so

we’re feeling pretty good,” Fahey said.

Tickets are available at https://www.detroit bar.com.