Blue Collar Comedy Tour's Engvall headed to Fair's grandstand

(Photo Submitted) "Here's Your Sign." The phrase has become part of the American language, and the comedian who invented it, Bill Engvall will serve as the opening night entertainment at the Clay County Fair Grandstand, Saturday, Sept. 12.

Comedic sensation, Bill Engvall, will appear in front of the Grandstands the first Saturday of the Clay County Fair, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 12.

Engvall, a Texas native, didn't originally aspire to be a comedy star. In fact, he worked as a disc jockey with plans of becoming a teacher. His plans soon changed when he decided to try his hand at stand-up comedy in a Dallas nightclub. After realizing that making people laugh was his forte, he made the move to Los Angeles in 1990 to pursue television opportunities.

He first hit the entertainment scene making several appearances on The Tonight Show and the Late Show with David Letterman. He went on to appear on different television specials including "A Pair of Jokers," where he performed with famed comedian Rosie O'Donnell. In 1992, Engvall was awarded Best Male Stand-Up Comedian at the American Comedy Awards. Soon after, he landed roles on the television sitcoms Delta and The Jeff Foxworthy Show.

In 1996, Engvall signed on with Warner Bros. and released a debut album entitled, "Here's Your Sign." The country-humored comedian's album gained him respect when it reached the number one position on the Billboard Comedy chart and remained there for 15 weeks straight. The album eventually reached platinum status after becoming certified by the Recording Industry Association of America.

The "Here's Your Sign" phrase lead Engvall to a musical collaboration with country singer Travis Tritt. The two joined together to release a single, "Here's Your Sign," which reached number one on Billboard's Country Singles Sales chart and stayed there for ten weeks. The single also received Gold certification, not a common occurrence in the comedy market.

Engvall's second CD, "Dorkfish," was released in 1998 and also achieved Gold certification. It was ranked number one on Billboard's Comedy chart, a status that would be reached by every one of Engvall's albums released to date.

The year 2000, marked the beginning of the ever-popular "Blue Collar Comedy Tour" where Engvall appeared with Jeff Foxworthy, Ron White and Larry the Cable Guy. After three years, the tour culminated with the release of Blue Collar Comedy Tour the Movie which premiered on Comedy Central. At that time, the movie broke the record of most watched in the channel's history. There have been more than four million DVD/VHS units sold of the movies since its release. A sequel, Blue Collar Comedy Tour Rides Again, was released in 2005 and sold more than three million DVDs. The WB Network also signed on Engvall as one of the stars of their sketch comedy, Blue Collar TV.

In addition to the Blue Collar movies, Engvall has also done two solo specials which aired on Comedy Central, 15º Off Cool and Here's Your Sign, Live. The DVD of the Here's Your Sign, Live show has been certified multi-platinum.

Most recently, Engvall has been the star of his own sitcom on TBS entitled, The Bill Engvall Show. Additionally, he is host to one of the top-rated shows on CMT, Country Fried Home Videos.

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Comedic sensation, Bill Engvall, will appear in front of the Grandstands the first Saturday of the Clay County Fair, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 12. Further information on tickets sales will be announced soon. The 2009 Clay County Fair will be held Sept. 12-20. For more information visit www.claycountyfair.com or call the office at 262-4740.