Brian Regan is one of the biggest touring comics in America. Amazingly, he's done it without the benefit of a starring role in a film or TV show. And he does it while working clean.

And like a lot of comics, he got his start in Florida.

"I always like going back to Florida," Regan said during a recent phone interview. "The first thing that's always interesting is when you get off the plane and you get that onslaught of humidity. I grew up in Miami and played football in high school, and every time I go back, especially in August, I think, 'How did I possibly survive my teen years playing football in this heat?'"

Regan performs at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts, 1010 N W.C. MacInnes Place, Tampa. Tickets start at $39.50. Click here for details.

For more with Regan, click here for Susan Thurston's interview.

Photo: Evans Ward