His father built technology for NASA that has made it to the moon. He builds goofy props that make people laugh.\nIt is still a mystery about what happened to Carrot Top, who performs at the IU Auditorium on Sunday at 7 p.m.\n"I think people are always shocked when they hear my dad worked for NASA," he says. "My brother goes to the naval academy. It's like 'Where did they go wrong with me?'"\nBut, despite the fact that he builds objects such as a tin-can phone with a built in three-way feature, and his dad builds lunar devices, Carrot Top still uses creativity and engineering in his work. \n"They never understood why I wanted to be a comic," he says. "But after my dad saw some of my shows, he would help me build some of the props. He loves building things and he enjoyed seeing me on TV and saying, 'I helped build that.'"\nMeet Scott Thompson, (no, not the guy from "Kids in the Hall"), more famously known by his fiery-haired alter-ego Carrot Top, a prop comic who grew up in Cocoa Beach, Fla., in a family of scientists and eventually attended Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, which he calls the "Harvard of Florida."\n"It was the most fun I ever had," he says. "Of course, my parents didn't pay my tuition, so I had to get four jobs to work my way through. But that's where I found out I loved comedy and really got to experiment with prop comedy."\nIn addition to "graduating with a 4.0 blood-alcohol level," Thompson also developed his unique style of comedy, characterized by physical humor.\n"Everybody was doing the same thing in comedy it seemed," Thompson says. "I had a couple of props that I thought were appropriate so I used them and it caught on pretty quickly."\nHe says many of his sight-gag jokes, such as a dinner plate with a toilet attached for bulimics, add a different angle to stand-up comedy.\n"I love doing it because it gives me a chance to think visually with my comedy," Thompson says. "Instead of just telling you a joke, I show it to you."\nFor many years Carrot Top was criticized for his brand of visual comedy. Comedian Albert Brooks once commented on the Tonight Show, "It must be tough for Carrot Top. If American Airlines loses his luggage, he has no act." Many comedians saw his new props and scoffed at his brand of humor, yet Thompson argues that comedy has its roots in visual humor.\n"Vaudeville got it all started with props in comedy," Thompson says. "Then in the 1980s, it was all stand-up. I mean there were people like Gallagher, but I don't know why there aren't more prop comics. Probably because of all the props you have to haul around. People always ask me how I carry that all around, but it's just the same as a band setting up for a show."\nHis act has caught on. He now is best known as the guy with the outrageous mop of curly crimson hair hitting on girls at the beach for 1-800-CALL-ATT commercials, an incident he says doesn't occur day to day.\n"Yeah, (the girls) love me until they say 'Cut,'" he says. "It doesn't really happen to me in real life."\nThompson also had his mug plastered on the hood of Ken Schrader's NASCAR vehicle, which was recently damaged when Ryan Newman's Alltel Dodge slammed into it. \n"It's amazing to have my picture on a NASCAR vehicle," he says. "It's so cool to see it all crashed and crushed. It's also great to tell women that I have my picture on a NASCAR."\nStill, it wasn't the only time Thompson's image has been tarnished. Countless comedians have taken cheap shots at Carrot Top. Norm MacDonald asked if his movie "Chairman of the Board" was spelled "B-O-R-E-D."\n"I guess I'm an easy target," he says. "But most of the people who make jokes about me are friends of mine, so it doesn't bother me. It comes with the territory."\nOne of the most surprising aspects of Thompson is that he is a pretty laid back guy. Despite the fact that he drinks endless cups of coffee, he isn't always hyperactive like some would expect.\n"People always tell me that they expected me to be more energetic," he says. "One reporter told me that I was so serious. But, I guess you get a different perspective of someone on TV and in real life. I once met Steve Martin and he was the most quiet guy I'd ever met."\nPeople may think he is always a wacky, colorful guy from his distinct hairstyle, but despite the fact that people stereotype him and mock him because of his mop-top, he says he'll never cut it.\n"I've gotten pretty used to it," he says. "I could teased about it in school and so it's no problem for me. I'd never cut it off. Not for a million dollars."\nFuture plans for Thompson include a possible variety show and a cartoon developed by Disney.\n"I don't know what I'd do for a cartoon," he says. "I guess I'm already pretty animated. We could call it 'The Adventures of Carrot Top' and I'd fight crime with props, kind of like a cartoon MacGyver."\nThompson says cartoons are right up his alley, now that his 1-800-CALL-ATT commercials have broadened his appeal to a much wider audience. \n"Most comedy is pretty raunchy nowadays," he says. "I try to be down the center. I don't think I personally have to use profanity to be funny, but I have no problem with people like Chris Rock using it. People come up to me and say, 'It was so great that I could bring my kids.' So I think it's cool that I can appeal to all ages."\nDirector of the IU Auditorium Doug Booher says he expects an impressive turnout for Thompson's show. \n"When Clear Channel Entertainment booked the show here at IU, they expected a strong showing from both the students and the community," Booher says. "At Carrot Top's last performance in Bloomington, nearly 1,000 people attended his show. His brand of humor has certainly proven to be appealing to people of all ages, so Clear Channel is expecting a successful event." \nStill, there are many IU students who feel his comedic style just isn't for them. \n"He overplays stupidity and isn't that witty," says Rebecca McCasland, a junior. "His physical humor gets real old."\nNevertheless, Thompson says he is looking forward to coming back to perform for a college town, noting that \ncollege life is something he misses. \n"I didn't have any responsibilities," he says. "Now, I
\nhave so many responsibilities. I have so many people to take care of: my crew, my publicist, my landscaper, my bookie"
