SNL Funnyman Lends Voice to Local Boys

Updated 12:09 PM PST, Mon, Jan 5, 2009

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Kevin Nealon is known at Lake Tahoe for the large galleries that follow him as he hacks his way around the golf course at an annual celebrity tournament in July. The former Saturday Night Live star now on Showtime's "Weeds" regularly turns in one of the tourney's worst scores, but does it in style, with a cadre of supporters in "Team Nealon" T-shirts. The slogan on the back of the shirts has changed over the years, including: "Altitude with an attitude," "Shooting for the middle of the pack," and "It could happen..." This past summer it was "We're due..." Now, the actor-comedian who once lived at Lake Tahoe is giving something back to the community by lending his voice to a series of humorous public service announcements as part of a fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Club of Lake Tahoe that will raffle off a $650,000 home. "It sounded like a great cause," Nealon said in a recent telephone interview from his current home in Southern California. "I love that area up there. It's close to my heart. And I love playing in the golf tournament," he said. The goal is to raise $1 million for the club housed in an old middle school in South Lake Tahoe, Calif. The raffle tickets cost $150 each, or -- through Jan. 20 -- two for $200. They've sold 1,100 so far but need to sell 7,000 by the March 1 deadline to clear the $1 million, said Phil Weidinger, a publicity man for the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship who approached Nealon about doing the public service announcements. Nealon recorded four different radio ads in November. "Even in these times of nonexistent credit, there are plenty of ways to get into a home, including that trusty oversized key known as the crow bar," Nealon said in one. "Yes, but a simpler more legal method is buying a $150 raffle ticket from the Boys and Girls Club that may win you a $650,000 South Lake Tahoe home." Karen Houser, executive director of the local Boys and Girls Club, said they thought Nealon was a perfect "fit" for the radio ads. "He plays in the American Century Championship golf tournament each year, so we figured why not ask a celebrity who's practically a local to help our cause?" she said. "Not to mention he's a father and shares our concern for helping children." In another ad, Nealon says: "Nothing says I love kids like building them a fort. Starry nights, crickets, girlie magazines, strip poker. The problem is, building that fort is a royal pain. Construction, materials, power tools. And unless you are a high-powered politician with access to illegal immigrants, good luck. There is, however, one simple solution. You could just buy a house -- a $650,000 house at South Lake Tahoe." The 2,100-square-foot home has three bedrooms with views of the mountains and forest. The odds of winning it with a single $150 ticket are approximately 1 in 7,000, Houser said. She said that's a lot better odds than winning the California lottery at about 1 in 135 million. "I think this is a great marketing strategy, especially in this economy," said Nealon, who used to play pingpong and swim at a Boys and Girls Club when he was growing up. He said that while the north shore of Lake Tahoe is dominated by big houses and wealthy estates, the south shore is more varied. "There are a lot of casinos and a lot of families that work in casinos -- families that are kind of struggling to get by so the kids need someplace they can go," said Nealon, who wrote a book about his wife's recent pregnancy and becoming a father in his early 50s. "Now that we have the child, it is really a fun journey," he said. "It is a lot of work but a lot of fun. "It's kind of funny having a kid at this age," he said. "All my friends my age are sending their kids off to rehab."