ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, February 10, 1995                   TAG: 9502140092
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

THE TIPOFF

MERRIMENT MILESTONE: Funnyman Brett Leake, whose antics have tickled audiences on the "Tonight Show," "A&E's Evening at the Improv," "VH-1's Standup Spotlight" and many more shows, helps the Roanoke Comedy Club celebrate its 10th anniversary. Dennis Allard is the mirthful emcee; Jeff Caldwell - one of Leake's favorite comics - is the featured act. Catch the show tonight through Saturday, 8:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. (Fridays at 8:30 are nonsmoking). $6. Roanoke Comedy Club, 213 Williamson Road, downtown Roanoke. Call for reservations, 982-5693.

ON THE MONEY: Musician Johnny Paycheck's song "Take This Job and Shove It" seemed to strike a universal chord. Numerous hits later, Paycheck's performance is still on target. Catch him tonight at 8 at Valley Country, 3348 Salem Turnpike N.W., Roanoke. Cover is $8. 344-6510.

BENEFIT FOR THE BATTERED: Chelsea Monday, Tempered Steele, Crank, Plastic Martyr and Societal Dropout are among the groups performing to aid the almost 15,000 abused and neglected children in Virginia. Eighty percent of ticket sales will be donated to the Child Abuse Prevention Council. Tonight, 8:30 p.m. $6, $4 under 21. The Iroquois Club, 324 Salem Ave., Roanoke. 982-8979.

FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE: The internationally acclaimed 17-musician Chamber Orchestra Kremlin, on their first North American tour, will present pieces by Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Rossini on Sunday at 8 p.m. in Radford University's Preston Hall. Admission is $8, and $4 children. 831-5265 or 831-5420.

HISTORIC HOUSE: Cabell House, the oldest exposed log house in Staunton, was constructed on land purchased by freedman Edmund Cabell in 1866. The two-room house and stories handed down through generations of black families and retold by Olive Sheffey will be the focus of "Voices from the Past: Storytelling and House tour" on Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Museum of American Frontier Culture in Staunton.

FANTASTIC FIDDLER, guitarist and mandolinist Mark O'Connor has received some of the music industry's highest honors, including a Grammy and the Country Music Association's Musician of the Year three years in a row. Catch the versatile virtuoso Monday, 7:30 p.m., Martinsville High School. Tickets are $9, $4 students and senior citizens. 632-3221.

HARRISON HAPPENINGS: The Harrison Museum of African American Culture will on Tuesday be the site of a talk by its executive director Melody Stovall at 3:30 p.m. On Wednesday, at 5:30 p.m., the museum will hold an opening reception for the exhibit "African-American Creative Genius: A Sample of Inventions with Impact,'' which will run through March 31. The opening will include a lecture by Dr. Armstead Robinson, "Comparing and Contrasting the Lives of Frederick Douglass and Booker T. Washington," sponsored by the Booker T. Washington National Monument. Both events are free. The museum is at 523 Harrison Ave. N.E., Roanoke. 342-5770.

PAST PERFORMANCE: Old photos and written and oral histories are the threads that weave together Norton's centennial play, "110 TODAY." The work was written and directed by former Norton resident and Lime Kiln Arts co-founder Don Baker; its only performer is actress Elizabeth McCommon. Performances will be Wednesday-Thursday and Saturday, 7 p.m., John I. Burton High School Auditorium, Norton. $8, $5 advance. 328-4493.

LONELY NOT!: Some say it's lonely at the top, but not when you're a couple at the top of the publishing world. David and Lisa Long, publisher of "Sports Illustrated" and president of "Time" magazines, respectively, will tell "The David and Lisa Long Story" on Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m., at the Radisson Patrick Henry Hotel. Luncheon tickets are $12.50. Reservations required by Monday. Call 983-0700. 


 by CNB