February 3, 1994

Dentist by day, standup comic by night, Michael S. King has performed before audiences of two, and half that when one of them went to the bathroom. But there are some things he won't do. "I won't perform before none," he insists. "I draw the line somewhere." Mark Cohen, too, knows the ignominy and loneliness of the long-distance comic. He has performed before none. He's been at clubs where there were no customers, so the waitresses, serving nothing to nobody, were pressed into service as the audience. 'The Next Robin Williams' Happily for the two comics, those days are mostly past them now as they join a select company of featured performers who regularly harvest laughs at the handful of live comedy clubs around town, Mr. Cohen as a wacky improviser who has been touted as "the next Robin Williams" and Mr. King as a nerdy loser who goes to a discount psychiatrist to talk about other people's problems.

With their guns and explosives, Muslim militants have destroyed Egypt's tourist industry, scared away investors and halted Egypt's 20-year march toward democracy and economic liberalization. But the more serious threat, many people here say, is the assault by Muslim theocrats on secularist traditions.

In the first union of a television network and a stable of star talent, Capital Cities/ABC announced a joint venture yesterday with one of Hollywood's leading management companies, Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, which handles comedy performers like Dana Carvey, Carol Burnett, Garry Shandling and Mike Myers. The deal calls for the new company to develop and produce programs for a wide range of media including network television, pay-per-view television, videocassettes, cable and radio. Ownership of the programs will be shared by ABC and Brillstein-Grey.

The prospect that the Federal Reserve may nudge up short-term interest rates soon has captured headlines, but the people who usually complain about such a move -- auto dealers and home builders whose customers commonly rely on borrowed money -- are uncommonly relaxed. "If this is a tempered move to keep inflation at or below 3 percent, this is probably a positive event," said James R. Irvine, a home builder in Portland, Ore.. "I'm not saying I'm applauding this, but I don't have the concern."

McCaffrey & McCall, an agency known for elegantly understated advertising campaigns for prestigious brands like Mercedes-Benz and Tiffany, died yesterday at 32, a victim of big client losses and changing industry dynamics. McCaffrey joins a lengthy list of stylish, small-to-midsized shops disappearing in the last year, including Scali, McCabe, Sloves, acquired by Lowe & Partners; Geer, DuBois, liquidated after it was unable to pay its creditors; Great Scott Advertising, closed because of setbacks suffered by its real estate clients, and Campbell & Wagman, closed after losing its biggest client, First Interstate Bancorp.