Ron White is a slick combination of Dean Martin (the Scotch in hand) and just about any Texas politician that you can think of, liberal or conservative. Known fondly as Tater Salad to blue-collar comedy fans, he defies being a good boy onstage in spite of his basic Southern charm and pearly smiles. You just know, all for-mature-audiences-only disclaimers aside, that his Momma loves him.

Well she should, along with the millions of fans who have bought his CDs and DVDs these past 25 years, during which time the comedian garnered accolades in the form of two Grammy nominations, a Gold Record, two top-rated one-hour specials on Comedy Central and a New York Times best-seller titled I Had the Right to Remain Silent but I Didn’t Have the Ability. White found major success performing with Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy as part of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, a show that sold out across the country in over 90 cities and grossed over $15 million.

White’s onstage persona belies a hardworking professional ethic. In an interview with Guy MacPherson a few years ago, he says, “I write more now than ever. On a couple levels, if I look back at what I’ve done…and thought about doing it again, I wouldn’t do it because I have no idea how I did it. I thought I was a good comedian even before I was a good comedian. It takes three years just to understand the relationship that you have with the audience…I work harder now because I have so much more exposure. And actually the harder you work as a writer, the better you get at it. It’s like anything else. It’s a muscle you have to exercise.” It may be so that, as he says, “You can’t fix stupid,” but it’s evidently possible to use what you’ve got and turn your observations and personal experiences into comedic gold.

The Bardavon will present comic Ron White at the Ulster Performing Arts Center (UPAC) in Kingston on Sunday, March 20 at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the UPAC box office on Broadway, (845) 339-6088; at the Bardavon box office on Market Street in Poughkeepsie, (845) 473-2072; and through TicketMaster, (800) 745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com. Ticket prices are $65 for Golden Circle seating, $55 general admission and $50 for Bardavon members. A meet-and-greet package with Ron White is also available for an additional $99. For further information, please visit www.bardavon.org.