Beginning Thursday, some parts of the country will get to see comedian Lewis Black in movie theaters. On Friday, an audience at Davenport's Adler Theatre will see him in person.

Best known for his "Back in Black" tirades on cable television's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," the comic's "Stark Raving Black" will debut in theaters before going to cable - likely on Comedy Central, where he's been a regular presence since 1996. "Back in Black," accompanied by the AC/DC song of the same name as its theme, still appears, albeit irregularly, on "The Daily Show."

"As much as Comedy Central has been good to me, they're still gonna bleep my act," Black said in a telephone interview from Washington state, where he was on tour. "And when it was on the first time, I wanted it to be seen the way it should be seen. Then they can bleep it."

Q: What are you talking about onstage these days?

A: "I'm in the midst of evolving a new act, and it could be painful for the people of Davenport because I'm still working on it. I have moved on. ... One of the main things is that we've moved from stupidity to ignorance as a people. We used to just be stupid; now we're ignorant. Stupid is charming, but ignorance is inexcusable.

(In much of the film, Black talks about the economy and health care. "The economy was exhausting and health care is even worse. Nobody understands it, and I've done nothing but read about it. Trying to find the information is exhausting.")

Q: Your most recent "Back in Black" was about rudeness and interruptions - particularly Serena Williams, Kanye West and U.S. Sen. Joe Wilson, R-S.C. Wasn't that a tailor-made topic for you?

A: "Serena's anger apparently has always been there, we're just not privy to it. Kanye we always knew was crazy. And somebody in Congress, if they don't snap one way they snap another way. ... If you don't find a congressman doing something stupid in some fashion, there's always some way they come to the fore.

"I think there's some level of anger in the country because, as wonderful of a speaker as the new president is, I think this is the fault of the leadership. If you're not going to tone down the rhetoric of a Rush Limbaugh (or) a Glenn Beck and you're a Republican or a Democrat, (you won't get) civil discourse. I'm a comic. I can go in, people pay to see me yell and scream. People are paying to see an act about this, about what goes on. These people are a part of what goes on. Somebody has to take them to task for it, and they're not.

"Jon Stewart, my pal, at times has to chastise people when others won't do the gig. And he's a comedian."

Q: You were on "The Daily Show" back when it began with Craig Kilborn. Now, with Stewart, there's been seven straight Emmy Awards. Was there an idea how big that show would become?

A: "I had an inkling it would do well, but not to this extent. This would have required me to be a visionary and I've really never been good at that."

Q: You come from a theater background, including degrees from North Carolina and Yale, and have written 40 plays. Is that a benefit in doing stand-up?

A: "The playwriting, hopefully, informs the throughline. When I do an act, I try to evolve it to the point where there seems to be the appearance of a throughline. Hopefully I'm trying to tell a story. The playwriting had a big effect on that. My theater friends tell me that, but maybe that's just to prop up my sagging ego.

Q: At age 61, you're still considered a relatively new act. Could you have done what you're doing now at age 31?

A: "I wish I was 31 and had this. It makes a difference. One of the reasons I started to break when I broke was that I was coming into my early 40s, and by the time I was 50 it added validity to this that I'm saying. Over time I saw things that I could comment on.

Q: You've appeared in several movies, written several books (a third, about Christmas, will be out in late 2010) and appeared recently as an entomology professor on the TV sitcom "The Big Bang Theory." Is there anything you still want to do?

A: "As hard as it is, and I was reminded doing 'Big Bang Theory' ... I would still like to do a sitcom. I've been through six, seven versions and three or four pilots. But I'm not going to go to my grave going, 'Oh, if only I had a sitcom!'

"If it happens it happens. If it doesn't - I've been very lucky."

Q: Your onstage and on-camera persona is always angry. What makes you happy?

A: "Golf, and that's the saddest thing I can say. Probably having dinner with friends and being able to sit at home and stare into space."