A funny thing, this obsession of his

Every Christmas, Jeff DePaoli would beg his parents for a fog machine so he could become a famous magician, but his wish was never granted. So, at the age of 12, he secured a paper route, saved $200, and bought one.

``That made me happy," the Woburn-born entertainer said.

Now 24, the Emerson College graduate no longer dreams of becoming a magician, but he still aspires to stardom.

This fall, he will head to Hollywood to try to launch a career in show business. But before leaving Massachusetts, he will perform ``My Obsession with TV," a musical cabaret show he wrote and produced, at the Improv Asylum in Boston.

On the show's web site, DePaoli, who has been likened by friends to a cross between Liza Minnelli and Johnny Carson, encourages audience members to ``stop worrying about those summer re runs and join a sackful of couch potatoes."

Drawing from Broadway musicals, television, and film, DePaoli banters about his favorite TV shows and broadcasts video sketches parodying such series as VH1's ``I Love the 80's," which, in his words, is ``extremely low budget to produce, yet annoyingly addicting to watch." With a four-piece band, he performs original songs and standards such as Judy Garland's ``You Made Me Love You."

In one of his original songs, ``Life Lessons," he rattles off lessons he has learned from watching sitcoms, such as: ``If you drive a car into a house, don't worry about it. Within one week, it will be fixed." Or, ``If you ever need a piano, one will magically appear. And someone will be there who can play it by ear."

``It's truly a variety show," said Stephen Christy , a 21-year-old student at Emerson who helped DePaoli edit ``My Obsession with TV." Mixing comedy with video and live music, ``it's a well-thought-out and well-produced, funny show."

Ellie Hanlon, 57, who worked with DePaoli as an usher at the Colonial Theatre in Boston, said she was ``blown away" when the show premiered at the Improv Asylum in February.

``It was absolutely dynamite. I can see him going places. He can do it all," she said, adding, ``You don't have to be a couch potato to enjoy it."

``He refers to a lot of shows that are staples of the American psyche," said Stephen Faria , a writer and songwriter who cast DePaoli in ``Things That Matter," a musical he wrote and co directed this year in Newburyport.

Geoff Poister, assistant professor of film and television at Boston University , said a show such as DePaoli's ``has a certain amount of universal appeal because television really is a large part of almost all Americans' lives."

People need to feel connected to others around them, and they look to television to provide that sense of connection, Poister said. Because American culture doesn't thrive on a common religion or racial history, it's hard to define American culture, but television, he said, is ``one of the things that has given America an identity."

DePaoli acknowledged that when he's not preparing for his show, he is obsessed with television. He waxes affectionately about Rosie O'Donnell, his favorite talk-show host; raves about ``Arrested Development," which he describes as ``a brilliant comedy"; and insists that being able to rent TV shows on DVD ``is one of the greatest inventions known to man."

His tube-watching regimen consists of about two hours a day, and he has a lineup of about eight shows he watches religiously each week, including ABC's ``Lost" and CBS's ``Survivor."

``I know it's pathetic," he said, throwing back his shaved head and laughing. But, in his view, ``TV right now is one of the best art forms out there."

Plus, he said, ``I don't think obsession is a bad thing. You should be really excited by something."

As an entertainer, DePaoli said, ``there's nothing more rewarding than being able to take people away from their worries."

A fan of children's movies , the tall, baby-faced performer acknowledged that it's important to be responsible and adult like; but he said it's also imperative to remain young at heart.

``I'm a big kid," he said. ``I try not to be a grown-up."

In addition to creating and producing his own talk show in college called ``The Jeff DePaoli Show," he has performed in local theater productions and commercials for such advertisers as the New Hampshire Lottery.

For kicks, and a small fee, which DePaoli was too embarrassed to specify, he played the role of a psychotic patient in October during the Nashoba Valley ski area's annual Witch's Woods event, which featured haunted hayrides and other Halloween attractions.

DePaoli intends to pack up his 12-year-old fog machine and his 20-inch Panasonic television in September and move to Los Angeles, where he hopes to find some sort of job at a studio .

Ultimately, he said, he would love to host his own live talk show, ideally for Disney-MGM Studios.

In the meantime, DePaoli is, in his words, all about fun. ``For God's sake, I'm going into entertainment. You have to have fun."

``My Obsession with TV" will be performed July 11, 18, and 25 at the Improv Asylum in Boston. For information visit www.myobsessionwithtv.com or call 617-263-6887 .