The millennial generation grew up laughing at his improvised antics on the hit TV show “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” (1998-2006). Today, many of those “Whose Line” fans will have the opportunity to see Ryan Stiles live. This weekend, he’s returning to his native Seattle for a show called “Whose Live Anyway?”

This 90-minutes of improvised scenes and songs will all be based on audience suggestions. Stiles and his friends Greg Proops, Chip Esten and Jeff B. Davis will share the stage.

The towering 6-foot 6-inch Stiles, known for his button-down shirts and John Wayne impression, splits his time between Hollywood, where he plays Dr. Herb Melnick on “Two and a Half Men” and Lake Samish in the Bellingham Wash., area where he lives with his wife and three children. As Stiles puts it, “I just do enough TV to keep up with the medical and dental.”

Q: Tell me about your show on Saturday – “Whose Live Anyway?”

Ryan Stiles: Well, I hate to say it, but it’s like “Whose Line Is It Anyway?,” but a lot funnier. Unlike on the TV show, we don’t stop the action. Similar to the show, we use props and hats, but we have a big stage to work on. We have more improvised songs.

Q: Why is improvisation your preferred medium as opposed to mainstream acting or standup?

A: I did standup for many years. I quit high school to do it, and joined up with a comedy club in Seattle, where I did the city’s first comedy competition. I didn’t like writing material. Nowadays, I write the show on a napkin 15 minutes before it starts, meaning I figure out what (improv) games we are going to play. I prefer that to a script. To me, it’s also about being on stage with people you trust. There are no showboats in our comedy group. None of us are trying to be the funniest, and that’s what’s great.

Q: Dropping out of high school to pursue a comedy career is a big deal. How do you view that decision in hindsight?

A: It was the right decision back then. I think standup is on the way down now, but in the late ’80s and early ’90s it was big. I was always the class clown, and with four older brothers, it was be funny or get beat beat up. But, in hindsight, dropping out of high school is definitely hard to tell my teenage daughters about.

Q: I’ve heard you’re not so into the digital age. Is it true that you don’t even have an email account?

A: I don’t trust [computers]. Even scripts, I don’t like to see on a screen, I’d rather have a physical copy. I do have a few fan websites and people pretending to be me on Twitter. But most of the time, all I do is go on the Internet to look something up. And once, I burned a CD. I don’t really want people to know about me. It’s easier for me to be different characters that way.

Q: Spoken like a true Bellinghamster (Bellingham resident) removed from urban living and technology.

A: Yes, I live up in the mountains. It’s definitely a culture clash going from there to Hollywood, like I live two lives.

Q: Does it feel like being a big fish in a small pond?

A: Not at all. I go down to play poker at the local casino and we all know each other. I started the Upfront Theatre there, and drop by to see shows. I really love working with those guys.

Q: What were your favorite and least favorite games to play on “Whose Line”?

A: My least favorites were the ones we played all the time, like “Ho Down” or the ones with props. I liked games that were more about creating scenes, rather than gaggy. Colin (Mochrie) and I would do this secret agent stuff where we could get a really good scene going. There is this really funny scene that probably has like 10,000 hits on YouTube that uses Wayne (Brady), and Richard Simmons, who was a guest on the show. Colin and I used Richard and Wayne as props, and turned them into jet skis.

Q: Some standup and sketch comics I’ve talked to in the past have said they don’t get the urge to laugh during their performances. Are you the same way?

A: Actually, Colin really likes to make me laugh. In fact, I think there is even a video on YouTube, “Colin Making Ryan Laugh.” I think the audience enjoys seeing that I enjoy being on stage.

“Whose Live Anyway?” will be held at 8 p.m. (doors open at 7 p.m.) Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Ave., Seattle. Tickets are $35-$45. For more information, go to stgpresents.org.

Gabrielle Nomura can be reached at 425-453-4270.