Caroline Rhea, who embarked on a comedy career 35 years ago, will mark the occasion with a gig Saturday at Mount Airy Casino Resort, Woodland Road, Mount Pocono.

The actress/comedian, known for her role as Hilda Spellman on late-1990s/early-2000s sitcom “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” likens her stand-up show to a dinner party.

“I have four hours of recipes I am going to pick from. The audience is like the seasoning.”

Comedians, Rhea said, “have to have this insane, urgent desire to connect with other human beings to really be good.” She loves improv, as “it’s an un-AI-able skill.”

Rhea, who never intends to say anything harmful in her act, also does not like “people being shut down for one thought.” Comics, she said, should tell the truth and tell distinctive jokes.

Now 60, Rhea lives in Los Angeles with daughter Ava, who turns 16 in October.

“I’m not really the right age for that,” she said. “Most of my friends’ kids are in their 20s.”

Upon Ava‘s birth, Rhea “pressed the reset button. As wonderful as my life had been, that’s when it kicked into Technicolor. I thought I was never gonna do stand-up again.”

However, Rhea’s parenting experience “had to be shared” with audiences. Thus, the comedian — who jokes that while some celebrities intimidate fans, “I am the kind of celebrity where fans say to me, ‘I’ve gotta go’ ” — returned to her first love.

Early beginnings

Born in Westmount, Quebec, Canada, Rhea had early acting hopes. However, from age 8 on, “I wanted to be Johnny Carson, Bea Arthur and Carol Burnett.” As for other idols, Rhea and fellow comics “wanted David Letterman to be our father, Joan Rivers to be our mother.”

Rhea, who from 2002 to 2003 hosted the daytime talk show left vacant by Rosie O’Donnell, was in awe watching Rivers perform at New York City’s Duplex club in 1989.

Years later, Rivers trashed one of Rhea’s fashion choices, a barb that Rhea addressed when Rivers appeared on her talk show. “She goes, ‘Did you see what you were wearing?’ ”

Rhea, who moved to New York City in the late 1980s, gave her first public performance at The Comic Strip. The gig came upon the end of her stand-up class at The New School.

“I was wearing green overalls with big black polka dots. It went very well. It seems like yesterday and 2 million lifetimes ago, like when I watch ‘Sabrina.’ I think, ‘She seems fun.’ ”

The fun witch

Rhea, who said the late Rodney Dangerfield told her “You’ve got it, kid,” landed firmly on the pop-culture map with “Sabrina the Teenage Witch.” The series ran from 1996 to 2003.

“Something about it felt predestined,” said Rhea, who recently filmed a Hallmark movie with “Sabrina” co-star/on-screen sister Beth Broderick. “It’s such a part of my life. I love it.”

The magical show, part of ABC’s “Thank Goodness It’s Funny”/“TGIF” block before moving to the now-defunct WB network for its last few seasons, opened many doors for Rhea.

“I visit children’s hospitals, all the way to meeting Taylor Swift because she loved the show when she was a kid. It’s still on everywhere. I’ve been called a witch in every language.”

In 2020, Rhea made a surprise appearance as a parallel-universe version of Hilda on the final episodes of Netflix supernatural series “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.”

During her time on “Sabrina the Teenage Witch,” Rhea was a regular on the late-1990s “Hollywood Squares” revival, on which the late Robin Williams appeared a few times. “I was sitting in the square thinking, ‘I can’t believe I’m on top of Robin Williams.’”

A fulfilled career

Among other career highlights, Rhea voices Linda Flynn-Fletcher and her mom Betty Jo in Disney’s animated “Phineas and Ferb.” The series, debuting in 2007 and spawning two films, returns with new episodes in 2025, following a 10-year break.

“I’ve been part of shows that make children happy,” Rhea said, referring to “Phineas and Ferb” as “Disney’s ‘SpongeBob.’ It can go on forever. I have good comedy karma.”

Said karma also includes 2008’s “Sordid Lives: The Series” and 2017 film “A Very Sordid Wedding.” Del Shores’ Texas-set Logo series was a prequel to his 2000 “Sordid Lives” film.

Rhea — who played Noleta Nethercott, a role Delta Burke originated in the movie — called the series “the most well-written and -directed show I’ve done.”

Recent TV credits include sitcoms such as Disney‘s “Sydney to the Max” and NBC‘s “Lopez vs. Lopez.”

Rhea also hosted “Caroline & Friends” on Game Show Network, which, starting Monday, will air ABC’s “Match Game” revival, on which she was a semi-regular.

Rhea’s seventh comedy special “I Identify as a Witch,” filmed at Australia’s Sydney Opera House, should debut by year’s end. Earlier this year, she toured with on-screen niece Melissa Joan Hart, who played the titular role in “Sabrina the Teenage Witch.”

Rhea, creating a game show and working to bring another TV series to fruition, also enjoys producing and teaching stand-up. As for performing stand-up, the love affair will continue.

“My favorite thing keeps happening in LA: 20-year-olds come up to me, say ‘I love you, you’re so funny.’ They don’t know ‘Sabrina,’ ‘Phineas.’ They saw me at The Comedy Store.”