Attendees: Sheen’s show not winning

DETROIT – Charlie Sheen took the stage to thunderous applause Saturday night for the first leg of his “Torpedo of Truth” tour. The 70-minute show hadn’t even ended when the first reviews were in, and they were brutal.

The former “Two and a Half Men” star showed that comedic success on the screen doesn’t necessarily translate to the stage, and the capacity crowd at the 5,100-seat Fox Theatre rebelled before he left the stage, chanting “refund!” and walking out in droves.

Linda Fugate, 47, of the Detroit suburb of Lincoln Park, walked outside and up the block yelling, “I want my money back!”

She said she paid $150 for two seats.

Fans who gathered outside the theater before the doors opened Saturday said they were hoping to see the increasingly eccentric actor deliver some of the colorful rants that have made him an Internet star since his ugly falling out with CBS and the producers of “Two and a Half Men.”

They got the ranting. It just wasn’t funny.

“I expected him to at least entertain a little bit. It was just a bunch of ranting,” said Rodney Gagnon, 34, of Windsor, Ontario.

Promising to give fans “the real story,” Sheen kicked off a 20-city tour Saturday; the second show is today in Chicago.