Ian Talks Comedy

Ivan Decker and I discuss his Netflix special; his current You tube special Popcorn; your wife asking you to get something that's closer to her; his son; grandparents; the frenulum; being behind on comedy in Canada; Paul F. Tompkins; debuting as a 16 year old doing Mitch Hedberg; being booed off stage; me seeing Carlin booed off stage; the internet allowing you to know who a comedian is before you see them; my standup career; calling comedy clubs; hunting for jokes; laughing during situations that aren't funny because you can turn them funny later; do ex-comedians think that way; doing Conan; late night TV; how phones ruin comedy; not doing jokes because they might hurt someone's feelings, are in bad taste or might have been done; being on tour means not getting to see his comedy friends; people afraid of going to the bathroom during shows; Vancouver; sports; income disparity between hockey and soccer; American vs. Canadian measurements; Canadian accent is waning; Vancouver sounds like California; Boston Pizza; his love of Curb Your Enthusiasm and the Simpsons; looking like Colin Jost

Robert Wolterstorff joined me to discuss being mentored by Norman Lear; a quick overview of his career; going to SFSU; being mentored by Norman Lear; selling a Good Times; going to work on the Jeffersons; turning down a chance to write / produce the Incredible Hulk; his pilot Pen 'n' Ink aided by Louis Schwartzberg; doing a college interview for Benjamin Spock for President that got picked up by PBS; Jeffersons episodes; befriending Roxie Roker and her husband Sy Kravitz; Jeffersons writer's were older; moving to Universal to write pilots; working for Nicholls, Ross, West; writing for Sheriff Lobo; his pilot for Pen 'n' Ink leads to a lifelong friendship with Fred & Mary Willard; his pilot, the Outlaw; Street Hawk was originally supposed to precede Monday Night Football; finished second to Dallas but not good enough; cost $1 million an episode; getting Tangerine Dream to do the music; hiring Joe Regalbuto and Rex Smith; "predicting the future"; great writing staff; his sitcom pilot Sisters with Sally Kellerman; Quantum Leap; his episode "Jimmy" is nominated for an Emmy; writes Little Rascals movie for Penelope Spheeris; hired to make snow version of Baywatch called Extreme; creates Slappy & the Stinkers based on original Little Rascals script; Extreme; his pilot for Stinger, a superhero parody; Blade Squad; Twice in a Lifetime; his fun in writing Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction; how he got the audience to believe anything; working for military intelligence creating battle drills, IED simulations, and writing military role playing table tops; and working for the Spy Museum

Debra Frank joined me to discuss Sky King; wanting to be Mary Tyler Moore and he Girl from Uncle; being an extra in WUSA and meeting Paul Newman; dreaming of being in Perry Mason; being a tour guide at Universal; doin a Columbo impression on The Peoples Choice Awards; doing theatre and having a lot of downtime; writing a spec Rhoda script and a female Woody Allen film; being a stand in for Kathleen Quinlan and playing a leper in I Never Promised You a Rose Garden; being Louise Lasser's dialogue coach on Mary Hartman; being a typist for a write on the New Laugh In and befriending Robin Williams and Ivana Chubbuck; joining the Improv group Off the Wall; entering a TV writers contest; winning and being paired with Scott Rubenstein; creating and not getting credit for Family Ties; writing sitcoms; switching genres and partners; Carl Sautter; writing a Trapper John; The Motion Picture Home; pitching with Carl a black and white episode to "Crazy Like a Fox"; writing "The Dream Sequence Always Rings Twice"; Orson Welles; not creating the Dennis Dugan character; not knowing who a credited co-writer is; being nominated for an Emmy, but losing to St. Elsewhere; the controversial "North by North DiPesto"; Imogene Coca; Eva Marie Saint; meeting a new writing partner; getting a two picture deal, writing pilots and a Wonder Years; having two children; taking a three year break; getting a new partner, Steve Hayes and writing 13 made-for-TV movies; Muppets Wizard of Oz; writing songs for the Muppets and getting an Emmy; re-writing My Stepmother is an Alien with Richard Benjamin;

Jim Pankovits discussed with me his father teaching him the game; being a catcher made him know all parts of the game; Doug Rader; watching the Braves; playing and losing the Little League and College World Series; Ed Lynch; getting drafted and moving to second base; minor league travel horror story; getting called up; his first major league hit; the pitchers he went deep off of; facing Dwight Gooden, Orel Hershiser, Steve Carlton; catching Nolan Ryan; facing Fernando Valenzuela; playing for Hal Lanier and Yogi Berra and with Davey Lopes; the Astros clinching the 1986 NL West with a Mike Scott no-hitter; feeling good about his teams chances against the Mets; Lenny Dykstra PH AB didn't surprise him; Kerfeld regrets taunting Carter; Charlie Kerfeld gets caught eating ribs at a Mets BBQ during a game; why the 1980's were the last Golden Age of Baseball; teammates Ray Knight and Phil Garner; Hatchers HR in the 13th; his at bat; coming back in the 16th; post-game exhaustion; Andy Ashby; irregular playing time for rest of career; Minor League manager and coach known for getting tossed and winning; playing with the Red Sox in 1990 and taping their clubhouse celebration for Roger Clemens and Joe Morgan; playing in 1989 for the Dodgers in the minor leagues after spring training with the Pirates; watching a young Barry Bonds

Doug Sivco discussed early kids TV; watching SNL in high school; going to Rutgers and being on the radio; trying out to be an NBC page; NBC Nightly News; Space Shuttle Columbia; Election 1980; literally bumping into to Ted Kennedy; Letterman morning show; getting the job at SNL; taking messages for the cast; remembering hosts Elliot Gould, Chevy Chase, and Rodney Dangerfield; Burt Reynolds saves his butt; getting his brother in almost every week; carrying out Mick Jagger; escorting out Deborah Harry; Gabe Kaplan being a jerk; last episode and after party; the new cast; hanging out with Eddie Murphy; Joe Piscopo, Charles Rocket, and Charlene Tilton; finding Cheap Trick's guitar in the green room; working at WNBC; leaving to do news in Alexandria, La.; going to Wilmington, NC and then Harrisburg, PA; the grind of local news; covering Penn State & Philly sports; bloopers; R. Budd Dwyer; went to work for Dean Witter; his current job; living in Cape Cod; community theater; meeting Gilbert Gottfried and being smitten by Linda Ronstadt and Jamie Lee Curtis

Aubrey Solomon and I discussed being born in Canada; not watching TV since the 1960's; going to USC; his movie, The Klutz; working on the tv show The Art of Film; working on the TV show That's Hollywood and using his thesis on 20th Century Fox; he and his partner Steve Greenberg are asked to write a spec script about MLK & JFK; it gets to Jack Klugman; they pitch him an episode he likes; they get hired and moved up to story editors in the same season because they worked fast; Klugman ran the show; Dr. Asten and Sgt. Brill; Marc Taylor; Jack Klugman's brother would find a medical story in the news and get story credit; the writers would watch 60 Minutes for ideas; creating Quincy; his first name; John Astin wanted Dr. Asten's name spelled differently; writing the pilot tv film for Buck Rogers; Lazarus Syndrome; the "Ounce of Prevention" episode of Quincy; Beyond Westworld; Lou Shaw; Frank Lupo; The Fall Guy; Half Nelson; having to write a Quincy without Jack Klugman and a Rockford Files without James Garner; watching Jack Klugman fire a director; Blacke's Magic; Crazy Like a Fox; 40th Anniversary of Howdy Doody; his second book about Fox Studios; working on the Canadian series Danger Bay; 100 Years of the Hollywood Western; his mentor; Jack Haley, Jr.; his film, The Progeny; spending 20 years as a film editor; and writing the story for the fifth Ice Age movie.

Jay Johnson talks to me about being introduced to puppetry by Ricky Layne and Velvel; starting with his cousins Jerry Mahoney doll at 11; having dyslexia; reading scripts; doing 918 shows the summer after high school at Six Flags in Georgia; hiss first puppet, Squeaky; working Rotary and Kiwanis Clubs in Texas; going to college for marketing; finding Edgar Bergen's trunk; Bob is in the Smithsonian; being friends for 40 plus years with Harry Anderson; surviving Reno with Harry; his 7 foot partner, Ruben Hickory (Rube Hick); making his TV debut on Merv Griffin; working clean; Otto and George and Wayland Flowers and Madame; getting Soap; favorite memories; the mind reading sequence; coming up with ideas for Chuck and Bob; director Jay Sandrich; being married 51 years; being part of an HBO special The Vent Event in 1979; hosting Celebrity Charades; a memorable Pyramid mishap; being mistaken for Dick Clark; an idea for Chain Reaction where Bob would be a contestant that was nixed by NBC's S & P; Mrs. Columbo; Something is Out There; a pilot Sutters Bay; guesting on The Love Boat; being a guest on The Tonight Show; talking to Johnny; his talk/game show So You Think You've Got Troubles; being on the last Jerry Lewis telethon and the first without him; working the phones on the telethon; his Tony Award winning one man show The One and Only; his producers Paul Kreppel and Murphy Cross; going on David Letterman to promote; being cut from a ventriloquist episode of Night Court; the "New Night Court"

Larry Mollin joined me to talk black and white TV; going to Georgetown to study foreign service; going into acting in summer stock with Jeffrey Kramer and Marty Nadler; transferring to Ithaca College; going to Canada where they paid artists; touring Canada's schools and prisons; Santa Jaws leads to a three-album deal; being a roadie for Blood, Sweat & Tears; being friends with the Second City crew; Dan Aykroyd; getting heckled by and destroying Lorne Michaels; his CBC series "Workday"; Disaster land; accidentally setting his next show on fire; creating the Improv Olympics in Toronto; going to LA and getting a recurring role on Brothers and Sisters; writing a pilot for Max Baer Jr.; selling a story to Bret Maverick; being hired by The Devlin Connection; joining ChiPs for the last season; his episodes "Battle of the Bands" and "Rock, Devil Rock; guest stars Don Most, Susan Richardson, and Robert Trujillo of Metallica; John Astin not knowing what a music video was; going to Cutter to Houston and having to apologize to Alec Baldwin about a scene; loving to work on The New Gidget; getting hired to take 90210 to college and increase male demographic; believing in slowing down the romance; his episodes being considered the best by fans; getting fired for wanting to have The Spice Girls as guests; working with Milton Berle; writing for the WWE; his novels; his plays about the 1960's

Susan Lanier and I discuss MLB manager Hal Lanier; her song, "On the Way to Woodstock"; watching "The Miss America Pageant"; growing up in Dallas; being a DJ at 14; studying with Uta Hagen; acting in the film The Pickle Goes in the Middle; doing non-Union movies in NYC with Warhol and Putney Swope directed by Robert Downey, Sr.; going to LA and getting cast on Happy Days; not knowing the current stars; turning down an audition for SNL; Welcome Back Kotter; doing Night of the Iguana with Tennessee Williams; accidentally getting knocked out by Richard Chamberlain: Taryn Powers; Chloris Leachman; Over and Out; Pat Paulsen; Tony Orlando and Dawn Rainbow Hour; not liking doing con's; Henry Winkler; doing The Hills Have Eyes over agents' thoughts; the touring for the premiere; it being considered a terror classic; being cast and let go from Three's Company; the Facts of Life scale; being in the cast of Sha Na Na; Chuck Berry; moving into music; her cabaret act; an audition for a Brian DePalma movie gives her the singing bug; performs her late husband's composition Superstar and her own songs; Swamp Cabaret; getting into photography;

Podcaster / author Jonathan Rosen joined me to discuss growing up watching TV with his family; being a teacher; not wanting to be in show business; being an author of children's author; writing a blog about nostalgia; meeting his co-host Ike Eisenman; his guest want list; landlines; Kim Richards; guests Paul Williams and Meeno Peluce; crushes Cher, Lisa Whelchel, Audrey Landers; leaving things off you want to talk about; musical guests; guests he wouldn't have; guests who pass away after you as them on; his goals in five years; hosting a panel; Podcastcon; Joe Rogan; when to bring up a guests most famous work; and future guests

Julie Larson discusses growing up in Geneva Illinois; Mike Royko; her dad being her greatest comedy influence; growing up in a crowded house; southern sitcoms on the 1960's; Rose Marie; moving to Chicago in 1980; taking classes at Second City; moving to L.A. in 1984; becoming a Comedy Store Player; meeting Colin Mochrie & Ryan Stiles; performing with them at night while working for a law firm in the day; being asked to do improv in an Irish festival; meeting the co-creator of Dharma & Greg there and getting a job offer; what saved her job; prefers joke & story shows; writing credit is given by Chuck Lorre based on his feel of contribution; leaving to go to The Drew Carey Show; doing improv with him; sketch episodes; stunt episodes; in charge when viewers had a chance to be guest stars; her father's last wish; her pilot, Washington Street; how everyone is worthy and can be funny; Barney Miller; Norman Lear; her backyard stage; Keb' Mo; Beverly Hillbillies; Don Knotts; Paul Dooley in Breaking Away; being a woman writer; Last Man Standing; being a strike captain; helping younger writers; making videos for Biden; my stand up; Bob Smith; advice for new writers

Sal discusses growing up in Brooklyn and having TV and movies be his safe space; Catholic school; moving to California at age 12; going to public school; joining the drama department at UC Davis; studying at NYU under Olympia Dukakis; doing a few commercials and The Taking of Pelham 1,2,3 in New York; moving to LA and getting a role in The Montefuscos; The Montefuscos getting canceled; doing Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman; how being nice to a kid at an Elvis Costello concert got him booked on The Tonight Show; getting Soap; meeting Richard Nixon; befriending Diana Canova & Robert Urich; his mother's reaction; MASH; his father; Ray Abruzzo; Barney Miller; how his meatballs impressed Carl Reiner, Mel Broos, Anne Bancroft, and Dom DeLuise and got him three movies; Family Feud; Richard Dawson; Mike Douglas; his play A Steady Rain which landed him on Scandal; wanting to appear on The Bear; his meatball recipe

Markus Jennings and I discuss our mutual love for Saturday Night Live; Chris Farley; Jim Downey; getting tickets; my episode backstage; Chris Elliot; how he can't have a favorite episode; my favorite episodes; favorite cast; impressionists JAJ, Dana, Phil, and Joe Piscopo's versions of the same people; favorite musical guests; cast members; and trivia

Rick Mischel and I discuss being native NYers; growing up on film; went into law entertainment; read scripts at Electric Pictures; becoming Senior VP of Acquisitions for Live Entertainment; FHE; producing Suicide Kings; becoming President of Harvey Entertainment licensing Casper & Richie Rich; Mainframe CGI creates DVD films (Max Steele); Reach Games; Sony hires him to create a features studio; Hotel Transylvania, Open Season and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs tv series; Spiderman animated features; visual effects for MIB 3; Garfield; animation is worldwide; Smurfs; animation quality keeps getting better; working with Popeye; Diary of a Wimpy Kid; Ice Age; Rick & Morty; watching Family Guy, Bob's Burgers, and Simpsons;

Former child actor Sparky Marcus (Issoglio) discusses the origins of his name; being on TV before watching it; first job a McDonalds commercial at 3 1/2; being a SAG member; working on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman; playing a child evangelical preacher; being spanked by Dabney Coleman; Freaky Friday; working with actors who don't like children; not liking to watch himself; not remembering being on a Carl Reiner sitcom; going on AM LA in 1976; meeting George Lucas on the set of The Bob Newhart Show; shooting WKRP and Bad News Bears; being on a series is better than chasing work; child acting hours; working with Jack Albertson, Johnny Whitaker, and Henry Fonda; Grandpa Goes to Washington; What's Happening; David Hollander; Airplane; Goldie and the Bear Go to Hollywood with O.J. Simpson; Happy Days; working on Goodtime Girls with Peter Scolari; Marcia Wallace; Loni Anderson; voice work; Richie Rich; residual checks; Man with Two Brains; getting injured on Trapper John, MD; quitting at 18; not wanting show biz; being unaware of his earnings; having a part-time job parking cars to make his "own" money; Frank Welker; cartoon work; Nancy Cartwright; Don Messick; Rodney Alan Rippy; Norman Lear; Bad News Bears jersey; parents sold all his stuff; getting $30,000 at 18 and spending it in two years; working in PT; meeting his wife on the job and becoming best friends; Kim Richards; Kroft Supershow; his scripts

Covers of some of the most famous songs by people you didn't think would do it: Sammy Davis Jr, Jack Albertson, Carroll O'Connor, Glenn Close, Terry Bradshaw; Jim Nabors, George Burns, Frank Sinatra, and Tiny Tim

Kenneth Tigar joined me and discussed the pronunciation of his last name; his favorite radio shows; hist first TV; watching Requiem for a Heavyweight; Norman Lloyd; acting was just a hobby; getting a PhD in German from Harvard; translated Brecht plays into English; working on The Proposition improv troupe and Broadway show with Judy Kahan, Paul Kreppel; and Fred Grandy; leaving the Proposition to write his dissertation; his first theatre and television roles have been playing Germans; most recognized for Barney Miller; Norman Lloyd and John Randolph get him to L.A.; auditioning for Danny Arnold; shooting the episode "Werewolf"; Danny Arnold's directing; portraying Jesus in the episode "The Photographer"; Lou Grant; not able to be typecast; Bosom Buddies; shooting his Emmy Award winning Hill Street Blues; Cheers; playing Himmler; Night Court; Just one of The Guys; 18 Again; Lethal Weapon 2 & 3; Sam Anderson

I talk to comedian / actor Dave Konig on working with The State; Jon Stewart; Kevin Meaney; Gilbert Gottfried; appearing on Subway Q & A, Hardcore TV;, Law and Order, The Apprentice, Louie, Crashing, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel; the schedule for comedians on cruises and shooting a Dry Bar Comedy Special

Neal Marshad joins me to talk about his father, a graphic artist for Look Magazine; living near a movie theater; learning how to film high school football games; 16 mm vs. the split 8 cameras; going to film school with Leonard Maltin; his editing and documentary professors at NYU; is first documentary, "Sculpture by Isaac Witkin"; working friendship with Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara; creating commercials for NYC with comedians; meeting Tom Schiller; having Bill Murray in his office to tape the track of "Perchance to Dream"; shooting "Java Junkie"; shooting "Falling in Love" with Jon Lovitz and Victoria Jackson; "Love is a Dream" with Phil Hartman and Jan Hooks; "The Land Before Television" with Dana Carvey; "Linden Palmer - Hollywood's Forgotten Director"; shooting "Bar Mitzvah 5000" and getting it nixed by the censors; shooting a concert film for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes; winning an Emmy for cinematography for the 1982 Super Bowl; producing the Johnny Walker Comedy Search for the Comedy Channel; discovering Steve Harvey, Judd Apatow, Brian Kiley, Ellen Cleghorne, Mark Brazill, and Ray Romano; BBC hires him to be the first network to stream video on their website; Mr. Blobby

Eddie Deezen joins me to discuss 1941; working with Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, and Christopher Lee; Midnight Madness and tough night shoots; loving most of the cast; doing a pilot with Ally Sheedy that didn't get picked up; doing a back door pilot on The Facts of Life; co-starring on Punky Brewster; going to The Tonight Show and getting his foot run over by Paul McCartney; Beverly Hills Vamp with Britt Eckland, Tim Conway Jr., and Pat McCormick; playing the ponies; starting as a standup at the Comedy Store and being gonged by Paul Williams on The Gong Show and its aftermath.

Impressionist Zach W. Arnold joined me and impersonated George Burns; talks about being in character; sang like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin; discusses his natural singing voice; sings as Ringo Starr; discusses blogging the city of Orlando' playing Ringo in two Beatles tribute bands; what's it like to be in a tribute band; impersonated every US President from JFK to Biden; discusses Rich Little; finding a new take on an impression; Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman, and Matthew McConnaughy; his take on Cheech and Chong; I do John Travolta and Robin Williams; we discuss impressionists Roger Kabler, DC Follies cast members John Roarke and Louise DuArt, Jeff DeHart, and Kevin Pollack; Jack Lemmon & Walter Matthau; Zach does Don Rickles and I introduce his John Wayne as Johnny Carson; impersonates Jimmy Stewart, Truman Capote and Paul Lynde; discusses Dana Carvey, Harry Shearer, Jim Carrey, and Rodney Dangerfield; impersonates Alan Thicke and Tom Brokaw; impersonating Eddie Deezen to Eddie Deezen; impersonating the Klumps; his philosophy of comedy; impersonates Katharine Hepburn, Joan Rivers, Ed Wynn, and Andy Rooney; discusses his grandmothers fascination with Andy Rooney;

Brian Kiley discusses growing up in comedy rich Newton, Massachusetts; his comedy influences - Bob Newhart and Woody Allen; not always being a clean comic; not getting an HBO comedy special as a dirty comic; realizing he needs to be a clean comic to get on Johnny Carson; being clean leads to jobs as an opener; 1985 gig on Boston cable; never did Carson, took 17 years to get to Letterman; TV debut on CBS' Morning Program; Johnny Walker Comedy Showcase; other contestants; being a finalist with Mark Brazill and Steve Harvey; getting the job at Conan and never leaving; getting hired at Ellen; perpetual 13 3week contracts; Clinton jokes; Norm MacDonald; the show changing after 9/11 and slowly putting comedy back in; jokes were not as mean; how he was only a guest at the last minute and never introduced as a writer; Roger Ebert; his mother dying and losing his hair at 22; mistake moustache; getting nominated for Emmys settled everyone down; originally college kids came to see the bands; loved writing In the Year 2000 and Satellite Channels; created the Allergic Zookeeper; writing the funny Emmy writer montages; writing for Conan's post NBC tour; writing for the White House Correspondent's Dinner; moving to Los Angeles; whether his kids find him funny; his black / white bit with Deon Cole; corporate gigs and charities; and his novels.

Christian Bladt joined me to discuss growing up in small town New York; early Saturday morning cartoons, including Hickory Hideout; growing up with SNL in the late 80's; Nick at Nite 30-minute episodes and later 60 minute Comedy Central episodes, still watching; the 85-86 cast; Mary Gross; going to Marist College, interning at Conan O'Brien; meeting Amy Poehler & Robert Smigel; easy to get tickets for Conan; went to an SNL dress rehearsal in 1997; became a page week Norm was replaced by Colin; had friends in both camps; Colin Quinn Explains the NY Times; some wanted Craig Kilborn to take over; Spade in America; Snow of the Century episode; Steve Martin / Blues Brothers 4/22/78; taping the show; Goodman & Aykroyd; working with Tim Meadows; befriending Colin Quinn and Norm MacDonald; Norm calling him Jewish Bladt; being a page at SNL25; escorting Billy Crystal and Dennis Miller up to 8H; SNL will be fifty and The Tonight Show 70; The Kids in the Hall; 50's comedy: Ceasar, Benny & Groucho; Todd Hundley; Baha Men; Jim Downey; Jon Lovitz; season 14 is the best season, IMO; mom bought a VCR to watch Star Trek; Jackie Rodgers Jr.; Negro Leage Baseball; blackface; Bill Cosby; working for VP Al Gore; Monica Lewinsky; Ricky Martin and the Backstreet Boys; what Dennis Miller is like off the air; making fun of both sides; Who Are These Broadcasters?; inappropriate jokes; the WATP metaverse; Hackride; Karl Hamburger; Eric Zane; Stuttering John

"Raised Eyebrows" author Steve Stoliar joined me to discuss silent film comedians; Universal horror monsters; The Three Stooges; how The Marx Brothers were the best; becoming his secretary and archivist; meeting Groucho's friends; going to UCLA to study history and hanged to television; saw decline and fall of Groucho in person as well as rage-ridden Erin Fleming; saving all his witticisms; his book comes out and is now going to be a motion picture; 1972 - he tries at UCLA to get Animal Crackers rereleased; does a press conference and meets Groucho for the first time; Universal rereleases it; a year later, Steve asks for a summer job; becomes secretary and archivist; worked seven days a week; Groucho was a personal history capsule; Groucho worked a benefit concert for the 1906 earthquake and performed the night Pres. Harding died; Groucho's Long Island home on the market; friendship with Alice Cooper; first two films made in Kaufman Astoria Studios; then family moved to Hollywood; their lost silent film "Humor isk" will never be found, but there are censored scenes that might; The Day the Clown Cried; going with Groucho to the set of Bob Hope's Joys; not going to Welcome Back, Kotter; he conservatorship trial; not taking part in the estate trial; gets a job typing scripts for Universal; hired by Dick Cavett based on his humorous correspondence; becomes a freelance TV writer; now his book is becoming a movie; CBS takes a sitcom starring Frank Zappa's children written by Steve and tries to make it "Normal Life"; TV & movies are better and worse than they've ever been; "blue humor"; "objectionable" humor; his other works "Imperfect Storm" abut Howard Storm and "Salami's and Swastikas" based on his fathers letters home.

Michael Mann discusses the other Michael Mann; starting on radio before listening to it; recreating Charlotte's Web on the radio show Let's Pretend; his mom getting him into modeling at 5; a newspaper write up from 1952; performing on Broadway with Bette Davis in Two's Company; performing a portion of the show on Ed Sullivan; working with Lon Chaney, Jr. on a infamous 1952 adaptation of Frankenstein; playing Perry Como's son on his show; appearing in a play One Borrowed Time with Jean Lockhart; costarring on the 1955-1956 sitcom Joe & Mabel with Nita Talbot & Norman Fell; working with Ernie Kovacs & Milton Berle; pausing acting in 1960 to go into the Navy; coming back; guest starring on Delvecchio with future client Judd Hirsch; playing softball vs. Happy Days; Penny Marshall; working with Jackie Gleason twenty-five years later in Smokey & the Bandit; MASH; Taxi; Jim Burrows; Szysznyk; Christopher Walken is fine, just hasn't hosted SNL in a while; going to the Professional Childrens School; guest starring on All in the Family with Billy Crystal; Theodore Bikel; "Stephanie's Conversion" episode; becoming a manager; his clients Molly Shannon, Rachel Dratch, Robert Pine; what he's doing now

Gary H. Miller and I discuss Sergeant Bilko and showing Phil Silvers to Will Smith; not hearing TV due to elevated trains; new screenplay about growing up 1961; being a Brooklyn bred Yankees fan; being a teacher to get out of Vietnam; turmoil today vs. the 1960's; instant TV feedback; getting complete opposite reactions from one episode of Bosom Buddies; going to LA; writing a spec MASH; writing Fred Silverman and getting an assignment on Laverne & Shirley; writes an episode about alcoholism; goes to Bosom Buddies; talent of Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari; going to 9 to 5 next; working with Al Jean & Mike Reiss on Homeboys in Outer Space; writing for Gimme A Break; "The Groupie" introduces Andy Gibb to Kari Michaelsen; blackface episode not his idea; wrote mainly Katie episodes; Dolph Sweet; goes to 1st and Ten and wants to inject reality; does a steroid episode with John Matuzak; writing O.J. Simpson into the show; writing a pilot with OJ; why there has never been a successful show about baseball; trying to write a sitcom about golf; A Different World was a more serious show; writing episodes about restricted golf clubs and racial violence; The Fresh Prince of Bel Air; writing Hilary's fiancées bungee jump death; acknowledging the new actress playing the mother; breaking the fourth wall; "M is for the Many Things" a parody of "The Graduate" with Pam Grier; Homeboys in Outer Space; getting racist notes from Disney; HIOS being the hardest show he worked on; going to Boy Meets World; writing the episodes where Cory has a drinking problem and Sean's father dies; Maitland Ward; Reba; Impossible co-authored by Bob Tischler; auditioning for TMZ sports; football; hockey; 1969 Jets; 1969 Knicks; best vantage point for watching sports at MSG; his screenplay; making it through The Summer of Sam and The Blackout

George joins me to talk about his favorite radio programs; growing up with music; moving to Las Vegas; Sammy Davis, Jr; his wife, Jolene Brand; Ernie Kovacs; his biggest talent is to make things funny; inventing the Vegas lounge act; working on The Dinah Shore Show; Fat Jack Leonard; new comedians and brighter colors; can talk about many different topics like sex and politics; laughter is a panacea; taping Al Hirt on a high rise next to a dead man; origins of Laugh-In; predicting Reagan's presidency; getting Nixon elected; booking Ronald Reagan and the Marquis Chimps in Vegas; Barbara Feldon didn't get the dirty jokes; Lily Tomlin gives the finger; Judy Carne shows her nipple; comedy should be fun; Martin Short; Bill Maher; breaking TV's color barrier; Sammy Davis Jr. vs. Micey Rooney; getting fired from The Judy Garland Show; British comics; discovering Byron Allen, Pamela Rodgers, Robin Williams, Lenny Schultze, and Tiny Tim; Frank Sinatra meets Wayland Flowers and Madam; Turn On; hiring Albert Brooks; creating Soul and working with Redd Foxx; Gregory Hines & Sammy Davis Jr.'s challenge dance; creating Speak Up America for Marjoe Gortner and Jayne Kennedy; George Carlin getting his inseam measured by his wife before a show; working with Geoge Burns, Jack Benny, and Goldie Hawn

Michael J. Weithorn joined me to discuss growing up in Rego Park; the blackout of 1965; his favorite series Dick Van Dyke, Get Smart, and Laugh-In; watching the original SNL in college; going to Swarthmore and having no idea how to get into show business; moving to California right after graduation and teaching for three years; impressing Arnold Margolin who helped him get an agent; writing a freelance script for Benson even though he didn't now Benson's job; his first job on Making the Grade; George Wyner; Gary David Goldberg gave him a job keep him at Family Ties and not take others offers; writing a Cheers episode; thinking Cheers pilot was better than Family Ties pilot; writing Alex-centric episodes using stories from his life; casting Justine Bateman; inventing Skippy in "Death of a Grocer"; writing "The Fugitive" and casting Tom Hanks in the role; "4 Rooms Ocean Vu"; Michael Gross comedic chops; "Stage Fright" becomes a meme & teachers people the acronym SCUBA; "Speed Trap" - Alex on speed; Robert Costanzo; writing "The Real Thing" which introduces Ellen; using Billy Vera and the Beaters "At this Moment"; writing an episode for Peter Scolari; leaving Family Ties and creating Pursuit of Happiness; writing a classic Wonder Years; creating True Colors; cast changes and illnesses; likes to write episodes with surreal dream sequences; his King of Queens version is hated and loved; working on the Sinbad Show; wrote the proposed Krusty the Klown spinoff with Matt Groening but was nixed by James L. Brooks; told to run Sinbad if he wanted South Central to go; FOX cancels most "black" shows; wishes South Central and Ned & Stacey were streaming; writing Ned & Stacey on spec; cast Thomas Haden Church and network wanted Debra Messing; King of Queens was not a spinoff of Raymond; being a big fan of Kein James standup and seeing him starring in a "New Honeymooners"; wrote Carrie in Lean Remini's voice before she was even hired; King of Queens was paired with and crossed over with Raymond; Jack Carter originally hired as Arthur, but they got Jerry Stiller to change his mind; how Patton Oswalt & Nicole Sullivan were cast; his indie film "A Little Help" starring Jenna Fischer; working on Weird Loners, The Goldbergs and Schooled; George Segal and "Where's Poppa"; working on a romcom with 60 year-old actors; Family Ties Vacation and "A, My Name is Alex"

Rachel Saya Jacobson joined me to discuss her tweets, early influences including Laurel & Hardy, Charlie Chaplin, and vaudeville; always performing and creating; Kurt Vonnegut; going to The Tonight Show offices and seeing that's what she wants to do; the immediacy of late night; having a Jewish comedy writer dad and a Japanese mom; her father's always doing bits; going to Emerson; writing for the Hyena, its satirical newspaper; writers room vs. the isolation of writing alone; her duties as an associate producer; advice from the head writer; her first sketch, a parody of Last Week Tonight; not getting an internship at Samantha Bee; her dream dinner with Eleanor Roosevelt and O.J. Simpsons; not speaking Japanese; working overseas; Benny Hill Show and Yakkety Sax; podcasts; younger generation knowing Buster Keaton; working in copywriting during the strike; the days of a writer making a living on one show are over; picketing; Bill Maher; writing for the Independent Spirit Awards and having a joe go viral; her favorite shows now - Succession, Severance and Beef; working on animated series like Big Mouth; meeting hero Mike Drucker on the picket line and Joe Mande doing stand up; working with Josh Gondelman and Opus Moreschi; buying "too much tuna" for Nick Kroll; Chelsea Perretti; Adam Sandler; Alice Ju; Jews in Hollywood; Zach Effron; Adam Sandler's bat Mitzvah movie and "80 for Brady"; her dad is semi-retired but still writing; replacing a late night show with a game show; not thinking she would accept

Chip Keyes joined me to discuss Chip being a nickname for William, his mother being a working woman during the war; watching Howdy Doody & The Mickey Mouse Club and wanting to be in to show business; watching Disney and westerns; getting his comedy from his mother's sharp tongue; the influence of The Dick Van Dyke Show; his love of Maverick and James Garner; writing his first sketch in eighth grade; Laugh In becomes a hit and he sees Second City as a way to make sketch performing a career; forming the Portable Circus; becoming a local hit on campus; doing a gig in Hartford; getting George Sherman to be a director; taking the troupe to New York and around the country; a sketch using the word "shit" gets press and a talking to from a Jesus freak; auditioning and not getting SNL; becoming a page; his original plan was to become a teacher; leaving the page program to move to L.A.; SCTV; getting a play produced; his partner, Jeffrey Lippa wants to be an actor; he makes a critical decision; wins on Match Game to give him time to figure out what he wants; goes back to NYC and host a kids show; makes good money doing commercials; Taxi inspires him and his brother Doug to write a spec script; a great note made his spec script better; writes 2 episodes of Sanford; Mort Lachman becomes a mentor; gets hired on Gimme a Break; writes "The Chief's Gay Evening"; does a pilot with George Kennedy; gets job on Valerie; moved to Perfect Strangers; going back to Valerie and being told to come up with stories that could work for Valerie or a replacement; Valerie Harper was tense and a control freak; hard to write for characters who were so nice; Jack Carter; O.J. Simpson; PORKO; Dennis Burkely; getting a GLAAD Award; Valerie condom episode; episode had a warning and was exiled to late night in his hometown; NBC asks for Fire Prevention week and MLK episodes; not liking the AIDS episode after he left; Willard Scott; Edie McClurg doing an episode after almost dying from giardia; Christine Ebersole; Judy Kahan; turning Mrs. Poole from mean to magical; not bringing back Judy Kahan for season 3; the Paris episodes and working on the Eiffel Tower; Jason Bateman and his father direct episodes; Arlene Golonka & Gerald Gordon; Shaky Ground; not being sure of Matt Frewer as title character; George Kennedy was offer only but still read, Frewer would not read; wishing he could have recast with Phil Hartman or George Wendt; "Matt takes"; Matt improvs with a black dildo in front of a young Jennifer Love Hewitt; working with Chris Demetral, Betty White and Marie Osmond; Reagan jokes; Nixon, Reagan, and Trump; writing two episodes of Two of a Kind for the Olsen Twins; the brothers go their separate ways for a while; write Star Patrol; cast Charles Rocket; line producer shoots out of sequence, network doesn't understand; pilot is rejected

Stacii the Drag Artist joined me to discuss her journey; starting to sing in school; incorporating drag; constant performing; taking voice lessons; producing her own show; writing a one person show; her show at Sparkle; singing in French, pre-school; stage fright; being judged by Willam and Alaska from Rupaul's Drag Race; her first show My Quarter Life Crisis; makeup and drag time requirements; first time seeing drag; didn't know women could do drag; Broadway shows; wanting to do songs from Waitress; eighties music; Total Eclipse of the Heart; favorite singers; Lady Gaga; Sam Smith; interacting with the audience; dealing with ADHD and binge eating disorder; showing the bright side of life; bringing visuals, costumes, and props to her show; how to get tickets; being Jewish; adding a song from Fiddler on the Roof; Barbra Streisand; all Jewish drag show; being observant; my daughter being a fan; having a great family; wanting to tour Australia; being on a reality show; auditioning for American Idol; Taylor Swift; traveling; trouble sleeping; being on Cameo; her accompanist DJ Master Mase; her upcoming tour; Edinburgh Fringe Festival; getting back in the swing after vacation at the Cup open mic

Ed Berenhaus joined me to discuss his influences: Jack Benny, Sonny Fox, Chuck McCann, Soupy Sales, Jay Ward; seeing the Beatles at Shea Stadium and being able to hear them; going to Stony Brook University to be a director but segueing to TV and radio; the many rock acts he saw; growing up in Kew Gardens and having Art Garfunkel's school dictionary; becoming an NBC page when befriended by Cousin Brucie; giving the NBC tour; working with Sonny Fox on NBC children's programming; working on Saturday Night Live; Aykroyd & Belushi shower with the pages; meeting Bill Murray; doing an extra rehearsal the day before the October 11, 1975 premiere; being with Chevy at the 1976 DNC at MSG; the NBC logos; the original idea for SNL (Albert Brooks, Jim Henson); seeing Billy Crystal get cut from the first episode; the Candice Bergen episode being the first one to look like SNL today; watching the theme song be written; checking out the musical guests; working on the Tomorrow show and giving pointers to Dan Aykroyd on his Tom Snyder impression; putting the younger better looking audience members up front; seating celebrities; taking Mick Jagger and Ron Wood to the bathroom during the Eric Idle show; making promos for the news; watching the SNL promos being taped; the problems of writing talk show promos; taking Sean Connery to the bathroom when the door won't open; leaving NBC to go to Satellite Network News; SNN being bought out by Ted Turner; moving to Harpo to make promos for The Oprah Winfrey Show; making fun promos for Nick at Nite; memorable promos for The Donna Reed Show and I Dream of Jeannie used in the movie "As Good as it Gets"; worked for Broadway Video on Sunday Night; meeting Miles Davis; the legacy of SNL; trying to give away tickets to a spontaneous Paul Simon / George Harrison performance; SNL being both original and running ideas into the ground; working for The Jeremy Kyle Show and The Joan Rivers Show; the generosity of working with Joan Rivers; meeting George Burns

Bruce Ferber and I discuss reading sports books as a kid; Thomas Wolffe; attending a summer writing session at Andover while in high school; Phillip Roth; Woody Allen; publishers don't like comic novels; the genesis of his novel "I Buried Paul"; meeting struggling musicians without an outlet; session musicians; there are less crappy sitcoms on now; his book "Elevating Oberman" and subsequent tour; "Cascade Falls" and cookie cutter architecture; "The Way We Work" reveals show business from all angles; Billy Van Zandt tells his Lucy story in "The Way We Work"; Steven Van Zandt endorses "I Buried Paul"; going to NYU to be a director; doing six months of film editing and six months writing; writing a spec M*A*S*H* and getting hired to write two Bosom Buddies and a Laverne & Shirley; working on House Calls, Star of the Family, Jennifer Slept Here and Oh, Madeline; writing a Simon & Simon; working on Webster and having Alex Karras be a jerk; Eugene Roche; Facts of Life; bad timing for Gung Ho; Duet; working with Alison LaPlaca, Chris Lemmon, Ellen DeGeneres, Danny Gans; working on Growing Pains but not getting to write an episode; working on Nurses; Coach and Craig T. Nelson; running Home Improvement; the cancer scare episode; Sabrina, the Teenage Witch; his spec Cheers; his film "Praying for Tucson" about Presidential candidate Howard Dean; Dan vs.; his wife's passing; pitching an animated series based on the book "Dazzle" about a misanthropic dog

Director Randall Kleiser joined me to discuss his drawing style; his latest work Drawing Directors; Quentin Tarantino; Robert Altman; getting inspiration from other directors; Spike Lee; Oppenheimer; Jerry Lewis; Nina Foch; earliest influence: "The Ten Commandments"; USC Dirty Dozen; "Captain America vs. the Mutant"; "Foot Fetish"; "Peege"; Bruce Davison; hiring the same actors in different projects; Marcus Welby, MD; Dawn; "Portrait of a Teenage Runaway"; "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble"; directing "Grease"; thought to be a small movie, but was huge; directing actors he saw as a kid; Jeff Conaway; getting the go-ahead for "Blue Lagoon"; Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins; describing the set as a summer camp; "Summer Lovers"; "Flight of the Navigator" with Paul Reubens as Max; "Big Top Pee Wee"; Paul Reubens always remembered your birthday; Valeria Golino; "White Fang" and his adaptation; "Honey, I Shrunk the Kid"; doing a sequel to get his next project done; working with Rick Moranis; "It's My Party"; difficulty of getting an AIDS movie done; his friends helping for no money; running Digital Day for the Directors Guild; his documentary, "Baby Boomers Yearbook" about his high school classmates; role of directors with writers and actors on strike; role of AI in the future

Barry Blaustein joined me to discuss watching political events of the early 1960's on a b/w TV; his comedy influences; going to school for broadcast journalism; "Broadcast News"; going to LA and getting jobs on specials; working on The Mike Douglas Show; submitting for SNL; Jean Doumanian asking him to write more, not doing it and getting hired anyway; the writing staff did not intimidate him; Elliot Gould and the Accordion Killer; Malcolm McDowell; Ellen Burstyn and Raheem Abdul Mohammad; his dad coming up with "Is that velvet" from "Coming to America"; writing "LFNY" for Eddie on the seventh show and having people upset; Tommy Torture and Ray Sharkey's erratic behavior; Karen Black episode; Charlene Tilton, Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood and Charles Rocket's f-bomb; writing a Nick the Lounge Singer with Bill Murray; the Writer's Strike; first show back with Little Richard Simmons, Prose and Cons, and Khaddafi Look; show two with Buckwheat; John Mulaney was born in 1982 when he was at SNL; Ted Cruz being a fan of his work; Velvet Jones; Donald Pleasance and Fear; "Hidden Photo"; Michael O'Donoghue; writing the Mick Jagger variety special for Tim Curry; "retiring" Velvet Jones and The Jersey Guy; Gumby; Larry the Lobster; appearing on camera; Ebony & Ivory; going out to L.A. to write for Chevy hosting via satellite; Drew Barrymore; Eddie hosts and Steve Martin makes a cameo; Lily Tomlin; working with Rick Moranis, Sid Caesar, Stevie Wonder and Ed Koch; leaving the show and not being allowed to tell Eddie; Pam Norris; "Coming to America"; being a Mets and Clippers fan; writing the "Police Academy" movies and their humungous success in Russia; What's Alan Watching?; going back with Eddie in 2019 to SNL;

Jennifer Aspinall joins me to discuss Universal horror movies; being shy, so stage makeup helped her; hired at a theater at 11; loving illusion; being on film sets at 18; being in front of the camera in Walk the Prank; playing a makeup artist on TV shows; starting out in film with "Playing for Time", "Vortex", and "The First Turn On!"; working on "Toxic Avenger"; gets hired from Metropolitan Opera House to SNL; would do roving special effects makeup; rotating number of artists, MAD TV allowed her to shoot on a schedule that made more sense to hair and makeup; Jan Hooks as a 100 year old woman; Massive Head-wound Harry; Tooncinator; Dana as Bush and Perot; Chevy Chase as Jeffrey Dahmer; Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer; not having the ability to say which cast member more resembles a famous person on SNL but having it on MAD TV; getting SNL's first Emmy nomination; working with Mike Meyers, Chris Farley, and Adam Sandler; Musicians for Free Range Chickens; going to MAD TV; being present at Artie Lange's pig story; Nicole Sullivan; Pam & Tommy; being the Susan Lucci of the Makeup Emmy; Alex Borstein; her work on "Erin Brockovich"; Albert Finney; how her p.a. became the executive producer of "Erin Brockovich"; Jennifer Coolidge; Funny or Die Presidents sketch; getting hired for The Jay Leno Show and staying when he took over the Tonight Show; Leno / Conan "fight"; working the Oscars; Chris Rock and the slap; getting older vs. looking and feeling older; Westworld; Winning Time: Rise of the Lakers; Debra Wilson; "That's My Black Mama"; David Cross; Sponge-Bob Square Pants movies; the Broadway show, her step-son and grandchildren; Martin Short

Deborah Paulmann joined me to discuss starting work in the makeup industry; not liking working in a salon; trying to get in the union; Bert Ruff; how the rules are different now; make-up is a dying art on the internet; SFX Youtubers; microblading; starting free lancing for Barbara Armstrong in 1978 and working exclusively at NBC for five years (1984 - 1989); going to As the World Turns, One Life to Live, then Another World, came back to NBC in 2000 and stayed to 2010; first regular job at NBC was Phil Donahue; sees a mother / mother-in-law feud in the makeup chair; Live at 5 allows her to makeup Bette Davis; memorable working moments with Steven Tyler, Seth Green, Anthony Michael Hall and Robert Downey, Jr.; Chuck Scarborough; starting SNL at the end of the '84-'85 season; doing makeup for extras in the original era; crawling on the ground on air to retrieve a prop for Nora Dunn; Kevin Meaney and her getting locked in the makeup closet and missing his cue; working with Louis Zakarian on SNL and Conan; working with Pamela Stephenson as Joan Collins, Cindy Lauper, Madonna, and Billy Idol; various hosts; young stars brought their makeup teams who couldn't do prosthetics; some favorite people Jon Bon Jovi, Richard Gere, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Rosie O'Donnell, Martha Stewart, Paget Brewster; memories of working with Norm MacDonald, Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell, and Darrell Hammond; meeting the SNL host on Thursday's Conan; Jennifer Lopez white towels; working with SNL cast members Will Forte, Fred Armisen. Tiny Fey, Victoria Jackson, Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman, and Kevin Nealon; dealing with showbusiness legends Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Bob Newhart, George Burns, and handsy Milton Berle; doing the makeup nightly for Conan O'Brien, Andy Richter, and Max Weinberg; going to HD; Gwyneth Paltrow seeing her legs on HD for the first time; Conan going on TV on the road not done up by her and it going bad; getting paid by Conan for the year NBC wouldn't let him work and the writer's strike; David Letterman unleashes the monkey cam on Live at 5.

Steve O'Donnell joined me to discuss Mike Chisholm; stand up; Sarah Silverman; Norm MacDonald loving to tell comic road stories; Massapequa; Jerry Seinfeld; Carson Daly; Larry Jacobson & Groucho; Edward Everett Horton; Jim Norton; Jim Gaffigan; Jackie "The Joke Man' Martling; hating 50's stand-ups; Shelley Berman; Jack Carter; older Rickles on Kimmel; Pat Cooper; David Brenner; Regis Philbin; using his actual gym teacher on Letterman; Norm's impressions; interview with Jane Fonda; Norm's Clint Eastwood; doing a western bit on Sports Show; 25th Anniversary of the ESPY's; Cleveland Baron's mascot; Norm didn't drive; his memoir; Canada's 70's tourism catchphrase; SCTV; Ghoulardi (Ernie Anderson) leads him to Dave; cliches; his twin brother Mark who was more of an auteur and won a Tony for Hairspray; used for twin jokes on Letterman; appeared with his brother on Strangers with Candy; Sklar Brothers; America's Got Talent; Michael Winslow; Vegas residencies; first job as a greeting card writer; sent all his writings to Letterman and Merrill Markoe while working in a tape room at 30 Rock; his interview; having to give two weeks notice and hearing his jokes being told during that time; being told his work is witty; to laugh or not laugh; a typical Steve O'Donnell joke; bringing his parents to Late Night; midwestern slang for rain; doing Letterman was more than just a job; Jim Downey; his brother individually pre-signing books each with an original joke; Dave changes jokes on air for himself; Viewer Mail construction; Alsace or Al's ass; class clowns; Jeff Martin; many comedians wore eyepatches as babies; todays comedy writers are more diverse and better looking; now being one of the few non-performers on a writing staff; being great on podcasts; the trifectas in comedy performed by Brian McConachie, Eddie Gorodetsky, and Ken Keeler; history buffs Larry David & Conan O'Brien; writing on Great Minds with Dan Harmon; writing for the Chris Rock Show; pitching a bit about to Hannibal Burress and pretending to explain what bling is; Hugh Moore and Shy Tony; writing bad jokes; audiences laughing at straight lines or not knowing old sayings or bits and thinking they're new; "No good deed goes unpunished"; animals that speak foreign languages

William S. Bickley joined me to discuss faking watching television; watching Liberace with his grandparents; finally getting television and watching anything; family sitcoms were an escape from an abusive home life; going to Baylor University to study English; being a Naval Aviator for a year; being confused for another Bill Bickley; forming a correspondence with Arnold Margolin that allowed him to pitch for Love, American Style; gaining a quick reputation; getting taken under Garry Marshall's wing; writing a treatment for a first-season episode of All in the Family; writing and producing Room 222; meeting Dale McRaven while producing and writing The Partridge Family; asked to join Happy Days while under contract for Partridge Family; secretly writes episodes after hours; asked to run Happy Days and is let out of his contract; first season hours were hellish; asked to do two episodes a week; on first day shooting Ron Howard and Anson Williams get drunk accidentally shooting with real beer; second season test live action clip show uses scenes from the pilot; how he felt Fonzie was a tragic figure; the episode "The Motorcycle"; trying hard to make it look like it was the fifties; the palm tree behind Arnold's that was never seen; introducing Roger Phillips on Happy Days; not remembering episodes he wrote; his series Please Stand By; pitching The Waverly Wonders for Judd Hirsch and getting Joe Namath; going to Out of the Blue and being told to write out its star; having a character on Mork & Mindy named after him; not remembering Down to Earth; his favorite series Perfect Strangers; the real reason Chuck left Happy Days and his plan for bringing him back on the finale; random Happy Days characters; the series "Jumped the Shark" when Richie left; creating Fonzie's magic and seeing it get out of hand; his new project, a sitcom based on Gladys Knight's life.

Arthur Meyers joins me to discuss Ted Cruz's odd Eddie Murphy obsession; the reasons for the WGA Strike; AI; trying to create through AI a short story about if Hitler's name was Steve; AI can't deliver lines like Chris Farley or Mitch Hedberg; having a cold; me losing an episode with Dave Thomas; getting rid of credits; minirooms make show runners jobs harder and employ less writers; studios propose annual meetings to discuss AI; Lorne Michaels; SNL's 50th Anniversary; being a seat filler for SNL 40; going to the after-party; talking to Norm MacDonald; Weekend Update; Herb Sargent and the Weekend Update breakfast; commercial parodies: Swill, Banshee, Craig's Traveler's Checks; his new show Dinner with Parents; It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia; Punch Up the Jam; being a Norm fan; Favorite Weekend Update anchor and set; favorite homebase; his new venture ABC Parenting You Tube Channel; Anna Drezen, being a Letterman and Conan fan; Carson and Letterman Podcasts; other SNL podcasts; pretending SNL was on in the 50's and 60's; oldest and youngest musical guest; Vera Sola; favorite / least favorite musical guests; Frank Zappa; bad musocal performances; his son; what will happen as SNL hits 50; season 7

Oscar winning makeup artist Kevin Haney joined me to discuss growing up in Cinncinnati; watching monster movies but not being a fan of gore; working with Rick Baker and seeing Tom Savini while at Letterman; getting busted walking the streets as Frankenstein as a teenager; being cast in The Wizard of Oz but being enthralled by the old age makeup more than acting; reading Dick Smith's makeup book; being the makeup man his senior year of high school; doing makeup for the Ohio State production of Ghost Dance gets him noticed for "Altered States" at same time he was working on "Basket Case"; gets a job at NBC; is assigned to SNL; Barbara Armstrong is head of makeup; difference between white and black actors makeup; given Harry Shearer to appy makeup to; Lorne was against prosthetics; Doumanian takes over and he is assigned Gilbert Gottfried; makes him up to look like Master Po from Kung Fu; becomes department head in 1981; assigned to Joe Piscopo does Reagan, Sinatra, Nimoy & Iacocca makeup; creates, with Annette Bianco a Joe Piscopo wig; on camera in a Chinese Donahue sketch in April 1984; works on Piscopo's HBO specials; making up Eddie Murphy to look like Mohammed Ali; coaxed back for season 10 and hits it off with Martin Short; working with Dave Thomas; working on "Coccoon" and "Dick Tracy"; winning an Oscar for aging Dan Aykroyd in "Driving Miss Daisy"; Dustin Hoffman shot his "Dick Tracy" scenes later; working on Christopher Lloyd as Uncle Fester in "The Addams Family"; what it is like in a makeup chair; getting criticized for the aging in "Shawshank Redemption"; his work on beaten up Boggs not seen on camera; working on Friends flashback and Russ episodes; how "fat Monica' makeup was used to create Jiminy Glick; being retired; proud of his "Guardians of the Galaxy" crew; still best known for "Basket Case"

Barbara and I talk about her getting the job as film producer at Saturday Night Live; opening the 1981-82 season with Prose and Cons; The Khaddaffi Look; filming some of The Last Days of Silverman's Bunker; Jerry Lewis filming a movie that was never used; working with John Belushi pre-SNL; Babies in Makeup by Nelson Lyon; Fur: You Deserve It with a young Sela Ward; Jogger Motel; Seth Green and Bill Murray: what really happened; Man on the Street Films; George McGovern plays golf through the streets of NY; Video Victims aka Alan, A Video Victim; using Frederick Koehler a lot; The Girls of Saturday Night Live; the three episode arc on the Death of Buckwheat; Buddweiser Light with Robin Williams pretending to ice skate; making her commercials look authentic; Billy Crystal and Christopher Guest's Negro League characters spark the ire of Bill Cosby; makeup artist Peter Montagna makes Eddie Murphy unrecognizable in "White Like Me"; Andy Samberg uses many of her films in a SNL Best of Special; Saturday Night Live Film Festival; Colleen Atwood; Bebe Neuwirth gets one of her first jobs in "Needleman" film; Spinal Tap / Folksmen pre-tapes; Lifestyles of the Relatives of the Rich and Famous; Synchronized Swimming; Danny DeVito blows up ABC; bringing Fernando to Night of 100 Stars; Buddy Young Jr.; Rich Hall; Jim Belushi wants into the cutting room; making sure a giant penis wasn't to smooth in "The Bulge"; Billy Crystal as a substitute during the writers strike; the debacle that was In Search of Francis the Talking Mule; Jim Signorelli; The Lonely Island did the best films besides her; her renegotiations for her fourth season; Martin Short and the Mamie Eisenhower Center for the Dull; creating the 1984-85 opening montage; working on What's Alan Watching?; Mary Salter; Dan Castellaneta in Buckwheat sketch; working with Larry David; Escape from New York, New York; The Clams - a Birds parody; Don't Drink the Water; Hal Wilner

Bob Christianson joined me to talk about being the next Billy Joel; what it means to be a working composer; having Sgt. Pepper be his influence; going to SUNY Potsdam quitting student teaching; joining the Magic Show on Broadway; meeting and replacing Paul Shaffer in The Magic Show and Godspell; doing Gilda Live; performing "I Live to be Unhappy" with Gilda on Broadway; being in The Candy Slice Group; Doug Henning and Gilda Raner being private people; performing in the Broadway play Truckload; arrangeing the Disco version of Babes in Toyland recorded at MSG; touring with Jan Hammer; performing on Aretha Franklin's "Can't Turn You Loose"; being a session musician in the late 70's / eafrly 80's; subbing for Leon Pendarvis in the SNL band beginning in 1983; Jerry Lewis and Don Rickles ad-libs cause producers havoc; accompanying Jim Belushi as Boy George Burns and Rappin Jimmy B and saying "LFNY"; playing piano for Irving Caesar, Mr. Robinson, Michael Douglas; the bandstand being off camera from 1983 - 1986; being inNewsbar with Edwin Newman; backing up Danitra Vance; composing and arranging for The Late Show with David Letterman's 60 Piece Band; his 1982 recording session available on Youtube; writing the theme song to Gimme A Break; people making viral videos out of his music for Sex and the City and the NHL; winning an Emmy and having a documentary made about the NHL theme; losing an Emmy to A Christmas Carol to Lin Manuel Miranda; composing for the films Marvin's Room and Miracle; how he writes his sports themes; inspiration comes at odd times; how Lin Manuel Miranda wrote Hamilton; not being "too precious" with your songwriting; writing and playing on jingles solidifies your craft; deadlines make creativity; Sex and the City needed a lot of music weekly; todays movies need epic scores with no time to write them; why he still admires Billy Joel

Brian Pollack talked to me about his love for The Honeymooners and it's writer Leonard Stern; getting the job and working with Stern on Sledge Hammer!; writers on the picket line look so young; holding cue cards; working on the Horror Hall of Fame in 1974; writing for The Jim Nabors Show and Hollywood Squares at the same time; George Gobel; Rose Marie and Debbie Reynolds; subbing as Cher's cue card guy; "surprising" Paul Lynde for a TV show and finding him dead; Paul was hostile and anti-Semitic when drunk; not knowing Alexis' Smith's career when she did his Cheers; meeting Mert Rich; Phil Kellard gets fired from Hollywood Squares; Jeffersons stole his original pitch and then offered him another episode to write; writing for The Love Boat; favorite episodes of Sledge Hammer!; the cast; firing Jamie Foxx from Roc; getting the job on Cheers with the episode "Please Mr. Postman"; getting a congratulatory phone call from Sam Simon; guest star Admiral William J. Crowe; Rob Long & Dale Staley; favorite episodes; winning the Emmy for "The Days of Wine and Neurosis"; the Dead Emmy Section of the 30 Rock Post Office; seeing gues stars in old movies and not realizing their careers; meeting Hank Aaron at Hollywood Squares; Cheers season 11 was werid; Kirsite Alley asks for them back; their friendship; doing a Cheers sketch for Disney; going to the same psychiatrist as Rodney Dangerfield; being made to re-write Patrick Carlin's script for The George Carlin Show, drawing the ire of George; having to do a rewrite for a new writer on Sister, Sister and having the writer Xerox "her" great reviews; writing with Bob Iles; Sherman Hemsley; Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer; Charles Dutton rejects a Roc script; Roc goes lives; Charles Dutton wants them back; working with Brian Doyle-Murray; Dan Hedaya, Jay Thomas, and Rhea Perlman; Woody Harrelson; imdb mistakes; writing a Simpsons; Boat Trip; his odd array of neighbors

Marc Jaffe joined me to discuss living in Cleveland after Seinfeld; remembering his first TV; Winky Dink; Johnny Carson; liked to write funny things but was not always funny in class; making the teachers laugh; being influenced by Bill Cosby, Woody Allen, and Steve martin; writing for Garry Shandling and Paul Resier; finding his own voice; appearing on Evening at the Improv; easier to do short shots on TV; being a comedian is harder now; improvising what became "Bill & Ted" with Ed Solomon & Mark Cendrowski; getting an MBA; starting standup as a graduate student in Michigan; spending a summer in Chicago moving up the ranks; comes to LA in 1981, the year of the strike; writes for Byron Allen; goes back to Cleveland and gets more work; agent arranges him to meet Jerry Seinfeld and give him comedy material; writes panel for Paul Reiser who vouches for him to Jerry; hired to write standup material for Jerry to perform in the show; pitches over 1000 ideas and gets three made; harder to pitch "The Bookstore" in season 9 because there were more pitches than the second and third season; he would write Jerry's material and Jerry would try it out in clubs with him; giving Jerry notes on performance; marrying an OBGYN and writing a controversial book about it; writing Goo Goo Ga Ga a funny baby book; inventing Elijah's cup, a Passover novelty; doing standup pre and post-Covid; retiring from standup; some older material can't be used because it's considered insensitive, some because the references are too old, and some because relationships are different (ie., daughter's boyfriend is now husband of many years); his wife's Parkinson diagnosis an his taking part in an experiment which isolated the Parkinson's marker; keeping secret his wife's diagnosis so she continue to work as a mohel; coming up with a one man show about his experiences "Side Effects May Contain"; talking about his wife's hypersexuality due to Parkinson's drugs on stage; his children's reaction; being a grandfather

James Patrick Dunne joined me and talked about growing up on the same blok with David Hasselhoff; how music drew him in; making piano records in high school; getting hired by Garry Marshall; being given access to all of the Paramount lot; scoring a movie for Dorothy Hamill; being a Phi Beta Kappa; writing "Do the Fonzie" for Happy Days; writing the theme song for Joanie Loves Chachi; writing "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do" for As the World Turns and having it covered by Anne Murray, Jermaine Jackson, and Whitney Houston; writing "Pumps Your Blood" and getting Anson to sing it; it's life as a jingle; changing the lyrics to "Wash Your Hands" during COVID; the Happy Days softball team; going on a 1980 USO show with Cyntha Weil, Anson Williams, and Marion Ross; the greatness of Marion Ross; his over forty year friendship with ex-roomate Ted McGinley; writing "When You Put Your Heart in It" for the 1988 U.S. Olympic Gymnastic Team and getting it covered by Kenny Rogers and going o #2; writing "Chance of a Lifetime" for the 1992 Olympic Track & Field Team, having it covered by Take 6 and winning a Grammy; writing college alma mater's and fight songs; writing "I'm a Big Girl Now" for Huggies; his career

Janine joins me to discuss her renditions of the National Anthem and This Land is Your Land; moving to Long Island; Doc Pomus; studying historic preservation; getting a job as a receptionist in a service used by Howard Shore; Howard asks her to be his assistant; went to see Patti Smith perform; had to ask for lyrics from band for a shooting script, embarrassing her in front of Taj Mahal; trying to find Steve Jordan on show night; asked to create band space on home base; Leo Yoshimura balked because it didn't have union stamp; Howard called and it became bandstand; filed all paperwork, copyrights, and union activities; appearing in two sketches in the Mary Kay Place episode; SNL never cleared music rights; going through NBC's audio library and bringing music for writers to judge for sketches; Larry the cart guy; Hall Willner did the job muh better than she did; getting officially hired after Mardi Gras episode; Bonnie Raitt; the true story of Elvis Costello's 1977 appearance; giving a backhanded compliment to The Greatful Dead; hanging out with The Rolling Stones; having them sign a picture so that the crew members would know which Stone they were talking to; going to see a Broadway play with Frank Zappa the week after he hosted; not getting Kate Bush; having Gilda hug her when she said how sexy she was as Candy Slice; working on Gilda Live on Broadway; Desmond Child & Rouge; Milton Berle hated by crew who were there on his show thirty years earlier; Twitter's SNL hosts introduce musical guests; Gary Numan; Howard Shore would book someone the opposite of Jean Doumanian's picks; Sun Ra - master of the Walkman; Bette Midler; Linda Rondstadt and Phoebe Snow; The Roches appearance inspire their song "The Big Nothing"; Delbert McClinton; Bill Murray constantly playing The Amazing Rhythym Aces until they were booked; Jaco Pistorius eats the "prop" peanuts during a rehearsal of a Nick the Lounge Singer sketch; the backstage vibe of a party with show girls, camels, and Abe Lincoln: Eubie Blake & Gregory Hines; Steve Martin's Best Show Ever; helping Howard Shore score The Brood; Eugene Record; Michael Palin; crew bets when Jean Doumanian will "steal" Lorne's job; not liking Jean Doumanian; Jean not particularly liking television; SNL is for people who love TV; Walter Matthau; Kirk Douglas; O.J. Simpson; Michael Sarrazin; Marianne Faithfull; leaving with the original cast and having job taken over by Hal Wilner; Hal calling her to ask how things are done; becoming friends and producing shows with him starting in 1985; how Hal got her to start singing seriously; the real meaning of Save the Last Dance for Me; finding Van "Piano Man" Walls; her art.

When I started this podcast in 2020, my then eight year old daughter joined me to talk about her life. Now three years later, she rejoins me to discuss favorite TV shows, music, Youtube, school subjects, her dog, boys and more. Plus she performs Beethoven's Ode to Joy.

Lisa Mende joined me to discussed being asked but ot being able to be on the last Newhart; only being allowed to watch PBS but sneaking The 3 Stooges; always wanting to be an actress; being a child actress in Yiddish theatre; going to study acting at The University of Bridgeport; doing improv with husband Dom Irrera; different types of improv; stand-up being harder than Broadway or improv; the guerilla shooting of Hollywood Shuffle; co-starring in Scrooged as Bill Murray's mother; working with Richard Donner, Bill & Brian Doyle-Murray, and Jack Lemmon; guest starring in Hooperman with John Ritter; The Famous Teddy Z; His and Hers; John Paragon and her get the giggles shooting Honey, I Blew up the Kid; doing a double act with Michel Patrick King in Vegas, Florida comedy condos and The Merv Griffin Show; Dom Irrera writes and has tiny roles on SNL; the '70s/80's comedy community; playing Carol on Seinfeld; her audition; people asking her to say "You have to see the baby"; being on Cameo; shrinkage; The English Patient episode; guesting on Sex and the City; doing Nothing to Lose; co-starring in Rodney Dangerfield's last film;