The Three Questions with Andy Richter - Todd Barry

Episode Date: October 31, 2023

Comedian Todd Barry joins Andy Richter to discuss the rise of crowd work, his first appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, his early passion for drumming, and his new comedy special, “Todd Barry: Domestic Shorthair.”

Hi everybody, welcome back to The Three Questions. I am your host, Andy Richter, and today I am talking to Todd Berry. Todd is a stand-up comedian and actor, and as you'll soon hear, he has been performing comedy for almost 35 years. His latest special, Domestic Short Hair, is available right now on the All Things Comedy YouTube channel for free. Nothing. Todd joined us via Zoom in New York. He's a very funny guy. And here is my conversation with Todd Berry. It's probably hard for you because the only clapping you're used to is standing ovations, am I right?

You got it. We're off to a good start. I like this. Well, hello, Todd. How are you? You're at home in New York? Yeah, I'm in my messy, looks like I just moved in apartment. Yeah, I'm not going to comment on that at all. I live in a gray booth. I was going to say, you look like in your padded cell or it's a, I'm at the Conan podcast studios. Oh, okay. Uh, my house has two barking dogs in it. Yeah. And, uh, a wife who works from home. So I need to leave. I need to get out of the house. So how are you? How's things? We haven't talked in a million years. We used to see each other all the time.

Yeah. I'm trying to think the last time I ran into you. I know. I feel like it was at a festival, like in Montreal or something. Could have been. Yeah. No, it's been a long time. Yeah, it was years ago. Yeah. But I've been all right, man. I just, you know, I put the special out. Yeah. That is the Todd Berry domestic short here hair which you can see on the all things comedy

youtube channel yeah for free for free yeah what is the i don't even know what the all things comedy youtube channel is you don't i don't it's not really an industry insider like like so many people think of me it's sort sort of a comics comic run media company, I guess. Production company started by Bill Burr and Al Madrigal. Oh, nice. And this guy Mike Bertolino is the head of it. Yeah, and they paid for this

special and it gets 30 million hits, then I can pay them back for what they spent on it. Is it really 30 million or are you just... I don't know. I don't know the math yet, but I mean it's doing pretty well but i mean is it doing pretty well yeah i mean yeah yeah it's hard to know though i mean i don't i feel just like as an old person which i do consider myself now like people tell me like that this podcast does well. And I'm like, what? It does. Okay. I mean, uh,

what does that mean exactly? Cause I, you know, I'm not getting stopped in the street. No, you know, about, about my podcasting,

but you know, all I can say is thank God I've had enough of that in my life. Yeah, man. It's nice to lay low and be under the radar a little bit. Being torn to bit by, by, uh, hangers on and so forth. Well, are you, you're, are you on tour now? I mean, cause you're kind of.

I am on tour. Yeah. I'm doing this tour called the half joking tour, which is roughly half jokes. And then the rough, roughly half crowd work. Um, do people at the end be like, that was 48% crowd work. I was about to say that I might've, there might be some misleading advertising as, as the tour evolves. Like, oh, maybe we're, maybe it's 70, 30, but, uh, yeah, the crowd work, the crowd works a lot less homework. Yeah. And it just eats. I mean, you can eat up so much time with that, which is half the reason I'm up there is just to eat some time.

Which do you prefer doing at this point? Because you've been doing this, well, I mean, how long have you been doing this? It's like 30 years or so, right? Oh, how long have I been doing comedy? It's going to be 36 years. November 1st will be 36 years. Wow, that's great. And they were just, I was just talking to your producers that I was on, like, it's almost coming up on the 30 year anniversary of me being on Conan.

Oh, really? My debut. Yeah. You must have debuted early. Cause I think. Yeah. 93. Yeah.

You were in very early, uh, on the show because that we just had our 30th anniversary of the show's premiere, which I didn't even realize was happening. That's how auspicious an event it is for me. I'm like, oh yeah, right. Oh yeah, that. But that's because I've retired from show business, really. Really? Oh my God. I'm not really in it so much anymore. I mean, if the phone were to ring, I might reconsider coming out of retirement. So it's incoming only.

Exactly. You're stealing all incoming offers. That's right. That's right. Yeah. Every time a job ends, I've retired. And then if they hire me again, like, well, it's my big comeback. That's the way I am with acting.

I mean, I've gotten some things handed to me, and then I do an audition. I kind of just want to be like, yeah, if someone asked me. Oh, yeah. But I still audition. Yeah, yeah. No, I've never been one of those people that's like, I won't audition. They have to offer it because I just kind of feel like, no, I sort of thought that was part of the deal. Yeah. Like, it isn't like Chevrolet gets to a point where it's like, no, I sort of thought that was part of the deal. Like, yeah.

Like it isn't like Chevrolet gets to a point where it's like no more test drives, you know, like you just got to buy this thing. Well, now how did you get started in comedy? Because you, you grew up in Florida. You weren't really part of like a show business family, right? No, I, uh, I was born in New York. And then when i was eight we all moved down to florida because my dad's company got moved transferred the old company

yeah i this thing about stand-up like i always tried to be funny in real life and i was kind of a gutless class clown like i didn't really get in trouble like i took it just a few levels below getting in trouble yeah i never thought about being a stand-up like something i actively didn't want to do and uh and it still shows why why why didn't you want to well i mean i went through a drumming phase where i was in bands and i wanted to be a rock star but i also didn't want to practice my drums so yeah i never got particularly good but there's there's that little element of being a drummer that i i kind of skipped over which is the getting good part yeah but um yeah so in florida i used to go to like open mics just to watch because this was the 80s the comedy boom of the late 80s

where there was comedy everywhere and probably seven or eight full-time comedy clubs just in florida and um it was the thing where you could just kind of get on they just had these open bike nights where it's like you could call up you know you want to be a comedian and you call up like on sunday and you're all right we'll see you tomorrow and that's i kind of went i did that in um at a club called coconuts north miami beach and i did five minutes and had this weird, it was a very surreal feeling afterwards. Like something, I felt like my life was changing. Really?

Yeah. Cause I, I never planned on doing it. And then I just kept on his old mics and I just got this little like voice going, you should go up, you should try that. Don't you want to try that?

And I wrote out my little McDonald's and circumcision chunk. And, uh, I was very memorized. Circumcision chunk is not a pleasant phrase. I know, baby. The wide variety of subjects of McDonald's.

I don't remember how I segued into. Speaking of meat. Yeah, speaking of loss. So I just kept doing it and then i kind of just didn't stop and thing is the open mics in florida they were during like a regular headlining show so it wasn't like there's open mics in like la and new york where you're performing for 20 angry comics who are waiting to go on and are gonna ice you out or they're not always angry but if there's no one there but comics it's a little bit of a buffer but yeah but i mean but why so you so you actually

were in front of like real oh yeah it was like probably a crowd of like 90 or 100 people and wow crowd there was a time when people were like let's go see comedy and you didn't have to be famous they just it was like this new thing. Oh, there's comedy clubs. And the Howard Johnson's Hotel in North Miami. Wow. And what, I mean, prior to that, I mean, what was sort of like, did you have like an identity as a kid? Like, were you, were you a drummer kid? I mean, was that sort of.

Yeah, I kind of was, I kind of majored in English. I did major in English, but I barely got out of college, University of Florida. I had like a 2.11 when I graduated. So I didn't really have, I just kind of, yeah, I was an ADHD, undiagnosed ADHD. Now that in retrospect, I think that's what was going on with me. Yeah. Because I was, I'm very intelligent, but I'm also just unorganized and unfocused. And, you know, that kind of like the exams tomorrow and I have to read four books. I, yeah, I'm right there with you.

That was honestly, that was my entire scholastic career. It was, oh, fuck. Yeah. Three months have gone by and I've done nothing. And exactly. The bill has come due. But yeah, I mean, I tried to do the band thing for till I was like 23 and then it just, that didn't work out. Was anybody in your

family, like were they, was there any kind of like, okay, so your fallback for your drumming plans are to be a standup comedian? Like was there ever any sort of pressure to do something, you know, quote unquote legit or. There's, there's minimal. I mean, I think my parents basically knew that I had to be left alone, but there was minimal occasional comments like, Hey, do you want to get into publishing or something? Or, or, you know, like that kind of, yeah, the proper job. And I just didn't do it. And then I showed them, didn't I?

But they weren't like, they weren't like, we're not paying for your college and we're, no, they were, they were supportive. They probably just had a little bit of like worry in them. Yeah. But it wasn't like. Do you have siblings? I don't, I don't know if you have siblings or not. I don't know either. No, I have a brother.

You have a brother? Yeah. He's in advertising. And was he, were they more sort of like, did they knuckle, make him knuckle under? Although advertising is pretty creative field too. Yeah. I mean, my dad was in advertising too, so. Oh, I see.

Yeah. No, they were, they were pretty laid back. Like not, not like hippie parents by any stretch. Yeah. They weren't, it was not a strict household. Yeah. Like you could say shit and you know, when you wouldn't get in trouble or something. Right.

When you started to, I mean, at what age are you doing these open mics? I guess around 23. Uh-huh. So you were out of college by the time you did that? Yeah, I was out of college for about a year, I guess, when I started. And did you get a straight job? I got, I was a substitute teacher and I got temp jobs. I got, I was a substitute teacher and I got temp jobs.

I used to love jobs where I wasn't working with anyone, which kind of makes sense. It does. It does. Cause it's still kind of the same thing. Yeah. Minus the crowd work, you know? Yeah. You're on your own. Yeah.

So I used to like getting jobs like that. And I did substitute teaching for a long time and for a number of years in Florida. Then I did it in New York when I moved here. And that's not an easy job, but it's very flexible. You didn't have to, you just worked when you wanted to work. So if I had a road gig or whatever, I didn't have to trade shifts with someone at a restaurant or something, but I also was a waiter. So I had sort of not really creative, interesting jobs. Was that on purpose? Were you sort of like leaving yourself with like, I got to make comedy work?

No, I wasn't that conscious. I think there was just, cause it even took me a while to realize that I was kind of a comedian. Like I remember this moment was like, I guess I'm a comedian. Cause I'm like, I'm doing it every chance I get. And I don't know. What were you prior to that? What did you think you were prior to that? Prior to a comedian? I was just. Yeah.

Prior to thinking, hey, I'm a comedian. Just a dude. I guess I was, you know, trying to be a musician, but I don't, I, again, I don't think I was good enough, but I didn't really, I don't guess I didn't have an identity. I didn't walk around. Comedy is the first thing where I was like, oh, this i do kind of yeah and were there other benefits i mean to it did it like enhance your self-image or did it hurt your self-image to be thinking of yourself in that way did you notice changes and just sort of your attitude or the way that you lived your

life i mean i think i was a shy awkward kid, shockingly, and unlike every other comic. And so I think there is a, because the thing with comics, there's some people I know you can barely have a conversation with them. Then they go on stage, like, how do you do that? Yeah. But so there, I think there is sort of a, hey, look, look what I can do and you can't do kind of thing. And, you know, when, when I'm really getting ugly about it, probably that's, I mean, I don't know why. I guess I do it to compensate for feeling awkward, I guess.

I don't know. And is that still a component, do you think? Or, I mean, you've got to, you know, at some point. Yeah, I mean, I don't know the psychology of it really, but there is something when you're like, feel pretty good about what you do. And like, I'm pretty good at this. I mean, that does make- I think you're better than pretty good.

I mean, you don't get to do this. I know, I know. You're being humble, but I'm going to stop you and say, you know, you're pretty great at this. Oh, thank you widely regarded as you know a real sort of craftsman let's say which is something that i like i like to think of doing this stuff as a craft as opposed maybe even more so than an art because i do think it's like there is kind of a workman-like aspect to it that i think is valuable to focus on yeah i think especially even with stand up is a very like you know just go to these towns do your little thing it's it's not it's not super

glamorous all the time yeah yeah but it's you see it is seems to be that comics are like the the blue collar workers i heard someone say that of show business. Yeah, I think that's probably true. Yeah. And do you, I mean, how do you start to feel like you're making real traction in comedy? In general or how did I? No, you, you, you in person. I don't care about general, you know? Yeah.

I mean, I think you always have these moments where you're like, oh, this is going to be like, I remember early on in New York, like 30 years ago, maybe even before I did Conan Seinfeld happened to be in the room when I did a set and I kind of saw him laughing pretty loud. And then he made a beeline towards me after the show. And I was like, oh shit, I did one of his jokes. I'm in trouble. And he had like a note on one of my jokes. And I was like, I really thought, oh man, that's a good sign. huh? Seinfeld's commiserating with me. And then like the next day you're bombing or something or again, someone not paying you or something. But I did move to New York after about doing it for about a year, which was probably too soon. Yeah. I was going to say, what gave you the nerve to

move to New York? Well, when we were living in Florida for about 15 years, we made a couple of trips as a family up to New York. And at just some point I was like, oh, this is where I want to live. So I decided that before I decided to be a comic. And it was very unusual for me because it's not, I'm someone who like, if I buy a new iPad, I'll agonize over which one to get for months. And this was like, no, I'm moving to New York. I want to move to New York. And so was like no i'm moving to new york and i want to

move to new york and so i moved i was going to move regardless and i had a roommate in college who's a painter who wanted to move to new york so we just moved up there and got a gross apartment but yeah i mean i think i moved if i had to do over again i probably would have waited a year and done the road for a year and then i would have been better comic when I got to New York. Yeah. Cause he, cause he go into, you watch these clubs, you see a guy do six minutes. You're like, oh yeah, I could, I could do that. And you're like, maybe, maybe I could do like seven minutes if I did it.

I mean, early on in your career, you, I remember moments. Well, I mean, early on in your career, there's times where you're like, tonight I'm doing every joke I've ever written. There's no like, what am I going to do tonight? And I'm praying it lasts 15 minutes. Yeah, exactly. And there was always a number of times where you'd be like, kind of like sneaking a look at your watch, like, oh my God.

What am I going to do? What am I going to do? what am I going to do? Yeah, I think I moved up there too early, maybe at least for comedy-wise, but I guess it all worked out. What was it, I mean, when you moved here, I mean, because there was a pretty vibrant comedy scene when you moved here.

Was that intimidating or was it invigorating? It was. And what were some of the people that were around that you kind of started to rub? Oh, shit. It was like Ray Romano, Lou Schneider. I remember Jonathan Solomon, Jon Stewart. Yeah. And it was like this one club, Catch star where i which was like a pretty big

time club and it was sort of notoriously the guy who booked it and ran it was a little challenging to deal with and uh i'm not gonna mention his name but right people can go but he would just do things like hang out hang out we'll try to get you on and you're just like hang it out and they don't get you on and for three hours or whatever yeah yeah and it's it's fun because you're like i'm all new to me really like living in new york but there is a thing like what maybe i could go on somewhere and not hang out right yeah i think i just the reason i'm wherever i am now is just because i just didn't give up and i just i had a million reasons to quit and what kept you going i mean what do you feel like there's one thing that kept you going?

I don't know. Cause it's not like one of those things like, yeah, it's all I could do. I mean, but it does feel like, I feel like it is. I don't know. I guess I just, maybe just like, no, you're not going to win this one. I'm going to win this one. Uh, just stubborn. Well, I don't like to think of myself as stubborn, but maybe that is stubborn.

Or I guess maybe I just knew that, you know, a lot of this, I don't like to think of myself as stubborn but maybe that is stubborn or i guess maybe i just knew that you know a lot of this i don't think about but for the purpose of your podcast i will think about it i am yeah come on we got an hour to fill it's better than just sitting there going no but i uh i think i probably just was like not gonna let you win this one and and I'll find something I mean I do feel like comedy is just like find who likes you and work with them right because you realize at some point after you get some perspective and you're like oh that club that I was dying to get into I could have a career without that club right or and a lot of times there's also like that

feeling of like some guy who was jerking you around the booker and then three years later like what's that guy doing now yeah is he going on tv like just because there's some shitheads and power trip people but there's also i think i was also honestly i was probably a bit of a pain in the ass maybe in what way i just remember calling people like relentlessly oh but i but it was also people like who weren't calling me back i think so i think it's like no you can't yeah call me back but you know you met rookie mistakes yeah well i think what you say too about you know you're gonna find people that that like what you're doing that's i mean that's also

that that's such a huge thing with comedy and you mentioned perspective on it too because so many young comedians start out with this uh like somebody once referred to like you know robert smigel's attitude i don't think it's so much anymore but his attitude towards comedy is a jihad and there's and i and i've known so many comedians not not so much any anymore because it was a it's very much a young person's thing to be like there is comedy that is good and then there's comedy that is shit and it's evil and i'm going to preach against it and i'm going to do everything that i can to stop it and then after you're around a going to preach against it and i'm going to do everything that i can to stop it and then after you're around a while you're like look there's different tastes for different people yeah i've never been like you know like there's all these guys who kind of like

the that people pounce on and you know like what i don't maybe i shouldn't mention names but and then so is that like are big successful and they're considered hacks among. Yeah. Or like, like Carrot Top, for example, who I actually started with in Florida, people were like, like Carrot Top, he's funny and he's not hurting you.

And he's not pretending he's a political comic. Right. He's just doing his goofy act and making people happy. Yeah. And it doesn't affect your life at all. Like people just use them as like a punchline. It's like, I mean,

I guess, you know, Carrot, call yourself Carrot Top. There's going to be some of that, but at all. Like people just use them as like a punchline. It's like, I mean, I guess, you know, carrot, call yourself carrot top. There's going to be some of that, but. Right. But I just like, I never like got up in arms about that. Yeah. I mean, privately I would like, if I was sitting across from someone,

I can definitely shit talk, but I. Oh yeah. I don't openly shit. Yeah. I don't shit talk into a microphone. No, no. It's, um, it's definitely a bitching about people is one of the best things about being a professional in this business, is to find another professional who likes to bitch about stuff and then be like, oh, good, let's go to town. Right.

And you're like, yeah, especially when you kind of lock in on someone who's like, that guy sucks, right? Yeah. Oh, yeah, he does suck. And you're like, ooh. Yeah. Yeah. lock in on someone who like that guy sucks right now yeah yeah and you're like oh yeah yeah when did when did the stuff was the conan show like your first time on tv yeah i think it was yeah and then i did letterman shortly after but yeah i mean conan i just got on the day's notice and you were just ready to do it i went out with paula they needed someone and i got recommended and um she just met me at a club and i think i did five sets that night just going over the set and she's like yeah

let's do this and i wore some terrible outfit which i don't know what i was thinking but uh yeah and it went pretty well and then gary shan gary shandling saw it and ended up putting me on larry sanders show so oh wow see that's yeah i mean that's something i learned is just like Gary Shandling saw it and ended up putting me on Larry Sanders show. Oh, wow. See, that's, yeah, I mean, that's something I learned is just like, I mean, to be like, you shouldn't just, you should always do a good show, but you also never know who's going to be watching. Yeah. And if you do the work and you get good, that's the most important thing. Yeah. Because then you'll be good, then you'll get recommended, and then someone will see this. And before you know it, you're getting 22 cent residual checks from like a year decades later oh yeah but uh do you did you find

doing material is a good place to kind of like talk about stuff that yeah i don't know i guess maybe use it in a therapeutic way you know like to kind of talk or is that just not the one one of your ways of doing stuff i've never been like a comedy's my therapy i'm pretty i'm pretty closed book i'm pretty private yeah um and especially on stage and i mean i know people who are like i was fucking this woman and like you know all my mom's in the crowd also today. Okay. Well, you're a different person than I am. But, but, uh, yeah, I've never, I mean, the most personally, I think there's like a joke I do about being a, I used to do. Cause I, I turn over my act every three months.

No, of course. Of course. I, uh, I used to do a joke about being a lazy germaphobe and I was like, oh, that's actually kind of a little bit open to me to talk about it but i mean i made a joke about it but and you don't like that that bothers you i mean i just don't i don't talk about super personal i mean i make fun of myself but i never i mean there's times when like that comedy does make me feel better regardless of what the subject matter is that i'm talking about like yeah like after 9-11 it actually felt good to do comedy i guess that

makes sense but if i'm going through like a more personal like breakup situation then it doesn't always really heal but it doesn't have healing powers is that is that just a personal thing or is that like is there like when you hear other comment other comics being sort of confessional do you think you i don't you know like it's too much you know does it make it if they're funny it doesn't it doesn't yeah yeah i just i mean that's a thing where just like all right that's the way you like to do it and i can appreciate it and enjoy it and i mean i don't want to be like funny is funny but that is yeah yeah yeah well it is yeah yeah i mean i imagine being getting on stage you know night after night it's got to be sort of good for your self-image i mean yeah definitely yeah i mean you you go on stage and it goes well

and you kind of walk around a little bit at least amongst the people as you walk through the crowd. You're like, oh, yes, that was me. I'm the one who just did that. Sad, it was pretty good. I know. Yeah. So it does make you feel good about yourself. Yeah.

But it also doesn't, if you're someone who doesn't always feel good about themselves, it's not, it doesn't transfer like across the board in every situation. about themselves it's not it doesn't transfer like across the board in every situation now you i mean you've you talk and you have talked in the past kind of about you know road life and you even had a book that was called uh thank you for coming to hattiesburg yeah still available tour of not quite the biggest cities in the world yeah and you know and that book is kind of, you know, it's a joking sort of tour guide to unremarkable places. Yeah. And, I mean, how is it to be, because, I mean, I've had tiny tastes of what life on the road is like. And I realized, like, oh, I would be 400 pounds and an absolute, you know, like just pouring booze down myself constantly if I was on the road. absolute, you know, like just pouring booze down myself constantly if I was on the road.

And I wonder, you know, like what you're, the evolution of your dealing with it and, and, and how you look at it now. I, I mean, I kind of, on some level I love it because I think it's, I mean, you just, it's really nice to show up in Birmingham, Alabama, and there's 200 people who are like, holy shit. Yeah. You're so cool cool you came here. Because I've never really, I guess I've never really, I can't say I had contempt. I'm always confused when comics are like, I just work in New York.

I mean, it's easy. Yeah. But don't you, I always think like, I always equate it, I've used this before, before where it's just like if you made a movie would you say i only want my movie playing in new york san francisco and chicago yeah no you'd want to play everywhere so i think it's good to go around i'll see i mean you make more money on the road than i i would in the city yeah and i just like uh it makes it's kind of like an event it's kind of like it's it elevates you it's not like being on a showcase in new york with 12 other comics which is always fun but in a great time but it's like it's your show is that is that something i mean because you mentioned it's like you kind of like doing stuff

solo you like you know you said yeah at day jobs you're like working alone and is that a function of the same impulse i think so but i mean i can't say that i don't get lonely because sometimes it is you know you're like in kenosha wisconsin and you're in a lighthouse by yourself like i just remember that's a recent thing i did like a couple years ago i just went to kenosha i'm gonna go look at this lighthouse pay ten dollars and it's kind of a little weird like yeah on some level it's like it's cool that I'm checking out a lighthouse here in Kenosha, but it is kind of like, I wouldn't mind having someone next to me. But yeah, I'm not like a total, like I never want to hang out with people. I'm kind of a social loner, I guess.

How have you learned, like, what do you do with yourself on, on tour and is that is that like a skill you had to learn or was that something you always kind of because i'm terrible with with a blank day like like a whole day of like now i have to figure out what to do with myself i usually i can do nothing like so and it goes by so fast like holy shit i've been doing nothing for 10 hours you know right i mean i've never been one i mean i know comics go on the road and they're just like oh you're just staying in my room all day it's like why are you traveling yeah i mean on some level i'm not saying you know if you go to some city and whatever that there's like tons i just like to find like something good in every place i go to yeah and it's often i mean as i talk about my book to the point where people were complaining i

i got just coffee shops oh and every that's like a big thing for me just going to a coffee shop just finding whatever coffee shop yeah like well look cool you know if i can find you google them you google like what's the best coffee shop in kenosha i will sometimes yeah i will do that i've done that like it shows that i'm not doing for six weeks or you know just to get it planned out ahead of time or i'll search for you know i'll go to hotels.com and put it i'll find the coffee shop that i want to go to and then i'll go on hotels.com and search for hotels near the coffee shop because also that tells you maybe it's a cool neighborhood but right now you can't you can't always get like the third wave coffee shop in every city you go to, but, but yeah, it's, you know, it's, I, I wander around.

I don't, but I, you know, sometimes it is really, it's lonely. Yeah. Cause there's a lot of places that are not suited to pedestrian strolling or do not have a central area for out of towners to come do interesting things? It's, you know, yeah, there's, there's definitely many times where I've been put up at a hotel and you're like, this is, I could maybe walk to a waffle house. Yeah. If I want to walk for 20 minutes on a highway. Or do you have a favorite, like, or do you have surprise favorite cities or, you know, that you like, I thought I was going to hate Tulsa, but Tulsa's fine.

Or I like Tulsa. Oh, I mean, there's cities that I really like, but I mean, trying to think of one, like the falls in that example. I had a, I mean, I think I've done good shows in Tulsa, but, uh, Oh, I just brought up Tulsa cause Tulsa, like I spent a little bit of time in Tulsa and Tulsa is a cool place. Yeah, it's really cool. Yeah. Yeah.

It's got like a real fun sort of like you can sense that there's creative, fun people there. Right. You know. I mean, I can't think of one that was like, whoa, I didn't. actual show that surprises me like like if i doing a ben like i did a benefit the other day and i was like oh those are usually nightmares and it was really fun so that's kind of that's the kind of surprise but trying to i mean i feel like pittsburgh's a cool city that people don't appreciate um yeah i don't know if i have a great answer to your question it might not have been it might not have been that good a question no it was a good question because you did you said pittsburgh and then i'm like oh okay good you know that that's

on me uh the follow-up is on me um can't you tell my loves do you have any like sort of nightmare stories of like you know like being in a town and then like the you know because i know sometimes the clubs put you up at places you mean like just like shitholes yeah i mean there's yeah they're like the comedy condos yeah yeah i've had those and i remember one i stayed this was somewhere and i think it was in wisconsin but i the guy showed me the condo and this was kind of shocking to me. And I kind of looked around. He's like, you don't want to stay here, do you?

I was like, no, I don't want to stay here. Like one of the rooms had just like a shower curtain as the door. And like, so you're sharing, it's like, you know, that's the comic who's going to hook up that night. Sure, sure. Yeah. Or the one with all kinds of substance problems you know right right yeah but so i mean i i've lucked out because i've i've stayed in condos before but i haven't had like a life of staying in condos but yeah but they're yeah they're all there it's

just something depressing about you show up there's like half a jar of mustard at the refrigerator and like it's like i'll take any hotel room over that yeah yeah yeah no that i've never stayed in a comedy condo but i've heard so much about them that i just know like oh no that sounds that sounds like a road trip like a fraternity road trip right with a fraternity that i didn't join, you know, like that, like, like, you know, like, cause maybe it's just like, oh yeah, it'll be random standups. And I'd be like, oh no, that's the odds of that being unpleasant are far too high. I mean, I love comedians, but I don't want to share bedroom and bathroom space with them. Yeah. Right. And it's, it's often, or they'll do a thing where they will put you in a hotel, but it's like by the highway. And then you're like, you drive, you drive eight miles to the venue and like, oh, there's a hotel across the street from the club. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. I know it's $30 more a night. Right. Yeah. And there's restaurants here and there's a bookshop, but yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

I've had that where the people want to put me up at the airport. Like why don't you stay at the airport? I'm not, not, I'm not on a layover on the way to Bangkok or something. Yeah. Yeah. Or meeting up someone for some, you know, like for a handoff, you know, some sort of drug handoff. Um, you, you know, I mean the, the tour that you're doing right now, the crowd work tour. Um, and you had, you had a, you had a special, right. right now the crowd work um and you had you had a you

had a special right that was just crowd work right yeah i had a special that i did seven cities of all crowd work yeah and and how does that i mean you you know and you are one of those people because there is a subset of comedian that's like that's a crowd work person and i don't want to be that though that's the thing well then why do you name specials crowd work? Well, I did that. Fair question, Andy. Thank you. I just don't know.

I don't want to be like pigeonholed as a crowd. I mean, if someone says he's got because I do have pretty good jokes. Oh, I know you do. I just wouldn't want to be like, oh, he's a crowd. I assumed you liked it. I do like it. I mean, the thing is it's become very, I don't know if you go on Instagram and see, there's just, everyone is posting crowd work clips now because they're disposable. Yes. And yeah, they don't, they're not wasting material. Yeah. Right. I'm a little put off by like, just the, it's just the saturation of crowd work. put off by like just the, it's just the saturation of crowd work. And also,

I mean, I, I hate when comics do crowd work, honestly, but I do it very well. And I also do it. I mean, I do it as a headline in a headliner situation. So there's no one has,

I don't mess up the room. Yeah. For someone, but you're quite, Oh, do I like it? I, I remember the first crowd work show I did when I,

I booked the crowd work tour before I filmed one. And I remember it was in Philadelphia. It was my first one ever. And I just remember going to the, getting ready and like, man, I don't have to do anything to get ready for this show. Just look good. Just steam this shirt in the shower and see what happens. But I'm often more relaxed doing crowd work than I am doing material. Why is that are

the stakes lower in your mind for some reason i think i've thought about this before and i think it might be because with when you're telling a joke you know where they're supposed to laugh yeah so you're kind of like they better laugh there and if they don't then it's a failure whereas if you're like just talking it's a little yeah i guess it's less pressure in a way yeah but it is also sometimes it went if you're it feels like you know it's the pulling teeth situation in here but this is a long commit i have like 25 30 shows that are all gonna be half crowd work so you know i'm a little scared well when you say you don't want to be known as a crowd work guy is that something that's happened now that you've kind of more put crowd work forward in in your marketing basically i mean when that special came out i mean i did crowd that was like 2013 or 14 people were like wow i didn't expect them to be good at crowd work

i kind of like that yeah i just wouldn't want to because i mean i wouldn't want to be like yeah i just don't want to be a crowd work guy i want to be a guy who did a crowd work show and a crowd work tour a few crowd work tours yeah i don't think i want to be does this make sense or am i just it does make sense and i also i'm also probably i'm also making the assumption that when you decided to do it in 2013 i actually have it here where 2014 it was released and and I could see that at that time it being kind of a novel thing and not a lot of people were putting were like the in fact the phrase crowd work was probably more of a trade phrase that a lot of outsiders didn't know yeah now everybody's doing it and like you say and you didn't say it, but I'll say it. A lot of these Instagram clips that are crowd work are like, I'll watch them and I'll be like, well, wait, where was the funny part? Like, you know, I heard the audience reacting, but there wasn't anything that told me, oh, I should go see this person spend a half hour to an hour on stage, you know?

Yeah. I mean, there is the thing where like just because you filmed it doesn't mean you have to post it that's right and i think i understand people want attention and they want it but i mean i've even had like sometimes i'll go to a town and i'll say hey i need an opener local can you send me some clips of people and i could pick one who's suitable and they'll send me clips people who are are like bombing. Like this is your calling card. You're bombing. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, this part of me, like they should hire the guy who bombs, but yeah, no, I, it's a, it is. It's cause there is most of what I do. In fact, I'm, I've just been working, putting together a, another podcast that I'm going to do that that actual that takes actual preparation

i mean like oh you know there's there's research on you and i kind of look at like some notes about you and i watched the i watched the domestic short hair uh which is very very funny and thank you some crowd work not a lot but some so minimal yeah but like this other podcast that i'm doing takes real preparation and I'm like, oh fuck, I haven't had to prepare for anything for years. I'm really kind of just like, you know, I mean, I was on a talk show where, yeah, we had rehearsals and stuff, but mostly it was just, like you said, there was the freedom of, well, I'm just going to be in the moment. There isn't pressure on material that I've created. I'm just going to be in the moment there isn't pressure on material that i've created i'm just going to you know be funny and if it works it works and if it doesn't it doesn't

there's always another show tomorrow um so i would i think i would definitely be more prone to that just because i don't like saying the same thing over and over too yeah i mean that that is that's also part of it is like almost like by the time you get a joke working, you get a little bored with it, I find. Yeah. And it's fine. There are definitely jokes that I like telling more than others, but I never want to be up. And it's hard to avoid, but I never want to be like in the middle of a joke. What am I even?

I don't even know what I'm saying right now. It's autopilot. And I don't know why I ever thought this was funny, but I should, I should just, I shouldn't be talking like this too negative. I kill every time with the best jokes. I didn't know. This is not a contractual obligation. This is just a podcast, you know? Do you still love it?

Like at a certain point, is it become a job? I mean, and you can love a job, but it's still, you know, it's not, it's not the same thing as the thing that like got you all fired up to do it in the first place it's funny i heard a quote the other day i don't remember just someone was quoting someone they said never get good at something that you don't like doing never get really good i was like oh man now god i hope that's not what's going on. That's the most frightening thing. I think it's you never get really good at something you don't like doing. Yeah, yeah. But it, I mean, there's certain like, like I'm sure Bruce Springsteen goes to a football stadium.

He's like, yeah, I'm going to do my show tonight. Whereas I look at that like, are you, oh my God, a football stadium? Holy shit. Right, right. So there is, I mean, when you do something thousands of times you you know you do get used to it a little and maybe it feels a little different because i used to i still like doing i do like doing a to answer your question though and i like when it goes well and i like feeling good about myself that oh i'm good at this but i mean it does change because

early on like when i was doing those open mics in Florida, I remember I would tape my set with my little cassette recorder. Sure. And like listen to the set on the way home, the drive home. The idea of doing that, I was like, I couldn't imagine. I would rather listen to the worst band for an hour than listen to my own set that I just did. My God. Yeah, yeah. But you're so thrilled that you're getting laughs. You're just just did. My God. Yeah, yeah. But you're so, you're so like thrilled that you're getting laughs.

You're just like, oh my God. Yeah. So, so there, it does change on some level, but yeah, I mean, yeah, I guess I sort of do have this thing where you should do what you're good at, but. Yeah. Well, what do you, I mean, what do you see going forward? What do you, do you have any big plans? I mean, you know, married kids, you know, start your own boy band, become a cat guy where you get like 12 cats in one house. I know. That's what I'm on my way.

But I mean, not to get too personal, but I did just have a breakup like three days ago. Oh, no. I'm sorry. Wednesday. Yeah. So that's that, I'm sorry. Yeah, Wednesday. Yeah, so that's that portion of my life. Oh boy. The latest news on that. But I've never been a big planner.

Like I've never been like, I'm going to write my check, solve a check for a million dollars, you know, whatever that story is about Jim Carrey. I'll plan things and, you know, like my shows, but I've never been like, I kind of go with the flow and I have things I want to things and, you know, like my shows, but I've never been like, I kind of go with the flow and I have things I want to do.

And I, I mean, I remember like when I did that show, Icky, did you see that show Icky that I did? Yeah. The solo show. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Um, I, that was a thing where like, I didn't have an idea.

I do remember. It's funny. You just mentioned it. And I, I'm like, yeah, I did see that. Yeah. Yeah. That was the thing where like, I didn't even have an idea for a show but i just had this idea like i wanted to do a show because i do like to do things that break up for just doing stand-up so that so i kind of just

booked this thing at the ucb theater like a day like eight months out and and then came up with the idea and so i don't do a lot of like here's here are my goals i mean i have certain goals but i don't i kind of go with the flow but like i know some people who have their tour dates booked for like through the end of next year and it's just like i don't know if i want to do that how come uh because i mean it limits you if you like i already know what i'm doing in 2025 or something like yeah i know it's not next year 2024 yeah um it just it seems a little overwhelming maybe just to have somewhat your life blocked out but yeah i mean are you afraid like that there will be a job coming up that

you'll miss or just it's just there's something about the note it's like more of what it symbolizes yeah i mean i'm i guess it's just i i mean i have like 25 30 tour dates booked so i mean i'm doing plenty of work so yeah i guess i just i also don't want it i also you know maybe i wanted like a name a tour something different a year from now or i see i just i guess i don't see the need to book that far ahead but yeah well um you know of the three questions here the one uh the final one is uh what have you learned like do you have any sort of guiding principles that uh you're willing to share that you've you know stitched i mean i've learned that if you. Piece of needle craft. I mean, this is not super deep,

but I learned that if you just hang in there and get good at what you do and try not to complain too much, unless you get like a bad hotel room. Or a comedy condo. Yeah. Yeah, that's near construction. But I mean, just hanging in there um and just being patient if you can and not bugging people too much i mean maybe a little bit

and just uh i guess that's what i've learned and that you can do things and get rejected and still do what you want to do and if you just hang in there yeah that's a little corny but uh that's corny for me yeah what do you think i mean is there you know because you have a very good reputation in comedy is that is that something that you're mindful of of yeah i mean keeping yeah i think there that's something that's kept me going is, is knowing that, wow, a lot of people who I like, like me, I mean, I don't know if that's an egotistical thing to say, but no, it's, I think it's completely like, it's a good system. You know, it's like, yeah, I've always felt like anybody that's like, don't care what anyone else says is like flying in the face of what primates, how they live.

You know, it's like we're, you know, that's not how, that's not how, how we are supposed to live. We live in groups, troops and societies. And so, yeah, I think, you know, to, to be a relativist in terms of finding your own place among other human beings is only natural. So it's like, am I doing good work? Well, the people whose work I admire, admire my work. So yes, that's a good system. I think. I always love when I go on the road and I'm like in, you know, Boise, Idaho, and they're like, oh oh half the boise comedy scene is here in the back row and like i love that that's great you feel good yeah yeah yeah because it it's like it's like you know whenever anybody said about the conan show you know and i mean it was on long enough and when we went off the air

you know it was like it was like being able to attend your own wake, you know, because there were so many people came out to say nice things. And it's always matters when like people who are serious about comedy appreciate what you've done in the same way that you appreciated people that happened before you who are good and did did it for the right reasons you know what you what they meant to you you now mean that to someone else that's pretty cool yeah i mean it it's also it just reminded me of like there's times where some booker or some club owner doesn't like me you know oh your your act is too low energy or something like yeah that's weird conan never complained about my energy level and whose opinion makes more right there was never like todd will put you back on the show but you gotta pap it up a little bit you know it's like the people that's an opinion i respect more than some club owner but sure i mean well todd you are out doing the half joking tour do

you have like a website where people can I do I have coming dates I Was able to score Todd Barry calm nice Refresh website looks pretty all right So check that out and your new special Todd Barry domestic short hair is on all Things comedy on on the it's a YouTube Channel very easy to find. I found it and I,

I'm, I'm not bright. Uh, so, uh, but it was great to talk to you. Great to catch up. Yeah.

Good luck. And, uh, you know, be nice to that kitty cat. I will. Thanks. And thank all of you for listening.

Uh, I'll be back next week with, uh, more of the three questions. The three questions back next week with more of The Three Questions. The Three Questions with Andy Richter is a Team Coco production. It is produced by Sean Daugherty and engineered by Rich Garcia. Additional engineering support by Eduardo Perez and Joanna Samuel. Executive produced by Nick Liao, Adam Sachs, and Jeff Ross.

Talent booking by Paula Davis, Gina Batista, with assistance from Maddie Ogden. Research by Alyssa Grahl. Don't forget to rate and review and subscribe to The Three Questions with Andy Richter wherever you get your podcasts. And do you have a favorite question you always like to ask people? Let us know in the review section.

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