WTF with Marc Maron Podcast - Episode 1519 - Rory Scovel

Episode Date: March 7, 2024

Rory Scovel is back in the garage, fresh off premiering a new standup special on Max that Marc found extremely funny. Now at a point in his life where his smack in the middle between feeling young and feeling old, Rory talks with Marc veteran comic to veteran comic about their philosophies on building a comedy hour, riffing, flying by the seat of their pants, re-doing older material, getting jokes from other comics and the intent behind filthy jokes. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and weekly bonus material! https://plus.acast.com/s/wtf-with-marc-maron-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hey folks, it's Oscar time and if you're signed up for the full marin you'll get two bonus Oscar talk episodes this week. I thought anatomy of the fall was great. Something happened this year that hasn't happened in a long time. That's a brilliant performance and he deserves it. I'd love to see him win. Get those new bonus episodes plus all the bonus movie talks we've done on the full marin for the past two years as well as every episode of WTF. Add free! Sign up by clicking on the link right there in the

episode description. Introducing Uber Teen Accounts, an Uber account for your teen with enhanced safety features. Your teen can request a ride with top rated drivers, and you can track every trip on the live map in the Uber app. Uber Teen Accounts. Invite your team to join your Uber account today. Available in select locations. See app for details. Calgary is a city built by innovators.

Innovation is in the city's DNA, and it's with this pedigree that bright minds and future thinking problem solvers are tackling some of the world's greatest challenges from right here in Calgary. From cleaner energy, safe and secure food, efficient movement of goods and people, and better health solutions, Calgary's visionaries are turning heads around the globe, across all sectors, each and every day.

Calgary's on the right path forward. Take a closer look how at CalgaryEconomicDevelopment.com. All right, let's do this. How are you? What the fuckers? What the fuck buddies? What the fuck, Nix? How's it going? What's happening? Where are we at? I, um, a lot of shows this week. I don't know if you listened yesterday. We had our Oscar clip show with all the nominees past and appearances some way back, some new. That was exciting. She listened to that. Oscars are coming up on Sunday. I don't know. You know, for, I think couple of years there, they seem to kind of not matter, but I think maybe they matter again to some degree, at least as entertainment. The field is good this year.

And, you know, I think despite whatever controversy, you know, Will Smith, Smack and Chris Rock might have kind of reinvigorated the franchise. I don't think people are tuning in to see if there's going to be any, you know, actor on actor action, but it did bring a lot of attention to it. But outside of that, Kimmel's back, which is good. It's very funny, handles it very well. And I don't know, a lot of good movies. And I'm going to be working that night.

That's how that's gonna go. Today on the show, Rory Scoville is back. He was on the show back in 2017, episode 834. He has a new comedy special on Max called Religion, Sex and a Few Things in Between. And I liked it. I loved it. I haven't seen Rory in a long time.

I didn't know what he was up to, but he somehow rides the line. It's some pretty dirty business and some pretty provocative stuff about religion and sex. And I never would have expected it from old Rory. But again, having been watching him work out, always knew he was kind of a riff wizard. But this thing, because he's such a pleasant guy and a seemingly decent fella, he can really get away with some stuff that was pretty exciting. I'm thrilled with the intelligent filth and aggressive social satire that's going on occasionally. And I didn't expect it from Rory, but he delivered.

He delivered. It's on max, religion, sex, and a few things in between. We have a good talk. I like the guy. Tonight I'm in Portland, Maine at the State Theater, tomorrow Medford Mass. That's just outside of Boston at the Chevalier Theater, Saturday in Providence.

Come on, Providence, Rhode Island, Strand Theater, and Sunday, Tarry Town, New York at the Tarry Town Music Hall. Later in March, Atlanta, Georgia, I'm at the Buckhead on the 22nd, Boise, Idaho at the Egyptian Theater for Comedy Fort at Tree Fort Music Fest. Madison, Wisconsin, April 23rd at the Barrymore, Milwaukee, Wisconsin at Turner Hall Ballroom April 4th, Chicago

Vic Theater April 5th, Minneapolis, Pantages April 6th, Austin, Texas at the Paramount for Moontower April 18th, Montclair, New Jersey on Thursday, May 2nd at the Wellmont Center, Glenside, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia area, Little Jaunt. Oh boy. I remember when I was doing that show once Now you remember that that was some business when I wrecked my car like a fucking idiot Had a rented car plowing down to Glenn side checking my map parentheses texting probably and

Just uh looked up too late slammed on the brakes the car, that car smacked another car. One guy got out holding his neck. The other guy, who knows what happened. I just remember I had to make this show, it was fucking nuts, didn't know what to do, felt bad, stupid, I think everybody's fine. But I remember calling Hertz and they're like, yeah, just leave it,

just leave it in a, just leave it and tell us where you left it. Can you move it? Cops came, had my own insurance, but from that day forward, I do take, I'll just take all the insurance on the car, on the rental cars. I don't give a shit.

I know some people say yours covers this or that. Does it though? The liability is sort of what's important. You know, you wanna be able to wreck a car and walk away from it and just say, yeah, I left it in the lot, right where it happened. And that's the end of it. So it's worth it.

You know, God forbid I wreck another rental car, but you know, shit happens. I'll be in Washington, DC on May 4th at the Warner theater. You can go to WTFpod.com slash tour for all the tickets. Also wanted to mention a recent guest, a guy I like, Dan Soder, just put up a new hour long special on his YouTube channel. It's called Dan Soder on the road. Go check that out over on YouTube. Oh

You know what? I just had an article on my phone and I I've talked about this before but I remember It's about AC DC. This is not, you know Breaking news or anything But my recollection of the first time I saw AC DC was at the Civic Auditorium in Albuquerque, New Mexico. That place was a fucking shit show because it was falling apart. If the band was loud enough, pieces of the ceiling would come down. Little bits, not major pieces. But I don't remember what year it was, but my recollection was I saw ACDC with Bon Scott open for journey and I hate to add this on, but I think

in full transparency, I was there to see journey. But I remember being crammed up against that stage, watching Bon Scott lay it out and I didn't even know what I was watching. Didn't even know. But years later in San Francisco, I did an event with, I think he was the bass player of Journey, Ross Valerie. I don't remember what the event was. I remember it was outdoors, it was Union Square.

I don't remember what year it was, but I was there talking to the bass player of Journey and I said, you know, I saw you guys back in the 70s, ACDC opened for you and he said, nope. And I'm like, yep. And he's like, no, we open for them. I'm like, ACDC opened for you. And he said, nope. And I'm like, yep. And he's like, no, we open for them. I'm like, I don't think so. So for years, I didn't know if my memory was fucked up.

And I assumed that he knew what the fuck he was talking about, but I was pretty locked in to the idea that I saw ACDC open for Journey and a little ashamed because I went to see Journey. My friends were into them, you know, a couple couple good songs. You can't disregard Journey totally. But some guy just DM me something from, I don't know, classic rock and roll culture, whatever the hell that is. Steve Perry recalls ACDC opening for Journey, quote unquote, they spanked us bad. Former Journey frontman Steve Perry recalled his horror when ACDC toured his opening act

and made it nearly impossible to follow their performance. Maybe that's why I don't remember anything about the Journey show. The groups who both played their first shows on the same night in 1973 toured the U.S. together in the 70s as Bon Scott led the Australian outfit to the big time while Journey were already closer to the goal as Perry told whoever. It was this new band and everybody said they were really rocking he said I was showing up the last 10 minutes of every show I'm trying to sing all my stuff and warm up and I hear this I'm a problem child and I said what the hell is that and I run out and

I see Bond Scott just laying it down and the young brothers are driving and the audience has their fists in the air just shaking in time with the music. He continues. I was stunned. I just said, this is unbelievable. What is this? And then I had to follow this band go out there, sing Wheel in the Sky. What am I doing? They're killing me here. He went on to admit that, quote, they made us play better, man. They spanked us bad. I'm being honest with you, they spanked us a good one. And any band member will admit that. We had to learn how to play all these journey songs that we originally wrote with a new intensity.

Who knew that? You know, somebody, not all the band members will admit that. I mean, your bass player, he just remembers that you opened for them. I guess that was what his insecurity did. Just switched a memory around. Did not deal with the fact that you got handed your ass.

I like the idea that in the late 70s, Journey had to figure out how to be a better rock band because fucking Raouk is raw fucking AZDC just handed them their ass. I like it. I liked it. My memory's intact. At least that one. At least that one. I knew it. So look, this show is sponsored by Better Help. If you've been listening for the past few months, you'll know I'm trying to figure out a few things. Namely, what should I be doing with my time and what are the things that actually make me happy? That's important, right?

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Well, I'm gonna give it to you. I went to to see dr. James Wang Over at Whatever it is spine Spindex, or I mean, it's a big building. A lot of orthopedics in there. Foot doctor, I like this guy. I like this guy, Wang.

Like I was there three weeks ago, he's like, leave the boot on, don't fuck with it. Like he got me so scared about the location of the fracture on my fifth metatarsal near the end of it toward the ankle about these tendons pulling that bone apart constantly. When I went in there three weeks ago he said, yeah it's filling in. We kept using this ice analogy but there's

still water inside. It's still very fragile. You know, I'm like, all right I get it. I get it. I'll do what I can. Keep the boot on. Sleep in it. Shower in it. So I've been doing that. I had that boot on. I went in there yesterday. So that was, I don't know, it wasn't yesterday. It was Monday. So I went in there Monday and he took x-rays and I was nervous. You know, it's just fear. Fear of this, this fucking, you know, surgery of, you know, wearing the boot for months, you know, you get older and one of these things can put you out for half a year and how many years you got left You know what I mean? I need to stay active. I haven't stopped but

You know, he x-rated and he said look Take the boot off Walk around on it. He says it's still the the there's still a little water inside the ice cube I'm like come on. Can we not do that ice cube analogy? Makes me nervous. If there's still water in there, then what are we walking around on it for? But he said, look, bones are like muscles. You got to start putting stress on them to make them strong, to make them work. And I'm like, all right, very nervous, very nervous.

He said, don't, he told me a couple of exercises sizes I can't do, but he's like, look, do flat footed grounded exercise. You can do a leg presses. You can do squats. Told him about the incumbent bike. He just can't get up on your toes. Made me nervous. I was literally like, are you sure, man?

I mean, I can leave it on another week. He said, look, if you have pain, put it back on, but you got to do it. Got to get out there and pull a little stress on that thing. And I'm like, fine. So I take the boot off and I'm walking around like a frightened person. You know, I'm afraid that the fucking thing's just going to snap, but I guess that's normal. But because my foot was inactive so long, the arthritis that we found, which I

knew was there on the last X-rays so long, the arthritis that we found, which I knew was there, on the last x-rays I took, the bottom knuckle, the bottom joint of my big toe, fucking hurts like crazy. I have it in both toes, but the right toes, it's been hurting for years, and I've always known it's not good, but I didn't want to get surgery. The last time I was there, he's like, yeah, we'll just get in there, scrape it off, and irrigate the joint. And I'm like, how long is the recovery on that? He said like 12 days.

I'm like, is that possible? So now I got to get that toe working again, where it's manageable. I got to get my foot working again. But I'm in, sadly, this is the vanity of it. You know, when I perform, I don't wear sneakers. But I'm in sadly, this is the vanity of it. You know, when I perform, I don't wear sneakers. I'm not a sneaker person. I wear sneakers to the fucking gym.

That's where you wear sneakers. When you're out in the world, you wear a boot or a shoe. I'm a boot guy. And I put my whites on, you know, right after I got out of the medical boot, and they felt fine. They've got a weird arch in them, right after I got out of the medical boot, and they felt fine. They've got a weird arch in them, which actually is a lot like the medical boot. So it was fine, but then I put some sneakers on and I'm like, these are comfortable.

And I, it's, I'm still in this. It took me two days to like, are you just going to travel with sneakers and go on stage and fucking sneakers like an animal. So I think I admit I made some middle row middle midway decision. Remember, Dino made me get these go ruck boots, which are like, they're like sneakers, but they're a boot vibe. They're really good. I mean, they're apparently genius design, but they feel pretty good. So I might have solved it, but I couldn't believe that even though the boots weren't quite as comfortable on my

foot that was broken that I need to pay attention to, I'm like, is it worth it? Is it worth the risk? I mean, you can't, what are you going to go on stage and fucking sneakers? So it's weird. No matter how sloppy I may look, I have a plan, people. I know what I'm doing. You hear me? Folks, you know what's great about the Noom app? You can use it to focus on things that work best for you when it comes to a weight management plan. For me, that

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The Noom Kitchen for 100 healthy and delicious recipes to promote better living available to buy now wherever books are sold. Look man, I love the calorie counters. I'm a big fan of it. Look, Rory Scoville has made a very funny special. Surprising, provocative, dirty, boundary pushing, and he's a pleasant man. It's called Rory Scoville, religion, sex, and a few things in between streaming now on Macs. I recommend it highly. Listen to me talk to Rory right now.

Listen to me and him talk. Introducing Uber Teen Accounts, an Uber account for your teen with enhanced safety features. Your teen can request a ride with top rated drivers, and you can track every trip on the live map in the Uber app. Uber Teen Accounts, invite your teen to join your Uber account today.

Available in select locations, see app for details. Calgary is a city built by innovators. Innovation is in the city's DNA, and it's with this pedigree that bright minds and future thinking problem solvers are tackling some of the world's greatest challenges from right here in Calgary. From cleaner energy, safe and secure food, efficient movement of goods and people, and better health solutions, Calgary's visionaries are turning heads around the globe, across all sectors each and every day. Calgary's on the right path forward. Take a closer look how at CalgaryEconomicDevelopment.com. How you feeling? Good. How do you feel? I'm all right. I never feel great. good. How do you feel? I'm alright. I never feel great.

Just always a medium. Yeah. It's either low or medium. That's right. Well, why? That makes sense. What do you mean it makes sense for me? Or you think there is a time in our lives when things would feel great and then the older you get, the more aware of the world you become. And it's hard to not feel guilty if you weren't even slightly feel great. Yeah. well that's a mental thing. I mean the physical thing is a whole other... Is sure. Sure. Like mentally great. Well that's a non-starter for me.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree. Physically great. Diminishing. I don't... Yeah, well it can't go the other way. No, I don't... Yeah, it's hard to accept. Yeah.

But you're young. No? I'm youngish and 43. I don't feel young and I don't yeah, it's it's it's hard to accept. Yeah, but you're young. No, I have young ish and 43 I don't feel young and I don't feel old. I feel literally Right in the middle. Yeah, that's what I think I'm at, but you're not freaking out about Years no, I know not really I mean that's I mean I'm trying not to but all of a sudden the my parents are still alive and that age gap is Much shorter than it used to be yeah, yeah, they had me when I was young right now My mother's like 22 years older than me. I'm like fuck. Yeah That age gap right

It starts to become very real it well It's just crazy that they're alive and they did that yeah your folks My both are passed away. My stepmother's alive. And then I have many siblings and many- I think I remember when your dad passed away. Yeah, 2020, June of 2020. COVID?

No, he had a heart attack. Quick? June 26. I think I wasn't there. Here's my thing when people say a quick heart attack. Yeah. I think we want that to be the case. Sure.

You know when people go, ah, he was dead before he hit the floor. That's great. Now that, that, that, no one said that because that was not the case. Because he went to the hospital? But do you know when people say that, I don't know if that's true. I think some people get the full, the full seizure. Yes. The full like, you know, like the, all the, all the pipes just like,

and you're in it for shuts down And I think it goes pretty quick. Yeah matter of seconds. You do hope that I know a guy one of my mentors He just dropped dead in a parking lot. Great. Is it yeah, you're right near the where he owned a bookstore. It was perfect I would like that's a good way. Yeah, I think when it's quick. It's a great way Yeah, my dad's just sitting in an hour, he's losing his mind. Yeah. Trying to figure out how to shower. Yeah.

Yeah. And you know, physically he's great, which is not great. Right. Now we're going to have this immobilized narcissist who no longer thinks the world of himself, just sitting around with no clue. Yeah. Yeah. On how to do anything.

Yeah. Not good. Not good. How old is your dad? What is he, 86 maybe? Yeah. 86 this year, I think he's 85. Yeah. That's a good run. That's a good run.

I mean, everyone starts, I mean, it's weird. I think 80 is, 80's good. You get to 80. Yeah. You know, sometimes you see those people that are 80 that are like, I still ski. You're like, all right, you're fine. But you see some people that are 80

and they're like, I'm just taking resources. Yeah, that's it. And you're like, well, you gotta go. How old was your dad? Yeah, time to go. That's time. Well, they, some states you can just do that in. It's time, dad. It's time. Yeah. We're going to take you to the place where they show you the movie and you slowly go in like Soylent Green. You lay on a slab. You fade out like a song on the radio. We got it. It's got to end when a band can't figure out how a song should end. Yeah. Yeah. That's your life. Just fade out. How old was your dad? He was 65.

That's too young. Yeah. Now, how on top of your hardship are you? You know, I'm pretty on top of it. My, my, and this isn't a revelation for me. This is one I've come to from research. But I'm no longer in this space of, oh yeah, we've passed on in our families these genetic heart issues, which I know can happen. But I'm less in that space and more in the space of,

take care of, oh, I've never taken care of myself. Right. I've never considered what effects food has on me, misplanned physically. Never. Never, just never. I always played soccer and so I ate garbage and my body would break it down and I was always like, look at me, I'm fine. Then soccer ends and you get into stand up and you're eating Philly cheesestakes and beer late at night and you smoke.

I never got into cigarettes. No cigarettes. No. I tried. I really tried. My body rejected it. Really? I don't think I can do it. No, I tried. I really tried my body rejected it. Yeah, really? I don't think I can do it No, I gave it every effort. Oh, because I think it's the coolest looking thing you can do. I did it for years Not great. Yeah, I'm still hooked on nicotine on and off. It's crazy. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah

So wait, I watched the special is it was it religion sex and some stuff you things in between stuff in between? Yeah, I watched it. I watched it and I can't remember the last time I saw you do comedy, and I was impressed. Oh, thanks. And I'm just holding back because I don't want to say, go fuck yourself for being so funny. Thank you, thanks. Thanks for watching it. I appreciate that.

I need to know what everyone's doing. I didn't always do that with comics, but now I'm watching just to know where I'm at on the spectrum of funny. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. At this point in my life. Basically, it's all leading to know where I'm at on the spectrum of funny. Yeah, yeah, yeah. At this point in my life. Yeah. Yeah, basically it's all leading to can I stop?

I think it's time. It's time to pull the ripcord. Yeah, reel it in. I've done what I can. I've saved some money. No, we're too addicted to whatever it is. Is it, you seem more addicted than me because, but you know, we're similar somehow

in that we like to push the audience to a point where you may not get them back. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But you were pretty confident through some pretty dicey stuff because I think you can deliver all that filthy business without being menacing. I do it, people are like,

what the fuck is wrong with this guy? He hates me. Yeah, he's telling the truth. Yeah. But what was the, you know, because I know you're like, I know that you're one of these guys that just likes to riff. Yeah. And just kind of like do that.

Yeah. But I mean, I do that, but you make note of this stuff that works. Yeah. Right? Yeah, yeah. I mean, you're not a percent. Because I haven't seen you, but every time I hear this, I thought I was going to do two hours, it just riffed.

You know, this is like everything, where you do something one time where it becomes very Paul Bunyan. It's a mythology. Yeah. You know, you did it once. Yeah, I do like to do it. I do think I'm good at it.

But then I think people then, I think this is the real thing is a lot of my material I think this goes for you to do is born out of conversational moments on stage That's the only way to do it But then and then when it works you go well it works Yeah, so I'll say it that way and it'll come out that way and I think because of that You've almost just naturally fallen into this place. Your style, your conversational style. I was just talking and I love it

because I do think it should appear that way. But I think it does give some illusion that I'm doing this every single time. Well, you made room on the special to dick off. Oh yeah, for sure. Yeah, and you did some dicking off and it paid off. Yeah. And that you-

Those are my favorite moments. They're the best. The ones you can never get back. Yes. And you don't remember how off and it paid off. Yeah. And that you- Those are my favorite moments. They're the best. Yeah. The ones you can never get back. Yes. You don't remember how they happened. I know. I bet you I could identify a couple of them.

And if you try to repeat it, you mom so badly. Yeah, it's just that thing is heartbreaking. Right in the garbage. You know, like what was it about that moment, that night? Yeah. That made the difference. Yeah. Can't identify it.

Yeah. Yeah, I tried, I recorded some set I did at Elysian for this new set I'm working on and it was just totally streaming consciousness. It was deep and it had, you know, a sort of point and I tried twice to sort of get that groove back and just the immediacy or something goes away. Yeah. And it's just like it's not there. Yeah. And you look at the audience like this was the funniest thing I ever said two nights ago I think you know my my assumption is that Because it was born so organically that one time. Yeah, that the only things that kind of can go on are like like five Five parts of it right can like exist right, but if you try to do it start to finish right with the same can did yeah

Yeah, yeah, like there's but I don't think it means the other stuff can't be there I think you just have to surprise yourself how you get to those other things yeah again because that's why it happened I think that's right and what what is the meat of it? Yeah, and then can you isolate that yeah? And make it work how long does it take you to get an hour now like if if you're like, I'm just out of special. Year and a half. All right, I wish I could get that. I'm too slow. Really? Yeah, this, my last like special special for Netflix

was like 2017. Well, we had a big break. We did have some time off. We did have a little bit. We did have a little bit of a timeout. Yeah, yeah. There's a two to three year issue there. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But I still think I would have been a little slow-ish because I just, I take a little too long to edit. Yeah. Sit down and really edit stuff out. I don't know. This new hour plus whatever I'm working on, it usually starts out as like an hour and a half. Sure, yeah. And then I got to figure it out. But it came relatively quick because I just kept going. out, but it came relatively quick, because I just kept going. You know, after, you know, when we could start working again, and after Lynn died,

I was just, I just was like born again comic. Like I didn't, I didn't have nothing else to do. So, and that's another, I'm out there every fucking night, you know, just doing it. And then I booked these, the Dynasty or or Largo and I don't have it right But I'm like well this will make me do something. Yeah, and then you just regurgitate it comes up. Yeah, sometimes I think that's the that's what that

Element when people thought and think you're like oh you just go and make it up It's a little bit of survival because your back is against the wall But also we do that to ourselves though. We do, and also I think certain brains, and I'm not saying this is status-wise or over gifted. I don't think that, but I do think our brains actually turn on more when we have nowhere else to go. Well, that's where then we're like, you know, survival. Right, well my theory is, but the survival is,

if you push yourself in a position where you have no choice but to be funny, you know, then it comes. If there's a gift, that's it. You'll find it, yeah. Yeah, you know, because you're gonna be up there and either you're gonna make the fact that you're not getting laughs, the joke,

or the thing will be delivered to you and you don't know where it comes from. I don't know where it comes from. I think a lot of people don't realize that, we go up to do that hour and what we walk away with is one new sentence. Where we go, ooh. And then we forget that.

Well, if you don't record it, yeah. You listened to your recordings? I wish I did. This is the first time, this hour, this special is the first time I sat down before the tour started in April, 6 a.m., Coffee shop on Colorado, headphones in, listening to a set.

Swerk. And like, Swerk, there's very few open at 6 a.m. And immediately chopping out going, no one ever laughs at that. I know I think it's funny, but the time has come. To let it go. To let it go, and I wouldn't allow myself to argue as to why it should stay in.

And because of that, not that this special to me is as tight as it could be, but for me, it's the tightest I've ever had. I thought it was pretty tight. Where I was like joke to joke to joke. Got the callbacks in there. I got shit out of there. I took stuff out, and then I started going,

the saddest thing is that I'm on year 20 and for the first time was like, oh, this topic matches that topic. They should live as neighbors. Yeah, that is the saddest. It's a major breakthrough, dude. It is. I mean, I flew by the seat of my pants for years.

When was the first organized special? You know, my structuring, my discipline around putting together a special came out of a deep resentment of Mike Rabigliet. Right. Right. Right. Right.

Right. Right. Right. When it can be so specific. Yeah, yeah, it's like, hey, he puts it together. What am I, a fucking idiot? But we need that. Yeah, and sort of like. When you just said about checking in on where everyone's at and where you stand kind of you need it Well, there's some people that you're like you don't do what they do

Yeah, and that those are the people you can enjoy. Yes, the people that kind of do what you do. You're like that fuck So now I gotta figure out a way around this fucking guy But you need to do that you do that in your mind But but when I realized that you know callbacks and I've talked about this before with other comics So I no matter how savvy an audience is when you do a callback. They're like, oh my god. Yeah, that's from before Yeah, you know, yeah, yeah Satisfying yeah, it makes a lot of difference because you know it's coming. Yeah. Yeah. Here's the one Yeah, I've done callbacks that were

We're too deep that where they didn't make the connection. You were close on the last bit. Yeah, it was close I know I know there's a little bit of space. Yeah, that time gap is very it's like surfing. It's very delicate One wrong move. Yeah, because you know when you get and you closed on it and and there was part of me It's sort of like a little far down the line from. I know. But, but I didn't, but like, I know the joke was there, but it was a little too big an arc to be like, oh shit. I know, I know.

It was more of like, oh. I've had that with closing with that joke. Yeah. Because I've had that joke a while, and I was like, it's going at the end, and if it doesn't get anything, because that gap is so delicate. I did it on end times fun.

I did a callback that no one fucking registered. Yeah. And that was my, okay, goodnight, I guess. Yeah. I was like, if no one gets it, I go, I'll give a thank you and it'll be a less funny ending and a more sincere one and then we'll just edit out the other shit. Sure.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. sincere one and then we'll just edit out the other shit. Sure. Yeah, I just, I don't, what I'm excited about really because I don't know what the kids are doing and I don't know, you know, really what's happening out there other than, you know, I know what's happening with a few people, but there is, there is, you lean into the filth, which is great. Yeah. Because, you know, that seems to have gone by the wayside in a lot of ways.

Yeah. I guess it was always sort of like working blue, and I've talked about this with Jacqueline Novak too, you know, that it was always sort of this liability for, you know, club work when you didn't have a name for yourself. Right, right, right. But I don't, you know, I'm sure there are monsters

out there working filthy. Yeah. But to do it in a smart for yourself. Right, right, right. But I don't, you know, I'm sure there are monsters out there working filthy. Yeah. But to do it in a smart way and to keep doing it, to say, you know, come and fuck, as much as you did, and explicitly address come and fucking in the way that you can, where it's not like this guy's, for some reason, you can just, you know, ride this line of being a complete pervy fucking filthy fuck. But people are like, that's his Rory. Well, I think it's the, I think it's the intent.

I think because people can tell I'm not saying it because I want it to shock them. Right. And I think if my goal was to shock them, Yeah. I don't think I would get as much forgiveness with the topic because I think people are like, well anyone can just shock us. What's your point? And I think because I actually, because it is coming from a real opinion

and a real place, because I know it is like a harsh topic to hear, but I think I also address it like, we're all adults, we all think about this shit. Well, yeah, but that's, yeah, I used to think that way too. It's like, you know, we've all had our pants off probably last night.

Somebody's still got come on their dick. Exactly. Today, in this room. On their way to this. That's how good their life is. But then it just becomes a scene where, you know, there's still this weird resistance. I don't know what you felt in the room,

but it seemed like they were there the whole time. I think so. I think, I never like audience shots because you're sort of like, are they laughing? I can't, no. That lady up front is, but it seemed like they were there the whole time. I think so. I think, I never like audience shots because you're sort of like, are they laughing? I can't, that lady up front is, but the one next door is not. I know.

I never want the audience shots. And I always say, that's where we specifically lit kind of behind their heads. Yeah. First, because I go, if we have to see them at all, and I don't mind it, but I go, I just rather be silhouettes. I don't want to have someone's facial expression get to be in my

thing. Yeah, well, no, that was such an 80s thing. It seems like everyone's moved away from that because it was the idea was that you used it for cutting purposes. But you don't really need that if you have nine cameras. I know. There's so many cameras now you're like, we've got it. We've got something we can cut. We have a wide that's far enough. And you don't have to have that one haircut in there three times. There's that lady again.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But when you were working that stuff out, I mean, were there nights where you'd lose them in the middle of any of that? Sometimes, but like you say, like there's kind of a pleasure in that too. Like, and I think that's what, the nights where you go up and you go,

oh, I'm gonna talk about cum. Yeah. Oh, and I am losing them. And I'm up here for 20 more minutes, so I've got to get them back. And I think when you figure out how to do that, it then makes it the next time. It's the best.

More seamless, because you're like, oh, I just talked about cum, and I've already lost an audience before. I already know how to quickly get them back. And you just kind of, you know. And then go back to the cum. Yeah, exactly. To give them a break.

The stuff people want to talk about. in today's world, the bigger issues. But you cover that too, the whole religion segment, but I mean, it's very specific, because it seems like you chose, you know, these two topics that are, you know, historically taboo. You would think they'd be less taboo now, but they're always going to be a little weird, because people are, you know, people or whatever. But I mean, the religion stuff, I mean, that comes from a real place because, you know, you went to church. Yes.

But it's a long piece of that. So, like, what, 20 minutes? 25 minutes? A lot of that actually grew out of the tour. The tour didn't really start there. And when I would go on stage, it would really start at the cheating stuff. Oh, you'd go on stage and say who's gonna fuck me? Hey, yeah, and then I it truly in Phoenix. This is in April late April I went on stage

I was about to go on stage and for whatever reason I tucked my my shirt in and I looked everybody in the green room And I said I know this looks like a little strange I go but I got to, this does feel very comfortable. And it just inspired this desperate need for me to address that on stage, like almost to the audience. I know what I look like, but I need you to know. And then just kind of Christian and this came out. And like some things came out and I was like,

oh, I do have religion jokes that aren't a part of this, but this in kind of gets me to it. And then I just kind of kept trying it. And then eventually I put a blazer on and I go, oh, this accents it even more. You know, this is a, and it just kind of, it grew out of that. And so these religious jokes that I've had

and I've wanted to do, I debated, I go, is it weird to talk about something like this right away, but when I would do it on the tour, I was like, people are laughing. I go, so I think this decision isn't mine. Clearly is fine to jump into, but I will say it wasn't like, it wasn't a goal. It's just kind of something I landed on.

And I was like, this keeps working. And that's what we should do. And it's all because I tucked my shirt in for one show in Phoenix that it just exploded this whole other start to the show. And it wasn't my intent. So what do you think that was? It was like going back to your childhood, getting ready to go to church or something. It was that.

And it was like just saying that I randomly tucking it in going, I look more Christian. And that like getting a laugh. I was like, oh, that's actually yeah. All going, I look more Christian. And that like getting a laugh. I was like, Oh, that's, oh, actually, yeah. All right, there's something there. There's something in that. But yeah, we debated it. I debated it with like my tour manager Grant. He was like, dude, it's really funny. But I was like, Yeah, but is that a weird? I go, if I go out and I go, I'm probably gonna cheat on my wife tonight. That feels like a more topic sense that gets people sitting forward going, All right, go on. I go, but'm probably gonna cheat on my wife tonight. That feels like a more topic sense that gets people sitting forward going, all right, go on. I go, but there's something I kind of enjoy

if I talk about religion and then I act like that's not even really the show yet. Right. Yes, yeah, yeah. I like that. Like it's an opening band for myself. Yes, I like that trick. I have done that where you do 15 minutes

and you're like, okay, here we go. Let's get started. Exactly, and it feels so good. But you do that when you do 15 minutes and you're like, okay, here we go. Let's get started. Exactly, and it feels so good. But you do that when you riff, right? Because when you do like just kind of like a Largo show or a riff show, you can dick off, and then you're like, all right, let's get to this. Or you're on the road and you do something local

that gets a big laugh, and suddenly you're 10 minutes deep and you're making fun of whatever. And party is like, great, there goes 10 minutes. Yeah. I can't tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing that I'm causing. All right, we've done, I'm 40 minutes closer to getting off of work. Yeah. What's even better is when you look at your watch or whatever you're timing with and you're

like, oh my God, that's, I'm almost done. Yeah. Oh, it, When you feel that Cuz I think strangely we always think we don't have enough time Well, some people 20 minutes in and you're like, I haven't even really yeah Yeah, got going two bits that are each gonna be five to ten and they're like, oh, I'm fine Yeah, I really only perform. Yeah, you know right, but isn't it great when you've done like an hour ten and you're like I still have four big ones. I'm not even gonna do it

an hour 10 and you're like I still have four big ones I'm not even gonna do them it's the weird and they don't even get to know you're like well that was the whole point of writing it not tonight that tonight we've gone too long I mean is that the equivalent of a band deciding to not play their hits they're like almost arrogant I don't know you judge in that moment like has it been a full show yeah but also when I keep going, like I know, like I always forget, because I don't know. I don't necessarily think I'm doing it

for the audience ever. And, but like I'll go long. And then I'll realize like these people, you know, I've probably had enough. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Even if they're still with me, it's a long night. Right. And I've got to get away from that.

Because even if you start putting yourself in the audience and you're like, would I be ready to go? I wouldn't even go to the show. I think that all the time. Who are these fucking people? I sometimes go on stage and I go, well, I have to be here. Sometimes what I'd walk or do comedy, the smaller ones, not necessarily a theater or something.

But if I go to the comedy store, I'm like, why these people come here? I know, you think it. I always think it. It's like, would I ever think of this as an option? But we're so far away from it. Yeah. I mean, I'm like, what am I?

I'm like 40 years almost, far away from doing comedy. Yeah. And but like before that, when I was like 20, would I be like, let's go to a comedy show? Comedy to go like to a comedy show? Yeah, I don't know. I wonder, I think of like 20, would I be like, let's go to a comedy show? I'd be hungry to go to a comedy show. Yeah, I don't know. I wonder. I think of that too, all the time.

How about when you start out and you get there and it's one of those nights where there's like 15 people and they're kind of spread out, you're like, you guys even wanna do this? I mean, the responsibility of sitting in a room full of 12 people. Your whole career when people say, well, don't get mad at the people who showed up.

I, you always want to tell, it's always a comic that's giving you advice. And they're not wrong. But you do want to say to them like, well, I have to be mad at somebody. And the other people that I'm actually mad at didn't show up. So who am I supposed to yell at?

So these people are gonna pay for my lack of popularity. They're going to pay for each not bringing 10 people. It's on them for not promoting me better. Yeah. I think you have the same instinct. Like I have this instinct where I'm doing really well and then I have this moment where I'm like, now it's time to push them away. Yeah. Now do you do it because you are curious? Can you get them back?

There's a little bit of that in me when I when I decide I want to lose him a little bit Yeah, I do I do my brain is a little that narcissism of like I bet I'm good enough to pull I can push them all away and bring them back Why I better learn a lot that sometimes I can't You push them too far. Yeah. Well, I mean I think there is some part of us It knows after a certain point of doing it that you can get them back. Yeah.

Like, you know, like that's how you write new material. It's like, I'm gonna put this thing in and it's not gonna go well. Yeah. And then I'll address that and then we'll move on. Yeah, it'll be fine. Yeah, yeah. But I used to do a joke on stage where I'm like,

when I do that thing and I go, this is what I like to do in the audience. I like to bring them in, push them away, bring them in, push them away. bring them in, push them away. It's a little dynamic I call dad. And that always suites me. But talking about those jokes where, you know, you like them but they never work.

Like I have a couple of jokes where it's, these jokes are like they're brain crusher. So like I love doing the joke, but it never gets a laugh. There's two jokes that never get a laugh. Yeah. Really, they get something. The currently? Yeah, but it's not really a laugh.

Sure. And one of them will can tip a good number of people. Oh, okay. Like I do this, I'm doing this joke about how I think Christianity is at its core a little bit anti-Semitic. Okay. And I go, I'll explain. Because the core idea of Christianity really is that the only really good Jew is a dead Jew. And doesn't, doesn't... Yeah, it's a lot to take.

But see, I don't see it that way. I just see it as a... Oh, the phrase dead Jew turns people off? Yeah, I guess. How bizarre. But all I'm thinking is that, like this is a structurally perfect joke. Yeah.

You know, it goes where it's supposed to go. Yeah. But I think, does it upset you too? Because you know what you're trying to say, and yet you almost are like, wait, are you all thinking I'm the bad guy? I'm trying to point out the villain. Right. And you're acting like I'm the one that? I'm trying to point out the villain. Right.

And you're acting like I'm the one that thinks it. Well, what I've landed on, it's just like people have just never really looked at Jesus like that. Yeah. So if you got a room full of people that weren't anticipating looking at Jesus in a different way. Right, yeah. Or their religion.

That's true, yeah. That it's just sort of a brain bender. Yeah. You know, and the other one I can't make work is about, you know, when you get older and you have a family You realize no one ever tells you just how much it's gonna cost to put two parents through dying Yeah, there's something about how they have to pay for college you go you you pay them back right you're gonna cover some costs Yeah, they kick the bucket well they, that should be the second part of it.

But like, it's just, I think the, what do you call it, the misweed, I think it's good, but people are just like, oh God. Is there anything about their lives? Oh yeah. I'm gonna have to do this. Or they're just like, what? Yeah, I don't know.

Why can't I just lighten it up? Well, you could be like, hey, the good news is, you don't incur those costs a second time. That's right. Yeah, only happen the one time Yeah, and then there's also like step family. You don't have to do anything for them. Yeah Exactly or or or just that's true But you could deliver that you do it one time you're good But the other thing is like, you know, you put him through dying, you get nothing back other than the satisfaction that it's over. It's over. And it's finally done.

Done. It's finally done. So like, what is it? Like, I can't remember because I know we talked years ago, but why is the southern come in and out? I mean, that's where I grew up. And you stuffed it down. I kind of stuffed it down, I think.

But I don't think I ever really had a Southern accent. Right. I think it was just I lived in that space with around the Southern culture. It comes in and out a little bit, right? It comes in and out very instinctually. Strangely, so does like sort of a New York accent. And I truly don't know why. Like the Southern one, you kind of make sense.

The New York one, I don't fully understand. But I got to say, I- You're just a vessel, man. I think I'm a vessel. I started doing it when I went up at UCB. This is like when I moved here. What year was it? I didn't have a new material.

I want to say like 2010. Really? And I went up and I didn't have any new material. And I was like, and I think I had already performed there and I kind of felt weird being like, I don't want to go up and do it. Like, you know, it's, or you're early to LA, you want to crush every time you're trying to establish yourself.

You want to be different. You want a new material. And so for some reason I went up, did the old jokes, but I was like, I'm just going to do it as this Southern guy. Yeah. And very quickly I was like, oh, just talking like this, my wording is becoming different, my intent of why I'm doing the joke.

It like, almost sort of an actor thing kind of kicked in where I was like, oh, just changing this one thing makes it like, I didn't even really write this joke. This guy did. And I found very quickly, like I could get away with saying almost anything because people interpreted this guy is like,

ah, he doesn't really know what he's saying. You know what he's, oh he's defensive, but he doesn't know it. It's a character. Exactly. And so it kind of was like this revelation of like, oh, you can have material, but if you kind of can put like a character with it, you kind of can keep doing it in different ways. I try to, I mean, I don't play music, but I always try to think about music. like a character with it, you kind of can keep doing it in different ways. I try to, I mean, I don't play music,

but I always try to think about music. And I'm like, you know, jam bands must find themselves and say, like, yeah, we're gonna play this song, but right in the middle, we're gonna do it different. We're not gonna jam the same way we usually jam or whatever. Cause that's what all these dancing idiots want. Yes, he's drugged out. So I try to think of it that way too, where I'm like,

oh, what if this, what if tonight, yeah, this made sense. And I got to say now it, it no longer feels like conscious decision making. Sometimes it just feels like, I don't know where I did a New York accent. The only thing that I will consciously be aware of, if I feel like I'm doing it too much, right? I'm like, oh, I'm kind of become a one trick thing. I'm going to this voice. Sure. And that voice, oh, I'm kind of become a one trick thing. I'm going to this voice. Sure. And that voice did get a laugh. But now, then I start hating myself

because I go, I was the voice getting a laugh. So my writing actually isn't any good. So, no. I'm gonna get mad about it. Yeah, no rest in the mind. That's right. But that's the weirdest fucking thing like what we were talking about before.

It's like, there's so many, like I've got people that like just the special I put out a year ago, whatever it was, year ago, January, like people are like, you can do that bit. I'm like, I don't even remember it. I know. It's like, but that seems wrong somehow. I don't think so.

I think it's right. I think if it was music, like, yeah, you have to know it. No, but here's the thing that always gets me, I'm not gonna do anything to fix it. Yeah. Is that, you know, I'm not that famous you're not that famous So unless they're there to see you most people don't know your bits They don't know like I've got bits from before anyone give a shit about who I was that I worked a year on

Yeah, yeah, and I did them once I'm like John Oliver stand-up special on Comedy Central. And it was a huge bit and I fucking retired it. That's it. I think that's right though. No, I know, it keeps us lively. I mean, I'm not gonna ever fix it either. I'm in the same boat, I forget it. And I go, well, I could try to remember it

or I could try to evolve and see what else to talk about. Of course. But there's this idea, it's like, why not just the greatest hits record? You know, I just go back and do them all fresh. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know what I mean? It's like Taylor Swift's doing all her records again.

Yeah, it's not a bad idea. Just to do like, like to redo lost jokes of your own. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Or even other people. Sure, why not? Like just do cover it. They won't know. Maren covers Hicks.

He's so far back. Oh yeah. We do live in a time now where people go, that's a Bill Hicks joke and you could just go, so? And it literally would mean nothing to anyone at all. The punishment of stealing is now, it's zero accountability. Yeah, and so many of those jokes are like, not Hicks per se, but like, well people influence people and you see, as you get older in this business You're like I know that joke kind of yeah, and I know this this style of delivery pattern. Yeah, yeah, you know a

Delivery system, but sometimes they worm in you know you watch Barghetti enough. You're like I gotta slow down I gotta man. That's him plowing through the hours. Yeah, and they're not shit like Great, and then you're like, oh fuck. I gotta go. That's for me. That's when I go. I gotta work I need to yeah, I should be at the mics. I should be working on one. What's he do one a year ish? I think so he's about to I just saw an announcement. He's about to tape another one But yeah, I think like one a year. Well, he's got such a like, but his- Every two years.

His cadence, like he's one of these rare guys that has found this portal that's uniquely his. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's all because of his unique build and his point of view. So, and it's also fairly, you know, most of it's really observational. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But I thought that Biddy did about the nuances between, you know, new Christians and old Christians. I'd never heard anything like that before. Everyone's heard about Jews, you know, and, you know, Muslims talk about their differences. I never heard someone be specific about a type of Christianity. At a time in your life.

That came about in the 80s. Like, you know, when all these people were like refinding Christ. The most Christian you can be. That's right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Jesus had a better time than me. Yeah, it's great.

Yeah. And he's a worker, man. But also that's a revelation too, in terms of like, you know, watching and keeping up and seeing who's doing what. Nate's a great example of finding your own lane, knowing that you don't have to talk fast, you don't have to do active. He can't change it.

You don't have to curse, you don't have to have problematic material that maybe push it. We all are who we are. But you get to see someone like that, and you go, oh, it's 100% clean talking about relatable stuff, and it couldn't be more on top of the world. It is refreshing. It's like, yeah.

And here we are, you know, you're talking about coming and whales, dicks. Well, I also think that it's, and I go back to this all the time, but I also do think it's a little bit musical. Like, what is the music that you like, and what is their persona like and what is their persona and what is their, what is their type of philosophy on what they do?

And then I think when you come from that place, you know, the art that you and I do is spoken word, for the most part. And so because of that, we're more closer to that music that we like, you know? Also, I think it's like, you know, Nate is that guy You know, whatever struggles he struggles and has struggles with now or has struggled with it's in the context of You know, it where he comes from culturally. Yeah, really. Yeah, where he comes from spiritually. Yeah, and you know his family

Yeah, you know, he's that guy. Yeah, he's not making anything up. Oh, that's that's my favorite part about the whole thing Yeah, that it's very real. Yeah. He's not making anything up. Oh, that's, that's my favorite part about the whole thing. Yeah. That it's very real. Yeah. And, and the funny thing is, like I, I mean, he, like he blew my mind years when I first saw him at Grand Rapids doing showcases for new talent. I was like, who the fuck is this guy? I'm walking around following him. Like what is it? That's a guy. Yeah. No one does anyone notice. Yeah. That's a guy. He opened for me a Carnegie Hall on the, I think he did better than me. Yeah. I would, someone said Nate's going on first. I go, no, no he's not. Well, I had a big breakthrough in my career and I'll share it with you because you'll understand. I was doing a set at Largo, it was my night.

And Judd Apatow wanted to run some jokes for something. And I'm like, okay. And then Flanny's like, Sam wants to come something and I'm like, okay. And then Flandy's like Sam or wants to come by I'm like, what? And then like Nate texts me like I'm done with our show you can I come by there and I'm like, okay Oh, so it's like Judd really looking at your set list now But the weird thing is I kind of didn't yeah, you know because I'm like, all right, dude You know, so I like these guys, you know, so I like these guys

You know, I always thought that Adam was mad at me. So like he wants to do my show fine Yeah, yeah, and there was this moment where I'm like I want Adam to hear this joke and like I'm like that's new Yeah, and then you know Nate went on I'm like fine Then I went on to my 40 minutes. Yeah, and it was it was not a problem. I thought that it was a great victory Yeah, I did terribly but I I've been at no I bombed But you know they didn't get it as a great victory. Yeah. I did terribly, but I, I've been at, no. I bombed. I bombed. But you know, they didn't get it. Yeah.

For me, it was a big breakthrough. I wasn't upset that they were there, did not do well. Yeah. You just couldn't follow any of them. What's fine with it? Just fine with it. I've never been back. Haven't gone back.

But I think there's also that thing where, and we forget this all the time. I don't know that this ever goes away. You're reminded of it. But the following people, where you just go, oh yeah, the audience doesn't necessarily want the same shit over and over. So when you get out there,

they're pretty grateful for a new flavor. Then it's just a matter of like, well, do you have, have you done enough of the work to have a point? And then I think that you're fine. Kind of. I didn't used to think that. I used to think, oh, this guy is doing this. So I gotta do that.

And then I bomb because I don't do that. But that you weren't that pretty early on. Very early. And then many times after. Yeah, you can't just jump into somebody's energy. They're cadence and they're river. But the truth is, is that, you can't just jump into somebody's energy, their river. But the truth is, is that, you know, if someone kills before you, you're gonna have to suck it up for a few minutes.

A lot of time. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Unless you take a hit at them on the way off. Yeah, yeah. Which is, I do. It's questionable material. You gotta do it sometimes. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But there's some guys that do it, like, you know, I'll do it to, I won't take a shot totally, but like, I'll but there's some guys that do it like, you know, I'll do it to I won't take a shot totally But like like I'll do a thing where it's sort of like all right. That was fun now Let's shift into cranky Jew energy. Yeah, and that's good right right. Yeah. Do you remember? the person you followed and tried to The first time you tried to just jump on their one one sits in my mind The first time you tried to just jump on their wave? One sits in my mind very clearly. I don't remember his last name.

It was Paul. It was his first name. And it was just the two of us kind of co-headlining in Austin. So it was either, I think it was South by Southwest. Yeah. And playing a venue that wasn't necessarily great for standup. Oh, that something follies or the... No, it was not even that.

It was like a bar, like the staircase was kind of in the way. Oh, I know follies? No, it was not even that. It was like a bar. Like the staircase was kind of in the way. Oh, I know that place. Was it partially outdoors? It might have been. But he went up first and I think we had just flipped a quarter or someone had just said this is the order. But we didn't know. I didn't know him. I don't think he knew me. Yeah. And he just went up and it was just set up punch and not like it wasn't just that it was his rhythm. Yeah. Jokes were great. I mean, I was in the back laughing and then and in my head I was just set up punch. And not like, it wasn't just that it was his rhythm. Jokes were great. I mean, I was in the back laughing. And then, and in my head I was just like,

why don't we go up and do my thing? But I went up there and very quickly was like, kind of still in his rhythm because I really watched his set and I really enjoyed it. And I think I was like, oh wait, what am I, this isn't how I talk. And you know, then you- Rebombing?

I was bombing. But then I like pointed out the bombing, which gives you a little bit Of grace yeah, you can say hey, I'm aware sure But it wasn't like I was able to then recover with any kind of material because you know I think what I was talking about was now I hadn't built any rapport now when I talk about either You know I've always talked about drugs and sex stuff or politics. So the moment I say it's almost like I don't know who you are and now you're making we moment I say it, it's almost like, ah, this is, I don't even know who you are

and now you're making me feel like- We forgave him and now it's still not good. That's exactly how I find it. Kind of was like, all right, I have to do 30 more minutes so I'll just do that and then I'll get out of here. But it's one of those lessons where you go, oh yeah, you can't think about someone else's rhythm. You just gotta like it and not try to do it.

It took me so long to just be able to, you know, kind of live through mediocre audiences. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Just they're wearing up on stage and you're like, I'm doing all right, but this is the level they're meeting me at. And I'm just gonna have to take that. Yeah. There's nothing I can do to turn this. You can't adjust it. you can't step it up.

Sometimes at the comedy store, there's like half a room that they're like, are you not settled in? Did you make the wrong, are you at the right place? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's like, oh my God. Well, sometimes out here I feel like the struggle can be, you're not famous. Like I go up and they're like,

oh, I knew this guy, but I don't know this guy. And I feel like their vibe is, I just want to know who's next and be excited because I think there's this want to tell people who you saw. I don't know, the comedy store. I think I was there when so and so came out. Well, yeah, that happens, but like a lot of times though, like the comedy store is a lot of people now

that are good comics, but they're not famous yet. Right, right, right. And the audiences are great. They get excited when they see someone famous, but then you, you know, over time, you watch a lot of famous people just do okay. Yeah. Well, I think that's what I,

when I first moved to LA, that was kind of my headspace, and it kind of made me angry. And so I didn't like make this major push to try to be at the improv of the factory, the store. I don't do those too. Often. I don't try to like get over there,

because I just go, ah, there's a lot of, like, you know, I go to a tiger Lily be like oh, this is No one paid to get in so the expectation is it's just gonna be whatever it is and like I don't know I felt like a greater freedom as opposed to hey sure to get sparking you didn't want to do your job Didn't want to At all I want to be able to go ahead. Yeah, you wanted a casual. I want to go into this bad be like what are you? You didn't pay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I'm just casual approach. I wanted to go into his bad, be like, what are you, you didn't pay. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'm just fucking around. I don't know you anything. This is a playground for me. It's a sandbox. Haggerly, but it's so weird because with all those spaces, which is where I'm sure I met you at those different places, like I always resented it because I always come out of the clubs. And it was just sort of like, why are we even in this venue?

This fucking sound sucks. There's nobody sitting directly in front of me. I got to play to the sides. It's a makeshift space. Yeah, yeah. And it's like there are people there that didn't know it was a show. That was always the thing about alternative comedy. It's like, well, they're going to stay. Don't make them stay. Just because they ate dinner here. There's nothing better than the TVs just getting turned off.

Yeah. Wait, what do you do? It's the fourth quarter. But there's a spoken word event where 10 different people are gonna offer 10 different perspectives. And eight of them are an amateur. All of them do not have enough money to even actually be at this venue on a regular night. And they're amateurs.

They're just starting out. No one is pro. Some people are, is their first time. Why don't you do, are you past at the store? I've never, I know, I've never really put in the effort to try to be. What is that? I should do that. I feel like I should make an effort to pop these clubs.

But are those days behind you or you're not gonna? No, I'm all for it. I mean, the legendary space of the store. Like, I respect, I respect all these venues. Where are you doing comedy? I go to Elysian a lot. I'll do shows there. Like that's where I kind of put this hour

or like got it where it needed to be to like start touring it. Elysian, Largo, which is almost too intimate. I kind of love it. I love that Elysian is kind of like a East side Largo, Tiny Earth, Largo. I do Dynasty type writer because it's in between Largo and Elysian.

It's like, you know, it doesn't feel like, like, okay, it's just me and you guys. Yeah, gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that.

I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that.

I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. I'm not gonna say that. when I first started where people were very like, you're either like the alt rooms or you're like the clubs and it felt like they were battling. But, you know, I came up listening to comics who were saying, no, you need to be able to play both. And I took that to heart being like, oh yeah,

the clubs out there are not gonna be like the alt shows in DC or New York or LA. They're gonna be clubs. That's where I'm gonna go play. So you started in alt rooms? Sort of, yeah, I mean, I started in DC and so there was just the DC improv right and so you could get booked to do the Competition once a month and you would maybe get to MC right? So you kind of had to do the bars or the the different yeah

Cuz I started in clubs really and then when the all thing happened. I guess I was part of it in New York really. And then when the all thing happened, I guess I was part of it in New York, the Luna lounge, but I was just there angry and blowing off steam that I couldn't get more work at clubs. That's how my voice came into being. But I always saw clubs and the alternative space is I always felt like if I'd go do Nerdmelt, I'm like, this whole fucking audience is one person. It's the same guy. Well, I think what I like is that it seems like conditions that are not so much NerdMelt, but like a lot of the shows, like Luna Lounge,

it's not really conducive to having any kind of live entertainment, that was such a narrow space. There was something that I saw as, that I really liked about it because it was like, well, I do need to have this material. But it's almost like, but I also sort of have to have the ambiance to try to make it all come together. And I think I got addicted to, oh, this isn't really where a show should happen. And it's not really great for one.

But let's see. I think I kind of got excited. Well, I think the muscle you get to, you build eventually, and the biggest example of it really in terms of where we're at now, in terms of where we can work and where we choose to work is like, you know, I had a choice of doing a, you know, dates at Stand Up Live in Phoenix or trying a theater in Phoenix. And I always go to Stand Up Live. Yeah. Have you been there? Yes. Yeah. So that's a theater in Phoenix. And I always go to stand up live. Have you been there? Yes.

So that's a club. Yeah. And it's definitely a club. Yeah. It's a big club. Yes. But you know, but you can feel the club dynamic where is it when you're in a theater

specifically for your people, even if it's a club with most of your people, it still feels you can't get past a club element. Yeah. Whereas a theater, you know, there's no servers There's no drinks. There's focus and you have a different type of freedom. Yes Yeah, and I think you really feel it there But but but again a theater is not like an alternative room, right? But there is a choice there on how you want to perform but I because I like doing club work

I did like six shows in Portland. It was fine. I was exhausted. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But, you know, I think that's what I, this was the first tour where I said, let's do theaters for the most part. Yeah. And let's see where we stand. Let's see who shows up. And so it did feel good to see numbers being pretty decent at some of these venues that I thought were probably too big for me. Yeah. It was a great scene who actually came out and who saw the show. But I think for me, what I really liked was like, oh, it can really be a different show. Yeah. It's like we can really say something about the lights and the music.

Yeah. We really get to have the whole space. Yeah. The whole fucking even the music book ends were about come. Yeah. That's right. I try to I say that too. I used to say that in the show

and then I didn't make it in the special, but I think the main thing I liked was, oh, we do the one and then we get out of town. Yeah. Like even if we sold enough to add a second show, which financially is great, I was still like, I like giving it all here. I like having 24 hours to recharge to do it again.

I don't mind the second show, but I'm not confident that it will sell out. And then I'm sort of like, for me it's not even the energy thing. It's like, I'm gonna do a full house and kill, and then I'm like, gotta go to half a house. I know. Like, can I?

That was Chicago, that was Chicago for me. Like, can I? That was Chicago. That was Chicago for me. The Vic? We did Thalia Hall. Oh, yeah. And it was great. That's a weird place. I loved it.

I was like, oh, this is so cool. It's so old. It's so weird. Sold out the first show. Yeah. And it was so much fun. And then we did half on the second show. And I had these two hecklers.

And I literally committed 10 minutes to pretending I was them on stage and what their lives must be like and while that was very fun and wildly fulfilling, I still was like, oh, everybody didn't really get to see the show. I think is like the show. Well, that's fun, but that's also fun too because like on that second show, you give less of a fuck. You're looser. You're over it.

Yeah, I mean, especially in clubs. Right. Like I was doing two shows at night in Portland, the second show was like loopy. Would you do Helium? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I was just working shit out and I like that town and I can do a theater there, but I was working out.

And, and you know, it's pretty rewarding in a way to, you know, a lot of times, yeah, you can make as much money in a night as you can doing four or five shows at a club. But a lot of times you can make more at the club. You just got to be willing to work. And I needed the time. I needed the hours. Yeah.

Yeah. But, but that second show always gets weird because I'm tired and, you know, and I'm a little loopy. Well, they're a little more drunk too. Yeah. And then you can sort of feel where that's where things kind of happen. Right. Yeah.

I don't know. Thalia Hall, did you get a pair of socks? I got a pair of socks. Yeah, I almost wore them today. I wish I knew where my Thalia socks were. Do you, when you're, so when you go to Portland and you're doing the club and you're putting the hour together

and you're like, all right, it feels pretty good. There's a lot of chunks in here that are gonna exist and they're gonna be in the main thing. Like, do you then feel weird if you then put a theater show together and you're coming back to Portland or do you feel like, hey, everybody who came came out you're probably gonna come out again your fans? Yeah, you're my people weird do you feel like oh they already saw it or do you feel like hey now?

You're gonna get to see the more concreted version of what I was well Yeah, I mean that's okay, and like you know of course your agents always like that's not gonna matter I'm like to me it gets in your head Yeah, well, you know I and I usually don't do that in Portland if I I'm working out an hour at a club, I usually go like St. Louis, like where's another one? I'll go to Denver. Yeah. But then I, you know, but a lot of times then I'll go back and do Boulder, but people don't come down from Boulder usually.

Yeah, right. But yeah, I do get nervous about that. Yeah. Because then even if people are being nice and they say like,, well, you know, I saw that whole set the last time here, but it's a lot better now. I'm like, fuck you. Yeah. Don't tell me you saw it.

Now I said it was better. It doesn't matter. No, it's better. Get away. Yeah. Oh, so it wasn't good before. No, is that what you're saying? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Why? I try to tell people I go, if you're a real fan of comedy and comics, I go, you'll never get to go watch your favorite band write the album. You just will never get to do that. I go, but if you're a real fan of Mark Marin, you can go into the kitchen and watch him make the meal if you want to.

And then you then get to see what that looks like when it hits the table. So you do get two versions of a show, and the hardcore fans, I think they are like that. And then they watch the special. And they want to watch you, I think real comedy fans want to see almost your first set once the special has dropped.

They want to be like, what is blank page and you don't have shit to say? What does that look like? Yeah, but then you're going back with the 15 minutes you didn't put in the special and they're like no fuck. This is a oh, yeah, I've got this that's all I actually that's all I've got right now of course Where else are you gonna start? I think there's a there's a chunk of material that I've not done for two specials That's just kind of hanging out

Doesn't make the team. Yeah, and it's back. That's how we start every time. It's Rudy from Notre Dame It's not gonna get on the team. He's reliable though. You know he's not going to get practice. He's going to get you through. He's going to get you through practice. He helps get the other bits better for the game. Exactly. That's true. So now with your wife, how's she with everything? She's good, she's good with it. Yeah, good sport. There was a time when I'd sort, she's a good sport. There was a time with this where when this was coming together,

I told her one day in the kitchen, I go, you're more a part of this show than you've ever been in the past. And she was asking why and I go, I think you should just see the show. I go, but I go, it's not like, you know, these things are these, I go, we all know that jokes have to come from a thing.

I go, but I don't know that it's necessary funny if I went on stage and said, my wife and I are really happy together. I go, I am, I go, but that doesn't make me laugh. And I don't really care if someone else is. You do it after. I'm like, give me some nitty gritty that you kind of don't want to talk about. And I was like, so I go, that's there. And I have to exaggerate it. I go, and she knows the deal, but she has come to see it three times. She was at the taping for the special. And it's funny because she'll usually be with her friends. Yeah. And I'll

say a joke and she says all her friends will look at her to see her respond first. Yeah. Before she, they will laugh. Yeah. But they also have pulled me aside and been like, you know, she's laughing the whole time. And I'm like, I have to like at no point am I giving a confession? Right. Right. I go, I think these are jokes too. I think it's playful and it's fun and it's silly. Yeah. But she, you put her through it up there. Right, right. I go, I think these are jokes too. I think it's playful and it's fun and it's silly. Yeah, but you put her through it up there. Oh, she goes through it. Yeah.

She knows what she signed up for. But like, but I keep thinking about that. Like if I got on stage and said, well, I'm not married, but like if I said, like, you know, tonight's night I'm gonna fuck around my girlfriend if anyone's game. My audience who are mostly, you know, middle-aged women are gonna be like,

you fucking monster. I know. But the thing is, is like, you know, when you do it, they're suspending their disbelief or something. Yeah. You know, they're not taking you for your word necessarily, even though you do ride an edge with it. Yeah, yeah.

But you're not coming at them with like the menace of like, you know, we're gonna really do it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I don't know what that is. I don't think it comes across that way. Yeah, no, it doesn't. But I think it's sold enough to wear, because I would like someone to be like,

I don't know, I mean, was that real? Sure. Like I would love it if someone would be like, I don't know what was real or not. And I'd be like, yeah, that's the shit I love. Yeah, yeah real or not and I'm I mean, yeah, that's a shit. I love yeah Yeah, the comedy that I've seen yeah when it's been absurd. Yeah and Todd Glass really opened my eyes to this Yeah, the first time I ever saw him didn't know who he was so I'm gonna DCM prof I had a moment I go I actually don't really know what he's fucking up. Yeah, I don't know what is the joke

I don't know what's real. Yeah, And it was the fastest hour I'd ever seen that when he said, all right, I gotta get out of here. I thought it had been 15 minutes. Looked at my watch. This was pre everyone having a cell phone. Looked at my watch. And I was like, oh, it's been an hour. He's been up there an hour.

And I think that's always stuck with me. Like the audience doesn't get to have the, they don't, there is no privilege of like, you get to know what's real. Yeah. I, I hate that. Yeah. I don't want that.

I want to be fucking confused. Yeah. See, I think all art, I want to be like confused and I want to, I want to like it, but I don't want someone to just give me reality and give me the answers. Yeah. I think, well, I don't think, I think I'm too real. That's the problem. Okay.

I'm, this is about me. Obviously this whole conversation is just me talking to you, comparing myself to you. I'm finding a lot of me in it. Yeah. I'm finding a lot of relations. I guess I'm working stuff out there, but I know the jokes are there. I just think if there's one place I need to go is, I think I could be a little goofier. Sure.

And a little more engaged with pop culture. I have a joke that I was doing for a few, a couple months. And it was fine the way it was. And one night at the comedy store, Chris Rock was in the back of the room watching me. And I get off and it gives me a tag. And I'm like, oh, that's pretty good. And it's a huge laugh.

Like every time, I'm like, I guess that's why he's Chris Rock. And but it's just an aside. But I would never have thought of it. Right, yeah, yeah. Because I don't have the cultural reference. Yeah. And then between me and you.

Into these microphones, you got it. Yeah, into these microphones. For years, I've been carrying around with me the knowledge that like years ago in New York, it was before I got sober, so this was like 25 years ago probably. Catcherizing started moved and it was at this new location. It wasn't a great location. And I was playing with this idea about planned you know, planned obsolescence, you know, which is they make things to break.

So you buy the same thing again. And I had some, these ideas going through my head, but no one gave a fuck about me or who I was. And rock was doing some joke about, you know, AIDS eventually just getting to a point where it's just like having a cold. Like it'll be that normalized in some way, the medicine, right? And I, after he got off, I told him, I said, look, you know, there's no money in a cure. And that became

this big bit. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right? Yeah, yeah. So after he gave me the dumb punch line, you know, I texted him, I'm like, thanks man, it works great. He's like, yeah, I'm glad it works. And I'm like, and I don't know if you remembered it. I would feel this. I can relate to this. Yeah.

Just a heads up. I don't know if you remember this. But it's not really quite petty, but you wanted recognition. Yeah. And I told him that I gave him that. And all he wrote back was, you're a good man. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I know what you mean. Yeah. Yeah. You're like, I want you to.

Yeah. We're even. Yeah. Yeah. One to one now. Yeah. Because I knew he probably wouldn't remember. Right.

That's it. Yeah. That's it. You know, like I didn't take anything from him. Yeah. Yeah. This is barter. This is debt. This is yeah. That's it. You know, like I didn't take anything from him. Yeah, yeah. This is barter. This is debt.

Long time coming. You should have wrote back debt paid. Debt fulfilled. What are your thoughts when someone gives you a tag like that and it crushes? Yeah. You feel fine? You're like.

No, I feel like I should quit. Really? No. It doesn't happen that often. Right, yeah. And that, it's just a. It doesn't happen that often. Right, yeah. And that, it's just a passing bit. It's a line. Yeah, yeah.

You know, people will throw tags at you, but a lot of times they don't resonate, but. Yeah. Because it was Christian, I didn't even understand the reference, you know, because it's a reference to a TV show that I really didn't watch. So it didn't, but it works.

Right. And I'm like, fine, you know, people write jokes. I'm writing all my own jokes. The guy wants to give me a tag Yeah, Rhodes gave me a tag once. I think it depends where it comes from sure and then you go. Yeah, right? We're all You can't you're you're never gonna be out there if you could sit out there and watch you You might be like oh I have I can I can hold other thing Oh, this should be yours, but it's not possible

No, and it's like some of these guys at that level, they sit with five writers. Yeah. And they go through their shit. Yeah, yeah. And they figure it out. Wouldn't that be great? Not really. I don't know if I could do it. I would love five writers. You would. You would? I mean, material, be like, all right, let's go play around with it. I don't think I would get so upset about it. I have always wondered because I do feel a purist element that I should be writing it. I should be doing it. Right. And that sits there.

But I do sometimes think like if there were three friends going, what about this is a topic? I think I'd be like, yeah, all right, I'll go play around with that. But that's different. Yeah. I mean, I've done monologue jokes. Or even if they're writing it specifically.

Right, I've done monologue jokes. Yeah. Where, you know, like I've done shows on the radio and I've done, you know, a TV show where you got writers who do jokes. Yeah. Like monologue jokes. Yeah.

And they're just like, you know, I'm going to share some math problems with you. Yeah. And all the answers are correct. Yeah. You know what I mean? All right. But if you're talking about something

and then somebody gives you an idea to broaden it. I mean, that's the- Sure, yeah, yeah. Because that's what we're doing on our own. Right. Is that you and I, if you're talking about something and then somebody gives you an idea to broaden it, I mean, that's the, because that's what we're doing on our own is that you and I, if you write on stage, you've got this idea and then you're just banking on, you know, the cosmos to deliver something in the moment that becomes part of your thing, that keeps expanding. It becomes a whole world, you know.

And if someone could suggest that, how do you go further with this? Right, yeah, yeah. But you seem to do that on your own. I think so. I mean, I definitely have, when you're on the road with people or you're doing spots, like, there are people that'll come up and go, hey, here's a great example. And I don't mind throwing this out there. But I have a callback in this special, like a physical one, where I take the highlighter back out of my head. And it was a comic who came to see me working the hour at UCB Franklin. And he goes, you know, it could be funny if when you're actually reading the letter,

you go back and highlight it. And I didn't even try it out. I go, I already know that will absolutely crush. I already know it. I go, I already know that will absolutely crush. I already know it. I'm picturing it. It will 100% work. And I did it on the next show whenever that was. Message that do back and I go, it crushed. I go, absolutely great.

I was like, thank you so much. If there's anything I can do for you. If 25 years from now, you need anything from me. Well, those are the kind of things that you take. You don't wanna, you know what I mean? Whether it's a- Oh yeah. But I know what you mean.

Like if someone said, hey, you should talk about this, like bigger toppings. If you are almost like, I write the albums. Yeah, that's right. I got it. That's right. What if you were, or a lot of times they're like, what if you go this direction?

And you're like, well, that wouldn't be me at all. Yeah, but I appreciate it. But I get it because there is a that that purist element and I and I know I keep saying this over and over but I really do think it goes back to music because when you find out a musician or a band writes all of it, you know, you like that. Yeah. When you find out someone else wrote it, you go, ah, it does sound good. Yeah, but it doesn't it's missing that one piece where I want them to have right come up with it. You like that. Yeah. When you find out someone else wrote it, you go, ah, it does sound good. Yeah. But it doesn't, it's missing that one piece where I want them to have come up with it. But there's also cover music and cover songs and they do that. But then, and again, like, usually this conversation would be just like, you know, have you ever,

has anyone, you know, given you a tag and be like, yeah, yeah, a couple in my life. The only reason I'm talking about it was because it was Chris Rock. I know. and be like, yeah, yeah, a couple in my life. The only reason I'm talking about it was because it was Chris Rock. I know. I know. Gave me the tag and I'm willing to say it works really good. Yeah. Because Chris Rock gave it to me.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But that's what I mean. You got a professional chef in the back going, Sure, yeah. Hey, lunch is spicy there. Lunch is spicy there, yeah. And Tom Rhodes. But honestly, those are the-

Oh yeah, you're about to say Tom Rhodes gave you one. But that was years ago. But those are the only two I really remember because they really you know, they kind of Relieved the tension. Yeah, I can't remember the one the fucking Tom gave me. It was good. I'm not gonna lie I love it. I love if I'm watching a show. Yeah, I love trying to think of tags I love trying to think of right and left turns They could go I never if it's a comic that I always try to read someone to, if I'm in friends with them, then I go, dude, you should think about this. Yeah, no, I did.

If I don't know them that well, I always try to feel it out. Cause I know some people get offended by that. Like, I don't fucking need your shit. I'm like, I get it. I totally get it. But there are times when I'm like, if I come up, I'm like, look, I don't know, but my instinct is this would fucking work. Sure, if you have that relationship with him.

I gave one to, it was really kind of great because I gave one to Neil Brennan and he's like Mr. Writer guy. And he's always gonna, you know, like dude, what if you didn't, like he's a writer. Yeah, right. And I remember I pointed something out to him and he's like, oh yeah, that'd be good.

I'm like, that's a win And then literally the other night the Elysian I did a benefit and you know Peppertone went before me and I had a note for him. I had two notes for him I go, you know, cuz he's doing this thing. Yeah, who knows if he'll ever do it again about Just being at home. I mean you talk about off the dome. Sure. That's I love it I love not knowing and you'll you'll like this note. I said, you talk about off the dome. Sure. That's, I love it. I love not knowing. And you'll, you'll like this note. I said, you gotta say calm.

Don't say sperm. Yeah. It's different. Just say calm. He's like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. And I said, I said, what's great is that he then makes that bit. The time Mark Marin told him to say come instead of sperm. That's five whole other minutes.

Yeah, yeah, making me look like an asshole. But, but then also he references, you know, you know, one of his references about hat comics, you know, you can't do the airplane food thing anymore. It's like, I get to talk about airplane food. It's like, no one knows what you're talking about. Yeah, yeah. That, that reference to a hat comic doing airplane food jokes is before you even started doing comedy. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And I gave him some other option. Yeah. We'll see. Oh, he was in earnest talking about airplane food. No,

no, no. He was, you know, he was in the joke of a joke. Well, the joke was about, you know, like being funny and how that's going to serve him. And, you know, in the future when it's like Mad Max and he's tied to the front of one of those cars. He's like, hey fellas, you know what about air plane food? Oh, you're saying the reference, you gotta give it up to him. He's making the comic tied to the front

of the Mad Max machine, but he had referenced a better one where he said, you know, a lot of comics are gonna come up here like their relationships are hard. And I said, why don't you do that? You know, like on the front of the bed, and actually like, fellas, our relationships are hard. I agree with that. Yeah, I agree with that.

So I don't know, we'll see if you do. That is funny to think that in our minds, we all register the airline food as like, it's kind of in like the- It's actually a hack reference to a hack. I know, right. But I like that in your head, you're like, you's kind of in like that. It's actually a hack reference to a hack. I know. Right. But I like that in your head, you're like, you've actually gone too far back.

Yes. With the references. That's right. No one knows what you're talking about. Absolutely. They don't, not, hard way anyone does. Yeah. I arguably, we only knew.

Yeah. At that time, and that's like almost. Because we heard it so much. Sure. Other people are like, I've heard one comedian a year. Yeah. Right. Right. But I don't even know if we heard it so much. Sure. Other people are like, I've heard one comedian a year. Yeah. Right. But I don't even know if we heard it so much. We heard, you know, comics who were

supposedly the guys who weren't hacks referring to it. Yeah. I mean, sure, there were jokes about airplane food, but I don't remember any of them. Yeah. You know what I mean? My next hour, we'll start with it. Airline food? Yeah. Just take all the hack promises. That's my promise that I'm putting in this permanent location of this episode that people will build a reference. My next page will start with it. Just take all the hack premises. That's my promise that I'm putting in this permanent location of this episode that people will be able to reference. My next page will start with it.

Just airline food. Yeah. How old's your kid now? Eight. How's that going? It's great. It's so depressing just because being a parent it makes you deal with your own shit so much.

You kinda try to block it and you see your own life through your kid's life. Really? Yeah, it's very bizarre. And also the world we live in, you constantly are wondering, like, will there be a future for my child? Well, that thing, I don't know.

Any capacity that you just keep trying to pretend as though there will be. Yeah. Or what can you do to help create it? And then you're like, what can I do with one person? Nothing. Like, here's a toy. Yeah. Yeah. You know, where do you want to help create it? And then you're like, what can I do as one person? Here's a toy.

Yeah, yeah. Where do you wanna go today? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I will say that was something I was talking about on stage is like, spoiling my child. I used to, I came from a big family and I used to hate it when kids got what they wanted because it meant their parents had the money

or they were the right child right? But I do get it now specifically because I'm like well the world is terrible got ten years left Yeah, I should just buy you whatever you want. Yeah Yeah, and so you're doing that. Yeah, well, that's good. I tried I tried not to but it's it's hard And what's the plan now? What are you acting in something acting trying to write? I want to finally write something that we shoot and I can I can say I've you know Maybe at some point directed that didn't this specific year I would like to write that doesn't involve you in front of anything

I think these two things I'm working on now do yeah But I would like to get to that point where I wrote something and was a part of something I didn't feel the need to be in. Or even start in that place of wanting to be in it, really just to go, I wanna create something. Yeah, you wanna create something that makes you money while you're sleeping.

Exactly, exactly. And so that's, I've now graduated to that. I wanna be paid for my name being at the thing. I graduated that element of my acting career. But what are you working on? Trying to go out with a show, trying to work on a movie idea. Oh, okay. But nothing's in production. Nothing's in production. It's all the start of it. But I feel good about everything, but it is the first time I've been like, you know what, let's really sit down and try to try to make something as opposed

to, hey, let's sit down and hope auditions come in. It's now in that space of like, oh, I don't mind audition, I like being in stuff. But yeah, you know, that create your own opportunity thing just becomes more of a reality. I think the longer you do it. Well, that's the best thing about being a comedian is like, you don't have when you go out for auditions and you realize the life of an actor. Yeah, what a fucking nightmare. Yeah. Yeah. Just waiting for someone to decide. for auditions and you realize the life of an actor. What a fucking nightmare. Just waiting for someone to decide. I think about it all the time. Say stuff that's okay.

Yeah, or finally get to be in something to see if you're capable of being in something. You don't get to know, whereas like, for decades now we could go on stage and find out, I didn't have it. Yeah, I'm right there. We can keep doing it. And you can decide tonight, I'm gonna there. You know, we can keep doing it. Oh, yeah. And you can decide tonight,

I'm gonna go do three spots and you will do them. Yeah. But, you know, unless we ride our own thing, you then have to hope you get an audition where someone goes, no, you make sense. We have to hope someone's written something where they go, no, it's always been Mark, it's gotta be Mark. And they go, oh, great.

That happens. You have to wait for that. That happens a couple of times. But a lot of times they're like, it's gotta be Mark, we have no money. Director's never directed anything a lot of times they're like it's got to be mark. We have no money Directors never directed anything before. Yeah, but we think it's we have half a script. We're hoping mark would actually write this Because it's him it's him it's him and so he'll know it yeah, he'll know what he would have decided But what I see I saw you in what Babylon Babylon. Yeah, and what was it? Was there another one? I feel I was on physical with Rose Byrne show on Apple TV Plus.

I see that. With regular part? Is a regular part of it. That's good. Her husband, it was great. It was so fun. That was very eye-opening in terms of like, oh, Rose Byrne is, holy shit.

She's funny. She's funny. She's dramatic. She can do the full spectrum. She does it. And I think you and I both know there aren't a lot of people that can pull off believable drama and Very funny comedy. No, no, she's kind of interesting. Yeah, it's a tough scale and she's can go how many how many seasons does that go?

Three that's good. We did three. Yeah got your insurance got some insurance I got to do it for three years. It started during COVID so it kind of just saved me because the road was gone Yeah, I was I bet you that's when I used to see Bobby. Yeah. Her husband at the gym. Yeah. And he's just like, I'd see him across, he'd come over, how you doing? Perfect. Yeah, yeah. He's a great guy. Nice guy. Yeah. Yeah. And what else? I think that's, well, I started painting. I paint now and I sell paintings.

But that was the only other thing I saw you on? Maybe I didn't see him physical, it was just Babylon. Babylon physical. Didn't do any bit parts here and there. Um, you know what's so funny? Do you ever do this? Like your IMDB gets brought to your attention. Yeah. And you go, oh, I'm doing better than I seem to think I am.

Yeah, but most of them ask himself. It's all little stuff, you know? Or then there's like, but then there's like things in there. They're wildly significant, obviously. Sure. But but uh, yeah, that happened to me recently where I I've always just in my head I think I live in this space of constantly think I've done five things. Yeah All right, yeah, I should I should accept reality. Yeah, I'm doing all right of this false story. I'm telling myself Where's mine? Yeah. How come I'm not getting anything?

Really, you're doing great. You're on a show. Painting. Painting now? I started painting and now I sell paintings. It is very bizarre. You and Kevin Christie. Me and Kevin Christie.

I message him to see if he likes any of my paintings. You do? He's a harsh critic. Yeah, he does this. He does a very good thing. He's very good. Are you doing the same world to you? No, mine's very, not that his isn't or can't be abstract,

but mine is very abstract. Oh really? He's clearly very like educated and seasoned and nice and stuff. Yeah, he's making decisions about. I'm the asshole who has enough street cred to be able to sell an abstract piece and people go, oh yeah, okay.

Are you just kind of winging it? I saw you in Babylon. Yeah, yeah, that's great. I'm not winging it? I saw you in Babylon. Yeah, yeah, that's great. I'm not winging it, I'm very like addicted to it. So it's now my like, whenever I'm not working on anything. You've never had any real training? Just kind of doing it. No, just trying to do it.

Oh, that's great. And I love it so much. Oh, that's great. To have something like that. I think so. I try to tell people they should do it. And they're always like, well, I'm not a painter. I'm like, yeah, but no one really is. And I'm not saying try to sell stuff. You have a good sense of color. I'm just saying tell people they should do it. And they're always like, well, I'm not a painter. I'm like, yeah, but no one really is.

And I'm not saying try to sell stuff. You have a good sense of color. I'm just saying paint, just to do it. Better than I ever thought in my entire life, am I decent at choosing like what colors kind of make sense? And I've never looked at myself that way. I always thought I was like an idiot about my clothes. Didn't know what color coordination even meant.

And I will say, when you start interacting with colors and having to choose them, it weirdly becomes, like my favorite color is now fluorescent orange. And I would have never thought that. I think that's a ridiculous answer. Now that I've interacted with it and I've used it, I realize I like what it does more than other colors I used to like love.

Yeah. And it feels very bizarre. It feels very bizarre to suddenly have a compassionate feeling about colors. And that it's the same color as like hunting vests. Yes. And that's, and so all my stuff is safety themed. Crossing guards, construction. I think this probably all came out of your tucking your shirt in your pants.

It's all because I took my shirt in. I thought, you know, safety. Yeah. But also just painting. It's like, I can just, you know, do different things. Yeah. Yeah. It changes everything. I tell people to try it. Yeah. It's worth it.

It's definitely worth it. Well, buddy, it's good talking to you. Good seeing you. Special hilarious. Thank you. Thank you for watching it. There you go. I love that guy. Painting. He's painting. The Specialist is called Religion, Sex, and a few things in between.

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Hey, listen, if you want to hear my thoughts about the Oscar-nominated films and performances, check out the new Mark on Movies bonus episode on the full marin. I'll drop some truth about Jimmy Kimmel as the Oscar host. Where does he rank for you in the pantheon of Oscar hosts? The best. Yeah, I think he's definitely one of, if not the best, yeah. Dude, that thing he did that one year, like I will never, you know, he's won my heart over forever.

When he brought those regular people into that room, that was one of the most subversive, most brilliant things. I don't even think he knows how amazing that was I've watched like a making of of him doing that and It was a big project too Like it was it took a lot to get that to get pulled off and they like they pulled it off live There was nothing about that that was, you know, it was all up to chance. It was so great because it was a cultural political statement

and it was hilarious. But to see some of those people just like, oh my, look who it is. Like, and just how small it made everyone in that room look. Yeah, yeah. But here they were, you you know dressed to the nights Waiting for the results of the biggest night in their life And they got to deal with these fucking regular people that come out

You know that see them on the streets and at restaurants and it was just it was it was very humanizing been very powerful to me That's one of two bonus episodes about the Oscars on the full marin this week to sign up go to the link in the episode description Or go to WTF pod the episode description or go to wtfpod.com and click on WTF+. And don't forget this show is sponsored by BetterHelp Online Therapy. What's the first thing you'd do if you had more time in your day? Take a nap, read a book, talk with a friend. When you know what's important to you, it's easier to fit into your schedule.

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