Check Your Brain

How much do you know about the 30th President of the United States, Calvin Coolidge? Unless you're a history buff or lean conservative, probably not much. But there is some great literature out about his impact on the country during the prosperous and "roaring" 1920s.       Amity Shlaes is on the board of trustees with the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, and in 2013, she authored the book...

Joe Raiola is a comedy writer and satirist, producer of an Annual John Lennon Tribute, and standup comic. He is probably most known for his work in Mad Magazine's editorial department, where he spent 33 years with the magazine, eventually becoming senior editor.     Joe joined Tony Mazur and the Check Your Brain podcast to reminisce over his Mad tenure, his relationship with founder Bill Gaines, t...

Do you have what it takes to become a Navy SEAL? Not many do. In fact, very, very few possess not only the physical makeup of a SEAL, but the mental aspect, as well.     Scott McEwen helped co-write the #1 New York Times Best Selling book American Sniper with Chris Kyle, and he is out with a new book called Hell Week & Beyond: The Making of a Navy SEAL.     Scott and Tony Mazur from the Check Your...

Ryan Lang is a radio news anchor in Akron, Ohio, and he just recently celebrated two years of sobriety. He's also a new father, a fiancee, and a die-hard fan of the band Phish.     Ryan chatted with Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur about his long-time struggles with alcohol, dating back to high school when he lost his mother to breast cancer. He takes the "one day at a time" approach when it comes to...

Nick Sandmann and the Covington Catholic students saw their lives change forever in January 2019 when images of them "smirking" at a Native American Vietnam War veteran went viral, even though there was much, much more to the story.     The mainstream media, celebrities, politicians, and other verified people jumped on this story, accusing the students of racism. Steve Oldfield is the director of...

Bassem Youssef may not be a household name in the United States, but in Egypt, he was the biggest thing since Ful Medames. A Daily Show-like figure, Youssef used satire to question the authoritarian government in Egypt and was arrested during the period of strife for his comedy. He chatted with Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur about how the Middle East and the West deal with political and social sati...

With all of the streaming options available in 2021, why do many still spend their Sundays watching The Golden Girls on basic cable? What is it about this show that ended nearly 30 years ago where people of all ages, races, and sexualities come together and still laugh? Jim Colucci is a writer and author, and back in 2016, he penned a book called Golden Girls Forever, a comprehensive look at the w...

Yale Law PhD candidate Sarah Braasch led a fairly interesting life prior to May 2018, but her world turned upside down when she called the non-emergency police on someone sleeping in a common area without a card key, which means he did not live in that dormitory. This turned into a massive scandal at Yale, and Sarah was labeled a racist for calling the cops over the crime of "napping while black."...

Aaron Berg is a comedian, actor, and one half of the duo that makes up In Hot Water, which is heard Monday-Thursday afternoons on Compound Media.   Aaron is bringing his co-host Geno Bisconte, as well as his Compound co-workers Pat Dixon, Bobby Tamburro, Larry Beyah, and of course Anthony Cumia to the Funny Stop in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio on August 19-21. Comedians of the Compound also has dates in L...

No matter what some major-city mayors may say, crime rates are rising rapidly. Everything from petty crime to homicide numbers have been going up the last few years, and why is that?   Paul Viollis may have some answers. He heads up Viollis Group International after spending several decades in law enforcement. He talked to Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur about how far departments have ventured since...

Don Jamieson is a nationally-touring comedian and host of That Jamiseon Show, which airs Tuesdays on Compound Media.   Check Your Brian's Tony Mazur talks to Don about a variety of things, from how the pandemic and closing of comedy clubs slightly altered his material, how they first met, opening for Andrew Dice Clay, performing at rock festivals, terrible comedy gigs, and some great Otto & George...

Tom Leopold has been a major name in the comedy industry the last half century, even though most of his work was behind the scenes in the writer's room. From the National Lampoon Radio Hour to writing for Cheers and Seinfeld, Tom has worked with and befriended everyone from Steve Allen to Chevy Chase, Harry Shearer to Jonathan Katz, Paul Shaffer to Gilbert Gottfried. The list goes on and on.   Tom...

J.D. Vance joined the national conversation in 2016 with his book, Hillbilly Elegy, which chronicled his small-town life in Middletown, Ohio. He eventually joined the Marines, went to Yale Law, and became a venture capitalist.   After all these years, he has returned to Ohio and is now running for Rob Portman's seat in the senate. He chatted with Tony Mazur about life in a small town, how his port...

Michele Traina is an actor and comedian who rather than sulk after a divorce with her ex-husband, turned it into a one-woman show.   She joined Tony Mazur and the Check Your Brian podcast to talk about her process in doing a deeply personal stage show about her life, how the pandemic may have changed her style and material, and the world of dating in the present day.   Michele is very active on In...

For several decades, baseball cards were a key staple in a young man's life. Some cherished their Henry Aaron rookie cards and kept them in mint condition, while others clipped their Mario Mendoza card onto his bicycle's spokes.   Author and science professor Brad Balukjian took his obsession a step further: he snagged a wax pack of baseball cards, chewed (and promptly spit out) the bubblegum, and...

Dennis Kucinich has been a mayor (at just 31 years of age), state senator, and member of the US House of Representatives. His blue-collar style of politics has drawn undying support and staunch criticism from members of both parties in nearly a half century in politics.   Kucinich has a new book out called The Division of Light and Power, which not only chronicles his fight as mayor of Cleveland v...

Andrew Gruel is a chef, restaurant owner, and TV/radio personality based in Southern California. Restaurants across the country were obliterated not by the COVID-19 virus, but the government response to it, and it will take a monumental effort for them, as well as the owners, managers, and employees, to recover.   86 Restaurant Struggle is a fund to help those workers whose jobs and livelihoods we...

As you may have noticed, there has been a worldwide pandemic going on since early 2020. And because of that, pretty much every event had been postponed for over a year, with certain exceptions. Leah and Tony Mazur did get married in 2020, but will have a mask-free, full-capacity wedding in 2021.   Leah Mazur, the wife of Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur, joined her husband in the studio to talk about...

Beer for a dime? So conceivably, a person can get trashed at the ballpark for just one dollar? Many such cases occurred on June 4th, 1974 at Cleveland Stadium between the Indians and Texas Rangers, which caused a brouhaha between the fans and players as the game progressed (or regressed).   Jim Clark is the play-by-play man for the Akron RubberDucks and the author of the book Rally 'Round Clevelan...

The Social Gospel has been used as a wedge to inject social justice causes inside Christianity, essentially gutting it from the inside. How do we as Christians fight this? Lucas Miles has some ideas, and he gives some background in his new book, The Christian Left: How Liberal Thought Has Hijacked the Church. Lucas talks to Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur about this Christian Cabal, the progressive...

Native Ohioan David Giffels has penned a new tome on his home state and how it is a microcosm for the rest of the country. From its farming roots in the rural areas to the high tech larger cities, to the numerous colleges, Ohio has it all. Giffels sat down via Zoom with Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur to chat about the Buckeye State, its affection for demagogue politicians, and how Ohio seems to be...

Russ Cohen is an author and podcaster. He is the go-to guy when it comes to New York and Philadelphia sports, most notably baseball and hockey.   Russ and Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur talked about a variety of baseball-related topics, from their favorite current and past ballparks, the greatest players in New York Mets history, who New Yorkers root for, and the best rookie seasons in baseball his...

On May 12th, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced the newest members to grace their hallowed halls. Tina Turner, The Go-Go's, Foo Fighters, Jay Z, Todd Rundgren, and Carole King make up the 2021 class at the Rock Hall.   For today's podcast, Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur chats with John Goehrke, the Director of Fan Engagement and Onstage Experience at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland ab...

This is part two of Tony Mazur's conversation with NYC-based comedian and host of In Hot Water and Gum Fridays' Geno Bisconte.   In this episode (which was split in two, as it lasted nearly three hours), Tony and Geno talk about what New York and Los Angeles will look like after the pandemic is over, the hysteria surrounding COVID-19, his relationship with cohost Aaron Berg, and watching sports gr...

If you turn on basic cable right now (well, after you listen to this podcast), A League of Their Own is probably on somewhere, either IFC, Sundance, or TBS. But how accurate was the film? And how accurate are analytics in today's game?   In this two-part episode, Check Your Brain's Tony Mazur first chats with Anika Orrock, author of the book The Incredible Women of the All-American Girls Professio...