Ian Talks Comedy

NewsRadio's Sesame Street ; favorite episodes of Taxi ; his submissions for Harvard Lampoon and SNL ; the change to writing half hour; how Newsradio creator Paul Simms hired comedy writers with no sitcom experience; his first episodes was co-written with Paul Simms; Newsradio's own style of writing; the length of days at Newsradio ; hours were similar to Barney Miller; Christmas Story one of my fa...

The J. Geils Band Richard "Magic Dick" Salwitz joined me to talk about his first musical hero, Louis Armstrong; practicing his instruments; playing the cornet; getting his first harmonica at the ae of3 when he had the flu; wearing harmonicas; how long a harmonica can last; "Whammer Jammer" breaks harmonicas; meeting J. Geils and Danny Klein in 1966; bootlegs; first record deal; having the Allman B...

Jeremiah Ukponrefe joined me to discuss being Canadian; not being a reader growing up; memoirs being both hard to read but also fascinating; the Percy Jackson series; The Outsiders; Of Mice and Men; writing a book; his process; "booing" candy on Halloween; his book The Hive, being Star Wars meets Starship Troopers; morals being subtly hidden in science fiction; self-publishing; his book being one...

Game show legend Jim Peck joined me to talk about living in Milwaukee during the Happy Days era; favorite radio shows; the first time he saw a television; going to Marquette University; getting the performing bug; his first job as a booth announcer at WISN; Don Pardo; hosting a series called Confrontation ;  Jim Peck's Hotline ; hard to get guests; Take it from Here from Washington DC; Big Showdow...

Comedian Glenn Hirsch joined me to talk about his "nickname" Gleeb Hush; the other Glenn Hirsch (The Duck Sauce Killer); meeting a third Glenn Hirsch (a doctor); a similar situation I had with my brother; growing up in Jackson Heights, Queens; his mother being an organized hoarder; old report cards; being a fan of impressionists not comedians growing up; always able to make others laugh; sixth gra...

Comedy writer D.B. Frick joined me to discuss watching the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson; George Carlin; comedians of the 1980's; baseball; John Mulaney; banging Bond babes; Herschel Walker; trying stand up; Wantagh; GPS; The Amazing Race; reality TV; Herve Villechaize; Antonio Banderas; Peter Dinklage; blackface; working at UCLA with Conchatta Farrell; Abe Vigoda; being an intern on Late Ni...

Director Paul Miller joined me to discuss appearing on TV before ever watching it; Howdy Doody ; becoming a director; getting hired at the Ohio State University TV station; getting a job at KGO TV San Fransisco; Electra Woman and Dyna Girl ; working freelance for NBC Sports; directing the Oscars and the Osmonds; getting the call to direct Fridays ; working with KISS; directing the Hollywood C...

Diana Peckham joined me on the phone to discuss watching the Wide World of Disney and The Ed Sullivan Show ; "The Wizard of Oz"; her father being a wrestler in the 1956 Olympics and her grandfather being a professional wrestler in the 1930's; awareness of Andy Kaufman; seeing his challenge on SNL and writing a letter in; being one of four chosen for a "wrestle off"; taking her father and grandfath...

Melanie Chartoff joined me to discuss watching Soupy Sales and Steve Allen; being interviewed by Johnny Carson and Oprah Winfrey; living by herself in Woodstock, NY her the summer of her junior and senior years of high school; her college sweetheart; writing funny songs and putting it into an act; auditioning for the new Laugh In ; moving to L.A.; being in the Proposition; working at the Improv wi...

Tracy Newman joins me to discuss the first time she picked up a guitar; folk music; her favorite childhood movie "Hans Christan Anderson"; Danny Kaye; George Carlin; Jeff Altman; going to college; going to New York; The Limelighters; Italy; performing at the Bitter End; performing at the Improv; becoming a teacher at the Groundlings; Rodney Dangerfield; dating Rodney Dangerfield; The Groundlings b...

Brian Levant joined me to discuss his first TV souvenir: the scripts to a defunct series Noonday; collecting box tops to get toys; still feeling the way about toys that he did when he first got them; his book "My Life in Toys"; his first word being TV related; collecting salt and pepper shakers; playing with the toys he collected and not keeping them in pristine condition; watching Leave it to Bea...

Teri Bolo joined by to discuss the lack of Groundling representation on my podcast; her first vivid memory of seeing Peter Pan on TV; going to see Pollyanna and being told she looked like Hailey Mills; her and her aunt going to Gary Austins improv class, which became The Groundlings; what it means to teach improv or to take improv classes; the rules of improv; whether characters are created or fin...

written by Ian Fermaglich cast:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Ben Rosenfeld / waiter..........................Dylan Gottesman www.backstage.com/tal/dylan-gottesman   dylangottesman@gmail.com         ...

Paul joined me to discuss being happy; Earth Angel; taking a year off from college to write a hit; his management changing his age and name; coming from a musical family; his father hating rock 'n' roll; Elvis; making demos in Nashville; Conan O'Brien; The Pointer Sisters; Brill Building; his hits "When" and "7 Little Girls"; "7 Little Girls" being banned in Boston; performing on Dick Clark's Satu...

Jon Schroeder joined me to discuss his fake imdb facts; his influences Pee Wee Herman, Chris Elliot, Garry Shandling; Sledge Hammer ; going to San Fransisco State; his first job, copying Fresh Prince and Family Matters episodes for syndication; writing promos for the WB; meeting and writing with Doug Benson; getting hired on The Sarah Silverman Program ; her show being more cartoonish than Bob's B...

Joe Grossman joined me to discuss having no early TV restrictions; being a fan of David Letterman since 13 or 14; Chris Elliot; trying at first to be a cartoonist; finding out that Letterman has writers; Lewis & Clark College; learning standup at the American Comedy Institute for an article for Time Out NY; writing a submission packet; being passed over for the job twice; eventually getting hi...

Roger Eschbacher joined me to talk about his early influences; Romper Room ; Monty Python and original SNL , making videos with high school classmates including Tom Kramer; going to college to study communications; getting a job as a PA on Fridays ; working with Andy Kaufman; getting a job on Not Necessarily the News ; having Conan O'Brien tell him about the Groundlings; working there with Lisa Ku...

Tommy Kovac, podcaster and comedian, and I discuss what bought us to our podcast, favorite guests, favorite moments and all sorts of fun stuff.

Boyd joined me to talk about watching Love American Style with his mom, and being inspired by Steve Martin and The Goodies; going to Oklahoma Christian University; sending samples of his work to Letterman head writer Steve O'Donnell; being chosen for the job over Conan O'Brien; realizing he doesn't know the show that well; feeling like he was in over his head the entire time he was there; getting...

Andrew Nicholls joined me to talk about taping The Tonight Show; early English children's TV; The Flintstones; Monty Python; meeting Darrell Vickers; writing The Blob as a musical; trying to write a book depicting the real life of a comedy writer; how TV is like any other job in some ways; TV being a collaboration - both good and bad; We're Only Joking ; how working in Canada gave him and Darrell...

Gabe joined me to talk about growing up a block away from George Carlin and knowing his mother; doing stand up and later talking on the phone and meeting him; his early act; studying under Lee Strasberg at NYU; explosion in number of comedians; open mic nights; doing improv with Robin Williams; not getting bumped back in the day; writing for Bill Maher; becoming a faxer for David Letterman then he...

Franne talked to me over the phone and discussed her first love being clothing; being sent home in high school for wearing jorts; seeing Guys & Dolls with her parents; not being married to Eugene Lee; her first productions in Philadelphia with Danny Aiello; touring with Alice in Wonderland; where she keeps her awards; how Lorne Michaels talked her into coming to SNL; drawing and creating the costu...

Tom Ruprecht joined me to talk about Woody Allen and David Letterman as his comedy influences; getting an internship during the writers' "golden era"; 1990 writer exodus; working at the Tony Awards; being segment coordinator for "human interest guests"; the Farrah Fawcett episode; moving on to researcher; finding a clip of a Jackson 5 special with Dave that he wouldn't let on; selling comedy piece...

Andrew Guerdat joins me to talk about growing up in Birmingham, Alabama;  loving cowboy shows; Andy Griffith; Ed Scharlach teaches comedy writing and introduces him to his partner Stuart Kreinberg; MASH script got them representation; wrote an episode of The Jeffersons that turns up in the background of Basic Instinct; writing an episode of the forgettable comedy Me and Maxx ; moving to Mork...

Scott Jacobson joined me to talk about growing up and being influenced by Letterman, SNL and English comedy; wanting to be in entertainment but not knowing how to get there from Fayetteville, North Carolina; his high school comedy zine; UNC Chapel Hill radio station; interning on the Howard Stern Show ; his father's chance golf game gets him an internship at UCB; meets writing partner Rich Bloomqu...