Sleeping with Celebrities

This episode originally ran August 14th, 2024. *** Is this a feat that the beloved author, actor, and host of Maximum Fun’s  Judge John Hodgman  can actually pull off? Well, no, probably not. There are over 4,600 such islands and he’s only one mortal human. Come on. But will he make a pretty game attempt for a little while and invite you to join his efforts as you drift off to sleep? Oh yes. Oh ab...

The very funny and charming Julie Klausner is known for her starring role in the acclaimed Hulu dark comedy series  Difficult People  and she has appeared in  Big Mouth ,  What We Do in the Shadows ,  At Home with Amy Sedaris , and many other beloved and hilarious programs. It’s stressful work, we think, because Julie has had a lot of massages over the years and she’s here to tell you all about th...

Chris Duffy is a writer, extremely funny comedian, and host of the TED podcast  How To Be a Better Human . He’s also a former contestant on  Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?  (answer: well, we all do, of course) where a producer asked what he would do if he won the titular million bucks and Chris said he would buy a lifetime supply of new socks. That’s a bad answer, the producer said, but Chris stan...

You know Tamara Keith as NPR’s Senior White House Correspondent and as one of the hosts of the NPR Politics Podcast . You can count on her to deliver up-to-the-minute news and analysis on the most dramatic beat in journalism, even if it’s news that you may find very alarming. But there’s nothing alarming or upsetting about Tamara’s thoughts on the vast and delicious world of pies, it’s all very pl...

Comedian, actor, and author Tamara Yajia has a new book Cry for Me, Argentina: My Life as a Failed Child Star  that doesn’t spend all that much time on the subject of charcuterie boards. But that’s what our discussion is for. Learn about Tamara’s grandfather’s extensive and somewhat emotionally charged boards and how they inspired her to make vast boards of her own, first in England and then in Am...

Hanif Abdurraqib is a poet, cultural critic, and author of numerous books, including  They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us ,  A Little Devil in America , and  There’s Always This Year . He’s very passionate about music, as is evidenced in his massive collection, purchased online and at concert venues, of concert t-shirts, band sweatshirts, and other vintage apparel linked to various artists. Hani...

If you love history, you already know about the lovely podcast The Memory Palace , which celebrates the quirky and intriguing elements of stuff that has happened. If you haven’t heard it, go listen. But first, hear honey-voiced host Nate DiMeo explain his complex and impassioned opinions on team names, logos, the nefarious nature of image consultants, and Utah somehow being known for Jazz. Get you...

Nobody knows pop culture better than Linda Holmes, one of the hosts of NPR’s  Pop Culture Happy Hour , and culture doesn’t get much more pop than the nineties teen prime time soap  Beverly Hills, 90210. Let Linda guide you to sleep while she introduces you to Brandon, Brenda, Kelly, Steve, Donna, and even Scott, who we frankly didn’t even know existed until Linda told us about him. We also challen...

There are many places to acquire food and household items in the greater Los Angeles area. You could go to Costco, you could go to Ralphs, you could even swing by 99 Ranch. Or if you listen to this episode with the delightful Sierra Katow, you could visit all these places and let Sierra do the driving while you zonk off to sleep, sated with the audio equivalent of free samples of tasty snacks. You...

Roxane Gay is one of the greatest writers in the world today. Everyone knows this. We’re so thrilled that she agreed to be on our show. Roxane is the author of books like  Bad Feminist  and  Hunger , writes for the New York Times , is a respected social critic and noted professor. All this means that she travels a lot and she joins us, using a very soothing voice, to share her opinions on air trav...

Allan McLeod is an actor who has appeared on Parks & Recreation and You’re the Worst . He’s a podcaster who appears regularly as host on Walkin’ About , here on Maximum Fun. And, for our purposes on this episode, he’s a camper, who appears pretty often at campgrounds around California. Allan walks us through his incredibly detailed and quite lengthy packing list that he uses whenever he and his fa...

Whether you know her from the phenomenally popular YouTube channel Philosophy Tube or from her acting appearances in  House of the Dragon  or  The Acolyte , chances are Abigail Thorn was dry when you saw her and above the surface of the water. Just know that this is not where she prefers to be. Abigail is a scuba diver and is here to send you to sleep by telling you all about her pastoral adventur...

Queen Priyanka is many things: singer, drag queen, Canadian television personality. But today we talk about her role as dog owner and keen observer of the quirks and personality facets of other dog owners, specifically the kind of dog owner that can be characterized as “crazy-ass dog owner.” If you like dogs, are fascinated by the eclectic habits of their owners, or just enjoy hearing conversation...

Being the CEO of Maximum Fun is not as glamorous as you might expect. In fact, it involves a lot of running reports. That’s what we found out from Bikram Chatterji in our latest and final installment of our Naps with Normies series. Tune in and drift off for a quick snooze while the big boss of the whole shebang reveals how shockingly normal his work really is. It's the Max Fun Drive! Go to www.ma...

You’ve heard of the Max Fun Drive. Perhaps you’ve heard us mention it eight billion times. We have to. It’s how we are able to exist. The person who runs the whole drive is April and while she won’t extoll you to donate during this edition of Naps with Normies, she will tell you all about all the spreadsheets and reports she has to run. Just a constant sea of precise low-key work to be done. It's...

You’ve likely seen some of the famous pictures of former astronaut and NFL player Leland Melvin with his two beloved and boisterous dogs, Jake and Scout, Leland is wearing a space suit, the dogs are showering him with affection. It’s really wonderful. Leland, WHO HAS BEEN TO SPACE, tells us all about the dogs he’s had, what it’s like to orbit the earth, and he goes into a lot of detail about his l...

Danny Baruela is responsible for you being able to hear your favorite shows at Maximum Fun, serving as the company’s Technology and Data Specialist. Unlike many people who we have as guests, he’s not a celebrity. Has no movie to promote nor album to plug. He’s a normie, with tasks to perform, a life to live, and a great deal of complicated computer things to keep track of. Get to know Danny as you...

When you become a member of Maximum Fun at even the $5/month level, you get access to our entire library of Bonus Content, including this year’s Sleeping with Celebrities special: The Celebrity Parade of Dreams Supershow. We asked guests from the last year of the show to tell us their weirdest and funniest dreams to lay the groundwork for dream of your own. Here, for FREE, is a little preview of t...

Laura Swisher, also known as Swish, is a senior producer at Maximum Fun, overseeing several shows, including ours. Unlike many people who we have as guests, she’s not a celebrity. Has no movie to promote nor album to plug. She’s a normie, with tasks to perform, a life to live, and so many dogs to sit. Get to know Swish as you settle in for a nap. With a normie. It's the Max Fun Drive! Go to www.ma...

During the Max Fun Drive, we’re offering you special mini-sodes in our regular feed. In this one, host John Moe tells of fostering a rescue dog named Ducky who is really moved by being allowed up on the couch. So much so that he builds a vast network of used and donated couches for dogs to lie down and relax on. It’s a really impressive business model, especially for a rescue Pomeranian. It's the...

Certain movies would have you believe the dogs can play football but I think we all agree iguanas shouldn’t. They’re too delicate. They can, however, form eclectic musical ensembles and play mid-tempo music on bugle, triangle, oboe, and woodblock. This is the story of one band that did just that and was much beloved by a local football team, especially number 75. It's the Max Fun Drive! Go to www....

For many people, Steve Inskeep is a voice you hear in the morning on NPR in intermittent bursts, sometimes telling you about alarming news. We switch that around with Steve, bringing him to you for a bedtime appearance and speaking at length about things that are benign or even pleasant. Steve discusses the state of Indiana, Abraham Lincoln, the processes of the Library of Congress, and how to mak...

Obviously, Seattle has a rich and vibrant wizard scene. We all know this. Well, one day, one of the wizards turned a tugboat named Louie into a human being and Louie decided to do one of the most Seattle things possible: open a teriyaki restaurant. He was really good at it. The meat was not too soggy but not burnt, the glaze was sweet and just a little salty, the cursory salad was fine. And after...

During the Max Fun Drive, we’re offering you special mini-sodes in our regular feed. In this one, host John Moe tells one of his improvised and semi-drowsy bedtime stories. It’s about an onionman named Ed, who opens the shop of his dreams, selling all 21 types of onions. But in the effort to market his shop, he finds a love even greater than onions: dancing. Tune in and drift off to sleep as Ed le...

You may know actress and comedian Mary Holland from the new movie Nightbitch or from TV shows like Veep , Bob’s Burgers , and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia . Or you might know her from literally hundreds of escape rooms around the country, where she absolutely loves solving puzzles, cracking codes, and figuring out how to escape the room. And then she goes right back into another room and has...