Hey We're Back!

I don’t live in the past, but if you are trying to find me, I don’t recommend the present. In this–my last audio only episode–I return to an old radio show from the ’40s that helped form me as a young man. Then I go way back to ancient Egypt, where I discover the world of Audio Fossils. Using a new technology, we are now able to hear sounds that were made thousands of years ago. Special guests inc...

“Worst Case Scenario” is an old radio show I loved as a kid. Tom Silver, the host, is interviewing Arthur Köeppler, a leading expert on traffic safety. “Bring Your Cousin To Work Day” is Sid Steiber’s favorite holiday. He loves it so much, he celebrates it once a week. “Listener Response” is where we get to hear some of Jonathan’s favorite responses to the question he posed in our previous episode...

In this episode I deal with the subject of THE WORK FORCE from three different angles; I talk to many hardworking Americans with “thankless jobs.” I also asked my old friend Sandy Briscoe—the British naturalist—for a letter of recommendation to Cornell Medical School where I have been offered a teaching position. And finally, I reflect on a time when I was the principal at my daughter’s high schoo...

Where do I start? Thanks for your patience. In this episode I have strayed from my usual format because of an interview I did with singer/feminist Helen Reddy. We met years ago in NYC and I interviewed her for my old radio show, “Peas in the Pod.” Listening to this latest recording, I was surprised how much and yet how little has changed. Episode 4 (of Season 2) returns to the usual format. I’m in...

In this episode, I explore my Jewish roots, tracing all the way back to New York City in 1959. I am also proud to introduce “America’s Next Top Optician”. At least once a week, I pretend that Benjamin Franklin was my dad. Now you get to hear how that works...it works for me. Produced by Katie Covett Music : Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser Special Thanks to Dana Friedman, Lisa Geduldi...

This episode,  begins with a relapse. I fall back into my “city and listing” habit and I do it all in the name of one of the dopiest jokes I have ever made. Then I get in the car and call my favorite local radio show with a question. It might be off-subject, but it is on my mind. Because of my sense of fair play and good manners I take my answer off the air. Then I go to one of my favorite places:...

In this episode I pay a visit to a dentist. I learn, once again, that my comedy is not for everybody. She feels the same way about my teeth, but is surprised to learn that my comedy comes with a fee attached. Then I try once again to heal the wound I created in the heart of my friend Sandy Briscoe. He is the British entomologist whose research I interrupted not so long ago. Several years ago I man...

The first segment of this episode is a conversation with Wendy Liebman, a woman who has been making me laugh for years. Wendy reminded me how much fun we have talking to each other—a lot of fun. Comedians talking about comedy is boring; comedians trying to make each other laugh is fun. I am pro-fun. A few years ago I made a pilot (trial first episode of a TV show) for CBS. I asked my friend David...

This episode was actually recorded in front of an audience in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was a group of people so willing to laugh it was depressing. They were sweet, playful and most important, punctual. The show begins with me breaking the first rule of radio—it’s what the audience hears, not what they see. I started the night by showing the audience a clip from the series of biblical shorts I...

This episode was recorded live at Logan Airport in Boston—until airport security realized I wasn’t going anywhere. They suggested that I go home. I did, but I made one stop on the way: The Orpheum Theater in Boston, where I recorded another round of my new game show Six Months On A Desert Island . Laura Silverman was my guest. While at Logan, I took calls and gave financial advice to anyone who as...

The first stop is my favorite cafeteria in NYC, at the Cornell medical building. I used to meet my dad there for lunch. After lunch I decided to take the day off. I walked home and caught my wife in the act with another man and even though I have imagined this a million times I never thought I would have such a “violent” reaction. The Hip Hop community…it sounds so cute, but most people do not con...

In this episode, I explore my shortcomings as a soul singer, my success with weddings and bar mitzvahs, and some of the more subtle differences between me and James Taylor. Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser Additional Music by: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, James Taylor, T-Bone Wolk This episode was underwritten in part by Albion Productions (Keeping Newton Funny for over twent...

This episode is about scams: I get scammed by a young woman on the phone, just by dropping my guard for one second. Then I try and scam a guy who works for The Geek Squad. They gave me some very bad advice, and have not yet assumed responsibility. Then I do some very solid comedy on the block, and when I am done, the audience is surprised that I want to get paid. Then I am paid a visit, on the pho...

TOUGH ROOM Once in a while I show up at a stand-up gig but when I get there I am clearly not who they had in mind. OLD FRIENDS About a year ago I visited an old college friend in a South American jungle. He was there to study the mating habits of an endangered insect. I was determined to surprise him and in the process I crushed the very thing he had been studying for several years. I still cannot...

The first piece is about moody microchips. I am not sure if it’s me or them. Then we go to San Francisco where we staged Dr. Katz Live with H. Jon Benjamin, Laura Silverman, Tom Snyder (as my therapist), with special guests Robin Williams, B.J. Novak, Andy Kindler, Maria Bamford, Bob Odenkirk, Brian Posehn, and Eugene Mirman. The show ends with another episode of Better Safe Than Sorry , starring...

We begin the episode with a visit to the office of Nick Delicato, the overcautious detective from the old radio show Better Safe than Sorry . From there, to the inside of a rental car where I accidentally come across something profound while listening to a country song. Then we go to San Francisco and a live production of Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist with my friend and the co-creator of the sh...

I try and help out a friend trying to promote her yoga business, I lend my support to the telephone sex industry, and I also get to spend some time on Death Row for a crime I did not commit. Even though I am on Death Row my lawyer is trying to get me an endorsement deal with Weight Watchers. ("Death Row Diet" was developed into an animated sketch. Check it out here .) Featuring : Tom Leo...

In this episode I take a hard look at "Just how smart are  computers?", I spend some time with Hannah Montana, and explore the world of men who don't grow wheat. (With Tom Snyder.) Featuring : Melissa Galsky, Jon Benjamin, Tom Snyder Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

We meet two guys who have opened a venison-only restaurant in midtown Mahattan; a real life hero of mine, two-time United States table tennis champion Marty Reisman, who tells us about his life then and now. I also spend more time holding for tech support. And finally, I raise the question that all comedians are asked: “Were you a funny kid?” The question and the answer can also be heard on my fir...

In this episode, I introduce a new segment called Housecalls . This time, I am visiting a neighbor—my neighbor. I spend some time trying to help out an old friend—Bob Saget—who has fallen on hard times, and I am sharing a non-sectarian Xmas/Hannukah song I recorded a few years ago with The Bobs. Housecalls is an opportunity for me to “force feed” my comedy on unsuspecting strangers. I love it… Fea...

The first scene is a reunion I have with an old Hebrew school friend. The guy was a natural athlete and it was great hearing that he still competes. My next stop is with directory assistance. This is a call I made more than twenty years ago but it still feels topical. I did, eventually, make contact with Mr. Potterton. My dad had a sister named Sylvy. She died about ten years ago but with the help...

I finally get a chance to talk to Bob Dylan about his life before music. It is a story that you will probably be hearing for the first time. But first, we meet a man, recently divorced, trying to return to the dating scene with no real skills. From there, we go to the airport—a place where cell phones and ex-girlfriends often converge. Then we return to jungles of South America where I try and rep...

I experience a rude intrusion into my otherwise sedate life. It happens while I am holding for some help from my bank. Then we hear freelance journalist Dan Snider speaking with a civil engineer who has been asked to design a tunnel connecting the two cities of Newton and Wellesley in Massachusetts. The towns are less than ten miles apart, and the construction has become extremely controversial. F...

Sandy Briscoe was my roommate at Oxford. We were doing post grad work and became bosom buddies. We shared everything, and then one day, we lost track…of each other. I missed him recently, and decided to pay him a suprise visit in the jungles of Peru. It didn’t work out the way I had hoped. Mark Mc Dermott is the spin doctor’s spin doctor. Our very own Dan Snider had a chance to sit down with him a...

 I continue my love/hate relationship with directory assistance, we hear about a guy who has opened a toll booth on his own block, and we get a close up look at tech support ; and I hopefully raise the question “Who’s really in charge?” Featuring: Tom Snyder, Lisa Mendy (Toll booth segment) Edited and Directed by Tom Snyder Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser