Podcasts about The Harvard Lampoon

Tim discusses being inducted into the Harvard Lampoon, the political schism over Israel, Democrats rebranding with Elissa Slotkin, Elon Musk's exit from DOGE, Prince Harry complaining about no longer getting royal security, and Mark Zuckerberg telling us all to make AI friends.  American Royalty Tour

Today on another encore episode of the Rarified Heir Podcast this Earth Day, we are talking to journalist Michael Simmons, son of National Lampoon co-founder & film producer Matt Simmons. We loved talking to Michael because there is so much history in the (almost) forgotten history of American humor magazine turned pop culture juggernaut, National Lampoon. Michael gives us behind the scenes stories about the fabled National Lampoon editorial offices in Manhattan circa 1974 which was a breeding ground for comedy and specifically Saturday Night Live writers and performers. We discuss National Lampoon stage shows with Chevy Chase, Harold Ramis, John Belushi & Gilda Radner that Michael was road manager when it hit the road. We hear about his dad's strange history as one of the founders the first credit card company, Diner's Club in the 1950s & how it led to National Lampoon. We even get into the history of how National Lampoon came into existence, birthed out of the Harvard Lampoon and even before that. Michael gives us a firsthand account of what it was like being in the offices of National Lampoon before and after films like National Lampoon's Animal House & National Lampoon's Vacation launched the brand mainstream. What's more we hear stories about Harold Ramis got nervous flyer Gilda Radner on a plane she didn't want to get on, Wilt Chamberlain giving him a ride on his shoulders and how he became an award winning journalist in Los Angeles writing about vice squad busts and later, music journalism. So sit back and take a listen to a fascinating story about how National Lampoon begat everything from Second City and This is Spinal Tap to SCTV and The Credibility Gap. It's all here on the Rarified Heir Podcast. Take a listen.

On this episode Jay's former writing partner, Wallace Wolodarsky and Wally's new writing partner, his wife, Maya Forbes talk about partnership – the joys and the pitfalls including having your partner pretend to be shot in the head on film. We also discuss trying to make movies vs TV, the difficult current writing landscape, being pals with the Coppolas and Wes Anderson, Maya at the Harvard Lampoon, writing books, and long distance swimming.Maya Forbes began her career writing for The Larry Sanders Show. She has since written numerous television episodes and feature films. She made her directorial debut with Infinitely Polar Bear, starring Mark Ruffalo and Zoe Saldana. With her husband Wally Wolodarsky, Maya co-wrote and co-directed The Polka King, starring Jack Black, Jenny Slate and Jason Schwartzman and The Good House, starring Sigourney Weaver and Kevin Kline.Wally Wolodarsky began his career as a writer on The Tracey Ullman Show. Writing with Jay Kogen, he received an Emmy. Wally was a writer and producer on The Simpsons for the first four seasons, where he won his second Emmy. With his wife Maya Forbes he has written several features and television shows including Monsters vs. Aliens, A Dog's Purpose and The People vs. O.J. Simpson. Wally produced Infinitely Polar Bear starring Mark Ruffalo and Zoe Saldana. Together, Maya and Wally wrote and directed The Polka King starring Jack Black and The Good House starring Sigourney Weaver and Kevin Kline

Patreon preview. Unlock full episode at https://www.patreon.com/stavvysworld Caleb Pitts and Patrick Doran join the pod to discuss epic skateboard fails, getting choked out for fun, networking at the Harvard Lampoon, adolescent political passions, and much more. Caleb, Patrick and Stav help callers including a guy who's pissed that his wife is off birth control, and a cancer survivor who can't stop smoking cigs. Check out Caleb and Patrick's pod Podcast About List: https://www.patreon.com/podcastaboutlist/ https://www.swagpoop.com/ https://www.youtube.com/PodcastAboutList https://twitter.com/podaboutlist https://www.instagram.com/podcastaboutlist/ Follow Caleb Pitts on social media: https://www.instagram.com/calebpitts1997 https://x.com/calebpitts1997 Follow Patrick Doran on social media: https://www.instagram.com/lunch_enjoyer/ https://twitter.com/lunch_enjoyer https://www.cameo.com/patrickdoran1

lol where is this being held? In an auditorium? An auditorium. For acoustics. And also because SO MANH PEOPLE SHOWED UP. Well, let's get this thing going. Are you sure about this ahahahahahahYAYAYSYhhahahahahaha NEXT. No. Certainly not! Great, let's get going. [SETH MCFARLENE enters timidly.] Seth McFarlene— what are you doing here? I—don't know. Well. Have a seat. Are you sure? I'm positive. [he procrastinates] Is this a joke? What do you mean? Trap door, or something? Oh, Seth, how I've missed your outright paranoid tendencies. So you're saying—? Please, sit. [he pulls the chair back from the table, relaxing momentarily before he sits; at the very moment he is comfortable, a trap door opens from below and instantaneously swallows him.] That's nuts. So creepy. Ah, trap door. Classic. {Enter The Multiverse} “Weirder and Deeper” The Rabbit hole can only go up from here. What does that mean? This is not making any sense. It's nonsense. Well, maybe all it is, maybe it's just that— It's just What? Maybe you're too old. *gasps* Have you never thought of that. Not even once. Take a look in the mirror my friend. Egad! Time has not served you well. My GOD! But it has—served you. Say again? Time to pay up. What? I did you a favor; many favors, actually. And now, it's time L E G E N D S —for my arrival. Jesus fucking Christ. JESUS F.N. CHRIST (Sleeping) Huh, what? Who said that?! Nobofdy. The BEYONCE that works retail is no spring chick. —- Excuse me {Enter The Multiverse} ROBOT VACUUM! —vacuum cleaner by day, SUPERHERO BY NIGHT. That is stupid. No it's not. It is, though. Look, I went to Harvard, okay— My expertise is not “sketch writing” What is it! I edited the Harvard Lampoon. So…assholery! Shutup. It's getting warm in here. I'm gonna go get a Twinkie. [he exits the writer's room and approaches the coffee table; pouring himself a cup of coffee, his hand reaches into an empty box.] …hm. [he moves his hand from one side of the empty box, to the other; it is for sure empty.] Are you serious? [a coworker enters the space.] Oh hey, what's wrong? We're out of twinkies. —what. WE'RE OUT OF TWINKIES. [absolute horrific pandemonium] Then why not al caps? Because. If there's anything more horrifying and urgent than al caps, it's all lowercase letters. Noted. WHO TOOK ALL THE TWINKIES! ALL THE GODDAMN TWINKIES. AAAAAAAAAAGGHGHHHHHH. [the alarm has been sounded] Oh no. Idiots. “Requiem for Jimmy Fallon's Nightmares” Push you out the window, Push you out the window, Push you out the window Push you out the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window It's an innuendo It's an innuendo. It's an innuendo It's an innuendo I'll push you out the window (Push you out the window) Go get some regular girls Go do some regular things Go back regular works. You not scaring nobody. I Rick with ghosts and the comics Souped up cars, delivering groceries You sell drugs, but live in the projects; Nobody got time for your nonsense New bike, but ain't paid it off yet My psychic days your karma up next I promise, the worse that my heart stops— The harder and faster your corpse rots; You'll probably sleep in a coffin— (Tonight) Or no more bike, back to walkin. You wanna keep playing these games, sis? Keep at it, I'll be rich and famous. Go double click on some fake pics Go chase fake girls with the fake lips Go save lunch money to buy fake tits Keep giving em excuses to be racist They hate us All cause you done fuck up niggas Keep folks up, that's why they don't trust niggas Your whole motorcycle a slave boat nigga Your whole Benz, that why they just roast niggas How much you owe for the car note? How much you owe for the car note? Ho How much you owe for the car note? How much is four cups of Starbucks? How much you owe for the car note? Roll up, you'll probably get your throat punched. Loud bikes cause ya'll ain't the smart folks— Ya'll suck, Ya'll autos is slave boats. {Enter The Multiverse} [The Festival Project.™] COPYRIGHT © THE FESTIVAL PROJECT 2024 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. © turn the light off then I'll sue the whole word on my irregular heartbeat, and my mama. I don't give a fuuuuuuuuck.

lol where is this being held? In an auditorium? An auditorium. For acoustics. And also because SO MANH PEOPLE SHOWED UP. Well, let's get this thing going. Are you sure about this ahahahahahahYAYAYSYhhahahahahaha NEXT. No. Certainly not! Great, let's get going. [SETH MCFARLENE enters timidly.] Seth McFarlene— what are you doing here? I—don't know. Well. Have a seat. Are you sure? I'm positive. [he procrastinates] Is this a joke? What do you mean? Trap door, or something? Oh, Seth, how I've missed your outright paranoid tendencies. So you're saying—? Please, sit. [he pulls the chair back from the table, relaxing momentarily before he sits; at the very moment he is comfortable, a trap door opens from below and instantaneously swallows him.] That's nuts. So creepy. Ah, trap door. Classic. {Enter The Multiverse} “Weirder and Deeper” The Rabbit hole can only go up from here. What does that mean? This is not making any sense. It's nonsense. Well, maybe all it is, maybe it's just that— It's just What? Maybe you're too old. *gasps* Have you never thought of that. Not even once. Take a look in the mirror my friend. Egad! Time has not served you well. My GOD! But it has—served you. Say again? Time to pay up. What? I did you a favor; many favors, actually. And now, it's time L E G E N D S —for my arrival. Jesus fucking Christ. JESUS F.N. CHRIST (Sleeping) Huh, what? Who said that?! Nobofdy. The BEYONCE that works retail is no spring chick. —- Excuse me {Enter The Multiverse} ROBOT VACUUM! —vacuum cleaner by day, SUPERHERO BY NIGHT. That is stupid. No it's not. It is, though. Look, I went to Harvard, okay— My expertise is not “sketch writing” What is it! I edited the Harvard Lampoon. So…assholery! Shutup. It's getting warm in here. I'm gonna go get a Twinkie. [he exits the writer's room and approaches the coffee table; pouring himself a cup of coffee, his hand reaches into an empty box.] …hm. [he moves his hand from one side of the empty box, to the other; it is for sure empty.] Are you serious? [a coworker enters the space.] Oh hey, what's wrong? We're out of twinkies. —what. WE'RE OUT OF TWINKIES. [absolute horrific pandemonium] Then why not al caps? Because. If there's anything more horrifying and urgent than al caps, it's all lowercase letters. Noted. WHO TOOK ALL THE TWINKIES! ALL THE GODDAMN TWINKIES. AAAAAAAAAAGGHGHHHHHH. [the alarm has been sounded] Oh no. Idiots. “Requiem for Jimmy Fallon's Nightmares” Push you out the window, Push you out the window, Push you out the window Push you out the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window It's an innuendo It's an innuendo. It's an innuendo It's an innuendo I'll push you out the window (Push you out the window) Go get some regular girls Go do some regular things Go back regular works. You not scaring nobody. I Rick with ghosts and the comics Souped up cars, delivering groceries You sell drugs, but live in the projects; Nobody got time for your nonsense New bike, but ain't paid it off yet My psychic days your karma up next I promise, the worse that my heart stops— The harder and faster your corpse rots; You'll probably sleep in a coffin— (Tonight) Or no more bike, back to walkin. You wanna keep playing these games, sis? Keep at it, I'll be rich and famous. Go double click on some fake pics Go chase fake girls with the fake lips Go save lunch money to buy fake tits Keep giving em excuses to be racist They hate us All cause you done fuck up niggas Keep folks up, that's why they don't trust niggas Your whole motorcycle a slave boat nigga Your whole Benz, that why they just roast niggas How much you owe for the car note? How much you owe for the car note? Ho How much you owe for the car note? How much is four cups of Starbucks? How much you owe for the car note? Roll up, you'll probably get your throat punched. Loud bikes cause ya'll ain't the smart folks— Ya'll suck, Ya'll autos is slave boats. {Enter The Multiverse} [The Festival Project.™] COPYRIGHT © THE FESTIVAL PROJECT 2024 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. © turn the light off then I'll sue the whole word on my irregular heartbeat, and my mama. I don't give a fuuuuuuuuck.

lol where is this being held? In an auditorium? An auditorium. For acoustics. And also because SO MANH PEOPLE SHOWED UP. Well, let's get this thing going. Are you sure about this ahahahahahahYAYAYSYhhahahahahaha NEXT. No. Certainly not! Great, let's get going. [SETH MCFARLENE enters timidly.] Seth McFarlene— what are you doing here? I—don't know. Well. Have a seat. Are you sure? I'm positive. [he procrastinates] Is this a joke? What do you mean? Trap door, or something? Oh, Seth, how I've missed your outright paranoid tendencies. So you're saying—? Please, sit. [he pulls the chair back from the table, relaxing momentarily before he sits; at the very moment he is comfortable, a trap door opens from below and instantaneously swallows him.] That's nuts. So creepy. Ah, trap door. Classic. {Enter The Multiverse} “Weirder and Deeper” The Rabbit hole can only go up from here. What does that mean? This is not making any sense. It's nonsense. Well, maybe all it is, maybe it's just that— It's just What? Maybe you're too old. *gasps* Have you never thought of that. Not even once. Take a look in the mirror my friend. Egad! Time has not served you well. My GOD! But it has—served you. Say again? Time to pay up. What? I did you a favor; many favors, actually. And now, it's time L E G E N D S —for my arrival. Jesus fucking Christ. JESUS F.N. CHRIST (Sleeping) Huh, what? Who said that?! Nobofdy. The BEYONCE that works retail is no spring chick. —- Excuse me {Enter The Multiverse} ROBOT VACUUM! —vacuum cleaner by day, SUPERHERO BY NIGHT. That is stupid. No it's not. It is, though. Look, I went to Harvard, okay— My expertise is not “sketch writing” What is it! I edited the Harvard Lampoon. So…assholery! Shutup. It's getting warm in here. I'm gonna go get a Twinkie. [he exits the writer's room and approaches the coffee table; pouring himself a cup of coffee, his hand reaches into an empty box.] …hm. [he moves his hand from one side of the empty box, to the other; it is for sure empty.] Are you serious? [a coworker enters the space.] Oh hey, what's wrong? We're out of twinkies. —what. WE'RE OUT OF TWINKIES. [absolute horrific pandemonium] Then why not al caps? Because. If there's anything more horrifying and urgent than al caps, it's all lowercase letters. Noted. WHO TOOK ALL THE TWINKIES! ALL THE GODDAMN TWINKIES. AAAAAAAAAAGGHGHHHHHH. [the alarm has been sounded] Oh no. Idiots. “Requiem for Jimmy Fallon's Nightmares” Push you out the window, Push you out the window, Push you out the window Push you out the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window This is not the window It's an innuendo It's an innuendo. It's an innuendo It's an innuendo I'll push you out the window (Push you out the window) Go get some regular girls Go do some regular things Go back regular works. You not scaring nobody. I Rick with ghosts and the comics Souped up cars, delivering groceries You sell drugs, but live in the projects; Nobody got time for your nonsense New bike, but ain't paid it off yet My psychic days your karma up next I promise, the worse that my heart stops— The harder and faster your corpse rots; You'll probably sleep in a coffin— (Tonight) Or no more bike, back to walkin. You wanna keep playing these games, sis? Keep at it, I'll be rich and famous. Go double click on some fake pics Go chase fake girls with the fake lips Go save lunch money to buy fake tits Keep giving em excuses to be racist They hate us All cause you done fuck up niggas Keep folks up, that's why they don't trust niggas Your whole motorcycle a slave boat nigga Your whole Benz, that why they just roast niggas How much you owe for the car note? How much you owe for the car note? Ho How much you owe for the car note? How much is four cups of Starbucks? How much you owe for the car note? Roll up, you'll probably get your throat punched. Loud bikes cause ya'll ain't the smart folks— Ya'll suck, Ya'll autos is slave boats. {Enter The Multiverse} [The Festival Project.™] COPYRIGHT © THE FESTIVAL PROJECT 2024 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. © turn the light off then I'll sue the whole word on my irregular heartbeat, and my mama. I don't give a fuuuuuuuuck.

New York Times bestselling author Christina Lynch spoke with me about working with Harvard pal Conan O'Brien, gang writing for TV, her nom de plume, and her new novel, PONY CONFIDENTIAL, featuring a grumpy pony. Christina Lynch is the author of Sally Brady's Italian Adventure, The Italian Party, and – under the pen name Magnus Flyte – co-author of New York Times bestseller City of Dark Magic and City of Lost Dreams. Her latest mystery, Pony Confidential (Berkley/PRH), is “... an epic saga, narrated by a pony, about the bond between animals and their humans.” It was named an NPR “Book of the Day,” Amazon Top 100 Books of 2024, an Indie Next Pick for November, and many other “most anticipated” lists. Christina Lynch was an editor on the Harvard Lampoon, the Milan correspondent for W magazine, and wrote for TV on the writing staffs of Unhappily Ever After and Stephen King's The Dead Zone among others. She teaches at College of the Sequoias. [Discover The Writer Files Extra: Get 'The Writer Files' Podcast Delivered Straight to Your Inbox at writerfiles.fm] [If you're a fan of The Writer Files, please click FOLLOW to automatically see new interviews. And drop us a rating or a review wherever you listen] In this file Christina Lynch and I discussed:  End-of-semester panic and counseling her students Why she burned out on fashion and disappeared in Tuscany How a game with a fellow writer turned into a bestseller What her most recent success has meant to her The crazy story behind her latest novel And a lot more! Show Notes:  clynchwriter.com Pony Confidential By Christina Lynch (Amazon) In the new novel 'Pony Confidential,' a crime-solving pony seeks revenge - NPR Christina Lynch Amazon Author Page Christina Lynch on Facebook Anne Lamott on Instagram Kelton Reid on Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jon Beckerman joins me to discuss watching the UK "Friday Night Dinner" and adapting it for the US; Three's Company; writing farce; Michael Watkins; casting Carol Kane; Dayenu scene; playing full contact Jeopardy; Julia Louis Dreyfus gives helpful note on the DL; growing up near Mr. Rogers; writing for the Harvard Lampoon; getting on as an artist; writing on a pilot called Dirty Laundry; writing Harvard Education in a Book; Michael Ian Black; being Paul Sims guest for the Late Night 10th Anniversary special and writing there in less than six months; getting his packet to Steve O'Donnell; being a fan of Chris Elliot; moving to Brooklyn and working in 30 Rock; skating with Bill Murray; Buttafuoco jokes; Clinton's pasty white thighs; being portrayed by Tony Randall in a sketch; becoming head writer with Donick Cary; winning an Emmy; creating Fun with Rupert; groomsmen parody it in a video for wedding; Madonna; eating fast food with Zsa Zsa in L.A.; Dave works Taco Bell; saving Rupert; Manny the Hippie; Mo, the Bad Ass Meat Slicing Man; making Dave the "Bar" a Boston University star; Dave hosts Oscars and his pilot for a sitcom called Adam & Eve

Blurb:  We talk about Philosophy, comedy writing, agreeing with the show runner, not being afraid of the truth, the power of walking sticks, trying to figure out if God exists is dumb, Brooklyn as a place to grow up, and whether to lie to your kids about Santa Clause.Bio: A native of Flatbush, New York, Eric Kaplan began writing for Spy magazine and the Harvard Lampoon before getting his first television-writing job on The Late Show with David Letterman.  Before THE BIG BANG THEORY, he worked on other shows including Futurama (for which he won an Emmy), Flight of the Conchords, Malcolm in the Middle, and Andy Richter Controls the Universe.  Kaplan created "Zombie College" for icebox and co-created "The Drinky Crow Show" and "Mongo Wrestling Alliance" for Adult Swim through his company Mirari Films.   Kaplan has his PhD from UC Berkeley in philosophy on the comic in the philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard.  His book Does Santa Exist: A Philosophical Investigation was published by Dutton in 2014 and has been called by Matt Groening "the funniest philosophy book since...well, ever."  His science fiction and philosophy have appeared in the New York Times.    

Though its author remained otherwise undistinguished, today's poem–with all its ecstasy, agony, and irony–has become almost as essential to the American experience as baseball itself. Happy reading!Ernest Lawrence Thayer was born on August 14, 1863, in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He graduated with a BA in philosophy from Harvard University in 1885, where he was a member of the Hasty Pudding Club and edited the Harvard Lampoon. At Harvard, Thayer met William Randolph Hearst, who would later run the San Francisco Examiner and hire Thayer to write a humorous column for the newspaper. On June 3, 1883, Thayer published what would become his most famous work, the poem "Casey at the Bat," under the pen name Phin. The poem gained popularity after the performer William DeWolf Hopper incorporated a recitation of it into his theatrical and radio performances.Thayer moved to Santa Barbara, California, in 1912. He died in Santa Barbara on August 21, 1940.-bio via Academy of American Poets Get full access to The Daily Poem Podcast at dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe

Dan O'Keefe joined me to discuss growing up in Chappaqua: writing for the Harvard Lampoon; joining the National Lampoon; writing letters from the editors; favorite pieces; writing for MTV and Comedy Central; writing for Cracked Magazine; submitting packets for Letterman & Conan; getting hired by Jay Leno; Jay-walking; Sprang (Spam and Tang); late night ghetto; grew up without TV; read a lot of books; Norm MacDonald; Michaell O'Donoghue; working on Married with Children; faxing ideas to Seinfeld; them liking the toothbrush in toilet and adopting a highway ideas; combining food and sex; milk baths; "The Frogger" and someone's quest to beat George Costanza's high score; Marx Brothers; can remember who pitched what in writers room; Joyce DeWitt and Three's Company; Puerto Rican Day Parade episode; Drew Carey Show; Drew's surprise cruise; episode "Drew and the Gang Law"; wanting to hang out with Joey Ramone but work had to be done; Brian Scully; Jerry Belson; Sam Simon sitcom Shaping Up; episodes "Racial Tension Play", "Cain and Mabel", "Good Vibrations" - director Gerry Cohen put a vibrator in Drew Carey's bag; "Tw Days of the Condo" episode; trying to produce a sitcom with UK comedian Al Murray; Elvis Costello; The League; Chelsea Handler; Beavis & Butthead

Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage is the sensational, definitive biography of the WrestleMania headlining, Spider-Man fighting, Slim Jim snapping, minor league baseball playing American original: Randy Savage. Savage, a WWE wrestling hall of famer, was an A-list celebrity who sat atop the entertainment universe for much of the '80s and '90s. His outfits were as flamboyant as anything worn by Liberace, Elton John, or Prince. His charisma surpassed Hulk Hogan's and is rivaled only by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock. His millions of fans are more loyal than followers of any sports team. Macho Man starred in cartoons, was featured on lunchboxes, sold a slew of action figures and toys, was in multiple video games, guest starred on Baywatch, Mad About You, and Walker, Texas Ranger, and made multiple appearances on iconic '90s talk shows. He supported a myriad of kids' charities, emceed Christmas events at hospitals for George Steinbrenner, played minor league baseball with Pete Rose, was the Harvard Lampoon's "Real Man of the Year," and held his family's wrestling legacy above all else.With catchphrases and a voice still imitated by millions to this day, and with his GIFs reaching hundreds of millions of views on social media, the Macho Man is a transcendent figure who led an extraordinary life. Macho Man is now available as an audiobook from Audible!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/arroe-collins-unplugged-totally-uncut--994165/support.

Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage is the sensational, definitive biography of the WrestleMania headlining, Spider-Man fighting, Slim Jim snapping, minor league baseball playing American original: Randy Savage. Savage, a WWE wrestling hall of famer, was an A-list celebrity who sat atop the entertainment universe for much of the '80s and '90s. His outfits were as flamboyant as anything worn by Liberace, Elton John, or Prince. His charisma surpassed Hulk Hogan's and is rivaled only by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock. His millions of fans are more loyal than followers of any sports team. Macho Man starred in cartoons, was featured on lunchboxes, sold a slew of action figures and toys, was in multiple video games, guest starred on Baywatch, Mad About You, and Walker, Texas Ranger, and made multiple appearances on iconic '90s talk shows. He supported a myriad of kids' charities, emceed Christmas events at hospitals for George Steinbrenner, played minor league baseball with Pete Rose, was the Harvard Lampoon's "Real Man of the Year," and held his family's wrestling legacy above all else.With catchphrases and a voice still imitated by millions to this day, and with his GIFs reaching hundreds of millions of views on social media, the Macho Man is a transcendent figure who led an extraordinary life. Macho Man is now available as an audiobook from Audible!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/arroe-collins-like-it-s-live--4113802/support.

ABOUT MACHO MAN: THE LIFE OF RANDY SAVAGE Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage is the sensational, definitive biography of the WrestleMania headlining, Spider-Man fighting, Slim Jim snapping, minor league baseball playing American original: Randy Savage.Savage, a WWE wrestling hall of famer, was an A-list celebrity who sat atop the entertainment universe for much of the '80s and '90s. His outfits were as flamboyant as anything worn by Liberace, Elton John, or Prince. His charisma surpassed Hulk Hogan's and is rivaled only by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock. His millions of fans are more loyal than followers of any sports team.Macho Man starred in cartoons, was featured on lunchboxes, sold a slew of action figures and toys, was in multiple video games, guest starred on Baywatch, Mad About You, and Walker, Texas Ranger, and made multiple appearances on iconic '90s talk shows. He supported a myriad of kids' charities, emceed Christmas events at hospitals for George Steinbrenner, played minor league baseball with Pete Rose, was the Harvard Lampoon's "Real Man of the Year," and held his family's wrestling legacy above all else.With catchphrases and a voice still imitated by millions to this day, and with his GIFs reaching hundreds of millions of views on social media, the Macho Man is a transcendent figure who led an extraordinary life.Macho Man is now available as an audiobook from Audible!ABOUT JON FINKELJon Finkel's books have been endorsed by everyone from John Cena, Kevin Durant and Tony Dungy, to Spike Lee and Mark Cuban. He is the author of the recent books Macho Man: The Untamed, Unbelievable Life of Randy Savage; Hoops Heist: Seattle, the Sonics, and How a Stolen Team's Legacy Gave Rise to the NBA's Secret Empire; The Life of Dad: Reflections on Fatherhood from Today's Leaders, Icons and Legendary Dads; and The Athlete: Greatness, Grace and the Unprecedented Life of Charlie Ward.He also wrote "Mean" Joe Greene: Built By Football with 4x Super Bowl Champion Joe Greene, Heart Over Height with 3x NBA Dunk Champion Nate Robinson and Forces of Character with 3x Super Bowl Champion and Fighter Pilot Chad Hennings. In addition, he authored the Mario Lopez-endorsed fatherhood fitness book, The Dadvantage.His book, Jocks In Chief: Forty-Four Essays Ranking the Most Athletic Presidents, from the Fight Crazy to the Spectacularly Lazy, is the first book in US History to rank every single president - athletically.As a feature writer, he has written for Men's Health, Men's Fitness, The New York Times, GQ, Details, Yahoo! Sports and many more. His NBA book series, Greatest Stars of the NBA won several American Library Association awards and the twelve books were a part of the NBA's famous 'Read to Achieve' program. His feature writing also received a notable mention in the 2015 Best American Sports Writing Anthology.Jon has been a live TV guest on CBS: This Morning and Good Morning Texas and has appeared on hundreds of radio stations, podcasts and live-streams promoting his work.His weekly newsletter, Books & Biceps, is read by over 12,500 people every Friday.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/i-am-refocused-radio--2671113/support.

Welcome to the Instant Trivia podcast episode 1213, where we ask the best trivia on the Internet. Round 1. Category: It Happened In The 20Th Century 1: On May 18, 1954 The New York Times headlined, "High Court Bans School" this divisive practice. segregation. 2: In 1981 Ananda Chakrabarty received a patent for a life form made of just 1 this. a cell. 3: In May 1940 he became prime minister and began inspiring the British people. Churchill. 4: John, Paul, George and Ringo arrived in the U.S., bringing this 11-letter contagion. Beatlemania. 5: In 1949 mainland China became a Communist state with this man as its leader. Mao Zedong. Round 2. Category: He'S The Coach 1: UCLA Men's Basketball, 1949-1975. John Wooden. 2: Indiana Pacers, 1997-2000. Larry Bird. 3: Green Bay Packers, 1959-1967. Vince Lombardi. 4: University of Nebraska Football, 1973-1997. Tom Osborne. 5: Chicago Bears, 1920-1967 (with a few breaks). George Halas. Round 3. Category: Playing Card Rhyme Time 1: A cruel royal female. Mean queen. 2: A fire iron used to prod a jester. Joker poker. 3: Building extension for a monarch. King wing. 4: Tautless knave. Slack jack. 5: Dental appliances for a pair of bullets. Aces' braces. Round 4. Category: The Harvard Lampoon 1: Now a fixture as a late-night TV talk show host, in the 1980s, this very tall redhead was a two-year president of the "Harvard Lampoon". Conan O'Brien. 2: The style and irreverence of "Harvard Lampoon" had a huge impact in the '70s when alums Doug Kenney and Henry Beard found "National Lampoon" and Doug co-wrote this very popular college comedy film. Animal House. 3: Lisa Henson was the "Lampoons's" first female president, and she helped her dad Jim write the speech that was given by this Muppet during the Harvard commencement season in 1982. Kermit. 4: Ex-Lampooner Jim Downey not only wrote for "Saturday Night Live" longer than anybody else, he also created this perennial list read by David Letterman. the Top 10 List. 5: Writers and performers who've gone from the "Lampoon" to "Saturday Night Live" include this young fellow who co-hosts "Weekend Update" with Michael Che. Colin Jost. Round 5. Category: The Deans List 1: Dean Moriarty is a memorable character in this Beat Generation novel. On the Road. 2: Much of this Rat Pack crooner's hard-drinking persona may have been just for the cameras. Dean Martin. 3: 1955's "East of Eden" launched the iconic status of this actor. James Dean. 4: Your parents might know Dean Cain as Superman, but you probably know him as Jeremiah Danvers, father of this other DC hero. Supergirl. 5: In the 1930s this "lightheaded" pitcher led the National League in strikeouts 4 times. Dizzy Dean. Thanks for listening! Come back tomorrow for more exciting trivia!Special thanks to https://blog.feedspot.com/trivia_podcasts/ AI Voices used

Conan O'Brien and Jay discuss the neurotic need to constantly make jokes at the peril of personal relationships and true communication.  They also talk about their kids and wives putting up with them, their long friendship, podcasting, comedy, growing older in comedy, Conan's new show “Conan O'Brien Must Go”, and reading commercials. Bio:Conan O'Brien was born in Brookline, MA, and started his path in comedy when he served twice as the president of The Harvard Lampoon. Conan went on to become a writer and producer on several television shows, including "Saturday Night Live" and "The Simpsons," until 1993, when NBC tapped him to take over as host of "Late Night." Since then, he's won four Emmy Awards, seven Writers Guild Awards, and the People's Choice Award for "Favorite Television Host." He has hosted two Emmy Awards, and performed at the White House Correspondents Dinner for two presidents. In 2010, his comedy tour was the subject of the documentary “Conan O'Brien Can't Stop,” and led to a second multi-city stand-up tour in 2018.In 2021, O'Brien concluded his 11 year run with "CONAN" on TBS, solidifying his 28 year career as a late night host and one of the longest tenures in late night history. His Emmy award winning “CONAN Without Borders” series has visited 13 countries and his podcast “Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend” currently has over 430 million downloads since it launched in 2018. His award winning digital brand Team Coco, which spans across digital and branded content, live events, merchandise and expertly produced comedy specials was acquired by SiriusXM in 2022. O'Brien recently completed production on an international travel series, “Conan O'Brien Must Go,” which premiered on MAX on April 18th, 2024.

CH101 Select; Michael Small was a staff member of The Harvard Lampoon. He is our guest today - on his history at one of the oldest and most prestigious humor magazines in the world. The alumni of The Harvard Lampoon include such icons in comedy as Conan O'Brien, Greg Daniels, Jim Downey, Colin Jost, BJ Novak - and numerous writers for SNL, The Simpsons, Letterman, Curb Your Enthusiasm - as well as almost every known comedy entity in TV and movies. Be sure to check out Michael's podcast: I Couldn't Throw It Out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Next up in our Bombay Beach series is writer and philosopher Eric Kaplan. He's so profoundly got his shit together he sent in a proper bio!A native of Flatbush, New York, Eric Kaplan began writing for Spy magazine and the Harvard Lampoon before getting his first television-writing job on The Late Show with David Letterman. Before THE BIG BANG THEORY, he worked on other shows including Futurama (for which he won an Emmy), Flight of the Conchords, Malcolm in the Middle, and Andy Richter Controls the Universe. Kaplan created "Zombie College" for icebox and co-created "The Drinky Crow Show" and "Mongo Wrestling Alliance" for Adult Swim through his company Mirari Films. Kaplan has his PhD from UC Berkeley in philosophy on the comic in the philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard. His book Does Santa Exist: A Philosophical Investigation was published by Dutton in 2014 and has been called by Matt Groening "the funniest philosophy book since...well, ever." His science fiction and philosophy have appeared in the New York Times.We touched on philosophy, writing, comedy, summer camp, and the many blindspots in my worldview. We completely failed to talk about his inherited collection of blues records, his daring and courageous work in the Himalayas, and what it's like hosting a podcast with Tao Ruspoli. Always leave 'em wanting more, right? Share and Enjoy!LinksTerrifying Questions - Eric's Podcast"Does Santa Exist?" - Eric's BookEricLinusKaplan.WordPress.com - Eric's Blog

Next up in our Bombay Beach series is writer and philosopher Eric Kaplan. He's so profoundly got his shit together he sent in a proper bio! A native of Flatbush, New York, Eric Kaplan began writing for Spy magazine and the Harvard Lampoon before getting his first television-writing job on The Late Show with David Letterman. Before THE BIG BANG THEORY, he worked on other shows including Futurama (for which he won an Emmy), Flight of the Conchords, Malcolm in the Middle, and Andy Richter Controls the Universe. Kaplan created "Zombie College" for icebox and co-created "The Drinky Crow Show" and "Mongo Wrestling Alliance" for Adult Swim through his company Mirari Films. Kaplan has his PhD from UC Berkeley in philosophy on the comic in the philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard. His book Does Santa Exist: A Philosophical Investigation was published by Dutton in 2014 and has been called by Matt Groening "the funniest philosophy book since...well, ever." His science fiction and philosophy have appeared in the New York Times.We touched on philosophy, writing, comedy, summer camp, and the many blindspots in my worldview. We completely failed to talk about his inherited collection of blues records, his daring and courageous work in the Himalayas, and what it's like hosting a podcast with Tao Ruspoli. Always leave 'em wanting more, right? Share and Enjoy!LinksTerrifying Questions - Eric's Podcast"Does Santa Exist?" - Eric's BookEricLinusKaplan.WordPress.com - Eric's Blog Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 21, 2024 is: lampoon • lam-POON • verb To lampoon someone or something is to ridicule that person or thing, especially through the use of harsh satire. // The exhibit chronicles the long history of lampooning public figures in cartoons. See the entry > Examples: "'An exciting element of this to me was the opportunity to completely lampoon entitled Hollywood celebrities. Those celebrities out there who think that acting is the most important vocation in the world and that there's not an interesting conversation unless it's about one of their future projects,' [Jury Duty actor, James] Marsden said with a laugh and without naming names." — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 20 Apr. 2023 Did you know? Lampoon can be a noun or a verb. The noun lampoon (meaning "satire" or, specifically, "a harsh satire usually directed against an individual") was first used in English in the 17th century and may be familiar from the names of humor publications such as The Harvard Lampoon and its now-defunct spinoff National Lampoon. Both the noun and the verb come from the French word lampon, which likely originated from lampons, a form of the verb lamper, meaning "to drink to the bottom." So what is the connection? Lampons! (meaning "Let us guzzle!"—that is, drink greedily) was a frequent refrain in 17th-century French satirical poems.

Former showrunner for the Simpsons, Bill Oakley is the guest. There's pizza news, and the topic is: "Pizza portafoglio."Bill Oakley is an Emmy-award-winning TV writer and producer. He famously wrote for The Simpsons from season 3 to season 9. He was the showrunner for seasons 7 and 8. Bill has written for Futurama, The Cleveland Show, and Portlandia, to name a few. He is a co-executive producer for Netflix's Disenchantment, and currently, he reviews fast food restaurants on Twitter and Instagram. Sign up to be a member of his Steamed Hams Society.Bill discusses eating at the Simpsons, eating at the Harvard Lampoon, why his best-of Portland pizza list is better than Eater's, and his many thoughts and feelings about frozen pizza. There's also a fun Conan O'Brien anecdote from his Simpsons days.Check out Pizza Magazine Quarterly's profile of the Pizza Pod Party by Charlie Pogacar: "Love Talking Pizza? So Do the Celebrity Guests on This Podcast"! This podcast is brought to you by Ooni Pizza Ovens. Go to Ooni.com for more information.Follow us for more information!Instagram: @pizzapodparty @NYCBestPizza @AlfredSchulz4Twitter: @PizzaPodParty @ArthurBovino @AlfredSchulzTikTok: @thepizzapodpartyThreads: @pizzapodparty @NYCBestPizza @AlfredSchulz4

Welcome to Episode 109 of The Letterman Podcast!

We wrap up the year with a sampling of the best of 2023 Comedy History 101 interviews. Featuring episode excerpts on Kids in the Hall, Mr. Bill, Comedy Culture Wars, Shemp Howard, Found Footage Festival, the Dublin Comedy Scenes, Michael Richards Infamous Meldown, Last Comic Standing, The Harvard Lampoon, Revenge of the Nerds, and more.. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week we are rejoined by friend of the show and internet shaman Float Universe to fly to the moon on the fumes of the waning reputation of the Harvard Lampoon before taking a mall safari while listening to the "Drive" soundtrack. Also William shares his thoughts on a movie Scott recommended to him. Don't forget to join our Telegram channel at T.me/historyhomos and to join our group chat at T.me/historyhomoschat The video version of the show is available on bitchute, odysee. For weekly premium episodes or to contribute to the show subscribe to our channel at www.rokfin.com/historyhomos Any questions comments concerns or T-shirt/sticker requests can be leveled at historyhomos@gmail.com Later homos --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/historyhomos/support

I'll tell you I'm talking about. When I first started sharing my professional journey, I focused on people who were interested in screenwriting. But over the years, my audience has expanded to include all sorts of creative types: actors, artists, novelists, playwrights, performers, and more. With that said, I'm rebranding my podcast. I'll still talk about screenwriting, but I'll interview a wider variety of people living their own creative lives. I hope they'll inspire you to do the same.Show NotesFree Writing Webinar - https://michaeljamin.com/op/webinar-registration/Michael's Online Screenwriting Course - https://michaeljamin.com/courseFree Screenwriting Lesson - https://michaeljamin.com/freeJoin My Watchlist - https://michaeljamin.com/watchlistAutogenerated TranscriptMichael Jamin:But also it's like when you put energy into something legit energy, not like thinking or dreaming, but when you actually do the work, thingsPhil Hudson:Have a way ofMichael Jamin:Manifesting like, oh, there's opportunities have a way of appearing becausePhil Hudson:You've put work into it.Michael Jamin:Like these variousPhil Hudson:Press opportunitiesMichael Jamin:That I've done and other things that have sprung out because of that. That's just from doing the energyPhil Hudson:Of posting on social mediaMichael Jamin:And just sharing as much knowledge as I can.Phil Hudson:You're listening to, what the Hell is Michael Jamin talkingMichael Jamin:About?Phil Hudson:I'll tell you what I'm talkingMichael Jamin:About. I'm talking about creativity, I'm talking aboutPhil Hudson:Writing, and I'm talking about reinventing yourselfMichael Jamin:Through the arts. Hey everyone, it's Michael Jamin and I'm new. I'm all new right now because I've done a rebrand on the podcast. It was called, obviously Screenwriters Need to Hear this. And then Phil and I were talking and we kind of wanted to open up the conversations a little bit so it's not just about screenwriting and so it's more about, I was really getting to talking about people doing all sorts of creative things. I just think it's inspiring. We'll still talk about screenwriting of course, but I wanted to open up the conversation to more people who are doing things that hopefully inspire all of us to just live more creative lives. And Phil don't get upset. Phil is still here, still is not going away. He's very much involved in all this, but the title of course of the new show is What the Hell is Michael Jamin talking about? And will be answering that question. What the hell am I talking about? Go ahead.Phil Hudson:I think the focus in our conversations were really about creativity because you're a bit more than just a screener. When we started this, it was with a specific purpose. We should also point out this is episode 1 0 4, which is two years of doing podcast,Michael Jamin:So it wasPhil Hudson:A good time to take a step back. Reassess. Things have shifted a lot in the industry. Things have shifted a lot for you personally. What you've done over the last few years is pretty phenomenal in terms of growing a following, becoming a bit of a celebrity, becoming a bit of an expert in a lot of news, which we'll talk about. So yeah, it's just a shift to I think, speaking a little bit more to who Michael Jamin is beyond just being a writer and a showrunner, but being a true creative.Michael Jamin:And I should mention, so Phil speaks with authority because he runs a digital marketing agency called Rook, SS e o. So this is, he knows what he's talking, he knows the space Well, but without further ado, I guess this episode we were just going to talk a little bit more about how far the changes we've made, what we've seen in the past two years and hopefully maybe what we're moving towards.Phil Hudson:Yeah, I thought it would be fitting, Michael, just to kind of talk about some statistics around what the success of the podcast, the success of your work as doing your own personal marketing. And I want to remind everybody that the whole point of this was so that you could market your book. So you're taking and eating your own advice, and I think it's very important for people to know, if I think of Michael Jainism, what are some of the things, your catchphrases and the things you say? Some of those are don't wait, put it out there. Put yourself out there. Right.Michael Jamin:Stop asking for permission is what I say.Phil Hudson:Stop asking for permission.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Phil Hudson:There are a bunch of those that could be really good slogans for hats, whichMichael Jamin:YouPhil Hudson:ShouldMichael Jamin:Consider. A lot of this really, and I guess maybe it's fitting that just that I am the first interview of what the new brand is because a lot of this is about reinventing yourself. This whole journey that I've been is about reinventing myself. I was a sitcom writer. That's what I was until I started going online and making a podcast and posting every day and now I'm something else.Phil Hudson:Yeah, it's definitely morphed. So let's talk a bit about that. Right. So we're 104 episodes into the podcast. That's big. I think the statistic I saw a week ago is that the average podcast has six episodes, which meansMichael Jamin:Most people It's a lot of work. Yeah,Phil Hudson:It is. It's a lot of money too. I don't think people recognize that you're investing in editors, you'veMichael Jamin:GotPhil Hudson:People doing graphic design. There's a lot of it. There's the hosting of the site. I mean, every time you do a webinar, a site crashes and I have to freak outMichael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Run in and make sure we're back up. And yeah, it's a whole thing. So there's a lot that goes into this, but it's 104 episodes on lots of different topics, all centered around creativity, largely around Hollywood and screenwriting. But I personally, as I've gone through and produced and helped edit some of the episodes, it's very clear to me that you get a lot of joy from having these creative conversations.Michael Jamin:Yeah. That's what interests me the most. Yeah, andPhil Hudson:It's not so much about like, Hey, you're a screenwriter. It's like, hey, you are a creative personMichael Jamin:Who'sPhil Hudson:Putting themselves out there and trying to make something happen,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Your audience speaks to this as well. So in the digital marketing space, when we think about this, we think about an avatar and an avatar or a persona. It's your ideal customer. It's the person you're going after. And anytime you're doing marketing, it's a mistake. Or if it's folly, to not do that, you want to understand who you're targeting. And it was very clear two years ago, well, I'm a writer, I'm a TV writer. Let's talk about what I know, which is screenwriting to people who are screenwriters. And I pointed out you should do that because there's a lot of BSS out there.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:What is your take on that two years into this? What is your take on BSS advice and advice in general? Maybe through the lens of the questions you get asked,Michael Jamin:What is my take on it? I feel like you're prompting me to say something. What are you getting at Fell? I don'tPhil Hudson:Know. I'm not trying to lead the witness. I just want to know what is your take on the marketplace for screenwriters having been immersed on the public, but then you're getting all these questions from people. You did a bunch of live q and as for a year, just talking to people and your following, and there's a series of 10 or 15 questions everybody's asking,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:It's all pointed towards sell your stuff. You know what those are. So I'm just wondering for you as a showrunner who kind of stepped into the world of what's being taught by the gurus andMichael Jamin:By thePhil Hudson:Experts, what are you seeing in the marketplace for screenwriters?Michael Jamin:One thing I said during the last webinar we did, we do free webinar every three weeks, and I said something that I think a lot of people were astounded by. I said, screenwriting is simple. It's not easy, but it's simple. And I think a lot of people are trying to sell you the complicated version so that you buy more from I'm the only one who can explain it to you and therefore you need me. And I don't know in the writer's room, that's just not how we approach writing simple. I also think there's a lot of bad advice out there, I think. So just be careful. Be careful who you're taking advice from. I don't know, it's a little heartbreaking. Someone posted today, actually, I did a post and someone left a comment saying, everything this guy says me is true because he did coverage in a coverage service. HePhil Hudson:Goes, yeah,Michael Jamin:People use pay me for coverage. I didn't know anything and I'm telling people what to do. This is a gig this guy picked up. It didn't seem like a lot of people I know, not a lot of people, but I've heard stories of people who've done coverage for a temp job for a month or two and then left because they left feeling a little bit gross about themselves. Why are you paying me? I don't know what I'm talking about. And so they left.Phil Hudson:Okay, so this is the world that, so I guess I might've been leading the witness a little bit because my point is, this is the world I understood because prior to meeting you and having the stars align, and we met years ago, and without me knowing who you are, and everybody knows the story by now of how we know each other and became friends, I was very much in that world and I was looking around trying to find that type of feedback and information, and you really shined the light on this for me. That man, there's a lot of people out here pretending like they know what they're talking about.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:I think you've done a valuable service in these first 100 and 304 episodes of peeling back the curtain, explaining how the process works, educating people. So I just wanted to reiterate, there's a lot of value in what you've done, and that doesn't mean that you're not going to continue to provide value to your listeners who are screenwriters. I think you're just shifting into really none of it all, which is be a creative and do creative things because there's value in the act, not because you're trying to sell a pilot.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah, that's exactly right. Yeah. I said something else that people kind of resonated with. Maybe it's worth repeating, and I'll probably say again in my webinars, I say do more of them, but I interviewed, I directed Brian Cranston many years ago on a show called Glen Martin. He was a guest star. It was an animated show, and I directed, it was silly. He played a fun role and was then afterwards I thanked him. We paid him probably 800 bucks. He wasn't doing it for the money. And I thanked him that was scale. And he said, oh, no, no, thank you. And I'm like, thank me. Whatcha talking about you're Brian Cranson. At the time he was doing breaking bed, and he said, it's just nice to have a pallet cleanser. As great as Breaking Bad was in probably my favorite show of all time.It was so dark that he was living with these negative emotions, anger, fear, jealousy, rage, all that stuff to be in the character. And when you are in that, your mind doesn't know a difference When you're playing this character 12, 14 hours a day in film and you're acting angry and vengeful and all that, whatever those emotions he had to play, your brain doesn't know the difference that whole day. You've been angry and vengeful, and then when you go home, how do you get it out of you? I mean, how do you just experienced all that all day? And it just really made me think about what it's like to be an actor to actually live in that. So he was thanking me because the script that we did was so light and fun. He was like, oh, it's like a, it was fun. It was fun.Palette, cleanser, which he needed. And then it just got me thinking a lot about just creativity as a whole. And then when people write, when they write their scripts, novels, whatever it is, regardless of whether you sell it or not, you are enjoying that burst of creativity and you're playing out all the characters in your head and your mind doesn't know the difference between you pretending to jump out of a plane and you writing about jumping out of a plane. You're trying to get it all on paper. You're really trying to live it in your heart. And so that I feel Carries with you when you write, regardless of whether you sell it something is a bonus, great, you got money for it. But if you don't sell it, you still get that. You still get that rush, that bonus. And so there's no reason not to write, don't think of it as the pot of gold is in the journey. It's not at the end of the rainbow.Phil Hudson:Yeah. Let's talk about some of the statistics of the podcast, and I love that. I want to circle back on that topic of the journey, the joys in the journey, not the destination, which I'm sure I'm slaughtering that saying just some things, right? So 104 episodes of the podcast, over 200,000 downloads of the podcast, people from I don't know how many continents, but just basing it off of the last webinar we did this last Saturday. I counted probably 13 countries on about four continents, right? That's a trip. Italy, you've got Europe, you've got people in Asia, Australia, south America, you got Central America, you've got America, you'veMichael Jamin:GotPhil Hudson:Canada. I mean, you've got people, it's a global reach at this point, and you're kind of that figurehead to put that out.Michael Jamin:There's so strange.Phil Hudson:Yeah. So hundreds of thousands of downloads on the podcast, which is incredible and that may not seem like a lot, but for the industry and for your niche,Michael Jamin:ThisPhil Hudson:Is really good. These are great numbers for that. We've pulled some stats, and you might know this a little bit better. At one point you were in the top three podcasts on screenwriting, is that right?Michael Jamin:Yeah, I was bouncing around andPhil Hudson:We fluctuated between 5, 6, 7, 10. Anybody who wants to help support go leave a review, a written review on iTunes, that does help a ton. But yeah, so major reach, major opportunity. When you started this, I wanted to ask, do you remember how many Instagram followers you had when we sat down in your garage and I talked about here's what you need to do to be able to grow your following and do this. DoMichael Jamin:You remember how many? I don't remember.Phil Hudson:No, because it wasn't something you're paying attention to. I didn't know. But how many Instagram followers do you have now? It was less, would you say less than a thousand? Probably.Michael Jamin:Probably close to 160,000 now, I think. Yeah,Phil Hudson:Yeah, 160,000.Michael Jamin:HowPhil Hudson:Many days have you missed posting on socialMichael Jamin:Media? Since we started this two yearsPhil Hudson:Ago,Michael Jamin:I promised myself that I was going to post every day. So I post, I would say on average six days a week. So sometimes I take a day off.Phil Hudson:So for anybody looking to grow a following, again, Michael's telling you to do this. He's telling you to bring something to the table and you did this and it's brutal. It's not like a 32nd recording.Michael Jamin:IPhil Hudson:Mean, you communicated to me at one point you're spending 20, 30 minutes on this every single day to get one video out because you're doing multiple takesMichael Jamin:And you'rePhil Hudson:Trying to condense it. You're thinking about it outside of that 30 minutes. You're then doing the technical, and I don't post this for you, you do this, you post it, right? Because you want it to feel authentic. So there's work involved. But again, you're eating your own medicine,Michael Jamin:You'rePhil Hudson:Doing what you tell people to do. You're putting yourself out there in two years down the road, you basically nothing to 160,000 followers onMichael Jamin:Instagram. TikTok,Phil Hudson:Let's hear it.Michael Jamin:Well, TikTok is, I think it's something like 444,000. But that's the thing. It's like I made a promise for myself. It wasn't too ambitious. I didn't say I was going to post five times a day. I was like once a day,Phil Hudson:And I think I was advocating for two to four, which is what the experts would tell you to do. And you said, that's not sustainable for me.Michael Jamin:No way.Phil Hudson:Especially for someone who doesn't want to be in the limelight, which is you very much were like, I don't want to be this person. I'm happy being a writer, but you have this project you want, which is your bookMichael Jamin:You want. I also think it waters down a little bit the message if you're constantly, I'd rather do quality than quantity. But yeah, all of it. I want to say Phil, everything that I, all the advice that I give people about becoming a screenwriter or whatever, becoming whatever it is you want to be a creator is either advice that I have done or I am currently doing.Phil Hudson:So there's no hypocrisy here, which is a really key thing, really key takeaway that people can learn from you beyond the followers. Let's talk about that's led to definitely, and we saw this happening beforehand. You'd post a video about why aren't there cats and TV shows? And Yahoo would pick it up, and then all of the riders on Tacoma FD would just give you crap for it. You popped up on their Yahoo page. But beyond that, and with your status and the work you put in, all of a sudden you become a trustworthy expert in your field because you have a following and you're noticed. It's not that your knowledge are on the subject or your capacity as a writer has changed.Michael Jamin:You'rePhil Hudson:The same capable person and now all of a sudden there's a lot of interest in writing and Hollywood, and you're the guy to go to because you have a following and you're known, right? So this is this secondary effect of I want to get my work out there, so I need followers so that I can have an audience to engage with and potentially prove to people that there's a demand for what I have to put out. And that turned into being covered on Deadline. The Hollywood Reporter, the New York Times variety, and you're in deadline like 17 times, by the way.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Phil Hudson:Right.Michael Jamin:You'rePhil Hudson:In some local newspapers, Newburyport News, you were with the A R PMichael Jamin:CPhil Hudson:Tv. Yeah, the seasoned writers of the world, Portland TV had you on for three segments on one of their shows.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:I think that started a little bit before Good Day Sacramento, multiple times in Yahoo N, our c nl, which is New Zealand, is that right? Nls New Zealand, I think. Yeah. Or the Netherlands. Yeah, Scripps News, the Guardian Newsweek, the Washington Posts News Junkie, right. Newsweek a couple times. And this last weekend you were on C N N.Michael Jamin:Yeah, it's nuts. They just reach out to me, I'm like, sure, I'll do it. Would not have predicted any of this was going to happen two years ago. No.Phil Hudson:So you're not doing this for the fame, you're not doing any of this because you feel like you're going to get something out of it from your writing career. You're doing it because your publisher says, Hey, we don't care how many emails you have on your wife's business list or anything like that, or how many people are interested in your writing?Michael Jamin:WhichPhil Hudson:By the way, prior to even four years ago, 10,000 emails was enough to get a book deal. And now, I mean, I've seen that number of times from people now, it's like, yeah, you need followers putting you on the spot here. So I apologize, but I recall you telling me that you had specific feedback from some of these agents, like, man, Michael Jamin can write, I want to be his friend. Do you remember some of that? Do you want to talk a little bit about what some of those rejection letters were? Oh,Michael Jamin:Yeah. I don't know if I have in front of me, but basically it was, oh, actually I do. ThisPhil Hudson:Is not planned, by the way. Michael didn't know I was going to bring any of this up. The whole premise here is I was going to interview Michael and talk about this stuff.Michael Jamin:Yeah, I got letters from when I was first putting my book out there from publishers. Oh, we love this book. The guy doesn't have a following. They wrote to my agent, do you have anybody who writes like this? Who does have a following? I mean, it was that crazy. They said, platform drives acquisition. I said, what does that mean? You need to have a following. I said, well, what about the strength of the writing? Everyone loved the writing. What about the strength of the writing? Oh, no, no, no. It's about what can we sell? I was like, damn. And that really was a stab in the heart,Phil Hudson:And I think for the average creative branching out with just writers, but the average creative one, rejection, litter, and it's like, well, I guess that's not in it. I guess mom was right. I guess dad was right. I guess Billy's dad was, right. It's hard to be a writer. I should give up. And you hear about these people who submit over and over and over again until they finally break through.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:You took that and said, I don't want to do this thing. I don't want to be a public figure, but I have this creative work that I know people need to read. And it's a personal work that you did on your own. No one paid you to do it. You wrote forMichael Jamin:Free.Phil Hudson:And then IMichael Jamin:Remember, which turn, go ahead. Go ahead.Phil Hudson:I was going to say, then I remember I get a text from you and you're like, Phil, any chance you can come over, I want to talk to you about some marketing stuff. I come over, come to your garage. I break your chair. Let's see thatMichael Jamin:It had already broken. It's already broken, but okay,Phil Hudson:Had to replace a chair. And he asked me, what do I need to do? And I just laid out everything I knew, and then we started putting the wheels into motion. That was roughly 25 months ago,Michael Jamin:CouplePhil Hudson:Months ago.Michael Jamin:And it's one of those things like, I didn't want to do it so tough. How badly do you want it? How badly do you want it? And there can be a downside to having whatever you want to call this level of fame. It's internet famous, not famous, but you are putting yourself out there for haters, for trolls, for wackos, all sorts of weirdos. I mean, you wouldn't believe how, I mean, do I have to tell you? There are people on the internet are crazy. So there was that, but I was like, well, this is what it takes now. So it actually made me matter. When the publishers told me this, I was furious. How dare you tell me what I can't do? You don't get to tell me what I can't do. Only I get to do that. And so that just lit a fire under my ass. And then when IPhil Hudson:Read this book,Michael Jamin:Oh my God, it actually changed me. It's kind of a weird,Phil Hudson:I don't really want to plug the bookMichael Jamin:Very, you can tellPhil Hudson:Me I'mMichael Jamin:InterestedPhil Hudson:In this, but you can tell me. I'llMichael Jamin:Tell you. It was a very new agey book. And so a lot of the advice was, some of the advice I thought was really good, and some of it was like, I don't know. I think you, you're going out on a limb with this one. But it was one of those things, you take what you want and you leave the rest. And what convinced me was this one passage where he said, you've already gotten what you wanted. It just hasn't happened yet. And I was like, that's it. That's it. I already have it. It just hasn't happened yet. And then I was like, alright, what do I need to do to make it happen?Phil Hudson:That's it. Yeah. You remember you reading me that exact quote several times throughout this whole process? Yeah. IMichael Jamin:Love that quote. I always tell people on my podcast, whatever here, or I say it on the webinar, I was like, this is what you need to do. If you're willing to do it, then you need a skill. We don't know your level of skill and then you need a little bit of luck, of course. But here's what you can do to increase your odds. Are you willing to do it? And most people aren't so fine.Phil Hudson:Well, that's my point about the podcast, right? The average podcast is six episodes,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:It's because the consistency, the lack of immediate gratification, the, oh, I only got three people to listen to my sixth episode and I put a thousand dollars to get four episodesMichael Jamin:Made, orPhil Hudson:Whatever it is, that's enough to turn people off. But this is kind of your whole point is, okay, move on. And there's nothing wrong with learning that you're not fit for something. There's something wrong with, there's nothing wrong with saying, Hey, I understand that something I want to do. Maybe doing it the Hollywood way is not the right way for me.Michael Jamin:SoPhil Hudson:Instead, I'm going to go back to just doing it on my own and I'm going to make short films and I'm going to support my local film community. And there's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong with recognizing, Hey, I've got family obligations, so I'm not going to be able to move to New York and try to get my art in a gallery. So I'll just paint on the weekends and I'll just take that hour to myself every day to just put in the work on my craft. And you never know what can come from that. But the point is, it's about sticking with what it is. And that's, I think your message that I've heard. I don't know that I want to say that it's evolved. I don't know it's ever evolved. I think it's always been your message, which is if you want to make it happen, you got to make it happen. But the act of doing is enough, right?Michael Jamin:As youPhil Hudson:Said, the goal, the pot of gold, that the rainbow is not the pot of gold.Michael Jamin:It's thePhil Hudson:Experiences along the way, finding the pot of gold that are the pot of gold.Michael Jamin:But also, it's like when you put energy into something legit energy, not like thinking or dreaming, but when you actually do the work, things have a way of manifesting like, oh, this opportunities have a way of appearing because you've put work into it. Like these various press opportunities that I've done and other things that have sprung out because of that. It's like that's just from doing the energy of posting on social media and just sharing as much knowledge as I canPhil Hudson:With zero expectation of getting back. You're planting seeds that hopefully will produce fruit when your book is available and people can buy it on Audible and buy a paperback or a hardcover. And at this point too, so still, you've made the decision not to go with a traditional publisher, even though at this point you have hundreds of thousands of followers.Michael Jamin:Hey, it's Michael Jamin. If you like my content, and I know you do because you're listening to me, I will email it to you for free. Just join my watch list. Every Friday I send out my top three videos of the week. These are for writers, actors, creative types, people like you can unsubscribe whenever you want. I'm not going to spam you, and the price is free. You got no excuse to join. Go to michaeljamin.com and now back to what the hell is Michael Jamin talking about?Phil Hudson:When you'd ask people, how many followers do I need? They couldn't tell you, tell you. They just knew you needed followers, but they didn't know what the number was.Michael Jamin:And then I got resentful, okay, now that I have these followers, why am I cutting you in? Tell me exactly why I'm cutting you in. What exactly do you do? Nothing. They get me in Barnes and Noble, that's it. But people don't buy books at Barnes and Noble. They buy it online. Why am I cutting you in? It made me mad. It made me legit in the beginning. I was like, I need you. And I was like, I don't need you. What do I need you for?Phil Hudson:How freeing is that feeling?Michael Jamin:It's wonderful. I just got my copy back from I, my copy editor, read the whole thing and whatever, looking for typos and stuff like that. And he loved it. This is a professional. He's like, how do I share? I want to give this to my friends. I was like, oh, thank you. But one of it's like, why am I cutting? It's just like this is the year, it's 2023. It's like, you don't need to ask for permission from these people. The publishing is, the side of the business is very similar to Hollywood in the sense that what do we need these people for? You don't need Hollywood if you want to do, you don't. You just don't. You can do it yourself.Phil Hudson:On that note, I went to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu today, and it was a smaller class, middle of the day. There were literally two other people besides me. They're both instructors. It was paying for a private, which was awesome. And in some downtime, I was talking to one of the guys, he's like, yeah, I quit doing Juujitsu for five years. And I was like, oh, why'd you stop? And he's like, well, a couple of years ago, I lost everything I was doing, worked in, I'm an actor and I worked in the industry. And then that started a conversation, and then he started telling me about all the stuff he's doing now. And he's like, we just decided to do it ourselves. We're making short films. We're putting it out there. We're winning tons of awards on this festival circuits. And he's been in Netflix shows, he's been in things. He has an I M D V page, so he's not just some guy. He has talent and skill, and he's even going out and put it in. And I was like, dude, good for you.Michael Jamin:Yeah. But when you look at the people who break, the people who are break in today, they're all doing what I'm doing. They're people, for the most part, they're not begging for work. They're making work for themselves, and they're making a name for themselves. And so they're building equity in their own name as opposed to knocking on doors and begging.Phil Hudson:Yeah, I, we've touched on this in a past podcast, but I've heard an agent refer to it as Plus writer plus. What is the plus you're bringing to the table? So maybe it's a following, maybe it's ip. Maybe you wrote a book that's a Amazon bestseller. Maybe it's you worked at the Onion and you're coming in with some clout because you had that experience, right? Maybe you were brought on the Harvard Lampoon, whatever it is, there's a plus and a following is a plus, but that's the value add. It's not enough. And you've told me this before, and I've quoted it often, and I think about it when I write, and this was, man, this was like 7, 6, 7 years ago.Michael Jamin:YouPhil Hudson:Read something I wrote in film school, and it was a speck of a Mr. Robot. And you said, Phil, it's obvious you're a competent writer, and this is really good. But that's the problem. It's not great. And so it's not enough to be good. You have to be great, but you also need something else. And you have to be willing to put that out there and get that work done. To me, I've been very hesitant to grow following because of the public nature of that and some of those things. And you tell me some of the things you have to deal with in your dms and people saying things, anti-Semitic things, all kinds. It's crazy, horrible things.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:You still stick it out and you do it. But yeah, the plus for me might be my skillset and technology. It might be my ability to run social media pro campaigns to the point where searchlights and this formerly Fox Searchlight, but searchlights people when they meet me are like, man, I need to fill in every project we have. And that's just the hustle and the grind. And you all have that. You listening to this have,Michael Jamin:That's exactly right. And Phil, this is what I was going to say as well, is everyone listening to this? Take inventory of what you have. For you, Phil, it's your vast knowledge of digital marketing, but for other people, they have other skills. So take advantage of what you have and then incorporate that towards building your brand or whoever youPhil Hudson:Are. Yeah, we might have talked, go ahead.Michael Jamin:Well, if you're a truck driver and you're like, what do I got? I drive a long distance truck, dude, you got a lot. Because you have, I dunno, whatever, 10 hours on the road where you're with nothing but your thoughts, turn off the radio. Not a lot of jobs like that where you can actually think and do your job at the same time. Think about something else. And so, yeah, you could write your screenplay, take notes into a recorder, and then when you stop the car later or the truck later, type it up a little bit and make notes. But that's a huge asset you have, which is you have time. You actually have time where you can think and concentrate on something while you do your job. That's a hugePhil Hudson:Asset. It's a blue sky time. Blue sky time is hard. It's the space and the stillness that is hard to generate in a chaotic life with family and obligations and work. So if you can find it, and reiterating one of the most powerful notes you've given me, which is, do you listen to audio books or podcasts in the car? And I said, yeah. And you said, don't,Michael Jamin:Don't, don't listen to me either. I turned it off your story. ThinkPhil Hudson:About your, yeah, write yourMichael Jamin:Story. WhatPhil Hudson:Is the problem? I'm trying to solve a huge breakthrough for me in my ability to spend time. I was so busy packing my day with so many obligations,Michael Jamin:But then I wasPhil Hudson:Spending hours in LA traffic doing runs for the show,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:It's like, oh, here's the space.Michael Jamin:So it'sPhil Hudson:A great note, but everyone has that note. And going back to something you said earlier, luck is not, you talked about everyone needs a little bit of luck, but that definition, and I think I shared this in episode three, luck is where opportunity meets preparation.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah'sPhil Hudson:The preparation. It's the time spent. It's the other adage, when's the best time to grow a tree 20 years ago,Michael Jamin:When'sPhil Hudson:The second best time? Right now,Michael Jamin:YouPhil Hudson:Don't have a tree, so get out and build a tree. Grow your tree, right?Michael Jamin:Yeah.Phil Hudson:So yeah, man, kudos to you for putting in the work and the effort. And I'm close enough as your friend, I've been able to see this and see your growth and your push to be able to do this. And I'll also say that even as someone that I considered to be competent, functional adults who's very successful, I've noticed your resilience increased quite a bit overMichael Jamin:My resilience.Phil Hudson:And that's not saying that you were some pushover or anything. I'm not suggesting that in the slightest, but I've just noticed that your ability to just take the bumps and the bruises of all of the BSS you're dealing with, it's just made you, I think, a little more focused and clear on what you want out of it. And that's why you have this reaction, this is my interpretation to me, why you're having this reaction to the publishers now. It's like, why am I giving you any of this? You didn't fight the fight. I fought the fight. I've been here. I've been in here day in and day out, so screw you. And that's a level of resiliency and confidence. I think that I'm not saying you didn't have that, justMichael Jamin:It took a lot for me to get there. It changes things. It took a lot for me to get there, but it was like maybe on the second book, maybe I'll do with them or not, I don't know. But I also know they haven't earned my book. And I've also heard too many stories from friends of mine who have had books traditionally published where the marketing department drops the ball and they promise one thing and then they're awol, and then that's it. Because at that point, you don't have the margin to do any more marketing on your own, so it's dead. And so it was never about the money for me, but I became a little angry as I was building this up. I was like, well, why am I cutting you in? It doesn't make sense to me. What do you bring to the table? Nothing other than Barnes and Noble, which I don't really care about. It's like, okay, sure. If it was 1982, I might worry about that. Yeah.Phil Hudson:This is, I think clicking for me. You're familiar with David Goggins, the former Navy Seal?Michael Jamin:I don't think so.Phil Hudson:He wrote a book called You Can't Hurt Me.Michael Jamin:And hePhil Hudson:Talks about how he was just abused as a kid by his father.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Then what that taught him to do was to be able to just separate his pain. And it created a lot of mental toughness to the point that he was in the us. He was in the Air Force, tried out for Air Force Special Operations. He became a Navy Seal. He went through three hell weeks because he kept getting rolled back for injuries. He had a point where he had fractured legs and he would duct tape them so that they weren't hurt when he was doing runs. I mean, he ran a hundred miler in one day with no preparation to the point that his kidneys were failing. And he just does ultra marathons nonstop. He's just kind of this figure. He's become a bit of a meme with the same younger people, but I've known about him for a few years, and he talks about his book and he's like, I got offered $300,000 from a publisher from my book,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:I just thought, you haven't been through what I've been through. It is basically what you're saying. It's like, you haven't earned this the way I have. Is my life worth $300,000? And he said, no. So he took all of his savings, which was about 300,000, and he self-published his own book, New York Times bestseller. Did the hardbacks, did the whole thing.Michael Jamin:Why didn't it take him 300,000 to make a book? It shouldn't have taken fraction of that.Phil Hudson:He did all of the publishing himself. So he didn't publish through a self-publisher like Amazon. He didn't even want to partner with Amazon, so he became his own publisher.Michael Jamin:SoPhil Hudson:He literally printed up hundreds of thousands of copies, and then he leveraged all of his relationships with the Rogans and all these people with these platforms because of the life and the experience that he had, and multiple time bestsellers, millions of copies, sold books,Michael Jamin:TwoPhil Hudson:Books, and he's a millionaire because of that effort. So it's that same resilience mindset I think that I'm hearing from you. And that's probably why I made that connectionMichael Jamin:Just like, screw people. I'll do it myself. I don't need you. That's how I feel. Whatever, I'll do it myself. Yeah.Phil Hudson:That's awesome. Before we talk about the new podcast, I just wanted to see, are there any takeaways for you over the last year? Are there anything that really stood out moments or conversations we've had with you, with other people, us on the podcast or with other students in your course?Michael Jamin:If you listen to some of those other episodes where I'm interviewing people, you'll hear various versions of the same story that I tell their own, which is kind of like, screw it. I'll just do it my own. It is just people. The reason why people are, I interview, I guess, successful people, and the reason why they're successful is because they haven't quit yet. That's it. They just didn't get around to quitting. And so I think that's what it is. Until you quit, you're just a success. That hasn't happened yet. It just hasn't happened yet,Phil Hudson:Which is why you don't quit.Michael Jamin:Yeah.Phil Hudson:Anything else stand out to you?Michael Jamin:I don't know. Can you think of something?Phil Hudson:The one lingering thought that I have is I think that people, you set a really good example for people on your social media about how to handle naysayersMichael Jamin:BecausePhil Hudson:You get a lot of negativity, and you talked about this, you could go after them. You're a professional comedyMichael Jamin:Writer. Yeah.Phil Hudson:They don't stand a chance. And I have witnessed just the witty quickness, the decimation of a soul in a writer's room, all in love,Michael Jamin:ButPhil Hudson:The capability of a professional comedy writer to just tear someone down. And it's almost like with great power comes great responsibility. ThatMichael Jamin:ClichePhil Hudson:From Spider-Man, it's like you opt to take the high road, which is,Michael Jamin:And I'm always torn by that. Sometimes I'm like, I can easily take you down. And sometimes I do. If it's warranted, if they come out with me a certain amount of energy, then I can match the energy. But I'm torn. I also feel like, well, it's not enough that I, on one hand, I tell people I'm a comedy writer, but unless I show it every once in a while, people are, how are they going to believe me?Phil Hudson:And soMichael Jamin:It's a line that I dance. I dance, it is like I don't want to be mean, but I also,Phil Hudson:It's not negative energy. It's not done with maliciousness. It's done playfully. But I think it just, you stand up for yourself when it's appropriate.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Again, that speaks to some of that resiliency that again, you could decimate 'em,Michael Jamin:You retrain yourself. I'm totally pulling punches, believe me when I'm pulling, because sometimes I've got a bunch of clips I haven't posted yet. I write them. I'll spend a half hour on 'em, and then I'll sit on it. I don't feel, and then I look at the next day, I go, oh, I can't put that on. It's funny, but it's just too mean. That'sPhil Hudson:The adage of when you're at work and you want to send that email, don't sendMichael Jamin:It.Phil Hudson:Write it out. Don'tMichael Jamin:Send it. GetPhil Hudson:It out of your system. Move on.Michael Jamin:Right. I took a guy apart the other day, I just haven't shared it, so screw it. That guy,Phil Hudson:You don't even share those with me.Michael Jamin:Yeah. But also I also do, and I made a post about this. It was like, how do I want to show up every day? How do I want to be seen? And I don't want be the mean guy. I don't want to be a bully. So I'm allowed to think my negative thoughts. I don't always have to share them.Phil Hudson:Yeah, yeah. No, and that's a valuable lesson for people in a world where, as I've often said, you remove the opportunity to get punched in the face for anything you say or do, and all of a sudden people start speaking up a little bit more than they probably should. And I'm not advocating for violence,Michael Jamin:ButPhil Hudson:Even a verbal punch to the face can often be enough. AndMichael Jamin:It'sPhil Hudson:Pretty easy in our society to just sit behind your keyboardMichael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Zero consequences for what you say and do. I call this out? I call this out in our webinars while you're talking, Cynthia, your wife is doing a great job of just getting questions, and I'm just kind of checking the chat to see what people are talking about. And man, there's some trolls rolling into your webinar too.Michael Jamin:Thank you. I never see them. Do you block 'em? What do you do?Phil Hudson:No, no. People take care. They take care of it. And we can talk about another experience we had where someone went after me on a podcast too, nepotism, do you remember that? Called me out for nepotismMichael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:All that.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Yeah, your listeners had my back and they went after 'em. And it is just a very stark difference between the community you've cultivated of people who are just respectful, sincere creatives looking to break in and chase their dreams and all the people who say they want to do it and are not putting in theMichael Jamin:Work and the nepotism on your part, to be clear, I suppose that was when you were in and out of foster care as a child. Is that when you experienced all the nepotism?Phil Hudson:Yeah, it might've been that. It might've been when I was in the group homes. It could have been when I lived in my aunt and uncle's house and I couldn't do sports because I had to workMichael Jamin:EffectivelyPhil Hudson:Full-time in high school. Could have been any of those times. Could have beenMichael Jamin:Of those times. Yeah.Phil Hudson:But your point to that was you knew one person tangentially through some girl when you moved here, there wasn't even an nepotism for you. And I knew you, and yeah, I've been blessed to have that opportunity, but we've seen enough people come and go, you have to earn it. Right?Michael Jamin:It's so funny when I tell that story. When I moved to Hollywood, I knew no one in Hollywood, but a girl I was friendly with in high school, she was a year younger than me. I found out that her brother was living in Hollywood and was trying to do what I did, which is bright sitcom writer. And so I called himPhil Hudson:Up, and thenMichael Jamin:We wound up becoming roommates. But then when I tell that story, people go, oh, so you did know someone. It was like, I knew some guy.Phil Hudson:He wasMichael Jamin:Just as unsuccessfulPhil Hudson:AsMichael Jamin:Me, and wePhil Hudson:BecameMichael Jamin:Roommates. He was just a couple years older than me. So I guess that's how I knew someone.Phil Hudson:But that highlights this thing. I was going to say, and it's just a quote that stuck with me for years. I think it comes from Jim Rowan, which is there's two ways to have the tallest building. One is to build the tallest building,Michael Jamin:WhichPhil Hudson:You have done the other ways to tear everyone else's building down.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:So if you're afraid to pursue your craft, sometimes tearing everyone else down is a bit easier than facing the empty page or the blank canvas. It'sMichael Jamin:A lot easier. It's a lot easier.Phil Hudson:And the high road, whichMichael Jamin:You'vePhil Hudson:Been an example forMichael Jamin:AnPhil Hudson:Exemplar, is just put your head down, do the work, provide value,Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Then the benefits will come eventually.Michael Jamin:And I really hope this episode doesn't seem like we're just patting me on the back. I hope it serves be to get you guys to do what I'm doing in your own way for whatever you want to do.Phil Hudson:And Michael saying that, because Michael didn't know what I was going to talk about or bring up here, this is me bringing this up because these are the things that I've observed as your friend, as a co-host on the podcast, but also just as someone who's just trying to do the same thing that everybody who listens to your podcast is tryingMichael Jamin:To do,Phil Hudson:Which is break in and chase their dreams.Michael Jamin:Yeah, I'm exactly like you guys. Only, I'm doing it for writing. That's all for publishing,Phil Hudson:Which speaks to the transition to the podcast, which is the title of the podcast. What the hell is Michael? WhatMichael Jamin:The hell is Michael Jamin talking about?Phil Hudson:Yeah. What the hell is Michael Jamin talking about? At this point, you can see the cover has changed, so it's going to be the same feed. You don't need to go resubscribe. None of the old episodes are rebranding. They'll still be live and available the way they were. But it's just a shift into talking about creative things. And I think you got some cool stuff to kind of display. I guess people might've already heard the intro.Michael Jamin:Oh, we could do that. WePhil Hudson:Put on this episode. But you want to talk more about that, the podcast and impetus for the change and why we were here?Michael Jamin:Yeah. Well, there was that. The new music is by my friend Anthony Rizzo, who did all the music. He was the composer on Marin. It wasn't my friend. Then. I just met him on Marin. And then he also did the music for my book, a paper orchestra, which would be dropping hopefully this winter and keep pushing itPhil Hudson:Back. Yeah, we haven't talked about that. You've put in a ton of energy and effort into recording the audio book and making it your live events, which I wanted to point out part of this transition, and you've always talked about how when you're in a writer's room, you end up acting out the parts, like when you're doing Hank on King of the Hill, you do Hank's voice and you kind of mimic him. You're doing Bobby, you do it. So you've always been a performer, but I don't know if you've been a performer in the sense that you are with a paper orchestra whereMichael Jamin:It'sPhil Hudson:A stage show and you're there and you're being vulnerable and emotional, and you're making it a thing, and you're practicing and you're working with talented coaches like your wife, Cynthia, who is a very talentedMichael Jamin:Actress,Phil Hudson:And Jill Sch, who is a legendary actress, and you're investing in all this coaching to put on a presentation or performance for people. And I have not heard audio book, but what I understand is it's going to be very similar experience to come into a live show.Michael Jamin:I think so. And it'll be a little more intimate than a live show in your ear because it's an audio book. I'm much closer to your brain, and I want to talk to morePhil Hudson:CreatorsMichael Jamin:Like this. But what I'm personally inspired by right now, and that maybe it'll change in five years, but I'm inspired by people who tell and perform their own stories. To me, there's something, so you're an actor. You have to be a writer and a performer at the same time, as opposed to doing something like creating something. That's fine. But when you're telling your own story, it's like, man, you're really putting yourself out there. And I think when I see people do it, I'm like, all right, that's interesting. Maybe I'll change in five years. So I mean, standups do that, but they don't do it. They're going for the laugh usually. They're not usually going deeper than that, which is fine that when you go into a comedy club, that's what you expect. So that's kind of what I've been exploring and being motivated by.Phil Hudson:That's another Michael Jainism that stood out to me. I wrote it down when you were talking earlier, go there. You have to be willing to go there. And we talked about people who are not willing to go there. And we've heard people, other writers say, I'm not willing to go there. And you've called it out privately to me, did you hear that person? Did you hear what they said? And you have to be willing to go there. For a long time, I wasn't. And through your help, I've been able to do that. But yeah, you're talking to people who go there.Michael Jamin:Yeah, that's the job. If you don't want the job, find another job. It'sPhil Hudson:Emotional vulnerabilityMichael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:Being willing to put yourself out there and not just on a social media perspective, but truly emotionally vulnerable in your stories and what you've called mining your life for stories and putting that out there.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Yeah. To me, that's the exciting stuff. And I didn't invent this, so it's just when I see others do it, I'm like, wow, why I should be doing that too.Phil Hudson:So obviously I'm not necessarily a co-host of this anymore. I'm still helping produce the thing. We're still making sure that that'sMichael Jamin:How hear a lot the technicalPhil Hudson:Side. I'll still be popping in on podcast episode.Michael Jamin:We'll still be talking about screenwriting, I'm sure.Phil Hudson:And I had this cool experience, and I don't think we've talked about this when I was on touring with the broken lizard guys doing their social media, just sitting there talking to them and seeing this rabid fan base of people who just love them from this thing that they created. When they did it, they put themselves out there.Michael Jamin:AndPhil Hudson:It really lit that our tour spirit I had back in 2000 8 0 9, when I was really dedicating myself to screenwriting. And I have actually been working on a feature that I would like to star in and direct and do that whole thing on the indie level. Just now you talking, just an exercise. What aboutMichael Jamin:As a short first, why not doing it as a shortPhil Hudson:Could definitely do that. Yeah. Why?Michael Jamin:ToPhil Hudson:Me, there's a feature in there for sure that I want to write and just get out of me, but definitely worth doing a short, yeah,Michael Jamin:Go watch as we talk about this. Go watch on Vimeo, I think Thunder Road, that scene we talk about, go watch the church, the Churching. That was a feature, but that scene stands on its own. If you just saw that scene, you would've thought, oh, it's a short, I thought it was a short, I thought it was a great short, I didn't realize it was part of a bigger, so do something like that. And then when people see that and they're blown away, you'll say, oh, well, there's more to come. Just I need you to donate $5,000. And then they pay for the rest.Phil Hudson:Yeah. Yeah. That's great advice. Great advice. So yeah. So anyway, this beautiful shift in the tide of creativity and your shift, and that rubs off. What can we expect from the podcast in terms of guests you're interviewing? What does that look like for you?Michael Jamin:I reach out, I got to continue to do more. I'm doing another one tomorrow. I'll be reaching out. These guys really inspired me. So there's a movie that I saw on Netflix many years ago, I dunno, maybe five years ago from these guys called The Minimalists. So I reached out to one of them. He's going to be on the Tomorrow, and they're fascinating. It is.Phil Hudson:Joshua Fields Millburn, andMichael Jamin:He's the one coming on, and he's gracious enough to come on, and I'm sure he's going to think we're going to talk about the message. And the message is very important. The message is how you can live, how you can have more in your life with less how you don't need to buy this, how you'll be happier if you get rid of that, and great message. But he's in for a surprise because we'll talk about that. But I really want to talk about how he created himself, how he, okay, then how did you sell a show on Netflix? Okay, now what is it like to be this person? Because he wasn't, he was just some guy who's middle management before he did this, and now he's the guy who has this message. Even though the message has already been said before by other people, he still put a different spin on it to me. And I find that inspiring, that somebody who invented himself, what does that feel like? What are the insecurities that come with that? What is this new fame ish thing that he has? How does that feel? How does he continue to push himself? I don't know. I'm looking forward to the interview. I'm curious to hear, and I bet you he hasn't spoken about that.Phil Hudson:That's awesome.Michael Jamin:I did an interview, I dunno if it, no, it hasn't aired yet. The guy I follow, a prop master that I follow on TikTok named Scott and Scott Reeder, and he's great.Phil Hudson:Great. I follow him too.Michael Jamin:He's great. He just talks about all the props and how he makes these props, and we spoke a little bit about that, but we were more talking about how he invented himself now. And halfway through the interview, he says to me, this is the best interview anyone's ever done, because I didn't really care about the boring stuff. I want to know how he invented himself. What all of us, I think are trying to do right now. That's part of Before we Die, we, that's, who else can we be before we die?Phil Hudson:Yeah, that's profound, man. I'm excited. I've loved listening to the interviews you've already done on Screenwriters. Need to hear this. I'm looking forward to those.Michael Jamin:It'sPhil Hudson:Good stuff, man. I'm just really pumped for this new stage. And again, I do think it just speaks a little bit more to who you've become because not that you've outgrown yourself as a writer, it's just you've evolved a bit as a person into being a bit more than that. And I hesitate to even say that too, because I know this is who you are. This is who you have been.Michael Jamin:But this is what writers too, I think it's like, all right, what else can we explore here? That's part of the fun. That's the fun part being, being a writer is that you get car, right? You get carte blanche to try new things because maybe I can write about this worst case scenario. I can make a story from it.Phil Hudson:I was about to say, that's advice you've given me multiple times, which is it's a write-off. You can go take aMichael Jamin:Basket weaving class,Phil Hudson:Right? Go take aMichael Jamin:Dance class. Why?Phil Hudson:It's an experience. Go take an acting class. And I remember you did a workshop in Acting for Life and it was a comedy workshop and you were kind enough to invite me to attend that. And I was already studying with Cynthia and Jill at the time there. And yeah, I remember you just putting out that same thing. It's great. You're studying acting, it's going to make you a better writer.Michael Jamin:And you'vePhil Hudson:Given that advice on the podcast too. So it's really fascinating to me. And I'm just kind of realizing this in this moment, man, I thought I was getting all this great free advice that was particular to Phil Hudson and now you're justMichael Jamin:Giving it toPhil Hudson:Everybody, man.Michael Jamin:Everyone. I hope so. I'd like to try to do, we'll see if I can make that happen where I go to, that's something I'm going to try to make happen where I can tour to different cities, put on a show, and then the next day maybe a writing seminar afterwards in that city so I can to help offset some of my costs. And then we could just talk about writing that day. We have a little writing workshop or something, so maybe I'll try to do that.Phil Hudson:God, that's awesome. It's the first I've heard of that. That sounds like a great,Michael Jamin:Yeah, it's just so many things that have to happen before that. I got so much on my plate right now. I can't even think about that. But we were talking about that. Wouldn't that be interesting?Phil Hudson:It's a great idea. Well, I imagine Cynthia will be with you.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah,Phil Hudson:Yeah. And that's awesome. Now you're getting someone who's been on Seinfeld and the friends and just allMichael Jamin:ThesePhil Hudson:Great, I mean very talented, very, and I will say not only talented, but very perceptive,Michael Jamin:Right? Oh yeah.Phil Hudson:And I think I've shared this on here too, but there was this moment where I just couldn't get there. I just couldn't get there. And Jill's just saying, what are you feeling? And IMichael Jamin:Was like, I don't know.Phil Hudson:And she turns to the class and she's like, what is everyone? What's he feeling? Everyone's like, he's mad. And I didn't even realize I was mad. And then the next class, I'm struggling in this scene. And then Jill's like, what are you struggling with? What's going on? I was like, I don't know. And then Cynthia's like, is it the intimacy? Is he having trouble with the intimacy of the scene? And I was like, holy shit. Yeah. I think that's what it is. I am not willing to go here. And I had to work through all that stuff. So she's just so perceptive and so kind. You can't even be not mad. She's calling you out because it's done with so much love and compassion. It's a beautiful thing.Michael Jamin:We've had these moments, by the way, when she directs me from my audio book where the outtakes are not pretty, the outtakes are me yelling.Phil Hudson:ButMichael Jamin:It's funny, one of thePhil Hudson:Stories in my bookMichael Jamin:Is called The House on Witherspoon Street where I'm a kid in college. They're all true stories. And it builds to me giving an on-air interview to this woman who's this eccentric woman who had a talk show. She was lovely, but she's larger than life and it's in the book. And then my editor said yesterday, he goes,Phil Hudson:Do youMichael Jamin:Happen to have that interview? And I was like, well, actually, I think I do. And I found the cassette from 30 years ago. And so we'll put it in the bonus section of the book where now you can hear me, you can hear me as a 19 year old or whatever it was. Has that scene unfolded? That's likePhil Hudson:Steve LE's break dancingMichael Jamin:Commercial, but it's stranger than that because you'll know now what I was thinking in my headPhil Hudson:While That's awesome.Michael Jamin:While it was going on. That's aPhil Hudson:Great point.Michael Jamin:Yeah, it's a fun little thing.Phil Hudson:It's cool stuff, man. I love it. I'm pumped. It's a good shift for you. I think it's a good shift for your audience. I think it opens it up a little bit. Hope it's a little bit more accessible to your audience. Your audience is far more than just writers. It'sMichael Jamin:Great. I don't want to just, when it called screenwriters, you hear this. Well, does that mean I don't want to be a screenwriter? Well, okay, but do you want to do anything creative? Yeah, sure I do. I want to write a poem. Okay, good. Now listen, you can, thePhil Hudson:Other thing is how does this apply to novel writing? How does this apply to playwriting? And we have a testimonial video from a guy who does financial writing, and he took your course and he's like, it made my financial writing better.Michael Jamin:He'sPhil Hudson:Able to tell a better story aboutMichael Jamin:Finances in a finance journal. And stories are what gets people hooked. Whatever you want to sell, sell it with a story. People are interested in hearing a story veryPhil Hudson:Often. That's you,Michael Jamin:Right?Phil Hudson:It's you in the room, it's you idea, it's yourMichael Jamin:Acting,Phil Hudson:It's yourMichael Jamin:Art.Phil Hudson:All of that is story.Michael Jamin:By the way, I hope to do some more public speaking. So if anyone has a,Phil Hudson:It works at a corporationMichael Jamin:And you want me to do public speaking, we have a number of talks,Phil Hudson:Keynotes. We can talk about that, Michael. I do a lot of that with some clients.Michael Jamin:Oh really? Oh good. We'll talk about that. KeynotePhil Hudson:Marketing. Yeah. Well, good stuff. Anything you want to add? I mean, we had talked, I think, a little bit about potentially putting the music on. I think everybody's already heard the music on. We've heard some of it. It'sMichael Jamin:Funky. Do youPhil Hudson:Want to play it? It's aMichael Jamin:Funky, let's play some of it. Okay,Phil Hu

Michael Small was a staff member of The Harvard Lampoon. He is our guest today - on his history at one of the oldest and most prestigious humor magazines in the world. The alumni of The Harvard Lampoon include such icons in comedy as Conan O'Brien, Greg Daniels, Jim Downey, Colin Jost, BJ Novak - and numerous writers for SNL, The Simpsons, Letterman, Curb Your Enthusiasm - as well as almost every known comedy entity in TV and movies. Be sure to check out Michael's podcast: I Couldn't Throw It Out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On this week's episode, I talk about my thoughts on going to Film School. We also talk about what some industry insiders think about this and whether or not it helps your career. Tune in for much more!Show NotesFree Writing Webinar - https://michaeljamin.com/op/webinar-registration/Michael's Online Screenwriting Course - https://michaeljamin.com/courseFree Screenwriting Lesson - https://michaeljamin.com/freeJoin My Watchlist - https://michaeljamin.com/watchlistAutogenerated TranscriptMichael Jamin:Because I don't want to make it harder for my, when I'm working in a writer's room, I don't want to make it harder for myself. I want to make it simple for me to think about these problems. So I don't want to make it harder. The job is hard enough as it is. Why make it harder? Make it simpler. You're telling a story, it's not heart surgery. You're listening to screenwriters. Need to hear this with Michael Jamin. Hey everybody, welcome back. I'm Michael Jamin. I'm here with Phil Hudson and today we're answering the question, or at least we're asking it. Who knows if we'll have an answer? Should I go to film school? I get this one a lot. Let's talk about it. Well first of all, Phil, you might be better than me answering because you actually went to film school. Where'd you go?Phil Hudson:I went to Santa Fe University of Art and Design and I got a bachelor's, a fine arts in film story development from a film schoolMichael Jamin:There. How many years is that degree?Phil Hudson:It's a four year degree. Took me, oh myMichael Jamin:God,Phil Hudson:It's a bachelor's program. So it wasn't like master's an n, NYU U Master's in film. It was a bachelor's degree. And I remember when I was contemplating going, I had just really met you. I'd been working with your wife for a while and I asked you, should I go there or should I go to Hollywood? And you said, well, I don't know how valuable film school is outside of the network. You'll build there, but the work's here, so that's a personal choice. And then you said, well, at least you'll be able to teach college. And I said, well, I don't know if I will because it won't have a master's. And you're like, oh no.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Well how much did that degree cost? Not necessarily you, but most people.Phil Hudson:Yeah, so the school was $30,000 a year, so it's $120,000 to get a four year degree. And I think at the time the average student would take about five years to get a bachelor's degree. So it actually, it would be $150,000 forMichael Jamin:That degree. I just Googled U S C film school and it's 53,000 a year. And I dunno if it's two or three years, but either way it's enough to give you heart palpitations.Phil Hudson:To put this into perspective, my brother, he's a lawyer, went to law school in Idaho and he's a lawyer in Montana where he passed the bar and I think his degree cost him $120,000 to be a lawyer.Michael Jamin:To be a lawyer. And you can immediately start earning that back the minute you passed thePhil Hudson:Bar. Oh, he's making more money per hour than I am now. He went, I mean he really took his time and now he was scraping by living on student loans, building up debt to get through film school with a family. I mean he's building five to six billable hours per day at $200 an hour. He is making more in a day than I make as a PAMichael Jamin:On. Yeah, right. But film school, so should people go to film school? Here's the thing, you're going to graduate with a lot of debt and we don't know when or if you'll ever pay that off. As far as I can tell.Phil Hudson:I can be transparent on that too. I had a Robert Redford scholarship and a talent scholarship, so my cost all in, aside from what I paid, I have $40,000 in student loans from school and my school closed down. It doesn't exist anymore.Michael Jamin:So do you have to pay back your loan then? IPhil Hudson:Do.Michael Jamin:You do. Even though, who's it going to? They don't have school.Phil Hudson:The federal government loaned me the money and then paid the school. And that is something I can never get rid of. It's you can't file bankruptcy on it. It lives with you till death. You will always owe that money unless you pay it back. The other side of this is there is a way that I could challenge that and say, well, my school's gone because the school actually never sent me my diploma. So I walked, I have the itinerary, the photos, the whole thing, but I never got my diploma from the school. And there's a process to go get it through the parent organization laureate to go get that, but it's a bit of a pain in the butt. And they messed up my transcripts because I did that four year program in two and a half years. So I really expedited things. I saw them writing on the wall that it was going to shut down so I could challenge it and I could get that waived and then I would lose my degree. So I've wasted two and a half years, so it's not really worth fighting to me. I'd rather have the degree. So I've just got to find the time to go fight that other battle for you.Michael Jamin:Well, just so people know, I've worked in TV for a long time, 27 years, and most of the writers that I work, if you want to be a screenwriter, very, very few actually went to film school. I was at a party a couple weeks ago, a friend of mine who told me he went to film school and I've worked with him for many years. He's like, you went to film school. It just doesn't come up. And when you get hired for, no one's going to ask you to see your degree. No one caress what your G p A was in film school. No one caress if you went or you didn't go. All they care is can you put the words in the page? That comp compelled people to turn to the next page. And you don't need just the fact that you have a degree or even an M F A in creative writing or whatever. The degree is worthless. The knowledge that you gain might be worth something might depending on who's teaching it to you. And I think that is more dependent on not necessarily the school or the program, but who's teaching that semester, who did they get? Often these are adjuncts and sometimes the adjuncts are working screenwriters who have a break in their schedule and want to teach. And you may find one that's great, but these adjuncts don't get paid a lot of money. So it's not what I mean a lot of money. I'm talking aboutPhil Hudson:A couple hundred bucks a month.Michael Jamin:Yeah, I mean the people I've talked to for a semester, maybe they make $4,000. It's not a lot of money, so they're not doing it for the money. And it's not a long-term career option when you're only making four grand for a semester. It's ridiculous. So it just depends on who they got that semester. You may get somebody great, you may not. So the knowledge you get may be fantastic, but again, it's a trade school you're getting, if you want to be a filmmaker, do you want to learn editing? Do you want to learn lighting or maybe, but as a screenwriter, no, you'll learn that in a million other things. There are way less expensive options, including our course that we offer that will teach you probably more in that area of specialty in the writing aspect. But I don't teach lightingPhil Hudson:And I decided to go because I was always a bit more interested in being an ourour, shooting, writing, directing, producing, editing, just kind of understanding the full gamut. I also have a bit of a control need. I need to be able to understand, and this comes from being in the tech space where I'd have engineers telling me something was going to take three weeks to get done, and then you learn how to code it and you realize they're just milking the clock. And so it comes from I'd like to understand the full process so I can better work within that process and hold people a little bit more accountable from a leadership perspective. But yeah, that's smart. Smart. And your note on film school is interesting too. On the writing side, no one cares on the production side. I've actually had conversations with people who roll their eyes when they hear you into film school.Michael Jamin:Yeah, really? People, producers, you meanPhil Hudson:Art directors?Michael Jamin:Why didPhil Hudson:They roll their every department?Michael Jamin:Why did they roll their eyes?Phil Hudson:I dealt with this when I was a missionary. When you're a missionary, you've been out doing this stuff for six months and then you're asked to train somebody new. That guy's coming from a place where they taught them how to be a missionary, but learning how to be a missionary versus being a missionary, just different things. Learning how to make a film and learning how to do a setup versus how a set actually runs. They're different things. The education may be correct, but the environment changes things. And so without fail, people who come in who said, I went to film school, think they know how to do it, think they know better than their superiors and it creates conflict because those people think they're better than the people teaching them.Michael Jamin:Phil, we didn't have this conversation off the air. So just so you know, I worked with a producer on one of my TV shows, the line producer, he was the producer and he said the same exact thing. He said that when he hires PAs for the show and most of the PAs come out of film school, whatever, a hundred thousand in debt, he goes, I have to untrain them. I have to unlearn them everything they learned because they think they know and it's just not how it works. And I was like, really? He goes, yep, that's how he goes. He doesn't prioritize hiring film students. He just as well hired someone who's not a film school student, have them learn on the job and learn instead of being winding up a hundred thousand in debt, they get paid. Although not a lot, but they get paid to learn.Phil Hudson:No, you get paid. I always described it, and I need this too, because when I moved to LA I was 31 and I'd already had a very successful corporate career and I could have pursued that career. When I was in college, I got prospected to go be a chief marketing officer at a bunch of startups in San Francisco paying way more money than I make now. And I turned 'em down because I was way more passionate about this thing I want to do in film. But I always described it to people like I knew, I knew I was going to get coffee for people. I knew it was a lot of yes sir, no, yes sir, no ma'am. However much you need, what can I do? Because it really feels to me like it's the apprenticeship model out here. This is a trade where you learn under someone else who has done it and you not only learn how to do it by the book, but you learn all the tips and tricks and hacks. They had to figure out that were passed down to them as a lineage from the people that taught them who learned it from the guy who was running around with the horses in 1908.Michael Jamin:So another thing that you might get from film school. So in other words, let's break it down. Okay, the diploma is not worth anything, but the knowledge you might get, especially in terms of screenwriting, might be valuable. Just totally depends, but you can spend a lot less on it. You might get context depending on where you go, depending on your graduating class. And if you are willing to stay in contact, if you stay in contact with your people, if you're friends with them, if you're not, those contacts are worth, your graduating class is worthless if you don't know the members of your graduating class. And like I said, it's an expensive venture and it didn't help you get, okay. So when you got your first PA job, did they ask if you went to film school?Phil Hudson:No, I think in fact when I interviewed it was probably one of those situations where I was disqualified because of it. Oh, really? Because in the interview it was for Brett and link's buddy system. You got me the interview, you told me I can get you the interview, I can't get you the job. You got her on the job. And I showed up and I disqualified myself by telling them I wanted to be a writer. That's really what disqualified me. And then, yeah, no one has asked me once, not a single person has ever asked me if I went to film school.Michael Jamin:And so I had toPhil Hudson:Bring it up once or twice out of defense because someone was trying to belittle. This is like I ran into a really toxic person in her season of Tacoma Tea recently, and that person was belittling me by trying to explain to me things and I had to say, yeah, I learned that in film school. And then she looked at me and was like, yeah, I went to film school too. I understand. I know how to calculate it. I get it.Michael Jamin:But there are things in terms of screenwriting that you did not learn in film school.Phil Hudson:Oh man. And this is no knock on anybody. You talk about good professors and bad professors. We had an adjunct professor named Ed Kamara, and he's a legend. He wrote Lady Hawk, which was a huge hit in the eighties. He wrote the Bruce Lee movie. He has actual credits under his belt, retired lives in Santa Fe, and he would come and teach one class per year. And it was intermediate storytelling and I got way more out of that class than I did any of my other writing classes because he was telling you, here's how you write a screenplay. And we had to write a screenplay to get credit in the class. But compare that to my first class and nothing against the professor, but we spent four weeks learning audio visual format for PSAs, and then we learned how to use Celtics because he wrote the book on Celtics and we had to buy the book on Celtics for his course.It was a lot of stuff. And then I had this really interesting moment we've talked about in the podcast, but this is a real thing that happened to me. He asked the room, we finally got into story and structure. He asked the room, what's the definition of a story? And I just perked up and I was like, I know this because it's literally the first thing you had taught me via an email. He asked me that question and I looked around the room and people raising their hands and people are getting it wrong. And I just said, it's a hero overcoming an obstacle to achieve a goal. And the teacher turned around and changed his slides because he didn't have that definition. So yeah, I've learned way more, I would say outside of film school, about screenwriting through you and the stuff you've taught me also from just sitting down and writing, the real benefit for me was that it forced me to write,Michael Jamin:But also you can build and if you want to talk about your graduating class since I brought it up, but you can build your community outside of, you don't need to go to film school to build a community of people, of like-minded people who want what you want, which is to become either filmmakers or screenwriter, whatever it is. But it's like you can build a community, especially online because you don't need to do that now. So much about the world has changed with the internet and social media so much. It's changed so rapidly that, but I think so many people are still stuck in the old model thinking, well no, this is how it has to be done, myself included as well. I sometimes feel that when it doesn't, the world is changing.Phil Hudson:We can talk about generative AI and all of those things because pretty steeped in those. I sent you a bunch of guides yesterday about how to do some content on chat G P T and stuff, but tool, like you said, technology has just changed things. MySpace was a thing when I was in high school and Facebook was brand new when I got off my mission in 2008, and I barely, I had to figure out how to use that, but YouTube wasn't a thing. I remember sitting in my first class in film school and one of the assignments was, I want you to write down on a piece of paper, who is the filmmaker that inspired you to be a filmmaker when you were like 12 years old? And then he said, if you were inspired by a YouTuber, come talk to me. I have a different assignment for you. And I was like, what? YouTube was invented in 2005. I graduated in oh four, right? It's just text change things. So I agree with you on that. But in terms of your network and growing a network, my network in my film school, I went to school with a bunch of really passionate people about film, are way more technically savvy than I am. Could make a picture out of a camera I can't even imagine because they just had access to better technology than I did. They were much younger than me,Michael Jamin:ButPhil Hudson:I've found most of 'em didn't understand story at all. And the ones who did, there's a small group of us who made it to la. Out of that group of people, there's like four of them still here. One is working at an agency, one is in the W G A and writes on Selena. She's amazing. You should go check out Selena Blank on her names Alexandra, but it'll come up to me. And then there's one guy who was an announcer, really put in a lot of effort making these happen. And now he's a head of creative development at a pretty well-known studio. That's it. That's really it. I've got a couple of friends who still live in la, but they're not doing anything in the industry writing related. They're doing the visual effects and things, but they all want to be writers, directors. That's what they did. But the group that I think I associate the most with is actually your group from the course.Michael Jamin:Yeah. You associate meaning making connections withPhil Hudson:Yeah. Yeah. I mean prior to that, obviously I know people on set. I need people on set. We trade scripts. We kind of have those things because working with people and then you learn, everybody wants to be a writer. Everybody wants to be a director. Not everybody. There are some people who are like, I love lighting and I love camera and that's what I want to do. But a lot of people want to be writers and directors. And so you can meet a lot of like-minded people that way. They're the events and things in LA that you can go to networking events. There's social media meetups now there's Zoom meetups with people. But your group, I want to highlight because the value of that group to me is these are people who've invested in themselves to learn from a professional who knows how to do it.And we are all sitting down in this group, and it's a group of people who are highly motivated. They're taking it very seriously. They understand the fundamentals the same way that we all do. And then now we're slowly lifting each other up to become better. And there's new people joining every month, and those people are jumping into this ecosystem, but very proactive. We trade notes with those people. The notes are way better. I mean, those are my peers. One comes into town and we meet up, we go pick it with him and Warner Brothers, he comes to my house, he eats food in my home. That's Dave Crossman we talk about all the time. But lots of people in the LA area that we meet up with and do those things. That's the networking that really matters.Michael Jamin:So just to be clear, I have a screenwriting course and that comes with a private Facebook group. That's what you're talking about. And what I see, it's interesting. I am a member of some public Facebook groups screenwriting, and I don't go there. I don't know why I'm in there, but I don't go there. They're dark, they're dark places. People are mean, they talk shit. They don't know what they're talking about. It is just toxic. But that's definitely not the sense in our group, which is very much more supportive, not, and not only that, we haven't even talked about this film, but someone, I think it was Crossman in the group, decided to, Hey, should we do a film, a screenwriting contest? FilmPhil Hudson:Festival. A filmMichael Jamin:Festival? And so I was like, that's fun. That's a good idea.Phil Hudson:You told them to do it on a podcast. You said, you were talking about on the podcast you said, and not crossword, but you said, you know what I think our group needs to do? They need to just do a thing where they can exhibit the stuff they're working on and then someone did it,Michael Jamin:Someone took the initiative to do it, and I'm all for it. I'm not involved in it, but I'm all for it. I'm like, that's a great idea. And it just helps. First of all, it raises everyone's profile in the group with other, amongst themselves, but also that'll spread. I mean, they do this and one of these things does well, if everyone agree on, Hey, this movie's really good, or the screenplays, I don't even know, is it a movie or is it a screenplay? It'sPhil Hudson:Short. It's produced stuff. So it's taking your content and then producing it as a short,Michael Jamin:Right?Phil Hudson:So Imagine Festival,Michael Jamin:Imagine the top three entrants. Everyone agrees, these are the three favorite that will have legs that people will talk about that they'll share that outside of the group. They'll say, I mean, I don't see a downside to this. All I see is upside. And I was, I was actually thinking about what stopped them from doing this two years ago. And the answer, and I came up with the answer and the answer was, one, someone felt like, well, this is a lot of work, which I get it. It's not a lot, but it's work to organize this. And then the second was probably, they're probably thinking, well, who am I to do this? Who am I to be the person? What am I? I'm just a person. Why should am I to say I'm capable? Well, why are you not capable? Who are you not to be the person you're just as good as anybody else? What's the problem? But it's overcoming that little mental barrier that you created for yourself thinking, who am I to make a film a contest? Well, you're you. That's who you are now. You're the guy, now you're the guy, the woman creating this contest and raising your profile in the process, which is only a good thing. So it's only good for the winners or the contestants. It's good for the people who are involved in doing this.Phil Hudson:And we've talked about it too, the proactiveness in that group of people, they have reading groups and that's booked out for six months where they know for every week who's reading these scripts. They're exchanging notes. They do pitch fest. They bring in people outside of the group, professionals that they know. They shared their network with you to hear you pitch things. Right? Wow. Yeah. It's nothing butMichael Jamin:Good for them. I mean, seriously, I'm not organizing this. They're being proactive, which is what I encourage you to do. Control put, this is your destiny. This is your fate. You got to make these opportunities for yourself. And it's only good, good things to be the person, even if you're just a connector, even if you're just the person that links two people together, now you are the connector. You're also valuable. SoHey, it's Michael Jamin. If you like my videos and you want me to email them to you for free, join my watch list. Every Friday I send out my top three videos. These are for writers, actors, creative types. You can unsubscribe whenever you want. I'm not going to spam you and it's absolutely free. Just go to michaeljamin.com/watchlist.Phil Hudson:No, this is the value of leadership. It's just leadershipMichael Jamin:Is what I was even asking too. Are you getting involved in that? Is that what youPhil Hudson:I'm going to, they don't know this. They'll listen to this. I don't know. But yeah, I've got this final that I did in film school. Every project I've ever done, the audio has just been trashed. It's just been correct. And the problem this time was my cinematographer didn't enable the on-camera audio. And so I did have a good audio person getting the audio, so I just was able to scrape it enough to get an A on my final and get out. But I never finished the project. So that's a project that's sitting there. My friend Ken Joseph, who does the music for your podcast, he's going to do the music on as well. And I'm just going to finally cut it and submit it. And then I'm probably going to put something together with a couple of people from the Tacoma crew who aren't working right now and try to just get something shot and submit it just for fun.Michael Jamin:See, and this gets you off your ass, just lets a fire under your ass to do. But I bet you the, IPhil Hudson:Can't not show up Michael. Not that I have any clout, but it's like I'm number two in the group just because of my tech admin status. And so if I don't show up, what message is that sending to people? And so I take that on myself as my responsibility for helping be involved and support the troubleshooting that goes on. Okay, I need to be an activeMichael Jamin:Participant. How many winners are they going to choose?Phil Hudson:I have no clue on that.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Well, I look forward to watching the winners. I'm not going to judge, but I will be. I'll enjoy the victors. I'll enjoy their work. And I mean, again, that's just people taking initiative of their own careers. That's what you're supposed to do.Phil Hudson:Yeah. I mean, this is what you've been preaching for two years, man. You've been saying this. It's like no one's going to help you. You got to do it yourself. I think this is just a lost American skillset. That is a very important one.Michael Jamin:This is not film school. They don't have to go to film school to do all this. No, this is where the conversation started.Phil Hudson:And on that note, it's like, do you have to go to film school? Absolutely not. My answer is no. Am I glad I went to film school? I don't know that I would be in the same place today if I hadn't. I think that I had to go through a lot of that stuff. Are there benefits to going to school and getting a degree in general? I think so. I think as someone who grew up poor and I just had this chip on my shoulder all the time, that I was less than. So going and getting a classic education from a liberal arts school, having my eyes opened a little bit more by being encouraged to read stuff I would've never read on my own. I took classes on feminist literature because that was the course that fit into my schedule to check that box.And I took the look through it, history of science fiction. Wow, learned so much about this genre that I love and saw the influence of that. So there's a lot of those benefits I think from a personal development perspective. But I'm also an autodidact. I mean, I've got shells full of books that I can just read and learn on my own, and I believe anybody can do that. So it's each their own. And with kids, my wife is not a believer in college and secondary education doesn't really care because it's not something that ever called out to her. I definitely see the value. And so our decision is it's up to our kids to decide and we'll support whatever they want to do. But I also know I've built a very healthy marketing career on my own that did not go to school for,Michael Jamin:The thing is to graduate though with a hundred hundred or $150,000 in debt,Phil Hudson:It's insurmountable for a lot of people, especially, and I think this is what the strike highlights is, people in Hollywood have this opinion that riders are just driving Lamborghinis and they're loaded. And the answer is no. They're middle class people. They just live in a city that requires more money to live in, but they live a middle class lifestyle that would be the equivalent of a upper middle class lifestyle. In any other suburban area of America doing any other middle class job, there are outliers. It's a bell curve. There are people who make way less. There are a lot of people who make a lot more, but the average in the bell, they're just middle class people and they're in my neighborhood. I mean, I just moved into this new neighborhood a year ago, and in my neighborhood, I go to this church and there are four people in the industry in the church. One's an editor at Sony, one was the head gaffer for N C I S, and he's retired now. And the other one's a composer for film and tv, but they live in what I would call an upper middle class neighborhood. They're not in the Hollywood Hills. I'm further away from LA than I've ever been. This is where I could afford to put my family.Michael Jamin:Right. So it's just a little hard to think about having that amount of debt isPhil Hudson:When you can go to school for six, seven years and then start making 1200 bucks a day as an attorney.Michael Jamin:Yeah. So do you really want to add that for the same debt?Phil Hudson:The same debt? So it's crazy.Michael Jamin:So it's probably just a better way to spend your money and your time probably. I would think. And again, I didn't go to film school. One of the best writers I've ever worked with didn't go to college. She was just a high school graduate. So it's a question of can you put the words on the page? The degree will not open doors for you. No.Phil Hudson:Yeah. And that ties into limiting belief, people talking all the time is you have to go to Harvard to make it in Hollywood. Yeah. It's like, no, there are recruiting groups. There are kind of cliquey things that can happen for sure. And this is, I don't know, so I apologize if this is incorrect, but I've heard that the Simpsons largely hires people from Harvard,Michael Jamin:And that was really, that news is 30 years old, so I don't even know if they're hiring anymore. The Simpsons is not what it once was. And people aren't leaving that show. If you're a writer on that show, you're not leaving because why would you? So I don't know how many writers they hire, and I don't know if I know it once was a feeder. You go to the Lampoon. If you did the Harvard Lampoon, then maybe you get some contact.Phil Hudson:But that's a qualification, right? You to work at the Lampoon, you are qualified because you have to have a certain joke set, a style of jokes. So I mean, that just makes sense to me. I know there's a big U Ss C producing, I wouldn't call it click but network. If you went to the producing school at U S C, that has value to people in the producing side. They know the quality of the education that you had.But I mean, that's alumni networks and that's been around for forever. No different. The difference here is I know that if I need to find a job tomorrow, so let's say the strikes end tomorrow and Tacoma FD is canceled, which is not, but if it did, what's my next step? My step is to send out emails to everybody I know that I've worked with in the four years I've been on Tacoma fd, letting 'em know this is the kind of job I'm looking for. Lemme know if you hear anything. And I know that my work ethic will shine that if there's an opportunity, they'll ask me. They'll recommend me that,Michael Jamin:Right?Phil Hudson:That's the same network. I got that working.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah, right. You built that yourself really. So, and another thing you can do if you decide to take a course or a class, and I've talked about this before, so apologize for repeating myself, but whoever your teacher is, it says if it's screenwriting, ask to read their work. It's okay. That's okay. And you could say, I'd love to, before you sign up, I'd love to read what your work is. And then they'll give you a script. If they're not willing to share their work, what's the problem? It's a red flag. If you read it and you're not sure whether you like where you think it's good or not, there's a simple test. When you turn to page one and you get to the bottom of page one, do you want to turn to page two? It's the bottom of every page. Do you want to turn the page and find out what happens next?If you're on the fence, it's not good enough. It really should be captivating. You should want to, it's entertainment. If it's not entertaining you, that's how you judge. There's no secret language to figure out whether, and I didn't know this when I first broke into Hollywood, I didn't know this. I would read a script and I go, it looks like a script. I don't know. Or I was doing coverage for a publisher. Would this book make a good movie? So I was reading a lot of books and they'd say, do you think it'll make a good movie? I'm like, I guess I remember reading, taking months to read or whatever weeks to read a book and thinking, this is dreadful. I guess this, it's a good movie. No, it is actually less simpler. It shouldn't feel like torture, turning the page.Phil Hudson:And that's a real thing. And we're having read so much stuff now pretty quick.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Phil Hudson:It's going to suck.Michael Jamin:So ask to read their work, and if you don't like it, then don't study from them. They're not going to. It's really as simple as that. And if you do like it, great. Maybe you'll study from still. Doesn't necessarily mean they're going to be a great teacher. Sometimes they can't crystallize it. They just might have some raw talent that they can't really, it doesn't mean they're good at sharing their knowledge means they have some kind of thing in them that, so there's that.Phil Hudson:Well, and let me pay you a compliment too, Michael, because we've had a lot of people go through your course and one of the common testimonials we get or reviews we get is just how easily digestible it is and how packed with value it is. And I remember we've had two people in particular. One Bruce Gordon left you this great review. He said that, and I'm paraphrasing, but he said that learning the whole course, the learning process is so easy to get through that it's impossible to not get value out of the backend. And we had someone who recently signed up within the last month who is literally, this is her job is learning systems, online learning management, and she wanted to know what platform we were using because she was so impressed with it. And I was like, it's the most popular platform. Everyone uses platform. It's not that. It's the fact that you're teaching valuable stuff, organized in a way that makes linear and logical sense that anybody can grasp.Michael Jamin:There's no secret from it is just like I try to explain it in very simple terms so an idiot can get it. I'm not interested in, oh,Phil Hudson:And I'm an idiot. You've said things that I've heard a thousand times over in books and courses. And it wasn't until you said it was like, oh no, duh.Michael Jamin:Yeah, because I don't want to make it harder for my, when I'm working in a writer's room, I don't want to make it harder for myself. I want to make it simple for me to think about these problems. So I don't want to make it harder. The job is hard enough as it is. Why make it harder? Make it simpler. You're telling a story. It's not heart surgery don't make so complicated.Phil Hudson:And you're structured in the course that you talk about your bottom of act one. The way you define that. Oh my gosh, that just made so much sense. The first half of Act two. Oh my gosh. Makes so much sense. And I remember I was lucky enough, I came out to Disneyland with my family and I swung by your garage to talk about marketing stuff for your wife's company. And we were just hanging out where you were recording. And I remember sitting there and you were like, well, what can I do for you? And I was like, oh, I don't know, man. I'd just love to know what you think about story. And you broke the whiteboard out for me the same way you do in the course. And I was in film school at the time, and the way you laid it out, just I wanted to cry. It was like, this is soMichael Jamin:Easy. Yeah, see, it's easy. We don't make things harder. My partner and I, we try not to make things harder than it has to be. And that's not to say it's formulaic or facile, it's just like, because you could tell a complicated, nuanced story, but you don't have to make the beats of it complicated. You don't have to. Geez, because we got to do this every week.Phil Hudson:I was watching Get Out on the plane, I'd never seen Get Out. I've bought it. I wanted to watch it. I just never made the time. And I watched it on the plane yesterday and this thing happens. I was like, I know where we're at. And I checked the time. Oh, we're there. Oh, beat by beat by beat.Michael Jamin:It fell rightPhil Hudson:Into it. Of the greatest films of the last five, six years. Beat by Beat by beat. It's the same story structure we use in Tacoma fd we use in King of the Hill, wherever it is. It's the same thing.Michael Jamin:Yeah, same thing. The wayPhil Hudson:Jordan Peele does it, I could never do cause surprised, fascinating, great, that's him. But it's the same structure,Michael Jamin:Right? The structure is the same, right? So that's where you put the structure is just like that's building a house. Okay. If you know how to frame a house, you should be able to frame the house and then the color of the paint and the tiles, all that stuff is that's the decorations. And that requires your taste and how you want to execute it. That's fine. But don't make the structure the hard part.Phil Hudson:Yeah. Structures are not hard. You have a foundation and you have stuff. That's it. Everything else, the way you put it in your electrical system, what type of water heater you use, the piping you use, how is it connected? The junction box, that's the complicated stuff. That's you, that's your craft. But the framing that, that's a process. So one thing I wanted to tell you is I was at dinner with Paul Soter when I was on the quasi tour, and we were talking about writing in the writer's room and TV and all of this stuff, and I told him this advice that you gave me, which was one, learn hotkeys. If you're going to be a writer's assistant and two, shut the F up. Your job is not to talk in the room. Your job is to sit there and take notes and listen and learn, and that's what you're going to do. And Paul Soder paid you and your writing partner or great credit, he said, yeah, I remember my first season in Tacoma. I just remember sitting there and wanting to shut up and say nothing and just learn from these guys. Oh, wow. Although they have great career in indie film and doing major studio films, they were still learning from you too because of us. I think it goes back to the simplicity with which you're doing itMichael Jamin:And those guys, they're movies. They made some really fun movies that people really love and they've made quite a few. They've made, I don't know how many, maybe probably less than 10 movies, but it's quite a few. But it's probably not more than 10, right? It's eightPhil Hudson:I want to say. But yeah.Michael Jamin:Okay. Let's say it's eight. And many of them have done really, really well. These low budget movies that have really made some money and they have a huge cult following, but they've only told whatever, eight or 10 stories. Whereas when you're in tv, when we started, we were doing 22 stories a season. And it's that repetition that you really is. That's where you really learn how to figure out what story structure is. And you do 22 episodes over my 27 year career, it's like, okay, it becomes a lot easier to know what a story is and how to break a story. Whereas in the beginning of my career, I was like sitting in a writer's room watching the other more senior writers break a story. It was like a magic trick. It's like, how do you know how to do any of this?Phil Hudson:Yeah, it's cool, man. So to answer the question, do you need to go to film school? My answer is no. And for most people, I would actually encourage you not to because you're going to get the debts, you're going to get the student loans, and none of it's going to help you progress in your career. Is there a chance it's going to help you with your craft and get better at your craft? Yeah, absolutely. I think a little bit of it's luck of the draw though. Like you said, it really depends on the teachers you get. Depends on how committed you are. Is it going to make you a better writer? No.Michael Jamin:Are there far less expensive ways to get the same amount of knowledge and connections? Yes, absolutely. It might require a little more work, but think about how much money you're saving.Phil Hudson:Yeah, there's a doctor, a pretty renowned doctor now, Peter Atia. Have you heard of him?Michael Jamin:No.Phil Hudson:Dr. Peter Atia. He's in the health and fitness and lung. He's a longevity doctor. So he literally how to live Chris, he's a Chris Hemsworth doctor, and heMichael Jamin:From Harvard, this guy,Phil Hudson:I don't think it was Harvard, he was John Hopkins. He was a Al intern at John Hopkins. But anyway, he's a book just came out just a couple months ago. Really, really good book about longevity. And he had talked about this thing called Arian Olympics, which is how do I live to be 100 and still be able to get down on the ground and play with my kids and put something in the overhead compartment? All of the things that kill people, old people, they don't have that. But he was talking on a podcast about vaping and nicotine and all that stuff, and he's like, I don't have a problem with nicotine. The problem is the device and it's the tobacco. And this is, for me, I always view things in two types. It's risk and reward. And there's levels. There's a scale of risk and a scale of reward. And I think this applies directly to film school for people the risk, is it like getting hit by a tricycle or is it getting hit by a bus? And the reward is, am I step bending over to pick up a dollar? We're picking up gold coinsAnd there's an offset. If the risk to reward or matched, it might be worth pursuing If the risk to reward or misaligned, it's not. And my opinion here is it's the financial equivalent of getting hit by a bus to pick up dollars. Because you're going to go to la, be a pa, and you're going to make minimum wage for 4, 5, 6 years and you may never get out of that. I know people when the A M T P, excuse me, not the mtp, but the biopsy strike was going on, they were talking about how they never made it past writer's assistant because they'd get on a show and it would get canceled, and then they would get on a show as a writer's assistant and it'd get canceled six years down the road. They have it become a staff writer, even though they're knocking at the door because luck of the draw.Michael Jamin:Yeah, there's luck there. Yeah, for sure. Alright, well there's your answer, Phil. How's that for? All right, well, before we wrap it up, let's tell people what more they can get. We have a lot of resources free. Forget about paying Phil the same. I got a film school here. It's free.Phil Hudson:Here's the big one, Michael, you talked about if you want to learn from somebody, read their stuff. Well, you give away your stuff. You had me put this on the site, so it's on your about page, there's a form. You fill it out, and then Michael will send you a bunch of actual written and produced episodes of TV show. It's like King of the Hill and a bunch of other stuff in there. But you can go read your produced writing and then go watch the show, which is, I think, a step beyond. It's like you can immerse, see what you did and see how it ended up end result, which is pretty cool. So michaeljamin.com. I want to say it's about, but you can just go to the main magazine, I think it'sMichael Jamin:About.Phil Hudson:Yeah, and you can go get it there. And that'll be sent directly to you. The free lesson, the same lesson you taught me, the one I talked about with my professor. You can get that lesson in a longer format with more detail, with more entertaining. And that's michaeljamin.com/free. It's how to Tell a story. You've got a paper orchestra stuff, webinar, which we going to talk about. Yeah, webinar. Webinar. Every three weeks. Now we're doing a webinar. It's about three absolutely freeMichael Jamin:Webinar.Phil Hudson:Come join Michael for an hour, get your questions answered. We've been doing this private v i p thing where you just do q and a with people for about an hour or so after. And the results coming out of that. People love that. They're big fansMichael Jamin:Of that one that is not free. There's a small fee for that to cover some of our expenses, but,Phil Hudson:But you don't have to do that. And you answer questions throughout the whole webinar as well. And we often put 'em on podcasts. So again, access to a professional writer I would've killed for 10 years ago that I never had, and then a paper orchestra book. I think that was something you were going to talk about. You were going to tell us a little bit about that process. You're doing the audiobook, right? Oh,Michael Jamin:One of the things. Yeah, I'm excited. That'll be dropping in a couple months because we're still producing the audiobook. And what I've always, when I was writing this, it's a collection of personal essays, but there's stories, it's not about, it's not an essay. It feels like a story. It feels like you could shoot it, it feels like an episode of television show. But I wanted people to, at the end when as I was writing it, I want people to feel something and feel something like laugh and then feel this maybe discomfort at the end or something to hit 'em in the heart. And I want them to sit in it, and I don't want them, as I was writing, I was like, how do I get people to just sit in this and not turn the chapter once the chapter's over, I want 'em to sit in it. I don't even want 'em to turn the page. I want 'em to really just feel it for a while. And in the audio book, how do you do that in a regular book? You can't. You can only hope that they do that. When I do my show, as I perform this, as I say afterwards, my goal is I want you to go to your car and just before you turn the ignition, just sit in it.I'm rocked. I'm too rocked to even turn the ignition for a couple half a minute or whatever. But for the audiobook, I'm actually able to do this. I'm actually can force you to do this because I do the story. And I gave each story the audiobook to this composer that I work with, Anthony Rizzo on Marin, who's working with me on the audiobook. And I said, if this story, if this piece, this chapter was a piece of music, what would it sound like to you? And so this is his chance to do his art. He came back with these beautiful scores. So at the end of every piece, every chapter, it goes into music that he wrote. And you just listen to it and it's like it carries you out. It carries the last note of the stories, the note, the first note of his score. And it really forces just, and some of they're up and some of them are down, and some of them are happy and some, but it is wonderful how he did this. And so the audio book, I think this makes it more of an experience. And I haven't heard an audio book done this way,Phil Hudson:So that's so cool. And this, having had the privilege of seeing you perform this live last year in la it did that. It did that for me. I still think I'm thinking about it now. I think it was your story, I think it was called Ghost, is that right? Goul.Michael Jamin:The Goul. The Goul, yeah.Phil Hudson:And yeah, man, just thinking about that, all that emotion comes right back. Yeah,Michael Jamin:The score he did for that, the score he did is fricking haunting. I was like, man, this is really good. So I'm so excited.Phil Hudson:So the cool thing is for people who can't see you live, they can get a taste of that performance of you live with it sounds like plussed up with some amazing music too.Michael Jamin:And I do hope to tour with it, but obviously not to every city. It has to be your, I guess, bigger cities. But, and so if you want to know more about that or be notified when it drops, it's michaeljamin.com/upcoming. And yeah, we're working on it. ButPhil Hudson:The only other thing was the newsletter. The watch. Oh, the newsletter to do weekly, your top three things. Also updates. We started adding updates like what podcast episodes coming out, what webinars coming up, that kind of stuff. Just a little bit more informational, but the value is still there. With those three free pieces of content delivered every Friday, right to your inbox. We proactively work to not do anything marketable or salesy to that newsletter. So if you want a lot of free content and you don't really care too much about some of the other stuff that we're doing with the course and that you're safe there, go sign up for the watch list because it's really meant just to be a value add of content that you're putting out already. Just digesting it and getting it to people directly in their inbox.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Yeah. So Phil's in charge of all of that. Phil, you do a great job just in keeping all of that up to date and keeping your website up to date.Phil Hudson:We just did a whole revamp on it because when we changed systems last year, there were a lot of people who wanted marketing that were not getting it because we tried to protect that watch list so much from any types of salesy stuff. And you're really big on that. You don't want to be a salesy guy at all. So we did clean that up a bit. So if you haven't been here from Michael and you start, it's because we clean that up, but we even just set it up so they can manage their own list. So if they want to be marketed to and they decide they don't, they can unsubscribe from that. But keep the watch list. We really did a lot of that stuff, trying to make it better.Michael Jamin:Yeah. And thank you for all that. Yeah. Alright, everyone, thank you. Another a great episode, Phil, and I'll be back very soon with more. Until then, keep writing.Phil Hudson:This has been an episode of Screenwriters Need to Hear This with Michael Jamin and Phil Hudson. If you're interested in learning more about writing, make sure you register for Michael's monthly webinar@michaeljamin.com/webinar. If you found this podcast helpful, consider sharing it with a friend and leaving us a five star review on iTunes. For free screenwriting tips, follow Michael Jamin on social media @MichaelJaminwriter. You can follow Phil Hudson on social media @PhilaHudson. This podcast was produced by Phil Hudson. It was edited by Dallas Crane Music, by Ken Joseph. Until next time, keep writing.

Happy New Year!... But wait, it's September... Why would we say that? Us Jews have our own calendar that follows the lunar cycle. Based on that and the timing of when we created our calendar in the first place, the Jewish calendar doesn't come close to lining up with that of the secular world. You may also hear horns blow and notice a deficit of apples and honey in your local grocery store. Yes, there's a correlation to the Jewish New Year as well. Why is this an annual ritual of ours? David Sacks, co-founder and Spiritual Leader of the Happy Minyan, world-renowned Torah lecturer, Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning Hollywood writer, and Harvard College graduate, gets behind the microphone to connect the dots behind these common items at the Rosh Hashanah celebration. Chaz Volk, host of Bad Jew, shares his familiarity with these practices but learns about the true meaning of the WHY. Get ready for the high holidays by tuning in with some apples and honey! About David Sacks Born and raised in New York City, David Sacks attended Harvard College, graduating with a degree in Government. While there he began his comedy writing career for the school's humor magazine, The Harvard Lampoon. Upon graduating, David moved to Los Angeles and began writing for television. Among the shows he's worked for are “The Simpsons”, where he won an Emmy Award, and “Third Rock from the Sun” for which he won a Golden Globe Award, “Malcolm in the Middle”, “Murphy Brown”, and “Final Space” on Adult Swim. David is the co-founder and Senior Lecturer of The Happy Minyan of Los Angeles. David is married and raises his family in Beverly Hills, CA. David Sacks gives the weekly Torah podcast “Spiritual Tools for an Outrageous World” and has spoken to enthusiastic crowds, opening the hearts of people across the US, Europe, Israel, and South Africa. His topics range from the meaning of life, to Hollywood's impact on the world, to achieving happiness. Connect with David Sacks www.HappyMinyan.org Whatsapp Group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/DBAv0w4n0TkAnmxjXJmYY1 Connect with Bad Jew: Join our online community HERE: https://linktr.ee/badjew BadJewPod@gmail.com Ig @BadJewPod TikTok @BadJewPod

Comedian Alingon Mitra joins to discuss writing for the Harvard Lampoon, why we need to stop complimenting rich people on looking good for their age, whether you should be allowed to take off your shirt at Soul Cycle, no longer being able to say his dad is “funny in a Bill Cosby way”, Roseanne's recent Fox News set, the joy of leggings, and you'll have to listen to the episode if you want to know about the title.  You can watch full video of this episode HERE! Join the Patreon for ad-free episodes, exclusive content, and MORE. Follow Alingon Mitra on Instagram, TikTok, & YouTube Get tickets to Alingon's shows at https://www.alingonmitra.com/shows Follow Gianmarco Soresi on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, & YouTube Subscribe to Gianmarco Soresi's email & texting lists Check out Gianmarco Soresi's bi-monthly show in NYC Get tickets to see Gianmarco Soresi in a city near you Watch Gianmarco Soresi's special "Shelf Life" on Amazon Follow Russell Daniels on Twitter & Instagram See Russell in Titanique in NYC! E-mail the show at TheDownsideWGS@gmail.com Produced by Paige Asachika & Gianmarco Soresi Video edited by Dave Columbo Special Thanks Tovah Silbermann Part of the Authentic Podcast Network Original music by Douglas Goodhart Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why is it important to be Jewish if you are Jewish? And do some just "do" Jewish? How do you add meaning and intention to your identity? Simpsons writer, "Street Rabbi", and time traveler David Sacks joins Chaz Volk to discuss the act of being Jewish, how to do it, and what it means to add a certain level of depth to your identity. About David Sacks Born and raised in New York City, David Sacks attended Harvard College, graduating with a degree in Government. While there he began his comedy writing career for the school's humor magazine, The Harvard Lampoon. Upon graduating, David moved to Los Angeles and began writing for television. Among the shows he's worked for are “The Simpsons”, where he won an Emmy Award, and “Third Rock from the Sun” for which he won a Golden Globe Award, “Malcolm in the Middle”, “Murphy Brown”, and “Final Space” on Adult Swim. David is the co-founder and Senior Lecturer of The Happy Minyan of Los Angeles. David is married and raises his family in Beverly Hills, CA. David Sacks gives the weekly Torah podcast “Spiritual Tools for an Outrageous World” and has spoken to enthusiastic crowds, opening the hearts of people across the US, Europe, Israel, and South Africa. His topics range from the meaning of life, to Hollywood's impact on the world, to achieving happiness. Connect with David Sacks www.LivingWithGod.org Connect with Bad Jew: Join our online community HERE: https://linktr.ee/badjew BadJewPod@gmail.com Ig @BadJewPod TikTok @BadJewPod

Eric Kaplan is an American television writer and producer. His work has included shows such as Late Show with David Letterman, Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Malcolm in the Middle, Futurama, The Simpsons and Rick and Morty. He also worked on The Big Bang Theory throughout its run. Kaplan was raised in a Jewish family in Flatbush, Brooklyn where his father was a "storefront lawyer" and his mother taught high school biology at Erasmus Hall. Kaplan graduated from Hunter College High School and Harvard College (where he wrote for the Harvard Lampoon) in 1989. Prior to committing to a career in professional writing, Kaplan had been an English teacher in Thailand. After that he took five years of philosophy graduate school at Columbia and UC Berkeley. Starting in 1986, Kaplan interned for Spy magazine, where his duties included mopping the floors and writing blurb-length film reviews. Career in television Eric Kaplan's first television writing job was with Late Show with David Letterman which he worked on for a year and a half before quitting and moving to Hollywood to look for a job in "half-hour" work. It was at this time that Kaplan learned of Matt Groening doing a show set in the year 3000. This show would turn out to be Futurama. After applying for work on the show using some writing samples, Eric would have to, as he says, "sweat it out", for over a month before getting the job. Upon Futurama's cancellation, Kaplan went to work for the short-lived comedy series Andy Richter Controls the Universe, writing just one episode. After Fox dropped Andy Richter, Eric Kaplan then began work on the hit show Malcolm in the Middle, Eric also wrote the "Girlfriends" episode of the popular HBO series, Flight of the Conchords. Futurama In his first year with Futurama, which was also the show's first season, Kaplan served as story editor on every episode. Though having an input on many aspects of the entire first season, Kaplan would not get a writing credit until 9 episodes in. After this premiere season, he would be promoted to producer status. This was a role that he would keep through the show's end. He returned to those roles in the Futurama DVD movies. Work in Philosophy, Does Santa Exist? Kaplan's "Does Santa Exist?: A Philosophical Investigation" was published by Dutton Books in 2015. It is a serious and humorous work of philosophy. He has also contributed to "The Stone", The New York Times philosophy blog. Kaplan has a PhD. in philosophy from UC Berkeley. His doctoral thesis discusses the humour in Søren Kierkegaard. Kaplan was interviewed in 2020 by lifelong friend Roger Kimmel Smith (whose father, Robert Kimmel Smith, wrote the book The War with Grandpa, which in 2020 was adapted into a motion picture starring Robert De Niro). Their conversation about humor and philosophy was released over the YouTube channel When Humanists Attack.

Jeff Martin was a writer with Late Night with David Letterman from 1982-1989. He also wrote for The Simpsons, Norm MacDonald, Craig Fergusson and more. Many folks might remember his portrayal of 'Flunky the Clown.' This episode begins talking about Jeff's history at Harvard, his role with the Harvard Lampoon, and some of the people he met there including Conan O'Brien, who he is close friends with to this very day. Once they get going, Jeff and Mike have a tremendous conversation about a great many memories Jeff had while at Late Night, not in any particular order, but all having weighted nostalgic entertainment and hilarity. This is a very deep dive into the blueprints of what made Late Night so great and what it was like to write for the show during those important formative years. They also talk about Jeff's formidable softball ability. As always, please like, share, subscribe, and leave a positive comment for our show. Those metrics will allow children to be fed, and in some cases, justice to be served. The Letterman Podcast is brought to you in part by Rupert Jee and the Hello Deli--THE place to eat if you are anywhere near 53rd St in NY. Its also the place to get licensed Late Show with David Letterman merchandise, and you don't have to go to NY to get it! You can go to hello-deli.com and shop to your heart's content.

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 favorite TV episodes of all time; Fibber McGee & Molly always in the script; joke written for 10% of the audience; writing an episode for Johnny Cash but he never agreed to do the show; Station Sale is an example of a "gang-written" show; team re-write after some read throughs; six people credited with some episodes; jokes sometimes written for 10% of the audience; eunuch jokes on Futurama; James Caan guest stars; episode is an homage to Clockers; Tubalcain; Joe Furey; Phil Hartman; why NBC continuously messed with the series; leaving Newsradio; death of Phil Hartman; 3rd Rock; Preston Beckman programmer; Undeclared; Rob Schneider's sitcom Rob; writing Ron Schneider's Annoying Girlfriend Theatre on SNL; writing the most episodes of Futurama; which show is the most in his creative voice; Sidney Poitier Mr. Pibb joke; Brickleberry; Yucko the Clown; Family Guy; cutaways are the hardest part; Seth MacFarlane's assistants become the best writers; ever meeting the boss; Cherry Chevapravatdumrong; toughest job he ever had; he was a manatee; South Park; Beavis and Butthead; Norm Hiscock

Adam wonders if James Corden's Weight Watchers sponsorship may be in jeopardy before taking a deep dive into Wayne Cochran's ‘I Can't Turn You Loose'. Bryan presents another segment of ‘Baldywood' sharing his opinions and insight into the new movie ‘Weird: The Al Yankovic Story'. Finally, author and former NYPD detective Edward Conlon joins the show to talk about his new podcast, ‘Talk to Me', where he showcases how the NYPD invented hostage negotiations in the early 1970s. Edward gives his take on the current state of crime in New York and explains how he went from writing for the Harvard Lampoon to working as a beat cop in the South Bronx. PLUGS: Listen to Edward Conlon's ‘Talk to Me' available wherever you listen to podcasts See Don Jamieson live: Tampa, FL - Side Splitters Comedy Club - December 1st Boca Raton, FL - Boca Black Box - December 2nd & 3rd For more dates, visit: DonJamieson.com Listen to Don Jamieson's new album ‘Terrorizing Telemarketers 7' on Spotify and Amazon Music Watch ‘That Jamieson Show' streaming on CompoundMedia.com And follow him on Instagram, @DonJamiesonOfficial THANKS FOR SUPPORTING TODAY'S SPONSORS: Geico.com TommyJohn.com/ADAM BlindsGalore.com, let them know we sent you The Jordan Harbinger Show

Mitch reveals the spooky backstage shenanigans at 30 Rockefeller Center and how he helped solve the mystery of the Headless Thompson.Endnotes:Colin Jost, A Very Punchable Face (New York, Penguin/Random House, 2020) p. 231. Capsule Review: Breezy, glass-half full take from guy aware of his advantages, growing up in Staten Island, touching 9/11 mom story and more Harvard Lampoon insight than other FC memoirs. Slack Score: 14.7; Snark Score: 6; Overall FCA rating: 159Tina Fey, Bossypants (New York, Hachette, 2012) p. 145. Capsule Review: Well written, somewhat uneven mix of heartwarming anecdotes, comedic happenstances and career musings. Slack Score: 9.72; Snark Score: 8; Overall FCA ranking: 54 Bob Odenkirk, Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama (New York, Randomhouse, 2022) p. 58. Capsule Review: funny and insightful  tour of multiple points of interest for me, topped by Mr. Show, unconventional, less reverential perspective on Lorne and SNL, fascinating anecdotes on early work with Farley and Conan in Chicago. Slack Score: 12.6; Snark Score 4.5; Overall FCA ranking: 112 A Very Punchable Face, p. 290-301Chris Kattan, Baby, Don't Hurt Me: Stories and Scars from Saturday Night Live (New York, 20) p. 14. Capsule Review: Defensive and whiny, downplays rift with Norm, cringed stories about “dating” 21 y/o Zooey Deschanel, and molesting Charlize Theron and Katie Holmes on live TV. Surprised to learn he was from my neck of the woods (Bainbridge). Slack Score: 11; Snark Score: -2.7; Overall FCA ranking: 443 Jim Bruer, I'm Not High: But I've Got a Lot of Crazy Stories about Life as a Goat Boy, a Dad, and a Spiritual Warrior (New York) p.84. Capsule Review: par for the course SNL memoir. Lots of complaining about how his “talent” was restrained by the producers and lots of grandstanding about the importance of family, etc. Slack Score: 13; Snark Score: 0; Overall FCA ranking: 642Rachel Dratch, Girl Walks Into a Bar...: Comedy Calamities, Dating Disasters, and a Midlife Miracle (New York, Gotham Books, 2012) pp45-47. Capsule Review: Kind of a bummer, in keeping with the Debbie Downer character, a lot about her love life, which didn't really start until after SNL, and many disappointments and challenges there, as well as the fizzling out of her career, chronic typecasting, and drift into spiritualism. Slack Score: 6 ; Snark Score: -3.4; Overall FCA ranking: 289Darrell Hammond, God, If You're Not Up There, I'm F*cked (New York, Harper, 2011) p.14, Capsule Review: Exceptionally dysfunctional and depressing, even by FC standards, account of childhood abuse and learning to cope by doing funny voices, including recovered memories (dubious, to my mind) self-cutting and secret alcoholism during SNL tenure. Slack Score: -13.6; Snark Score: -7 ; Overall FCA ranking: 379 Jay Mohr, Gasping For Airtime: Two Years In The Trenches Of Saturday Night Live (New York, 20) p.237 Capsule Review: Hack comic writes hack book. Unbelievable entitlement and complaining. Openly admits to completely ripping off Rick Shapiro, lying to Lorne about it, and then is surprised when his contract isn't renewed. Slack Score: 15; Snark Score: -9; Overall FCA ranking: 633 Tom Shales & James Andrew Miller, Live from New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live (New York, Little, Brown and Company, 2014) p. 531. Most definitive oral history of SNL, with extensive interviews of every significant contributor excepting Eddie Murphy and the deceased. Not technically an FCA, so no rankings given.Ibid, 541

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin:   Emma Choi is the host of the NPR weekly short-form comedy podcast Everyone & Their Mom. She is the youngest host at NPR and currently in her final year at Harvard University. In January of 2021, she was an intern for the NPR show Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me! Initially she was told that she couldn't be hired since she was a college student but apparently her PowerPoint prowess led to her working with the Wait Wait team to create Everyone & Their Mom, which began airing in February 2022. She's a second generation Korean American. Emma is definitely a trailblazer with a quirky sense of humor. I especially enjoyed the episodes of Everyone & Their Mom that she did about the job of a grizzly bear conflict manager, and the one about how her grandmother's kimchi could be improved. She spoke to me about what it's been like working at NPR and why she did a satanic Tickle Me Elmo impression during her internship interview.   On Mon, Oct 24, 2022 at 11:32 PM Felicia Lin A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin:   Emma Choi is the host of the NPR weekly short-form comedy podcast Everyone & Their Mom. In 2021, she was an intern for the NPR show Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me! Apparently, it was her PowerPoint prowess led to her working with the Wait Wait team to create Everyone & Their Mom, which began airing in February 2022. She's a second generation Korean American. We talked about that it's been like working at NPR and being NPR's youngest host, what why she did a satanic Tickle Me Elmo impression during her internship interview.   This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by NATWA, the North America Taiwanese Women's Association.   NATWA was founded in 1988, and its mission is:   to evoke a sense of self-esteem and enhance women's dignity, to oppose gender discrimination and promote gender equality, to fully develop women's potential and encourage their participation in public affairs, to contribute to the advancement of human rights and democratic development in Taiwan, to reach out and work with women's organizations worldwide to promote peace for all.   To learn more about NATWA visit their website: www.natwa.com     Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode:   What it's like being NPR's youngest host Her keynote speech at the Asian American Journalists Association Who would be her dream guest Where Emma's sense of humor comes from How her family has been on her podcast Everyone & Their Mom How Emma did an episode about how her grandma's kimchi is missing something What goes into producing an episode What Emma has learned from Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me!host Peter Sagal How Emma wrote a 400-page bookspanning three generations of Korean women Emma's experience with the Harvard Lampoon Emma's interest in writing in the future What Emma's experience working at NPR has been like How Emma's experience with the Harvard Lampoon has made her appreciate the diverse writing team she works with at NPR If Emma has thought about what she wants to do next   Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/emma-choi-youngest-npr-host-talks-about-her-comedy-podcast-everyone-and-their-mom-ep-210/

Ben Blatt is a former staff writer for Slate and the Harvard Lampoon. Ben is a numbers guy who has taken his fun approach to data journalism to topics such as Seinfeld, map-making, the Beatles, and Jeopardy. This conversation centers around Ben's book "Nabokov's Favorite Word is Mauve" (2017). It's a book about what we can learn about writing and authors based not on what they say, or what impressions we get from reading their books, but on something that results from applying rigorous data analysis to their actual texts. Specifically, KMO and Ben discuss: 00:25 – Moneyball and its influence on Ben 02:12 – The attraction of baseball for analytical people 04:25 – Ben's interest in numbers and writing 06:40 – Patterns, correlations, and writing advice 10:00 – -LY adverbs 12:00 – British vs American English 14:40 – Bloke, blimey and the Harry Potter Effect 16:00 – Loud vs quiet verbs 19:08 – Pronoun and characters stats 20:00 – Comparing authors' noise levels 23:00 – Gender differences in literature 27:50 – Professionals and amateurs: the statistical differences 30:25 – Reading fan fiction 32:50 – Restraining style choices to foster creativity 34:50 – Revising one's novels 36:00 – Fame and success affecting one's writing style 38:00 – Data tools 40:15 – Vonnegut 42:10 – The validity of "write what you know" 43:10 – Digital Humanities and Franco Moretti's "Atlas of the European Novel" 47:15 – Ben's advice for aspiring writers 50:15 – Creating writing and progress in AI 52:05 – Ben's next project Ben (The Guest): Twitter: @BenBlatt KMO (The Host): Twitter: @Kayemmo en.padverb.com/kmo Padverb: The Padverb Telegram Channel: t.me/padverbpodcast

Andy Borowitz is an award-winning comedian and New York Times bestselling author. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from Harvard College, where he became President of the Harvard Lampoon. In 1998, he began contributing humor to The New Yorker‘s “Shouts and Murmurs” and “Talk of the Town” departments, and in 2001, he created “The Borowitz Report,” a satirical news column, which has millions of readers around the world. In 2012, The New Yorker began publishing “The Borowitz Report.” As a storyteller, he hosted “Stories at the Moth” from 1999 to 2009. As a comedian, he has played to sold-out venues around the world, including during his national tour, “Make America Not Embarrassing Again,” from 2018 to 2020. His new book, Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber, received a starred review from Kirkus, which called it “devastatingly funny.” He is the first-ever winner of the National Press Club's humor award. He lives with his family in New Hampshire. On September 17, 2022, Andy Borowitz came to the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco to be interviewed on stage by KQED politics and government correspondent Marisa Lagos. The program also includes a dramatic reading by actress Vivien Straus of Dan Quayle quotations compiled by Borowitz.

Our guest this week is Andy Borowitz. Andy is an award-winning comedian and New York Times bestselling author. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from Harvard College, where he became President of the Harvard Lampoon. In 1998, he began contributing humor to The New Yorker's “Shouts & Murmurs” and “Talk of the Town” departments, and in 2001, he created “The Borowitz Report,” a satirical news column, which has millions of readers around the world. In 2012, The New Yorker began publishing “The Borowitz Report.” As a storyteller, he hosted “Stories at the Moth” from 1999 to 2009. As a comedian, he has played to sold-out venues around the world, including during his national tour, “Make America Not Embarrassing Again,” from 2018 to 2020. His new book Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber is now available. Review “How did we slide into the abyss of liking our politicians to be—or to act—dumb rather than smart? In this funny but serious book, Andy Borowitz chronicles our embrace of anti-intellectualism.” —Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Code Breaker “This is one of these brilliant books that makes you laugh until you cry. Borowitz masterfully throws light (and shade) on the confederacy of dunces who have fumbled their way into power. His writing has never been smarter, sharper, or more necessary.” —Susan Orlean, New York Times bestselling author of The Library Book “A devastatingly funny takedown of a veritable Mount Rushmore of incompetents . . . In the hallowed tradition of Will Rogers, Mark Twain, H.L. Mencken, Ambrose Bierce, and other clear-eyed satirists, Borowitz skewers all manner of chronically befuddled, willfully ignorant dolts. . . . Ravaging this seemingly endless rogues' gallery of buffoonery and corruption, Borowitz marshals mind-boggling, breathtaking evidence. . . . While there are countless laughs in the book, they have a rueful edge given that we are all affected by such widespread ignorance.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “Readers may laugh, cry, or swear under their breath (sometimes all at once) with this scathing survey of the seemingly increasing ignorance of American politicians. Borowitz, a writer of page and screen and satirist for The New Yorker, humorously examines the ever-increasing, lowering-of-the-bar expectations of presidential candidates' knowledge and beyond in this book that is perfect for fans of The Daily Show or John Lithgow's “Dumpty” series. . . . For readers who have ever looked at the political landscape and asked how or why, this is a book that will inform and infuriate.” —Library Journal (starred review) “Andy makes me laugh out loud, that's a given. In this book he has also made me think out loud. Profiles in Ignorance is hilarious, original, scary, prescient and a wake-up call for us all. A must read.” —Susie Essman, HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm “[Borowitz] sheds light on the cultural and economic trends that gave intellectualism a bad name and identifies the political operatives . . . who facilitated the rise of ignorance. Fans of The Borowitz Report will gobble this up.” —Publishers Weekly --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alyssa-milano-sorry-not-sorry/message

In college, Patric Verrone was an editor of the renowned Harvard Lampoon. He graduated from Boston College Law School and briefly practiced law before becoming a TV writer. Early in his career, he was a monologue writer for The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He's written for Futurama (which is coming back next year!) since its first season and has served a producer and executive producer on the show. He also served a the president of the Writers Guild of America during the 2007-2008 writers strike. On top of all that he also sculpts, paints, and sells historical figurines. Patric has one of the most fascinating careers of anyone in entertainment—I could've talked to him for hours. Patric's figurines: verrone.com Watch Futurama on Hulu: hulu.com/series/futurama 00:00 Introduction 01:00 Funny as a kid? 08:00 Writing for the Harvard Lampoon 24:00 Leaving the law to work in Hollywood 26:00 Writing for Joan Rivers 34:30 Getting hired by Johnny Carson 37:00 The beginning of Futurama and "the most overeducated cartoon writers in history" 55:20 Leading the 2007 writers strike 1:10:00 The 1960s Marx presidential figurines –––– Support the podcast and join the Honest Offense community at patreon.com/ericcervone​​​​​​ Eric Cervone on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericcervone Eric Cervone on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericcervone https://www.ericcervone.com

Bill Oakley joined me to talk The Steamed Hams Society and Food Discovery Club; foreign 7-11's; favorite burger; McRib; Shamrock Shake; best fast food chicken; best fast food pizza; Roy Rogers; Fuddruckers; Jollibee; early TV favorites; Green Acres; SNL and Letterman; met Josh Weinstein at 14; St. Albans School; Harvard Lampoon; Sunday Best; Simpsons - Marge Gets a Job; Treehouse - making nicknames the hardest part; Lisa v. Malibu Stacey; Bart v. Australia; Coriolis effect; Michael Fay; 22 Short Films - Steamed Hams; Superintendent Chalmers; Frank Grimes; tourettes joke; Bart Sells His Soul; King Size Homer; Bart on the Road; The Day the Violence Died; Brian McConnachie; Hurricane Neddy; Itchy Scratchy & Poochie; Lou Gehrig of the Simpsons; My Sister, My Sitter; Homer's Enemy; Mad About You; censor hates Homer's Phobia; Homer Simpson v. The City of New York, the Simpsons predictions; Spinoff Showcase Link for The Steamed Hams Society and Food Discovery Club https://www.patreon.com/steamedhamssociety

Topics include: the Anne Frank in bikini Harvard Lampoon scandal; are all jokes acceptable, or should comedy be censored; the New Jersey Board of Education guidelines for teaching of sexuality; the Left disregard people that lived in previous generations; people in general are afraid to acknowledge tragedy; knowing the Bible is to know tragedy; Life is suffering; Having no expectations is a key to life; only in America where there is so little evil, could the Left manufacture such evils. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Topics include: the Anne Frank in bikini Harvard Lampoon scandal; are all jokes acceptable, or should comedy be censored; the New Jersey Board of Education guidelines for teaching of sexuality; the Left disregard people that lived in previous generations; people in general are afraid to acknowledge tragedy; knowing the Bible is to know tragedy; Life is suffering; Having no expectations is a key to life; only in America where there is so little evil, could the Left manufacture such evils. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Congratulations are in order: we got into Harvard! Like physically! They let us on campus! Guests include a Japanese foreign exchange student who can't stand American food, a couple of students who are embarrassed to say they go to Harvard, a young man desperately trying to stop AI from destroying humanity, and the Harvard Lampoon! Recorded 10/16/2021 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Go to http://babbel.com and use promo code OUTSIDE to get 3 months FREE! Go to http://greenchef.com/outside130 and use code outside130 to get $130 off plus free shipping. Go to http://feals.com/outside to becomes a member and get 50% off your first order. Go to http://betterhelp.com/outside to get 10% for your first month of BetterHelp.

Producer Matt is back in the teacher role to educate us on one of the founding members of National Lampoon; Doug Kinney. Doug took the Harvard Lampoon and transformed it into the National Lampoon. From there he basically found all the talent that became the original cast of SNL and cowrote Animal House and Caddyshack! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead Welcome to The Guys Review, where we review media, products and experiences.   **READ APPLE REVIEWS/Fan Mail**Mention Twitter DM group - like pinned tweetRead emailsTwitter Poll Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead Directed by: Douglas Tirola (directed and produced a bunch of documentaries) Starring:   Chevy ChaseJohn LandisJudd ApatowKevin BaconTim MathesonJohn GoodmanBilly Bob ThorntonMeat Loaf Released: Jan 25, 2015 Budget: No info Box Office: According to the numbers.com, had a domestic box office haul of $62,684 ($73,509 in 2021)https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Drunk-Stoned-Brilliant-Dead-The-Story-of-the-National-Lampoon#tab=summary Ratings:   IMDb 7.2/10 Rotten Tomatoes 88%Metacritic 74% Google Users 86% First time you saw the movie? Plot:An intro warning of explicit sexual content, and John Belushi welcoming us to National Lampoon radio, into a skit about religious jokes, and into a montage of national lampoon covers. Billy Bob Thorton talking about how the first issue spoke to him, Judd Apatow speaks about how you wanted to be those guys. John Goodman having fun. Kevin Bacon said he looked for the magazine for the boobs. More quick cuts of different celebrities talking about how awesome and engrained national lampoon is in the American Zeitgeist. John Landis explains how and why 17-20's is the best years of our lives. And how it started as the Harvard Lampoon. Some of the early writers, including Fred Gwine. Doug Kenny was a founder, a performer who wanted to write as well. Henry Beard is his opposite, very smart, mysterious and elusive. The editor of Mademoiselle magazine saw a parody of the lampoon and offered $7K for them to do one for her magazine, and a free magazine. They did parodies of time, life, and even playboy, and thought they could do a real magazine. Chevy Chase talks about in your 20's every thing is possible. They go to New York, and they were basically laughed out of most offices, until 21st Century publishers. They made a deal that in 5 years, there was a forced buyout and could mean the publishers owe them a lot of money, and started national lampoon. First hire was Michael O'Donoghue, who was not harvard, but buffalo new york. He set the tone more than anything, being very outrageous. Tony Hendra, a british comedian, , Sean kelly, candian school teacher wanted to come to New York and write for the Lampoon as well, Anne Beatts, Brian McConnachie. They talk about Cloud art studios. The early issues were messy, and the duck on the cover. After 7 issues, they dump cloud. Michael Gross was brought in as art director, against Dougs will. They had one discussion about how to empower the parody, and Doug changed his mind and the direction of the magazine changed. They started making parodies that looked like the originals. S-John Landis is right, late high school through college are the best years of your life. The maximum amount of freedom, and the minimum amount of responsibility.-I never read national lampoon growing up, but I didn't realize it was so sexual. wow. They talked about everyone smoking weed, late dinners, lots of beers; they would get drunk, go home, sleep, get up and write a piece. Doug was the one who had the most ideas, pushed the envelope. Writing the letters column each month in about an hour. If someone brought an idea to Henry, he'd say "tempting" which could be good or bad. They looted culture from 1945-1970. The Vietnamese baby book. Doug came up with the photo funnies, because the audience identifies with the editors. The dog with a pistol to its head was a huge hit. They found a bunch of famous artists that had rejected art, and they could bring it to the lampoon to be what you want to be, and not edit them. They were losing money though, with no advertising. Gerod Taylor came in to sell advertising. Jose Cuervo was the first major advertiser, and the others quickly followed. A perfect storm moment of coming out of a war, and being free to talk about it. Billy Bob Thorton, talks about realizing you can tell the truth through humor. Biggest circulation was a million, estimate about 12 million readers. #1 on college campuses and #2 on magazine racks behind Cosmo. Then Doug left/disappeared. Left Henry a note saying he was done and leaving. Next, they talk about doing an album, Radio Dinner. It was successful and got nominated for a Grammy. They discuss Doug leaving, having a nervous breakdown/midlife crisis. Tony went to see him, and he was not doing well, having written 1.5 chapters into his novel...So further than Trey is on his novel. So they decided to do another album. This is where they find John Belushi. Chevy Chase talks about the urinal bit, and how they were holding themselves. The album became a 4 day show with lots of drugs. Henry was working 100 hours a week, and Doug came back very humbled. People were mad for him leaving. His novel wasn't very good and so he tossed it out the window. S:-The partying during the work time, sounds like Mad Men, but 10-20 years later.-Trey, hows your novel coming along? A brief parody turned into a special issue, the school year book. About the just 18 people in high school. Janis Hirsch is brought in to write, being the 3rd woman. They describe Doug as the personality of the magazine. Michael had a feud with Tony because Tony slept with his girlfriend. Michael got the national lampoon radio hour. A cancellation brought John Belushi and the second city crew. They go into the ethnic issues and how they're accused of being racist. Tony says the job of a satirist is to make the people in power uncomfortable. The biggest law suit they had was Volkswagon, about an article that Ted Kennedy would be president if he drove a Volkswagon. The growth of the magazine into having actors and musicians, and more famous and popular and caused strife. Michael quit over an argument with about his girlfriend having a desk. Moving on, they discussed the National Lampoon show with many of the same people from the radio hour. Ivan Reitman talks about offering some direction and Bill Murray showing him out. John Belushi was described as the director of the group, and the rock and roll of humor. They didn't keep John Belushi on retainer, and lost them to Saturday Night Live. They discussed how the wind was sucked out of their sails. MIchael Gross leaves as art director and Peter Kleinman came in. Now the buyout comes back up, and they were owed $7.5 million. Henry left as soon as the check was cashed. Mattie the publisher didn't want to lose Doug, and told him they were making a movie based on the year book edition, that became Animal House. PJ became the editor, and while the magazine became less high brow, it was very focused. They speak about John Hughs writing for the lampoon. Very darkly sexual. The publisher got a call from a studio exec saying he loved the mag, and if they wanted to make a movie, he wanted to. They talked about how Animal House came to be, Doug being on set daily, and needing to be there, having a good time, and the drugs. And the movie became a hit. Doug then goes to California to become a director and producer, a rising star. S:-They briefly go over things, and don't really go into them, like the Volkswagon thing. They turn to something about a disco beaver. They go into some of the new writers, and they discuss doing a article on Thurgood Marshall. They discuss the Doug Kenny movie Caddyshack, that it wasn't a lampoon movie, but it was a lampoon movie. Doug was depressed that Caddyshack wasn't as big as Animal House. Magazine was losing sales, so to sell more, they wanted more tits...that every 5th or 6th issue was a sex issue. All the writers were getting picked off to hollywood as the magazine failed. They discuss Doug doing a rail at 9am before a meeting. People talking about Doug being an coke addict. Chevy Chase and Doug went to Hawaii to get away for a bit, to decompress. Then Doug goes missing in Hawaii. Doug was found at the bottom of a canyon in 1980. Was it an accident, a suicide, or a drug deal gone wrong? They move into John Hughes doing Vacation, based on Vacation '58 lampoon article. They discuss the era as being the moldy bread era, just a gross out, as dark as you can get. Like a baby in a blender. So the lampoon lost most of its national sponsors. All the contributors reflect back on their years with the lampoon as a magic club, the people being important making modern comedy. A photo montage, and someone haring a story of Doug putting his dick in girls ears, at parties. Cut to black...and the holiday road song from Vacation. S:-I've never done coke... I can't even imagine what it would be like. Top Five Trivia of the movie: 5: First issue April 1970; 51 years ago4: Final issue November 1998; 23 years ago issue 2493: Was originally the Harvard Lampoon, established in 18762: Started the radio, and eventually, tv careers of Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, John belushi, Gilda Radner, Harold Ramis, etc1: There is a 2018 film, A Futile and Stupid Gesture, a biography of co-founder Douglas Kenney, he was only 33 when he died. TOP 5Stephen:1 Breakfast club2 T23 Sandlot4 Back to the Future5 Mail order brides Chris:1. sandlots2. T23. trick r treat4. rocky horror picture show5. hubie halloween Trey: 1) Boondocks Saints2) Mail Order Brides3) Lone Survivor4) Drunk stoned brilliant dead5) Sandlot  Tucker:1. Beer review 2. T23. Gross Pointe Blank4. My Cousin Vinny5. Mail order brides    Web: https://theguysreview.simplecast.com/EM: theguysreviewpod@gmail.comIG: @TheGuysReviewPodTW: @The_GuysReviewFB: https://facebook.com/TheGuysReviewPod/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYKXJhq9LbQ2VfR4K33kT9Q Please, Subscribe, rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts from!! Thank you,-The Guys

On this week's episode, Logan sets out to make friends with TV writer/producer and “The Gordon Ramsay of Fast Food” Bill Oakley.Join them as they talk growing up on a farm, how Bill learned to read, moving to D.C., the secret to getting good grades in school, being able to call Harvard your backup school, joining the Harvard Lampoon staff, how he ended up working at America's Most Wanted, living in LA on unemployment, how The Seinfeld Chronicles helped him get a job on The Simpsons writing team, working up to showrunner, the secrets behind The Simpsons predictions, the great news for cult following of Mission Hill fans, developing his own personal brand, his tips for Logan as he dips his toe into the Instagram Live food review world, why you should tune into The Steamies Awards, how he got the nickname Captain Six Pack, his 3 Life Rules and much more! The Fast Friends Fortune Teller determines that Bill and Logan will play a game of Truth or Dare before Logan sends Bill a real-life Friend Request.Check out Bill's Food Reviews on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/thatbilloakley/Follow Bill on Twitter:https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley###Fast Friends With Logan CumminsReach Out and Touch Us. In a platonic way.Follow Logan on Twitter:https://twitter.com/logancumminsEmail logan@fastfriendspodcast.com or call/text Logan at 872-267-2735 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When we say the Teen Life topics of the August 1988 issue run the gamut, that is precisely what we mean. We're going to start with the story of the youngest person ever sentenced to Death Row; then review the results of a survey conducted on 300 boys in malls, on topics ranging from when they want to get married to which outfit they'd most like to see you wear on a date. Crushing on a teacher? Christina has advice on that, some of which has not aged so well. And Barbara Bondrack's short story takes us backstage at a rock show...sort of. On The Road takes us to Boston; Body Talk covers exercise bands and constipation; Help has some advice about confusing sex dreams and bed-wetting (unrelated). Two extremely important departments make their début: Stuff You Wrote and It Happened To Me! And the first IHTM is about...getting an abortion! After that heavy topic, we need to wind down with What He Said about the upcoming presidential election. Tone down your eyeliner -- that's how dudes like it, apparently -- and join us!QUICK LINKS

At some point in the past decade, Kurt Andersen felt like he had to figure out America. Coming from a professional career rooted in satire and troublemaking, Kurt had a pretty good vantage point to examine the tug of war between reason and magical thinking that has become a chronic American condition. Kurt talks with Marc about putting this all into his book, Fantasyland, and recalls the founding of Spy Magazine, where he and Graydon Carter took pleasure messing with public institutions like the New York Times, Hollywood, and Donald Trump. They also talk about Kurt's time at the Harvard Lampoon and how he came to host Studio 360. This episode is sponsored by Lights Out with David Spade, Stamps.com, and ZipRecruiter. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. 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.