Podcast appearances and mentions of jon macks

Not everyone is comfortable writing their own wedding vows, and that's okay. For those who don't deem themselves wordsmiths or need a little coaching on how to put together a great Best Man speech, this episode is for you! Our host, Jennifer Stein, is joined by Brian Franklin, professional speechwriter and co-founder of Vows & Speeches. They discuss how Brian went from a political consultant to the business of writing wedding vows. They cover important and helpful topics such as what makes a great wedding speech and how to deliver heartfelt and personalized vows with the help of his service. About Vows & SpeechesBrian Franklin is the Co-Founder of Vows & Speeches and oversees all interviews and script writing.A writer and communications/marketing consultant for over 25 years, most of Brian's work has been as an award-winning political consultant and communications strategist (including speechwriting and debate prep) for federal and state campaigns.Knowing his skills as a writer and speaker, his friends and family would ask him for help with their wedding speeches—and he had the honor of officiating a few weddings himself. (It should be noted that they are all still married!)In mid 2021, after interviewing Jon Macks, a speechwriter and a lead writer for the Tonight Show and other comedians for many years, Brian was inspired and started to look at the wedding industry as a possible career change, and ultimately, after getting some feedback on Clubhouse by other wedding pros, he and his wife Nicole formed Vows & Speeches. By early 2022, Brian was transitioned to Vows & Speeches full time.Brian has now written hundreds of vows, speeches, ceremonies, and other scripts, and been featured in Bridal Guide, Brides, The Knot, Destination I Do and many more respected wedding media outlets. For more information about Vows & Speeches log on to https://vowsandspeeches.com/ or @vowsandspeeches on social media. More about Destination I DoDestination I Do was established in 2004 and has been publishing real destination weddings, helpful content about planning your wedding away (or honeymoon) and giving advice and inspiration for every couple who is dreaming of their perfect celebration away from home. To learn more about Destination I Do, log on to https://destinationido.com/ and follow us on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/destinationido/ or @destinationido on any other social media platform.

[EPISODE ORIGINALLY RECORDED FEBRUARY 2021]Lisa Grove has been a leading Democratic strategist and pollster for 25+ years, helping elect a President, Senators, Governors, and more. She also developed a reputation for winning tough ballot measures and helped refine messaging to advance the cause of marriage equality. In this conversation (recorded February '21), she talks her roots in Oregon politics and activism, being drawn to polling, her early days in the business, starting her own firm in the mid 90s, and stories & insight from a successful career that has spanned several decades.IN THIS EPISODELisa grows up in Portland, OR inspired by the activism around her...Lisa's early jobs in politics in route to becoming a pollster...Lisa talks learning from famed pollster Nancy Belden...Lisa on her approach to focus groups and her favorite focus group stories...How and why Lisa started her own polling firm in the mid 90s...How Lisa made it work as a pollster living in Hawaii...How Lisa's chalked up a successful record on ballot measures...Lisa's work helping advance the cause of marriage equality...Some of the celebrities Lisa has worked with over the years and her current work with Billie Eilish...AND John Anderson, John Anzalone, Brian Baird, Maggie Baird, Warren Beatty, Nancy Belden, Sergio Bendixen, Anna Bennett, Ami Bera, Brian Bilbray, Graeme Blair, Shirley Chisolm, Tom Daschle, Susan Davis, Peter DeFazio, Barry Diller, Tom Donilon, Mike Dukakis, Matt Erickson, Pablo Escobar, Lily Eskelsen, feather boas, Diane Feldman, Sarah Flowers, Cesar Gaviria, Dick Gephardt, the Golden Rule, Martin Hamburger, Hanford Nuclear Site, Darlene Hooley, Jack Mormons, Ron Kind, Celinda Lake, Ed Lazarus, Norman Lear, Carl Levin, Sandy Levin, Rush Limbaugh, Jeff Liszt, Jon Macks, mai tais, Tom McCall, Mark Mellman, Howard Metzenbaum, Mr. Steak, Ralph Nader, Narcos, Finneas O'Connell, Bob Packwood, Jessica Paulson, paradise guilt, the princess ad, Christy Quirk, Rob Reiner, Barbara Roberts, Michael Robinson, Will Robinson, Rich Schlackman, Barbra Streisand, sustainable furniture, swagger, tattoos, Third Way, tissue paper flowers, Joe Trippi, Univision, Melissa Williams, Ron Wyden, Yucca Mountain & more!

CREATING THE PERFECT VOWSIt is one of the most critical moments of the wedding day...saying your vows. But most of us could be better writers, so why not hire someone?Brian FranklinAfter long, winning careers in political consulting, Brian Franklin and his wife Nicole wanted something more fun. Brian was a writer and communications/marketing consultant for over 25 years. Most of Brian's work had been as an award-winning political consultant and communications strategist (including speechwriting and debate prep) for federal and state campaigns. Knowing his skills as a writer and speaker, his friends and family would ask him for help with their wedding speeches - and he had the honor of officiating a few weddings himself. In 2021, after interviewing Jon Macks, a speechwriter and a lead writer for the Tonight Show and other comedians for many years, Brian was inspired and started to look at the wedding industry as a possible career change. Ultimately, he and his wife Nicole formed Vows & Speeches.The Behind, The Veil Podcast Version, is available after 5:00pm EST on most major podcast players, including iTunes, iHeart Radio, Spotify, Amazon Music, and Google Podcasts.For a hands-free experience, ask Alexa to play the latest podcast episode of Behind The Veil with Keith Willard. The BEHIND THE VEIL Show is the winner of the 2021 and 2022 Telly Awards for best online unscripted series and the NACE One Award for Innovator of The Year.Would you be interested in sponsoring future episodes of Behind The Veil? Email the host at info@keithwillardevents.com#weddingvows, #perfectvows #marriagevows, #weddings,Support the showBehind The Veil Crew:Host: Keith Willard www.keithwillardevents.com www.instagram.com/keithwillard Co- Host: Marci Guttenberg www.anaffairtorememberbymarci.com www.instagram.com/anaffairtorememberbymarci

With the Oscars looming I talk to two guys who've spent a large portion of their lives in awards show writers' rooms - Jon Macks and Jeff Stilson. We cover everything from Faye Dunaway reading the wrong Best Picture winner to the Chris Rock slap to finding new names for publicists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

James and Al sit down with former U.S. National Security Council official and expert in Russian and European affairs Fiona Hill to discuss why Putin invaded, what he expected in the aftermath, and what happens next.  Then, they welcome political consultant turned Academy Awards and comedy writer Jon Macks to analyze the events of the 2022 Oscars. Email your questions to James and Al at politicswarroom@gmail.com or tweet them to @politicon.   Make sure to include your city, we love to hear where you're from! Get More From This Week's Guests: Fiona Hill Brookings Institution | Author of “There Is Nothing For You Here” & Other Books Jon Macks: Twitter | IMDB| Author of “Monologue “What Makes America Laugh Before Bed” & Other Books Please Support This Week's Sponsors: Trade Coffee For $30 off your 1st order and free shipping on your coffee go to drinktrade.com Democracy In Danger To start listening go to dindanger.org or look for it wherever you get your podcasts Workable For a 15 day free trial go to workable.com

John Anzalone has been a Democratic pollster winning tough races for 30+ years, most recently as Chief Pollster for Biden 2020 helping navigate a crowded primary and grueling general election en route to ousting Donald Trump. John talks his working class roots growing up in Michigan, cutting his teeth in the Biden '88 ('87) presidential, his path to polling, and ultimately starting and growing his own firm to become on the handful of top-tier Democratic pollsters in the country.  IN THIS EPISODEJohn grows up a “free lunch kid” and the son of a Teamster in Michigan…John learns an unfortunate lesson from his childhood nickname…Practicing dirty tricks in his first campaign involvement…John talks about his mentor David Wilhelm…John's first big campaign working for Biden for President in 1987…John's memories from his early 20s of being around then Senator Biden…John talks the All-Star team he was part of with James Carville and Paul Begala in a 1988 Senate race…John's FOMO from missing the 1992 Clinton Presidential…The John Anzalone best practices for campaign managers…John's decision to go into polling…John opens up his own polling firm after apprenticing at Frederick Schneiders…John talks the value of “coming in second” in client pitches…The challenge of starting a new Democratic firm in the South in the mid 90s…The firm's success in 04/06 sets the stage to be brought on board with Obama 2008…John talks lessons learned from working at high levels in four straight presidential races…John talks the fabled slide deck that informed some of the early Biden 2020 conversations…John on early challenges for Biden 2020 and what is underappreciated about the winning campaign against Trump…John's advice to the next generation pollsters…John's travel tips…John talks the rebrand of Impact Research…AND…$50,000, Pete Aguilar, Kevin Akins, Jason Altmire, David Axelrod, Barcaloungers, Anna Bennett, big damn deals, Chris Bollwage, Bobby Bright, Joe Burrow, Pete Buttigieg, Don Cazayoux, the Chicago Sun-Times, Travis Childers, Citizens for Tax Justice, Sam Coppersmith, Country Club Republicans, the DC vortex, Rich Daley, Buddy Darden, Pete Dawkins, dead-bang losers, Nathan Deal, Delta Comfort, David Dixon, David Doak, Mike Donilon, Mike Doyle, Anita Dunn, Rahm Emanuel, Rob Engel, Paul Finebaum, the Florida House Caucus, Pete Giangreco, Gwen Graham, Larry Grisolano, Kay Hagan, Debbie Halvorson, Tom Harkin, Gary Hart, Paul Hodes, Jimmy Hoffa, Matt Hogan, Paul Johnson, Larry Kissell, Ron Klein, Amy Klobuchar, Bruce Koeppel, Leading Edge Computers, Jeff Link, Jeff Liszt, Local 7, Jon Macks, Frank Mascara, Paul Maslin, Steve McMahon, Charlie Melancon, Walter Mondale, the Monkey Business, Molly Murphy, Karen Olick, Jen O'Malley Dixon, Bob Packwood, Steve Paikowsky, David Plouffe, prayer warriors, Mark Pryor, Ronald Reagan, Jay Rhodes, Karl Rove, Mitch Rubin, Dan Rostenkowski, John Salazar, Bernie Sanders, Rick Santorum, Greg Schneiders, Heath Shuler, Sicilian enclaves, Clay Shaw, Bob Shrum, Mark Siljander, Steve Sisolak, David Stockman, stray dogs, Brian Stryker, Survey Monkey, Charles Taylor, Dina Titus, Trenton labor people, Uncle Izzy, Fred Upton, Chris Van Hollen, Jon Vogel, Terry Walsh, Whirlpool HQ, Sheldon Whitehouse, whiz-bang kids, Howard Wolpe, & more!

Jon Macks has spent most of his career writing for comedians like Jay Leno and Chris Rock. But before he was writing jokes for The Tonight Show and The Academy Awards, he started out working in politics with Joe. Jon joins the show to discuss whether it's possible to lampoon people like Donald Trump or Marjorie Taylor Greene, how comedy writing and political speech writing flex a lot of the same muscles, and whether the backlash to Jimmy Fallon and SNL giving Trump the usual political treatment was justified. Plus, Macks talks about prepping presidential candidates, including Joe Biden, for big debates. How do you prepare for Donald Trump? Finally, how has "cancel culture" affected the process of writing comedy? Are we better or worse off? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jon Macks' career ranges from political consulting to being a writer for Jay Leno's tonight show for 17 years - to being a writer for Chris Rock (who calls Jon "one of the greatest comedy writers of all time"), Steve Martin, Marty Short, Hugh Jackman, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and much more. We talk with him about his amazing career, what it's like to write jokes about the people you're working with, and the challenges of writing for comics vs. politicians.

Jon Macks discusses at 15 yrs old sending jokes to Carson, Ed McMahon's generosity, & his 22 yrs as monologue writer on Leno's Tonight Show.

Tonight Show writer/political consultant Jon Macks has the greatest “I’m not releasing my taxes” story ever. And it ain’t who you think...

Ep 23 — A political strategist loses his mojo and becomes one of the greatest comedy writers of our time / Jon Macks, Comedy Writer, Democratic Political Consultant, Author. Jon Macks thought he was in for a great ride to the top. Having quit law school for a career as a political strategist, Macks won two big state elections for his clients. But the euphoria quickly wore off and shock set in when Macks then lost 23 straight races in a row. “It's almost self-fulfilling. What happens is that when you are on a losing streak, no one good will hire you,” says Macks, “And so they don't have much money, they can't win the campaign, they don't have the skills, and so then you rack up another loss. So basically at that point you're in a position where you have to somehow convince one person to take a chance on you.” And that’s exactly what happened. Macks began his upward trajectory as a political strategist again, traveling tens of thousands of miles for many winning candidates. To keep himself occupied on those flights, Macks wrote free-lance jokes and sent them in to the rising star stand-up comic, Jay Leno, who was about to become Johnny Carson’s successor on The Tonight Show. One thing led to another and Leno offered Macks a full-time writer position on the show. It was the beginning of an amazing career in stand-up comedy. During his 22 years on The Tonight Show, Macks wrote an estimated 500,000 jokes, getting a record 18,000 on the air. He’s also written for top comedians including Billy Crystal, Martin Short, Steve Martin, Chris Rock, and famous actors. And Macks has maintained a parallel career as a top strategist and writer for democratic political candidates and even some U.S. Presidents. In this fascinating interview, Macks talks about how he surmounted his early obstacles in politics and went on to become one of the most prolific and successful comedy writers in history. The author of five books, including his most recent, Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed, Macks dissects the anatomy of winning jokes and ruminates on what makes some work so well while others fall totally flat. Macks shares what it’s like to write for the current slew of democratic political candidates. And last but not least, he reveals some of his tradecraft on how he is able to write more than 100 jokes a day. The quintessential Jon Macks, on this episode of When It mattered. Tanscript Download the PDF Chitra Ragavan:   Jon Macks became a comedy writer in a roundabout way. He had quit law to become a political strategist. He won two huge campaigns, but then his luck turned on a dime. Macks started writing jokes when he was on flights, one thing led to another, and he became one of Jay Leno's most successful writers on The Tonight Show for 22 years. Hello, everyone. I'm Chitra Ragavan and this is When It Mattered. This episode is brought to you by Goodstory, an advisory firm helping technology startups find their narrative. Chitra Ragavan:   Joining me now is Jon Macks. He's considered one of the greatest comedy writers of all time by the likes of Billy Crystal, Steve Martin, Chris Rock, and Martin Short just to name a few. Macks has written for 22 Academy Awards. He's written material for high-profile clients including Helen Mirren, Michael Douglas, Hugh Jackman, Arnold Schwarzenegger and others. The author of five books, Macks also is a sought-after democratic political consultant and a speechwriter for political candidates, and even some US presidents. Jon, welcome to the podcast. Jon Macks:   It's great to be here. Chitra Ragavan:   When you told me earlier that you had won two races followed by losing 23 races, my first thought was, "Wow, people really trust this guy. They keep hiring him even when he's consistently losing campaigns." How did you convince people to keep hiring you? Jon Macks:   Well, it was actually a little bit less of convincing people that I was really g...

JOKE Last night I wrote down six things I wanted to do today. I kept number six blank. "JOKE" was just a reminder to start this post with a joke from Jon Macks... "If you live in Florida, ya know, God's waiting room..." "If you're Jewish, like me..." Those are just a few lines from my interview with Jon Macks. He was the top writer for "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno. He wrote 100 jokes a day. That's half a million in 20 years. He's written jokes for President Obama, Bill Clinton, John Kerry and monologues for Steve Martin, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock... and wrote the book "Monogluge: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed." But before comedy, Jon did political consulting. "I realized I could do one thing 300 nights a year: politics or perform. And I chose politics." He somehow transitioned and reached the heights of a dream career in comedy. I wanted to know his secret. I also wanted to know how to be funny... 1. Association Joke: I asked Jon how to run for Congress. "Anti-Washington, anti-establishment is what's working right now," he said. I'm not running for Congress. But, the night of this interview, I went to an open mic. So I ran some headlines by Jon. And he wrote jokes on the spot. Headline: "Trump Refuses To Say He'll Accept Election Results" Jon: "The Toronto Blue Jays lost yesterday. They're refusing to accept the fact that the Cleveland Indians are going to the world series." This is an association joke. You look at what else is happening. Then marry the two. 2. Rule of 3's: This is Billy Crystals joke: "Donald Trump reminds me a lot of hurricane season. He starts out with a lot of hot air, spins out of control, by the first week of November he's completely gone." The rule of 3's is this: Set up your joke. Start with a fact or an idea. Then expand on the idea by listing three qualities. The third is usually unexpected. That's your punchline. 3. Look for the oddity Jon said, "Most normal people-and I put comics as 'not normal'-most normal people walk into a room and go, 'This looks like a great party.'" But a comic asks questions. "Who shouldn't be here?" "Why are they serving bacon cheeseburgers at a Jewish event?" Go beyond business as usual. Look for the oddity... in contracts, your conversations, your habits. Try to find the light in life's eccentricities. Or the bull... in shit. 4. Find "your kind of people" and bring them together Every day, I practice what I call "emotional health." I spend time with people who lift me up. And I try to lift them up, too. Not with words. But with interests. We hold space for each other. And leave room for the juice in our brain to squeeze out. It's a different kind of lemonade, but it's ours. And we like it. That's all that matters. Seinfeld calls comedians "his type of people." As if they have different brains than everyone else. So I asked Jon, "What is it? What is the comedian?" He said, "A comic will go on stage and either say something we haven't thought of, or something we all thought of in a way that is really unique, funny and brings us all together." 5. Move forward Jon was traveling about 250 nights a year doing campaigns. His third kid was just born. And he had a choice: be a dad or "be someone calling in once a week." Lots of people make this choice. Money is involved. Fulfillment is a factor. The stress of making the "right" versus the "wrong" decision. Jon went with his gut. "I figured I'd take a break from political consulting, and I never went back." He had a 13-week contract with Jay Leno. That turned into a lifetime... Before podcasting and writing, I worked on Wall Street. When everything crashed, I fed people chocolate. I wanted to bring people together. Maybe that's number six. ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our...

JOKE Last night I wrote down six things I wanted to do today. I kept number six blank. “JOKE” was just a reminder to start this post with a joke from Jon Macks… “If you live in Florida, ya know, God’s waiting room…” “If you’re Jewish, like me…” Those are just a few lines from my interview with Jon Macks. He was the top writer for “The Tonight Show” with Jay Leno. He wrote 100 jokes a day. That’s half a million in 20 years. He’s written jokes for President Obama, Bill Clinton, John Kerry and monologues for Steve Martin, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock… and wrote the book “Monogluge: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed.” But before comedy, Jon did political consulting. “I realized I could do one thing 300 nights a year: politics or perform. And I chose politics.” He somehow transitioned and reached the heights of a dream career in comedy. I wanted to know his secret. I also wanted to know how to be funny... 1. Association Joke: I asked Jon how to run for Congress. “Anti-Washington, anti-establishment is what’s working right now,” he said. I’m not running for Congress. But, the night of this interview, I went to an open mic. So I ran some headlines by Jon. And he wrote jokes on the spot. Headline: “Trump Refuses To Say He’ll Accept Election Results” Jon: “The Toronto Blue Jays lost yesterday. They’re refusing to accept the fact that the Cleveland Indians are going to the world series.” This is an association joke. You look at what else is happening. Then marry the two. 2. Rule of 3’s: This is Billy Crystals joke: “Donald Trump reminds me a lot of hurricane season. He starts out with a lot of hot air, spins out of control, by the first week of November he’s completely gone.” The rule of 3’s is this: Set up your joke. Start with a fact or an idea. Then expand on the idea by listing three qualities. The third is usually unexpected. That’s your punchline. 3. Look for the oddity Jon said, “Most normal people—and I put comics as ‘not normal’—most normal people walk into a room and go, ‘This looks like a great party.’” But a comic asks questions. “Who shouldn’t be here?” “Why are they serving bacon cheeseburgers at a Jewish event?” Go beyond business as usual. Look for the oddity… in contracts, your conversations, your habits. Try to find the light in life’s eccentricities. Or the bull... in shit. 4. Find “your kind of people” and bring them together Every day, I practice what I call “emotional health.” I spend time with people who lift me up. And I try to lift them up, too. Not with words. But with interests. We hold space for each other. And leave room for the juice in our brain to squeeze out. It’s a different kind of lemonade, but it’s ours. And we like it. That’s all that matters. Seinfeld calls comedians “his type of people.” As if they have different brains than everyone else. So I asked Jon, “What is it? What is the comedian?” He said, “A comic will go on stage and either say something we haven’t thought of, or something we all thought of in a way that is really unique, funny and brings us all together.” 5. Move forward Jon was traveling about 250 nights a year doing campaigns. His third kid was just born. And he had a choice: be a dad or “be someone calling in once a week.” Lots of people make this choice. Money is involved. Fulfillment is a factor. The stress of making the “right” versus the “wrong” decision. Jon went with his gut. “I figured I’d take a break from political consulting, and I never went back.” He had a 13-week contract with Jay Leno. That turned into a lifetime… Before podcasting and writing, I worked on Wall Street. When everything crashed, I fed people chocolate. I wanted to bring people together. Maybe that’s number six. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

7x Emmy-Nominated “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” writer Jon Macks joins Matt on the Season Finale and final episode under the title of Ventriloquism Weekly! Macks, author of the new book Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed, has written comedy for Leno, as well as numerous celebrities and award shows his over 22-year career. […] The post Episode 77-Jon Macks appeared first on Talk For Two.

7x Emmy-Nominated “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” writer Jon Macks joins Matt on the Season Finale and final episode under the title of Ventriloquism Weekly! Macks, author of the new book Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed, has written comedy for Leno, as well as numerous celebrities and award shows his over 22-year career. […] The post Episode 77-Jon Macks appeared first on Talk For Two.

7x Emmy-Nominated “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” writer Jon Macks joins Matt on the Season Finale of Ventriloquism Weekly! Macks, author of the new book “Monologue”, has written comedy for Leno, as well as numerous celebrities and award shows his over 22-year career. You’ll hear fantastic stories and get great advice from the man Chris Rock calls, “One of the greatest comedy writers of all time.” Buy "Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed" here: http://tinyurl.com/n48jrbz Ventriloquism Weekly will return June 22nd

Today on The Gist, we celebrate our first year as a show! Will you tell a friend about us? Plus, Jon Macks joins us to explain which celebrities have provided the most fodder during the 22 years of jokes he’s written for late night television. He’s the author of Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed. For the Spiel, did ISIS attack a town in Texas? Today’s sponsors: Citrix GoToMeeting. When meetings matter, millions choose GoToMeeting. Get a free 30-day trial by visiting GoToMeeting.com and clicking the “try it free” button.  And: Shari’s Berries. Fresh berries dipped in chocolate, starting at just $19.99 are a great last-minute gift and double your berries for just 5 bucks. Visit berries.com, click on the microphone, and use the code GIST. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at http://www.slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paul Begala, a political analyst and CNN commentator, interviews comedy writer Jon Macks about his new book “Monologue: What Makes America Laugh Before Bed.” Macks was the top writer for “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” for 22 years.