Annette Arnold [Interview]

Hello Folks! We have another absolutely wonderful interview to share with you all. We have a brilliant and legendary performer of the screen and stage, it’s Annette Arnold, Everyone! Annette jumped into the public eye when she performed in Tamara Jenkin’s Sundance Special Jury award winning film Family Remains, alongside fellow greats like Kevin Corrigan and Donna Mitchell. She was amazing in it, and has been taking on some amazing projects ever since. In fact, two of those projects were the original reason I initially reached out to receive the honor of having Annette grace our digital pages, and we will discuss them below. Suffice to say that they are two of my Top Ten films of all time, and whenever we have a cast member, or anyone who was involved with the project on the site, we simply HAVE to ask about it. Today will be no exception. 

So, Folks, please enjoy some brilliant words from the even more brilliant performer, Annette Arnold!

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 What inspired you to get into the world of performance? Was it something you had wanted to do since your youth? Or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

I don’t come from a family of performing artists, but, my father was always a great storyteller. I learned early on the power to move, excite, anger or captivate people through storytelling. I began putting on ‘backyard plays’ at a very young age. When you’re eight, and you create a living breathing character in front of your neighbors, then stand back and observe the very unique and different ways in which each of them reacts to or responds to it, well, let’s just say, that is very powerful and I’ve been enthralled ever since.  

What was your first paid gig in the world of entertainment? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still affect your work to date?

My very first paid gig in the entertainment world was the Sundance Jury Prize winning film Family Remains. I was honored to be directed by the very brilliant Tamara Jenkins for my debut film. It was also the very first time I stepped foot on a set. Tamara taught me so much then, about both film and artistic integrity. Tamara and Gabor (our cinematographer) would set up each and every shot, step back, call me over, and then have me look through the lens. Tamara allowed me to view each shot, assess my parameters, and understand and actually see what the camera was seeing. When does that ever happen to an actor?? Ummm…NEVER (and never has it happened again). The opportunity to learn about space, angles, close ups, to see the difference between a two shot, master, medium, and experience the importance of lighting, taught me lessons that still inform my work today. No matter what my approach to a role is, my goal is always a truthful performance. But, film is a medium and that lens is there for a reason. There is a world to view through/inside of it. I learned to know what it is, then forget it is there. It was the ultimate MASTER CLASS! I am so lucky to have worked with Tamara several more times after that. I’m not sure she would even remember those moments, but, I hope she knows how grateful I am. 

You have done some amazing work on both big and silver screens, the stage, & beyond. With that in mind, what would you consider to be your most beloved type of performance?

Well…my most beloved role is yet to come! Having said that, at this stage in my life and creativity, I feel the most uninhibited, unencumbered and inspired, than I have ever been. I have a lifetime of stories, humor, love, anger, and unbridled rage to share. And, no walls. Maybe that came with age? I don’t know, but, I am able to access parts of me I didn’t know existed or didn’t want to, and it’s unpredictable and exciting. So my most beloved types of performances have been ones that both challenge me and are just that, unpredictable. I recently played a housewife who dreams of being a stand up comedienne. In the last minutes of [a particular] play, my character finally takes the stage and delivers her first crack at stand up. Although the play and that final routine was written by the wonderful Alyssa Haddad, just like real stand up, it could and would change every evening depending on the audience response. I often had to improvise or change things up, based off of their reactions, comments or even heckling. It was both terrifying and exhilarating! 

In back to back years, you worked on two of my absolute favorite films of all time. The first would be the seminal indie classic film Trees Lounge, which also features our old friend Michael Buscemi. So, I am curious to know what drew you to this project? And how was your experience working on this project?

TREES LOUNGE!! One of my favorites too! I remain a huge fan of both Steve and Michael Buscemi. Steve drew me to this project. He had seen me in Family Remains (at Sundance I believe) and called me at home! Now remember, there was no internet, no email. Just an answering machine. My boyfriend Chris Wilson (now my husband) and I, came home to a message on the answering machine from Steve. Steve Buscemi!! My husband and I kept replaying the message and screaming…’Mr. Pink’!! I think we did that about 15 times before we actually listened to it. Steve invited me to be a part of a reading he was having at Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Again, because it was the old days, we met at a coffee shop so he could hand me the script (or else he would have had to send it snail mail, remember that?). The reading went extremely well and not surprisingly, the script was incredibly well received. It was about a year later I received a call offering me the role of Sandy. Not only did I get to work with an enormously talented cast that included Steve and Michael Buscemi, but Kevin Corrigan, Michael Imperioli, Seymour Cassel and Chloe Sevigny, but, I earned my SAG card!! I will never forget it. 

The next year, you worked on another classic film, in my opinion, Deconstructing Harry, which features another dear friend of ours, Hazelle Goodman. So, same question basically, what drew you to the project, and how was your experience?

It seems like all roads lead back to Family Remains, so I guess, this is no different. Casting director Laura Rosenthal, who cast Family Remains, worked out of Juliet Taylor’s Casting office at the time. Juliet Taylor was the casting director on most, if not all, of Woody Allen’s films back then. A few years after Family Remains was released, Juliet Taylor called me in to audition for Deconstructing Harry. I read for her and was asked if I was available to meet with Woody Allen the very next day. I not only read for him, I read with him! I guess it went well because I was offered the role that evening. My experience was fantastic. You’ve seen the film, so you know, there are so many famous faces in it. For an actor in their early career, it can often be intimidating, but, every actoron set (famous or not) seemed equally nervous/terrified and excited to just be in a Woody Allen film. 

If you were handed the opportunity to portray any legendary figure in American history, who would it be?

Carol Burnett. The very first woman ever to host a variety sketch show (and the most awarded tv shows of all time). She’s groundbreaking. She is fierce, fearless, and a superior physical comedian. Throughout her devastating personal tragedies, she revealed herself through her comedy. As a young girl I was always attracted to dark material: films, poetry, etc, art that revealed the darkest depths of the soul. Yet, every evening when I heard the musical opening of The Carol Burnett show, I knocked over whomever was in my way at the time and would sit directly in front of the television…it was transcendent. Like some of my favorite confessional poets, her humor always revealed her humanity. I NEVER felt like she was wearing a mask. She is one of the most influential women (and people) in television history.

What does the future hold for you? Anything our readers should be on the lookout for?

With an actor/singer/filmmaker daughter and writer husband, we have many performing opportunities/collaborations on the horizon. However, these quarantine and pandemic times had me writing! I wrote a short film and a series pilot titled Apartment 3RN. Without giving too much away, I took the age old advice ‘write what you know’. It’s about a family of artists living in Hell’s Kitchen. They encounter a series of racial, fantastical and even violent missteps, all while seemingly never leaving their sofa.    

What was the last thing that made you smile?

My daughter, Zoe Wilson, as I mentioned, is also a professional actor, just booked a great role. No matter how long you’ve been doing this, or even who got the gig, that feeling, that excitement, never gets old. 

Todd Robert Anderson [Interview]

Hello Folks! Today we have an incredible interview that is well overdue. Mainly due to my very own inability to focus on multiple tasks during a move across the world, as you have all heard me whine about since it began. Anyway, today we have an absolute gem of a human being gracing our digital pages. It’s the amazing actor, Todd Robert Anderson!

Todd has been working both on and off the screen for over 20 years, and has worked on a plethora of the TV shows you know and love. A personal highlight, and probably for a lot of you as well, is his reoccurring role on the brilliant FXX series You’re The Worst. Some of you may remember that we have actually featured some pretty great folks who have appeared and re-appeared on this absolutely incredible show, such as Allen Maldonado, Robin Riker, and Johnny Pemberton. But, Todd was a fucking presence on this program, and was an absolute highlight of each and every episode he was on.

And another bit of inside baseball fun that we have for you all….we have another Becker siting! Yes, Todd is yet another of the insanely talented man who appeared, even if just for one episode, on the series we love and adore the most. So, of course we had to ask him about that as well.

So Folks, please enjoy some amazing words from our new friend and absolutely amazing actor, Todd Robert Anderson!

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What inspired you to get into the world of performance? Was it something you had wanted to do since your youth? Or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

It was a plan I had since junior high, to be an actor. A teacher encouraged me to do a play, The Butler Did It, and when I got all the attention and laughs, it got me past my shyness and social awkwardness. And created a bit of an addiction for performance. 
    

What was your first paid gig in the world of entertainment? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still affect your work to date?

My first paid gig was a commercial for Pacific Bell, in which we extolled the virtues of “three-way calling.” Yes, I’m ancient. My first theatrical gig was in Blast from the Past.
    

Much like our dear friends Allen Maldonado, Robin Riker & Johnny Pemberton, you were absolutely incredible on the equally incredible series You’re The Worst. I am curious to know what drew you to this project? And how was your experience working on such a funny and enlightening series? 

Show creator Stephen Falk is one of my best friends, I’ve known him since college. He had a small, two-line part called “The Groom” that needed to be filled for the pilot. I went in and auditioned, ad-libbed a third line for the fun of it, and they cast me. The network liked me enough to flesh out the character and bring him on for more episodes. So, to answer your question, what drew me to it was my old friend and what draws me to most of the work I do: they were willing to pay me.
  

YOU’RE THE WORST — “The Heart is a Dumb Dumb” — Episode 213 (Airs Wednesday, December 9, 10:30 pm e/p) Pictured: (l-r) Janet Varney as Becca, Todd Robert Anderson as Vernon. CR: Byron Cohen/FX

You also appeared in an episode of my absolute favorite sitcom of all time, which I am always obligated to ask our guests about, even if it was only a brief gig. And that series is the one and only series Becker. You played “Pete” in the episode “One Wong Move”, which is honestly one of the most memorable episodes for me, & written by our friend Russ Woody. Anyway, I am curious to know how your experience was working this legendary (at least to me!) sitcom? 

Doing Becker was very exciting for me because I was a Cheers fanatic and working with Ted Danson was a dream come true. He is genuinely a great guy as well as being a great actor, so meeting one of my heroes turned out to be a great thing. On taping night I got a very hard lesson when the biggest scene in the episode, with a lot of moving parts, got zero reaction from the studio audience. We were there until two in the morning trying to figure it out. I just assumed studio audiences would laugh at anything, but apparently they have minds of their own. 
I also got to meet Octavia Spencer who was working on the show, and she was a blast. 
   

If you were handed the opportunity to portray any legendary figure in American history, who would it be?

Steve Martin, because I grew up dreaming about being him, and this would be the absolute closest I could get.
   

What does the future hold for you? Anything our readers should be on the lookout for?  

I’ll turn up on this season of Good Girls here and there. Beyond that, your guess is as good as mine. I wait for the auditions, and when they come, I get bookings. I never know too far in advance what I’ll be doing.

What was the last thing that made you smile?  

My son was singing along to Juice Newton’s “Angel of the Morning”, and he got the lyrics wrong: “Just call me angel of the morning, angel. Just pull my teeth before you leave me, baby.” I laughed for an hour after that.

Ted Russell Kamp [Interview]

Hello Folks! And welcome back to another beautiful Wednesday here at Trainwreck’d Society. While I am usually always so excited to share interviews with you fine folks, today I am particularly excited for a somewhat singular reason. Not only is our guest today and amazing and talented human being, but we have a musician back in the house, Folks! It’s the wonderful Grammy award winning musician Ted Russell Kamp, Everyone! For those not in the know, TWS was essentially just a music blog. That was where I laid my original roots and will always be proud of the fact. But, the main reason I started this site was to move into other categories. Now here we are, close to 700 interviews later, and musicians just don’t show up as much as they used to. I guess we are starting to change that, right now!

Ted Russell Kamp is a long time bass player, songwriter, guitarist, just about everything you could imagine. Regular readers of the site will remember that Ted appeared on our 2020 year end lists for both a song as well as his amazing album, Down in the Den, which landed at #40, as well as our favorite track from the album “Home Sweet Hollywood” landing at #45 on our Top 100 Songs list. And Folks, while it is very early on, it is damn near safe to say that we will be seeing more from Mr. Kamp at the end of 2021. Our man has a new record coming out on May 7th that I was fortunate enough to get an early listening to and, Folks, he’s only getting better. Being his 13th album is proof that Ted is in no way aging out and continues to put out fresh shit on an extremely fast pace.

So Folks, be on the lookout for his album, Solitaire, available everywhere on May 7th (we will be talking about the album more in the future, I guarantee it), and please enjoy some wonderful words from the brilliant Ted Russell Kamp!

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What inspired you to get into the world of music? Was it something you aspired to do since your youth, or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

I started playing trumpet in the 4th grade in the school band. I grew up in the suburbs of New York City and at the time it was New York state law that every student had to join the choir or start and instrument. At the time I was deathly afraid of singing, so I started with an instrument. My dad actually played in some big bands when he was in college so I asked him if I could just use his old trumpet. And that’s still the trumpet I play on a lot of my recordings.

When I got to High School, I got a bass guitar and started playing in rock bands and the high school jazz band. I was hooked for life.

What was your first paid gig in the world of music? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impacts your work to date?

I had been playing bass for a year or two, so I must have been a Sophomore or Junior in High School. A Senior bass player who I really looked up to, asked if I would sub for him and play a gig with a band he worked with. They were mostly guys in college and they had a small-town festival in a field a few towns over from where I lived. They were a New Wave band and I remember learning Duran Duran, the Cure and Howard Jones covers. I had heard some of that music but was not a fan. I was a classic rock guy and mostly avoided music with too many synths. I really did my homework but was so nervous I could barely deal with it. They were older than me, cooler than me and I think I got paid $25 or $50. It was a huge deal and it was the first time I played in a band with people I didn’t know.

Back when you were able to tour the land doing shows all over the place, what were some of the more off the path types of cities and venues that you performed in that most people may not realize are wonderful towns for live music?

I love traveling and trying to get to know the people and heart of every city I go to. Some of my favorites are the small cities you don’t hear about until you get to them. Tuscaloosa Alabama is great. Norco California. Amal Sweden is another. Nokia, Finland. Some of the best gigs are when you go to a small town or city where they don’t get much live music so your arrival is a big deal you become the big show in town. You really feel the heart of the people and the deep appreciation that you don’t often get in big cities.

You have a new album coming out in May that is already shaping up to be one of my favorites of 2021. I’ve enjoyed your work for years, but Solitaire feels special for some reason. Can you tell us how this record came to light? What made you want to put these tales out into the world?

Solitaire is my 13th record as an artist and front man. I played and recorded it by myself, almost entirely in my home studio, The Den, during the last half of 2020 in the COVID quarantine. This is record deals with the isolation me and many of us have felt this last year so there are more than a few sadder and more introspective acoustic songs on it. Overall, I’m an optimistic type of person so I also wanted to have some songs of hope and inspiration on the record because we are all trying to find ways to stay sane and pull through. I have definitely had ballads on my records before but this album as a whole shows a moodier and more introspective side to my writing and playing. It’s as much of a classic folk and singer songwriter record as I have ever made and it really shows my folk influences like early Dylan, Guy Clark and Nick Drake.

One track from Solitaire that has really hit me hard on a very personal level is “Birds That Sing at Dawn”. For reasons that I don’t really care to get into, this one hits me, Man. I’m curious to know what it is like to deal with this scenario. When people personalize your already very personal lyrics to themselves, how does that make you feel? Is it a good thing in your opinion? Why or why not?

I wrote this one with Brad Raisin, who is an artist i have played bass on a bunch of his records over the years. He actually loved my record Flying Solo and started to learn one of the songs on that album so he could start playing it. It’s “The Way Love Burns”. So, his messing around with that evolved into this song. Then he sent me a recording and i tweaked it a little more to get it to what you hear on this version. I love this one. A relationship has fallen apart and the narrator is left reliving the memories and trying to start again. He’s up all night thinking and drinking and wondering what’s next. That’s someplace we have all been.

I’m honored that you relate to it and that this song stands out to you. One of the things I try to do with certain songs is to give a lot of detail and feeling but keep it vague enough that listeners can see themselves in a song. We’ve all had lonely times like that and worried about what we did wrong and missed a better time. I hope this one helps you through those memories.

You received a well-deserved Grammy last year for working with the legendary Tanya Tucker on her wonderful album, While I’m Living’. We always like to ask our statue holding friends this one question: Where do you physically keep your Grammy? And does its location have any sort of symbolic significance?

That was a truly amazing and inspiring record to be a part of. Not just working with Tanya Tucker, who is a legend, but also being in the room with Brandi Carlile, Shooter and the rest of the team. It felt magical from beginning to end.

I didn’t know this, but when it’s an artist and not a band, not everyone gets an actual Grammy statue. I believe the producers, engineers and artists get a statue. The musicians get a pretty awesome commemorative certificate. My wife framed it for me as a gift and it’s hanging in our living room.

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

This record comes out on May 7. I won’t be doing any touring of course but I’m excited to get this music out into the world.

As of now I am booking a tour in Europe for February of 2022 and then I hope to do some traveling and playing with Shooter Jennings next year as well on my own.

I also have a few records that I will be producing and we are figuring out the best way to start them while in quarantine.

Aside from that, I just hope to keep making music for a living whether that’s playing live or in the studio.

And you know I’m going to keep writing songs and putting out records.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

My wife is a high school teacher and is just starting her own podcast about education and critical thinking. It’s called Think or Thwim and the first episode just got put on Spotify a few weeks ago so she is really excited about it. I have been working in the studio recording and editing her first few shows and I even wrote a theme song for it. We laugh a lot while we are working together. Since our professional lives are usually completely different, it’s great that I can use my musical and studio skills to help her.

Gabriel Theis [Interview]

Hello, Folks! I hope you all had a nice spring break. We took a little time off to move our headquarters to Anchorage, as we previously discussed. And if I’m being honest, I truly needed a break. But, we shall show you that the wait was worth the….well, wait. So here we go!

Today we have a wonderful interview with a bright young filmmaker that we are so excited to have on the site. It’s Gabriel Theis, Everyone! Gabriel has been working in the world of film and television in several different capacities over the last few years, and has made great strides to becoming one of the greats. His latest project is one that was brought to my attention by our dear friend, cinematographer Brad Rushing, and we are so happy he did. This project is known as The Curse of Professor Zardonicus, a film about a young man who recruits a film student to help him prove the existence of an urban legend. It is a truly intriguing story that I am so excited to check out, and possibly share with you all here.

So Folks, please enjoy some wonderful words from the newly beloved filmmaker, Gabriel Theis! Enjoy!

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What inspired you to get into the world of film? Was it something you aspired to do since your youth, or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

 My father was a film critic, so cinema was ubiquitous in our household. Ever since I can remember, I’ve been hooked on movies, classic and new, arthouse and blockbuster, really good and really bad (my list of guilty-pleasures is insane).

So because of that, I’ve always wanted to be a filmmaker, even when I was too young to really understand what that meant.  I had no idea how films were constructed, all the nuances that go behind a successful production. If I’d had any appreciation for how difficult filmmaking could be, or how much failure I would experience in that quest, I might have been discouraged.

But, too late now. It’s the only thing I could imagine for myself, which has been an absolutely essential mindset. If I had the ability to really consider another career choice, I might have given up by now and gone on to become, I don’t know, a doctor? Accountant? Something more financially reliable as a career path. But filmmaking is too ingrained in my identity now, so I’ve never considered trying something else, even if that might have seemed like the more logical move. 

What was your first paid gig in the world of film? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impacts your work to date?

My first gig was being a Production Assistant on the “Sicko Mode” music video. I was a sophomore in college, and got the gig through one of my film professors (appreciate it, Professor Houk).

It was a 16-hour shoot day, and was the first set I had been on where the camera wasn’t something that anyone could get at a Best Buy. I went from making amateur short films to being on set for a music video featuring two of the most high-profile artists of my generation.

So it was both exciting and overwhelming at the same time, for exactly the reasons you’d expect. I got some extremely helpful pointers on being a production assistant, though, and the crew was very patient with me, knowing how green I was. 

The number of things I learned on that shoot was so long, I couldn’t possibly list them all here. It ranged from learning what a line producer was, to what Travis Scott’s favorite flavor of Fanta was. But the lessons I carried with me were all about work ethic and maintaining the rhythm of a functioning set.

While I’ve never produced a project of my own at that scale, the principles remain the same, of always being alert and prepared for a problem to arise, of staying in your lane and never interfering with someone else’s responsibilities.

So shout out to Drake and Travis Scott, my old bosses. And especially a huge thanks to Travis Scott, who was part of the reason why the music video was being filmed in Houston.

Can you tell us a bit about your exciting new project, The Curse of Professor Zardonicus? What made you want to bring this story into the world, and what can people expect to see?

The Curse of Professor Zardonicus is… honestly, I still have a hard time explaining exactly what it is. And that’s part of what I loved about making it.

Simply put, it’s a mockumentary dark-comedy about an eccentric young man who recruits a film student to help him prove the existence of an urban legend named, you guessed, “Professor Zardonicus.” It was shot with my colleagues, Alec White and Lucio Vasquez. While there are people to thank, including the rest of the cast, and many people who helped with production, most of the film was shot with just the three of us. Lucio was the Director of Photography and Editor, Alec played the lead character, as well as serving other services such as being a casting director. Without either of them, there simply wouldn’t be a movie. And without the enthusiasm to overcome all of the challenges to produce a film with such limited resources, I don’t know how we could have gotten it done.

Dating back to my freshman year, I had known that Zardonicus would be my debut feature film. Since it’s a mockumentary told from the perspective of a college student, it had the perfect framing device for my limited resources. It was also a chance to satirize the found-footage genre, and “monster-hunting” shows.

It was going to be a comedy, through and through. But then, as I started writing the screenplay, other themes started to creep in, ones about mental illness and conspiracy theories. The screenplay was written long before Qanon became a household name, I can’t imagine a more appropriate sociopolitical context for the film to be released.

We were never sure how audiences would respond, and that anticipation was the most suspenseful aspect of production, at least for myself. With such an off-beat sense of humor, frankly weird lead character, and bizarre title, I knew we had limited our audience. But John Lennon once said “being yourself may not get you a lot of friends, but it’ll get you the right ones,” and the same philosophy applies to creative endeavors and their audience. While Zardonicus has had a polarizing response, the people who have enjoyed it seemed to have had a unique experience watching it, and formed a very personal relationship with the film, it’s themes and characters. And that alone makes it worth it, even with the endless amount of frustration and disappointment that can ensue when you’re producing a film.

If you were greenlit & received an unlimited budget to create the biopic (series, film, etc.) of any famous figure from American history, who would it be?

I think the best biopics cover specific events of the subject’s life, rather than try to condense their entire life story into a single film. With that being said, there’s always been a specific moment in Charles Manson’s life I would love to cover, and that would be his relationship with Beach Boys’ drummer, Dennis Wilson.

It seems that most people are aware that Charles Manson was associated with the Beach Boys in some vague fashion, but his relationship with Dennis Wilson was so much deeper than many people realize. They didn’t just do drugs together, they lived together, they worked on music together. Charles Manson is actually a co-writer on a Beach Boys song, “Never Learn Not To Love.”

But, most disturbing of all, Charles Manson’s relationship with Dennis Wilson was the catalyst for a key turning point in his life, one that would set him on the path to really becoming “Charles Manson.”

So, that Beach Boys song? Manson didn’t realize that Wilson would rewrite his lyrics. And when he learned that, he… didn’t take it well.

He literally handed Dennis Wilson a bullet, and said: “Every time you look at it, I want you to think how nice it is your kids are still safe.” And then… Dennis Wilson beat the shit out of him.

Then, later on, Manson would order his followers to go to a house and murder a record producer who turned him down. Except, that producer had moved out. And the new resident was… Sharon Tate.

The more research I did into their relationship, the more of a narrative I could see. These two infamous figures, representing two very different cultural movements of the ‘60s. Dennis Wilson, one of the Beach Boys, was a key figure in the development of Charles Manson, who would change the cultural perception surrounding the “Free Love” movement forever. 

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

Currently, I’m helping to develop a science-fiction screenplay with cinematographer Brad Rushing and director Shaun Paul Piccinino. I’m also in post on a horror short-film, The Face You Took Away, which we expect to be releasing around late April, early May.

If you’d like more updates, you can follow me on social media. When I’m not developing my own projects, I’m working on others, and I’m honestly just grateful to be working on sets after the misery of 2020.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

Last night was the Golden Globes ceremony. While I’m not typically impressed with awards shows, there was an amusing bit where a bunch of kids are asked about movies, and give these very cute, silly answers.

But then the interviewer asked them, “who is Chadwick Boseman?” And every single kid shouted Black Panther!

It was such a moving way to honor Chadwick Boseman. It also took me back to when I was their age, seeing Tobey Maguire as Spiderman, or Christian Bale as Batman. It was a beautiful moment to remind us of just how much value cinema has in our lives, and how much they can inspire the imagination.

Sean Donnelly [Interview]

Hello Folks! And welcome to another exciting week here at Trainwreck’d Society. We are keeping the laughs going this week my kicking things off with a very hilarious human being. It’s Sean Donnelly, Everyone! Sean is an absolutely hilarious come NYC-based comedian that I have been hearing about quite a bit over the last few years. In fact, much like our recent guest Steven Rogers, I happened to learn about Sean’s existence through our old pals Mark Normand and Joe List on Tuesdays with Stories. This is how it works, Folks! When the comedy community supports one another, word gets around. And boy was I happy to learn about Sean’s incredible act!

Sean, much like the rest of the world, also has a wonderful movie podcast entitled DYM that I sincerely cannot recommend highly enough. Alongside fellow hilarious person Andrew Fiori cover so many different facets of the world of film. It’s a true delight. The description of the podcast on The Laugh Button site is also very spot on: “Never before have two 40-something, bearded white guys made such an impact on pop culture.”

So, Folks, please enjoy some wonderful words from the brilliant Sean Donnelly!

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What was your first paid gig in the world of comedy? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impacts your work to date?

My first paid gig was a road gig. It was a joining bachelor/bachelorette party in Jersey. I did 30 minutes of crowd work. The lesson I took away from that day was to always make sure you stay in the moment.

I always like to ask comedians who (used?) to travel across the globe making people laugh this one question: What are some of the more obscure cities and/or venues that you have enjoying performing in? What are some places that most people may not realize are wonderful places for live comedy?

One of the best places I have been to which a lot of people probably don’t realize is great is Madison, Wisconsin. It has Comedy on State one of the best clubs in the country. Smart college town where people have a sense of humor about themselves

Besides the fact that it is practically required for every comedian to have a podcast, I am always curious to know the origin behind fine shows such as yours, DYM. So what made you want to put this show out into the digital either?

Me and Dan St. Germain ended another podcast called My Dumb Friends and I wanted to do something different from that. I am obsessed with movies so I figured that would be the best way to go.

If you were greenlit & received an unlimited budget to create the biopic (series, film, etc.) of any figure from the days of comedy past, who would you choose?

I would have to choose Patrice O’Neal because he was the best to do it and he was a super interesting guy that a lot of people don’t know about.

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

I will be in an episode of a show called Girls 5 Eva on Peacock which should be coming out soon. Oh and please check out my radio show on Sirius called Celebrate every Wednesday at 4pm!

What was the last thing that made you smile?

My girlfriend.

Becky Braunstein [Interview]

Hello Folks! And welcome back to a Friday edition of Trainwreck’d Society! As we foreshadowed earlier this week, TWS is now based in Alaska! Anchorage for now, but soon be moving out into the burbs of Eagle River. It’s been a long ass week, but we are getting settled in at the new HQ. And speaking of Eagle River….

We have Becky Braunstein with us today! Becky is an absolutely hilarious human being who just so happens to hail from The Eag (I’m calling it that now) and currently resides closer to my own personal hometown in Portland, Oregon. She is absolutely hilarious, and one of the best voices in comedy today. Much like many of our other past guests, I happened to catch Becky on numerous podcasts and decided to give her a listen. And, as it should be obvious because we only have very funny people on this site (comedian wise that is, although there are exceptions), I LOVED her act. She’s poignant, truthful, and most importantly of all, straight up hilarious.

Becky was kind enough to tell us a bit about growing up in The Eag (It’s going to stick, watch it happen), her entrance into the world of comedy, and so much more. Be sure to follow her on the socials, and check out beckybraunstein.com to see what she has coming up. Enjoy!

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What inspired you to get into the world of comedy? Was it something you aspired to do since your youth, or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

What a question. I want to say, “The usual – I didn’t have any friends as a kid,” but that’s not an answer unless you’re intimately familiar with the most common recipe for a comedian.  I’m funny because of that experience, I guess, and I’m able to express it because of my mom. She’s one of those people who was just always funny. She had a funny way of putting things, and I think her voice comes out of my mouth when I do standup. As far as getting into comedy, the desire to perform was always there, and I’ve been an actor much longer than I’ve done standup comedy. When I was a kid, my goal was to get the hell out of the small town in South Dakota that I lived in, and I accomplished that pretty early on by moving to Eagle River, Alaska at the age of 10, so I suppose it first became a viable career direction after I tried out for a community theater play on a whim, made them laugh a lot at the audition, and got cast in one of the main roles. I was always under the impression you had to be serious and glamorous and skinny and dramatic to be an actress, and was just as surprised as anybody when I found out, like, wow – people find me amusing just the way I am. That feeling you get when you perform and people really like it and they react? That’s really, REALLY addictive. I lived in Alaska, so I just did theater and improv comedy, because that was all we had. There wasn’t a standup scene when I lived there, so it didn’t even occur to me that standup was something I could do. Then I moved to Portland, Oregon because I got diagnosed with metastatic thyroid cancer and needed better medical care. I wanted to move outside to pursue my career and opportunity and all that too, but the cancer thing really pulled the trigger. I hadn’t performed in several years, and then I got hit in the face with how short life is, and decided to get back onstage. I think I got into standup just because I wanted to perform but I didn’t want to have to coordinate with other people – HA! I’m a lone wolf. I started doing standup in Portland, and I’m glad I did, because it’s an excellent place to get your foundation. Audiences here make you think, and they know when you’re not giving your best.

What was your first paid gig in the world of comedy? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impact your work to date?

Hoooo boy, you know my true first actual paid gig in standup technically was a small live show in Portland that was co-headlined by Kristine Levine, who was sort of a Portland comedy legend before she moved out of state, and Jessa Reed, who I think also used to live here – funnily enough, she and I both ended up doing half hour specials in the same TV series (Unprotected Sets). Kristine asked me to host the show, and I was like all business, like preparing and practicing and sweating buckets, and thinking about what to say, and I just had no idea what it was going to be like. I was so uptight and I learned immediately that to be a good host, you had to at least seem like you were just going with the flow. I still remember sitting at the table with Kristine and Jessa, and Kristine was describing me to Jessa, and she said, “You know when you watch somebody when they’re first starting out and you just know they’ve got it.” That was a huge boost of confidence for me, and it took me a few years to be able to relate, but I do know what she meant by that now, I see it in newer comedians and it makes me think of her. And then, before the pandemic, I opened for Tom Segura at two sold-out tour shows in a 3,000+ seat theater, which must be what it felt like to stand in the middle of the Roman colosseum, and the first night I thought back to that show before I went out on stage. 

So, as many of our readers know, Trainwreck’d Society will soon be relocated its “headquarters” to your former home town of Eagle River, Alaska. I was wondering if you could give us just a brief synopsis of your time growing up in this area? Did you draw any sort of inspiration to join the world of comedy from living in this region?

Wow, what can you say about Eagle River, really? It’s still a very small town, and it used to just kind of be a Blockbuster, a Carrs (what the rest of the world would call Safeway), a 7-11, and a whole bunch of mountains. I lived in the mountains part. Then we got a WalMart, where I had my first ever job, as a people greeter. Yes my whole job was to say hi to people and give out carts, and get cussed out when the alarm went off and I was supposed to ask to see their receipt. They offered me 25 cents an hour more to be a cashier, and I refused because I didn’t want responsibility. My store manager once told me that Sam Walton was “smiling down on me.” Living on a mountain is very conducive to comedy, because you grow up with a perspective that is fundamentally unique, and you have to learn to amuse yourself. We got one trick or treater in the 17 years we lived there. He got the whole bag of candy. I think he’s the CEO of a Fortune 500 company now. My brother and I used to ride our bikes down the mountain into town to hang out with our little friends as teenagers, and it’s amazing we didn’t die. I used to burn holes through the bottom of my shoes trying to slow myself down when my brakes melted down. Risking my life for Blockbuster and 7-11. I never had a Blockbuster card, which I’m proud of. I saw what happened to other people who had one. They always ended up having to rent the movies for the group and then got stuck with the late fees. No effing way. Weird shit happens to you in Alaska, and you get desensitized to it. I had a bear come to my front door one day, and I was telling somebody about that, just pretty matter of factly, and they were like, holy shit you need to do this on stage. Apparently bears don’t ring doorbells in the lower 48.

And you eventually made your way closer to my own beloved homeland, down to the great city of roses, Portland, Oregon. We have featured many folks who were from, or started out, comedy in the PDX area (Sean Jordan, Amy Miller, Matt Braunger, etc.) but have since moved on, and in some cases, back to Rip City. So, I am always inclined to ask what you love about the comedy scene around there? What sets it apart from the other regions you have worked in?

First of all, I still have no idea why it’s called the Rose City, second of all, all three of the people you mentioned are super cool people who are important to me. Sean grew up in the next town over from me in South Dakota and was probably the first person from that state who was ever nice to me, Amy there’s not even enough space to tell you how much of an impact she’s had on my career, and Matt stopped by to do a set on my show when we were just getting started which was a huge deal – and he’s just a great champion of Portland comedy in general. Portland is a great city for comedy for so many reasons, but my favorite is that audiences here appreciate scrappy, homemade, did-our-best-with-what-we-have type shit, like my show. That kind of environment is so good for creativity because they want you to take chances and do something different, and a lot of the time even if it doesn’t work, as long as you commit it’s still entertaining. Another great thing about Portland comedy and for sure what sets it apart from other scenes is that while of course there’s always some degree of fighting and drama as in any dysfunctional family, we’re unusually supportive of one another. We all know each other’s acts and we’re always the ones laughing the hardest in the back of the room when somebody does something new for the first time. Obviously not every single comedian in Portland is like this, but we do have that reputation. In the TIme Before, I used to do a lot of out of state festivals, and everywhere I went, people would comment on how the Portland comedians are all just in love with each other. They couldn’t believe how much we were in each other’s lives. In New York City, I was telling another comedian backstage at a show that in Portland, we all sit in the house and watch the other comedians at the main club’s weekly open mic, and he laughed for like five minutes when he realized I was serious.

Can you tell us a bit about your show Becky with the Good Jokes? How did this come to be? And can we expect a triumphant return when (if) the world ever gets back to “normal”?

How did Becky with the Good Jokes come to be? WELL. Let me tell you. I was performing at the Bridgetown Comedy Festival (RIP <3) and one of the organizers texted me and said, hey, you get to host your own show. We need a clever name really quick so we can put it in the program, any ideas? And in the space of about ten seconds, I said, how about Becky with the Good Jokes? (In case someone ends up reading this in the year 3021, it was a reference to a very famous line in a song by Beyonce, who was a very famous singer in the 21st century. She might still be, you never know. Beyonce might live forever.) They loved it, printed it, and I thought, hey this is my show, why don’t I turn this into an experience? It was kind of a depressing time in the world, and I wanted it to have some element of happiness, so I made these gift bags for audience members who were willing to get up and share some good news from their life. I was just so excited and we had such a great lineup, and I think my natural excitement just blazed through, and people seemed to really like it. Guy Branum said to me on his way out, “What a delightful little show.” And I thought, holy shit if Guy liked it, we have to do this again. So I started doing it monthly at a really weird venue in Portland called the Funhouse, which is like a creepy clown themed bar and performing space. It felt like a huge gamble because it’s an expensive show to produce – we bought a banner, and confetti – there’s a confetti finale – and we pay all the performers, including a musical guest, then there’s little gift bags for each performer, prize bags for audience good news sharers with my face on them (enjoy some on my instagram) and I do carefully curated preshow playlists, my tech producer runs sound and lights, AND there’s a late night show style video bit at the start of each show. Jesus that is a lot of work, now that I think about it. It’s just myself and my producer, I make all the bags and stuff myself, and then I have a stage manager and a door person, and that’s our scrappy little pirate crew. We sold out the premiere, and that was a relief, and we always used to get a pretty good crowd. I like hosting. I like being able to do whatever, and go with the flow, and interact with the audience. Little running bits that make the show unique. Okay fine, I guess I miss it somewhat. It’s so much work though, you wouldn’t believe it. Will it return post-plague? We’ll see. A million dollar budget and a 50-person crew would be very helpful. Netflix? Hulu? Paramount? Who’s got me here? Tell me that wouldn’t be the cheapest show you ever produced.

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

WOW, do you ask everybody this? Oh man, this is heavy. What does the future hold? Here’s a different answer than if you’d asked me in January 2020. I’ll try to be a serious person and answer a comedy/acting/entertainment industry relevant answer and not say a smartass thing like “haha probably just a shit ton of cold pizza and insomnia.” I’m really happy to be doing more acting, and I hope that’s what I’m going to continue to do. I wish I could tell you to tune in to my new tv series or whatever, (cross your fingers; write your senator) BUT this year I am on a couple of shows for a scene or two where you’ll be like, “Oh, I know her. Fun.” Which is kind of incredible in and of itself for a covid year, and I’m really grateful to have been able to work, thanks to the Portland film crews taking covid safety protocols so seriously. Which – attention industry people – is ANOTHER EXCELLENT REASON TO FILM YOUR TV SERIES OR MOVIE IN PORTLAND, not to mention the tax credits and incentives. What can you tune in and watch right now for free? I have a youtube channel on which I’ve been posting short comedy history story videos with funny animations and stuff, which take SO much time and work (I’m noticing a pattern here) but are really fun and I’m very proud of them. I think it’s fair to put them in the ‘zero dollar budget but still entertaining enough that this should have a million more views than it does’ category. If you knew how much work they are, you’d be even less modest than that. It’s all happening, at youtube.com/BeckyBraunstein. 

If you were greenlit & received an unlimited budget to create the biopic (series, film, etc.) of any figure from the days of comedy past, who would you choose? 

Oh, NOW I get my unlimited budget. I actually do have an idea like this that I’ve been kicking around for a while now, and it’s someone I would love to play in the film, but that’s all I want to say, because I might just get my shit together and actually do it. So who’s my second place if that one falls through? This is the hardest question to really answer though, because I’m pathologically indecisive when it comes to my projects. It took me four years before I started my own live comedy show, which is unusual. I think most comedians attempt that in year 1 or 2. I got some really good advice from Seth Rogen a couple days ago, who, when I asked him if it’s worth putting energy into whatever idea you have at the time even if you’re not all about it, or if you should wait until you have the perfect idea, told me, “I firmly believe you have to LOVE your idea or you’ll burn out on it.” I didn’t want to hear it, but I think he’s right. I kind of wanted someone to just tell me, you have to just hit the gas on whatever ideas you have or you’ll wait forever hemming and hawing over which one is the perfect one, and you’ll never find it. But deep down I know that if I’m not obsessed, it won’t survive the week. So back to the biopic, okay, idea 1 gets rejected, and they’re like, Becky what else you got? Hm. I kind of like the idea of a gritty realist behind the curtains film about Harold Lloyd, who was a very famous comedic silent film star that kind of changed the state of comedy in film because he had a much more subtle, realistic acting style than the other actors at that time. He made a bunch of comedy films and did his own stunts, including hanging from a clock tower – you just have to see it. He got part of his hand blown off in a PR stunt involving dynamite (yikes) and kept right on going with a prosthetic hand, and you would never know it unless you look really close. He definitely wasn’t a perfect dude, but he was sure as hell interesting. Let’s read Jack Huston, Paul Rust, and David Krumholtz for Harold. We’ll film it in grayscale. We’ll film it silent! But it will be all the real life stuff that was going on. I would totally watch that.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

I was just working on a really stupid, ridiculous animation for my next comedy history video, and it made me laugh hysterically, so I hope that means people will enjoy it. I mean if you don’t find your own stuff funny, how could anyone else?

Anna Roisman [Interview]

Any way, the real reason we are here is showcase some words from the insanely hilarious and immensely hilarious comedian of the day, it’s Anna Roisman, Everyone! Anna is a beloved comedian and writer in the world of comedy. Her work has appeared on everything from MTV, College Humor, and People Magazine. I will be the first to admit that I first became aware of Anna’s brilliance on a platform that, which is technically supposed to be used, actually sort of made me sad. Yes Folks, it was that damn Twitter.com again. But, when so many of the people from the world of comedy follow somebody, and their presence is just so damn hilarious, it’s too easy to become a fan of somebody so damn talented.

So Folks, I am going to take my jet-lagged ass back on to bed, but I felt it absolutely necessary to get these fine words from one of the best voices in comedy today. We are so excited to have Anna Roisman grace our digital pages today. She’s a multi-faceted human being, but a one of a kind hilarious. You’re going to love what she has to say. So enjoy some words from the great Anna Roisman!

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Steven Rogers [Interview]

Jake Flores [Interview]

Photo by Trevor Graham Rathbone

Hello Folks! And a happy Friday to you all. As regular readers may have noticed, we have been fortunate as of late to have some absolutely hilarious people on the site who work in the world of comedy. And today is absolutely no exception. It’s Jake Flores, Everyone!

Jake is an amazing comic and podcaster. As he discusses some what below, for die-hard comedy fans, the name Jake Flores is synonymous with DIY comedy. He has built a huge following through his act and with the popularity of Pod Damn America. And more importantly, he did it HIS way. Now, of course sacrifices have to be made, he is just human after all. But what I have always found impressive about Jake, beyond just being absolutely hilarious, is an obvious glimpse of diligence on his part to always do the right thing. He says what he thinks, but not in a ridiculous Trumpian kind of way, you know?

Jake is also a brilliant writer, having written for The Observer and other outlets. And his 2014 album Humours is such an amazing hour of hilarity that I would personally put it up there with some of my favorite albums of the last ten years by the likes of Amy Miller (Solid Gold), Sean Jordan (The Buck Starts Here), or Sarah Tollemache (Voluptuous Boy). He also has yet ANOTHER podcast, which he will tell you about below. He is an absolutely hilarious and was generous enough to share some words with us here today. And for that, we are so grateful. So, please enjoy some amazing words from Jake Flores!

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What inspired you to get into the world of comedy? Was it something you aspired to do since your youth, or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

When I was a kid I was pretty antisocial. Wasn’t great at making friends, school stressed me out, but I watched a lot of TV. I think a combination of old sitcoms like Taxi, really tightly written shows like The Simpsons and News Radio, and then later on just straight stand up on Comedy Central planted a lot of the seeds in me. When I was a little older I wanted to play punk music. I liked the subversive nature of it and the fact that you could do it yourself without much money. I was terrible at music though, still am, but was told in school I was a good writer. Eventually I found out about open mics and all these elements sort of came together. When i first started out I wanted to do with comedy what punk did with music: take it out of the big bourgie venues, make it edgier in content. I think it worked. Much like punk music, my early comedy also was unlistenable.

What was your first paid gig in the world of comedy? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impacts your work to date?

I think the first time I ever got paid was at a bar called Beerland in Austin TX. It was a music venue and the show was run by some scenester types who were expressly intent on taking comedy out of the clubs. Nowadays like literally every bar has a weekly stand up show, but back in 2007 this was an entirely new concept. The DIY thing really stuck with me. Everyone at the comedy club open mics was just sort of waiting for some manager to come and tell them they were allowed to work the club. I think we were all assuming they had some kind of monopoly on the elements that made stand up work, but to see it happen in a dive bar I realized that you really just need a mic and maybe some drinks. I also remember realizing that the audience is different people depending on where you do it, and I liked the scene crowd more than the strip mall types.

I always like to ask comedians who (used?) to travel across the globe making people laugh this one question: What are some of the more obscure cities and/or venues that you have enjoying performing in? What are some places that most people may not realize are wonderful places for live comedy?

I fucking LOVE touring for exactly this reason. Last time I went to Memphis they had no proper comedy clubs, but a BANGER bar scene. It kind of seemed like everyone was just in it for the love of the game since you couldn’t really headline a Funny Bone or whatever around town. I also had a great time in a small college type town in northern California called Arcata a couple years ago. I also keep having these really fun shows at this place called Leftwoods in Amarillo TX because there are like 6 people there who like me and the bar will let you go long on a monday and sleep in the built in condo. The room where you crash is literally connected to the bar so you can just go buck wild and then go hit the bricks. Great time.

Besides the fact that it is practically required for every comedian to have a podcast, I am always curious to know the origin behind fine shows such as yours, the wonderful & renowned Pod Damn America podcast. So what made you want to put this show out into the digital ether?

It’s funny, in politics people always accuse each other of being really cynical and grifting for cash and fame, but PDA is really a labor of love. I’m not trying to use it to become a cable news pundit or something. I started it because I’d always had an interest in history and socialist politics, like since I was a kid. I went to a magnet high school where a teacher gave out Howard Zinn books to kids when they graduated. I had a lot of run-ins with the cops, and then later in college I studied a little sociology. But I put all this stuff on the back burner when I got into comedy.

In the process of pursuing a career, and really thinking about what that means, while simultaneously working really gritty day jobs, I started to think about class politics again. Being able to seriously pursue something as dumb as stand up comedy is a lot easier if you’re rich, so there’s a class element to it that directly conflicts with all the meritocratic stuff we’re told about it. The funniest person doesn’t always make it in this business, it’s usually the person that has the most free time to put in, which costs money. So I was thinking about this stuff a lot, and then Trump got elected and I decided I wanted to catch up on my education because it felt too absurd to be a comedian and not be putting any work into understanding how that happened.

But reading theory and history and shit takes a lot of time that would have tanked my ability to do comedy on top of working all the time, so I turned it into a comedy project. Really I just wanted to make a comedy show out of my study group, and monetize it if I could. I kind of wanted to make a materialist version of what Duncan Trussel does with his podcast, where he talks about what woo woo metaphysical stuff he’s reading every week. Anyways all of this ended up working because I got lucky with this thing where I pissed off Homeland Security and they came to my house and was able to funnel the buzz from the viral story about it into the show.

And basically the same question for your latest pod, Why You Mad. You’ve actually had some friends & past guests here at TWS on the show, including Steve Hernandez & Myq Kaplan. So what made you want to bring this intriguing show out into the digital world?

WYM also happened pretty organically. Luisa [Díez] is a pal of mine and I’d had her on PDA a couple times to talk about the comedy/politics discourse and I think we just kind of realized we had good chemistry. Steve Hernandez actually suggested we make a side project, and I decided to pitch it to Luisa because the more I thought about it the more I realized we have really similar views on the certain things that we center around on the show. We’re both applying our understanding of art and art history and theory and all that stuff to the stand up game in ways that I don’t think other people in our circles are really willing to do. I admire her integrity a lot and I really enjoy coming to her with ideas that my own scene has made me feel crazy for thinking and then hearing her go “No man, of course it’s like that!” Honestly this show keeps me sane. Also, being latino is really complicated in this day and age and it means a lot to me to be able to talk about that with someone who’s involved in my world. I moved to New York from Texas and I really lost a lot of those connections, so talking about that stuff on our show has been a boon to my mental health. WYM is really cathartic for me. I guess I put a lot of work into PDA and try to really make a shiny technically valuable product with it, but WYM is where I let my hair down and really express myself. I’m glad I have them both.

If you were greenlit & received an unlimited budget to create the biopic (series, film, etc.) of any figure from the days of comedy past, who would you choose?

Honestly? Boring answer, but Lenny Bruce. I’m a big fan, and like him, I also had a run in with the state over comedy, and am a leftist. What’s crazy about him is all these conservative types try to claim him these days, and I just don’t think they understand what he was talking about at all. Free speech is really complicated and it gets twisted by people a lot, but back in the early history of this country it was a left wing cause, and Lenny was a damn beatnik. I would love it if someone told his story in a way that engaged with how his beliefs clash with what the free speech movement is all about today. 

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

I might try to write a book this year. Or maybe a screenplay. But honestly I’m sitting pretty until comedy comes back. I plan on spending the rest of the pandemic reading theory and trying to use my comedy chops to make it funny or easy to listen to or whatever. That’s it. Listen to PDA and WYM and if you’re an internet freak sign up for our patreons and Twitches and Discords and stuff. I’ll get back to touring when it’s safe.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

I live in this shithole loft and I’ve been fighting the city and our landlord to get our heat turned on and to fix the leaks in our roof and that sort of thing. This has been going on for years while I was out on the road. Anyways recently I got the place looking kind of nice, got them to put a stove in for us. The main thing is I had this tarp hanging from the ceiling catching roof water, and I was finally able to take it down the other night after they fixed the roof. So I went outside to smoke a cigarette and I was looking at the empty Brooklyn streets, now that all the rich artist types have fled back to their suburbs and whatnot, and I was really taking in the moonlight, and then that song “Heaven is a Place on Earth” by Belinda Carlyle came on my spotify mix. That shit made me laugh.

Myq Kaplan [Interview]

Photo by Levy Moroshan

Hello Folks! Today we have yet another absolutely wonderful interview to share with you all! It’s Myq Kaplan, Everyone! Having Myq on the site is not only a real treat, it is actually reminiscent of something that occurred no more than two weeks ago. As regular reader(s) of the site might remember, we had a wonderful comedian on the site name Mike Carrozza. He was a cat that I just seemed to hear extensively during the promotion of his album via podcasts that was released last year, as it was basically the only way to let any damn body know about it. Well, today we have that again with the brilliant Myq Kaplan.

Yes, I started to hear Myq on just about every podcast that I keep in my quickly rotation. And his album that was released in May, A.K.A., would have landed at the top of the list had I decided to do a list of my favorite comedy albums of 2020. He is an absolutely hilarious human being, and much like the aforementioned other Mike, he seems to be one of the nicest guys in comedy. It’s still a rare condition in the world of stand up comedy, but Myq has proven that it can be a solid quality to have, and also to still be so damn funny.

We are overjoyed that Myq was willing to take some time out of his schedule to answer a few questions for us here today. So without further babbling, please enjoy some wonderful words from the great Myq Kaplan!

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What inspired you to get into the world of comedy? Was it something you aspired to do since your youth, or did you happen to find yourself in this world one day?

I was an aspiring singer-songwriter as a teenager. I was very good at aspiring. An inspiring aspirer. Some of my songs were serious and some were funny. (It’s possible that some of the serious ones might be now funnier to me than the funny ones.) I started performing at music venues in the Boston area where I was going to college, wherever I could, and just started contacting all kinds of clubs, bars, and subway stations to see if I could play there.

I found the Comedy Studio and asked the owner, Rick Jenkins, if I could perform at his comedy club. He gave me five minutes, which meant I could play approximately one and a half songs. 

I did two real short ones, and talked a little bit in between. People laughed. I loved it. So I went home and started thinking of things to say that might make people laugh in the future, you know, for in between songs. Later I would come to call that “writing jokes,” and the time between songs would become known as “my standup comedy.” 

Sometimes when people ask me “when did you know you wanted to do comedy,” I tell them “it was right after I started doing comedy.” So, the answer to your question, I suppose, is that doing comedy inspired me to do comedy. But what inspired me to do the first comedy? Music, remember? It’s turtles all the way down, until you get to music.

What was your first paid gig in the world of comedy? And were there any sort of lessons learned from this experience that still impacts your work to date?

Good question! I honestly don’t remember a lot about it. I will tell you about my SECOND paid gig, which was a short set at a fundraiser maybe a year or two into really pursuing comedy. I love performing at fundraisers because even if it goes poorly, people can’t demand their money back. “This comedian was so bad, I actually don’t want to help cure this disease anymore!”

This show was booked by Rick Jenkins, the owner of the Comedy Studio. After his shows, Rick would always thank me for performing, even at times when I felt like he was much more doing ME a favor by allowing me to perform. So, I would say that a theme that has run through my comedy career since the beginning is “gratitude to Rick Jenkins.”

I always like to ask comedians who (used?) to travel across the globe making people laugh this one question: What are some of the more obscure cities and/or venues that you have enjoyed performing in? What are some places that most people may not realize are wonderful places for live comedy?

It’s hard to answer exactly, because I don’t know what most people realize or don’t. Most people know about NYC, I bet. Maybe they know about other cities also. How about Minneapolis? I don’t know if that’s obscure either, but I’ve recorded two of my albums at Acme in Minneapolis, and I love that comedy club and the whole area very much. Here’s at least an obscure fact about it: I’ve heard that the Twin Cities area has more theaters per capita than NYC. You hear that, New Yorkers? Get some more theaters if you want to be number one! OR… relocate from New York to Minneapolis in enough volume, to up the population there so that the ratio shifts in your favor. That would be a weird thing to do, but if it’s important for you to win this strange competition of the arts, go for it!

One of my favorite places I’ve performed a few times is Motorco, a rock venue in Durham, NC. A comedian (and now friend) named Deb Aronin booked me to perform there for the first time I think around 2015, and I’ve been back a few times since. Deb does such a good job curating the experience for the audience, visiting comics, and the local comedy scene. Every time I’ve been there, the place has been packed with people who really want to be there for the specific show that’s happening, which is nice. I’m a big fan of people wanting to be experiencing what they’re experiencing.

Also around that time, I did a couple small tours through the Southeast with my best bud Zach Sherwin. We loved performing at little theaters and bars and rock venues in Athens, Asheville, Nashville, Louisville, among others. (I feel like I’m doing a radio ad for my past self: “but wait, there’s more!”)

Ooh, how about Greenville, SC? That’s probably a city that not everyone knows has a lot of fun comedy happening. Or at least, it certainly did the times that I was there. Shoutout to Nick Shaheen, another nice comedian friend who brought me to Greenville and many other places for the first time. Some so obscure even I’ve forgotten them, maybe.

And beyond being a necessity these days for comedians to have a podcast, I am always curious to know about the origins of truly original shows such as yours, Broccoli & Ice Cream. You’ve even had some friends & past guests of TWS like Sarah Tollemache, Tom Thakkar, Kevin Avery, Shane Mauss, & more on the show! So, what made you want to bring this delightful show out into the world? And what made you decide on the format?

Thanks for asking this question so kindly. You are nice.

The short answer is that I love talking with people. Comedians. Artists. Friends. I like learning about how people are creative, and what brings them joy. So I started asking them.

The long answer is the same, but with this sentence added for no reason.

Photo by Mindy Tucker / Artwork by Ramin Nazer

If you were greenlit & received an unlimited budget to create the biopic (series, film, etc.) of any figure from the days of comedy past, who would you choose?

I’d love to see the life story of Dick Gregory widely shared. He was vegan for 50 years, which I understand for him began as part of his non-violent practice as a civil rights activist in the ’60’s.

That’s one thing that I knew, and now looking at his Wikipedia, I see there’s so much more that I didn’t know. He once fasted for six weeks to protest the US government’s violation of Native American treaties. He helped investigate the murder of MLK. He marched as a feminist with Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan. He was BANNED FROM AUSTRALIA, because they thought he would “stir up demonstrations against the Vietnam war.”

This is an incredible life. And I only knew about the vegan part of it, which was just the tip of the iceberg lettuce. Oh, also he was a comedian. And he cared so much. About so many causes. So many people. So many animals. All of the, it seems. Here’s a final quote from him for now: “Because I’m a civil rights activist, I am also an animal rights activist. Animals and humans suffer and die alike. Violence causes the same pain, the same spilling of blood, the same stench of death, the same arrogant, cruel and vicious taking of life. We shouldn’t be a part of it.” Someone make this movie please. Or if someone already did and I don’t know about it, great! And can you let me know?

What does the future hold for you? Anything you would like to plug to our readers?

Right now, the future seems theoretical in many ways. I hardly know what the PRESENT holds for me. To make a prediction about the future seems fantastical, like I’m telling people to come check out my new comedy tour through Narnia.

What will happen? Hopefully, a vaccination, and then a return to touring. I was planning to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2020, and I’ll hopefully get back there the next time it is safe, healthy, possible, and happening.

In the meantime, I’m doing a lot of online shows and releasing several podcasts a week, both Broccoli and Ice Cream and a new one I started during the pandemic called The Faucet. You can follow me on social media (@myqkaplan everywhere) and find out what’s happening as I find out what’s happening. And you can listen to everything that I’ve done already. There’s a lot of it. My most recent standup album (of about 5) is called A.K.A. and it’s the best one I’ve made. I’m proud of it and happy with it and would love for anyone who wants to listen. I hope you enjoy it.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

This question. Thanks for asking it. And all of them.