Happy Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my upcoming shows, one thing I think is great, one thing that made me laugh, and one thing I found interesting.
Upcoming Shows
EVERYWHERE:
Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas returns to HBO on Friday, April 5th and Season 2 is a deep-dive into education in America. I've loved writing for the show and I'm so glad you'll get to see it soon. Check out the trailer here
You can listen on any podcast app to You're the Expert, my show where three comedians interview a scientist about her work and why it matters. Link
ON TOUR:
I'm about two-thirds of the way through my tour with Pop-Up Magazine + XQ. I've loved being a part of the show. Don't miss it if you're in any of these cities!
-3/15 in Los Angeles at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre SOLD OUT
-3/30 in Chicago at the Harris Theater link
-5/2 in Seattle at Town Hall (tickets on sale soon)
You can find ticket links for all upcoming shows online at my website here.
This week’s list
GREAT:
For me, It's hard to beat a Milano cookie. They're delicious but also feel fancy, despite being sold in pretty much every grocery store I've ever walked into. I could happily spend an hour discussing the nuances of a party that calls for a dark chocolate Milano versus a mint Milano gathering. (And let's not even get into the sick perverts who're eating Coconut Milanos in their basement right now.) But I never knew the backstory behind everyone's favorite "Distinctive Cookies" and how the bakery was started by a pioneering female entrepreneur and feminist. The Remarkable Life of Margaret Rudkin, Founder of Pepperidge Farm (h/t The Ann Friedman Weekly)
FUNNY:
Everything is Alive is a podcast where Ian Chillag, a former NPR producer for Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me and Fresh Air, interviews inanimate objects. It's a very funny concept and beautifully executed. Somehow it manages to be both genuinely funny and touching. (Here's a good overview of the show, with clips from Maeve Higgins as a lamppost and Louis Kornfield as a melancholy can of soda.) My favorite episode so far is with Emmy Blotnick. Emmy the Pregnancy Test
INTERESTING:
Amy Schumer is one of the most successful comedians of all time. So, perhaps inevitably, she provokes big reactions. Jason Zinoman looks at how her jokes have changed over the years and digs into why her comedy is so polarizing. Personally, I think Inside Amy Schumer is one of the greatest sketch comedy shows ever made. And while not every joke she's made has been perfect, it's hard to not see the connection between the level of hate directed her way and misogyny. (Related: I Don't Hate Women Candidates -- I Just Hated Hillary and Coincidentally, I'm Starting to Hate Elizabeth Warren) Anyway, read this profile. It's a remarkably open look at a comic at the height of her fame. Amy Schumer Doesn't Care What You Think (That Much)
Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If you're reading this for the first time (maybe someone forwarded you this email?), you can subscribe here.
Enjoy the weekend,
Chris