It's Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with one thing I think is great, one thing that made me laugh, and one thing I found interesting. Feel free to spread the word and share these emails with your friends. If someone forwarded this email to you and you want to start getting them yourself, you can sign up here.
Upcoming Shows
EVERYWHERE:
This week's episode of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas looked at for-profit colleges and how they are taking advantage of veterans using their GI Bill benefits. You can stream the episode now on HBO. Link
I visited Paste Studios this week to help my friend Jon Seale with a live concert session. Jon developed an app that lets audiences play along with him during live shows so even tone deaf folks like me can contribute. It was very cool and I love his music. Son of Cloud at Paste Studios
And of course, my podcast You're the Expert continues to exist as well. Three comedians interview a scientist about her work and why it matters. You can listen on any podcast app. Link
NYC:
Thursday, May 30 at 7 p.m. at the 92nd St Y. Mollie and Liz are doing a talk and book signing for their bestseller No Hard Feelings. Limited tickets are still available. Link
Tuesday, June 4 at 7:30 p.m. at Symphony Space. I will be performing at Uptown Showdown, a comedic debate. This month the topic is thinkers vs feelers and features me, Aparna Nancherla, Bowen Yang, Julio Torres, and more. Link
Saturday, June 8 at 9 p.m. at The Brick. I'm back for another month of Monster Mash, Carley Moseley's super fun show of snacks from a guest chef and improv from NYC's best comedy writers. Link
SEATTLE:
Saturday, June 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall. Join me in the audience for Liz and Mollie's book talk and discussion about emotions at work for No Hard Feelings. Link
You can find ticket links for all upcoming shows online at my website here.
This week’s list
GREAT:
It took Min Jin Lee, one of my favorite authors, eleven years to sell her first novel. She was in her late thirties before her career as a writer even began. Now, Pachinko is an international best-seller and a television series that will come out on Apple's new streaming service. But it took decades for Lee to get to the place where she could put her work out in the world. She wrote a fascinating essay about the power of "the confidence to speak for yourself." Breaking My Own Silence
FUNNY:
Wanda Sykes is hilarious as a standup. She's hilarious on television shows. She was hilarious as a judge on Last Comic Standing. And she's hilarious in this interview. But she's also not afraid to grow and to publicly admit when she could have done better, which I think can be particularly hard for comedians. Wanda Sykes makes being self-reflective and thoughtful about social progress look easy, but just as importantly, she also makes you laugh while doing it. Wanda Sykes On Ignoring Michelle Obama and the Roseanne Debacle
INTERESTING:
Mario Guevara is a reporter for Atlanta's largest Spanish-language news organization. He covers immigration and ICE detentions. "Operating alone, shooting his own video, he has built a large local following and a national reputation for his intrepid reporting." As Guevara records ICE agents pulling people into unmarked vans in the early morning hours, the agents shine flashlights into his camera. They attempt to block his view. They threaten him. But he asserts his First Amendment rights and documents what's happening every day in America. It's a reality that many of us would prefer not to see. Watch this op-doc about Guevara's work: The Abandoned Vans of Atlanta. (And if you'd like to take action on immigration, here are some suggestions for how you could help.)
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Enjoy the weekend,
Chris