3 Things: Maria Bamford, Anthony DeVito, and Canada
Hi friends,
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 friends. If you're checking this out for the first time, you can see the archive and sign up to get these emails here.
Upcoming shows
EVERYWHERE:
There's a new episode of You're the Expert online now. If you've ever wondered about the romantic life of penguins, you're about to learn more than you ever thought was possible. Listen here: Link
New episode of The Payoff is up now too. Antonia and I get a lesson on sticking to a budget and how to make slightly less terrible decisions around money: Link
NYC:
Sunday, March 12th at 6:00 p.m. at The PIT Loft. I'm telling stories at the Katie Fisher Day show. Cookies, jokes, and lots of wonderful people. Link
BANGOR, ME:
Saturday, March 18th at 7:30 p.m. You're the Expert headlines the Maine Science Festival with panelists Roy Wood, Jr., Michelle Buteau, and more. Link
ATLANTA, GA:
Tuesday, March 21th at 7:30 p.m. at 7 Stages. You're the Expert returns to the Atlanta Science Festival with Josh Sharp, Shalewa Sharpe, and Chuck Bryant (from Stuff You Should Know). Link
WASHINGTON, D.C.:
Thursday, March 30th at 7:00 p.m. at National Geographic. We're taking over NatGeo's Grosvenor Auditorium for a very special live You're the Expert. Link
My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.
This week's list
1 Thing I Think Is Great:
Maria Bamford is one of my all-time favorite comedians. For years, she's been writing and performing some of the most inventive and hilarious jokes around. This bit, where she tries to connect with the audience by leaving her personal material behind and trying to do some "more relatable" jokes, is amazing. Maria Bamford: What People Want (h/t Josh Gondelman)
1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:
Anthony DeVito made his network television debut last night on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Whenever I have the good fortune to be on a show with Anthony, I love watching audience members experience him for the first time. He's also an incredibly thoughtful and intelligent guy, as you may know if you heard his story on This American Life about watching his 90-year-old grandmother fall in love. He talks about her in his standup set too. He's just great. Anthony DeVito
1 Interesting Thing:
"Roxham Road is a quiet contry road jutting off another quiet country road, where a couple of horses munch on soggy hay and a ditch running along the muddy pavement flows with melted snow. It cuts through a thicket of dormant trees, passing a half-dozen trailer homes and after almost a mile runs into a line of boulders and a rusted railing with a sign: Road Closed." The stories of people fleeing the US for Canada are tragic and eye-opening. We hear a lot about people trying to get in, but far less about people trying to get out. Since Trump, Quiet Upstate Road Becomes a Busy Exit from U.S. and The Underground Railroad for Refugees
Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend,
Chris
3 Things: Doug Stanhope, Vine Scares, and Tove Danovich
Hi friends,
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 friends. If you're checking this out for the first time, you can see the archive and sign up to get these emails here.
Upcoming shows
EVERYWHERE:
Comedy at Dreams streams live every Wednesday night. The show starts at 8 p.m. ET and loops for the rest of the night. You can watch on your phone using the Dreams app. If you're in NYC, you can get free tickets to be in our studio audience here.
You can listen to You're the Expert online here: Link
Episodes of The Payoff are online here: Link
POUGHKEEPSIE, NY:
Thursday, March 9th at 7 p.m. at Vassar College. You're the Expert comes to Vassar with Josh Sharp, Gary Richardson, and Obehi Janice trying to guess what a leading professor does all day. Free with registration. Link
NYC:
Saturday, March 11th at 9:30 p.m. at The PIT. I'm one of the comedian judges for Dancify That! It's a hilarious show where dancers choreograph a performance to viral videos. Last time I was there, a live peacock came onstage. I'm very excited to see what happens this time. Link
BANGOR, ME:
Saturday, March 18th at 7:30 p.m. You're the Expert headlines the Maine Science Festival with panelists Roy Wood, Jr., Michelle Buteau, and more. Link
ATLANTA, GA:
Tuesday, March 21th at 7:30 p.m. at 7 Stages. You're the Expert returns to the Atlanta Science Festival with Josh Sharp, Shalewa Sharpe, and Chuck Bryant (from Stuff You Should Know). Link
WASHINGTON, D.C.:
Thursday, March 30th at 7:00 p.m. at National Geographic. We're taking over NatGeo's Grosvenor Auditorium for a very special live You're the Expert. Link
My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.
This week's list
1 Thing I Think Is Great:
People often describe Doug Stanhope's comedy as "dark," "gritty," or "raw." He's certainly not your run-of-the-mill TV star. His material is profane. He smokes and drinks onstage. His audiences are rowdy. But he's a legendary performer because he pulls jokes out of material that most comics wouldn't dare even discuss. Here's a brilliant (but NSFW) Stanhope bit about nationalism and immigration. Doug Stanhope
1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:
On the complete other end of the comedy spectrum, "scare videos" require no writing, no particular intelligence, and no particular skill. But they are somehow still hilarious. We watched these in the writers room at work and no one could make it through all of them without bursting into laughter. There's something primal in our lizard brain that wants us to laugh at strangers screaming. Full disclosure: this video is dumb, don't click on any of the ads, and it's a compilation from a social media platform that doesn't even exist anymore. I bet you'll still laugh. Top 50 Vine Scares (h/t Ashley Brooke Roberts)
1 Interesting Thing:
"Until the 1970s, bluefin tuna was a literal trash fish. If it wasn't put into cat food, sport fishermen paid to have it hauled off to dumps (after taking a smiling photo next to their strung-up carcasses). Until the mid-1900s, tuna's reputation was so bad in Japan that it was referred to as neko-matagi, food too low for even a cat to eat." Tove Danovich is a food and agriculture journalist. Her research into the history of bluefin tuna (and whether the species can survive) is a fascinating look at how our tastes change over time and what that means for endangered fish. Caught Dead
Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend,
Chris
3 Things: Bruce Springsteen, Michelle Buteau, and Irv Teibel
Hi friends,
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 friends. If you're checking this out for the first time, you can see the archive and sign up to get these emails here.
Upcoming shows
EVERYWHERE:
Comedy at Dreams streams live every Wednesday night. The show starts at 8 p.m. ET and loops for the rest of the night. You can watch on your phone using the Dreams app. If you're in NYC, you can get free tickets to be in our studio audience here.
You can listen to You're the Expert online here: Link
Episodes of The Payoff are online here: Link
POUGHKEEPSIE, NY:
Thursday, March 9th at 7 p.m. at Vassar College. You're the Expert comes to Vassar with Josh Sharp, Gary Richardson, and Obehi Janice trying to guess what a leading professor does all day. Free with registration. Link
NYC:
Saturday, March 11th at 9:30 p.m. at The PIT. I'm one of the comedian judges for Dancify That! It's a hilarious show where dancers choreograph a performance to viral videos. Last time I was there, a live peacock came onstage. I'm very excited to see what happens this time. Link
ATLANTA, GA:
Tuesday, March 21th at 7:30 p.m. at 7 Stages. You're the Expert returns to the Atlanta Science Festival with Josh Sharp, Shalewa Sharpe, and Chuck Bryant (from Stuff You Should Know). Link
My full calendar with all upcoming shows is online here.
This week's list
1 Thing I Think Is Great:
No one puts on a better show than Bruce Springsteen. I was only lukewarm on his music until I saw him live and now I'm obsessed. I will never understand how a 67-year-old man can have that much energy. A regular concert by The Boss is amazing, but nothing is better than when he pulls this teenager up on stage with him to play guitar. This video is an instant anti-depressant. Bruce Springsteen Invites Teenager On Stage Who Steals the Show
(Side note: I love the whole genre of videos where an audience member turns out to be incredible. I would call it a guilty pleasure, but I don't feel guilty. Beyonce, Michael Buble,Kristin Chenoweth, etc.)
1 Thing That Made Me Laugh:
Michelle Buteau makes me laugh so hard. Her jokes are amazing, but she's also just one of those people where everything she says is hilarious. Watching her perform, my favorite moments are when she just notices something in the room or audience and goes off on it. If you get a chance to see her live ever, do it. She's also got a Comedy Central special you can find online. But here's an interview with her where you can see her off-the-cuff brilliance. Michelle Buteau on WNYC's Live Wire Radio
1 Interesting Thing:
Where do relaxing sounds come from? It turns out that one man, Irv Teibel, singlehandedly invented the market for nature sounds. If you've ever taken two minutes to relax and calmly listen to sounds of the ocean, you've got Irv to thank. (If you're feeling stressed or need to refocus, try this related website that Matt Porter recommended to me: donothingfor2minutes.com) Pitchfork brings the surprisingly complex story of recording some simple sounds. And like all of their longform articles, it's beautifully laid out and designed. More websites should be following their example. How a New Age Hustler Sold the Sound of the World
Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend,
Chris
