3 Things: Wyatt Cenac, Miranda July, and Hari Kondabolu

Hi friends,

It's 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

NEW YORK CITY:
Thursday, December 7 at 8 p.m. at Caveat. John Hodgman, Josh Sharp, and a secret mystery scientist join us on You're the Expert for a night of laughter and learning. Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
Wyatt Cenac is one of the funniest and smartest standup comedians around. This spring, he's going to be the host of a new series on HBO executive produced by John Oliver. I am so excited to be a staff writer on the show. It's a dream to work for HBO and Wyatt. I've been writing there for the past month, but we only got permission to tell people now (and even still, the content is all top secret). I'll share more when I can, but I really believe the show is going to be something special.

In the meantime, listen to Wyatt's excellent take on post-election America, watch his very funny web series where he's a superhero in hipster Brooklyn, or listen to his fascinatinginterview with Marc Maron on WTF.  I'm proud to be working for someone as talented and thoughtful as him. 


FUNNY:
I'm in a comedian book club and every month a new person picks a book and hosts the club.  Most of the time, we talk about the book for approximately 10 minutes before it devolves into bits and buffoonery. This month though, we read The First Bad Man by Miranda July and it was so funny and clever that we laughed the whole time just remembering our favorite parts. I recommend the book for sure, but her short stories are also a good gateway drug to get you started. Here's one I particularly liked: Roy Spivey by Miranda July


INTERESTING:
Who and what should we laugh at? If everyone agrees a joke is funny, does that mean it's okay? Those are two of the central questions of Hari Kondabolu's excellent new documentary The Problem with Apu. Mollie and I watched this last night and we both loved it. It's funny, thought-provoking, and extremely well-made. Hari is a comedian, so he comes at Apu from The Simpsons with an appreciation for the jokes but also a frustration with the stereotypes. Along the way, he interviews a South Asian hall of fame (everyone from Aziz Ansari to former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy). It's definitely worth a watch. You can stream it online or buy it from iTunes (that was my route, since I couldn't get the streaming to work). The Problem with Apu

Thanks for reading! 

If you like these emails, feel free to forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone sent this newsletter your way and you want to join, you can subscribe here. 

Have a great day,
Chris

3 Things: Nicky Radcliffe, Sudi Green, and Hugh Herr

Hi friends,

It's 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:
Today's New York Times features a big profile of You're the Expert on the front page of the Arts section! Read that here (You can also listen to all episodes of the podcast online here)

The final episode ever of The Payoff is out now. Antonia Cereijido and I get advice on how to transition between jobs in the most financially intelligent way. You can listen to the whole season online here:  Link

NEW YORK CITY:
Thursday, December 7 at 8 p.m. at Caveat. The fantastic John Hodgman returns to You're the Expert for a night of laughter, learning, and many unexpected tangents. Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
Nicky Radcliffe's story in the Modern Love column is so moving and beautifully written. It's the story of a relationship she developed while working as a bartender in London. Unlike a lot of the stories in the column, it's not strictly a romantic relationship but more like an intensely platonic love that she doesn't quite know how to handle. I don't want to give too much away, so I'll just let you read for yourself. Recognizing What They Had, 20 Years Too Late

(Also in the love stories department, this is an amazing story about a veteran's path home and through PTSD. Love's Road Home)


FUNNY:
Sudi Green writes for Saturday Night Live and Matt Rogers is a sketch comic and co-host of the Las Culturistas podcast. Together, they've teamed up for the totally absurd and hilarious web-series, Power Couple. Sudi and Matt's chemistry and their rapid-fire banter crack me up every time. Episode One, where they play Cleopatra and Caesar trying to duck out of a party to gossip and catch up really had me going. Power Couple


INTERESTING:
"MIT research scientist Hugh Herr lost both legs below the knee after a 1982 winter climbing ordeal. In less than a year, he hacked his prosthetics to allow him to climb again, and he went on to become one of the world's leading innovators in the field." I haven't stopped thinking about this profile since I read it. Herr is at the forefront of questions about technology, medicine, and disability. His research is fascinating on a technical level but, even more importantly, he's living proof of the potential research has to transform millions of lives around the globe. The Biomechatronic Man 

Ok, thanks for reading! 

If you like these emails, feel free to forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone sent this newsletter your way and you want to join, you can subscribe here. 

Have a great rest of your weekend,
Chris

3 Things: Maria Bamford, Laurie Kilmartin, and Emily Nussbaum

Hi friends,

It's 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:
Three comedians try to guess what a leading scientist does all day and then find out why her research is important and exciting on You're the Expert.  Link

On The Payoff, Antonia Cereijido and I try to learn about money from a team of financial experts.  Link

NEW YORK CITY:
THIS TUESDAY, November 14 at 7:30 p.m. at Caveat. My variety show and prize giveawayYou Get A Spoon is back with music from Emmy the Great and Tica Douglas, jokes from Maeve Higgins and me, and stories from Moth GrandSlam winner Adam Wade. Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
This week, the comedy world has been having a lot of difficult but necessary conversations after the NYT reported on Louis CK's sexual misconductscandal. I'm far from successful enough to have ever met Louie or even been in the same room as him, but even I had heard the rumors and I'm glad he's finally being held to account.

I've been thinking about performers and writers who try to tear down these broken power dynamics instead of abusing them. Maria Bamford has always been one of my comedy heroes for the way she fearlessly talks about the things most people would rather not discuss and creates space and opportunities for others to do the same. For the past year, she's been trying her hardest to break taboos about money. Financial exploitation and sexual misconduct are obviously not the same thing, but abuses of all sorts fester in the dark and I admire everyone who's courageous enough to bring these issues to light. Maria Bamford Wants to Tell You How Much Money She Makes  (and watch this video of her commencement speech which ends with her giving her speaking fee away to a graduate in debt)


FUNNY:
Another Louie lesson is that there are plenty of hilarious comedians out there who aren't creeps. If you're looking for a better option, might I recommend Laurie Kilmartin? She's a standup, writer for Conan, and absolutely one of the best comedians in the country. Here's her hilarious (not entirely suitable for work) standup set and then here's her podcast, co-hosted by the also fantastic Jackie Kashian, where they discuss their thirty year careers in standup. 

Laurie also tackled the Louie story head-on in an op-ed: Being A Female Comic in Louie C.K.'s World.


INTERESTING:
Finally, a lot of the conversation about Louie has also been tied up in the question of whether you can separate the art and the artist. Emily Nussbaum is a television critic who's always thought-provoking and I found her reaction to be very interesting. Reacting to the Louis C.K. Revelations

Ok, that's all I have for you this week. I hope next week will bring happier news and fun light-hearted jokes to share with you, but either way, thank you for reading. I really appreciate it.

If you like these emails, feel free to forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone sent this newsletter your way and you want to join, you can subscribe here. 

Have a great day,
Chris