3 Things: Mr. Rogers, Jon Stewart, and Bianca Giaever

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:
Today, all across the country, there are "Families Belong Together" marches. While the president's executive order may have stopped active separations, there are still thousands of children who are not being reunited with their parents. And, more broadly, our immigration policy is still focused on criminalization and cruel punishments, rather than justice, love, and welcome. Today is a chance to stand for something different. Families Belong Together

This week's episode of You're the Expert features Anand Varma, a NatGeo photographer and biologist whose photos have made possible scientific discoveries about bees, bats, and brain-controlled crabs. He talks to comedians Jo Firestone, Scott Adsit, and Kasha Patel about the intersection between art and science. Link

Season One of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas is wrapped, but all ten episodes are streaming online now and we'll be back making more in the Fall. Link

NEW YORK:
Sunday, July 15 at 7 p.m. at Caveat. I'm hosting You're the Expert with comedians Josh Gondelman, Dylan Marron, and Ashley Brooke Roberts. Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
I saw the Mr. Rogers documentary last night, Won't You Be My Neighbor?, and I was blown away. I had never realized how powerful, subversive, and deeply considered Mr. Roger's Neighborhood was. Every single review of the documentary says that you will cry in the theater and, guess what? They are right. You will feel feelings during this movie. It's a reminder of the fundamental importance of kindness and love and that the world needs much more of both. Won't You Be My Neighbor?


FUNNY:
Jon Stewart made a guest appearance on Colbert this week. He's been off the air for so long that I had almost forgotten what made him famous in the first place. He's able to take overwhelming political situations and not only make them hilarious but also boil them down to the core issue. His take on cruelty and false morality is a must-watch. Jon Stewart is Ready to Negotiate with Donald Trump (Bonus! From that same episode, Colbert interviewed the inspiring political superstar Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez)


INTERESTING:
Bianca Giaever is a filmmaker and radio producer who consistently puts together stories that stick in my brain for months. You've probably seen some of her award-winning short films, or heard her voice on This American Life or Radiolab. Her latest project is called "Two Years with Franz" and it's one of the most beautiful hours I've spent in my life. Bianca tries to make sense of 546 tapes that Pulitzer Prize winning poet Franz Wright recorded before his death. It's an examination of love, of mortality, of what it means to be alive, and what we take with us when we go. My description does not do it justice, so please experience this for yourself: Two Years with Franz


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone forwarded you this email and you want to sign up, you cansubscribe here.

Stay strong,
Chris

3 Things: Becca Heller, CJ Hunt, and Erynn Brook

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:
Season One of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas. is officially a wrap, but you can stream all ten episodes on HBO Go / HBO Now. The full last episode is also up on YouTube here: Link  

Jo Firestone, Zhubin Parang, and Shalewa Sharpe encounter the chambered nautilus on the most recent episode of You're the Expert. Dr. Jennifer Basil teaches them all about these mysterious creatures of the deep and how they're helping her understand memory and navigation. Link

NEW YORK:
TODAY! Saturday, June 23 at 4 p.m. at Caveat. I'm hosting You Get A Spoon, my variety show and audience prize giveaway with comedy from Julia Johns (MTV) and a reading by Mads Jensen (Rookie Mag). Link

Tuesday, June 26 at 8 p.m. at The Bell House. Sarah Kay's Wordy Thirty. A night of poetry, music, and performances put together by the incredible Sarah Kay. All proceeds to benefit Hispanic Federations' UNIDOS program for Puerto Rico relief and recovery efforts. Link

Sunday, July 15 at 7 p.m. at Caveat. I'm hosting You're the Expert with comedians Josh Gondelman, Dylan Marron, and Ashley Brooke Roberts! Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
Becca Heller is the co-founder and director of the Immigrant Refugee Assistance Project, an organization that provides legal assistance and advocacy. IRAP is doing amazing work fighting against policies like the travel ban and child separation and Becca is a fierce advocate. She's also hilarious. Her interview with Trevor Noah on The Daily Show was so funny and unexpectedly full of profanity and great off-the-cuff moments. You can see the whole thing in its unedited glory here: Dispelling Myths About Refugees in the Trump Era (and here is IRAP's site if you want to donate to them) 


FUNNY:
CJ Hunt is a comedian, writer, producer, storyteller, director... he basically does it all. He's someone I've admired as a person and a comedian since I was in college and first saw him on stage. This story he told for a Father's Day episode of The Moth Radio Hour encapsulates what I think makes CJ so special. He's funny and goofy, but also vulnerable and intelligent. CJ's story starts at 7:20 in. I Will Be Your Father Figure 

(See more from CJ here)


INTERESTING:
I read this illustrated essay a couple weeks ago and I have thought about it many times since. It's the kind of work whose power is getting stuck in your psyche, bouncing around and creating a new awareness of how people struggle and see the world. Emily Flake's beautiful illustrations make this a work of art. It's an issue and a mindset that too often gets ignored in the media. The Difference Between Being Broke and Being Poor


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone forwarded you this email and you want to sign up, you cansubscribe here.

Enjoy the weekend,
Chris

3 Things: Nathan Fielder, Zach Galifianakis, and Kirk Wallace Johnson

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:
Last night was the season finale of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas. All ten episodes are up on HBO Go / HBO Now and available for streaming. I've loved getting to write for this show and I hope you watch and enjoy. Link  

Jo Firestone, Zhubin Parang, and Shalewa Sharpe encounter the chambered nautilus on this week's episode of You're the Expert. Dr. Jennifer Basil teaches them all about these mysterious creatures of the deep and how they're helping her understand memory and navigation. Link

NEW YORK:
TOMORROW! Sunday, June 17 at 7 p.m. at Caveat. I'm hosting You're the Expert with comedians Maeve Higgins, Emmy Blotnick, and Dillon Stevenson! Link

Saturday, June 23 at 4 p.m. at Caveat. I'm hosting You Get A Spoon, my variety show and audience prize giveaway. Link

Tuesday, June 26 at 8 p.m. at The Bell House. Sarah Kay's Wordy Thirty. A night of poetry, music, and performances put together by the incredible Sarah Kay. All proceeds to benefit Hispanic Federations' UNIDOS program for Puerto Rico relief and recovery efforts. Link

My full schedule with all upcoming dates is online here.

This week's list

GREAT:
Nathan Fielder makes me laugh like nobody else. His show, Nathan for You, is consistently genius and painfully funny. If you haven't seen it, Nathan helps real small businesses using his knowledge as a consultant. Even though his ideas are insane, they often work. For example, he once helped a real estate agent differentiate herself by getting her certified as a psychic / exorcist, so she could be the first realtor to guarantee you weren't buying a haunted house. Shows as far out and original as his rarely win Emmys, even though they should. Nathan wants to make sure that the Emmy process is fair though. Which is why he released this video: Nathan Fielder has a step-by-step guide on how you definitely shouldn't hack the Emmys for him


FUNNY:
Despite becoming very famous, Zach Galifianakis has not lost his edge. Or he has an amazing team of writers. I'm not sure. Either way, his latest episode of Between Two Ferns is unbelievably good. He just attacks his guest Jerry Seinfeld and then forces him off the show when "a better guest, Cardi B" comes along. It's brutal and so so so funny. Jerry Seinfeld & Cardi B: Between Two Ferns


INTERESTING:
Kirk Wallace Johnson has an op-ed in the NYT about a leading ornithologist, Dr. Christopher Filiardi, who was attacked by a digital mob for his conservation work. It's a story about how quickly, given a little information and even less context, the internet can unleash its fury on a regular, anonymous person. Johnson unpacks the story carefully, revealing the realities of both modern science and social media, and the whole thing reads like a thriller. The Ornithologist the Internet Called a Murderer


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or come say hi at a live show. If someone forwarded you this email and you want to sign up, you cansubscribe here.

Have a great day,
Chris