3 Things: Penelope Spheeris, Daniel Simonsen, and Ben Stark

Happy Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my show dates and recommendations of things I think you might enjoy. This is the last time I'll be sending my Saturday email from NYC (for a while, at least). Prepare for slightly later delivery in future weeks, as I adjust to West Coast time. In the meantime, I'm packing up, saying goodbye to friends, hopefully finding a place to live in LA, and buying a used car. It's a pretty long to-do list. 

Here's what I think I'll miss most about NYC: Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, taking the East River Ferry, cramped dinner parties full of friends that I love, living in the same city as my family, pizza, bagels (but importantly, NOT pizza-bagels), the sheer volume of incredible comedians in one place, and the moment when I'm riding the subway and a passenger does something extremely rude/odd and then I make eye contact with a stranger sitting across from me and we both silently raise our eyebrows to say "Get a load of THIS guy."

Upcoming Shows

EVERYWHERE:
Both full seasons of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas are streaming online and on HBO Go. Link

You can listen to all the episodes of my podcast You're the Expert on any podcast app. Three comedians interview a scientist about her work and why it matters. Link

NEW YORK:
TONIGHT! Saturday, July 27 at 10:00 p.m. at Union Hall. Dillon Stevenson and Mike Brown host Super Video Bros, where comedians (including me) break down classic music videos.Link

July 29-31 at The Wild Project. I'll be acting on Monday and a short play I wrote is being staged on Wednesday at the Cherry Picking festival for new work. SOLD OUT

You can find ticket links for all upcoming shows as soon as they are announced online at my website here.

This week’s list

GREAT:
Penelope Spheeris pioneered the punk film scene. The daughter of a sideshow strongman, she grew up traveling with her parents' carnival. That informed her eye for outsiders and her cutting sense of humor. She's the director who invented the conceit of interviewing rock stars as they cook breakfast. She directed Wayne's World (including, of course, the Bohemian Rhapsody scene, one of the most iconic comedy sequences ever on film). Then she got fed up with Hollywood and quit. Her foul-mouthed interview withThe Onion A.V. Club is so good. Penelope Spheeris: Hollywood Can Blow Me


FUNNY:
Daniel Simonsen was the funniest comedian in Norway. Then he moved to the U.S. to try his luck here. Years ago, when I first moved to New York, we were on a show together and I remember being shocked at how good his jokes were. Unless you're already deep in the Norwegian immigrant comedy scene, you've never seen anything like him. I can't stop laughing at his set on Colbert. He has incredible tips for a shy person at a summer barbecue. Daniel Simonsen


INTERESTING:
Have you ever shown up to work only to discover you're dressed identically to someone else in the office? Ben Stark goes deep on the history of business casual and the phenomenon of "worktwins". It's a very funny essay that made me think about office fashion in a way I never had before. "Creative jobs demand creative dress, but there are only so many ways to say 'I have disposable income.'" Are You My Worktwin?


BONUS PSA:
If you haven't yet, please claim your $125 in the Equifax data breach settlement! It's extremely easy and it makes sure the company faces consequences for not keeping personal information private. More info here 

Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you cansubscribe here.

Have a great day,
Chris

3 Things: John Waters, Megan Amram, and Jill Lepore

Happy Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my show dates and recommendations of things I think you might enjoy. I'm writing this week's email on the train back from a show in D.C. Taking the train never stops feeling luxurious to me. It feels like having made it.

I remember several years ago, when I was just starting in comedy, I was regularly traveling back and forth between NYC and Boston. But the only ticket I could afford was the BoltBus, which pretty regularly broke down or showed up an hour late with no explanation. I rode it so much that I earned multiple free rides in their frequent rider program. One time, I got a personal email from someone at BoltBus corporate asking my opinion about a possible new pickup location. Realizing I was in the top 1% of BoltBus riders was one of the darkest days of my life. 

Upcoming shows

EVERYWHERE:
Both full seasons of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas are streaming online and on HBO Go. Link

You can listen to all the episodes of my podcast You're the Expert on any podcast app. Three comedians interview a scientist about her work and why it matters. Link

NEW YORK:
Saturday, July 27 at 10:00 p.m. at Union Hall. Dillon Stevenson and Mike Brown host Super Video Bros, where comedians (including me) break down classic music videos. Link

July 29-31 at The Wild Project. I'll be acting on Monday and a short play I wrote is being staged on Wednesday at the Cherry Picking festival for new work. SOLD OUT

You can find ticket links for all upcoming shows as soon as they are announced online at my website here.

This week’s list

GREAT:
John Waters is an iconic filmmaker. He's made hilarious, transgressive, unique work for his entire career. At 70, his imagination is still going full speed. The always great Maris Kreizman interviewed him and I could not agree more with his political views on books in the bathroom. John Waters on Taking LSD at 70, Clarence Thomas, and Reading Bad Reviews


FUNNY:
Megan Amram has written for awards shows, critically-acclaimed comedies, and hit network shows like The Good Place and Parks and Rec. But that's not enough for her. She needs more. Specifically, she needs an Emmy. Her hilarious quest to game the Emmy rules and hit the bare minimum requirements for a "digital series" paid off this week in a nomination. Personally, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that she wins. No one wants it more. An Emmy for Megan


INTERESTING:
Every once in a while, I read a piece and it gets stuck in my head for weeks. The ideas, the emotions, the writing, I just find it rattling around in my brain at odd moments. Jill Lepore's essay has been like that. It's so beautiful and intimate. "My best friend left her laptop to me in her will. Twenty years later, I turned it on and began my inquest." The Lingering of Loss


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you cansubscribe here.

Stay cool,
Chris

3 Things: Jimmie Fails, Whoopi Goldberg, and Jessica Francis Kane

Happy Saturday! Every week, I send out an email with my show dates and recommendations of things I think you might enjoy. At the moment, I don't have much to report. I'm trying to fight off procrastination and actually get my writing done. (The great part about freelancing is also the terrible part: there's no boss to make sure you're doing your work.) I hope you had a productive week, but also that you're taking some time to lie on the couch or the beach if you need it. 

NOTE TO NEW ORLEANS PEOPLE: Please stay safe and be careful! If you were planning on coming to this Tuesday's Pop-Up Magazine show, I've been told they're keeping track of the weather and will decide whether it's still happening or not after the weekend. 

Upcoming Shows

EVERYWHERE:
Both full seasons of Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas are streaming online and on HBO Go. Link

You can listen to all the episodes of my podcast You're the Expert on any podcast app. Three comedians interview a scientist about her work and why it matters. Link

NEW ORLEANS:
Tuesday, July 16 at 7:00 p.m. SOLD OUT I'll be performing with Pop-Up Magazine. Please see the note above and be careful out there.

NEW YORK:
Friday, July 19 at 7:00 p.m. at Littlefield. I'll be performing at Bit Tank, a show where comedians pitch jokes to sharks for real money. Link

Saturday, July 27 at 10:00 p.m. at Union Hall. Dillon Stevenson and Mike Brown host Super Video Bros, where comedians (including me) break down classic music videos. Link

July 29-31 at The Wild Project. I'll be acting on Monday and a short play I wrote is being staged on Wednesday at the Cherry Picking festival for new work. SOLD OUT

You can find ticket links for all upcoming shows as soon as they are announced online at my website here.

This week’s list

GREAT:
The Last Black Man in San Francisco is about Jimmie's dream to reclaim the Victorian house his grandfather built in the heart of the city, but it's also about gentrification, friendship, our attachment to stories and art, and how to find a place where you belong. Jimmie Fails stars as a fictionalized version of himself in a movie he co-wrote with his childhood best friend Joe Talbot. It's the best film I've seen this year. The acting, the cinematography, the story, and the music are all breathtaking. The story behind the making of the film is pretty amazing too. Here's an interview with Fails and Talbot about their city and their movie: Who Gets to Say F--- San Francisco Now?


FUNNY:
Nobody has had a showbiz career like Whoopi Goldberg. Broadway solo shows, standup comedy, hosting the Oscars, starring in movies, and co-hosting a daytime talk show. It's incredible. But her fame's almost the least interesting part about her. Did you know she's never eaten an egg, she feels like an alien, and she's significantly more passionate talking about farts than The View? Whoopi Goldberg on Controversy and Conversation


INTERESTING:
One of my favorite parts of traveling to do comedy is visiting old friends and getting to stay with them. Having a grown-up sleepover is the best way of really catching up with someone, in my opinion. You get to talk but also spend some down time together and I always leave with a new picture of what their daily life and routines look like. It's the best. Jessica Francis Kane wrote a novel about a woman who "rekindles old friendships with some strict rules." Staying at their place rather than a hotel is one of them. And to promote the novel, Kane tried to follow the rules herself. It's a fun piece and good inspiration to schedule a trip to see an old friend. The Visitor (h/t The Ann Friedman Weekly)


Thanks for reading! If you like these emails, please forward to a friend or spread the word. If someone forwarded you this email but you're not yet on the list, you cansubscribe here.

Have a great day,
Chris