Good One: A Podcast About Jokes

Jesse leads a live panel discussion with the cast and creators of the cult-classic MTV animated series Clone High. The show itself, co-created by Phil Lord, Chris Miller, and Bill Lawrence, was about a high school filled with clones of famous historical figures. Despite its cancelation after only one season, the show had a cast list full of up-and-comers and established stars of its time, including Will Forte, Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Michael MacDonald, Christa Miller, Nicole Sullivan, Donald Faison, Neil Flynn, Andy Dick, Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, Jack Black, Tom Green, Michael J. Fox, Mandy Moore, Marilyn Manson...the list will go on forever if I keep typing. Recorded live at Vulturefest in 2017, the live panel included:Chris Miller (JFK, Vice Principal Mr. Butlertron)Phil Lord (Principal Scudworth, Genghis Khan,Bill Lawrence (Co-Creator)Nicole Sullivan (Joan of Arc)Christa Miller (Cleopatra)Will Forte (Abe Lincoln)Michael McDonald (Gandhi)Watch Clone High wherever you can legally download TV shows. There

Here's another bonus episode as we lead up to our Season 6 premiere! Jesse interviews comedian Catherine Cohen live at Union Hall in Brooklyn, following a musical tribute to her totally normal and not-at-all-bizarre dreams. Follow Catherine on Twitter. Listen to Catherine on the Seek Treatment podcast, and catch her solo show at Joe's Pub in NYC on May 15th, June 17th and July 11th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week we're going back to the 2018 Brooklyn Podcast Festival for a short interview Jesse did with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, AKA Las Culturistas. Matt and Bowen each demonstrate an "I Don't Think So, Honey!" or their cathartic, one-minute cultural rant turned art form. Listen to Las Culturistas wherever you get podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Good One Season 5 comes to a close with another superstar comedian, Kevin Hart. Jesse takes a trip to Atlanta to speak with Kevin just before the release of his newest stand-up special Irresponsible. They discuss the show's opener, a story about when Kevin's kids caught him having sex. Kevin explains how his jokes go from from small clubs to arenas. The conversation also touches on some of the controversy surrounding his comedy, as well as the high expectations he's striving to execute at his level of fame. Also included: potpourri. Watch “Irresponsible” on Netflix on April 2nd, along with all of Kevin’s other specials. Follow Kevin on Twitter. Special thanks to DonTaé Hodge for engineering this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse finally sits down with Gary Gulman to talk about a joke from his 2016 special It’s About Time. The joke is about an experience Gary had at Trader Joe’s, but it’s way, waaaaaaaay bigger than that. Gary takes his audience through TJ’s snack selection and into Narnia, making companions of old women on the Upper West Side, finally culminating in a rumination on the nature of New Yorkers and taking a stand when injustice rears its ugly head. Jesse and Gary dissect this joke from start to finish, picking apart word choice down to the syllable. Gary reflects on the inciting incident, as well as how his mental illness plays a part in the whole thing. Also included: someone finally tells Jesse how his tweets could be better.  For all of Gary’s tips, follow Gary on Twitter, and catch him live on the The Great Depresh Tour when he’s in your city. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Fall 2018, we recorded a live panel discussion with the writers of The Good Place at Vulturefest LA. Moderated by Marc Evan Jackson, the panel guests reveal what comedy inspired them, how their writers room was formed, and offer advice to aspiring writers. Watch The Good Place on NBC, Hulu, Netflix, or a bunch of other places on the internet. Listen to The Good Place: The Podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow [most of] the panel on Twitter:Marc Evan JacksonMike SchurMegan AmramJen StatskyJosh SiegalDylan MorganMatt Murray Cord JeffersonKassia MillerDan SchofieldAndrew LawChristopher EncellRae Sanni Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse speaks to standup comic, actor, and writer Rhea Butcher about two versions of their joke about being misgendered. The first iteration comes from Rhea's album Butcher, and the second was performed on one of Jessica Williams and Phoebe Robinson's 2 Dope Queens HBO specials. Rhea goes over the similarities and differences between each telling, along with how their identity and experiences shaped the joke's evolution. Follow Rhea on Twitter Listen to Rhea's podcasts Three Swings and Put Your Hands Together Listen to Rhea's special Butcher wherever you listen to things. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse speaks with actor, comedian, writer and producer Lil Rel Howery live at Vulturefest in October 2018. The conversation centers around a joke Rel told on Martin Lawrence's 1st Amendment Stand Up in 2010, and ties into material from his 2015 stand-up special RELevent. Rel discusses family, his hometown Chicago, and the comedians that shaped him, like Bernie Mac and Robin Harris. Watch Rel in Rel on FOX. Follow Rel on Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kenny and Keith Lucas, aka comedy duo The Lucas Brothers, sit down with Jesse to discuss a joke-in-progress about Bertrand Russell's A History of Western Philosophy. The two reflect on their relationship as brothers, identical twins, writing partners, travel companions, and performers while musing on the intersection of comedy and philosophy. Watch the Lucas Brothers' special on Netflix. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse’s back in the Late Night with Seth Meyers conference room with—wait for it—Seth Meyers! While there's plenty to talk about, the conversation centers around Seth writing the Documentary Now! episode Juan Likes Rice and Chicken. The two touch on Seth's parodies from when he was Head Writer at Saturday Night Live, along with his semi-autobiographical ties to Juan and Arturo.  Also included: Seth is unable to make Jesse’s tweets any better than they already are.  Season 3 of Documentary Now! starts February 20th, airing Wednesdays on IFC at 11p EST Late Night With Seth Meyers airs weeknights on NBC at 12:35/11:35c Follow Seth on Twitter  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ray Romano sits down with Jesse to talk about his new Netflix special, Right Here, Around the Corner. The two go over Ray’s jokes about his son Joe, why he continues to see his family as a source of new material, and what made the Comedy Cellar the right place to tape his new special. Also, Ray does an impression of an impression of Ray Romano.  Watch Ray’s new special on Netflix.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s sequel time! Sort of. On a Good One episode from way back in the year 2018, Jesse asked Vanessa Bayer about Saturday Night Live's series of ad parodies for Totino’s pizza rolls. What started as a take on gender stereotypes in advertising evolved over the next two years into a surreal X-Files promo, and ultimately a triumphant, French romance film trailer. Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider are the former SNL head writers behind the Totino’s Trilogy. Jesse talks to them about the evolution of Vanessa’s nameless character, and draws parallels to Chris and Sarah’s new series The Other Two.  Highly recommended: watching the Totino’s Ad Trilogy. Part IPart IIPart IIIFollow Chris on Twitter! Sarah never uses Twitter. Watch Chris and Sarah's show The Other Two on Comedy Central, Thursdays at 10:30/9:30c Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse talks to actor, comedian, writer, and friend Julie Klausner about a seemingly random joke from her Hulu series Difficult People. Recorded live at Union Hall in Brooklyn, the two talk about equal treatment of male and female genitalia in comedy, Julie’s writing process on Difficult People, and much, much, much more. ALSO: a super secret surprise guest. ALSO ALSO: get ready to find out if your favorite sketch comedians are dogs or cats. Watch Difficult People on Hulu.Follow Julie on Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jesse talks to comedian Sebastian Maniscalco about the creation of one of his most well-known jokes, “Doorbell”. Not only does Sebastian have a new Netflix special out, but at the time of the interview he was days away from headlining a weekend of stand-up shows at Madison Square Garden. Listen to how Sebastian refined his act-outs, and how nostalgia and disbelief came to shape his comedy. Watch Sebastian’s act outs to get a full picture of "Doorbell".Check out the interior of Sebastian and wife Lana Gomez’s house. Watch Sebastian’s new standup special “Stay Hungry” on Netflix.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome back to Good One. We missed you dearly. For our Season 5 premiere, comedian, actress, and improviser Nicole Byer invited Jesse over to talk about the opening jokes of her new Netflix special, Aggressively Adorable.  For more Nicole check out Comedians of the World and Nailed It! on Netflix and listen to her on What the Tuck? A RuPaul's Drag Race Podcast and Why Won't You Date Me? wherever you listen to podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With all of his standup specials, records, and multiple roles in TV and film, Sinbad has no shortage of material to dissect. But when Jesse reached out to to ask what joke Sinbad wanted to discuss on the podcast, Sinbad didn’t want to pick one. Why? Because he doesn’t write his act in the way that most other comedians do. Sinbad will build an entire routine from a fleeting thought in the moment while he’s on-stage—and it will change the course of the performance in an instant. Jesse and Sinbad trace his style back to its roots, and Jesse also gets closure on a Sinbad question he’s been holding onto for a long time. This week's episode is sponsored by Mack Weldon! For 20% off your first order, visit mackweldon.com and enter promo code GOODONE at checkout! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Years before creating and starring in the show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Rachel Bloom wrote and performed a musical sketch about a young actress’s obsession with Space Jam, the 1996 animated and live-action crossover starring Michael Jordan and a bunch of Looney Tunes. Jesse and Rachel talk about the compromise she made between musical theater and sketch comedy. Along the way they discuss the importance of nailing down a premise when writing, how rhyming can ruin a joke’s potential, and most importantly, why Space Jam? Watch Rachel’s “Space Jam” here, and read along with the lyrics below. “Space Jam” Lyrics I'VE NEVER FOUND A TRUE CALLING I WOULDN'T CALL THEATER MY LIFE FROM VOCATION TO VOCATION LOCATION TO LOCATION I'M JUST LOOKING FOR SOMETHING ENTHRALLING. (spoken) It's true. I'VE NEVER HAD MY OWN "THING" UNREMARKABLE: A COMMUNISTS' DREAM. BUT THERE IS ONE MOVIE THAT'S JUST SO DAMN GROOVY IT GIVES ME A REASON TO SING. AND THAT IS THE MOVIE SPACE JAM! OH MY GOD I LOVE THE MOVIE SPACE JA

Laurie Kilmartin is a stand-up comedian and writer for Conan. She's also cohost of the podcast The Jackie and Laurie Show along with comedian Jackie Kashian. Laurie discusses the formation of her 2017 Conan set, finding a new muse 20-years into her career, and how to know when to inform the audience that “Domingo” is Spanish for “Sunday”. Read Laurie’s tweet about joke transitions here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mike Birbiglia cemented his style of comedic storytelling in specials like Sleepwalk With Me, My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend, and Thank God For Jokes. He’s also the writer and director of Don’t Think Twice and the movie adaptation of Sleepwalk With Me. Now, his latest show, The New One, is running on Broadway. In this episode, we’re talking about an earlier one of Mike’s jokes—his Celebrity Golf story, from the album My Secret Public Journal Live. Mike describes how he identifies moments from his life that become his jokes, how to align with an audience, and the inherent error that has to exist in a piece of art. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kenan Thompson and collaborator Bryan Tucker have been working on SNL together for years. In August 2017, they debuted Kenan’s take on NBA personality Lavar Ball. It went over so well that the impression returned for three additional Weekend Updates. Jesse asks Kenan and Bryan about how they come up with their best work that spans 16 seasons of SNL. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices