The Daily Grill

Succotash Epi70: Hittin' Seventy!

Welcome to EPISODE SEVENTY of Succotash, the Comedy Podcast Podcast. 70!!! Seems like only yesterday I was asking myself "How do I get my voice to come out of that sound thingee?" I estimate that, in these first 70 episodes, that we have played over 630 podcast clips. Listenership continues to grow. And we have consistently been showing up on iTunes' "What's Hot" section as well as being recently featured on Stitcher.

<— Here's a screen shot of our logo floating amongst other podcast friends (and strangers) on last week's "What's Hot" page in iTunes' podcast section.

I'm getting ready to take this show on the road next week for the 2nd Annual Los Angeles Podcast Festival. I got my shipment of Succotash buttons – they’re like pins for your clothes but WAY cooler because they hang on with this magnet backed thingee. I'm going to give those away at our table in the Podcast Lab at the PodFest, so look for me. I’ve even got a couple of big green Succotash banners to hang up so you can find me easier. You can get your tickets for online at http://LAPodFest.com. I’ll have my mics set up and will interview any comedy podcasters who stop by!

Last week I had the honor and pleasure of meeting, hanging out with, and watch Paul Bates, Lee Smart, and Nug Nahrgang – the cast of podcasting’s Illusionoid – when they were in town for the San Francisco Improv Festival. They did a fantastic job and I’m going to be featuring an interview with them AND the show they recorded live at the Festival on an upcoming episode of Succotash. You can actually hear that episode now – it dropped yesterday – called The Asteroid Juggler! Get up to iTunes, Stitcher or their homesite at http://Illusionoid.com. There’s even a little pre-show chat with ME on the episode!

 

NO BURST O' DURST

Our Ambassador to the Middle, political comedian Will Durst was enjoying a well-deserved week off following San Francisco's annual Comedy Day. So there's no Burst O' Durst commentarythis episode. He'll be back next time. In lieu of Mr. Durst's appearance, I'm featuring a funny little ditty called Questions by friend-of-Succotash Chet Haase.

CLICK THE BANNER!

 

You see that banner up there? The one near the top of our website? That can whisk you magically off to the Amazon website where you can buy pretty much anything you want. (Except, as Larry Miller is wont to say on his This Week With Larry Miller podcast, "a REAL Amazon!") The only difference by going there from here instead of right to there from…somewhere else…is that Succotash receives a kickback for showing you the way to go. So help us out for helping you out, won't you?

THE TEN MOST ACTIVE SHOWS IN THE STITCHER TOP 100 COMEDY PODCAST LIST

 

Normally I don't even touch the Top Ten shows on Stitcher's Top 100 Comedy Podcasts because there's very little movement up there. Maron, Rogan, Carolla…y'know, the usual suspects. (Oh, and still very mysteriously, Car Talk. ) But this week Bill Maher managed to muscle his way in there, so good on him! Here's how the whole list shook out for this week…

07. Real Time with Bill Maher +24

32. Girl On Guy with Aisha Tyler +48

50. Uhh Yeah Dude +12

56. The Champs with Neal Brennan & Moshe Kasher -19

65. The David Feldman Show -17

67. Dining With Doug & Karen +18

77. The Cracked Podcast -22

92. The Best Show on WFMU with Tom Scharpling +14

95. Kevin Pollack’s Chat Show +18

100. Who’s Paying Attention +25

 

As for OUR Stitcher rank, we are once again on the move! Consistency IS key in this podcast game, don’t let anyone fool you. Miss a week and your ranking sinks like a stone. Last week we were at #6721 but THIS week Succotash jumps up 2,182 place to end up at number 4539!

 

THE CLIPS

Girl On Guy

As you can see above, Aisha Tyler’s Girl On Guy leapt back into the Top 100 this week, up 48 places, with the kick-off of her third season. (I still don’t know what constitutes a season of podcasts, by the way. It seems pretty arbitrary from show to show. Hell, at Succotash we’re still in our first season and we’re 70 shows and 2 and a half years in!) Aisha welcomes Jack Osbourne to her show. Jack’s the son of Ozzy Osbourne and he talks some about dealing with the reality of that experience.

 

Doug Loves Movies

I wanted to pull a slice from this show which is one of my regular "listens" and an episode he had last week really have me laughing hard. (Which must look weird if anyone is seeing me, out on a wilderness trail at 5:30 in the morning, running full speed in the dark and laughing like a maniac…) He had first-time guest Nick Offerman, from Parks & Rec, and returning guests Jon Hamm and filmmaker “Werner Herzog”, which is in quotes because he’s portrayed by Paul F. Tompkins. In this episode, Herzog is really on his game, too. (Don't forget to check out Doug's newest offering, Doug Loves Minis - which are some of the shorter shows now under one label.)

All We Know

The All We Know clip was grabbed for us by Tyson Saner, our Honorary Associate Producer (he's got three of 'em in this epi - thanks, TS!) It’s with Benny and Rafi Fine, AKA The Fine Brothers and is described (on their Tumblr page) as "A sometimes ignorant, occasionally uninformed, irresponsible news podcast." The content is largely driven by audience suggestions through Twitter and Facebook.  Tyson tells me that All We Know isn't a weekly or even bi-monthly podcast lately but that could be because The Fine Brothers also produce weekly content for at least TWO YouTube channels.

No Pressure To Be Funny

For This Week In Comedy Podcasts on Stitcher.com, I’m reviewing No Pressure To Be Funny, a British podcast I’ve featured before. The brainchild of Nick Revell, Alistair Barrie and Jake Waring, there are lots of other folks involved in this topical live monthly show from the SoHo Theatre, including a panel of journalists and pundits that changes every show. They just kicked off their 6th season with Angela Barnes, Rich Peppiatt, Dan Smith, and Richard Herring, along with host James O’Brien, who keeps it all together. (We've actually got TWO bits from NPTBF - Nick Revell with an emergency bulletin about handbags and a song about randy pandas by Steve Gribbin.

Shane And Friends

Here’s a another show harvested by Tyson Saner for us. It features Shane Dawson along with his producer Lauren Schnipper. This is a new podcast – only been around since June – and there are nine episodes so far. This clip is from Epi8 and features guest Harley Morenstein of Epic Meal Time, a very popular YouTube web series.

 

The Clutch & Wiggle Experience

We didn't have to go looking for a clip from Clutch & Wiggle - one showed up in the Tweetsack this week! It seems that hosts Rob, Craig and their new "3rd Mic" The Ditz created an accidental "He-Man PSA" while talking about proper pooping etiquette. These are the same folks that run http://CWERadio.com, by the way, where you can hear episodes of Succotash "randomly replayed" during the week!)

Air-Raid

We’ve featured the Air-Raid podcast with Aaron Roden several times before. Aaron’s heavily into the music scene in the Seattle area but he’s also into comedy there, too. And he manages to snag some great interviews with comedians who may be on everyone’s radar but not necessarily getting on podcasts too often. This week he got a hold of SNL veteran Jim Breuer and talked about a bunch of stuff…

 

The Schmoes Know

The last of this week’s clip contributions – or “cliptributions” - from Tyson Saner. The schmoes in this case are Kristian Harloff and Mark Ellis and their podcast talk about all things entertainment. In their Epi87, they have two guest schmoes – Maria Menounos and Hal Rudnick – who discuss Seth McFarland’s hosting of the last Oscars telecast and also about how subjective humor is. 

 

That's all the Epi70 that there is (except for a really long recipe for "spicy succotash" after the closing credits.) Thanks for listening and please remember to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

 

Podcast Review: No Pressure To Be Funny; Series 4, Episode 2

Dry and sarcastic or lewd and absurd — no matter how you slice it, I love British humor. And the lads behind the No Pressure To Be Funny podcast have concocted a winning combo of chat, monologues, music, and rants that delivers on all fronts. The brainchild of English comedians Nick Revell and Alistair Barrie, the show is fronted by LBC talk radio host James O’Brien. Performed before a live audience, each show features a different panel of guests every episode. Drawn from the arts, media, and politics, the crew for the latest outing includes Rob Grant, Simon Munnery, Kevin Day, and Polly Toynbee in addition to the show’s creators.

There’s a James Bond theme song with lyrics designed to reflect the economy of the day (“he has to pay to renew his license to kill, and the only reason he doesn’t shower alone is to cut down on the water bill; because Tomorrow Never Dies, just like the Bond franchise…”) There’s a panel discussion of the morals crisis infesting the BBC that’s recently come to light as well as the recent US elections. And, in my favorite tirade of the episode, series co-creator Revell levels a martini-dry accounting of the British involvement in the war in Afghanistan.

The only shortcoming of No Pressure is that it only drops once a month and that’s no laughing matter.

— Marc Hershon

Originally published 12.6.2012 in This Week In Comedy Podcasts on Splitsider.com

Succotash Epi42: Co-Hostin' With THAT Chris Gore

I'm trying desperately to get this edition of the Comedy Podcast Podcast up while it is still officially International Succotash Day. (As so declared by the inimitable Jabs of The DHead Factor podcast in Australia.) All day long our podcaster friends have been tweeting and messaging words of praise and support for the show — thanks, everybody! — and I've been enjoying seeing the number of downloads and the reviews and ratings go up!

I'm Marc, he's THAT Chris Gore…

Great fun this episode with my special guest co-host That Chris Gore onboard. Chris, the host of the PodCRASH podcast as well as regular on G4's Attack Of The Show, was in San Francisco for Stitcher's Podcast Awards. We talked about his tenure as publisher of one of my favorite magazines, FilmTHREAT, as well as his multi-pronged career doing all kinds of cool stuff in TV, the internet and film.

Chris picked some nice clips for this epi, all of which I'd never covered before, and after we talked about his podcast — listeners of Succotash have heard from PodCRASH here previously — where he appears on other podcasts, then plays excerpts on his show. Which means that you've be able to hear part of this episode of Succotash on a future episode of PodCRASH. It's as about as meta an experience as you're likely to find.

Two Marcs: Maron & Hershon

Last Minute: Since I was late getting this up, I can tell you that I DID end up attending the Stitcher Awards with special guest co-host Chris and it was a grand time. I met the CEO of Stitcher, Noah Shanok, and even got a picture with the evening's host, WTF's Marc Maron. Sadly, though nominated for both Best New Show and Best Album Artwork, Chris didn't end up taking up an Itchy or whatever they call their awards.

CLIPS

PodCRASH
A clip from PodCRASH epi55, wherein our guest co-host Chris Gore crashes Zane Lamprey Live. The main ingredient here seems to be alcohol. Cheers!

Joe Rogan Experience
Comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan, well-known for hosting TV's Fear Factor, hosts a daily podcast where he talks to other comics, friends and just plain interesting folks. His show is part of the Deathsquad network of podcasts.
http://DeathSquad.tv, iTunes and Stitcher

Lost Moon Radio
I met someone attached to Lost Moon Radio at the LA PodFest in October and he suggested I check it out. Now we're doing the same for you. Chris and I both loved the sound and feel of this sketch group out of Los Angeles, high prise considering this is only their third podcast.

Pointless: With Kevin Pereira
Best known as the co-host (and Chris Gore's colleague) on Attack Of The Show on G4, host Kevin Pereira has kicked off a new podcast on the Deathsquad network. In this clip he's chatting it up with successful YouTube video creator Freddie Wong.

No Pressure To Be Funny
I'm a huge fan of dry, witty, and biting British comedy. Having cut my teeth on Monty Python way back when they first crept into the US, I'm pleased to discover No Pressure To Be Funny. Hosted by James O’Brien, created by with Nick Revell and Alistair Barrie, each episode pulls a panel together from the arts, media and politics, where they then chat about that week's news in front of a live audience. This clip features Revell with a monolog about the war in Afghanistan, in a style that smacks of Douglas Adams. Brilliant.

Throwing Shade
Chis brings in this clip from Throwing Shade, a new-to-me podcast. Hosts Erin Gibson and Bryan Safi are both prolific writers and comedians whose weekly show focuses on politics, entertainment, gay rights and women's issues. This is pretty damn funny chat.

RIFF-erendum
San Francisco-based comedians Steven Pearl and Al Clethen, a couple of buddies of mine, started up RIFF-erendum so they could converse with some of THEIR favorite comedians and musicians. In the latest episode, they chew the fat with fellow Bay Area comic Jeff Applebaum.

We close out Epi42 with the return of Will Durst and his Burst O' Durst. With the elections over, our Ambassador to the Middle sets his sights on what the lame ducks in Congress are doing…or not doing…as the year winds down.

We're hoping to grace a pre-Christmas episode with a live appearance by the aforementioned Will Durst. If you're doing some driving over this holiday season, just remember that a long car ride is an excellent place to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi40: Down Underin' With Jabs

We've got a bunch of clips in Epi40, the longest episode of Succotash yet! Yes, I said "we", because I'm joined by special guest co-host Jabs (aka Jason McNamara) all the way from Canberra, Australia, through the magic of Skype. Jabs is the main man behind The DHead Factor and invited me to share the hosting duties several months ago on his show, so I figured it was high time to return the favor. Wasn't sure how it was going to come together, given the time difference, but Jabs is on holiday down under so he was kindly enough to give up part of a Monday morning at his end.

He really serves as a true co-host in this installment - I didn't really get a chance to interview him about his podcast or his life or anything. So if you're hoping to learn more about Jabs the man, please click right over to his podcast and start filling your ears. We split the job of pulling clips for this show, which allowed us to surprise each other with new discoveries. (And since we both enjoy yakking so much, the running time on this episode is over an hour and a half.)

It was great having Jabs on the show, and that's not just because he's announced that he's proclaimed December 4th to be Succotash Day! That's right - an international observance of this very podcast! We chat about it during the episode and you can be SURE I'll be talking more about it as the blessed event approaches.

T-SHIRT WINNER

In the previous episode with my interview with Andy Bumatai, I offered to give away an old t-shirt of Andy's from the Crack Up Thursdayz one nighter comedy gig in Hawaii to someone who could tell me the distance in miles between San Francisco and Honolulu. I had a number of people email in with the mileage — 2387 — and then randomly drew Esben Borsting's name from the correct entries. So I'll be sending the t-shirt his way...back to Honolulu. Thanks to everyone who entered.

FUNCTIONAL NERDS

Maybe I don't talk about myself enough on THIS show but I can't shut up about me when I guest on Epi126 of the Functional Nerds podcast. Hosts John Anealio (who was a guest on Succotash back in Epi33) and Patrick Hester made me feel welcome and the time flew by. At least for me. Might be different for you. Click over and give a listen...

B & A

Alba Lewis and Thomas Moore of The Brit & The American podcast swept through San Francisco on a roundabout journey to Peru, stopping just long enough to tuck into a Chinese dinner and have some good conversation with yours truly. Thanks for the eats, kids, bon voyage, and I'll be putting up some or all of our chat in the near future.

THE CLIPS

Let's do this thing.

The DHead Factor
The usual haunt for our guest co-host Jabs, The DHead Factor is also occasionally co-manned by #FUJosh and others, all the way from Canberra, Australia. Random news, lively chat, and more.

Royal & Doodall
In a classic R&D clip chosen by Jabs, Royal & Doodall pull off a dramatic send-up in which they pay homage/skewer a number of their fellow podcasters. Including US. Check it.

This Week With Larry Miller
Comedian Larry Miller suffered a head injury about a year ago and his podcast over on Adam Carolla’s ACE Broadcasting System has been playing reruns ever since. Larry's been on the mend and fronts a recent repeat episode with this message to his fans…

The Christopher Titus Podcast
I've always enjoyed the rambunctious energy of comic Christopher Titus – even more so now that the sound quality of his podcast is coming together. This episode's a treat, seeing as it also features freind-of-Succotash Kelly Carlin.

Pissed Off Man
Jabs has brought along a clip from a podcast that's a favorite of both of ours - The Pissed Off Man, featuring Gavin, aka Gee from Belfast's Gee & Jay Show. Here our mate's gotten all pissy about eating our at restaurants. Not because of the food. Because of the people.

Garagecast
Is anybody as incensed about the Red Dawn remake as Jake and Bryan? I don't think so. Give a listen to the Garagecast podcast, why don't you?

Phil Hendrie Podcast
I think the best way to encapsulate our inclusion of a clip from the Phil Hendrie Podcast is to run my review of same which ran last week in This Week In Comedy Podcast over on Spiltsider.com:

Good things DO come to those who wait! Years ago, living in Northern California, my only reliable access to Phil Hendrie’s KFI radio show out of Los Angeles was the occasional CDs of the show my friend Matt would send me. And any time I was in the southland, I’d gobble up as much Hendrie as my ears would hold. Hendrie created some of the most original and hilarious programming to be found on radio. NOW he’s making hours and hours of past moments available via his daily podcast. Dr. Jim Sadler’s his guest in this epi, and he’s giving hints on how to get people to move along that are blocking your way in the fast lane on the freeway. “Get right up on their bumper and highbeam ‘em!” urges the doc. “Nobody ever gets mad. In fact, they appreciate you letting them know they’re going too slow.” And if that pokey driver ahead of you is handicapped? “Four short blasts of the horn lets them know you’re back there,” adds Sadler. No one messes with me – I was an all-star wrestler and one look of my well-muscled arm resting on the windowtells folks I mean business.” The people who call into the show are increasingly outraged the more outlanding Sadler gets and even Hendrie cautions him about going to far. Spoiler Alert: Hendrie IS Dr. Jim. And he’s even one of the outraged callers. But the other callers often don’t get the gag…and neither will you until you hear a few episodes and get hip to Hendrie.

Mental Poison
Bill and the rest of the East Coast crew of Mental Poison made it safely through Hurricane Sandy a couple of weeks ago. Now they just need to survive more fantastically lame-brained marketing ideas from Brian…

The Bugle
This clip is a slice of the well-crafted and droll wrap-up of the USA’s presidential election, seen through the British filter provided by hosts John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman. We've played a few clips from The Bugle before, and we'll continue to play samples of this great show until you finally relent and subscribe to it!

TOFOP
Thirty Odd Feet Of Podcast is a show I've not heard before, although I did catch a few minutes of co-host Wil Anderson at last month's first ever Los Angeles Podcast Festival. Highly recommended by Jabs, Wil's an Aussie stand-up who's at the top of the pile, while his partner-in-podcasting Charlie Clausen just landed a TV gig that's put their show on hiatus.

Unkempt
Does a podcaster shit in the woods? The last time we featured a clip from Unkempt, one of them had, and left it wrapped in a groddy towel. Let's see what Mike & Matt have in store this time around…

Burst O’ Durst
Our political correspondent Will Durst takes a side trip into Thanksgiving Town.

Happy Thanksgiving to our American audience - that would be Happy Thursday to the rest of you. And what an appropriate time for me to urge you to please pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi39: Hangin' with Andy Bumatai

I’ve really fallen behind in getting Succotash episodes out the door so apologies to those of you who have been trained by decades of televison and radio with their regular release of content. I’d love to be more on top of the release schedule but I have a regular fulltime gig which, if I were just sitting here with an open mic and spitballing witty bon mots off of today’s headlines, I could probably pull it off. But on this show I try to bring you snippets and bits from comedy podcasts around the interwebs and around the world and that just plain takes time.

So Epi38 is a clipless show BUT I do have a great interview with one of my favorite comedians. Andy Bumatai is from Hawaii and is IN Hawaii and made his name there as well. He gets to the mainland from time to time, which is how I first got to know him. We get into that story in the interview. I recorded my chat with Andy when I was in Honolulu back in September and I was hoping to have it up before now, because it’s got some plugs for a show Andy and some other bruddas from the islands did in the Bay Area and Southern California at the end of October. I was hoping to spread the word but it’s like my whole show is on island time of something.

Anyway, you can see Andy regularly now on YouTube with his series In The Car with Andy Bumatai. (Note: Andy's show hit the web a good half year or so before Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee debuted online.) We talk about not just this current project of Andy’s but touch on many of the other shows he’s done over the years that helped to make him as much about Hawaii as pineapple, poi and pupu platters.

Speaking of pupus, that’s one of the things mentioned on a t-shirt I’m giving away this episode! Seriously. It’s an artifact of Andy’s – a genuine black tee from a long-defunct live comedy show called Crack Up Thursdayz. The show was at Honolulu's East Side Bar & Grill. I even have a picture here of Andy wearing it. Bear in mind I have ONE, it’s a large and it’s well-worn. But it’s also been well-laundered – Andy left it in my rental car when I drove him to a show when I was in Hawaii in September. Wanna win this timeworn classic? Here's how.

Send the number of miles (or kilometers for our metric friends) between San Francisco and Honolulu to me, [email protected]. I'll draw one name from the correct guesses and mail the winner the Crack Up Thursdayz tee shirt. Be sure to include a mailing address with your emailed entry!

I was going to do a show around the 8th Annual Podcast Awards, which the voting on closes November 15th. Perfect self-contained show idea, right? I thought I’d feature clips from the ten shows in the Comedy category but, again, no time. In lieu of playing those clips, here are the shows nominated:

Beauty and Da Beast, Citizen Radio, Comedy Bang Bang, File Under Horrible, Metrobuzz, My Brother My Brother and Me, The Green Light Show, The Ramen Noodle, Walking The Room, and WTF with Marc Maron.

So get up to http://podcastawards.com and vote before November 15th. (There are a bunch of other shows in other categories as well, but we really don’t care about them here on Succotash, the COMEDY Podcast Podcast.)

With the elections upon us, don't forget that our inhouse political comedian and Ambassador to the Middle Will Durst has an ebook out! It’s called Elect to Laugh, a collection of his election year rants and observations, both from his act and from the syndicated column he does. You may even see a few familiar passages that you’d have heard right here on our Burst O’ Durst feature. Get over to Will’s site and grab it there.

Early Warning: I'll be a guest on the Functional Nerds podcast next Tuesday night, November 13th, hosted by friend-of-Succotash John Anealio and Patrick Hester. Catch it at 10 PM EST/7 PM PST at http://FunctionalNerds.com or download it later from iTunes!

Next episode not only we'll we have a full rack of clips, but I should be joined by special guest co-host Jabs from The DHead Factor podcast, Skypecasting with me from Australia!

That's it for now. Until next we meet, please be sure to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi34: Flippin' Clips

Ah. Back to an all-clip episode of Succotash, your Comedy Podcast Podcast. We have a cornucopia of clippage for this time around. Mostly new faces or, rather, voices, but some old faves, too. Purposely not clipping any of the "big" shows this time around. I’m talking the shows that get most of the attention from the media and, as a result, keep cropping up at the top of the heap on iTunes, Stitcher, etc.

There are a lot of comedy podcasts out there that get short shrift, little notice or just plain ignored. Succotash has been making an effort to beat the bushes for the harder to find podcasts and, if YOU’RE a comedy podcaster and want to get a clip on Succotash, just email us a 3 to 5 minute MP3 snippet from your show! Send it to [email protected].

I wanted to share a video with you from Frank Cronin, our Irish correspondent. He's finished his summer foray in America and is back on the Emerald Isle - Galway City, to be exact - where he's looking to finish up a college degree. His international travels the past few years have left him a little bereft of ready cash, however, and for the short haul, he's looking for a place near the university to camp until he gets his rent money together. Take a look...



All right - let's get to the rundown for the latest episode. Here's what's on tap...

I Am Idiot
We’ve featured I Am Idiot with Ben, Howard and Keith from Britain before. This clip - featuring a prank phone call from Howard where he's been challenged to mention the title to every Mel Gibson movie in the course of the conversation - is longer than we usually play. But this one was pretty entertaining so I made an exception.
 

Moment Of Clarity
Lee Camp is a comedian with an activist bent. He's very active in the Occupy movement. And his podcast, Moment Of Clarity, has 158 episodes or so, meaning he’s got this thing down. Interviews, guest, rants. It’s a pretty heady and often revolutionary blend he offers.
 
Sweet Feathery Jesus
SFJ is a cross-country, trans-Atlantic affair, with hosts Belasco, Dr. P and Booze in Texas, North Carolina and England, respectively. Some listeners seem to think that Belasco and I sound alike. Not sure about that, but the trio of them are interesting guys, sitting around on the internet, talking.

Spoodcast
The teaser for Spoodcast on their homesite reads: “Two Americans, One Canadian, and one American living in Canada walk into a bar. There’s no punchline. That’s the Spoodcast.” One of the co-hosts (and executive producer) is Matthew Dean. Another dude is named Joel. No idea who the other fellows are - more info on the website, guys!
 
Dr. Matt

Matthew Dean (see above) also produces and stars in Dr. Matt. This unlicensed head shrinker bills himself as “half Dr. Phil, half Stephen colbert and half Dalai Lama." Ever since our favorite Dr. Feelgood Bob Ducca and his Affirmation Nation went silent back in February, podcasting has needed a self-help guru. Could Dr. Matt be the answer? Maybe so…
 
Combat Radio 
We played a clip from Combat Radio two episodes ago when Phil Leirness was our guest co-host. I asked Sargent-At-Arms Ethan Dettenmaier for another little taste of the show and he shot us over a short blast with Captain Cool Billy Dee Williams.
 
The Brit & The American
Thomas Moore and Alba Lewis over at The Brit and The American were so tickled that we played their clip that they recorded a special little thank you in the course of their podcast. I was tickled about that that I'm playing it in this episode.
 
From Out Of Nowhere (aka FOON)
We play a first clip from the From Out Of Nowhere podcast — or FOONcast — with hosts Rob Kern and Eric Furniss. It's a music and comedy-oriented show, with lots of guests, such as Marc Maron and Marshall Crenshaw. This clip features the guys’ visit with Blue Oyster Cult singer/guitarist Eric Bloom, and they ask him about the infamous SNL “more cowbell” sketch.
 
Remasculate 

Comedian Steve "Mudflap" McGrew has been featured on Comedy Central and other TV venues. Now he’s fired up a podcast called Remasculate, featuring various guests including his wife. In this sample, Steve comments on a news article about the Top 10 Hated jobs in America.

Proudly Resents 
We’ve featured Adam Spiegelman before and with good reason: He gets some kickass guests. This time around he chats with Tony Clifton, the sometimes alter ego of late comedian Andy Kaufman and sometimes alter ego of Bob Zmuda. This clip has a great untold Jim Carrey tale.

We close out this edition in the usual fashion, with a visit by raging moderate political comedian Will Durst, this time giving us his take on the recently-wrapped Republican National Convention.

Until next time, please remember to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi28: Hawaiian With David Lee

Greetings, Succotashians! I think this may be a record of time between episodes for the show. Apologies for the delay. Work, mostly, and I'm three weeks into a new diet which took some reconfiguring of my energy reserves to get the show done.

Good news is that the diet's going well - dropped about 15 pounds in 3 weeks - but now Succotash is bloated. This week's epi runs about an hour and 15 minutes. We have much clippage to share, a funny song by Britcom Isabel Fay that's burning up the internet, a classic spot from our friends at Henderson's Pants, and our Burst O' Durst with our Ambassador to The Middle WIll Durst.

The core of our show this time around is my interview with Hawaiian comedian David Lee.

I first heard about David from his father when I was vacationing on Oahu last year. His dad's a bartender at the Outrigger Canoe Club and as we got to talking, he seemed a little less than pleased that his boy was pursuing the comedy, and was doing it in Colorado Springs of all places. Being a supporter of those who have chosen the noble profession, I was determined to get David a little attention, so I tracked him down and we got this epi's interview recorded via Skype a few days ago.

 

His journey to the comedy stage is an interesting one, especially when you consider that not many stand-ups get their start as a drug dealer. David reveals that and more in our chat. 

I wanted to give a nudge to some of the places you can get Succotash nowadays, in addition to the omnipresent iTunes. Stitcher Smart Radio is a great way to stream our show to your device, whether you're on an Android or iOS gadget. And each episode gets rebroadcast over at Clutch & Wiggle Entertainment Radio, so you can pick us up there. Then there are a couple of other apps to check out as well. I've been talking up Podbay, which taps directly into iTunes' podcast library and stream whatever you select to your iDevice. And now Apple has just launched their own podcast app, which allows you to select, stream and/or download your favorite shows. 

Enough biz. Let's get to the stuff. Here's what's what on Epi28:
 
Probably Science
Your affable podscientists Matt Kirshen, Brooks Wheelan and Andy Wood return, along with their guest Bil Dwyer of TV's Battlebot fame. Thesse guys have such a good time kicking around some every day sorts of stories that this clip doesn't even get into the meaty, sciencey part of the show. (Incidentally, I'm reviewing this particular epi of PS as part of This Week In Comedy Podcasts over on Splitsider this week!)
 
I Am Idiot
Howard, Ben and Keith continue to crankout the p’casts and give us Yanks hope that not everyone in the UK is as sophisticated and cultured as that English accent would have us believe.
 
Proudly Resents
Billing itself as “The Cult Movie Podcast”, this show tends to be pretty funny, thank to host Adam Spiegelman and his guests, who are frequently comedians. In this case, guest Bobcat Goldthwait gets together for Part 1 of a two-part interview. The clip we have features Bobcat talking about how some famous people got in (and out) of his directorial debut, the cult curio Shakes The Clown.
 
Rob & Joe Show
Rob Maher and Joe Robinson do their show live every Monday night on http://RobAndJoeShow.com. They’ve got features and guests, just like a real radio show. In the clip they've sent along, they’re talking about a potential new snack food: Dolphin!
 
Sal & Angelo Podcast
Local (to me) podcast by San Francisco comics Sal Calanni and Angelo recently featured an interview with standup Kellen Erskine. We feature a clip with Kellen relating his perspective on the topic of auditioning for TV shows like Last Comic Standing and America's Got Talent.
 
Thank You Hater by Clever Pie & Isabel Fay
People complain that the internet has become a place where people get away with posting outrageous things to others, mostly because they’re anonymous and there’s no retribution. Isabel Fay is a comedian in Britain who has decided to go after her faceless detractors in song. I wonder how many of the trolls Isabel is talking about in Thank You Hater have seen her video? 

  

Electric Bonnoland

Comedian/musician/artist Chris Bonno has done audio podcasts before but Electric Bonnoland is video and truly weird. Chris’ guest is friend-of-Succotash and TV’s Dean Haglund, from the Chillpak Hollywood Hour. We've got the meaty part of the audio on our podcast, but Electic Bonnoland has to be seen to be...seen.

  

Mimberz & The A-Hole

I don’t know a lot about Mimberz and The A-Hole, a couple of guys podcasting “proudly out of Tampa, Florida”. But they’re past 50 epis now and they’re not afraid to talk about anything. Click in for a taste of MATA…

The Rigid Fist
New to the podcast scene is The Rigid Fist, an offering from Britain hosted by Kat Soren.(CORRECTION: The show's from Australia! Sorry, Kat!) I don’t know a whole lot about it, just that it’s getting some early talk up from some of the guys that like us — Royal & Doodall, Gee & Jay — the usual suspects. It seems to be Kat by himself but I’ve gotten the one clip. According to the homesite, there’s Uncle Morty and then various random guests. Kat sent in a rather sketchy boyhood tale.

That's pretty much going to do it for your load of Succotash this time around. Don't hog the plate - when you're done, be sure to pass it around!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi23: Dana Carvey Returns...With Backup

It's been roughly a year this month since I started Succotash and it's been an very interesting journey just getting to this point. Originally I foresaw us moving into a weekly model but as you can see, with us just now getting to Epi23, we didn't even get to a pair of shows a month. I've been working on streamlining the workflow, however, and hopes are that the remainder of 2012 will see more Succotash more often!

 

Dana Carvey, Tom Carvey & Frank Cronin

For the third time, Dana Carvey graces us in Studio P ("The Home of The Hit!") and he's not alone. Frank Cronin is a globetrotting Irishman, capturing his journeys on video and posting on YouTube on his Glowpunk channel.

Currently in the United States for as long as his visa holds out, he's going to travel the country with his video camera, grabbing as much Americana as his hard drive will hold. This is Frank's very first podcast appearance, which makes this a Succotash exclusive. And, in another excloo, we also have Tom Carvey, in the studio — Dana's breakdancing teenage son. (Although there's no breakdancing in the show, Frank WILL have a video up soon featuring Tom's crew doing their thing.)

 

Early in this show, I feature an audio clip from THIS video by Frank, called Cliff Jump. It's all about plunging off rocky ledges into the freezing cold North Atlantic on the coast of Ireland. Here's the video in its entirety...

Even with all of these guests, we got in a pile of comedy podcast clips AND our Burst O' Durst. Of course, the show also runs a full hour and a half. (Try THAT on terrestrial radio!) Here's who we have this time out:

 

PF's Tape Recorder

PF Wilson uses his tape recorder to capture life's little moments (TV, too) and then the clips he selects are the springboards for commentary and sketches. This particular taste deals with a not-too-bright, pooch-stealing cable guy. The show's an inventive idea. Get more nuggets from the source, at either http://pfradio.podbean.com/ or on iTunes.

 

The Gee & Jay Show

I've referred to guest Frank Cronin as Succotash's Irish interpreter in the past but he earns his keep this show as we spin three clips from Belfast's The Gee & Jay Show. These lads - Gavin and James - host a rollicking time and the more listen the more you understand. For more immersion, hit http://geeandjayshow.com/ or iTunes.

 

The JV Club

This new podcast on the Nerdist site is hosted by actress/comedian/SF Sketchfest organizer Janet Varney. More conversation than interview, Janet goes one-on-one with a female guest who, like Janet, is in the entertainment world. In this clip, her guest is comedian Natasha Leggero. You can get extra helpings of the JV Club over at http://www.nerdist.com/podcast/the-jv-club/ or on iTunes.

 

Jay V Mail

This podcast, hosted by Jay V and Brady, started back in 2005, making it one of the earliest podcasts around. But then it disappeared two years later, only to reappear last year. Simple premise: Jay V answers his mail. One letter, one episode. They rarely run over 10 minutes. The hot button topic this clip? Zombies. More? Go: http://www.blubrry.com/jayvmail/, iTunes or Stitcher Smart Radio.

 

Don't Quit Your Daycast

DQYD is a new show, with about a dozen epi's now. And it's hosted by friend-of-Succotash Ed Wallick, who continues to sharpen his wit on bits of rant. Turns out that Ed doesn't like it when dismembered human feet wash up on his nearby beach. Who knew? Find Ed lurking at http://dontquityourdaycast.com/ as well as on iTunes.

 

I Am Idiot

Ben, Keith and Howard (they put the i's in Idiot…) are back for a second time, this time because one of the boy's has scribbled a children's book. Spoiler Alert: It sucks. And the others are only too happy to critique it. More in store at http://www.iamidiotcentral.com/ or on iTunes.

 

The Green Room

We haven't featured Sean Green's little slice of podcastland since one of our very first episodes, so it's good to be back in touch. And there's a great story by his guest Tess Barker about when her dad tried to scare her straight. Didn't work. But funny getting there. Drop into the Green Room at http://seantgreen.com/, iTunes or Stitcher.

 

The Thom & Jeff Show

These former radio guys - Thom and Jeff - have found a new lease on broadcasting life by jumping into a podcast. In this clip, they're playing a little something they like to call The Fuck No Game. Get more fun features and laughs at http://thethomandjeffshow.com/ or on iTunes.

 

Burst O' Durst

This time around, our in-house political pundit Will Durst points out how we can expect to watch Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney morph his performance and perspective into something that an unsuspecting moderate or liberal might fall for...if they were brain dead. Get more Durst at http://WillDurst.com or catch his tweet on Twitter @WillDurst.

 

Things to remember: Rate Succotash on iTunes! Your rankings and reviews help to push us out into the light where more people can see us! Also, click on the Donate button on the website to contribute to the Save Our Hard Drive Drive! Will less than a hundred bucks so far, we may never get this drive fixed and the trapped interviews off of it. so give, won't you? And buy some merch at the Succotashery! Just click the link on our blog page.

 

That's it. Until next time, please pass the Succotash!

 

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi20: Chatting With Kenny & Dorien

I had no idea it was going to take this long to get to the next episode of Succotash. Between moving, a bum hard drive and the day gig (you don't think podcasting actually pays, do you?), it's been hard to scrape this epi together. But because it's been so long since the last show, I kicked in an extra half hour of audio goodness.

Dorien Davies and Kenny Stevenson

The core of this epi is my interview with Kenny Stevenson and Dorien Davies, a couple of sketch players, actors and now movie "hyphenates" who were recently in range while Kenny's group Oh, Brother! was performing in the 2012 San Francisco Sketchfest. (A few years ago, the three of us were also heavily involved in an innovative LA-based sketch group, called Fries On The Side.) I caught them on a sunny Sunday just before they headed back down south and we did the interview in Washington Square Park. (Needless to say, the audio experience of being outside is a little different than the perfectly balanced environs of Studio P - so please bear with the lesser sound quality.)

Kenny and Dorien not only talk about their experiences going through training and performances with The Groundlings in LA, but the excitement of writing, producing and starring in their first feature-length film. Missed Connections is heading for film festivals starting this month, so get the inside scoop on how it all came about right here.

During a break in the interview, I play Drinking Beer And Smoking Cigarettes, a novelty comedy song by comedian Perry Kurtz that dropped on YouTube less than a month ago and already has almost a million hits.

Tacking on an extra half-hour allows us to hear a decent number of podcast clips as well. Here are the shows in store for you, along with links to their homesites:

• Way Too Hip Radio

I've been meaning to get a clip up from LyonHart and Labrat for some time. I had an interview with LyonHart back when Succotash was just a few episodes old and they've been big supporters of the show You can check them out live every Monday night at 7 PM EST at http://WayTooHip.com or afterwards on iTunes.

• The Dana Gould Hour

Our clip is harvested from the second-ever episode of The Dana Gould Hour, a brand new offering from the show's namesake, who is a very funny comedian and writer (most notably on The Simpsons). In this segment, he's joined by fellow comic and writer Ed Crasnick. This and all future episodes of TDGH can be had at http://DanaGould.com and on iTunes.

• Probably Science

What is it about comedians and science? From Bill Nye, The Science Guy to the Professor Blastoff podcast, they go together like Goober's peanut butter and jelly. This newcomer to the podcast fold (less than a dozen 'sodes so far) features a trio of self-avowed "professional comedians and incompetent scientists" - Matt Kirshen, Brooks Wheelan, and Andy Wood - who take a look at science-oriented items in the news and have at them. Episodes also features guests, such as this clip from epi7 with Kyle Kinane. Catch up with the eggheads at http://ProbablyScience.com and iTunes.

• Royal & Doodall

This pair of rollicking Brits - Angus Doodall and Tommy Royal - have been stalwart retweeters of our Succotash Twitter feed and are fans of the show, despite the fact we haven't gotten around to playing a clip from their show...until now. In this clip, a segment they call "Redneck Sports", you'll hear their impression of a couple of Southern-fried hicks. There's a lot more to be had at http://RoyalAndDoodall.podbean.com or on iTunes.

• The Anti-Semantic Show

These spirited East Coasters - Ryan Anti-Hero, Pinder, Pradogod and Drew - describe themselves gleefully as "four assholes with microphones" so prepare to take the show as advertised. It's all in good fun, of course, including this clip where they're talking about possible ways, if unconventional, ways to protect yourself from a wolf attack. Find more fun at http://anti.libsyn.com and iTunes.

• Snitch & Lins

This is why it helps to reach out and let us know about your comedy podcast. Michael Snitch and Lindsey Price have just dropped their 30th 'sode and I'd never heard of them until they shot me a clip from their show. Have a listen and go find yourself a bunch more at http://SnitchAndIns.com or on iTunes. You can even see them here on YouTube.

We close the show with a Burst O' Durst, our episodic commentary by political comic and raging moderate Will Durst. Find more of his insights at http://WillDurst.com and follow him on Twitter @WillDurst.

To help remind you that we now have merchandise, faithful listener Mary Bernstein got herself a Succotash baseball jersey and is currently using a picture of her in it as her Twitter avatar (follow her @MaryElizabethhB). Take a look...

Finally, I've found a good use for funds that we take in through our Donate button on the website. (You DO know that we are listener-supported, right?) I have several very good interviews with comedian friends that are trapped on the faulty hard drive I mentioned way back at the start of this blog. turns out that it's going to cost a cool $1000 bucks to retrieve the data off that drive, so I'm kicking off the Succotash Save Our Hard Drive Drive! So far, we've still got $988 to go, so give generously won't you? And we'll see you back here next time.

Until then, please pass the Succotash!

Cheers,

Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi17: Happy 2012!

Back with producer Joe Paulino in Studio P for this New Year kickoff show! Succotash Epi 17 is stuffed full o' clips, this time a look back at some of my personal favorite p'casts. But we're only retreading a couple of cuts — I've selected a bunch of recent clips from amongst the podcasts I tend to listen to most (when I'm not scanning, scrolling and slicing up bits n' pieces of the known and unknown p'casts that have yet to grace our show...)

2011 was a banner year for Succotash, mainly because we kicked this whole mess off last April. Our first lucky break was getting a kickass theme song provided to us by our musical director Scott Carvey. And we've gotten a lot of nice ratings on iTunes (but we can always use more!), kindly comments on Twitter, got picked up by Stitcher Smart Radio, and yours truly started contributing reviews weekly to This Week In Comedy Podcasting over on Splitsider.com.

On the downside, we have yet to attract a sponsor (besides Henderson's Pants who, between you and me, doesn't pay us squat), which led to the brilliant idea of trying out being listener supported. While I'd love to be able to say this is your Succotash, not a single soul has clicked over there on the sponsor button since we put it up. Which means this is still my Succotash, damn it!

We're sure glad you're listening, of course, and we welcome your emails, tweets, and voicemails called into our Succotash hotline (1-818-921-7212). We're looking forward to an amazing 2012 — in addition to our usual lineup of funny, new, and interesting podcast clips from around the internet, we're looking into doing some live shows, hooking you up with some more amazing interviews, and just having a whole lot more fun before the Mayan prophesy takes over and kicks our butts in December...

Here's what we're serving up this episode:

Affirmation Nation

Can I play too much of Bob Ducca? I think not. To prove it, here's a rundown of everybody's favorite ex-stepdad with a list of his New Year's resolutions. Seth Morris kicked off this series over on Earwolf this year and the world's never been a brighter yet sad sackier place.

Comedy Bang Bang

Another offering from Earwolf — this time from one of its founders and operating partners, Scott Aukerman — CBB changed its handle from Comedy Death Ray Radio this past year but has retained its commitment to keep providing warped, weird and funny stuff thundering down the pipeline.

The David Feldman Radio Show

Ringmaster David Feldman is an old buddy of mine from his San Francisco standup days, but that's not why we feature him on Succotash. It's because his show is inventive, funny and often hard-hitting when it comes to taking the world's politicobankstershitheads down a peg or five.

Fitzdog Radio

There's something endearing about Greg Fitzsimmon's sincerity even when his humor gets biting. He has few qualms when it comes to exposing his own faults to his audience, a disarming quality which tends to make his guests open up (probably more than they were expecting to.) This clip is a sample of him at his soul-bearing best.

Mike And Tom Eat Snacks