Victoria Vincent! Comedian! Friend! Delight!

Victoria is a super funny comedian!  We have a great chat! You can have a great listen! Enjoy! PS This is only the FIRST half of our chat.  For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over to Patreon!

Des Bishop! Comedian! Author! Polyglot! Delight! Des is a super funny comic and here is the proof in the form of nice things that have been said about him and it:

“Funny, erudite and effortlessly delivered.” - The Scotsman

“Charismatic, sincere, eloquent and always seeking the angle.”- Chortle

“Fast paced and clever. A sure-fire winner.” - The Sunday Age, Melbourne

Des Bishop’s new comedy special, Of All People, is an hour of original stand-up and a culmination of years of experience on stage all over including in Queens, Ireland, and China. Bishop crafts high-energy stories and jokes, bringing the audience on a wildly entertaining ride through tales of his international travels and the gap between his looks and attitude. The openness and honesty of his presenting style combined with his restless imagination and perceptive observations make Des Bishop a must-see for fans of unique, insightful and provocative comedy.

Des’s material often focuses on cultural differences he noticed being a transplant into Irish Society from Queens, NY at a young age. He always incorporates a lot of material about language. He is likely the only comic many of us will see doing some of the set in Mandarin and some in Irish, which he learned so he could do comedy while living in China and Ireland. He spent 1 year in China to learn Mandarin and 1 year in Ireland to learn Irish, and he’s done 60 minutes of comedy in both languages. And he remains an international presence, with a home and massive career in Ireland, and a life in the United States. 

Of All People is the third hour from Des Bishop. You can see the special as of Oct 22, 2024, on the 800 Pound Gorilla Media YouTube channel and comedy hub.  

About Des Bishop:

Now a massive star in Ireland, native New Yorker Des Bishop moved from Queens to Ireland in his mid-teens in 1990. The openness and honesty of his presenting style combined with his restless imagination and perceptive comic observations make Des Bishop a must-see for fans of unique, insightful and provocative comedy.

He came to Irish fame with TV shows, The Des Bishop Work Experience (2004), where he lived on minimum wage working different jobs in Ireland, Joy In The Hood, where he taught stand-up comedy in disadvantaged areas of four major Irish cities, and In The Name Of The Fada (2008, winner of the IFTA Best TV Series Award) about when he decided to learn Irish from scratch and perform a 60-minute stand-up comedy routine in the Irish language.

In 2010, Des wrote his most personal show called My Dad Was Nearly James Bond, inspired by his father, Mike who was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Bishop won an Irish Book Of The Year Award for his memoir of the same name, and brought a solo show version to the Edinburgh Fringe to widespread acclaim and five-star reviews. In 2013, Bishop went to Beijing, China to learn Mandarin. He is now fluent and the show about his experience, Breaking China was another major hit series with another acclaimed Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Des has appeared on many live stand-up shows including Edinburgh Comedy Festival Live (BBC), Live at the Comedy Store (Comedy Central) and Australia’s Spicks and Specks (ABC). He was also the star of HBO’s A Comic’s Climb, his Aspen Comedy Festival debut in 2005.

He has released five best selling stand-up DVDs and his new digital special, Of All People comes out Oct 22, 2024 on 800 Pound Gorilla Media after his specials One Day You’ll Understand (RTE 2018) and Made in China (Universal 2015). 

About this podcast:

You can listen to it! AND this is only the first HALF of my conversation with Des. For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over here to Patreon! Thanks and love, all!

Jenny Chalikian! Erin Judge! Comedians! Friends! Delights! More! Erin Judge and Jenny Chalikian have a new combo comedy out now called Romantic Comedy: Live At The Ripped Bodice, available everywhere comedy is streamed or sold.

ABOUT THE ALBUM: Erin and Jenny have been hosting a monthly comedy showcase at the Los Angeles romance bookstore The Ripped Bodice since 2016. For this stand-up album, Erin and Jenny opened the show together, then each performed long sets of their own material. The result is a delightful and hilarious glimpse into what these two dynamic co-hosts experience in their day-to-day lives as queer women in LA.

The two met performing comedy in North Carolina in 2012 (Erin was on tour; Jenny was local). After making LA their home, they approached Leah and Bea Koch, sisters and co-owners of The Ripped Bodice, about launching a monthly comedy showcase at the bookstore just a few weeks after it opened. Leah and Bea agreed to give them a shot, and Erin and Jenny named the new show Romantic Comedy.

By bringing some of the best voices in LA comedy to the mostly-women book lovers that make up Ripped Bodice audiences, they built Romantic Comedy into a unique and fun monthly event that’s beloved by fans and comics alike. When Erin and Jenny started talking about making an album, they knew that The Ripped Bodice would be the perfect venue, and they were thrilled that Blonde Medicine was on board for a joint comedy album.

Romantic Comedy: Live at The Ripped Bodice features both comics performing together up top, just like they do every month. Since Jenny is a regular caregiver of Erin’s two kids, their unique chosen family inspires a refreshing departure from the usual parenting material, that is still relatable to anyone who has to cope with the ridiculous and unexpected challenges of raising kids.  Erin shares stories of dealing with being old-pregnant and reluctantly polyamorous, and Jenny jokes about coming of age as a college gay in North Carolina and being a godmother with intense demon-fighting responsibilities. 

​​

ABOUT ERIN JUDGE:

Erin Judge is an accomplished comedian, writer, and performer. She co-wrote (with Tina Romero) the forthcoming horror comedy film Queens of the Dead, starring Margaret Cho, Katy O’Brian, Jaquel Spivey and more. Erin also wrote the award-winning novel Vow of Celibacy. Her previous comedy album, So Many Choices, is also available on Blonde Medicine.

ABOUT JENNY CHALIKIAN:

LA-based comedian Jenny Chalikian started out in North Carolina and quickly fell in love with stand-up comedy. After landing in LA in 2015, Jenny honed her voice working as a manager and a regular performer at the popular alt-comedy venue NerdMelt. Jenny blends observational comedy with personal anecdotes that touch on themes of identity, relationships, and the quirks of daily life.

​ ABOUT YOU: You are someone reading these words, considering listening to this podcast and I commend you for it. ABOUT THIS PODCAST EPISODE: This is only the first HALF of the conversation I had with Jenny and Erin.  For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely click on over here to Patreon! Thanks and love, all!

Shain Brenden! Comedian! Friend! Delight! His new album is Either Way, Pretty Funny! ABOUT THIS ALBUM: On this debut album, Shain paints a picture of a guy trying his best with what he’s got: being outnumbered and bullied by the women in his family, getting kicked out of an ultrasound appointment, and defending his completely appropriate and not weird at all love of NBA rookies. He closes it all out with an original slam poem with a topic untouched by poets at large: working the drive-thru at McDonald's.

ABOUT SHAIN BRENDEN:​

When a sandstorm left his unit stranded in Afghanistan on Christmas Day, Portland-favorite and military veteran Shain Brenden did his first set during an impromptu talent show. He’s since traded in his uniform for a microphone and for over a decade has been featured on Don’t Tell Comedy, on SiriusXM Radio, and at various comedy clubs and festivals around the country. Now, Black & Filipino-American comedian, writer, and actor, Shain is proudly the second most famous person from Millington, Tennessee (after Justin Timberlake). PLEASE ENJOY! PS This is only the first HALF of our chat.  For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over here to Patreon! Thanks and love, all!

Courtney Maginnis! Comedian! Friend! Delight! Her new special is called White Noise and it's free on Youtube RIGHT NOW! She is funny and nice and we have a great chat and you can have a great listen! Please do! PS This is only the first HALF of our chat! For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over here to Patreon! Thanks and love, all!

Jesse David Fox! Author! Podcaster! Comedy lover! Friend! Delight! Jesse's book COMEDY BOOK is out in paperback RIGHT NOW! I have read it and I love it and I recommend it to you, as a person who has read it and loved it. He also has a podcast called Good One: A Podcast About Jokes! AND he is developing a class based on the ideas in the book called COMEDY CLASS to help comedians develop their voice as artists. He tells me that this is super in the nascent stage but people can sign up for more information through the link in his instagram bio. Jesse loves comedy and his love of comedy comes through in his writing about it and talking about it on podcasts like his own AND MINE WHICH IS THIS ONE RIGHT HERE! Thanks for reading and listening! PS This is only the first HALF of our chat! For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely click on over here to Patreon!

Caroline Clifford! Comedian! Comedy coach! Friend! Delight! You can find out about her classes and online coaching here! You can read her excellent newsletter on Substack here! And you can listen to our fun and meaningful conversation HERE! (Where you already are.) PS This is only the first half of our chat. For part two, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR simply head on over here to Patreon!

Wil Sylvince! Comedian! Actor! Filmmaker! Friend! Delight! More!

Wil is a great comic and a great dude I've known for a long time and I'm happy to have this conversation with him that you can listen to because that's how a podcast works. Also this is only the first HALF of our chat. For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR just head on over here to Patreon!

Carmen Lagala! Comedian! Podcaster! Friend! Delight! Her new special "Sweet Batch" is on YouTube, her instagram is @carmstagrams, her podcast is In Cahoots with Corey and Carmen, and her website is www.carmenlagala.com.  We have a great chat! You have a great listen! Please enjoy! PS this is only PART ONE OF A TWO-PART CONVERSATION! For part two, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR simply head on over here to Patreon!

Daniel Van Kirk! Comedian! Actor! Writer! Podcast host! Friend! Delight! Guy with a new special out now called Rose Gold! ABOUT ROSE GOLD:

Rose Gold is a Midwestern man’s wish that we all stop finding ways to disagree, start high-fiving strangers again, and party in Wisconsin. Daniel laments the assumptions we make about his shaved-head and bearded appearance, dictates when old people should and shouldn’t be treated kindly, and teaches us how to have a fight while also putting some goodness into this world. He draws from his youth in Rochelle, IL, his formative years in Chicago, and his time spent at Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Resort. 

Rose Gold is named for Daniel’s grandmother Rosemary, who at 94 years old is a living example of what it means to just roll with whatever life throws at you. Says Dainiel “We live in a time of generational divides and hell, the people who are running our country are extremely old. But a section of this hour is about how old people still have to live in this current time and for me, Rosemary is a shining example of that.” 

The process of creating this hour was a search for commonality. Rose Gold is an hour of comedy for everyone who simply wants to have a good time again.

ABOUT DANIEL VAN KIRK:

Daniel Van Kirk is a stand-up comedian whose comedy has charted at  #1 on Apple Music. He’s been named a “Comic To Watch” by Comedy Central as well as one of JFL’s 42 in Toronto. You may know him from his characters on Bob’s Burgers (FOX), Physical (Apple TV+), Central Park (Apple TV+), and the lead in the feature film, Wine Club (Prime). Daniel can also be heard every week on the hit podcasts, Pen Pals with partner Rory Scovel, and co-hosting Dumb People Town along with The Sklar Brothers. ABOUT THIS PODCAST: You can listen to it! Also, this is only the first HALF of our conversation. For part two, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over here to Patreon!