Comic/Writer Jim Vallely talks about dignity, flirting, young people, being a joke guy, Arrested Development, Golden Girls, My Wife & Kids, Don Reo, our mutual love of The Rockford Files, how being broke is good motivation, having a daughter who's working while you're unemployed, jokes vs emotional engaging of the characters, casting is 1/3 of a show, boyish only lasts so long, trying to not be an asshole, Sit N Spin, late night rewrites because the show runner has "heard that one before", Bea Arthur and Betty White could do no wrong, mentors, bad notes, the business working itself out, & watching Carl Reiner transform into Alan Brady.Bio Jim Vallely was in a comedy duo in 80’s, who were good enough to the tonight show three times in the eighties…Then he wrote for The Golden Girls, Two and Half Men and Arrested Development for which he won an Emmy and a Writers guild award.  He hasn’t had to borrow money from his relatives in forty years.

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Comic, Writer, Podcast Greg Fitzsimmons talks about growing up in a the son of a well known radio personality who lived large but was a tough dad, learning how to be a fighter, being a Boston comic when being brave was more important than being funny.  The power struggles on Ellen. Being on the road. Having kids and dealing with them differently than his family did. Actually living past the age of his dad’s death. And why the Rizzler is a spokesman for his generation. 

Bio: Greg has achieved success as a stand-up, an Emmy Award winning writer, and host of the hugely popular FitzDog Radio podcast. He is a regular on Conan and Jimmy Kimmel Live, and has made more than 50 visits to The Howard Stern Show, 20 trips to The Joe Rogan Experience and has become a regular on “Lights Out w/ David Spade”.Greg’s one-hour Netflix special, Life On Stage, was named a Top 10 Comedy Release by LA Weekly.  His 2011 book, Dear Mrs. Fitzsimmons, climbed the best-seller charts and garnered outstanding reviews from NPR and Vanity Fair.  Greg was recently seen in the hit Netflix series, Santa Clarita Diet, he co-starred on the Emmy-winning FX series Louie, spent five years as a panelist on VH1’s Best Week Ever, hosted Pumped on The Speed Channel in 2012 and he starred in two half-hour stand-up specials on Comedy Central. Greg wrote on the hit Judd Apatow HBO series, Crashing, HBO’s Lucky Louie, Cedric the Entertainer Presents, Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, The Man Show and many others.  On his mantle beside the four Daytime Emmys he won as a writer and producer on The Ellen DeGeneres Show sit “The Jury Award for Best Comedian” from The HBO Comedy Arts Festival and a Cable Ace Award for the MTV game show he hosted called Idiot Savants.

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On today’s AUDIO ONLY show we talk about the value of anonymity, how to try and not let The Simpsons take over your life, being writers and actors, bad auditions, the value of improv, The Tracey Ullman Show, Chicago (the city), singing dancing, the thoughts behind jokes, being actors and writers, the origin of The Simpsons, how actors often know their characters better than writers, being a creative couple, improvising plays, how to not be precious about your ideas, visual art, do we need an audience, the joys of being a character actor, Krusty the Clown, John Waters, and Marlon Brando!

Bio: DAN CASTELLANETA is Co-Executive Producer and four-time Emmy recipient for his work (Homer, Grandpa, Krusty, etc.) on The Simpsons. Besides acting in numerous film, TV, and theater roles, he has written for The Simpsons (WGA Nominated “Kiss Kiss Bang Bangalore”), and The Tracey Ullman Show.

He performed his acclaimed one-man show WHERE DID VINCENT VAN GOGH? in LA, NYC, Chicago, Edinburgh Theatre Festival, Aspen HBO Comedy Festival. He starred as the acerbic Oscar Levant, in his play FOR PIANO AND HARPO (Garry Marshall Theater, Burbank). His play A PURPLE DAWN premiered at Geneva College and Northwestern College, Iowa, BINKY PETUNIA (Little Renegade Theatre, LA). Other plays, co-written with Deb Lacusta: THE BANANA TREE (Telluride Playwrights Festival, Adirondack Theater Festival, Bloomington Playwrights Project), FRANKENSTEIN’S DAUGHTER (Here for Now Theatre, Stratford, Ontario), FORTUNES, as well as FOOD COURT, and THE SONS OF MOTHERS.

A Second City alum, Dan co-founded the improv scenario group Instant Theater Chicago and the Improv Co-op LA. He also co-wrote and co-directed the award-winning film The Long Isolation.

DEB LACUSTA is a writer, improvisational actress, and video artist. She has written numerous episodes of The Simpsons (WGA Nominated “Kiss Kiss Bang Bangalore”). Co-writing with Dan Castellaneta: THE BANANA TREE (Telluride Playwrights Festival, Bloomington Playwrights Project, Adirondack Theater Festival), SHOCK & AWW (Sci-Fest LA, Outstanding Short Plays, Vol. 4), ROSEBUD and DYNAMITE SALES (UCSB, Dramatic Publishing); EARTHERS and PIECES OF EIGHT (Organic Theater/Chicago, Theatre 6470/LA), FRANKENSTEIN’S DAUGHTER (Here for Now Theatre, Stratford, Ontario), FORTUNES, and OLD MAN IN A BIG CAR (Fanatic Salon Theatre, starring Paul Dooley).  She starred in and produced Castellaneta’s play FOR PIANO AND HARPO premiering at the Garry Marshall Theatre LA. She co-founded, with Castellaneta, the improv scenario group Instant Theater Chicago, and the Improv Co-op LA. She also co-wrote, co-directed and produced The Long Isolation, which has won numerous film festivals awards, and the art film Starring Marlon Brando. BGS University of Michigan, BFA Otis College of Art, MFA Art Center College of Design. Her art and video performance work has been seen in museums and art galleries here and abroad.

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Author David Wolinsky talks about whether the internet is helping or hurting more, AI destroying movies and TV, dopamine addiction, The Onion, going cold turkey on social media, the email monster, and the idea that asking questions without having the answers is better than trying to figure it out.

Bio: He's a former Onion editor best known for once interviewing the watermelon-smashing comedian Gallagher turned oral historian, author, and documentary researcher. Now, he's very much in the "serious" business. His journey into oral history began with an independent initiative following Gamergate in 2014, where he recognized a gap in traditional journalism's ability to address emerging issues in digital communities. In response, he conducted interviews, launched a website, and began publishing these conversations online to highlight diverse perspectives on serious issues facing media, workers in "cool" industries, and fan subcultures. He's not an academic, but Stanford wound up stepping in to preserve all the 500+ hours of interviews this entailed. This continuum of work has resulted in a book, The Hivemind Swarmed, which will be published August 2024 by Beacon Press. The oral history, which received advance praise by Ken Burns, exemplifies his ability to take initiative, conduct in-depth research, and produce insightful interviews without external funding or institutional support. (And also, his ability to get household names to take the work of a non-household name—me—seriously.)

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Alex Edelman is an outstanding stand-up, writer, and creator of Just For Us talks about making his acclaimed broadway triumph, the death of his friend and collaborator - Adam, retiring the show, loving that others can do it, always being a student, staying curious even when you know alot, being an introvert on stage, being miserable does not equate to quality, jokes that don’t quite work, me winning an Emmy, the power of greeting the fan after the show, how funny is his Rabbi, valuing religion even when you question it, the value of nuance, Jesus vs David Blaine, how do you keep your fans, known vs famous, wanting to be on The Amazing Race, reality television is not real, John Cena’s last match, and dumb conspiracy theorists.

Bio: ALEX EDELMAN - One of the most critically hailed comedians of his generation, Alex Edelman is best known for solo shows that blur the line between his stand-up comedy roots and narrative-driven storytelling. His last offering, JUST FOR US, played more than 500 performances all over the world - including acclaimed runs off- and on-Broadway. It premiered as an HBO original comedy special in April of 2024, earning him a place on the Time 100 list, a Tony Award, and an Emmy Award for Best Writing for a Variety Special. Edelman appeared in Jerry Seinfeld’s directorial debut for Netflix, UNFROSTED. Beyond stand-up, he writes regularly for TV and can next be seen starring in Peacock’s The Paper, a Greg Daniels-helmed spiritual successor to The Office. He also writes on the show as a Consulting Producer.

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Comic Writer Debbie Kasper discusses her tumultuous life and what it would take for Jay to make his one woman show.

Bio: Debbie Kasper is a multiple Emmy-nominated writer and an award-winning solo performer. After touring the country a few times over as a comedian and also with several theatrical shows she wrote & starred in, Debbie turned to television writing (Roseanne and The Rosie O'Donnell Show). She has written a few books, (You're Not That Pretty & Everything Else My Parents Told me) and contributed to several websites and anthology books. Monkeys on My Back & Everywhere Else is her fourth one-woman show. She's won awards for two of the earlier ones. After a personal tragedy, she stepped away from showbiz for almost a decade...but now she's back...in the format she loves most, and she's talking about all of it.

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Alex Edelman is an outstanding stand-up, writer, and creator of Just For Us talks about trying to be an artist, how Greg Daniels is the best writer/showrunner/teacher, The Paper, the strength he gets from friends, the music in dialogue, meeting at UnCaberet, the greatest sitcom jokes of all time, camera awareness in a mock documentary, how everyone is a director now, AI, and how Alex refuses to use it even for sex.

Bio: ALEX EDELMAN - One of the most critically hailed comedians of his generation, Alex Edelman is best known for solo shows that blur the line between his stand-up comedy roots and narrative-driven storytelling. His last offering, JUST FOR US, played more than 500 performances all over the world - including acclaimed runs off- and on-Broadway. It premiered as an HBO original comedy special in April of 2024, earning him a place on the Time 100 list, a Tony Award, and an Emmy Award for Best Writing for a Variety Special. Edelman appeared in Jerry Seinfeld’s directorial debut for Netflix, UNFROSTED. Beyond stand-up, he writes regularly for TV and can next be seen starring in Peacock’s The Paper, a Greg Daniels-helmed spiritual successor to The Office. He also writes on the show as a Consulting Producer.

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Josh Corey talks about the journey to become a boxer and why he needed to challenge himself and turning that into a podcast called “From Writer To Fighter.”  He also talks about coaches and sparring partners being key to learning, the danger and pain of it, being in the moment, becoming a writer with the encouragement of teachers, working for Jay as a writer’s assistant, the process of learning to run the room, writing with a partner, being married, going on a silent retreat, and why Matt Tarses hates Jay. 

Bio:Josh Corey is a television writer and fledgling podcaster. His recent credits include DMV on CBS and Haunted Hotel on Netflix. Together with his writing partner, he’s been writing and producing TV shows for the last twelve years. Josh’s work often explores themes of family separation and masculinity, the two funniest themes. His new podcast, From Writer to Fighter, is the true story of Josh’s attempt to fight a “real boxing match,” even though his wedding is six months away, he’s 37 years old, and has zero athletic experience.

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Liz Feldman talks about turning tragedy into comedy and drama by being open. She also talks about being a young stand-up, writing for other comics, sexual harassment in the writers room, having to be better than men, her motherhood journey, how to be a show-runner, the Groundlings, deciding that her future was writing not acting, and all the guests that won’t do my podcast but does her new podcast with Jesse Klein, “Here To Find Friends”. 

Bio: Over the course of her career, award-winning writer and producer Liz Feldman has carved a space for diverse voices and developed her own niche genre: the traumedy, which blends black comedy, heightened mystery and heartfelt drama that plumbs the darker, emotional depths of the human experience. Feldman is the creator and executive producer of the acclaimed and Emmy®-nominated Netflix series, DEAD TO ME and Netflix’s recently released NO GOOD DEED. In 2025, Feldman launched her new podcast alongside Jessi Klein, HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS, produced by Headgum. The show focuses on making new and meaningful friendships as an adult, with Feldman and Klein interviewing celebrity guests that they would very much like to be friends with.

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