Ian Talks Comedy

Chaz Jankel and I discuss his changing his name at 13; his neighborhood growing up; producing an album in Port Jefferson, NY; skiffle music; Lonnie Donnegan; being into Afro-American bands of the 60s and 70s; Mill Hill School; Jews in punk; St. Martin's School of the Arts; turning to music; buying a Wurlitzer electric piano; getting a call from Kilburn and the High Roads; meeting Ian Dury; writing songs together; "Sex and Drugs and Rock 'n' Roll"; popularizing that phrase; putting together and naming the Blockheads; Chaz's soul vs. Ian's pub band roots; Ian being institutionalized and marginalized with polio; his boarding school life was tough; Ornette Coleman inspiration; touring with Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello; Top of the Pops; how it easier to be #1 in a small country like England; "Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick", a sure and long lasting hit; hits are rare; "Wake Up and Make Love with Me"; "Inbetweenies"; comedy; living and working in New York; me going to London in July at 106 degrees; grass came back to normal color; getting lost; satellite navigation; "Spasticus Autisticus; writing his autobiography; his bizarre appearance on American Bandstand; his dance and other hits; why Ian Dury and the Blockheads never came to the US

Bobby Collins joined me and discussed Ed Sullivan; Robert Klein; Long Island Comedy Clubs; first time doing stand up; his first five minutes; following Freddie Prinze; working for Calvin Klein; being Cher's opening act; doing the Tonight Show in three different eras; testing audiences; different types of theatres; Stand Up Spotlight; having a special needs daughter; Jay Leno's work ethic; CD's and DVD's; comedy being the equalizer; dogs; not hanging with other comedians; his grandkid; staying at so many different hotels; and dinner with Sinatra and Rickles

Allison Smith joined me to talk about The Honeymooners; being in love with the Annie soundtrack; her family finding out she could sing; getting in the kids chorus of Broadway's Evita; getting Annie; her co-stars John Schuck, Harve Presnell, Alice Ghostley, and Rita Rudner; never taking a vacation in three years; only missing shows to tape a Silver Spoons; favorite song is Maybe; performing for Pres. Reagan and at Kennedy Center; Night of 100 Stars; getting Kate & Allie; taping at the Ed Sullivan Theater; memorable episodes; working with Jane Curtin & Susan St. James; getting down to a 4 day week; her and Ari's characters; being in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade; game shows; spokesperson for Juvenile Diabetes; anti-smoking; Friday the 13th; working with Angela Lansbury; Spy Games; Buddy Faro; her recurring role on West Wing; guesting on X-Files, ER, Will & Grace; her role as Patricia Krenwinkle in Helter Skelter; guest starring on House, Nip / Tuck, Children's Hospital, Numb3rs, CSI and Family Guy; doing ADR and reading books on tape; owing a b&b called Stonover Farm; working with the Authors Guild; writing an autobiographical fiction novel; working with Save the World; performing in We Are the World in Philadelphia in Live Aid; bootleg copies of Annie; getting her voice back in shape to possibly record an album

John Moffitt joined me to discuss doing the school news on the radio; going to Your Show of Shows live; going to Dartmouth; wanting to be a pilot; getting into the NBC management program but getting drafted; teaching Morse code; learning TV production in the army; working with Joseph Papp; hired on the Ed Sullivan Show; making videos for Good Vibrations and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds; Albert Brooks; Lily Tomlin special; turning down being the director of Saturday Night Live; producing and directing The Richard Pryor Show; censorship; Star Wars sketch; Robin Williams; Fridays; the cold open; Diner of the Living Dead; Nightline kills Fridays; getting angry letters from Ted Koppel after a sketch; Ronnie Horror Picture Show; and his 40 + year relationship with George Carlin

Ted Wass joined me to discuss watching horror movies as as a child; Lakewood Ohio; going to the Goodman School of Drama; going to NY; getting the role of Danny Zuko in Grease; being in the pilot for Handle with Care; reading the Soap pilot and wanting the role; his character arc; finding out Soap was cancelled while on Broadway; Soap protests; Danny with Chuck & Bob; playing a rabbi; recasting; working with Charles Lane, Eugene Roche, Richard Mulligan, and Billy Crystal; Triangle Shirtwaist Factory TV movie; doing made for TV movies with Valerie Bertinelli & Phoebe Cates; getting cast and shooting Curse of the Pink Panther; Oh, God You Devil with George Burns; Long Shot with Tim Conway and Harvey Korman; pilot "Mickey & Nora"; short-lived show "Men" co-starring Ving Rhames; turning down Blossom until he is allowed to direct; shadowing Bill Bixby and Jay Sandrich on "Soap"; directing himself; Blossom wins a Humanitas prize; his late wife, Janet Margolin; directing Norm MacDonald, Spin City, Less than Perfect; not wanting to be a "celebrity"; directing former TV son in Melissa & Joey; 2 Broke Girls; directing 3 John Leguizamo pilots; acting for the first time in almost 30 years playing Blossom daughter Mayim Bialik on her new show Call me Kat

Marlene Weisman joined me to discuss props she created; Steve Martin's Penis Beauty Cream; SNL Rerun Pills; Chris Rock's Guide for White People to Survive the Apollo; props done for Howard Stern; her diary; being remembered at the 50th ; growing up and watching Bewitched; going to college to be a graphic designer; Monty Python; being in a Xerox show with Keith Haring; working with Thomas Dolby; working for Stiff Records; Phil Hartman; taking a Graphic Design for TV class from SNL's Bob Pook; getting hired; Mike Myers and her bonded over That 60's Movie sketch; creating Wayne's World logo; her co-graphic artists Doug Zider, Ira Rappaport; and Kevin Frank; learning Paintbox; working Letterman Monday through Wednesday, and SNL Thursday through Saturday; getting the SNL graphic list on Thursday; Davey Wilson's Thursday production meetings; graphic coordinator Steve Koren, then Davey Wilson's son Tom; Natalie Cole's Unforgettable Album Cover; drawing the pictures for Simon; doing Night After Night with Allan Havey on three summer breaks; creating look of Sprockets; Jim Signorelli; Chris Farley's Folgers Crystals sketch; working from 9 am Friday to 1 am Sunday with a nap break; designing post-show party invites; creating logos for Happy Fun Ball, Nat X, Massive Head-wound Harry, I'm Chillin, and Bullet Hole Tampons; drawing the More to Come pictures on the Tonight Show sketches; importance of Polaroids; creating graphics and voicing a caller to Coffee Talk; her work with Al Franken (Stuart Smalley); Crystal Gravy; having to draw the Scream offstage during the live show in a game show sketch with Christopher Walken in 1990

Ian Maxtone-Graham joined me to discuss remembering the moon landing; Batman; writing humorous articles in high school and at Brown; getting hired on Not Necessarily the News; Motown Review; being head writer for Comedy Central game show Clash; getting hired at National Lampoon; asking Jack Handy to submit Deep Thoughts leads to him getting hired on SNL; Fred Wolf; Fetal Abuse Laugh-a-Thon with Victoria Jackson, Woody Harrelson, Phil Hartman & Jon Lovitz; Glenn Close Christmas monologue; working with her again on the Simpsons; best comedies also are dramatic; creation of the Hanukkah Song; working with Norm on Update; getting three pieces on Jason Alexander episode; favorite hosts; Bob Newhart; Norm's Charles Kuralt; leaving SNL to go to The Simpsons; becoming the Tall Man character; "Burns, Baby Burns" original idea; hard to write for Rodney; "City of NY vs. Homer Simpson"; donated a cel to the 9/11 Museum; 70's NY; "Trash of the Titans"; policy wonk vs. populist; "Blunder Years"; Paul Newman guest voice; Smithers back story; How I Wet Your Mother w/ David Byrne and Glenn Close; Dads; importance of graphics on SNL

Andy Robin joined me to discuss being "Penske material"; Candid Camera; Emergency; crooners; Paul Anka; being a Mets fan; writing for and editing Harvard Lampoon; rally for Dan Quayle;submitting for SNL; a sketch he wrote is similar to one going on that week; he gets hired by Jim Downey; writes a Godfather / George Bush sketch for Joe Mantegna; Dennis Miller disses Vanilla Ice; writing copy guy sketches with Robert Schneider; on air appearances; Jeremy Irons; cut for time Steven Seagal sketch; Sandler gets a spec Seinfeld script to Seinfeld; Larry Charles works with him on stories for "Junior Mint"; not knowing he was hired becomes an episode; raisins disappearing after his interview becomes part of an episode; Dolores; The Barber comes from his life; The Jimmy sneakers were worn by Alec Berg; "The Bottle Deposit" leads to a real life crime; "The Comeback" came from Peter Mehlman; The Slicer; "The Nap" came from prop masters indecisiveness; The Martin Short Show; Nathan Thurm; "The Puerto Rican Day Parade"; Martin Short's Bette Davis impression; Michael Richards Show was ruined by the network; original pilot by Michael Ritchie was really good; going into pyschiatry

Brent Forrester talks about writing for "The Ben Stiller Show", "Daddy Dearest", "The Simpsons", "Mr. Show", and "The Office"

Ken Lerner joined me to discuss growing up in Brooklyn as a Yankee fan; being in the peanut gallery on Howdy Doody; his brother, the late Michael Lerner; studying with Stella Adler; Hot Tomorrow with Oingo Boingo and Herve Villechaize; being on the Happy Days episode "Richie Fights Back"; "Fonzie Love Pinky"; playing 3 characters of Happy Days; being a member of the Coney Island Whitefish; demolition derby stunt drivers took liberties on him; Roz Kelly fights with Winkler; being in Grand Theft Auto; Ron Howard mentored his son about being a child actor; Laverne & Shirley; Jerry Paris; Gas Pump Girls; did not know how to ride a motorcycle; Any Which Way but Loose; playing doctors, lawyers and rabbis; "Don't Shoot, I'm a Lawyer"; new character on Happy Days; worked throughout his 40's and 50's; Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Irreconcilable Differences; working with George C. Scott in Exorcist III; Love on the Run; The Feud; The Goldbergs asked his son if his real dad Ken can play his TV dad; The Running Man; Family Ties; Lafayette High School; Gravesend; Sledge Hammer; Adam Schiff fan of his on West Wing; Fabulous Baker Boys; Marc Maron and his brother; supposed to be in cast of Chicago Hope but given four episode run; auditioning on Zoom; Marty Brest; coaching on Zoom; loaded dreidels