The Unspeakable Podcast

PREMIUM: Is Anything Funny Anymore? Bestselling humor writer Neal Pollack is still laughing


Listen Later

To doomers and nihilists, the whole world is a joke — and it’s not even funny. Writer Neal Pollack may be a natural skeptic, but he thinks that’s nonsense and he returns to the podcast to talk about better living through laughter (and not in a “live, love, laugh” kind of way). He discusses his various careers — professional writer, professional poker player, three-time Jeopardy champion — his thoughts on COVID-19 lockdowns, the culture of Austin, and his recent battle with sofa dermatitis.

Most importantly, he talks about his upcoming course for The Unspeakeasy School of Thought, Writing Humor in Humorless Times. Unlike most writing workshops, which limit students to the arduous activity of writing, Neal will also be available to teach students how to be funny on Twitter/X, TikTok, at dinner parties, or even while muttering to themselves while walking down the street.

GUEST BIO

Neal Pollack is the author of 12 semi-bestselling works of fiction and nonfiction, including the memoirs Alternadad, Stretch, and Pothead, the novels Jewball, Keep Mars Weird, Edge of Safety, and Never Mind the Pollacks, and the cult short-fiction classic The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature. His “Greatest Living American Writer” satire pieces have appeared in McSweeney’s, Salon, The Federalist, The Spectator, and the Jewish Daily Forward/. He is a three-time Jeopardy! champion, a certified yoga instructor, a semi-professional poker player, a Generation X legend, and the editor-in-chief of Book and Film Globe.

Want to hear the whole conversation? Upgrade your subscription here.

HOUSEKEEPING

📺 Visit The Unspeakeasy on YouTube!

✈️ We have new retreats for 2025. See where we'll be!

✏️ Learn about our upcoming Unspeakeasy School of Thought coed courses in fiction, memoir, and humor writing.

🥂 Join The Unspeakeasy, my community for freethinking women.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Unspeakable PodcastBy Meghan Daum

  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7

4.7

784 ratings


More shows like The Unspeakable Podcast

View all
The Glenn Show by Glenn Loury

The Glenn Show

2,268 Listeners

Uncomfortable Conversations with Josh Szeps by Josh Szeps

Uncomfortable Conversations with Josh Szeps

835 Listeners

The Fifth Column by Kmele Foster, Michael Moynihan, and Matt Welch

The Fifth Column

2,832 Listeners

The Reason Roundtable by The Reason Roundtable

The Reason Roundtable

1,505 Listeners

The Good Fight by Yascha Mounk

The Good Fight

894 Listeners

Quillette Podcast by Quillette

Quillette Podcast

791 Listeners

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie by The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

727 Listeners

The Same Drugs by Meghan Murphy

The Same Drugs

172 Listeners

Blocked and Reported by Katie Herzog and Jesse Singal

Blocked and Reported

3,773 Listeners

The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan by Andrew Sullivan

The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan

805 Listeners

Honestly with Bari Weiss by The Free Press

Honestly with Bari Weiss

8,576 Listeners

Heterodorx by Corinna Cohn

Heterodorx

232 Listeners

Conversations with Peter Boghossian by Peter Boghossian

Conversations with Peter Boghossian

215 Listeners

Conversations With Coleman by The Free Press

Conversations With Coleman

428 Listeners

Beyond Gender by Stella O'Malley, Mia Hughes, Bret Alderman

Beyond Gender

40 Listeners