The Nightly

Josh Gondelman and Matt Bragg trade wild hometown legends—an escaped king cobra, a backyard World War II museum, and a peek over the fence at Graceland Too—while previewing Matt's return with Notes From England.

What You'll Hear:

The Case of the Elementary School Cobra: Josh recalls the hometown legend of an illegally kept king cobra that went missing, and where it eventually turned up.

A Living Room Full of War History: Matt describes stumbling into a stranger's house-turned-WWII museum, complete with an unexploded bomb in the corner.

Climbing a Fence for Elvis: Josh recounts a detour to Graceland Too, where the welcome wasn't exactly guaranteed.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Trading hometown lore
02:24 Matt joins The Nightly
04:16 Notes From England returns
07:16 The elementary school cobra
15:39 A house turned WWII museum
18:21 Climbing a fence for Graceland Too

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Gondelman talks with guest Jamie Doktor, aka Miss J, about bartending her way into her first striptease, performing eight months pregnant, and building Buffalo's longest-running burlesque troupe on instinct, whiskey, and a little bit of fate.

What You'll Hear:

Three Dollars and a Thursday Night Gap: Jamie returns to Buffalo nearly broke, takes a bartending job, and notices one empty night on the schedule just waiting to be filled with something unexpected.

Fever on the Bar Top: A borrowed song, a classy little dance, and a boss who had no idea what she was about to see become the unlikely birth of a 22-year-old burlesque troupe.

The Mom of Buffalo Burlesque: From teaching her first recital class to coaching dancers through rejection, Jamie explains how she became the person everyone, including our own caller Joy, calls Mom.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Caller Joy's burlesque confession
01:30 Welcome, Miss J!
02:49 How the Stripteasers began
09:00 Eight months pregnant and still performing
12:00 Teaching the first recital class
19:30 Advice for brand new performers

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greta Johnsen talks with caller Kassey about a Halloweekend quandary: a cover charge and a costume line, a cozy night in by the fire, and a 7 AM flight to Puerto Rico the next morning.

What You'll Hear:

The Halloweekend Quandary: Kassey used to treat Halloween as a Thursday-to-Sunday event, but a long line in a costume now sounds less appealing than a night at home. Greta, who hasn't gone out for Halloween in decades, has some thoughts.

Which Sounds Worse?: Greta asks whether it's harder to sit on the couch wishing you were at a great party or to be at a party you'd rather leave. Kassey, a self-described big what-if person, gives it real consideration.

The Levels of Fun: Greta shares her favorite framework for deciding whether something is worth doing, from the plain kind of fun to the kind you do just for the story.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Welcome to The Nightly!
02:17 The Halloweekend dilemma
09:23 Couch FOMO or party regret?
11:31 The 7 AM flight twist
20:46 The levels of fun
21:52 Good nights!

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Bragg talks with caller Kelsey about her nights as a Busch Gardens scare actor, the unwritten etiquette of jump-scaring strangers, and why she still sleeps with the lights on.

What You'll Hear:

A Newly Diagnosed Halloween Fan: Matt kicks things off by admitting he's more into Halloween than he ever realized, even though scare mazes still terrify him.

Life Inside the Haunted House: Kelsey shares what it's really like to work as a scare actor, from auditions and airbrush paint to reading a crowd before deciding who gets the jump scare.

When the Scaring Stops Being Fun: Matt and Kelsey talk through the etiquette of scaring strangers, the nights she had to psych herself up, and whether being a pro made her any less of an easy scare herself.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Matt's surprising Halloween confession
01:46 Kelsey the scare actor checks in
05:44 Has a scare ever turned violent
10:33 Getting spooked while scaring others
13:56 The night she couldn't fake it
21:39 Good nights

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Gondelman talks with caller Joy about her ever-expanding costume room, the night she cried during her very first burlesque class, and the train conductor hat she's still trying to justify buying.

What You'll Hear:

A Costume Room Comes to Life: Josh checks in on Joy's Airbnb before she shares what's happening in the costume-and-aerial-arts room she's been building at home.

From Six-Week Class to Burlesque Regular: Joy traces her path from a nervous, tearful first performance fifteen years ago to a confident, ever-changing stage persona built entirely on bravery over technique.

Train Conductor Hats and Cat Songs: Between a Medieval Times birthday and a mysterious group of "elderly" costumed strangers in Canada, Joy explains how a good prop always finds its purpose eventually.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Josh's Oasis costume and Ninja Turtle dance confessions
02:47 Welcome back, caller Joy!
06:05 A costume closet takes shape
09:42 Burlesque, aerial arts, and a pole in the spare room
14:00 The cat costume that started it all
18:07 The bravery it takes to perform

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greta Johnsen talks with caller Sahar about trading hustle mode for five-minute walks, kitchen squats, and the radical idea that rest doesn't have to be earned.

What You'll Hear:

Squats While the Coffee Brews: Sahar explains how she finds movement in tiny pockets of her day, proving that five minutes can count just as much as a full workout.

The Season of Being Less Useful: Greta brings up a favorite new book about stepping back from micromanaging everything, and Sahar explains why it rings so true for her.

Rest You Don't Have to Earn: Together they trade ideas on how to give yourself permission to just sit, stare out the window, and let the dishwasher wait.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Welcome to The Nightly
01:22 Hello, caller Sahar
02:30 A season of intentional living
08:23 The joy of being a little less useful
16:10 Permission to rest without earning it
22:39 Good night to a laziness accountability coach

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Bragg and Deanna Ortiz trade notes on the Kelly Clarkson & Brooklyn shop showdown, the new seasons of It's Crime For Bed, and the strange legend of the Pez Outlaw.

What You'll Hear:

A Herb Garden Crime Scene: Matt confesses to a drone mishap that left his girlfriend's herbs in ruins, and the flimsy cover story he's still trying to sell her on.

The Bird That Cost $15 Million: Deanna breaks down the baffling, headline-grabbing saga of Kelly Clarkson, a Brooklyn toy store, and one very expensive mechanical bird.

The Pez Dispenser Heist of the '90s: A smuggler who gave himself the nickname Pez Outlaw turns out to have run one of the strangest resale operations in collector history.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Matt's drone destroys the herb garden
02:04 Deanna joins to talk Crime for Bed
03:59 The Kelly Clarkson bird saga begins
12:27 The legend of the Pez Outlaw
17:37 Good night, Pez Outlaw and Kelly Clarkson

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Josh Gondelman talks with Caller Sarah about embracing daylight saving time, finding the clear umbrella that changed her rainy days, and feeding peanuts to a flock of blue jays.

What You'll Hear:

Sweater Weather Math: Josh opens with his yearly scramble to wear every cardigan and light jacket before the Northeast's brief, beautiful autumn disappears.

Springing Forward, On Purpose: Sarah explains how moving from sunny California to the Pacific Northwest flipped her feelings about daylight saving time.

Peanuts, Umbrellas, and Baby Blue Jays: From a life-changing clear umbrella to a backyard full of peanut-hoarding birds, Sarah shares the small rituals that keep her feeling tuned in to the seasons.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Josh's case for sweater weather
02:31 Welcome, caller Sarah!
05:00 Falling back, springing forward, and chasing daylight
09:17 The umbrella that changed everything
16:14 Baby blue jays and the peanut economy
23:11 Good nights

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greta Johnsen talks with writer Fern Watt about the Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade and why dogs make the best icebreakers with strangers.

What You'll Hear:

A Parade Grown Too Big for the Park: Greta learns how a scrappy dog run tradition outgrew its space to become the 36th annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade.

Gumshoe and the Odyssey: Fern walks through some of this year's most gloriously absurd costumes, proving New Yorkers will go to any lengths for their dogs.

Named After a Dog, Apparently: Greta and Fern realize they both carry names more commonly found on a leash, and talk about what dogs teach us about loving, and losing, well.

CHAPTERS:
00:25 A zombie dress leads to an unexpected dog tangent
01:24 Welcome, Fern Watt!
03:41 Thousands of dogs, surprisingly calm chaos
09:13 Pre-registration and an inbox full of inspiration
21:31 Good nights!

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Greta Johnsen talks with Caller Nicole about Halloween costume-making for her daughter, from a papier-mâché submarine to this year's sparkly, spandex-heavy Boo.

What You'll Hear:

From Dolly Parton to Boo: Nicole walks Greta through her daughter's costume history, including a full Dolly Parton era complete with bedazzled boots and street performances.

The Papier-Mâché Deep Dive: The two trade notes on wheat paste, balloons, and cardboard structures, proving that craft chaos is half the fun of Halloween.

Two-Headed Freaks and Hobo Ghosts: Nicole and Greta swap stories of strange childhood costumes, from a Styrofoam head stuffed in a jacket to a very confusing hobo ghost.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 Halloween Week continues!
01:20 The costume countdown
02:45 Remembering Dolly Parton
05:39 Papier-mâché technique talk
11:34 Dream family costumes, Totoro style
21:24 Goodnights!

For the fully immersive, phone free light + sound experience, learn more at hatch.co. Follow us on TikTok @hatchpodcasts and YouTube.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.