Allen Strickland Williams! Comedian! Friend! Delight! More!

ABOUT THE NEW ALBUM:

A proper debut, Ran Through is a culmination of ASW’s stand-up since he started, up to the night he recorded. The album is filled with absurd, dark one-liners as well as well-structured pieces about the celestial bodies that hang in the sky above, his Florida roots, relationships, dating and being single, parenting (or lack thereof), vasectomies and guns. But ASW absolutely excels at crass jokes about sex, drugs, and residual trauma - the kind of jokes that you can’t help but laugh at while also relating to it just a little too much.

Born in Texas and raised in Florida “because my parents really wanted to do a number on me, I guess”, ASW now lives “a totally normal life in the small, humble town of Los Angeles, California”.

Starting with sketch comedy in college and then becoming an NBC Page upon moving to Los Angeles, Allen Strickland Williams claims he has been in the entertainment business “long enough to know if I provide an exact number I will never work in this town again”.

It was actually due to happenstance that the album came together when it did. Album plans were scrapped in 2020 due to the pandemic. Then in 2023 ASW went to Austin to visit a friend, and it just so happened the booker of The Velveeta Room, where the album would eventually be recorded, saw that Allen was in town and enthusiastically booked ASW for some featured spots, followed by a headlining date six months out. ASW realized this timing provided a chance to finally record the album. Kind of crazy.

ABOUT ALLEN STRICKLAND WILLIAMS:

Salutations. Allen Strickland Williams lives in Los Angeles writing and telling jokes. He has done a half-hour for Comedy Central Stand-Up Presents and was named one of their Comics to Watch. He has performed stand-up comedy twice on CONAN, and appeared on Adult Swim’s The Last Open Mic at the End of the World, Netflix’s Cooking on High, Viceland’s Flophouse, and The Top 14 Greatest Valentine’s Day Movies of All Time on the CW.

ASW has been funny at South by Southwest, Moontower Comedy Festival, Funny or Die’s Oddball Comedy & Curiosity Festival, Bridgetown Comedy Festival, RIOT Festival, and more.

One time he got a standing ovation for telling a single joke. Another time, a guy passed out after one of his bits. They had to call an ambulance and everything.

Enjoy our chat! This is the first half of it!
For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head on over here to Patreon!​

Mel Stephens! Writer! Director! Comedian! More!

FROM HER WEBSITE:

Melissa Stephens (@melmstephens on social media) is a comedian, writer, and director from the Peach State, and has dual citizenship in the UK. Melissa wrote on staff of Brett Goldstein & William Bridges’ AMC anthology series SOULMATES, now streaming on Amazon Prime (Mel wrote ep 5). She is currently developing a dark comedy series with AMC Studios and UK based Two Brothers Productions, as well as penning a pilot for eOne and Mark Gordon based on her one-hour comedy special “Homebrew.” She is a founding member of IAMA Theatre Company, has been a member of Groundlings’ Sunday Company, and regularly performs stand-up around Los Angeles. Her directorial debut, PEEN, was a Vimeo Staff Pick, and the short series she wrote and directed, FINDING THE ASSHOLE, was chosen to show at Slamdance and is currently in development on multiple TV and Film projects.

We had a great chat! You can have a great listen!

And this is only the first HALF of our chat!
For the second half, you can subscribe via Apple Podcasts or just click on over here to Patreon!

Max Gross! Comedian! Friend! Delight!

Max is nice and you can follow him on all social media platforms @maxgotjokes!

Also you can listen to him have a nice conversation with me right here! Enjoy!

PS This is only the first HALF of our chat!
For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR merely head over here to Patreon!

Beth Stelling! Comedian! Writer! Friend! Delight! More!

Beth is a STELLAR comedic talent.

See her use her talents on tour!

Follow her (@bethstelling) on socials!

Listen to her in THIS VERY PODCAST CONVERSATION!

And this is only the first HALF of our chat.

For part two, subscribe via Apple Podcasts OR simply click on over here to Patreon!

Mario Adrion! Comedian! Youtuber! Friend! Delight!

ABOUT MARIO:

Mario Adrion is a stand-up comedian and YouTuber from a small town in Germany who gained over 2 million followers from posting vlogs and comedy clips across his various social platforms. His comedy is refreshingly vulnerable, playing with the struggles and stereotypes of being a retired male model and living as a European in the United States. He’s been featured in Vogue, FOX, ABC, Daily Front Row, Pro7, Jimmy Kimmel LIVE, and some might know him from his iconic comedy performance challenging Katy Perry to a Catwalk Battle on American Idol while wearing a Speedo.

Based out of LA and NYC, Mario regularly performs at the Hollywood Improv, Laugh Factory, The Stand NYC, and recently sold-out his headlining shows as part of the New York Comedy Festival. Mario is currently touring the United States as part of his “German Efficiency” stand-up tour. He is one of the hottest new comics and you don’t want to miss his European charm.


We have a great chat! You have a great listen!

And this is only the first HALF of our conversation!
For the second half, subscribe via Apple Podcasts or just click on over here to Patreon!

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.

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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!