Chris Mundy is one of my more talented friends. Just ask my other friends. More importantly, Chris is a classic "nice guy" (except for the "finishing last" part.) He started his writing career at Rolling Stone (link to one of his cover stories) before venturing out to TV. His first job was at the final season of Chicago Hope where he ended up co-writing the series finale. Chris also wrote and executive produced "Criminal Minds" which is the funniest show on television depending highly on your sense of humor. His new show, "Low Winter Sun" on AMC, premieres after "Breaking Bad" at 10 p.m. on August 11th. Chris not only shares his experiences working on these shows but goes into fantastically informative detail about pitching his latest show and eventually getting it on the air. Get your notepads ready. This is Writers' Bloc at it's most useful.

Episode 21: Chris Mundy

Tom Ruprecht was a writer for The Late Show with David Letterman for 12 years before he jumped ship to pursue a career in looking for work. Also, he wanted to write some books, which he did! His latest is called This Would Drive Him Crazy: A Phony Oral History of J.D. Salinger, and it's exactly what it sounds like. After leaving The Late Show, Tom also wrote an episode of How I Met Your Mother and worked as a writer for The Goodwin Games. In this episode Tom and I discuss the rigors of writing for a daily comedy show, and the slighty-to-very different rigors of writing a book on your own time. We even discuss writer's block! As usual, this episode has it all.

Episode 23: Tom Ruprecht

Despite the distinct lack of matching uniforms, Annie Mebane and Steve Basilone are a writing "team". They met in college, kept in touch, wrote a script together, sold it, started looking for work, and found it, ultimately landing at The Michael J. Fox Show. Now they're on Writers' Bloc to share their experience with (the portion of) THE WORLD (that listens to the podcast.) How did they find each other? How do they work together? What is their combined roll at the MJF Show? Which one of them got a "handie" in the back of a movie theatre when they were in 8th grade? Okay, that last question is a bit of a giveaway. But the answers to the other questions including "How do you make Parkinson's Disease funny?" are all right here. Listen and learn, and then watch The Michael J. Fox Show. You'll be glad you did?

Episode 24: Annie Mebane & Steve Basilone

Bill Persky is a veteran Emmy Award winning comedy writer who started, like so many other comedy writers of his era, as a gag writer for established comedians not all of whom, as it turns out, were terribly funny people... until Bill helped them out of course. He soon moved on to writing for Variety shows for the likes of Sid Caesar, Bob Hope and Bill Cosby, then moved on to sit coms eventually co-creating the breakthrough show "That Girl" starring Marlo Thomas. One of Bill's more recent contributions to the comedy world is his book "My Life is a Situation Comedy" (http://amzn.to/1jPSMuj). You should buy it and then read it... preferably in that order. Bill's got hilarious stories and amazing insight not just on the shows he wrote for, but also many of the classic shows of his time as well today's most popular sit coms. He's an amazing guy, an inspiration to all comedy writers, and a saint for putting up with me for nearly an hour. Please enjoy this very special episode.
Listen on iTunes.


Episode 32: Bill Persky

To say Chuck Tatham's resume speaks for itself... is ridiculous, mainly because resume's don't have the power of speech. They're inanimate objects. The very concept is absurd. As resume's go, however, Chuck's is very impressive to look at: 22 years in the business as a writer and producer at 15 different shows including "Arrested Development" and most recently "How I Met Your Mother" - season finale on March 31st! And all while suffering from a debilitating banana allergy, or at least as debilitating as a banana allergy can be. For our purposes, however, the important thing is that Chuck has learned from many of the biggest names in sitcom creation, production and writing and he willingly shares much of that knowledge for our benefit. Plus we finally get to hear a few stories about "Arrested Development"! It's the total package, so what are you waiting for? Rip it open! 

Episode 33: Chuck Tatham

Lisa Ann Walter is, and always has been, a very busy woman. Known for stand-out roles in features such as The Parent Trap, Bruce Almighty, War of the Worlds, Killers and Shall We Dance, Lisa also co-created, produced and starred in several half-hour sitcoms including Life’s Work for ABC, and she's the creator and judge of Dance Your Ass Off for the Oxygen network. I get tired just thinking about all of it! But wait! There's more! Lisa is also the co-creator, writer/producer and director of the hit action web-series, Gonzo Girlz as well as The Naughty Show – All-Girl Comedy Review, as well as hosting The Fabulous Lisa Ann Walter Show on KFI Radio. Still not enough? Walter’s book of comedic essays, The Best Thing About My Ass Is That It’s Behind Me was #12 on the NY Times Comedy Bestseller List. But most importantly, Lisa is a great friend and a wealth of advice and valuable information for people who strive to be as busy as she is. WARNING: this episode contains dangerous levels of genuine fun.

Episode 34: Lisa Ann Walter

In this episode we talk to Mike Royce (executive producer of "Enlisted", Fridays at 9 on Fox) about the intricacies of transitioning from comedian to staff writer to executive producer and showrunner, which is not as easy as it sounds, and it doesn't even sound easy. We also discuss different shooting styles and writing styles and the benefits of getting a scene shot the way you wrote it and then allowing the actors to improvise in the event they can think of something far better than you struggled for hours to think of, which, unfortunately, they often do. Mike grew up in Syracuse, New York, and graduated from film school at Ithaca College. From there he moved to New York City to try his hand (and mouth) at stand up comedy eventually appearing on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien". In 1999, Mike joined the writing staff of “Everybody Loves Raymond” winning Emmy Awards in 2003 and 2005 for "Best Comedy". Mike was the executive producer and showrunner of HBO's “Lucky Louie” starring Louis CK, and is currently the executive producer of “Enlisted". So watch it! (It's really good.) Enjoy!

Episode 35: Mike Royce

Rebecca Drysdale grew up in Versailles, France and Vancouver and Montreal, Canada, which makes her sound more like a line of designer clothing then a comedy writer, but comedy writer she is! For the fantastically funny Key and Peele show on Comedy Central. Rebecca attended Sarah Lawrence College for a minute, where she met her writing partner, none other than Jordan Peele himself, and subsequently moved to Chicago to pursue sketch comedy and improvisation. Rebecca is an Alum of Boom Chicago in Amsterdam, and The Second City Chicago, and in 2005 she won the first ever "Breakout Performer Award" at the Aspen Comedy Festival. Fortunately, she was willing to talk about all this and more as she takes us through her unique and what seems like exhausting path to her current state of being which includes the writing gig at Key and Peele as well as on screen appearances in the film Enough Said, Kroll Show, Key and Peele, and the upcoming season of Orange Is the New Black (a great show!) As if that wasn't enough, Rebecca also owns and runs the Clubhouse, an independent improv theatre in Hollywood. So go there! (listen on iTunes)

Episode 36: Rebecca Drysdale

Damien Fahey is a writer for Family Guy on FOX. We discuss that. He also voiced two episodes of Family Guy called, “Peter’s Daughter”, & “I Dream of Jesus”. We forgot to discuss that. In addition to writing for the TV box, Damien has also appeared on it, first as the long-running host of MTV’s flagship program, TRL, then as the guest host of The Late Late Show on CBS, then as the co-host of I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here on NBC. We talk about all of those things and much, much more including how Damien's focus and work ethic allowed him to continue finding work even when work wasn't looking for him. And we also discuss the far less common flipside of that, which is what it's like when work seems to track you down. Never one to let a single job keep him happy, Damien also writes for Someecards.com and regularly performs improv comedy with his group "Triggerfinger" and sketch comedy with "Top Story Weekly" at iOWest. Once, in 2006, Damien went almost 6 minutes without checking his iPhone. 

Episode 37: Damien Fahey

Lesley Arfin was one of the growing number of fantastic people I'd never met before talking to them on the podcast. Fortunately, we hit it off nicely and had a great conversation about her work as a writer on Girls, Awkward, Portlandia, and Brooklyn 9-9. As you might imagine, these are all very different shows which means very different styles of writing, and though Lesley herself admits it wasn't always the best fit, it was always a good experience, or at the very least a learning experience. We also talk about smoking crack by accident and how good writing staffs consist of people with different strengths although it never hurts to be strong at everything. Did I mention the "smoking crack by accident" thing? In addition to her work in television, Lesley wrote for Vice Magazine as well as numerous other publications, and her book, Dear Diary, though according to Lesley is full of "bad writing" is still very entertaining. Currently Lesley is not working on anything she wants to talk about because she might believe in jinxes.
Too late!

Episode 38: Lesley Arfin

Charlie Grandy was a writer on The Daily Show without Jon Stewart. He was also a writer on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and was on staff with me when we won our first Emmy. Good times. We talk about those years, the difference between the “Jon” and “non-Jon” writing processes, and what it’s like to get a job where you feel like the least qualified writer in the room. After The Daily Show, Charlie moved over to Weekend Update at SNL and within a couple of years was running that department. It’s Writers’ Bloc’s first in-depth look at the process at SNL and it’s a good one. We also talk about his first sitcom writing job at a little sleeper show over on NBC called “The Office” and what it’s like to get your own show on the air only to have your own show taken off the air. Ouch! But don’t worry. Today, Charlie is writing for The Mindy Project and he still has all of his hair… which is nice.

Episode 39: Charlie Grandy

Chris Regan is a comedy writer who won five Emmys during his seven seasons on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He talks with us about leaving a lucrative (potential) career in advertising to chase a very potentially un-lucrative career in comedy writing. It turned out well. We talk about the early days at TDS and what it's like to leave a secure, high-profile job in entertainment because you're pretty sure you've got something else going on that it turns out you actually don't really have going on. Then we move on to how you bounce back from that. Short answer: hard work and talent. Chris currently writes for Fox’s long-running animated hit Family Guy, and previously worked on The Jeselnik Offensive, The Burn with Jeff Ross, and Lopez Tonight. He also contributed to the best-selling America: The Book, was the author of Mass Historia: 365 Days of Historical Facts and (Mostly) Fictions, and co-authored the humor book “Shatner Rules” with William Shatner. He recently had the great honor of delivering the commencement address at the Ithaca College Class of 2014 graduation ceremony. 

Episode 40: Chris Regan

Jason Ross is a writer for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, but here's the rub - he lives in L.A. even though the show tapes in New York City.  What what?! We discuss how a writer living 3000 miles away from what you would imagine would be his office can, 1 - do his job, and 2 - get his job. Both answers are great stories. Before moving to L.A., Jason spent 11 years writing for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and he shares what made him finally pack it up and head west. We talk about taking meetings in L.A. (do the words "seduced and abandoned" mean anything to you?) and what it's like to pitch an idea without realizing the studio you're pitching it to is already working on a "very similar project". Lesson: they have very little interest in an idea they already have. Jason also offers up some very interesting insight on the writing process in general and we close it out with a laugh-filled discussion of his wide range of early comedy influences. Lend me your ears, BlocHeads! I swear I'll give them back.

Episode 41: Jason Ross

Doug Abeles is one of the cockiest comedy writers in the business, or more accurately, whatever the opposite of "cockiest" is. Those of you in your late 20's or later might be inspired to hear that Doug is a successful, Emmy Award winning comedy writer who didn't even start trying to get into the business until his early 30's. And even then, he still had to go through the ups and downs common to the life of pretty much any comedy writer. But he made it through! He made it through the rain! Glory be to persistence!! Doug and I talk about getting your foot in the door by submitting jokes to your favorite shows, moving out to L.A. to work on a show that lets you go after just 5 weeks, and bouncing back from that letdown to find more work. Eventually, Doug landed at Saturday Night Live where he wrote for the Weekend Update segment for 10 years. He shares some great stories about that experience including an extremely unusual "meeting" with Norm Macdonald. Like every episode of Writers' Bloc, this one has it all!
Listen on iTunes.

Episode 43: Doug Abeles

Eric Drysdale is a man of many talents not the least of which is the writing of materials suitable for inclusion in the category of televised comedy/variety. On Thursday, December 18th Eric and his co-scribes ended their long run writing for The Colbert Report on Comedy Central and with any luck he'll will soon be employed at the network that for some odd reason has a weird eye as its logo. Eric's life in comedy began at an early age. He seemed destined for creating comedy in one form or another and he's fortunately been able to test those waters in many forms. From movies shot on film as a teenager to an actual paid comedy writing job for a Canadian TV show just one year out of high school to a European "walkabout" to The Daily Show and then to Colbert, Eric's journey has been long, exciting and fruitful.  And now he's a guest on Writers' Bloc! Talk about moving up!! I'm happy to have him as a friend and thrilled to have him as a guest on the podcast. Hear it with your ears asap! Listen on iTunes.

Episode 44: Eric Drysdale

Jessi Klein is the Executive Producer and Head Writer for "Inside Amy Schumer" which is all an intelligent BlocHead such as yourself should need to know to just go ahead and start listening. She was also a development executive at Comedy Central which means she knows the business as well as the creative side of comedy writing and she's got a few thoughts about that that are well worth hearing... so just go ahead and start listening. Jessi also wrote for SNL for a short time (we don't talk about that) and several other shows (which we also don't talk about) mainly because we're busy the whole time talking about her influences, her journey to comedy writing, and, of course, "Inside Amy Schumer" which is hilarious... so just go ahead and start listening. This episode was taped live at Fontana's Bar on the Lower East Side of Manhattan as part of New York Podfest 2015. If you missed it this year, look for it in 2016. As Podfests go, it's definitely one of the best. And don't miss Season 3 of "Inside Amy Schumer" starting April 21st. Now will ya just go ahead and start listening already?!  Jeesh!!

Episode 45: Jessi Klein

In an earlier phase of his life, Ted Alexandro was a music teacher, an experience he used to help co-create the web series "Teacher's Lounge" which recently won best Best New Comedy Web Series at the Cynopsis Awards. Ted and I talk almost exclusively about creating the web series and what it takes to bring a project like this together on both the creative side as well as the business side. Ted got his start writing and performing sketches with his writing and performing partner, Hollis James. One of their earlier short films, "Nobody's Dummy: The Horace and Huey Story", wasn't nominated for an Academy Award, but admit it, that would be pretty awesome if it had been. Time Out New York called Ted "One of the top comedians working today". He has appeared on David Letterman multiple times, Conan, Jimmy Kimmel, Craig Ferguson, The View, and he's taped two half-hour specials on Comedy Central. Ted is also serious about the business side of show business and was the driving force behind the New York Comedians Coalition which successfully negotiated a pay raise with the notoriously under-paying New York comedy clubs. Pencils ready, everyone. It's Ted Time!

Episode 46: Ted Alexandro

Arthur Meyer is a writer and performer on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and the proud co-author of the fake menu "FUDS" which he, Dan Klein and Kelly Hudson lovingly crafted into the book, "FUDS: A Complete Encyclofoodia".
BUY NOW!
Arthur and I somehow manage to shove aside the obvious sexual tension and get to know each other on a personal and professional level. We talk about early jobs, performing in clubs, and stalking major league umpires - all the usual stuff. But most importantly, Arthur gives us some quality first-hand knowledge of what it takes to get a book not only written, but actually published. It ain't easy, but if that's your goal hopefully this episode will help you accomplish that.
In addition to his Tonight Show job, Arthur continues to write and perform with the sketch comedy groups Pangea 3000 and Two Fun Men, but his biggest credit will always be as a member of the 3-sibling Wilmette, Illinois living room-based sketch comedy show "Meyer Kids' Night", performed to his parents weekly. 
(Sorry. No link to that one.)
Listen on iTunes.

Episode 47: Arthur Meyer

Matthew Diffee is a very funny man and an excellent artist, which makes him perfectly suited for the world of cartooning. Matt has been contributing cartoons to The New Yorker since 1999 and he now has a fantastically entertaining book out called “Hand Drawn Jokes for Smart Attractive People.” We start, as usual, at the beginning, discussing the mutual love of art and comedy that eventually "drew" Matt to cartooning. (See what I did there?) Matt talks about an early attempt at stand-up comedy that proved he could write jokes, but didn't seem equally capable of telling them, so he made the adjustment. We find out what influenced his decision to pursue cartooning and how he eventually landed a contract with the The New Yorker. It's worth noting that Matt is also the editor of volumes one and two of “The Rejection Collection: Cartoons You Never Saw and Never Will See in The New Yorker” and is the recipient of the 2013 National Cartoonist Society’s Silver Reuben Award for single panel cartooning. But for now, he's simply "Writers' Bloc Podcast Guest #48".

Episode 48: Matthew Diffee

Sarah Pappalardo is the co-founder of Reductress, the first and only satirical women’s magazine. Reductress is a hilarious website conceived, developed, and run by Sarah and her co-everything, Beth Newell. Sarah tells Writers' Bloc all about how she and Beth took an idea and made it into an actual product, and trust me, there's more to it than meets the eye. So it's good that you'll mainly be using your ears from here on out. We also get into a welcome and substantive conversation about women in comedy and some of the challenges they face that aren't always understood or even recognized by their male associates. It's long overdue on Writers' Bloc and I think you're going to enjoy hearing it.
Sarah has also produced a small handful of documentary shorts, including  Reverence , which was featured in IFC Theater's DOCNYC this year. And she's written several plays including Cold, which was produced at the Plays and Players Theater last summer in Philadelphia. I hope you'll be as pleased with this episode as I am. And, as usual, if not - your money back. (WINK!)
Now get to listenin'!
Or, if it suits you better, you can listen on iTunes. See if I care!

Episode 49: Sarah Pappalardo

Mike Sacks might know as much about comedy writing as almost anybody. Why? Because he's interviewed dozens of the best comedy writers on television for his books, "And Here's the Kicker" and "Poking a Dead Frog". But wait! There's more! Mike also co-wrote the hilarious "Sex: Our Bodies, Our Junk" with several other writers including Bob's Burgers writer and producer, and Writers' Bloc alum, Scott Jacobson (episode 20). Mike has also written for literally piles of publications including The Washington Post, The New Yorker, GQ, Men's Health - the list goes on. Currently, Mike is a writer and editor for Vanity Fair who enjoys laughing and taking long walks on the beach. He didn't actually tell me that. I just assumed it.
Mike and I talk about the importance of having many and varied influences, and he shares a few tricks he's learned to help him become a better writer himself. We also talk briefly about Mike's fascination with the 1979 cult hit "Over the Edge", a fascination I now share. But more on that later. Much more. For now, thank you for joining my conversation with Mike Sacks.

Episode 50: Mike Sacks

"Over The Edge" is a 1979 movie about teenagers who rebel against the monotony of their planned suburban community and the adults who force them to live there. It's not the most famous movie you'll ever see. It's also not the best movie you'll ever see. But it got 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is pretty damn good, it was Curt Cobain's favorite movie, and it stars a 14-year-old newcomer named Matt Dillon who, as we all know, went on to have sex with Neve Campbell and Denise Richards in a pool. Not a bad career progression. Anyway, it happens to be a big favorite of WBP, episode 50 guest, Mike Sacks, so Mike and I decided to get together one more time to tell you all why we like it so much. Hint: is has a lot to do with the fact that we both grew up in the 70's and at least one of us lived a very similar life to the characters in the movie. Also, it's a surprisingly solid movie. Enjoy.

Bonus Episode: "Over The Edge" w/Mike Sacks

Hasan Minhaj is a comedian, actor, correspondent for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and now the star of "Homecoming King", a one-man show he wrote that's running at The Cherry Lane Theater in New York City thru November 15, 2015, and hopefully even longer than that. Oh! And he was also in a Pizza Hut commercial! I mean, this guy is killin' it. In this episode, Hasan and I talk about "Homecoming King" - where the idea came from, how he turned it into a one-man show, and the people who helped him put it together. I know it's a one-man show and all, but you still don't do this kind of thing without a lot of help. Hasan speaks very openly - as he does in the show - about racism and human judgment, two things he's been battling his entire life. And we talk a lot about one of the main themes of the show, "Log Kya Kahenge", which is Urdu for "What will people think?" It's a hell of a question. This is a good one, BlocHeads. Don't put it off... put it on!

Episode 51: Hasan Minhaj

Co-creator and former head writer of The Daily Show and Air America Radio co-founder, Lizz Winstead, is one of the top political satirists in America. She also has dogs that like to bark and eat their own poop – a fact confirmed DURING this podcast. Lizz and I eat pistachios (loudly) and discuss what she was looking for when she was hiring The Daily Show’s original writing staff. Lizz’s experience and insight into the creative process is invaluable to aspiring and established comedy writers alike and I can’t think of a better way to kick off The Writers’ Bloc Podcast.

Episode 1: Lizz Winstead

Rachel Axler is a former Daily Show writer whose longing to write more dialogue and story motivated her to become a staff writer at NBC’s Parks and Rec and eventually move on to write for Bored To Death, New Girl, and The Goodwin Games.  She shares the similarities and differences of working at these shows and we work together to write the funniest tweet ever written about the Petraeus scandal, though that’s admittedly subjective.  Rachel also has a graduate degree in playwriting… so take that!

Episode 2: Rachel Axler

Jon Bines is a better comedy writer than he is a self-portrait photographer. He's also a brilliant, hilarious guy who writes for Jimmy Kimmel Live, and Writers' Bloc Podcast has him! Jon began his getting-paid-for-writing career at Comedy Central's "Turn Ben Stein On" which he happily left behind to work with Kimmel at "The Man Show" which, according to Jon, was not nearly as misogynistic as you may have thought it was.  After a 2-year stint at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he left to help Jimmy create his then new talk show.  The rest is history.  And a lot of that history is included in this wildly informative and funny episode.

Episode 3: Jon Bines

Sarah Silverman (seen here with monkey) is a popular American actress/comedian perhaps best know for being awesome. She created and starred in "The Sarah Silverman Program," was wildly hilarious in her concert movie "Jesus Is Magic" (Netflix the shit out of that thing!) and most importantly is a fine person and an excellent friend. Soon Sarah will be hitting the road to prepare for an upcoming HBO comedy special, which is great news for the entire world. Sarah has also recently launched the online comedy channel JASH, a partnership with comedians Tim & Eric, Reggie Watts, and Michael Cera. This episode is chock full of Sarah's amazing insights regarding the inner workings of the industry as well as an impromptu phone call from my wife and kids. Dig it, y'all!

Episode 11: Sarah Silverman

This is the interview fans of Rob Corddry have been waiting for - it's my interview with Rob Corddry! The co-creator and star of the ridiculously hilarious Children's Hospital on Adult Swim is living proof that really-super-crazy talented people can make it in Hollywood. Who knew? Rob is a fortunately busy man who's been in so many movies in the past few years it's a wonder his IMDB page doesn't collapse under the crushing weight of his credits. The topics run the gamet including Rob's recipe for success, which is basically hard work+talent+not being a dick. A rare combination indeed.

Episode 14: Rob Corddry

Neal Brennan is a writer, director and stand-up comedian with some high profile credits well worth mentioning, particularly that he was the co-creator and Executive Producer of Chappelle's Show on Comedy Central and the co-writer - along with Dave Chappelle - of the movie Half Baked. Neal's comedy-origin story is an unusual one and a lesson in focus, confidence, and hard work. He also has a tremendous amount of experience with the business side of comedy writing and shares all of this with Writers' Bloc. Most recently Neal directed several sketches for  Inside Amy Schumer and he also continues to perform all around the country. 

Episode 15: Neal Brennan

Megan Ganz is a 28-year-old comedy writer whose resume reads like someone who's been working her ass off since she was 12... which she has. After writing for the satirical newspaper The Michigan Every Three Weekly at The University of Michigan, Megan was asked to join the staff of The Onion. She quickly moved her way up to Editor and that's when TV came a callin'. Megan's first gig was at Important Things with Demetri Martin but when the opportunity to write for her favorite show (at least at the time) NBC's Community, she jumped at the chance. Three years later Megan moved on to the writing staff of one of my current favorite shows, Modern Family and that's where she is today. In short, Megan is awesome, and episode 16 of Writers' Bloc is your proof.

Episode 16: Megan Ganz

J.R. Havlan, 17-year veteran writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, picks the complicated and jittery brains of the writers who help create The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 30 Rock, Letterman, SNL, The Office, and more. Writers’ Bloc Podcast will let you in on how blank pages become your favorite television comedies.  You love the sausage, now hear how it gets made.

Writers' Bloc Podcast

Popular tracks