Comedy Learning Resources

WTF with Marc Maron

This is essential listening for anyone who really gives a shit about comedy.

I had never heard of Marc Maron until this podcast, but that might be more to do with me living on the moon than it does with his level of fame. Anyway, the deal is that he just interviews other comedians. He has been involved in the comedy scene, mainly in the US, for long enough that he has met or worked with most of the major players in comedy over the last few decades. This gives him not only access to a lot of comedians well worth interviewing, but also knows a lot of them well enough (even if sometimes indirectly) that he can get more in depth.

There are other interview shows around, some of which I'll mention below, but there's a certain edge to Marc's interviews that make his stand out. Especially if you are really into comedy. Even though interviews aren't always about the craft of comedy, other topics are handled within the sensibility of how comedians discuss things. For the clearest example, listen to his interview with Robin Williams and how Marc reacts to Robin discussing a friend's suicide. I don't want to spoil it for you, so I'll just echo one of Robin's comments which was, "only a comedian would think that way".

The podcasts are usually one-on-one interviews where you get the most insight and depth. Every now and again is a live show with multiple guests which are more for the funny. If you want to learn about comedy, you'll want the one-on-one interviews. I think the panel shows are just as worthwhile, though, because even though they don't go as deep, Marc's interview style still allows for a more natural progression in the conversation than you get elsewhere. A handful of times he interviews non-comedians, and, frankly, they're not really worth listening to. Outside of that, though, you've got literally hundreds of hours of worthwhile discussion about comedy and comedians.

Listening to these podcasts changed my approach to comedy. I can't quite explain why, but there was something about hearing comedians talk about themselves and their approach with such raw honesty that opened up in me the possibility of taking my act further into something that was more honestly me than what I had been doing before. I can't promise you'll get the same level of revelation, but I can assure you that this is the best comedy related material out on the market today.

Recommended episodes: Bobcat Goldthwait , Dave Foley , The Portland Show . Also, you might want to fast forward past the first ten minutes or so to get past his initial commentary and right into the interviews. Marc can be funny... but, he can also ramble a bit too much for me at times.

Comedian (The documentary film by Jerry Seinfeld)

For me, this movie was not only a learning experience, it's inspiring. It shows the buildup of a comedy set, and along the way it shows both the personal journey of getting funny, as well as the business side of creating a marketable act.

The documentary focuses not just on Jerry , who is creating a whole new comedy act after achieving about as much success as a comedian can ever hope to achieve, but also on a new up-and-coming act, Orny Adams . I can see how at the time of making the movie it made sense to compare and contrast the two comedians at two totally different stages of their careers. However, with the benefit of hindsight, it seems that the parts with Orny in them don't really hold up.

For one thing, Orny's quite an extreme character. While it would be hard to claim there was any kind of "typical" personality for an aspiring comedian that would have worked better, Orny is clearly the architect of his own lack of future. I watched the movie when it first came out and knew at the time he was going to obviously burn out. And he did. Watching it now, the inevitability of Orny's path makes me kind of wish they had gone with someone who I could have believed might have made it.

But then I also think that maybe the movie didn't need anyone but Jerry anyway. There's a sincerity about his failures and struggles on the road to reinventing himself, such that it doesn't seem that his previous success really makes a difference. At least, not to the story arc we are interested in watching. We don't need to see the starting out comedian because Jerry convincingly puts himself into the same fire that all comedians at all levels face. You can bomb no matter how big you are, so Jerry's journey isn't the successful comedian's journey, it's just the comedian's journey, period. When I watch this film, and I often do, I tend to fast forward past all the bits with Orny.

However, the one scene where Jerry tells Orny the anecdote about the Glenn Miller Orchestra ... that was gold. (Gold, Jerry! Gold! )

Also, as a side note, Orny has a good interview on the Psychology Today web site , where he talks about failure and has good advice, especially when he says, "do the hardest work possible, and wait for your hard work to intersect with luck."

The Sound Of Young America

Not all episodes are about comedy or interviews with comedians. Sometimes it's musicians, or authors. However, a large majority of them are comedy related, and when they are, they are well worth it.

Fairly standard interview approach, but the host, Jesse Thorne , really does his homework about the subject, and tends more toward insightful questions about why comedians do what they do than other interviews might be. Not quite as raw and open and honest as Marc Maron's podcasts, but still well worth it when it's a comedian you are interested in.

Shows also sometimes feature straight up clips of up and coming comedian's acts.

This American Life: Tough Room

This is just one part of one episode out of the This American Life series, but it's well worth listening to. Host Ira Glass interviews people at The Onion to see how their comedy writing process goes. The best part is when they discuss why one joke about marriage works, and another doesn't.

On Comedy

Over a period of time from around the sixties on up to the eighties or so, this guy named Larry Wilde was apparently writing a book about comedy called Great Comedians Talk About Comedy . I didn't read the book and don't have a lot of interest in it, because from what I could tell from the interviews, Larry Wilde had a theory of comedy that I didn't buy into, and I'm just not bothered to see where he went with it.

However, he recorded all the interviews he did, and has made them available on CD. He gives the interviewees a lot of leeway, and that's what makes these well worth it. Even though a lot of the interviews are quite old now (The Woody Allen one is from 1966 or so), it's surprising how almost all of it is still solid observations on the craft of doing comedy that still apply.

I own these CDs: Jerry Seinfeld , Woody Allen , George Carlin , Johnny Carson . Johnny Carson , by the way, for my money, has the most sage insights.

Ricky Gervais Meets...

There are apparently a few of these, but only two are worth hunting down and watching. One is Ricky Gervais meets... Larry David . The other is Ricky Gervais meets... Gary Shandling . They are two totally different experiences.

With Larry David ... well, as far as I'm concerned, Larry David is a god of comedy, even if some of the recent Curb Your Enthusiasm hasn't been his strongest work ever. Larry doesn't seem to give many interviews, so just having him interviewed at all makes it worth it.

With Gary Shandling ... this clearly didn't go as planned. At the time of making this show, Gary Shandling obviously had a disdain for Ricky Gervais , who Gary clearly sees as a flash in the pan. At one point Gary practically tells Ricky straight to his face that Ricky had so far only made the one good show, and was full of more self importance than was merited. Which, at that time, was basically true. In retrospect, though, while I think Ricky Gervais can be hit and miss, he has proved that he is much more than a one hit wonder.

Still, it's kind of awesome the way Gary Shandling spends the whole hour essentially mocking Ricky Gervais . And, in amongst that, you also get some insight into comedy from Gary Shandling .

The Green Room with Paul Provenza

One thing I love about comedy is hanging with other comedians. There is a certain way of talking, where nothing is off limits, where everyone understands that everything said is done to be funny, so there can be no offense... it's an amazing thing to be a part of. I'm sure all other groups of people centred around whatever else they do, whether it's business men, musicians, farmers, whatever, all feel like they can get together and really bond and their conversations are awesome.

But there is no contest that comedians have the best conversations. And fuck all other groups if they even try to think they are on the same level. No. Comedians have the best conversations, and that's fair. Business men get money, musicians get laid, farmers get respect... comedians get to have the most awesome conversations. At least, the funniest conversations. Funnier than what you'll see on stage.

Paul Provenza is trying to capture that on camera. That backstage feel where a bunch of people meet who are so diverse in background, but have this one skill, comedy, in common, that allows them to bridge any gap, let out any prejudice, say literally anything.

However, it is on camera and it is on television, so there is a certain inevitability that the show can never precisely capture the real deal. You can see comedians switching into performance mode, just a little, for the cameras. There is a smidgen of hesitance to say anything.

But it's damn close. And, importantly for this list I'm making, while a lot of it is talk just about life for the goal of being funny, a significant chunk is about the craft of being funny, and being a working comedian.

The first episode of season two, with Gary Shandling , Marc Maron , Ray Romano , Judd Apatow , and Bo Burnham is fucking awesome.

Talking Funny

Ricky Gervais is clearly insecure as a stand up, and keeps making these interviews with other comedians. You can tell he's grasping for some kind of insight that will help him put to rest his fears that he is a sham. And, frankly, fair enough. On the one hand, I think Ricky Gervais is very funny, and having ability in different fields, such as making movies and writing for television and producing radio shows and all that, are good things. Ricky's stand up, while not quite my thing, is certainly competent and he has his audience. Ricky Gervais has comedy talent, no two ways about it.

However, on the other hand, Jerry Seinfeld , Chris Rock , and Louis C.K. are just in a whole other level when it comes to doing stand up. Ricky Gervais wants to be a part of this club, and he's almost in it. Almost. Really, he should have taken on more of an interviewer role than presented it as a round table discussion. A telling moment is when Ricky asks the question, "Are we allowed to just be funny?", and Jerry, who can express bemused derision with his face like no one else can, responds "What are you talking about?"

Still, overall, when you have three and a half of the most talented and famous comedians in the English speaking world talking about comedy, you can't help but have some nuggets of insight that you can hold onto.

Bob Claster's Funny Stuff

Something about getting interviews from the time before we became inundated with so much comedy material as we are now is in itself worthwhile. I don't know if it's because the performers tend to be at an earlier part of their career, before they get more jaded about being interviewed, or maybe it's because with less pervasive media, interviews themselves were less formulaic, or something else, or all of the above, or whatever.

In any case, a DJ named Bob Claster did some good interviews back in the 1980s and was nice enough to put them online so people could download and listen to them. As he explains on his site, he was given free reign to handle the interviews as he wanted, and he wanted to try and get more in depth with the comedians than usual interviews. He succeeds, and that makes these interviews well worth it.

Also, he puts a focus on British comedians, which is a nice change in perspective. I especially recommend you listen to John Cleese and Michael Palin .

Monty Python: Almost the Truth - The Lawyers Cut

Speaking of John Cleese and Michael Palin , this is an awesome documentary. In some ways, the format of this documentary is nothing out of the ordinary, tracing the backgrounds and career arcs of all the members. Also note, there are different versions. The main one is a six part series, but there is also an abridged two hour version. Naturally, I recommend the full series.

I think what makes it different enough and with enough of the insight into comedy that I look for was that because of the type of people the Pythons are, they just have an irreverent and straightforward way of talking about their history. They don't hold back from saying when they thought another member was being stupid for something that happened, or putting their dirty laundry out there. Not that there are lots of sordid details being discussed, just that the interview portions are fairly raw and honest which allows the viewer to get a real understanding of what happened.

Maybe I'm a little biased on this one because Monty Python was the very first comedy I was ever exposed to, and so I have a soft spot for anything Monty Python related.

Louis CK giving a tribute to George Carlin

Louis C.K. talks in this short video about how he was influenced by George Carlin . He talks in brief about how he developed his current style and act, and it's worth it for that.

Also... fuck clowns. Nobody likes clowns.

In the "I Wish I had..." department

In episode 101 of WTF with Marc Maron , Judd Apatow talks about how in 1983 when he was in high school, he managed to weasel his way into doing some interviews with then not-as-famous-as-they-would-become comedians, such as Jerry Seinfeld , Gary Shandling , and Jay Leno . A little light internet searching seems to indicate they are not available. If anyone knows if they are, though, let me know .