Beginnings (Andy Beckerman)

David Cope is a super-funny and absurdist comic based in New York City. Rather than some put-on stage persona, however, his weirdness is an honest extension of his personality. He curates the weekly stand-up show Hot Soup at O’Hanlon’s Bar alongside Andy Haynes, Mark Normand and Matt Ruby, and he’s been featured at the Bumbershoot festival, on the last season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing and in numerous TV commercials. A few weeks ago, he came over to the (always hot) Wrestling Team apartment, and we talked about Shakespeare and James Joyce’s fart fetishes, divorce, call centers, the shittiness of being a lawyer, fuzz or a bedbug?, gaming vs. relationships, new-age harp and two-thirds of every Philip K. Dick novel.

On today's episode I talk to actor James Urbaniak. Originally from Bayonne, New Jersey, James was part of the flourishing 1990s New York theater scene. It was there he met Hal Hartley who cast him as Simon Grim in the wonderful film Henry Fool. Since then, James has been part of Hartley's unofficial repertory, acting in a number of his other films. Outside of these, James has also acted in dozens of roles for TV and the silver screen, turning out classic performances such as R. Crumb in American Splendor, Dr. Venture in The Venture Bros., Grant on Andy Daly's show Review, and Julie's boyfriend Arthur on Difficult People. In addition, James has his own radio drama podcast called Getting On With James Urbaniak.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, we talk to Katie Hartman and Leah Rudick AKA Skinny Bitch Jesus Meeting. As one of the best sketch groups in New York City, Katie and Leah have garnered many accolades since their formation, and have performed all around the country at everything from the Los Angeles Comedy Festival to the Ladies Are Funny Festival and internationally at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where The Guardian named them the “Biggest Revelation”. Currently, their show The Underdeveloped and Overexposed Life and Death of Deena Domino is running at the New York Fringe Festival. A few weeks ago, Katie and Leah dropped by to the Manhattan Wrestling Team apartment to record a very silly and interesting episode about absurdity, internationalism and friendship. Beep beep!

And hey, why not check Andy out on Twitter! @wrestlingteam

On today's show, brought to you by Sal's Landscaping, I talk to comedian Todd Glass. Originally from Philadelphia, Todd began performing stand-up while still in high school. Since then, he's become one of the best stand-ups of our time. Todd's credits include everything from "Conan" to "Politically Incorrect" to the second and third seasons of "Last Comic Standing", and he also hosts the podcast "The Todd Glass Show" on the Nerdist Network. His latest album "Todd Glass Talks About Stuff" was just released in September.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and watch some videos on peteholmes.com!

Matt Ruby is a stand-up based in New York whose blog Sandpaper Suit is one of the best resources for discussing the ins and outs of actually writing and performing comedy. Matt also co-hosts Hot Soup, a monthly stand-up show at UCB East and tours around the U.S. performing at clubs and festivals like SXSW and Bridgetown.Two weeks ago, we discussed his early creative experiences on Beginnings proper, and on today's Field Guide, he leads us through the origins of one of his jokes!

On today's show, we talk to Ethan Berlin about IFC's Bunk, the surreal gameshow he co-created with Eric Bryant. Hosted by Kurt Brauhohler (who was just named one of Variety's comics to watch), playing a smarmy, high-status goof, Bunk takes the format of a typical gameshow and punches it in the spine, challengeing contestants like Thomas Lennon and Eugene Mirman to absurd games that yield nonsensical prizes. Bunk is a delight and one of the best shows that's been on this summer!

On today’s episode we talk to two of the three creators of the insane webseries Teen Wheels. Dan Klein is currently a writer for the Onion and their Get Out of My Face videos and used to write on Sportsdome. He’s also ¼ of Pangaea 3000, one of the best sketch groups in the city. Kelly Hudson is a editor at College Humor and previously worked at Broadway Video, ONN and Vice. She’s also a UCB performer and can be found acting for the house sketch team Beige and writing for their video group Scraps.

Teen Wheels is one of our favorite webseries, and Dan and Kelly walk us through how it was made, and along the way we talk about the meaninglessness of our lives!

Plus! Come see Beginnings live at UCB East on 3/11 at 6pm. We'll be talking to How Was Your Week's Julie Klausner and The Daily Show's Elliott Kalan! Certified Laffs™!

On today's episode I talk to TV writer Cord Jefferson. Originally from Tucson, Cord began his career as a print journalist, first as senior editor at GOOD magazine and then as the west coast editor at Gawker. His reporting and writing have appeared in numerous places including National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine,  The Root, TheNation.com, Jezebel, The American Prospect, and many others. As a TV writer, he started off on The Nightly Show, moved to Master of None, and currently writes on the wonderful NBC show The Good Place. 

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show I talk to musician and editor Jon Fine. Currently, Jon is the executive editor of Inc. magazine. But before he turned to journalism, he was a rock guitarist, most famously in the indie rock band Bitch Magnet. Jon also played in Vineland and Coptic Light, and was a touring guitarist with Don Caballero. Recently, Jon's memoirs and thoughts on the underground music scene - Your Band Sucks: What I Saw at Indie Rock's Failed Revolution (But Can No Longer Hear) - were published by Viking. It's super interesting and well worth your time!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Jason Narducy. Jason began his rock career at the age of ten when he co-founded the band Verböten – one of the seminal acts in the Chicago punk scene. He then went on to become frontman/songwriter/guitarist for Verbow, another beloved Windy City outfit who signed a major-label deal with Epic/Sony during the ‘90s alt-rock bubble and followed that up with an ongoing, nearly decade-long run as indie-rock’s secret weapon – serving as bassist and backing vocalist for indie-underground icons like Bob Mould, Robert Pollard of Guided by Voices, Telekinesis and Superchunk. In 2011, Jason started writing his own music again as Split Single, with Spoon's Britt Daniel and Superchunk's Jon Wurster as his backing band. He's released two albums as Split Single, Fragmented World in 2014 and his latest Metal Frames, which is just lovely.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Sam Prekop. Sam grew up in Chicago and while he went to art school, forming the band Shrimp Boat sent him off in a completely different direction. When the band broke up in the early '90s, he formed The Sea and Cake with Archer Prewitt of The Coctails and Tortoise's John McEntire, and over the last two and a half decades, they've released 11 albums, the most recent being 2018's Any Day. As a solo artist, Sam has released four albums, all on Thrill Jockey, and his latest Comma will be out this September!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to writer Jerry Stahl. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jerry won a Pushcart Prize early in his writing career before taking a detour into writing erotica and for magazines like Hustler. This led to another detour writing for TV and movies, although "detour" here might be incorrect, considering this has been a large chunk of his professional career. Jerry penned scripts for ALF, Thirtysomething, Moonlighting, Twin Peaks, CSI, Maron, Escape at Dannemora as well as films like Bad Boys II. As an author, Jerry has written a number of incredible books and memoirs including Perv: A Love Story, I, Fatty, Permanent Midnight and his latest Nein, Nein, Nein!: One Man's Tale of Depression, Psychic Torment, and a Bus Tour of the Holocaust.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

Episode two features our first interview with successful comedians: Will and Kevin Hines. Will is the associate academic supervisor at the Upright Citizens Brigade Training Center in New York City, a performer on the UCB house team The Stepfathers, and co-author of the book Get Psyched! Kevin is a teacher at UCB, a performer on the UCB house team Reuben Williams, and a writer for the UCB video team Diamonds, Wow! Both of them have been improvising since the late 1990s, and both of those previous sentences end in projects that contain exclamation points.

On today's episode, I talk to Emmy-winning comedy writer Mike Sweeney. Since childhood, Mike wanted to be in showbiz, but family issues prevented him from pursuing stand-up until his late 20s. Stand-up led to writing on shows like Short Attention Span Theater and Politically Incorrect, and in 1995, he joined the writing staff of the then two-year-old Late Night with Conan O'Brien. In 2002, Mike became the head writer for Conan and stayed with the show through its transition to the Tonight Show in 2009 and then after that, to the TBS version, which ended in 2020. Since then, Mike has stayed busy doing many things, among them working as the head writer for That's My Time with David Letterman and as a producer on Conan Without Borders.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

On today's episode I talk to musician Allison Crutchfield. Originally from Birmingham, AL, Allison first started playing music with her sister Katie in the bands The Ackleys and then later P.S. Eliot. Eventually, the two felt the need to work on their own personal musical projects. Katie created Waxahatchee and Allison co-founded the wonderful indie rock band Swearin'. Allison has also recorded a self-released solo EP Lean In To It and her debut full-length Tourist in this Town was released on Merge last year. Recently, Allison's been part of the Waxahatchee live band, and Swearin's new album Fall into the Sun will be released by Merge in October.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to the creators of the new HBO show Animals Phil Matarese and Mike Luciano. Phil and Mike are from New Jersey and Long Island respectively, and while working at an advertising agency together, the two created the webseries Animals, which was then shown at Channel 101 and garnered the "Best Comedy Pilot" award at the 2013 New York Television Festival. After a manager introduce the pair to the Duplass brothers, Mike and Phil moved to LA where the Duplasses helped them independently produce a season of the show, which then got sold to HBO (where you can now see it!).

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to actor and comedian Baron Vaughn. As a stand-up, Baron’s performed on Conan (twice), Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and he has his own Comedy Central Half Hour. As well, AST Records released his album Blaxistential Crisis earlier this year. As an actor, he's been featured in movies like Black Dynamite and Cloverfield, and is currently a series regular on the Netflix show Grace and Frankie. Baron will also be part of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 reboot, playing the part of Tom Servo! Stay tuned for future episodes with Roy Wood Jr., Josie Long, Amber Ruffin and a special 300th episode coming up soon!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Suki Kim, a novelist, investigative journalist and the only writer ever to go live undercover in North Korea to investigate and write a book from the inside. In 2002, she travelled to North Korea, where she witnessed both Kim Jong-il’s 60th Birthday celebrations as well as his death, and she later wrote a number of pieces for Harper's about the country. Suki is a recipient of a Guggenheim, a Fulbright, and a George Soros Foundation Open Society fellowship. As well, her first novel, The Interpreter, was a finalist for a PEN Hemingway Prize, and her aforementioned book of investigative literary nonfiction, Without You, There Is No Us: Undercover Among the Sons of North Korea's Elite is a  New York Times bestseller.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show I talk to stand-up David Smithyman. David hails from Sydney, Australia and moved to the US to attend college. Since starting stand-up, he's become a finalist in NBC's Stand-Up for Diversity and last year was named one of Comedy Central's Comics to Watch. Currently, he writes on the ABC show Fresh Off the Boat.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Aisling Bea. Originally from County Kildare, Ireland, Aisling has been acting and performing stand-up for over a decade. She's appeared on almost every TV panel show in the UK including 8 Out Of 10 Cats (where she was the first ever female team captain), Taskmaster, Qi, @Midnight and many others. As an actor, Aisling has been in many shows, both drama and comedy, including The Fall, Hard Sun, Damned, The Delivery Man, Dead Boss and many others, and her new show Happy, which she created with Sharon Horgan, was just ordered to series. And finally, as a stand-up, she's appeared on numerous shows and festivals. Her debut solo show at the Edinburgh Fringe, C’est La Bea, was nominated for the Foster’s Best Newcomer Award and a year later, she won the British Comedy Award for Best Female TV Comedian. Her Netflix 15-minute special will be released later this year.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Nika Nemirovsky AKA NIIKA. Born in Uzbekistan in the wake of the USSR's dissolution, Nika and her family immigrated to Chicago when she was very young. Her music reflects being at the nexus of a number of different cultures, both on her 2017 EP Honest Dancing and her debut album Close But Not Too Close will be out May 15th.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to journalist and political writer Doug Henwood. Originally from Teaneck, New Jersey, Doug has been writing publicly about politics since he started his newsletter Left Business Observer, which ran from 1986 until 2013. He's also written for Harper's, The Village Voice, Jacobin and is a contributing editor at The Nation. In addition, Doug has written four books: State of the U.S.A. Atlas, Wall Street, After the New Economy and My Turn: Hillary Clinton Targets the Presidency. Currently, he hosts the weekly KPFA Berkeley radio show and podcast Behind the News.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode I talk to musicians Lætitia Tamko AKA Vagabon. Originally from Yaoundé, Cameroon, Lætitia and her family immigrated to the US when she was 13. While she graduated from CUNY with a degree in engineering, a chance event led her to playing music full time. Her first album Infinite Worlds was released in 2017 to general acclaim, and her latest album, the self-titled Vagabon, will be released on October 18 on Nonesuch Records!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Katy Davidson AKA Dear Nora. Originally from Arizona, Katy has been making music for decades now under the name Dear Nora, starting with the Make You Smile 7" in 2000 on Magic Marker Records. They took a long break from the moniker after 2008's Three States, but picked it up again with 2018's Skulls Example which is one of the best albums Katy's ever recorded. Their new album, Human Features, will be released on Orindal Records at the end of October, and it's fantastic! 

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On this episode, we talk to stand-up comedian and writer Dan St. Germain. With the force of personality of a  literary heavyweight, Dan has made a name for himself appearing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and MTV, and writing for Fuse and The Onion, among many others. He's been a "New Face" at the 2011 Montreal Just For Laughs Festival, has been nominated for multiple ECNY awards, and this year he'll be featured on John Oliver’s NY Standup Show. A few weeks ago, Dan came over to the Wrestling Team apartment, and we talked about writing plays and having a literary father, and then Dan called into question the entire nature of the show!

And don't forget to come to Beginnings: Live at UCB East this Tuesday, the 10th at 8pm! We've got Kevin Allison (Risk!, The State), Hallie Haglund (The Daily Show) and the band Savoir Adore as guests!

On today's show I talk to writer Alex Dinelaris Jr. As a New York native, Alex was captivated by film and theater at a young age. While he initially studied to be a theater director, he was encouraged to write, and eventually his play Folding the Monster got some attention. Since then, he's written a number of well-received plays, including Still Life and Red Dog Howls, has co-written two films Biutiful and the Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning Birdman, and is currently showrunning the Starz show The One Percent with Ed Harris and Hilary Swank.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to director Guy Maddin. Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Guy did not set out to be a filmmaker, but after working odd job after odd job, he eventually started taking film classes in his later 20s and became part of the Winnipeg Film Group. After making some short films and a surreal cable access show, he wrote and directed his debut feature, Tales from the Gimli Hospital, in 1988. It became a cult success and established Guy's reputation in independent film circles. Since then, he has written and directed over a dozen other films including The Saddest Music in the World, My Winnipeg, Keyhole and his latest Rumours starring Cate Blanchett, which had its world premiere at the 2024 Cannes Festival!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode I talk to musician Paul Hammer. Paul is main singer/songwriter of the indie pop band Savoir Adore. Originally a duo with Deidre Muro - who left the band in 2014 - Savoir Adore began playing sometime in the mid-2000s. They released their first EP The Adventures of Mr. Pumpernickel and the Girl with Animals in her Throat in 2008, and since then have released three other albums: In the Wooded Forest, Our Nature, and their latest, which was released by Nettwerk Music Group earlier this summer, The Love That Remains.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to actor, writer and filmmaker Todd Berger. Originally from New Orleans, Todd has been making movies since he was a teenager. Professionally, he's acted in numerous TV shows and films including Parks and Rec, Maron, and Southland Tales, and has written and/or directed dozens of shorts, shows and films including the wonderful 2012 film It's a Disaster and his latest film, the puppet noir The Happytime Murders, which stars Melissa McCarthy, was directed by Brian Henson and which opens this Friday!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to TV writer Ed Herro. Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Ed fell in love with improv in middle school. He started doing comedy in college and moved to New York where he performed on house teams in the early days of UCB. Eventually realizing that one couldn't make a living yes and-ing, he became a touring stand-up and then a TV writer, writing on shows like Jeff & Some Aliens, American Housewife, and The Neighbors. Most recently, he created, with his writing partner Brian Donovan, the series The Sticky starring the incredible Margo Martindale, and it is airing now weekly on Amazon Prime!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode I talk to guitarist and composer Arto Lindsay. Born in America, Arto grew up in Brazil while the Tropicalia movement was in full swing, and moved back to the states to attend college. Eventually moving to New York, Arto formed the important no wave band DNA in the 1970s, and since then has been part of so many amazing bands and made so much great music that it's tough to discuss it all. Some highlights include being part of John Lurie's The Lounge Lizards, working with John Zorn, forming The Ambitious Lovers, collaborating with Caetano Veloso, and much more. Recently, Northern Spy Records released The Encyclopedia of Arto Lindsay, a two-disc retrospective of his career.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and check out Olivia Tremor Control's Will Cullen Hart on Thursday's episode!

Wrestling Team's brand new podcast dedicated to looking at the beginnings of comedians' careers. What leads people into comedy? What's it really like starting out? How can you build a lasting career? All these questions and more will be explored. On episode one, Wrestling Team's friends Cory Palmer and Aaron Burdette talk about moving to New York to start performing comedy and the duo tests out the concept of talking about beginnings. Verdict: guilty of three counts of fun and two counts of negligent homocide!

Mike Lawrence is a good example of what to do if you are serious about having a career in comedy and in working on your craft. Dedicated, thoughtful, opinionated and above all funny, he has spent the last five and half years, first in Florida, and then here in New York, going up night after night and working his material. Mike puts the responsibility for comedy solely in the hands of the performer, and it is that person's job to make the audience laugh. There is no other excuse. And this approach has led him to a spot on the New Faces showcase at the 2010 Montreal Just For Laughs Comedy Festival as well as one on John Oliver's New York Stand-up Show this year. Earlier this month, Mike sat down with us to discuss Stan Lee, wrestling metaphors, the job of the comedian, class warfare and comedy, improv in New York and the attendant social scene, scams and flams, and soul children.

On today's episode we talk to Ethan Berlin. Ethan is a writer and performer based in New York City. Starting on the show Crank Yankers in the early 2000s, he's since written for Sasha Baron Cohen on Da Ali G Show, Lopez Tonight and Billy on the Street among many other shows. Currently he is the co-creator and executive producer of the absurd game show Bunk on the Independent Film Channel. A few weeks ago, Ethan came over to the Manhattan Wrestling Team apartment and talked to us about what it's like writing for other people and his love of early David Letterman and real-world comedy bits. Plus we debut two - Count 'em! TWO! - new segments!

Plus! Come to Beginnings: Live on 8/14 at 8pm with James Adomian, musical guest Swearin' and more!

Holy mackerel! This may very well be our most fun live show yet! On January 8th, we were joined by Erika Forster and Annie Hart from one of our favorite bands Au Revoir Simone, one of our favorite performers Josh Patten (performer at UCB and a writer on SNL Weekend Update), and one of our favorite artists Molly Crabapple (the founder of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School). We laughed, we loved, we heard about their earliest creative memories. And even did a little demo work for a PR firm that paid us big buck$ to poll our audience!

Subscribe on iTunes and follow Andy and Mark on Twitter! See us live in February at UCB East! (probably!)

We had a real blast at maybe one of my favorite live episodes that we've yet taped! A few weeks ago, we were joined by Joe Randazzo (The Onion, AdultSwim.com), Larry Livermore (founder of Lookout! Records), Jamie Lee (Girl Code, Last Comic Standing), musical guest Brother JT (Thrill Jockey, Drag City), and a special appearance buy the great Talib Kweli. Listen and enjoy!
 
Also, check out our new website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes and see us live at the Del Close Marathon on June 29th and live at UCB East on July 2nd with Wyatt Cenac, Mandy Stadtmiller (deputy editor of xoJane), musical guest Xenia Rubinos and a special guest from the world of hip hop!

On today's episode I talk to musician Jen Goma. Based in New York City, Jen writes and produces music, comedy and videos. She is a member of the bands A Sunny Day in Glasgow and Roman à Clef and has collaborated with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Jherek Bischoff. Her first solo album Smiley Face, recorded under the name Showtime Goma was just released, and it's great!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer, stand-up and union organizer Nato Green. Nato lives and was raised in San Francisco, and the city's progressive atmosphere pervades everything he does. Nato wrote for Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell on FX and toured nationally with Kamau & Janine Brito as "Laughter Against the Machine". He's the creator of Iron Comic, the Iron Chef-spoofing comedy game show, and was named San Francisco's Best Comedian by the SF Weekly, Huffington Post, and CBS. He also hosts a comedy segment on NPR's All Things Considered, and his first comedy album, The Nato Green Party, was released by Rooftop Comedy, and can be found online wherever comedy albums are sold!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to TV writer Annie Mebane. Originally from Florida, Annie came up in comedy at iOWest and UCBLA, performing on house improv teams at both theaters. As a writer, she's worked on a number of awesome shows including Happy Endings, Breaking In, Community, The Michael J. Fox Show, The Goldbergs, and currently the new Heathers series.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show, I talk to Tony Award-nominated actor Reed Birney. For most of his career, Reed was a journeyman actor, but that all changed in 2008 when he starred in the OBIE Award-winning Sarah Kane play Blasted at the Soho Rep. Since then he's performed in a number of on and off Broadway plays and received a Tony Award nomination and a Drama Desk Award for his performance in Harvey Fierstein’s play Casa Valentina. Reed also plays Donald Blythe on the hit Netflix series House of Cards.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to comedian and actor Larry Hankin. Originally from Long Island, Larry got his start doing stand-up in Greenwich Village as a contemporary of Lenny Bruce and Woody Allen. After moving to Chicago and joining Second City, he and a number of other improvisers formed The Committee in San Francisco. Larry is one of the most well-known character actors in Hollywood, and trying to list his numerous credits is nigh impossible, but a few of the more well-known ones are Escape from Alcatraz, Friends, Seinfeld, Breaking Bad, Barry, Billy Madison, Star Trek: Voyager, Laverne & Shirley and over a hundred other roles. In addition, The Loopholes Dossier, a number of writings based on characters he created on stage, was released late last year by BookBaby!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Alexander Noice. Based in Los Angeles, Alex is a composer, guitarist, producer and bandleader who has toured the world performing with many notable artists from Charlie Haden to Art Ensembles of Chicago’s Famoudou Don Moye. From 2008-2013, he led the highly revered art rock/punk trio Falsetto Teeth, and in 2016, he released his first solo electronic album called Music Made With Voices. His newest project is simply called NOICE, and their self-titled debut album was just released last week on Orenda Records!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart of the band Ohmme. Based in Chicago - where they've been hailed as "the heart of Chicago's music community" - Sima and Macie are both classically trained musicians and established players within the Chicago music scene who have collaborated with everyone from Richard Thompson to Jeff Tweedy to Chance the Rapper to Ken Vandermark. Though they have collaborated together for many years, Ohmme is their first rock band, and their debut album Parts was just released this summer by Joyful Noise Recordings, and it's wonderful!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Madeline Link. Originally from Calgary, Madeline Link initially started PACKS as a solo project, but it eventually coalesced into its current four-piece configuration. In 2020, they were signed to Fire Talk Records, and the label has since released all four of their albums and EPs. This includes 2021's Take the Cake, 2023's Crispy Crunchy Nothing and their latest, Melt the Honey, which came out towards the end of January and is just wonderful!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

On today's episode I talk to rapper Latasha Alcindor AKA LA. Originally from Flatbush, Brooklyn, Latasha made her way into hip hop in a unique way: through performance art. In only six short years, she's put out a number of great albums including The Presentation and The LA Riots in 2011, Spark in 2014, Loosies and Blunts a year later, and two this year B(LA)K and Teen Nite at Empire. All are worth your time!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to comedian and writer Megan Neuringer. Originally from New York, Megan got her comedy start at UCB, where she was an official performer for over a decade. As an actor, she was a panelist on Best Week Ever and a number of other VH1 shows, and has appeared on Flight Of The Conchords, Fringe, Strangers With Candy, @Midnight, Kroll Show, Comedy Bang! Bang! and much more. And as a writer, she written for numerous shows including Portlandia and Netflix's new show The Fix with Jimmy Carr.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Anna McClellan began performing original songs in her hometown of Omaha, NE at the age of seventeen and has been actively recording and touring ever since. Her debut, Fire Flames, earned her an opening slot on a Frankie Cosmos tour. Through the doors that tour opened, McClellan eventually met Father/Daughter Records which led to the release of her second full-length record, Yes and No, in 2018. After a stint in NYC, several subsequent tours and meandering, Anna returned to Omaha and recorded I saw first light, her latest effort for Father/Daughter.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

Live at the Del Close Marathon, which took place over the last weekend here in New York City, we had the pleasure of talking to one of our comedic idols: Matt Walsh! One of the founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade, Matt has been in a ton of films from Old School to The Hangover, he's helmed a number of series on Comedy Central and FX, and he's currently one of the leads in Armando Iannucci's HBO series, Veep. During a late night slot at UCB East, we talked with Matt about his childhood on the southside of Chicago and about his slew of terrible post-college jobs. It was a delight!

And if you live in New York, come on out to the next Beginnings: Live at UCB East on Tuesday July 10th at 8pm. Our guests are Dapwell and Heems from Das Racist and stand-up Nick Vatterott (and a musical guest)!

On today's episode I talk to musician Maria Taylor. Originally from Birmingham, AL, Maria's been playing music for a majority of her life. Her first band, Little Red Rocket, which she formed with Orenda Fink as a teenager, was signed to Geffen in the mid-'90s and eventually morphed into Azure Ray. As Azure Ray, Maria and Orenda released four albums and numerous EPs, mostly on Saddle Creek Records. On her own, Maria has released seven solo albums, both on Saddle Creek and her own label Flower Moon Records, she's contributed music to numerous television soundtracks, and she's collaborated with everyone from Bright Eyes to Moby to Michael Stipe to Daniel Johnston. At the end of October, Azure Ray released Waves, their first new music in over half-a-decade. And it's great!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show, I talk to comedian and musician Dave Hill. Dave got his start playing in indie rock bands in the 1990s, such as Sons of Elvis and Cobra Verde. While he still plays music today, his main focus is on writing, performing and hosting, dividing his time between Dave Hill's Podcasting Incident on Maximum Fun, The Dave Hill Explosion at UCB, The Goddamn Dave Hill Show on WFMU, contributing to This American Life, among many other projects. His first book, Tasteful Nudes, was published in 2012.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter!

On today's episode I talk to musician Jason Williamson. Originally from Grantham, Lincolnshire, Jason spent several years pursuing music unsuccessfully both with various groups and as a solo singer-songwriter and working as a session musician with a number of bands including Spiritualized. It was when Jason met Andrew Fearn though and they formed Sleaford Mods that things started to take off. Since 2007, they've released ten albums to much acclaim, and their latest All That Glue (a collection of crowd pleasers, B sides and rarities) was just released in May on Rough Trade.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today’s show, we talk to Seth Reiss. Seth is a writer and performer based in Chicago, and is currently head writer at The Onion. He also contributes to McSweeney’s and previously wrote for the Sklar Brothers show Cheap Seats. Last week on Beginnings proper, we talked to Seth about his background in theater, and this week on Beginnings: Field Guide, we talk to him about his most favorite Onion article.

Plus, don't miss us live! 6/12: Beginnings: Live at UCB East, 9:30pm w/ Kurt Braunohler (IFC’s Bunk), Dan McCoy (The Daily Show) and saxophone/drum trio Moon Hooch! Also 6/21: our musical Rockefeller Centaur at UCB Chelsea, 6:30pm!

On today's episode, I talk to writer and director Jim Mickle. Originally from Douglassville, PA, Jim studied film at NYU and then worked his way up in the industry, eventually deciding to make his own film in 2006, Mulberry Street, with frequent collaborator Nick Damici. Each film they made got a little more attention: Stake Land, We Are What We Are and Cold In July, which premiered at Sundance and was scooped up by IFC Films. From 2016 to 2018, Jim and Damici showran the Sundance TV show Hap and Leonard, and most recently, Jim has showrun three seasons of the Netflix Jeff Lemire adaptation Sweet Tooth, whose third season debuts today!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

On today's show I talk to  comedian Kevin Allison. Kevin is a former member of the sketch group The State, which had a show on MTV from 1993 to 1995, and currently, he's the founder and host of Risk!, a storytelling podcast which you can find on the Maximum Fun network. Unlike a lot of other storytelling shows, Risk! encourages real, un-coached tales - some polished, some raw, some funny, others heart-wrenching. All of them are pretty darn great.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and come see a live taping of The Pete Holmes Show!

On today's episode, I talk to musician John Ringhofer AKA Half-handed Cloud. Based now in Helsinki, Finland, Half-handed Cloud started as a home-recording project in Chattanooga, TN in 1999. Since then, John has released almost two dozen albums and EPs, many of them on Asthmatic Kitty and Sounds Familyre. He's also been a member of Sufjan Stevens' touring band, and his latest album Flutterama is out now!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

Today marks the first episode of the newish format focusing more on my guests' childhoods, and I couldn't have asked for a better guest, the wonderful musician and writer Larry Livermore. Originally from Detroit, Larry began to get involved with the San Francisco punk scene in the late 1970s. After playing in a number of bands, he co-founded Lookout! Records in 1987 which was the home of numerous bands including Green Day, Op Ivy and Rancid. Larry's also written for Maximum Rocknroll, Punk Planet, and most recently Don Giovanni Records published his memoirs Spy Rock Memories.

A few weeks ago, Larry stopped by my Harlem studio and we got in deep about childhood enemies, learning not to be a smart aleck, stories from WWII and The Depression, autos as status symbols, working class consciousness and being on the run from the FBI in late '60s NYC. Plus, in the epilogue, I learn about current day warzone-ish Detroit from my fiancee, stand-up Naomi Ekperigin.

A big thanks, btw, to Matt Cohen and Eric Silver for their thoughts on how to further develop the show!

Check out our new website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes and see some live dates: on Aug. 31st we'll be live at the Out of Bounds Festival in Austin with director Todd Rohal, Ramesh Srivastava  of Voxtrot and more, and the next live episode will be September 3rd for the Beginnings "Writer's Panel" featuring Annie Mebane (Community, The Michael J. Fox), guest co-host Opus Moreschi (head writer of Colbert Report) and more!

On today's episode I talk to author and TV writer Jim Gavin. Based in Los Angeles, Jim's fiction has appeared in numerous publications including The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Zoetrope and many others. His book of short stories Middle Men was published in 2013 by Simon & Schuster, and the TV show he created, Lodge 49, just debuted its second season on AMC.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Tim Smith. From 1999 to 2012, Tim was the singer, guitarist and principal songwriter for the indie rock band Midlake. During his tenure, the band recorded a number of EPs and three highly-regarded albums Bamnan and Slivercork, The Trials of Van Occupanther, and The Courage of Others. In 2012 though, Tim left the band to pursue his own projects, and since then has been recording under the name Harp.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Cory Hanson. Originally from Los Angeles, Cory began playing music professionally with Mikal Cronin and the bands, together PANGEA and Meatbodies. In 2014 he formed Wand with his former art school classmates Lee Landey and Evan Burrows, and they've gone on to record four albums: Ganglion Reef, Golem, 1000 Days, and their latest Plum (the last two were released on the wonderful label Drag City!). Last year, Drag City also released Cory's solo album The Unborn Capitalist from Limbo. All of these terrific!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to TV writer Alison Tatlock. Originally from Brookline, MA, Alison has taken a circuitous route to television from actor to non-profits to playwright. And while Alison only started her TV career less than a decade ago, she's written for a number of the best dramas of the 21st century. This includes shows like In Treatment, Stranger Things, Halt and Catch Fire, and Better Call Saul, the latter of which has been nominated for a 2019 Writer's Guild Award in Drama.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show I talk to comedian Andy Daly. Born in New York, Andy started comedy in the late 90s first with Chicago City Limits and then with UCB, where he was part of the first wave of the theatre and performed on the legendary team The Swarm. In 2000, Andy moved to LA to join the cast of MADtv, and since then has performed on a number of awesome shows including Eastbound and Down, The Life and Times of Tim, and Reno 911. Recently his show Review premiered on Comedy Central, where Andy's character Forrest MacNeil reviews life events like getting a divorce or being a racist.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter!

On today's episode I talk to musician Oli Chang. Originally from Australia, Oli is one-half, along with Jack Milas, of the celebrated ambient dream-pop band High Highs. Since 2011, they've released a self-titled EP and two albums Open Season and Cascades. All of them are wonderful. In addition, Oli also has his own solo project called Animal Feelings!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show we talk to writer and performer Sara Benincasa. While now based in LA, Sara got her start in New York, where she did everything from host a show on Sirius to make videos for the Huffington Post. She writes for Jane and Vice.com, and last year, her book Agorafabulous!, based on her-one woman show about her struggles with agoraphobia, was published by William Morrow.

Right before Christmas, we sat down with Sara at The PIT, hours before her stand-up show, and talked about everything from comedy in the wake of national tragedies, to income and privilege, to the time Andy bombed opening for Jonah Ray.

Subscribe on iTunes and see us on Saturday at the NYC Podfest with Halley Feiffer (The Squid and the Whale, Bored to Death), Julieanne Smolinski (Rolling Stone's 25 Funniest People on Twitter) and musical guest Mike Pace (Oxford Collapse, Worst Gig Ever podcast)!

On today’s show we talk to filmmakers Rob Hatch-Miller and Puloma Basu. Rob and Puloma are accomplished filmmakers and documentarians, and along with Best Show creator Tom Scharpling, they make up Production Company Productions. Over the last few years, the three have created a large number of funny and interesting music videos for acts such as The New Pornographers, Ted Leo, Ben Gibbard and Aimee Mann.

Over the weekend, Rob and Puloma came over to the Wrestling Team apartment to get in deep about music (John Vanderslice, Midlake, Bob Mould, Husker Du, Parquet Courts and Palma Violets!), and chat about how Puloma used to run with Indian street musicians, Andy's childish palette, as well as Rob and Puloma's collaborations with Tom Scharpling.

Subscribe on iTunes and follow Andy and Mark on Twitter! See a live episode on April 2nd at UCB East at 8pm with a sweet line-up TBA!

On today's show I talk to cartoonist Paul Hornschemeier. Based in Boston, Paul grew up in Ohio, studying psychology and philosophy at Ohio State University. After being introduced to the works of Daniel Clowes, Paul realized that comics could be a venue to discuss existential topics. A number of his books have been published by Fantagraphics including Let Us Be Perfectly Clear and The Three Paradoxes. His latest book Life with Mr. Dangerous was published in 2011 by Villard. In addition to comics, Paul created the title sequence for the Comedy Bang! Bang! IFC show and also has a YouTube channel of original animation.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, and follow me on Twitter!

On today's episode, I talk to musician Jeff Martin. Originally from Los Angeles, CA, Jeff started playing piano when he was but a mere toddler. In 1992, he formed the band Idaho with his high school friend John Berry, though Berry would leave a few years later, making Idaho primarily Jeff's project. The band first signed to Caroline, who released their first three albums and an EP, but with their breakthrough album in 2000, Hearts of Palm, they began releasing music on their own Idaho Music label. And their latest, Lapse, will be released at the end of May.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

On today's episode, I talk to writer and actor Dylan Marron. Dylan is a Drama Desk-nominated writer & performer based in New York City. He is the voice of Carlos on the hit podcast Welcome to Night Vale and the co-creator and performer of Ridgefield Middle School Talent Nite, a 17-character middle school talent show, in which he and Jo Firestone play every role. Dylan's also an ensemble member of the New York Neo-Futurists, as well as the creator of Every Single Word, a video series that edits down popular films to only feature the words spoken by people of color.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show I talk to journalist and author Jon Ronson. Originally from Cardiff, Wales, Jon moved to London for university, and it was in England that his writing career began. He's created a number of documentaries for BBC radio, TV, and for similar places like Channel 4, and he's written a number of international bestsellers - some of which have been turned into films - including The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Psychopath Test, Them: Adventures with Extremists, and his latest, which is out this week, So You've Been Publicly Shamed. (They're all wonderful!)

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to stand-up and actress Amber Nelson. Born in Saudi Arabia and raised mostly in Louisiana, Amber has been performing comedy for many years, as both a stand-up and a sketch performer on numerous house teams at UCB as well as as a member of one of the best sketch groups of the last decade Murderfist. In addition to all this, Amber's appeared on Netflix's The Characters, Guy Code as well as Almost Genius on TruTV, and she co-hosts the wonderful podcast The Brighter Side on the Last Podcast Network.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to musician Bridie Monds-Watson AKA SOAK. Originally from Derry in Northern Ireland, Bridie began making music when she was 13, and quickly found acclaim. Her first album, Before We Forgot How to Dream was released in 2015 on Rough Trade. It won the Irish Choice Music Prize Album of the Year and was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize as well. Her latest album, Grim Town, which is also on Rough Trade, will be out this April.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show, I talk to Emmy Award-winning comedian Brian McCann. Brian started off his career as a stand-up, and in 1995 became a sketch writer on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, where you might know him from his many characters, which include Preparation H. Raymond and The Guy with Bullet Proof Legs. Brian stayed with the show through its transformation to The Tonight Show and then Conan, but in 2012 wanted to return to New York and became the showrunner for Nikki and Sara Live and later a writer on Totally Biased. Currently you can see his show Brian McCann's Leisure Hour, which is running at the UCB's Chelsea theatre.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and check out my gameshow podcast Snap Impression!

On today's episode I talk to musician, producer, composer and founding member of Deerhoof, Greg Saunier. After graduating from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 1991, Greg formed the band Nitre Pit, which a few years later became Deerhoof, and in the last 25 years, the band has released 15 albums on labels like Kill Rock Stars and Joyful Noise. Outside of Deerhoof, Greg has played with many bands, including Nervous Cop with Zach Hill and Joanna Newsom, and Rolling Stone called Greg, Zach and Lightning Bolt's Brian Chippendale "a generation of trailblazing 21st-century avant-rock percussionists". Deerhoof's latest album Future Teenage Cave Artists was just released at the end of May.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's show we talk with writer and actor Matt Oberg. With a background in theater, Matt moved to New York to pursue acting professionally and eventually made his way into the comedy world through the People's Improv Theater. He's had parts in many shows including 30 Rock and Delocated, and had major roles in two Onion productions, as the anchor in Sports Dome and as one of the many Tucker Hopes on IFC's ONN. He also voiced Mark Lily, the main character on the incredible cartoon Ugly Americans. A few weeks ago Matt came over to the Manhattan Wrestling Team apartment and discussed his impending move to LA, faking it at your day job and the time he was Al Pacino's assistant's assistant.

Subscribe on iTunes and come see Beginnings: Live at UCB East on October 9th at 8pm with stand-ups Nate Bargatze and Sara Schaefer and musical guest Cymbals Eat Guitars! Fun!™

On today's show I talk to actor and comedian John Ennis. John grew up in Boston and attended Emerson College, where he was in a sketch group with David Cross and Laura Kightlinger. He continued to work with David and became one of the ensemble actors on the incredible and influential sketch program Mr. Show. Since then, John has been in a number of awesome projects from Malcolm in the Middle to Studio 60 to Arrested Development, and besides the films and videos he acts in regularly, he produces two different live monthly sketch shows in LA.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and watch "The Pete Holmes Show" on TBS after "Conan"!

On today's episode, I talk to rapper and musician Brian Ennals and Tariq Ravelomanana AKA Infinity Knives. Originally from Annapolis, Maryland and Tanzania respectively, Brian and Tariq made music separately for years, and after reading about Brian in the Baltimore Sun, Tariq reached out to him and eventually asked Brian to feature on his album Dear, Sudan. This led to their debut Rhino XXL in 2020. While the album was a local hit, it did not prepare them for the reception their second album King Cobra would receive. Released on Phantom Limb in the middle of 2022, it became a word of mouth sensation, organically making everybody's end-of-year lists, deservedly so, as it's fantastic!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to musician Shaun Fleming. Originally from Agoura Hills, CA, Shaun started out their creative life as a child voice actor on shows like Fillmore!, Kim Possible and Lilo & Stitch. As a musician though, they first started playing professionally as the touring drummer for the indie rock band Foxygen. Soon after, Shaun formed Diane Coffee as an outlet for their own music, and since then have recorded five albums and EPs, the latest of which, With People, was just released on Polyvinyl!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Julie Doiron. Originally from Moncton, New Brunswick, Julie's musical career began with the acclaimed indie rock group Eric's Trip which formed when she was just 18. While the band was only together six short years, they put out a number of albums on Sub Pop, as well as numerous EPs and 7"es, and just before they stopped playing together, Julie began to record songs on her own. Since then, she's released over a dozen solo albums, as well as collaborations with groups like Wooden Stars and Mt. Eerie. Her last album I Thought of You was released late last year on You've Changed, and in April, her latest album Julie & Dany, which she recorded with her partner Dany Placard, will be released on Simone Records.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

Kurt Braunohler is a writer, stand-up, improviser and actor living in New York City. A fearless improviser, he got his start at UCB, and as part of his Harold team Neutrino created the Neutrino Video Project, a fully improvised movie in Harold form filmed and edited for a live audience. Kurt is also one-half of Kurt and Kristen, his comedy duo with Kristen Schaal. Together, they host the live variety show Hot Tub, have written and starred in an award-winning Edinburgh Fringe Festival show, and co-created the web-series and Channel 4 pilot Penelope: Princess of Pets. Kurt sat down with us a little while ago and we discussed all these things, as well as Jim Carrey legends, Wilco water bottles and balancing absurdity and humanity. Plus, cameo by Kristen as Kurt interviews her about her new play The Coward.

On today's episode, I talk to comedians Casey Wilson and June Diane Raphael. As writers and actors, June and Casey have been involved in some of best comedies of the last few years. Casey was a cast member of SNL and one of the stars of ABC's fantastic Happy Endings, and June stared in Burning Love and currently Adult Swim's NTSF:SD:SUV::. The two met in an acting class at NYU and came up through UCBNY, and their latest film Ass Backwards, which they wrote and starred in, opened Friday and is currently in theaters around the country.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and come see a live taping of The Pete Holmes Show!

Myq Kaplan is a super-funny stand-up based in New York City. He holds an advanced degree in linguistics and his love of language is apparent in his act, which he’s performed on The Tonight Show, the past season of Last Comic Standing as well as on his own Comedy Central Presents special. His first album Vegan Mind Meld came out in 2010, and it’s great! A week ago, he stopped by the Wrestling Team apartment to talk about lingusitics, creativity and stigmata sex, and we had tons of fun joshing around and grams of fun grahaming around...with words!

PLUS! Come see Beginnings live at UCB East on 2/12 at 6PM with Michael Kupperman and Sean Patton!

On today's show I talk to artist Nate Hill. Originally from Florida, Nate moved to New York to perform art in a city that would be receptive to his works. And Nate's works are pretty amazing. Coming out of the same public performance tradition that gave birth to artists like Joey Skaggs and even some of the early Upright Citizens Brigade pranks, Nate's art is practiced outside the usual (suffocating?) boundaries of the fine art world. Performances like Death Bear, where Nate, dressed in a large black bear mask will come and take away items your ex has left behind, or Trophy Scarves, where he draped white women around his neck like fashion accessories, show how Nate can take serious emotional, racial and gender issues and examine them from a playful place.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and check out my gameshow podcast Snap Impression!

On today's episode I talk to writer/directors Charles Rogers and Sarah-Violet Bliss. Charles and SV broke out with their film Fort Tilden, a satire of Millennial Brooklyn, which won the Grand Jury Award at SXSW 2014. Since then, they've written on the first season of Netflix's Wet Hot American Summer revival, and are the co-creators of the forthcoming TBS series Search Party starring Alia Shawkat.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

Eddie Pepitone is a stand-up and actor who started with Chicago City Limits in New York in the late ‘90s and quickly became part of the city’s comedy scene. He’s performed on Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel and regularly on Marc Maron’s live WTFs in LA. You might recognize Eddie from season six of Last Comic Standing, as the cook on The Sarah Silverman Program or from his role in the film Old School. He also co-hosts a popular podcast called The Long Shot and has a daily comic strip video series called Puddin’. A few weeks ago we sat down with Eddie in his hotel room in midtown. "What happened?" you ask? I'll tell you: Our recording equipment betrays us! We investigate the awkward pause! Andy uses his limited experience to try and connect with Eddie! Mark examines the sweet spot of Eddie's rage and pain!

On today's episode, I talk to musician Colin Meloy. Originally from Helena, Montana, Colin played in a few bands in high school and college before eventually forming The Decemberists in Portland, Oregon at the turn of the century. They released their first album, Castaways and Cutouts a few years later on Kill Rock Stars, who they continued to work with until eventually signing with Capitol Records. Since 2002, the band has released nine albums, and in addition, Colin has recorded a number of solo cover albums, starting with Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey almost two decades ago. The Decemberists latest album, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again, was just released in mid-June on YABB Records, and like everything else the band does, it's great!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's show I talk to comedian David Huntsberger. Originally from outside of Reno, Nevada, David grew up riding and shoeing horses, building fences, and all other manner of things a suburban kid like me would naively put under the rubric of "cowboy stuff". David started doing stand-up in San Diego many years ago, and since then, he's appeared on Premium Blend and Last Comic Standing, and has released three albums, which you can find on his site. He also hosts the monthly Junk Show and is the co-host of one of the best podcasts Professor Blastoff.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter, and check out my gameshow podcast Snap Impression!

On today's episode, I talk to TV writer Tommy Blacha. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Tommy came to TV writing through the Chicago comedy scene. Besides his writing for the WWE, if there's been a weird comedy in the last two decade, chances are Tommy's had something to do with it. He wrote for Conan, where he created PimpBot5000, and has also written for The Eric Andre Show, Pretend Time, Human Giant, Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Da Ali G Show, Late Night with Zach, TV Funhouse, and SNL. He's been a voice actor on China, IL and Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and with Brendan Small, co-created the Adult Swim hit Metalocalypse! Currently, Tommy is executive producing and writing on the new Comedy Central show Moonbeam City.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

Guy Branum is a wonderful stand-up who was born and raised in Yuba City, CA on an almond farm. After graduating UC Berkeley, he attended the University of Minnesota Law School, where he received his JD. But the lawyer life was not for Guy, and stand-up eventually led to TV writing. Guy's written for G4, Chelsea Lately and Totally Biased. He also appeared on season eight of Last Comic Standing.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Rose Melberg. Originally from Sacramento, California, Rose has been a performing musician since high school in the early '90s. While only lasting a year, her first band Tiger Trap garnered a cult following and put out a self-titled album on K Records. Her next band Go Sailor lasted from 1994-1996, but in that short time, recorded a number of albums and singles for Slumberland and Lookout! At the same time, Rose formed The Softies with Jen Sbragia. While it was originally meant to be a side-project, it became the main musical focus for the pair, and between 1995 and 2000, they released three fantastic albums on K Records: It's Love, Winter Pageant and Holiday in Rhode Island. Since then, Rose has released a number of incredible solo albums and performed in different bands, but most recently, she and Jen started writing music together again, and their latest album The Bed I Made was just released on Father/Daughter Records, and it's the best!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode I talk to TV writer and showrunner Karl Schaefer. Originally from Downey, CA, Karl has been working in TV since the late 1980s, where he started off as the creator and showrunner of TV 101. In the '90s, he created and showran two supernatural programs Eerie, Indiana and Strange Luck, and then spent time writing on a number of different shows including Monk, The Dead Zone, Eureka and Ghost Whisperer. In 2014, he co-created the wonderful show Z Nation, which just finished its fourth season on SyFy.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Emmy-award winning writer and performer Zhubin Parang. Before coming to comedy, Zhubin graduated from Georgetown University Law Center and was a practicing lawyer in New York City. During this time, he studied at and eventually became a performer at UCB. In 2011, he joined The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as a writer, and eventually Zhubin became the head writer when the show transitioned to Trevor Noah.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to writer and comedian Jordan Morris. Originally from Mission Viejo, Jordan attended UC Santa Cruz, where he met his future podcasting partner Jesse Thorn, and in 2007, the two started one of the longest-running podcasts still going, Jordan, Jesse, Go! on the Maximum Fun network. As a writer, he's worked on everything from @midnight to Earth to Ned, and has also penned two graphic novels. The first, the Eisner-nominated Bubble, was based on his scripted podcast series of the same name, and his latest, Youth Group, a YA horror-comedy is available now for pre-order and will be out next year!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

On today's show, I talk to Sergio Pérez and Luciana Della Villa of the Spanish band SVPER. Originally from Northern Spain and Argentina respectively, Sergio and Luciana formed SVPER when they met over a decade ago while living in Barcelona. A keyboard duo, SVPER combines Krautrock with pop and are reminiscent of bands like Broadcast. Their first album Brillar is an international hit (and rightly so - it's GREAT), and they're currently working on their sophomore record.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, and follow me on Twitter! Also look for a live streaming episode of the show tonight (April 21st) at 8pm with Josh Gondelman of John Oliver's new show, vlogger Franchesca Ramsey and musical guest Lady Lamb the Beekeeper.

On today's episode, I talk to director Seth Gordon. Originally on the path to be an architect, Seth's life took a detour into documentary filmmaking when he picked up a camera while teaching abroad in Kenya. After working in different positions in filming and editing, he eventually made his acclaimed doc The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, about rivals in the world of competitive Donkey Kong playing. From there, Seth became a comedy director, directing some of the best sitcoms of the 21st century including Parks and Rec, Community, The Office, The Goldbergs and more, as well as films such as Four Christmases, Horrible Bosses, Baywatch and, his most recent film, which just debuted on Netflix last week, Back In Action starring Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz!

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's show, I talk to "Conan" writer Brian Stack. Taking his first improv lesson in 1987, Brian spent the next decade honing his craft, and performed at Second City for four of those years. In 1997, he joined the writing staff of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien", and since then has stayed with the show through its three iterations, where he's played numerous characters such as Clive Clemmons, Kilty McBagpipes and one of the Slipnutz.

Check out the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter!

On today's episode I talk to Julia Wertz. Julia is a professional cartoonist, amateur historian and part time urban explorer/photographer. She made the comic books The Fart Party vol 1 and vol 2 (collected in Museum of Mistakes) and the graphic novels Drinking at the Movies, and The Infinite Wait and Other Stories, both of which were nominated for Eisner Awards. Her newest book, Tenements, Towers & Trash: An Unconventional, Illustrated History of New York City, was published by Black Dog & Leventhal/Hachette in Oct 2017, for which she won the 2018 Brendan Gill Prize. Julia currently does monthly comics and illustration for the New Yorker and her work appears semi-regularly in publications such as the New York Times, Harper’s Magazine, the Believer, and Medium.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to writer and showrunner Stephen Falk. Born in Berkeley, CA, Stephen has been working in television for a number of years, starting off on the Showtime series Weeds. He then created the NBC show Next Caller, and went on to write for Orange is the New Black. In 2014, he created the wonderful FX series You're the Worst, whose 4th season will air sometime later this year.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode, I talk to musician Scott "Spiral Stairs" Kannberg. Scott grew up in Stockton, California where he met his childhood friend and future bandmate Stephen Malkmus. Along with drummer Gary Young, the two formed Pavement in 1989, and went on to release five albums and a number of EPs, eventually becoming one of the biggest indie rock bands of the time. After the band broke up in 1999, Scott went on to record two albums as The Preston School of Industry and one album under his own name. He is currently finishing up his latest as-yet unnamed record, which is his first in seven years.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to Andy Hull and Kevin Devine of the indie rock band Bad Books. While both Andy and Kevin have successful careers with other bands - Andy with Manchester Orchestra and Kevin as a New York-based singer-songwriter, Bad Books is their decade-long collaboration that formed after Kevin began touring with Manchester Orchestra in 2007. Together they've written three albums, a self-titled LP in 2010, 2012's II and III, which will be released this Friday.

This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.