Episode 1431 - Tituss Burgess

Moving from place to place throughout her childhood was difficult on Anna Akana, but it was growing up alongside the internet that really changed her life. Anna tells Marc how her career as a comedian and actor got going when she turned to YouTube after dealing with the lack of Asian representation in traditional media. Anna also explains how she became a mental health advocate due to her sister’s tragic death and why she decided to go back to comedy as a way to explore sensitive issues. Content warning: This conversation contains discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know are struggling and need support, call 988 from any phone to speak with someone at the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1 Aug 20241h 22min

For Wolfgang Van Halen, learning the drums, guitar and bass came easier than learning to deal with the trolling and resentment he faced for being the son of Eddie Van Halen. Wolfgang tells Marc how touring as part of Van Halen taught him what to avoid in his career and helped him gain perspective on the type of music he wanted to make on his own. They also talk about the universal experience of grief and how Wolfgang has been able to move forward after the devastating loss of his dad. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

29 Jul 20241h 24min

When two comics are on tour together, one of the best places to get to know each other is in a car while driving between gigs. Clare O’Kane and Marc didn’t have much history together before Clare started opening for Marc, so they recorded their drive from Cleveland to Detroit and talked about their shared experiences with depression, shaving their heads, ailing parents, dreaming of being an artist, and growing into themselves, as well as Clare’s time writing for SpongeBob and SNL. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

25 Jul 20241h 27min

Shalom Auslander gave voice to something Marc was thinking for most of his life: That he’s been living in a world of Feh. What that Yiddish word means and why Shalom believes it’s an organizing idea that’s been forced on human beings, particularly Jews, for thousands of years is the subject of Shalom’s new book. Shalom and Marc talk about breaking the cycle of Feh, how Shalom did so by completely breaking away from his family, and why the nonstop news cycle is one of the biggest causes of collective misery. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

22 Jul 20241h 29min

First, hear Marc's 2014 conversation with Bob Newhart from Bob's home in Bel-Air. Then, a follow-up conversation from 2018 where Marc and Bob talked on the phone. Bob Newhart died on July 18, 2024, at age 94. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

19 Jul 20242h 3min

It’s been a long time since Dan St. Germain had his first big gig as an opener with Marc in Sacramento. As the years have gone by, Dan took a few breaks from standup, worked as a writer on several TV series, dealt with the heartbreak of a declining parent, and struggled with sobriety. Dan tells Marc how he managed to pull things together, get clean and self-release his latest comedy special. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

18 Jul 20241h 24min

Despite Phish’s enormous following, frontman Trey Anastasio still sees himself as an outsider. Trey talks with Marc about his earliest influences, which were not jam bands, but groups like the Jackson 5 and musicals from Broadway. They also talk about the pressure Phish encountered after Jerry Garcia died, how the party scene surrounding the band spiraled out of control, and how Trey’s deep connection with his bandmates served him well when he was at his lowest point. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

15 Jul 20241h 48min

Clarence Maclin was uniquely suited to make his film debut in the new movie Sing Sing, starring alongside Colman Domingo. That’s because the film is based on a real life group of incarcerated men at Sing Sing prison and Clarence plays a fictionalized version of himself. Clarence talks with Marc about how a theater program run by an organization called Rehabilitation Through the Arts turned around his life on the inside and helped him find who he needed to be when he got on the outside. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

11 Jul 20241h 16min