Succotash Epi54: Featurin' Some RadioFUBAR Shows

For Epi54 of Succotash, the Comedy Podcast Podcast, we wade back into the clips and there are a bunch from shows that we’ve never played before.  Some of those are part of the lineup at RadioFUBAR.com so I decided to do a "mini-featurette" by playing a quartet of FUBAR clips, courtesy of Mr. Producer over there.

Sidenote of note: I make it a point on this show to pretty much play the samples from different comedy podcasts without much commentary – unless it’s about how they sound technically and whether I think they should work on that – but the reason is to let YOU hear them and set you off on a voyage of discovery…or not. It’s funny but in 54 episodes of doing this show, I have yet to ever hear from a listener whether you like or dislike a single show that that's been featured.  Of course, some of the shows I clip come from YOUR suggestions, so those would be “Likes”, of course. Other than than, no one’s ever emailed or tweeted or commented on the home site about shows they either liked or didn’t like. Feel free to do so, if you want.

(The above is not entirely true, as I do hear from people occasionally that let me know that they got turned onto a specific show they might not have otherwise found.)

NEW SUCCOTASH DESIGN

Yes, it's true. The graphic artists down in the Succotash Art Department put together a new image this past week and we’ve got it up on our merch in The Succotashery. It’s the two most basic ingredients of succotash: Lima beans + corn + a pot. There are no words so you have to do the math yourself wto figure out that the answer's Succotash. Although on some of the t-shirts and the tote bag we have the classic Succotash logo on the other side. Just click on the Succotashery link on the website to grab yourself some of our hot new look.

THE COUNTDOWN

Here’s this week’s The 10 Most Active in the Stitcher Top 100 Comedy Podcast List:

37. Walking The Room +37 
63. By The Way: In Conversation with Jeff Garlin -19
64. Dining with Doug and Karen +211
65. The Naughty Show -18
73. Todd n’ Tyler Radio Empire +306
84. The Onion -43
86. About Last Night -27
88. Mike And Tom Eat Snacks +19
89. Alonzo Bodden: Who’s Paying Attention? -19
95. The Best Medicine Show +128

LIVE APPEARANCES!

Most comedians with podcasts get to use them as a way to plug upcoming shows. Now I get that chance! I'm performing in a new style of live show we're calling Speechless and we have a kind of "beta test" version going up next Friday night at the 9th Street Independent Film Center at 145 9th Srteet (at Minna), Suite 101, in downtown San Francisco. It's a little like a Powerpoint-based version of the Set List Show, except our performers have to deliver a presentation on a random topic which they then have a set of never-seen-before random slides in a PowerPoint deck. The show's at 8 PM, tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door.

Then on Monday, April Fools' Day, I'll be appearing with the April's Fools Show at the 142 Throckmorton Theatre in downtown Mill Valley. The show features the likes of our own Will Durst as well as Johnny Steel, Bob Sarlatte, Michael Bossier, Dick Bright, and a bunch of other funny folks doing spoken word, standup, music and maybe a little improv, too! That show starts at 7:30 PM and should be a lot of fun.

BURSTS OF DURST

Because this epi is dropping a little late, we have TWO Bursts O' Durst with political comedian Will Durst to play. So I'm playing one near the top of the show and the second in Durst's usual position as the headliner for the show.

MUSICAL INTERLUDE

At the end of this episode's TweetSack section, I feature Wine & Twitter, a new song from sci-fi/comedy songster John Anealio. He's making this single free to download as well, just by going to http://Jon Anealio.com!

CLIPS

The Paul Mecurio Show

This new show by comedian Paul Mecurio is on the SideShow Network and the clip we have, from Epi7, is Part Two of his interview with Lewis Black. It’s a great interview and I did a review of Paul’s show last week for This Week In Comedy Podcasts on Splitsider.com.

The RadioFUBAR Mini-Featurette Set 

I got an email a couple of weeks ago from Frank, AKA “Mr. Producer” at RadioFUBAR.com where they have a lot of podcasts on their roster. So I said send me a few clips and I'll play a sampling from their lineup. Here are the four we're showing on this episode:

The Matt Ruefer 4 Hours of Power One Hour Podcast 
This show features Matt Ruefer, Pete, Jacob and Mr. Producer as they talk about anything and everything (mostly nerdy.)  They almost always talk about Star Trek, Star Wars or some other nerd stuff. In this clip, the guys talk about the leak of the original star wars cast have been cast for the new version. They play on RadioFUBAR.com Wednesdays at 9pm Central.

Chick n’ Dick

Chick n’ Dick we have actually featured on Succotash before. The co-host, John, used to be part of a duo that did a show called the Truth or Truth Podcast. Chick n' Dick is another "stream of conscience" podcast with John and Tara, a husband and wife team, along with their friend Uriah. They are LIVE on RadioFUBAR.com Saturdays at 7pm Central.

The N3rdG4sm Lulzcast 
The N3rdG4sm (pronounced nerdgasm) Lulzcast is four guys (LJ, Joe Keg, Jerry H Christ and Silent Dave) talking about all things nerd: Movies, phones, TV, game consoles and such. It's played on RadioFUBAR.com Thursdays at 7:00pm Central.

Uniformed Opinions
Uniformed Opinions, while not technically a comedy, is four veterans (Ben, Noam, Frank and Silent Dave) from different services talking about different stuff.  They give their opinions on different things from a veteran's point of view.  The show tends to be funny because they use typical military gallows humor. It plays on RadioFUBAR.com Wednesdays at 7pm Central.

So that's the mini-featurette lineup from RadioFUBAR.com - hop on over to theri site and check out all their offerings!

Sal & Angelo Podcast
Sal Calanni and Angelo Lorenzetti are San Francisco comedians and they’ve been interviewing mostly comedian from the area, including those who have done well, moved and then come back to eitehr work, visit or live. Sal recently interviewed Kevin Avery, who has been working as the head writer on W. Kamau Bell’s Comedy Central Show Totally Biased.

Into Your Head Podcast

Into Your Head is a podcasts is out of Ireland and host Neal (that's all - just Neal) has cranked out 670 episodes. It's amazing that it's taken me this much time to get around to clipping it. Good stuff - his delivery reminds me a bit of an Irish version of comedian Emo Philips.

Sweet Feathery Jesus
Booze, Belasco & Dr. P - the boys at Sweet Feathery Jesus - have come up with a new way to get around the N-word in rap songs…by using another N-word.

Podcheese
Another show I’ve been wanting to get on is Podcheese. One of the co-hosts, Benny Michaels, made it too easy NOT to clip them this episode by sending in a clip featuring what he says is a showcase of he and fellow co-host Josh Bennett's "masterful" improvisational skills.

That whole pile of clippage is for you. Please remember as you carry those out into the world, to remember to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi53: Coffeein' Up with Matt Weinhold

This week's a mostly clipless week on Succotash. Stockpiling a bunch for the next episode while I devote the majority of Epi53 to my interview with Matt Weinhold. In addition to his long history as a standup comedian, Matt's be involved in writing and helping to produce a lot of television, web, and film projects as well. Included in that dossier: Writer and voice actor for MTV’s The Super Adventure Team; a writer and co-creator with Greg Proops on The Amazing Colossal Show, appeared in the Star Trek documentary Trekkies, written on tons of other TV including BBC America’s The Nerdist, Style Network’s The Dish, and used to be part of the Fashion Police commentary team for US magazine. You can also still get Matt's comedy CD, Dead Funny, by clicking on the link or on iTunes.

In the realm of podcasting, Matt's been podguesting with the likes of Jackie Kashian on Dork Forest and more frequently on The Dana Gould Hour. But he's in the process of turning what was a YouTube experiment into a full on video/audio podcast and we talk (and play) a bit from his Monster Party concept during our interview.

(Fair notice: We recorded the interview at the Coffee Fix in Studio City, CA. While it's a great place for coffee, the cavernous space, loud background music, blenders, grinders, and clanking utensils made for a listener-challenging environment. We've done what we could to pull out some of the room noise but there are portions of the interview that are somewhat hard to hear. Apologies. Welcome to the world of guerrilla podcasting...)

THE COUNTDOWN

Rather than do a straight-ahead Top 10 countdown from this week's Stitcher's Top 100 Comedy Podcasts — because the 'casts at the top don't seem to change very much - this week we introduce "The 10 Most Active in the Stitcher Top 100 Comedy Podcast List"! It was based on an idea I got from Ed Wallick, host of the Don't Quit Your Daycast podcast. I've ranked ten shows by their relative position on the chart, but also included the number of spaces they moved in the past week. Or points they go - I can't really figure out that that up or down number is supposed to represent considering that one of the shows — SModcast — moved DOWN 101 points on a chart that only has 100 spaces.

14. Girl On Guy with Aisha Tyler +24
41. Bullseye with Jesse Thorn +14
46. SModcast -101
52. The Onion +55
61. The David Feldman Show -26
64. Superego +85
71. Alonzo Bodden: Who’s Paying Attention? +29
80. Sex Squad +13
91. Loveline +24
99. The Ricky Gervais Podcast -20

CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT

Phil Leirness

Last week I played a clip from the Chillpak Hollywood Hour, one of the first podcasts I ever listened to, and I mentioned that hosts Phil Leirness and Dean Haglund had been doing the show for over 4 years. My bad. It’s been SIX years. Not only that, I incorrectly gave their website. It’s ChillpakHollywood.com (As I did mentioned last show, they DO still have a MySpace page, though.) I’m told that my voicemail apology to them will be a special guest on the next episode of CHH. Just got word that pre-production is underway on The Lady Killers, a new feature film by Phil and Dean. If you get a chance, check out their enthralling documentary The Truth Is Out There.

ME BEING ME

I'm a guest on the latest Seven Days A Geek episode of Podcasting 101. The Angry Ginger and I chat it up about how simple it really is to kick off a show, how to figure out what a podcast should be about and a bunch of other inside baseball chatter. Click on the show link and check it out for some good (mostly) clean conversation about the blood n' guts of podcasting.

SING IT, CHET

Chet Haase

Friend-of-Succotash Chet Haase has sent along a nifty little ditty in the wake of the changing of the Pope called Papal Reign, a parody to Prince's Purple Rain. It's timely and funny and you'll find it at the tail end of Epi53. Thanks, Chet!

DON'T FORGET DURST

Our Ambassador to the Middle Will Durst offers a litany of things that go awry as we move into Upper Middle age in this week's Burst O' Durst.

I also get into our TweetSack a bit this week, including some real honest-to-God emails. I read off a long list of Twitter handles from folks who have retweeted, favorited and otherwise been kind to Succotash this past week. It's really appreciated and makes doing the show worthwhile knowing that people are enjoying the experience and sharing that enjoyment with others. Or, as I like to think about it, passing the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi52: Stickin' To The Format

This title refers to the fact that we're back to an all-clip show this week. No interviews (although we have a goodie coming up next week!) but I did want to thank everyone who commented, tweeted, emailed and otherwise gave me feedback on last week’s Epi51.5, my I-5 Extra Episode. It was experimental, really – just me recording me as I drove back to San Francisco from Los Angeles up Interstate 5. Maybe I’ll try it again on my next road trip. And it gives me the confidence to play a little bit more between clips of the regular podcast, so we’ll see where that goes.

To the left is a shot of the sun setting as I trundled through the San Juaquin Valley at the wheel of Studio F, my Fiat 500. (It's not that picturesque but I post it because I love how pissed off people get when they think of me taking pictures while driving...)

THE COUNTDOWN

I mention in this episode that I'm thinking of dropping the Stitcher Top 10 Comedy Podcast Countdown that we've been featuring on Succotash since the beginning of the year. Reason? The shows just don't change positions enough to be very interesting. None of these, for instance, are unfamiliar:

10. Deathsquad
 9. Doug Loves Movies
 8. Real Time with Bill Maher
 7. SModcast
 6. The Nerdist
 5. Mohr Stories
 4. NPR: Car Talk Podcast
 3. WTF with Marc Maron
 2. The Adam Carolla Show
 1. The Joe Rogan Experience

On the other hand, for the first time I also read down the BOTTOM Ten of the Stitcher Comedy Podcasts. Lots of action and places being swapped down there in the cellar. So maybe I'll just do that from now on…

91. Beauty & Da Beast w/Joey Diaz & Felicia Michaels (down 10!)
92. Laugh Out Loud from CBC Radio (up 9!)
93. The Best Show on WFMU with Tom Scharpling
94. The Pod F. Tompkast
95. Walking The Room
96. The Ricky Gervais Podcast (down 13!)
97. Alonzo Bodden: Who's Paying Attention? (up 29!!!)
98. Dining With Doug & Karen (down 31!!!)
99. 76th Street Pod
100. #WeNerdHard

DURST

This episode our Ambassador to the Middle Will Durst ponders the ex-pontiff and what sort of mischief the former Pope Benedict might get into in his retirement.

THE CLIPS

JakeThis of Jake Johannsen
Comedian Jake Johannsen's podcast is pure Jake. Even when he has guests, it’s got that "Jake" feel to it. I used to hang out with Jake and his guest this latest episode, Bobby Slayton, a lot, as we were all in the San Francisco comedy scene. They were both as the Aspen Comedy Festival recently and Bobby recounts part of a story from when he got to have dinner with Woody Allen.

A.D.D. Comedy Podcast

David Razowsky is the host, creative force, and backbone of the A.D.D. Comedy Podcast. Ian Foley is the producer and creator. They talk to a lot of comedians, most of whom have come out of the ranks of improv, but also actors and writers. We clip part of David's great interview with screenwriter Carl Gottlieb.

Chillpak Hollywood Hour
Friends-of-Succotash and podcast royalty Dean Haglund and Phil Leirness continue to fascinate with their Chillpak Hollywood Hour podcast. They get into X-Files memorabilia by way of an email from a listener in this clip. Oh, yes, and they still have a page on MySpace.

Too Heavy Too Skydive 
Gotta clip in from the guys over at Too Heavy Too Skydive, which is still one of my favorite podcast titles out there. This is Matt's interview with Kai, no last name, who you may have seen on the internet a couple of weeks ago when he stopped a rampaging guy by pulling out a handaxe.

Making New Friends

Pat O’Rourke invites people into his kitchen every week and I guess gets along with all of them because his podcast is called Making New Friends. He sent this clip along and maybe I lost some notes along the way because, even though I checked the website, I’m not sure who his new friend may be.

Sup Dude
I THINK the Sup Dude podcast is from England so it kicks off our Triple Shot British Invasion clips this show. AJ & Nathan host a show about a bunch of stuff and yet seem to almost always have time to review a James Bond movie. Here they’re getting into Her Majesty’s Secret Service starring that one-off Bond, George Lazenby.

It’s Not Soccer
Adam Barker of Barker Podcasts is back with his It’s Not Soccer podcasting partner Billy Bilo. Adam didn’t send a clip but he did send where to find this clip in their lastest episode which, really, is the next best thing. It’s about a package delivery that happened to a friend that went south.

Uncle Arthur’s Bollocks
This clip is a last minute entry to this week’s show, suggested by the aforementioned Adam Barker who says that it’s a great representative of “north English humour”. I guess that’s humor with a “u” after the  “r”, right? Uncle Arthur seems difficult to find a lot about so just enjoy his ranting about fat people, won’t you?

Pod Awful

Jesse P-S has kicked off Season 5 of his Pod Awful podcast. His guest, Mike Blejer, a comedian and host of his own podcast, Malignant Brain Humor, and he spend part of the kickoff episode trying to track down a fortune teller of sorts…

Salty Language
I’m not quite sure what the main thrust of the Salty Language podcast is about. I think it’s a “shootin’ the shit” show, with hosts Bryan, Tony & Tate doing just that. Here’s a chunk that spins off of reading a news item, so that should be a clue, right?

Red Mud and Rolling Hills 
The Red Mud & Rolling Hills podcast is a sister/brother show, with Dawn Smith and her bro Bo Tate being real from the foothills of South Carolina. Their website proclaims that they use swear words as “sentence enhancers” and there is no shortage of them in the clip we have, where they’re talking about footwear and handsomeness.

Once again, we've done our job. Now get out there and do yours: Pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi51.5: I-5 Bonus Edition #1

WARNING: This is NOT a "regular" episode of Succotash, the Comedy Podcast Podcast. No clips. No interviews. No TweetSack.

Call it an experiment. I was driving back to San Francisco after a weekend in Los Angeles. While in the southland I visited with a number of podcasters, comedians and past guests of Succotash: Rick Overton, Matt Weinhold, Ethan Dettenmaier, Shawn Marek, Travis Clark, Brandi Clark, Jon Manfrellotti, and Chris Gore.

My conversations with all those folks invariably came around to podcasting. Why do we do it? Where is it going? And what does it all mean? Collectively, we batted those concepts and more around in our little discussion groups but - once I was alone, trapped in my car (Studio F) for the six hour Kessel Run back to The City By The Bay, the questions continued to bounce around in my head.

So I fished out my trusty iPhone 5, my iRig Cast mic, and rambled into it for about 26 minutes. I ruminated on my show, other shows, and the podcasting industry as a whole. I wondered aloud about our listenship, the respect that podcasters may or may not be due, and all of the entertainment that's regularly provided for free by an ever-widening pool of podcasters around the world.

Don't worry — it's not a signal that we're changing direction at Succotash. We've got another clip-filled extravaganza coming right around the corner with Episode 52. But one beautiful thing about this artform (if I may be afforded the chance to refer to it as such), is that a person can do anything they want from this side of the microphone. On the flip side, listeners don't have to listen to it.

So this is, as I said in the beginning, an experiment.

If you like it, let me know. If you hate it, let me know. Email, Facebook, Twitter, the Succotash Hotline (818.921.7212) — there's plenty of ways for you to get your thoughts and feedback to me.

And I'll be back with our usual bag o' podcast clips in our very next episode! So don't be afraid to pass the Succotash.

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi51: Clippin' N' Sippin' With Bill Haywatt

This episode we return to our roots. Clips, clips and more clips. Also, a return to Studio P ("The Home of The Hit!"), engineer-producer Joe Paulino, and another long-awaited installment of Boozin' With Bill featuring our booth announcer Bill Haywatt.

Bill's concoctions are usually something he picked up during one of the many radio gigs he's had over the past 70 years. Often scrounged from either a hard-drinking co-worker or from one of the numerous dive bars that could be found in the neighborhoods that usually spring up around radio stations and recording studios.

This time around he presents us with the very first alcoholic mixture he can first remember making while still a lad at the tender age of 14. During the show he dubbed it "The Beer Float" but given the beer required for this one, I call it "The Floating Heinie". Either way it's a twist on that soda fountain favorite, the root beer float.

THE COUNTDOWN

Once again, very little movement in the Top 10 of Stitcher's Comedy Podcast chart this last week. In fact, this week, other than the fact two shows switched places in the Top 10, nothing’s gone on.

10. Doug Loves Movies
9. DeathSquad
8. Real Time with Bill Maher
7. Mohr Stories
6. SModcast
5. The Nerdist
4. NPR: Car Talk Podcast
3. WTF with Marc Maron
2. The Adam Carolla Show
1. The Joe Rogan Experience

I think for the next episode, I may add the bottom 10 (from #90-100) just to have some new show names in the mix.

REVIEW

In "This Week In Comedy Podcasts" on Splitsider.com I reviewed Penn's Sunday School with Penn Jillette and guest Peter "Herman's Hermits" Noone! It went a little something - no, exactly - like this:

Ah, Penn Jillette. Magician, conman, truth-sayer, provocateur and atheist. It’s the last of those that drives many of the discussions around Penn’s Sunday School, although in the latest installment, none of that comes around until after the first hour, during which time Peter Noone (of Herman’s Hermits fame) is Jillette’s guest. And Noone turns out to be a treasure trove of fantastic stories from the early days of the British Invasion and beyond. The child TV star (from BBC’s Coronation) had turned to music and was playing at the age of 16 while hanging around the Beatles before they took off. He tells of John Lennon knocking out five blokes in a working man’s bar and of meeting and hanging out with Elvis in Hawaii a few years later. Jillette punctuates Noone’s tales with his trademark hoarse guffaw. Later in the show, after Noone has left, the host shares how his own atheist beliefs have been picked up by his young daughter and how that causes a bit of a problem with a god-fearing boy in her school, about which Jillette is a little leery about dealing with. Jillette’s shows tend to run over an hour, and each extra minute is well worth the listen.

So you can get the complete flavor of it, I clip that show in this very episode.

DURST

This week our on-call Raging Moderate Will Durst turns his acerbic funny beam on the Civil Ware brewing in the Republican't party for our Burst O' Durst.

CLIPS

OVERVIEW

Our first clip is from new podcast, Overview, by a friend of Succotash and a good buddy of mine: Rick Overton! (He was one of our earliest guests – you can find my interview with him in Epi 6 AND I also released a bonus Epi 6.5, which was my interview with Rick in its entirety.) Now he’s got his own show going. And he’s already had some great guests from the world of comedy. Recently he spoke with comedy legend Jonathan Winters – what a score! It struck me that some of what Jonathan is talking about in our clip, where he’s talking about starting out as a comic, relates directly across to podcasting in many ways.

MAN SCHOOL
Although this IS a new podcast, the host will be familiar to some of you Succotashians. It’s Caleb Bacon who, until a couple of months ago, was the host of The Gentlemen’s Club podcast. With this new show, Bacon gets pretty heavy in the first show, as his guest is “Bald Bryan” Bishop, who is a producer and sidekick on the Adam Carolla Show as well as the co-host of his own podcast called The Film Vault. Four years ago, at the age of 30, Bryan was diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer. He’s still around, so not only has he survived it, but it’s given him some perspectives on life a 30 year old doesn’t often have.

PENN'S SUNDAY SCHOOL
Penn Jillette, best know for being one-half of Penn & Teller, does a number of things as well, including this podcast. Jillette has become somewhat well know for being an atheist – he doesn’t believe in god – and he often goes into the topic on his podcast. But he also has guests come through and the subject of religion never comes up. Recently he had Peter Noone on the show, the founding member of Herman’s Hermits.

NOBODIES PODCAST

From the show’s intro I know that host Nick Dressel is a student at MSU in East Lansing, Michigan, and the premise for Nobodies is that he and all of his guest are “nobodies” – they are actors and comedians and other flavors of performance who have not “arrived” yet but hope to someday, so Nick sees his show as being the first place you will have heard his guests, but not the last. In Epi35 of Nobodies, his guests Spencer Perrenoud and Jason Carlen gather ‘round a rendering of “McConaughey”.

SNITCH & LINS
Here’s one of the only clips from a show we’ve heard from before – it’s Snitch & Lins from Australia! I like the fact that this is a sketch more than anything. I think if I have to hear more people going off on a pop culture riff on their podcasts, I’ll throw up. So thanks, Stitch & Lins!

3 PLEASANT GENTLEMEN
When I heard from Cam of the 3 Pleasant Gentlemen podcast, I was informed that there  are only TWO Gentlemen in the cast - Cam and Remo. The third Gentleman is a woman, who goes by the name Savy. I also discovered that I’m not alone in finding out that a car makes for a suitable substitute podcasting facility. (While we often have luxurious Studio P, The Home of The Hit!, at our disposal, some episodes of Succotash come to you via Studio F, my Fiat.) 3 Pleasant Gentlemen orginates from the roomy interior of a Chevy Tahoe.

DRUNKEN TAOIST

I think I’m going to be enjoying the Drunken Taoist, a bi-monthly podcast hosted by Daniele Bolelli. He’s got quite a colorful collection of stuff next to his name. He’s a writer, a martial artist, and a college professor. His teaching style’s described as “half standup comedian and half Zen master.” Bolelli’s guest from the episode we clipped is New York Times Best Selling author Christopher Ryan, who co-wrote Sex At Dawn and has his own podcast called Tangentially Speaking.

DIRTY KONG PODCAST
Unlike The Drunken Taoist, our next podcast has precious little on about the podcast or the people on it, even though they have a half dozen places on the web where you grab their episodes. I can’t even find names for the voices you’re hearing in this clip from the Dirty Kong Podcast.

OK HYPOTHETICAL
We have a clip from another new podcast – only 6 epis in – called OK Hypothetical and it was submitted by Garin, one of the two hosts. The other fellow is Connor. I like these guys. Here’s the text from their email: “Good morning, The attached clip is actually the full first episode of our show. Run time is 4 minutes 33. Thank you for your consideration. Garin and Connor”. Straight to the point. No nonsense. Get in, get out, no one gets hurt. I love that their show’s title is most of what you need to know about how the show goes.

So there you go - back to a clips royale with this episode! If you're a comedy podcaster, remember that you are welcome to submit a 3-5 minute MP3 clip from your show, via email, to clips@SuccotashShow.com. (While we may well get around to your podcast, there are THOUSANDS of shows out there on the comedy side of podcasting, so you stand a better chance of having us feature you if you are proactive and shoot us a clip yourself!

Until next time, won't you please pass the Succotash?

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi50: Roadtrippin' With Superego

Here at Succotash I'm celebrating the FIFTIETH episode! In some ways it’s hard to believe we actually have gotten to 50 shows. (On the other hand, given that we started 22 months ago, this SHOULD be episode 96.)  But it’s been tough to get consistent. Between my day job, time at Studio P ("The Home Of The Hit!") and other elements, it’s been hard to crank out a show a week.

BUT we’re finally there, more or less!

If you’re new to Succotash, the reason it’s called “The Comedy Podcast Podcast” is that we usually feature between 10 and 12 comedy podcast clips from around the world. We also have interviews with podcasters, comedians and other sundry show biz folks. This week being our special Epi50, I’m  featuring the interview I had last week with the cast of Superego, who were up from Los Angeles to be part of the 12th Annual San Francisco Sketchfest.

Sketch courtesy of @JoelCarroll

It was part lucky happenstance and part perfect storm, my getting the opportunity to sit down with the guys from Superego: Matt Gourley, Jeremy Carter, and Mark McConville. I've been trying to coordinate a sit-down with them for over a year. So when they were booked to return to Sketchfest this year in San Francisco, we saw our opportunity to pull it together.
 
The great thing about having these guys as the focus for our 50th episode is that Succotash is not just a showcase for comedy podcasts but it also a celebration of the medium. And Superego really represents a certain measure of podcast success. These guys aren’t getting rich off of their show – not yet – but it’s a show that didn’t exist WITHOUT podcasting. Superego – as they talk about in our interview – starts as improv but comes together through careful editing and post-production. So, although they’ve learned how to re-create what they do in a live setting, the show is, first and foremost, a podcast.

Now in their third season, they're gaining in popularity and opportunity and I beg your indulgence, as listeners, in having our format step away from playing a bunch of clips this episode in order to enjoy this interview with Superego.

THE COUNTDOWN
 
The shows in Stitcher's Top Ten Comedy Podcasts this week have either got a lot of loyal listeners or else there are a lot of new people just checking out these particular shows. Only ONE out of the Top 10 were not up there last week.

10. Doug Loves Movies
9. DeathSquad
8. Real Time with Bill Maher
7. SModcast
6. Mohr Stories
5. The Nerdist
4. NPR: Car Talk Podcast
3. WTF with Marc Maron
2. The Adam Carolla Show
1. The Joe Rogan Experience

TWEETSACK

Got a letter from a friend, James Mogavero, who sent a link to me, Eddie Pepitone, Rick Overton, Jimmy Dore, Lee Camp, David Feldman, and Carlos Alazraqui. It’s to Podcasting Community Faces Patent Troll Threat; EFF Wants to Help,a story about podcasters getting threatening letters from attorneys representing a company called Personal Audio that claims to hold the patent on "apparatus for disseminating a series of episodes represented by media files via the Internet as said episodes become available". Patent trolling is a despicable, money-grubbing practice and now it's bein gused to try to grub money from a "business' where most of us can barely afford the microphones into which we talk.

REVIEW

On Splitsider.com, for This Week In Comedy Podcasts, I review Caleb Bacon's new show Man School. Caleb ran 154 episodes of The Gentlemen's Club podcast but shut it down at the end of last year and decided to shift gears. The premiere episode features his chat with "Bald Bryan" Bishop, a producer and sidekick on Adam Carolla's show as well as the co-host of The Film Vault podcast. And they focus on Bryan's facing brain cancer at the age of 30. Now, four years after the diagnosis, he talks about how his life is different.

CLIPS

The only clips featured on this week show are a couple from the most recent Superego episode to highlight the group's sound and rhythms. You can find all three seasons of the show by Gourley, Carter, and McConville (as well as their amazing slate of guest performers) at http://GoSuperego.com.

DURST

We DO have our usual segment, our Burst O' Durst with raging moderate and political comedian Will Durst. So be sure to listen all the way to the end to your dessert.

As part of my observance of our 50th episode of Succotash, I want to thank all of the podcasters who generously allow us to use their clips each week. (Sure, it’s free plugs for them, but they’re also putting their trust in us that we’re going to do right by ‘em.) I also want to thank all of the folks who have given of their time and let me interview them for the show. But most importantly, I want to thank you guys, our listeners, for passing the Succotash. Whether you’re a first time Succotashian or have been with us for all 50 episodes since we started almost 2 years ago, it means a lot to me that you’re out there.

Which reminds me: if there’s a favorite comedy podcast YOU listen to but haven’t heard us feature on the show, drop me a line to marc@SuccotashShow.com. You can also call into our Succotash Hotline and leave us a message – that number is (818) 921-7212. And if you ARE a comedy podcaster and would like us to feature a clip from your show, you can send us a 3-5 minute MP3 clip to clips@SuccotashShow.com.

As I say on the show, you can Like us on Facebook, rate and review us on iTunes, thumbs up us on Stitcher and retweet us @SuccotashShow!

Here's to passing the Succotash for another 50 episodes!

— Marc Hershon

Succotash Epi49: Vocalizin' With Hal Lublin

Here we are, smack in the middle of Epi49, just one 'sode away from our 50th show! Exciting! And we have a wonderful Special Guest this show — Hal Lublin! If you're a fan of The Thrilling Adventure Hour, then you've heard LOTS of Hal because he's all over that show as both the announcer and filling out a number of roles in the various sketches. 

When I interviewed TAH's co-creator Ben Blacker back in Epi37, he told me that I really should try to catch the show live. And I finally got the opportunity this past weekend when the entire cast and orchestra traveled north from Hollywood, California, America to appear at the 12th Annual San Francisco Sketchfest. I got to see Hal and the rest of the gang put on a very funny show (they performed twice, actually, back to back) and Mr. Lublin was kind enough to sit with me before making the trek back down south.

Our podcaster friends can relate when I say that Hal, while he exercises his voice on behalf of TAH as well as cartoons and other voiceover work, still holds down a fulltime day job. AND is perfectly happy to continue doing so. He tells us why during the interview, as well as some "tricks of the trade" when it comes to taking care of those precious pipes.

COUNTDOWN

Two new entries into the Top 10 Comedy Podcasts as reported by Stitcher Smart Radio this week. (STILL no movement in the upper six spots, though - those podcasts are wedged in tighter than a sumo wrestler's mawashi.) And we clip the two newcomers this week so you can taste a sample.

10. The Church Of What’s Happening Now - Joey Diaz
9. Doug Loves Movies - Doug Benson
8. Real Time with Bill Maher
7. SModcast - Kevin Smith & Scott Mosier
6. Mohr Stories with Jay Mohr
5. The Nerdist w/Chris Hardwick
4. NPR: Car Talk Podcast
3. WTF with Marc Maron
2. The Adam Carolla Show
1. The Joe Rogan Experience

TWEETSACK

In the TweetSack this week is an email with an attachment from Davian Dent, the host of The Bitter Sound Podcast. He's recorded a song - a parody of the Sid Vicious take of Sinatra's My Way, which is dedicated to the podcasters that have supported his run of six shows he's done so far. And he mentions those podcasts by name (including Succotash...at the very end.) So I've put the song at the very end of the show in kind - hope you enjoy it!

INTERVIEWS

It seems I'm enjoying a tiny surge of demand the last week or so, as I have been interviewed by Jason Parsons at the Seven Days A Geek podcast as well as by Adam Harris from The Standup Chronicles show. Those drop soon so click on the links above and check 'em out when they do. The end of next week I'm off to LA for a few days, where I'm scheduled to appear on Combat Radio, live on Friday morning, February 22nd, with host Ethan Dettenmaier. Should be fun!

REVIEW

This week I'm reviewing a pretty funny show that's been flying under my radar every though they've now got 99 shows under their belt: The Ardent Atheist with Emery Emery and Heather Henderson. as my portion of This Week In Comedy Podcasts over on Splitsider.

CLIPS

REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER
Take a hit HBO show and dump it into iPod’s podcast directory – BAM, instant hit video podcast. That’s Real Time with Bill Maher. No fuss, no muss. If you saw it last week on TV, then you probably WON’T download it this week. But if you MISSED it…now it’s free.

SMODCAST
The original SModcast that started Kevin Smith’s SMOdcast network. (A network that's now celebrating its sixth year anniversary.) They haven’t been around THAT long – this clip is from Kvein Smith and Scott Moser’s latest edition, #238.

SEVEN DAYS A GEEK
As mentioned above, I was recently interviewed by Jason Parsons over at Seven Days A Geek – the show we did was kind of a nuts n’ bolts about podcasting – and the least I could do was ask him to send along a clip from his regular show for us to feature. In the clip we have, Jason is getting the lowdown from his pal TK1 on how his buddy managed to break his toe.

THE BRAWDCAST
The three women behind the Brawdcast take webstealth to a whole new level  — on their homesite they’re only known by their Twitter handles: @ButtRockBetty, @JennieK97 and @HollzInSeattle.  The first two are the talent, the third is their producer. And in this clip we’re hearing about the art of spanking. In public, no less.

THE HALF SCOOP
I’ve heard form the boys over at The Half Scoop podcast - that’d be Stephen, Corben, and Bryce – that they’ve been tweaking their format. They just rounded the 25-show mark so we give a listen to the newish-sounding Half Scoop!

TALES FROM THE ATTIC 
So little information on their website, but here’s a line from Seth Wright & Zack Bennett's listing on iTunes: “Underwhelming, crude episodes filled with ramblings and random banter from Seth and Zack.” In this clip, war stories on performing on the road are re-hashed guest Angelo Warner.

BURST O' DURST
Not really a clip but a self-contained feature from the brain and attendant mouth of our Ambassador to the Middle, political comedian Will Durst. In this installment, Will gives out his own brand of mythical statuettes to some political worthies in this award season we're entering.

There's what's in store for you this epi. Keep in mind the next show is our FIFTIETH episode (!) and we're going to celebrate with a show-long interview by the three-man cast of Superego, one of the hottest podcasts around. Until next time, please remember to pass the Succotash!

— Marc Hershon