Harvey Guillén (What We Do in the Shadows, Rocky Horror on Broadway) joins Michael and Asher for a real romp. They alo get into rat sympathy, learning Wicked in Japanese, a spider infested computer, and Harvey's Netflix true crime podcast Killer Stories.

00:00 Cold Open
00:31 Housekeeping & Show Plugs
01:37 Meet Harvey Guillén
02:17 Covid on Watch What Happens Live
03:13 Broadway Understudies & Swings
06:04 Musical Theater School Stories
08:26 Central Park Breakdancers & Talent vs. Tenacity
11:04 Strict School Rules & the Late Policy
18:11 Aikido Spanking Stories
21:04 First Gig: Moving to Japan
27:22 Covid on Set with Susan Sarandon
32:42 Moving to NYC, LA, and Landing "Huge"
38:28 Broadway: The Hardest Job & Rocky Horror
41:44 The "You Look Great" Backhanded Compliment
47:11 If You Give a Mouse a Cookie & Rat Sympathy
52:11 The Spider Infested Computer
54:54 Do Flies Wash Their Hands?
56:15 The Orphan Sloth Video & Sherie Rene Scott
60:24 What's Next: Action Roles on Shadows
62:28 Killer Stories: Harvey's True Crime Podcast
66:41 Is New York Actually Scary?
72:00 Full Throated Endorsement: Seafood Boil

Support the show

Rachel Abrams (co-host of The Daily) joins the podcast to finally settle the debate: was E.T. slimy or dry? She also talks about her journey to becoming a host of The Daily, and gives a full-throated endorsement of the chicken at Medieval Times.

00:00:00 Cold Open: The Rocky Raccoon Weather Bit
00:00:28 Welcome to But Also, With Guest Rachel Abrams
00:01:03 Rachel's 17 Years in Journalism, From Variety to the Times
00:04:12 The Moonves Investigation and the Source Who Lost Everything
00:06:49 How Rachel Became a Host of The Daily
00:08:43 Michael's Wife Thinks Rachel Hosts The Daily Show
00:10:58 The Fake 49ers Player Scammer
00:12:18 Only Recognized as "Michael Barbaro"
00:14:38 The Craft of Sounding Natural on the Radio
00:19:10 Unconventional Paths Into the New York Times
00:23:18 Ira Glass's Advice on Leaning Into Humor
00:25:22 Finding Humor in Dark and Serious Stories
00:32:48 The Philosophy of Comedy and Truth
00:34:10 Segment: The Daily Quiz
00:40:36 Google Thinks Rachel Abrams Is Dead
00:41:15 Party Tricks: Presidents and Days of the Week
00:50:17 Rachel's Childhood Radio Career
00:52:33 Life After Late Night and Chasing Comedy Jobs
00:58:35 Ayahuasca, MDMA, and Psychedelic Confessions
01:04:15 Full Throated Endorsement: Medieval Times Chicken
01:10:37 Was E.T. Wet or Dry? The Spielberg Story
01:13:45 Outro

Support the show

Comedian Emmy Blotnick (What's Her Secret?) joins Michael and Asher for a debate on matcha v coffee, dueling theories on who really invented the hamburger, and a detour through museum size preferences. They also try to crack the mystery of a stranger's stuffed bell pepper texts before Emmy closes with a full throated endorsement of PBS Passport.

00:00:00 Cold open: the pepper tease
00:00:36 Matcha, coffee, and caffeine confessions
00:06:08 World Cup memories and soccer fandom
00:07:01 Finding fame later in life
00:09:37 Michael's Scooby-Doo tic
00:11:40 Childhood career dreams
00:12:55 Got Milk ads and the milk mustache debate
00:18:41 Modeling gigs gone wrong
00:22:59 Hometowns, pizza, and the hamburger debate
00:27:47 Niche museums we love
00:30:57 Stendhal syndrome and how Houdini died
00:35:35 Family heritage surprises
00:39:20 A West Wing detour and Hungarian food debate
00:46:41 Budapest, bathhouses, and Asher's beret era
00:50:26 Weirdest things we did as kids
00:56:26 Emmy's new special, What's Her Secret?
00:58:04 CSO nostalgia and the special's reception
01:00:38 Community notes and getting corrected online
01:04:46 Celebrities who avoid social media and Instagram anxiety
01:08:21 Bell pepper texts and other side quests
01:15:07 Full throated endorsement: PBS Passport
01:18:42 Outro and the pepper challenge

Support the show

Four shrimp for $30, a Fightmaster obsession, zero eye contact...D'Arcy Carden gets weird with us, and it rules.

We cover a scientific breakdown of why spoilers don't ruin anything, a deep dive into her music obsession, an invented facial expression that might be a medical marvel, and a full-throated defense of $4-a-shrimp cocktail. Also - wink theory, The Odyssey discourse, and one hotel-hallway flex.

0:00 - Mickey Mouse Ears Cold Open

0:30 - Meet D'Arcy Carden

1:19 - The Severance Head Space

2:55 - The Favorite Poem Challenge

5:36 - The Surprise Apostrophe Origin Story

9:00 - Press Tour Outfit Confessions

11:30 - Do You Actually Like Doing Press?

15:11 - The Great Spoiler Debate

19:47 - Down the Gru Rabbit Hole

25:36 - Wink vs. Blink Showdown

33:52 - Inventing the Chin Cleft Trick

37:40 - Podcast Rotos & Hardcore History

43:27 - Fightmaster Fandom & Death Cab Deep Cuts

54:20 - The Fuck-It Bucket Tradition

56:16 - Why Are There Still New Songs?

1:04:41 - Hot Takes on The Odyssey

1:10:13 - Full-Throated Endorsement: Shrimp Cocktail

1:15:58 - Happy Birthday, Willa & Outro

Support the show

Gary Gulman is a stand up comedian known for acclaimed stand up specials The Great Depresh, Grandiloquent, and Born on 3rd Base. He talks to Asher and Michael about turning down endorsement deals, a cataract surgery that gave him 20/20 vision overnight, and the ethics of corporate gigs and sponsorships. He endorses John Steinbeck's East of Eden.

0:00:00 Cold Open
0:00:19 Intro
0:00:51 Turning Down Gigs and Selling Out
0:06:05 The Cataract Lens "Miracle"
0:07:34 Sponsorship Ethics, Palantir and Weight Watchers
0:12:00 Corporate Gigs and Second City
0:14:45 Grandiloquent, Born on Third Base and the New Tour
0:17:23 Building a Themed Show and the "Cracker Moment"
0:20:42 Comedy During a "Fascist Takeover"
0:27:12 Confidence, Ignorance and Dunning-Kruger
0:29:58 Celtics Fan, Knicks Finals Run
0:33:05 Playing Basketball Together
0:38:40 Reenacting NBA Games Alone
0:41:41 Biking, E-Bikes and the Shattering Helmet
0:44:06 Acting, Life & Beth and Training
0:48:35 Last Comic Standing and the Touring Struggle
0:52:08 The State Abbreviations Joke and the "Documentary"
0:55:17 The Omelet Chef
0:57:44 The Psych Ward and the Great Depression Special
1:00:17 Night Staff, Validation and Ending a Set Early
1:08:43 The Gary Goldman No-Show Story
1:09:58 East of Eden Full-Throated Endorsement
1:18:46 Wrap-Up and Outro

Support the show

Aaron Jackson (Dicks: The Musical, The Opposition with Jordan Klepper, Author of The Astonishing Life of August March) joins Michael and Asher to discuss Patti LuPone, Bruce Springsteen's eating habits, and the true difference between jealousy and envy.

00:00:00 Cold Open
00:00:14 Welcome Aaron Jackson
00:03:23 Nick at Nite Nostalgia
00:06:39 NYPD Nuts
00:07:05 Podcast Swag
00:08:44 Aaron's Dance Background
00:09:52 Colonial Williamsburg
00:12:08 Ballet Class Stories
00:18:59 Springsteen & Patti LuPone
00:21:13 Heckler Etiquette
00:23:13 Cell Phones in Theater
00:26:03 Hakuna Matata
00:29:51 Back to Springsteen
00:31:28 One Meal a Day
00:35:05 Gum Clown
00:44:08 Longhand vs Computer
00:45:52 $400 Million Hypothetical
00:51:34 Jealousy as Motivator
00:52:04 Jealousy vs Envy
00:54:19 Movie Premiere Story
00:56:35 Too High at the Premiere
01:00:54 How Newsy Is Aaron
01:01:47 DSA Primaries
01:10:20 Princess Diana Beanie Baby
01:15:43 Disney Background Check
01:17:38 Outro

Support the show

Jen Spyra is a writer whose work has been featured in the New Yorker. She was a senior writer at the Onion and also wrote for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for four seasons. She joins us for a conversation about catchin d while havin' cancer, how gossip is good, and cowards in the republican party.

00:00:00 Cold Open
00:00:30 Welcome to But Also
00:01:03 Life in the Samurai Hole
00:02:05 The "Fucking It Out" Coffee Shop Ritual
00:06:17 Coffee Shops vs. Libraries
00:08:33 Pomodoro, Phone Bricks, and Deadlines
00:12:57 The Saratoga Springs Writer's Retreat
00:14:15 On Being Around "Real" Writers
00:15:57 Cancer in High School
00:22:44 Dads, Weight, and the Wisconsin Pizza Years
00:27:08 Obsession, Wish Fulfillment, and Black Mirror
00:30:15 Critiquing Other People's Work Publicly
00:32:40 The MFA and Getting Mad
00:35:31 Improv Team Scapegoats
00:40:19 Everything Is Copy
00:45:32 The 65 Coats Theory
00:47:33 In Defense of Gossip
00:53:15 Why Jen Is a Good Hang
00:56:38 The Teleprompter Betting Scandal
01:01:25 Sports Betting Morality
01:07:28 Nobody Will Say Who Won 2020
01:12:06 Unrelatable Liars and Permanent Legacies
01:14:57 Full Throated Endorsement: TURN
01:20:23 Outro

Support the show

Josh Gondelman joins Michael and Asher to talk apartment disasters, sneaker culture, insurance mascots, and the books he can't stop recommending.

0:00 Cold Open/Intro

0:58 The Great Apartment Flood

6:23 "Freak My Sneaks"

9:10 Pimp My Ride Ruined People's Lives

11:50 Jake From State Farm and J.K. Simmons

17:24 Josh's Twitter Pep Talk Era

20:05 The Modern Seinfeld Twitter Account

21:53 Getting Typecast After One Big Job

26:37 Why SubwayTakes Can't Be Cloned

28:03 Furniture Assembly and Contractor Disasters

33:46 We’re Eating It

36:11 The Sandwich Line

40:03 Would You Hand Over Your Watch?

42:40 The Wrong Sandwich

44:31 Forbidden Egg Rolls and Gefilte Fish

46:55 Josh's Bar Mitzvah on Masada

51:16 Keeping Jewish Traditions His Own Way

56:29 Restaurant Pacing and Wine Standoffs

59:20 Optimistic Josh

1:01:45 The Pressure of Being Too Nice

1:06:37 What Josh Tells New Comedians

1:10:28 Full Throated Endorsements Segment

1:11:04 Josh's Wife Picks His Books

1:15:07 Josh's Current Reading Pile

1:17:44 Outro / Goodbyes

Support the show