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Derek Waters Is Living the Drunken Dream

/ Sydney Parker / Leave a comment

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“Emmy-winning Comedy Central series Drunk History returns for a ten-episode fourth season tomorrow night. The new season features fascinating historical events, more endearing drunken narrators, and stand-out lip sync performances by all of our favorite funny people in the universe. Hamilton creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda narrates the untold version of the Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr rivalry. Paget Brewster narrates the friendship between First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt (Busy Phillips) and Soviet soldier Lyudmila Pavlichenko (Mae Whitman). Other exciting guest stars featured this season include Jack McBrayer, Billie Joe Armstrong, Michael Cera, Ben Folds, Dave Grohl, Tony Hale, Ed Helms, Thomas Middleditch, Aubrey Plaza, Ronda Rousey, Liev Schreiber, Alia Shawkat, Bob Odenkirk and many more.

I had the privilege of speaking to the wildly gifted and charming Drunk Historycreator Derek Waters about Lin-Manuel Miranda’s personal life, death by Ronda Rousey, and turtles.”

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A Little Time with Quinn Marcus and Adam Pally

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pally-quinn“You may not have heard of Quinn Marcus, but at a spry twenty-five years old, she’s already on her way to becoming a household name. It all began at the age of seventeen in the town of Little five Points in Atlanta, GA. Marcus hit the streets asking strangers funny, disarming questions for a series she dubbed Quinnterviews. She pitched the show to MTV-U and next thing you know, she’s sharing a laugh with Tina Fey, speed dating with the cast of Community, and exchanging hair caresses with Paul Rudd. A crossed path with Adam Pally, and A Little of Your Time With Quinn Marcus, a new show on ABC Digital, was born. Pally produced the show and Marcus stars, interviewing celebrities including Ben Schwartz, Terry Crews, Casey Wilson, Maria Bamford, Isaiah Mustafa, and Moby. The interviews take place in non-traditional settings like at Marcus’ house, on a basketball court, and around a campfire. Marcus has a gift for making her subjects laugh by just being herself. Her interviews are so much fun because she reveals the genuine person behind the media persona. She carried this spirit of authenticity into her short film, Alone With People, a funny, affecting story about coming out to her parents as a teenager. She’s onto feature films next, maybe talk shows and definitely more shorts. Who knows how far she’ll go? Pally certainly thinks she has what it takes to make the big time.”

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A Tale of Two Lives: Chris Geere

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“The third season of the dark romantic comedy You’re the Worst premieres tomorrow on FXX much to the delight of the show’s devoted fanbase. Chris Geere, who plays self-involved writer Jimmy Shive-Overly, is definitely not like the wild and crazy character he plays — this fast-paced Hollywood life isn’t his usual bag. In an alternate reality, he’s back in Manchester, England cooking dinner for his wife and building a treehouse for his young son.

Geere’s British charm is palpable; it is obvious how thrilled he is to be living the dream. He took some time to talk with me about family life in the English countryside, channeling Jim Carrey, and season three of You’re the Worst.”

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Ben Falcone on Being Partners in Comedy and Life with Melissa McCarthy

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“Before Ben Falcone became the writer/director/producer/actor/father/husband to Melissa McCarthy that he is today, he worked as a waiter at California Pizza Kitchen for seven years and performed with a comedy troupe at The Groundlings. Whether it was his abrupt firing from CPK or an inborn strength of character, Falcone seems to have maintained his humility and warmth amidst his family’s growing fame. Which is a great quality to have when your comedic success shows no signs of stopping. McCarthy and Falcone’s pilot Nobodies was just ordered to series, a new movie, Life of the Party starts shooting next month, and The Boss, a movie they co-wrote with Steve Mallory recently released on DVD with special features. I talked with Falcone about the couple’s favorite place to write, playing with dolls in volcanoes, and the joy of comedy in an uncertain world.”

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Ana Gasteyer Gets Into Character in ‘Lady Dynamite’

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“Legendary SNL cast member Ana Gasteyer lives up to her reputation on the brilliant new Netflix streaming comedy Lady Dynamite, on which she plays talent agent Karen Grisham. Created by Arrested Development‘s Mitch Hurwitz and writer/producer Pam Brady, Lady Dynamite follows comedian Maria Bamford (playing a version of herself) as she struggles with mental illness and her career in Hollywood.

If you’ve ever met a talent agent in the flesh, you’ve probably met someone like Gasteyer’s Karen Grisham. She chatters at the speed of light, flatters with abandon, and is prone to deranged bouts of irrational anger. Saying so much crazy so quickly was a challenge, but Gasteyer makes it look easy. Be forewarned: the jokes land swiftly, so it can be difficult to catch all the funny over the sound of your own laughter.

I caught up with Gasteyer on Lady Dynamite, her jazzy musical act, and method acting at the guacamole table.”

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How Andrée Vermeulen Turned Self-Loathing Mac and Cheese Into Celebratory Mac and Cheese

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“You may recognize Andrée Vermeulen as a house performer at UCB or as one of the many hilarious characters she played in CollegeHumor videos, but hopefully you now know her best as Dr. Monica Scholls in Steve and Nancy Carell’s hilarious hit series Angie Tribeca. If you haven’t yet seen the new slapstick comedy on TBS, you’re missing out. Vermeulen plays an all-business deputy medical examiner, analyzing forensic evidence for LAPD detective Angie Tribeca (Rashida Jones) and drawing absurd conclusions. We got the scoop on Vermeulen’s big break on Angie Tribeca, her self-loathing macaroni, and her dream role in the musical Hamilton.”

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Jake and Amir: Lonely and Horny

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“Comedy duo Jake Hurwitz and Amir Blumenfeld are back in the habit writing, directing, and starring in Lonely and Horny, a goofy new web series on Vimeo. Amir plays Ruby Jade, a narcissistic thirty-something who feels entitled to sex and can’t comprehend why women won’t do it with him. Jake plays Josh Rice, a dating coach who teaches classes on getting laid in the vein of The Pick-up Artist.Although the premise of the series falls in familiar misogynistic territory, the writing and characters flip the script and create a refreshing reversal. The result is a funny mashup of a bro-comedy with a feminist flair. Whereas a lesser series might write a young male character who can’t get laid because women are just too “shallow and dumb” to appreciate his greatness, in Lonely and Horny, there’s nothing wrong with the women. It’s Ruby. He’s an unapologetic jerk. That’s why no one wants to sleep with him. As for Jake’s character — Although Josh Rice gives sexist dating advice, that’s just how he makes his living. Off the clock he’s spending time in a loving relationship with his wife and baby. So while Lonely and Horny probably isn’t going to be honored by the Geena Davis Institute on Gender and Media as a symbol of feminist progress anytime soon, the series is a step in the right direction. I caught up with Jake and Amir on Passover seders, dating antipasti, and the future of Lonely and Horny.” 

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Aasif Mandvi on ‘Mother’s Day’ and Donald Trump

/ Sydney Parker / Leave a comment
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Aasif Mandvi. Photo: Amina Elahi

“In a brief interlude from his satirical combat of Islamaphobia on the Daily Show and his web series, Halal in the Family, Aasif Mandvi co-stars in Mother’s Day, a wacky holiday comedy directed by Garry Marshall. Much like Marshall’s Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Day, the movie features multiple intersecting storylines and a star-studded cast. Mandvi plays Russell, an Indian American doctor, husband, and father. His wife Jessie (Kate Hudson) has managed to keep her interracial marriage and toddler a secret from her conservative southern parents. But when Mom and Dad unexpectedly show up for a visit (spoiler!), Jessie can no longer shield her husband from her narrow-minded family. Racist antics and slapstick hilarity ensue.

The full star-studded cast includes Julia Roberts, Jennifer Aniston, Jason Sudeikis, Timothy Olyphant, Britt Robertson, Sarah Chalke, Hector Elizondo, Margo Martindale, Shay Mitchell, Jack Whitehall, Jon Lovitz, and a pug. If you and/or your mom are hankering for a turbocharged, action-packed cornball rom-com, Mother’s Day is the movie for you. I caught up with Mandvi on interracial romantic comedies, working with toddlers, and Donald Trump’s inner child.”

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW ON VULTURE 

Mo Welch on Larry Bird, Qweirdos, and Laughter in the Dark

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Mo Welch Basketball

Photo credit: Mandee Johnson

“Whether she’s hosting The Mo Show, performing standup, making music videos, drawing her hilariously depressing cartoon, Barely Blair, or bringing her A-game on the basketball court onto the stage for the Larry Bird Variety Hour, the impossibly cool Mo Welch is constantly stretching the boundaries of her comedy and devising new ways to find the funny.

I got a chance to talk with Mo about the antics behind the making of her CBS sports special, Foul Ball, what it’s like to be Larry Bird, getting her start with The Grawlix, joining the Qweirdo community, and her unexpected moment of brilliance with a Pop-Tart.”

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