Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen

Episodes

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  “Nobody Knows Anything”: Confessions of a TV Exec – David Kissinger 22.09.2026 54m

  David Kissinger grew up swimming in Nixon's pool, getting bad-mouthed by classmates over his dad's Nobel Prize, and hanging out with people history books call monsters — and he calls uncles. Jay sits down with David Kissinger — son of Henry Kissinger, TV exec behind The Office, Battlestar Galactica, and Netflix's The Beast in Me — for a conversation that swings from Watergate to Ted Danson's phone number to the time Paul McCartney pulled out a harmonica just for him. David tells the story of the president calling his childhood neighbors "sons of bitches" (in front of a 10-year-old), explains how he squandered millions of dollars developing shows before finally getting one right, and gets brutally honest about the show he still thinks was robbed of its shot. Plus: why AI can't write a joke to save its life, what Barry Diller taught him about being a good editor, and how a 6:20am hiking group became his weekly dose of joy. It's part Hollywood war stories, part front-row seat to American political history, and part two old friends just riffing. Also: listener mail about firing a friend without losing her, and a hard stance on marzipan. Bio:  David Kissinger has spent decades helping decide what America watches on TV — and he's the son of one of the most consequential (and controversial) diplomats in modern history, so he's had a front-row seat to two very different kinds of power. Professionally, Kissinger cut his teeth as a journalist, writing for outlets including Rolling Stone and Esquire, before crossing over into the entertainment industry. He rose through television development at Disney's Touchstone Television, where he helped oversee hits like Home Improvement and Boy Meets World, then went on to run NBC Universal Television Studio, where his fingerprints are on shows including The Office, House, Monk, and Battlestar Galactica. Since 2005, he's served as President of Conaco, Conan O'Brien's production company — proof that after years of corporate TV, he still knows how to have fun. His father was Henry Kissinger, the former U.S. Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, and Nobel Peace Prize winner. Growing up with that surname meant David spent his childhood somewhere between political history and normal life, which may explain why he's spent his adult life gravitating toward comedy.  Kissinger is married to Alexandra Kissinger, who worked directly with Jim Henson and has helped carry forward the Henson legacy. Outside of work, he's an avid music fan and enjoys hiking and not answering Jay’s texts.  Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  I Had a Real Career Until I Met Jay Kogen — Jonathan Shapiro 14.09.2026 58m

  Jonathan Shapiro spent years as a successful attorney, working for the Justice Department and prosecuting organized crime. Then he met Jay Kogen — and somehow ended up writing television. Jonathan joins Jay for a funny and surprisingly personal conversation about leaving the law behind and building a 26-year career writing some of television’s biggest legal dramas, including The Practice, Goliath, The Blacklist, Mr. Mercedes, and The Undoing. They talk about the strange rules — or complete lack of rules — in show business, why great scripts never get made, what real courtroom experience taught Jonathan about writing television lawyers, and how a chance encounter with Jay helped convince him that maybe life didn’t always have to be vegetables when you could skip straight to dessert. But the conversation goes deeper than their careers. Jonathan opens up about getting older, losing people he loves, his journey to sobriety, using humor to keep people at a distance, and why genuine connection has become more important to him with age. It’s a conversation about law, writing, failure, friendship, mortality, and what happens when you finally admit: “Yeah… I’m a writer.”Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/ https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Your Life Isn’t as Interesting as You Think — Bill Martin & Mike Schiff 01.09.2026 56m

  What happens when two veteran comedy writers start questioning everything they were taught about writing? Jay sits down with Bill Martin and Mike Schiff, the longtime writing partners behind shows including 3rd Rock from the Sun, In Living Color, Grounded for Life, and The Neighborhood, for a funny and candid conversation about what makes comedy work — and why some of the oldest writing advice might be worth ignoring. They talk about the decline of the traditional sitcom, why younger audiences will binge hundreds of old episodes but struggle to connect with new comedies, surviving the chaos of In Living Color, taking over The Neighborhood, navigating changing writers' rooms, working with stars like Cedric the Entertainer and John Lithgow, and the strange pressure on writers to constantly “write their truth.” After decades of writing together, Bill and Mike also explain how their creative partnership survived every argument imaginable — and why sometimes the best thing a writer can do is stop writing what they know. It’s a conversation about comedy, friendship, changing television, and figuring out how to stay funny when the business around you keeps changing. Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/ https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  King of Queens Writer/director Michael Weithorn - Learning to be THE BOSS 26.08.2026 55m

  Michael J. Weithorn knows a thing or two about making television work — and about what happens when it doesn’t. The creator of The King of Queens joins Jay Kogen to talk about the years of trial, error, difficult actors, canceled shows, and hard-earned lessons that eventually led to one of television’s most successful sitcoms. Michael shares how Jerry Stiller initially turned down The King of Queens, what it was like having Charlie Kaufman in the Ned and Stacey writers’ room, recognizing Bryan Cranston’s talent long before Breaking Bad, and what he learned about running a television show from Family Ties creator Gary David Goldberg. They also get into the strange reality of creative success: after you finally make the hit show, are you allowed to stop trying? Jay and Michael compare The Simpsons and The King of Queens, talk about why writers keep creating long after they have something to rest their laurels on, and wonder whether any of it ever actually feels like enough. Plus, Michael discusses directing Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick in his new film The Best You Can, the disappearing world of old-school TV writers’ rooms, and why comedy writers may simply be incapable of leaving a perfectly good dramatic moment alone. Michael J. Weithorn is an award-winning writer, producer, director, and creator of The King of Queens, with credits including Family Ties, Cheers, Ned and Stacey, True Colors, and The Wonder Years. Bio: Michael J. Weithorn is an award-winning writer, producer, and director with over four decades of experience in Hollywood television and film. He is best known as the creator and executive producer of The King of Queens, the beloved CBS sitcom that ran for nine seasons and 207 episodes, and has brought numerous other series to life across major networks, including Ned and Stacey, True Colors, and Weird Loners. Earlier in his career, he honed his craft as a producer and story editor on Family Ties and earned a WGA Award for his Cheers script and an Emmy nomination for The Wonder Years. His feature work includes A Little Help (2011) and the upcoming The Best You Can (2025), starring Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Judd Hirsch, and Ray Romano.  Beyond his creative work, Weithorn is a dedicated educator, teaching screenwriting as an adjunct professor at Columbia University's MFA program and UC Santa Barbara, while also leading comedy writing workshops for organizations including the Ghetto Film School and Inside Out Writers, an L.A.-based anti-recidivism program. Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/ https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Does Nerve Run in the Family? Comedy Siblings Allan & Phyllis Katz on Risk & Spit Takes 18.08.2026 55m

  Can comedy run in the family? M*A*S*H and Laugh-In writer/producer Allan Katz and Groundlings pioneer Phyllis Katz join Jay Kogen to compare the wildly different paths that took two siblings from the same Chicago household into legendary careers in comedy. Allan's story sounds almost made up. While working in advertising, his work on Screaming Yellow Zonkers caught the attention of Laugh-In producer George Schlatter — who tracked him down and offered him a job. Allan, having no idea who was calling, hung up on him. More than once. Phyllis's career began with an equally unlikely encounter. After walking into Second City and asking Joe Flaherty if they bought song parodies, he handed her a flyer for their workshops. As Phyllis remembers it: "My life changed forever." From growing up with a former vaudeville hoofer for a father, to Laugh-In, M*A*S*H, Second City and The Groundlings, Allan and Phyllis talk about where funny actually comes from, surviving rejection, taking creative risks, finding your way into "the zone," and why sometimes an entire career can turn on one completely unexpected moment. And beneath all the comedy is something even more personal: the strange bond between siblings who share a lifetime of memories, inside jokes, and a language nobody else quite understands. So... is comedy genetic? Jay tries to find out.Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  When Should You Push? When Should You Back Off? | Christian Duguay (Valley Heat) 11.08.2026 56m

  When does pushing for what you want become pushing too far? Jay sits down with comedian, writer, performer, and Valley Heat creator Christian Duguay for a conversation about boundaries, bad decisions, creative confidence, and knowing when to make the call and when to leave something alone. At the center of Valley Heat is Doug Duguay, a fictional character who keeps finding himself in increasingly ridiculous situations. He suspects his pool guy is dealing drugs. He worries about his wife's yoga instructor. He obsesses over a mysterious car parked outside his house. And somehow, almost every questionable decision Doug makes seems perfectly reasonable…at least to Doug. Christian admits there's more of himself in Doug than you might expect. That leads Jay and Christian into a bigger question: How do you know when you're being persistent and when you're just being pushy? Jay has always believed in making the phone call, asking for the opportunity, and fighting for what you want—even if that occasionally means annoying someone. Christian has traditionally been more cautious. He didn't even show Valley Heat to his manager until he'd made ten episodes and knew he believed in it.  But by the end of their conversation, the two find some common ground: sometimes the phone call you're afraid to make is exactly the one you should make. As Christian puts it, most of us have needed someone to give us advice, open a door, or push us in the right direction—and sometimes getting what you want requires having the nerve to ask.  They also talk about Christian's years at The Groundlings, abandoning stand-up, struggling with creative confidence, making music, building the bizarre world of Valley Heat, and why sometimes the best thing a creative person can do is make something they like and put it into the world. So where's the line? When should you push and when should you back off? Follow Christian Duguay: Socials: https://www.instagram.com/csduguay/  Podcast: https://valleyheatpodcast.com/  Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/ https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Why This Arrested Development Writer Hates Having a Boss 04.08.2026 51m

  From Arrested Development to insubordinate rebels: John Levenstein tells all. Long before podcasting was cool, John Levenstein (Arrested Development, Kroll Show) was already doing it — mostly because he had no idea what he was signing up for. In this episode, the veteran writer/showrunner gets refreshingly honest about what actually makes a comedy writers' room work. His controversial take? Not everyone needs to agree. In fact, forcing consensus on a writing staff is its own kind of bullying — the showrunner's job is to make the call, not manufacture harmony. John also makes the case for "wasted time" as secret sauce: some of the best jokes in Arrested Development came from writers chasing pointless tangents that turned into five seconds of pure gold. Sometimes the grinding, chaotic, deadline-crushing process is the recipe. Then things get personal. John opens up about growing up without a male role model, why authority has always struck him as absurd, and how that turned him into a lifelong "insubordinate rebel" — one who somehow also became one of the most trusted, well-liked insiders in the business. He's the guy everyone wants to text, the friend who asks for nothing, and — surprisingly — a guy singing lessons made genuinely happy. Equal parts industry insight and unexpectedly moving personal story. Don't miss it.Follow John Levenstein: Socials: https://www.instagram.com/saltinwound/ Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Can America Still Be Saved? | PoliticsGirl 28.07.2026 59m

  Is America really doomed or is there still a path forward? In this episode of Don't Be Alone, Jay Kogen sits down with Leigh McGowan, better known as Politics Girl, for an honest conversation about the future of America. Together, they explore whether the country has reached a breaking point, why so many people have lost faith in politics, and what it would actually take to rebuild trust in our institutions. From the rise of independent media to the influence of money in politics, government reform, voter engagement, healthcare, and the future of democracy, this conversation goes far beyond partisan talking points. Whether you agree or disagree, it's a thoughtful discussion about where America is headed and whether there's still reason to hope. In this episode: Is America really beyond repair? Why Politics Girl believes hope still matters The biggest mistakes both political parties have made Can democracy survive growing division? The future of media, messaging, and political influence What everyday Americans can do to make a difference If you enjoy thoughtful conversations that challenge ideas rather than shout over them, be sure to subscribe for new episodes every week. Guest: Leigh McGowan (Politics Girl) Follow Politics Girl: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/politicsgirl Website: https://www.politicsgirl.com/ Socials: https://www.instagram.com/IAmPoliticsGirl/https://www.tiktok.com/@iampoliticsgirl Subscribe to Don't Be Alone with Jay Kogen for more conversations with writers, comedians, actors, creators, and thought leaders exploring life, creativity, politics, and the human experience. Website: https://www.dontbealonewjk.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbealonewithjaykogen/https://www.instagram.com/jaykogen/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dont.be.alone.wit Substack: https://substack.com/@jaykogen Merch: https://shop.app/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Writer/Life Coach, Barbara Heller Turns An On Stage Panic Attack Into A Life Quest 21.07.2026 49m

  Barbara Heller talks about walking away from the perfect man just before her wedding and breaking down with a mid-life panic attack on stage and committing to being a Jew to find happiness and trying to live as a perfectionist and being an all or nothing person.  She discusses her one woman show and her ability to get people to explore their life stories through drama to understand who they really are.  She makes Jay explore his deepest fears on the show!  Bio:Barbara Heller is an award winning playwright, podcaster, documentarian, songwriter, 30 year curriculum writer and coach. You may have seen her in the past as a host on tv or heard her voice in blockbuster movies, TV shows and commercials, including Snatched, The Heat, The Arrival, Kung Fu Panda 3, Disney Jr.s’ Vampirina.  Pending on her schedule she can be hired to perform her Award winning One Woman Show, Cosmic Conversations which was performed in 6 countries including at the Edinburgh Fringe or to do a Creative Writing Workshop in your community! Subscribe to her award winning podcast See One Beautiful Soul  here. My mission is to inspire people to let go of their past and heal it through the re-telling of our stories through Inner-Child work and Artistic Expression.  When we gather in community, learn about our origin faiths, and encourage each other to get clear about our Spiritual Values, that is when we soar. May we dance, sing, meditate, pray, forgive past trauma, and thus mirror and heal one another, our families, our larger communities and cause beautiful ripple effects to reverberate and heal the whole world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Writing Legend Don Reo Makes It Look Easy. Jay Makes It Look Awkward 14.07.2026 57m

  Show Notes: On this episode legendary writer and show creator talks about being the first white guy on stage at the Apollo, getting a show about alcoholics cancelled because the network president was an alcoholic, the pleasure of writing a first draft, and driving way too fast, and how music drives his writings and the time he was oddly alone with Bruce Springsteen and told him a dirty joke. Bio: on Reo has always been quick with a quip, from the time he got his first laugh sometime back in junior high school to the jokes he wrote for traveling comedians, through the half century he spent “pushing the limits” of sitcoms to the book he is currently negotiating with Random House—The Tibetan Joke Book of the Dead.  “It’s about Hollywood and death which are probably synonyms,” said Reo, the recipient of WGAW’s Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television Writing Achievement to be presented at the 2026 Writers Guild Awards. “I think you’re born with a funny gene, or maybe it’s the way you’re raised. Nobody else in my family was particularly funny, but I got a laugh in the seventh grade, and I thought, ‘Maybe I can do this. This is nice because it stops people from hitting you.’ I read that Woody Allen was making $500 a week writing jokes, and I thought, ‘Well, fuck, I can do that!’” And he did, effectively launching a career that has spanned seven decades, earning writing credits on series such as Sanford and Son, Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, M*A*S*H, and Rhoda and creating or co-creating Blossom, My Wife and Kids, The John Larroquette Show, and The Ranch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Leah Rudick Succeeds at Acting, Stand-up, Writing & Jay Doesn't 07.07.2026 55m

  Brilliant comic, Leah Rudick, talks about growing up in Ohio, being a drama kid, writing and doing sketch comedy, and eventually moving out to LA and becoming a stand-up. Working with her brother. She talks about how being shy gave her the courage to be in front of people while wearing the mask of performing. She talks about making TikTok Instagram her character playground. Leah talks about how creative ambition pushes her forward, how having a husband in booze helps, how nothing matters, and the glory of Peach Pouch Pie! Bio: Leah Rudick is a Los Angeles-based actor, writer, and comedian. Known for her viral original characters including "Wealthy Woman," "Joannie," and "Love Coach," Rudick has built a devoted fanbase of nearly 2 million followers across socials with her signature "weird girl" comedy. She was most recently named one of Deadline's Comics to Watch in 2026. In addition to acting and developing her own projects, she is currently headlining a national tour. Festival credits include Moontower, Just For Laughs, SF Sketchfest, and Laughing Skull. In 2023, her debut comedy hour, Spiraling, released on Amazon and Apple TV.  TV credits include High Maintenance (HBO), Commuters (IFC), and Crowd Control (Dropout TV). She co-wrote and co-starred in the critically acclaimed web series Made to Order, featured in Marie Claire, IndieWire, and the New York Observer. On the big screen, she co-wrote and co-starred in the indie feature Sweet Parents, which took home top prizes at Brooklyn International Film Festival, Montreal World Film Festival, and The Lower East Side Film Festival. Rudick began her comedy career in New York with her sketch duo Skinny Bitch Jesus Meeting, earning praise in Time Out NY, Washington Post, and Complex Magazine, which named her one of "25 Funny People Who Should Have Their Own TV Show." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Claudia Lonow & Jonathan Schmock Pioneer Making Films While Jay Pioneers Eating Snacks 30.06.2026 1h 2m

   What happens when two people with complicated pasts — failed marriages, sobriety journeys, and a chance meeting at a 4th of July party — fall in love but decide not to move in together? Claudia and Jonathan join us for a conversation as layered and surprising as the indie film they made together, D(e)AD — a project born from personal heartbreak, an ex-husband who may or may not have faked cancer, and the haunting feeling that the not-so-great people from our past never fully leave us. They'll take you behind the scenes of making a movie with friends and family, funding it through Kickstarter, and then getting it into theaters one screen at a time — from cities across the US to London to Bosnia — all while navigating the soul-crushing gauntlet of festival rejections, fake IMDB credits, and music licensing processes that take six months just to say no. Along the way, Claudia opens up about using her parents and daughter as the raw material of her art, and why storytelling is how she survives. We also get into Jonathan's origins — from writing a fake Nightline to a history with cartoons and the discipline of keeping art beautifully simple — and the question that ties it all together: would you trade your messy, painful, hilarious past for a different one?  And how, bubble wrap can save your sanity. Bio:   Claudia Lonow started her career as an actress, playing Michele Lee’s chubby, loud-mouthed teenage daughter on “Knots Landing.”  Favorite episodes include: the one where she has kidney failure and is saved by Donna Mills kidney; the one where she runs away with the town murderer, “Chip,” and drives her mother to drugs; and the one where she almost loses her virginity, but instead winds up donning clown make up and singing “Put On A Happy Face” with her mom. Lonow’s next career was waitressing.  She did stand up comedy for a while, working across the country and doing some television.  When she gave her best joke to Sarah Silverman, and Silverman killed with it, a writer was born. Her television-writing career took off when she wrote a semi-autobiographical spec pilot about a former nighttime soap opera television actress who gets sent to rehab, called “Rude Awakening.”  Showtime bought the show, which ran for 55 episodes.  Lonow has been creating and writing television ever since: “Good Girls Don’t” for Oxygen; “Accidentally On Purpose” for CBS and “How To Live With Your Parents (For The Rest Of Your Life)” for ABC.  Lonow moved into directing with the award winning shorts, “Bummed” and “Keep Calm and Tampon.” Lonow just completed directing and acting in her first feature, the very indie film, “D(e)AD” written by and starring her daughter, Isabella Roland, her partner Jonathan Schmock and pretty much everyone else in her family. She is currently developing various other TV and film projects, has gotten back to stand up and is threatening to do a solo show. Jonathan Schmock is an actor, director, comedian, show creator, artist and Emmy nominated writer, (group Emmy but still). As a stand-up he was half of the comedy team The Funny Boys with Jim Vallely. As an actor you’ve seen him in such varied things as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Star Trek Enterprise, The Big Bang Theory, Arrested Development, Shameless, The Simpsons, The Mentalist (the guy who did it) and NCIS Los Angeles (the guy who didn’t) among others. As a writer/director he co-created Sabrina, The Teenage Witch and Brotherly Love and worked as an executive producer/writer on Dharma and Greg and Good Girls Don’t, Real Time and many more. Most recently he acted in and produced the indie film D(e)AD, which can be seen and purchased online, (hint.)  His editorial cartoons can be seen at jonathanschmock.com. His paintings have appeared in a group show at the L.A. County Museum of Art, (no shit.) He hopes to continue writing about himself in the third person for many years to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Re-Broadcast: Directing Legend James Burrows Explores Why Jay Lacks “That Certain Magic” 23.06.2026 50m

  In memory of the great James Borrows we rebroadcasting this episode of "Dont Be Alone with Jay Kogen". We talk with James Burrows about his reign as Hollywood's greatest sitcom director, being the son of Abe Burrows, the genetics of comedy, his book "Directed by James Burrows", "Cheers", "Will & Grace", "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "Taxi", "Friends", the scripts that make him want to direct, the ones that don't, his amazing memory, his humble beginnings, the decade it took him to learn how to direct, working with geniuses like James L. Brooks, Chuck Lorre, and Kohan & Mutchnick, and Andy Kaufman. And Jimmy explains how his two best friends are Al Michaels and Bruce Springsteen. BIO: James Burrows was one of television's most respected and honored creative talents. Over his distinguished career, Burrows was the recipient of eleven Emmys, five Directors Guild of America Awards, the 1996 American Comedy Awards' Creative Achievement Award, the Television Critics Association's Career Achievement Award, and in 2006 he was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame and was honored by the US Comedy Arts Festival with their Career Tribute Award. He was the recipient of 22 nominations for the Directors Guild of America Award, thus bestowing him the honor of being the most nominated director in the history of television at the Guild. He was honored by the DGA with the Inaugural 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award in Television. In November of 2015 he directed his 1,000th episode, which was recognized by a TV Special on NBC in January of 2016. Burrows' success as the director of television pilots was legendary. He directed the first two episodes of the "Frasier" reboot's second season, and wrapped the pilot "Mid-Century Modern" for Fox, which went to series. In January of 2020, he received his fifth DGA Award for directing the Emmy Award-winning show "Live in Front of a Studio Audience #1: Norman Lear's All in the Family and The Jeffersons." He was also asked back to direct "Live in Front of a Studio Audience #3: Diff'rent Strokes and The Facts of Life" in December of 2021. In June of 2022, he published his autobiography, "Directed by James Burrows," which received considerable attention and praise from the industry. Burrows was probably best known as co-creator, executive producer and director of the critically acclaimed series "Cheers." The hit show, which aired for 11 seasons, is tied for the most nominated Comedy series in the Television Academy's history and is in third place for most Emmys received by a Comedy Series. Burrows also received numerous awards for his work on "Will & Grace," "Frasier," "Friends," "Wings," "Night Court," "Taxi," and "Dear John." For the first time in 25 years, he returned to the stage in the spring of 1998 to direct the highly acclaimed "The Man Who Came to Dinner" at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, starring John Mahoney. Burrows learned his trade from the very best, the legendary writer/director Abe Burrows, whose noted career included such classics as "Guys and Dolls," "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," and "Cactus Flower." Born in Los Angeles and raised in New York, Burrows graduated from Oberlin College and continued his education at Yale, where he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree. Burrows relocated to Hollywood to work as a dialogue coach for "O.K. Crackerby!," a short-lived television series starring Burl Ives. When the show ended, he returned to New York and initially worked as a stage manager before directing several off-Broadway shows, such as "The Castro Complex," and stock productions of "The Odd Couple" and "Never Too Late." In 1974, Burrows moved back to the West Coast when he was invited to visit MTM Productions in Los Angeles and offered a job directing an episode of "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Mr. Burrows and his wife, Debbie, resided in Los Angeles and between them they had four daughters. He passed away on June 19, 2026. He left an indelible mark on American television. He will be remembered and missed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Harper Steele Found Her Authentic Self While Jay Is A Total Fake 16.06.2026 59m

  Harper Steele talks about transitioning and the differences in how she experiences the world as a woman and how the world experiences her.  The differences in parenting, writing, and comedy. Trying to fight off who she really was for years. Her fears of being judged.  How finding her true self saved her life. How road trips are different. How being macho was an odd priority before. How that reflected her comedy. How a teacher started her writing. How the movie “Will & Harper” has affected other transpeople and how she has been mostly accepted by the world and completely accepted by her friends. Her love of thrift stores and vinyl records.  And our mutual love of The Eurovision Song Contest.  Bio: Harper Steele is a comedy writer who launched her career in 1995 at the renowned show "Saturday Night Live." For over thirteen years, she served the show in various capacities, eventually ascending to the position of head writer for four years. This period of her career was marked with a notable achievement, with Steele earning a Primetime Emmy Award in 2002. Following this, her creativity found a new platform at Funny or Die, where she assumed the role of creative director. Steele's writing prowess was not limited to television, as she contributed to the scripts of several films, including "Casa de mi padre," "The Ladies Man," and "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga." Alongside her writing career, she also served as an executive producer of HBO's "Funny or Die Presents." Her multifaceted career in comedy writing and production was depicted in the 2024 Netflix documentary "Will & Harper," which also explored Steele's gender transition and its impact on her friendship with longtime friend and collaborator Will Ferrell. The documentary "Will & Harper" received critical acclaim, premiering at the 40th Sundance Film Festival in January 2024 and earning a nomination for a People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. Steele's comedic and political viewpoints, often referred to as "purple-haired woke," advocate for humor as a catalyst for positive change. Such viewpoints have earned her accolades within her industry circles, with Jimmy Fallon describing Steele as "one of the funniest people I think I've ever met in my lifetime."  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Screenwriting Legends Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski Love Movies but Don’t Love Jay 09.06.2026 54m

  Screenwriting Legends SCOTT ALEXANDER and LARRY KARASZEWSKI discuss their origin stories of being film nerds, drive-in movies, how looking on the back of Variety was glorious when they were kids, how Shakey's Pizza's silent movies influenced them, meeting the first hour at school and deciding to go to the Nuart Theater in Los Angeles, why they program screenings including The Wrong Guy, what makes a good story from real life, why offbeat losers make better subjects than heroes, how directors like Tim Burton are loyal to the script and love stories of art and outsiders, why awards are fun but stupid, their process of deciding on ideas in a shockingly random way, sinking time into ideas that go nowhere, the amazing Marx Brothers movie that can't seem to get made, how they can't shake a movie once they love it, how producers are just as stupid as they are, whether everyone has a movie in their lives and why someone doesn't make a bio movie about them, and how pickleball can save your life! Bio:SCOTT ALEXANDER and LARRY KARASZEWSKI met when they were freshman roommates at USC’s School of Cinema. On a whim, they wrote a screenplay during their senior year, which sold a week after graduation. They are best known for writing very unusual biopics with larger-than-life characters. They wrote the highly-acclaimed ED WOOD, for which they were nominated for Best Screenplay by the Writers Guild. They followed this with THE PEOPLE VS. LARRY FLYNT, for which they won the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay, as well as a special Writers Guild award for civil rights and liberties. They scripted the extremely postmodern MAN ON THE MOON, the life story of Andy Kaufman. They wrote BIG EYES, the strange-but-true story of Margaret and Walter Keane, for which they received an Indie Spirit Best Screenplay nomination. For their first television project, they created the hit miniseries AMERICAN CRIME STORY: THE PEOPLE V. O.J. SIMPSON, for which they won the Emmy, Golden Globe, PGA and WGA Award for Best Limited Series. Their most recent film, DOLEMITE IS MY NAME, is the celebrated tale of Rudy Ray Moore. Other than biopics, Alexander and Karaszewski are quite eclectic. They wrote the hit Stephen King adaptation 1408. They produced the Bob Crane biopic AUTO FOCUS, and they wrote and directed the comedy SCREWED. They have also written numerous family films, including PROBLEM CHILD, PROBLEM CHILD 2, AGENT CODY BANKS, and GOOSEBUMPS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Friends/Co-writers Peter Farrelly & Bennett Yellin Talk About Lifelong Connection & How Jay Has None Of That 02.06.2026 1h 4m

  Bennett Yellin and Peter Farrelly talk about meeting each other in school and immediately connecting over their shared sense of humor. Bennett talks about substance abuse in college, while Peter discusses being a very hard driver at work. You talk about getting very lucky working with Eddie Murphy and David Zucker, and about bringing Bobby Farrelly into the group when they were writing movies together. Peter talks about being extremely loyal, living in Ojai, and never feeling like Los Angeles was really his town. Bennett talks about growing up in Beverly Hills in an Orthodox Jewish family. Peter tells a story about using the wrong knives while staying at Bennett's house because meat is not supposed to touch milk. Peter says he doesn't think Rotten Tomatoes is fair, and he also doesn't think criticism is very helpful. Bennett recently wrote a horror movie, Día de Muertos. Peter is a good audience member and wants everyone to contribute. Bennett knew everything about movies, while Peter knew almost nothing about them. Peter also has a very happy crew. Bio:  -Peter John Farrelly (born December 17, 1956) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and novelist. Along with his brother Bobby, the Farrelly brothers are best known for directing and producing quirky and romantic comedy films such as Dumb and Dumber, Shallow Hal, Me, Myself and Irene, There's Something About Mary, and the 2007 remake of The Heartbreak Kid. Farrelly solo-directed and co-wrote the comedy-drama Green Book (2018), which won the Audience Award at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2018, the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, and the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay. He has been married to Melinda Farrelly since December 31, 1996. They have two children. -Born and raised in Los Angeles, Bennett received his B.A. in Fiction from U.C.L.A.  Still not ready to enter the real world, he enrolled at UMass in Amherst for an M.F.A. in fiction.  It was there — on the first day of school — that he met and befriended Peter Farrelly.  On a lark, they tried writing a comedy together and this spec script ultimately got into the hands of Eddie Murphy and the Zucker Brothers, creators of Airplane and The Naked Gun.  Both Murphy and the Zuckers asked the duo to write movies for them, and their career was off and running. Yellin wrote exclusively with Peter for years until they asked his brother Bobby to join them.  The three went on to write a number of unproduced features together until they created Dumb and Dumber in 1994 and reunited in 2014 to co-write the official sequel chronicling the further idiotic adventures of Harry and Lloyd, Dumb and Dumber To. In 2007, the Farrelly Brothers branched out on their own and Yellin partnered with James Robert Johnson to create a professional writing duo that has endured for sixteen years.  Among the plethora of projects they’ve tackled during their career — some produced, others not — the two have co-written Let’s Scare Jessica to Death for Paramount Pictures, the Fox situation comedy Unhitched, the direct-to-DVD thriller Joy Ride 2: Dead Ahead, Paramount Pictures’ Hotel For Dogs 2, the Anchor Bay action-thriller In the Blood with Gina Carano, the 20th Century Fox family film, Santa’s Little Helper, and the Warner Brothers re-boot of the Police Academy series, Police Academy: Takin’ it to the Streets.  More recently, Yellin and Johnston have co-written a live action family stage show adaptation of the hugely popular Angry Birds IP, and their original supernatural thriller Dia de Muertos has recently completed filming and is set to be released in 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Actress/Writer Cheri Oteri Is Optimistic About Everything But Jay 26.05.2026 51m

  Cheri talks about growing up in a rough house with a lot of kids and a young mom and pretending to escape and maybe grab some attention. She talks about imitating TV shows, soap operas and Joe Cocker. She talks about moving from Pennsylvania to California to pursue dreams of acting after a break-up and found herself in the heart of Panorama City nowhere near Hollywood.  Later she found early success in LA @ A&M RECORDS. In fact she was so successful it was a little hard to give it up when it was time to start performing full time after she became a star at THE GROUNDLINGS. She talks about how her writing at The Groundlings helped her at SNL. How Laraine Newman was always encouraging even while breast feeding. How Matt Piedmont and Will Ferril were great writing partners. How sitcoms are pure fun. And how making charcuterie boards with vaguely dirty names is going to change the world for the better. Bio: Cheri Oteri was born in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia and later moved to LA, where she worked in promotions for A&M Records. She joined the Groundlings, and in 1995, the producers of Saturday Night Live saw one of her monologues, which led to an audition and eventually being hired as a cast member, where she starred for five seasons.  As of late, Cheri can be seen recurring on Happy’s Place for NBC, Mid Century Modern for HULU as well as in And Just Like That… for MAX. She has also appeared in several films, including Scary Movie, Inspector Gadget, Liar Liar, Dumb and Dumberer,Shrek the Third, Southland Tales, and Grown Ups 2. In 2009, Oteri became a regular voice on Fox’s animated comedy series Sit Down, Shut Up, which later moved to Comedy Central. She also voiced “Esther” on Disney’s Puppy Dog Pals. Cheri has made multiple guest appearances on sitcoms such as The CW’s My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, TruTV's Those Who Can't, NBC's Just Shoot Me! (in which she was nominated for an Emmy), Hot in Cleveland, and as an emotionally unstable nanny on the Golden Globe and Emmy award winning series Curb Your Enthusiasm. She has appeared multiple times on CNN’s New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper & Andy Cohen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Michael Elias wrote "The Jerk", Jay IS The Jerk 19.05.2026 52m

  Writer, Michael Elias, talks about growing up in the Catskills, where you had to make your money in the summer to survive the winter, and how that created a lot of tension. He also talks about taking acting classes, dealing with being an actor, and how acting helped him build scenes and characters. He talks about working for Glen Campbell without realizing how talented he was. He discusses his book Benders, L.A. and talks about going to Plato's Retreat and not scoring. He talks about Steve Martin and how The Frisco Kid was not what he originally thought it would be. It was originally supposed to be directed by Mike Nichols and star John Wayne. Carl Reiner may have made The Jerk better. Garry Marshall made Young Doctors in Love better, but some movies simply don’t turn out the way you want them to. Michael wants people to know that Jews were all over the West and that minorities helped build this country. He says there was always a hangout somewhere. Mel Brooks was an egalitarian. Michael talks about having many writing partners, including Arnie Kogen, Rich Eustis, and Frank Shaw. He talks about getting kicked off The Ed Sullivan Show, writing for The Tonight Show, and learning from Neil Simon and Ed Weinberger.  He wishes he could tell his mother what’s going on in his life now and imagines writing letters to her today. He also talks about giving yourself permission to stop reading books halfway through. He remembers me playing with the microphone at my bar mitzvah. He talks about paying rent at forty-two dollars a month while working as a substitute teacher. His father, a doctor, never really understood what he did until he saw the pilot of Head of the Class. Howard Hesseman had demands even though he was about to be fired. Bio: Michael Elias grew up in the Catskill Mountains, a Red Diaper Borscht Belt Baby in a world of artists, intellectuals, tumlers, folk singers, boxers, and Jewish gangsters, some of whom sleep at the bottom of Loch Sheldrake. His childhood heroes were Jerry Lewis, Harry Belafonte, Rocky Marciano, and Abe ‘Kid Twist’ Reles. Educated in the classics at St. John’s College, Elias took his knowledge of ancient Greek and philosophy to New York, trained at the Actors Studio, acted in The Living Theatre, La MaMa and the Judson Poets Theatre. From there Elias and Frank Shaw dove into the world of stand-up comedy, playing coffee shops, night clubs, with five stints on The Tonight Show. Fired from Ed Sullivan they abandoned the act and came to Hollywood where he and Shaw wrote sit-coms, variety shows, and The Frisco Kid. After parting ways, Elias participated in the anti-Vietnam War movement, earned a subpoena from a Nixon grand jury, and teamed up with Rich Eustis and created Head of the Class. Elias continues to write novels and screenplays in Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife Bianca Roberts and their dachshund Mabel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Author/Actress Annabelle Gurwitch Has Cancer Yet Jay Is The Worst Thing That Ever Happened to Her. 12.05.2026 58m

  Actress/Author Annabelle Gurwitch talks about living with stage 4 cancer, dating a hard rock tour manager, making each day count, the search for cures, ketamine fails, finding joy in writing, medicine overload, and the joys of hand painted wallpaper. Bio:  ANNABELLE GURWITCH is a New York Times bestselling author of six books, and two-time Thurber Prize finalist. Her writing appears in The New Yorker and New York Times, Hollywood Reporter amongst other publications. Annabelle was the longtime co-host of Dinner & a Movie on TBS, an NPR commentator, she was in too many tv shows and movies to name, but she fell into one of Larry David's comas of unknown origin on Seinfeld, she made Candace Bergen's Top 3 List of secretaries that she fired on Murphy Brown, and in her role as Rabbi Gurwitch on Better Things,  she Bat Mitzvahed Academy Award winning actress Mikey Madison. She performs with The Moth Mainstage and serves as a patient advocate at scientific conferences around the globe.  Her latest hilarious and helpful memoir  is a national bestseller: The End of My Life is Killing Me. Annabelle says it's never too late to write your sex, drugs, and rock n roll memoir. She wrote this book after being diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, and she's learned what's important to pay attention to and find joy even in the darkest hours. She celebrates female friendships, being in it just for the sex at 60, and tells the story of how she found herself selling merch for a heavy metal band on a low rent van tour of Europe. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Actor/writer Paul Greenberg Gets Along With Everyone But Jay 05.05.2026 54m

  Actor/writer talks about being in The Vacant Lot, the sketch show immediately after Kids In the Hall and how the CBC tanked it, what it takes to be a bad waiter, why Canadians are funny in the US, how Canada makes people take turns being successful, how show business culls the herd, and the great conversation he had with his dad on the day he died.  Bio:  Paul Greenberg is an Emmy-winning writer, producer and performer whose work spans television and film. He co-created the cult sketch comedy series The Vacant Lot and the mockumentary-style series International Ghost Investigators: Hollywood Division. Greenberg has collaborated with some of the biggest names in entertainment, most recently with Jim Carrey on the script for Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and has served as Neil Patrick Harris’ main writer for his hosting duties, which includes the Emmys, Tonys and Oscars. As a performer, he can be seen alongside Dana Gould as the painfully naive bandleader, Rusty Steel, on the satirical talk show Hanging with Dr. Z. Currently, Paul is at work again with Jim Carrey on the aptly titled sequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 4. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices