The mundane doesn’t have to be so mundane
If someone told you to write jokes about planting trees, climate change and allergies - how successful do you think you would be at it?
Not very successful I would imagine - not saying I don’t believe in you…well, maybe I don’t. Okay, I do, just a little bit.
It would be a hard task for anyone to pull off. Enter - Hannah Einbinder. Didn’t mean to make that rhyme. I promise!
This 20-something year old entertainer is an actress, writer, stand up comic and it’s not listed, but I’d add model in there. And on Saturday at the Judd Apatow and Friends show, she blew me away (and the crowd) with a bit about how only male trees were planted across America several decades ago and how that bad decision led to toxic (masculinity) chemicals that we now know as causing allergies.
Never would I have thought that would be the funniest bit during a night of high quality comedy, but it was.
The moral of the story: your boring life doesn’t have to be so boring. Find the joy, find the laughter.
1. About this newsletter
In last week’s email I talked about how laughter can stimulate your organ. No, not that organ, get your mind out of the gutter. Okay, that’ll be the last time I use that joke. Seriously.
That’s why I started this newsletter. To bring you some joy and comic relief while also bringing you along my own stand up journey. Please subscribe if not already!
2. Comedy in the news
Ali Siddiq, Andrew Schulz and Bert Kreischer among big names performing at The Nashville Comedy Festival
I know Cowboy Carter is probably all the talk of the town in Nashville, but move over Bey, some comics are heading in to take over. Dubbed “The funniest week in Nashville,” it takes place from April 12-21. We see you with the nine-day “weeklong” flex, Nashville Comedy Festival. More info.
John Mulaney returns to Netflix with new special, 'John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s In LA'
John Mulaney, ironically one of the surprise comics I saw live on Saturday, will return to the platform with 'John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s In LA,’ streaming live on Netflix over six nights during the Netflix is a Joke Fest.
The unconventional show will feature special guests and out in the field pieces shot in Los Angeles. It debuts on May 3 and then the additional episodes will be released nightly from May 6 - 10. Check out all the details.
3. The Weekly Joke
This is my favorite part of the newsletter. I want YOU to help me shape my comedy career. In this section, I will give you the start of two jokes and you vote on which one I should finish AND perform at my next show (or when I’m done writing it). Ready to vote?
Joke A: After age 33, there are no more cool birthday milestones. It goes downhill from there…
Joke B: I’ve never smoked weed before, but somehow became a spokesperson for it on social media…
5. Update from last week’s joke
I will do my best to update you when I perform the joke you voted on for me to finish and perform.
Last week, you chose the joke about being a ‘nice guy except for when I’m on the road.’ It’s not a full formed bit but I made a short reference to it in a show and got a few laughs, which are hard to hear in the video, but I promise they are there. I’ll keep working on it! Here’s a clip of the action.
5. Comic of the Week
I’m going to wrap this newsletter up in a beautiful bow by calling Hannah Einbinder the Comic of the Week. This queen was so iconic, you should definitely check out her work. if you already know about her, then you know how good she is with her craft.
Many know her as an actress with her work on Hacks. The Emmy Award-winning show is a dramedy about a dark mentorship forming “between Deborah Vance, a legendary Las Vegas comic, and an entitled, outcast 25-year-old comedy writer.”
Speaking of Max, it was announced Einbinder will film a comedy special for the streaming platform in Los Angeles on April 20.
“It has always been my dream to monetize my coping mechanism. Thanks, Max!” She said, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Her theatrical-style comedy and wit motivated me to really look into things that I care about and see how I can truly form them into stories worth hearing.
That’s it! Keep smiling, laughing and squeezing joy out of life.