Episode 17 – Zero Mostel – How the Grinch Stole Christmas

…I have no words.  Except Merry Christmas.  This special episode features the one and only Zero Mostel at possibly his most insane, reading Dr. Seuss’s timeless “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”  There are SO many things going on here, I can’t begin to describe it.

Just know that despite the fact that we didn’t talk much about Zero (his comedy was on the stage and screen), he was a great actor, and Mel Brooks’ “The Producers” wouldn’t have been the same without him intimidating the hell out of Gene Wilder.  In many ways, we wouldn’t have the same Gene Wilder.  Take a listen and, as always, have a Merry Thing.

Subscribe on iTunes (And please leave your comments and rate us.)

Host: Jason Klamm

Producer: Mike Worden

This Week’s Guests: Dan Gomiller, Ari JarvisJeremy Guskin  and Jen Smith

Comedy on Vinyl is recorded at Fort Awesome Studios in beautiful downtown Burbank.  The samples played in these non-commercial (see: free) podcasts are used without permission, and are intended to sell more albums, not to endorse Vinyl Piracy.  Follow us on Twitter or at the Facebooks.

Zero Mostel’s IMDB page: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0609216/

Buy “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on vinyl: http://goo.gl/3fChz

Episode 17 Direct Download

Episode 16 – George Carlin – Class Clown

We waited too long to get to this album, since its among the first albums I ever listened to, and it simply blew my mind.  What’s disappointing is its the first one I simply have not been able to find locally on vinyl – despite having it in the secret Comedy on Vinyl Vaults somewhere deep in the woods of Upstate New York at my mom’s house (it also explains why we’re pointing to an image of the album cover on my phone).  THAT said, this is going to be one of those albums I absolutely DEMAND you purchase immediately.  I choose to sample these tracks without killing the value of purchasing the album, but believe me, it was very tempting to give you “Seven Words” in its entirety, as this is the greatest version there is.  That said, I didn’t – so go buy it.

Though people have treated George Carlin as though he was following the work of Lenny Bruce, Carlin was never an activist, and no matter what you thought of his changing onstage persona, he remained a comedian, unlike Lenny Bruce.  “Stand-up philosopher” is a phrase bandied about in this podcast, and I’ve always felt it fit George Carlin to a T.  Comedians are, by trade, thinkers before speakers.  Usually the speaking takes the form of a joke – Carlin weaves the traditional joke in with pure “one-on-one” conversation, letting you discover his thought process as he helps you understand your own.  All this, on top of being a bad-ass who did, indeed, challenge the FCC and, whether he tried to or not, changed the way the US and its government looks at “profanity,” makes George Carlin a legend.  Do yourself a favor and discover this album, if you haven’t already.

Subscribe on iTunes (And please leave your comments and rate us.)

Host: Jason Klamm

Producer: Mike Worden

This Week’s Guests: Dan Gomiller, Ari Jarvis and Jeremy Guskin

Comedy on Vinyl is recorded at Fort Awesome Studios in beautiful downtown Burbank.  The samples played in these non-commercial (see: free) podcasts are used without permission, and are intended to sell more albums, not to endorse Vinyl Piracy.  Follow us on Twitter or at the Facebooks.

George Carlin’s official site: http://georgecarlin.com/

Buy “Class Clown” on vinyl: goo.gl/fs6ny

Episode 16 Direct Download

New Episodes Coming Soon

Our last recording session was canceled, hence the delay. You can thank Chris Hardwick for that. And because of said delay, you might just see me on the January 14 episode of the Nerdist BBC special. Maybe the December 24th one, briefly, along with Jen. I’m sporting a Nerdist-themed shirt of my own design, which is the reason I was asked to stick around.

I promise, we have some really good episodes coming up. Thanks for your patience!

  • Jason

Episode 15 – Eric Idle and Neil Innes – The Rutles

After Monty Python, Eric Idle continued the sketch comedy television with Rutland Weekend Television, which featured “The Seventh Python,” Neil Innes.  Best known beyond The Rutles as an amazing absurd satirist, Innes brought a musical legitimacy that Idle, with impressive musical credentials of his own, likely couldn’t match.  Also, Innes did a dead-on John Lennon.

Hardly the first mock-documentary, this is one of the first – if not THE first musical-themed film in the genre.  A pretty literal parallel of the actual history of The Beatles, The Rutles is impressive, if only for its attention to detail.  The songs are, in many cases, dead-ringers for actual Beatles songs (which apparently caused a legal problem or two), and the story an absurd twist and comment on Beatlemania – an obsession that, no matter how you feel about The Beatles, is easily seen as one of the strangest phenomena to ever ripple through pop culture.

Subscribe on iTunes (And please leave your comments and rate us.)

Host: Jason Klamm

Producer: Mike Worden

This Week’s Guests: Dan Gomiller and Ari Jarvis

Comedy on Vinyl is recorded at Fort Awesome Studios in beautiful downtown Burbank.  The samples played in these non-commercial (see: free) podcasts are used without permission, and are intended to sell more albums, not to endorse Vinyl Piracy.  Follow us on Twitter or at the Facebooks.

Buy “The Rutles” on vinyl: http://goo.gl/iafam

Buy “The Rutles” on DVD: http://goo.gl/l96Yx

Episode 15 Direct Download