The Good, the Bad, and the Funny- Melanie Chartoff, P.S. Mueller, and Ron Placone

Welcome to The Funny Times Podcast—America's Funniest Newspaper, now in audio. How often do you see something and think to yourself "that is batshit crazy"? Please forgive my French, but these days it feels like just about everything is batshit crazy. The price of gas? Batshit crazy Self driving cars? Batshit crazy Triple digit heatwaves…in March? Batshit crazy Before you tear all your hair out, have you ever stopped to think about where that phrase comes from? One of our guests on this episode - Mr. Misanthrope himself- Funny Times cartoonist P.S. Mueller - says that he coined the term in 1979. And despite the fact that these days we're thinking it - and saying it - all the time, he's never made a penny off this omnipresent phrase. Mueller spoke with Funny Times founder, Ray Lesser, about the evolving landscape of cartooning and satire. And if you find that you want more Mueller after listening to our chat, you're in luck! This episode is tied to the May 2026 print issue of Funny Times which features a full page spread of Mueller's droll line drawings.  On this episode we also have a chat with actor and writer Melanie Chartoff and comedian Ron Placone. Funny Times readers will know Ron from his cartoon Lucy and Ron about life with his beloved cat, Lucy, who sadly passed away last year. (RIP Lucy) Ron's also an actor and stand-up comedian who hosts a podcast, 1000 w/ Ron Placone, where he sets out to interview 1000 interesting people. Melanie is a longtime Funny Times contributing writer, but you might also know her from her extensive acting career, including roles on Ally McBeal and Seinfeld and the voice of Didi Pickles on the Nickelodeon cartoon Rugrats. She's featured in the Andy Kaufman documentary "Thank You Very Much," and her first book Odd Woman Out is available now.   These two met at a Funny Times live event awhile back, and they have a lot to say about humor, creativity, and politics in turbulent times. They also talk about the power of humor to shape the world for good and for bad.