PODCAST · comedy
Writers' Bloc Podcast
by Writers' Bloc Podcast
J.R. Havlan, 17-year veteran writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, picks the complicated and jittery brains of the writers who help create The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 30 Rock, Letterman, SNL, The Office, and more. Writers’ Bloc Podcast will let you in on how blank pages become your favorite television comedies. You love the sausage, now hear how it gets made.
Episodes
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Episode 51: Hasan Minhaj
Hasan Minhaj is a comedian, actor, correspondent for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, and now the star of "Homecoming King", a one-man show he wrote that's running at The Cherry Lane Theater in New York City thru November 15, 2015, and hopefully even longer than that. Oh! And he was also in a…
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Bonus Episode: "Over The Edge" w/Mike Sacks
"Over The Edge" is a 1979 movie about teenagers who rebel against the monotony of their planned suburban community and the adults who force them to live there. It's not the most famous movie you'll ever see. It's also not the best movie you'll ever see. But it got 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, which is...
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Episode 50: Mike Sacks
Mike Sacks might know as much about comedy writing as almost anybody. Why? Because he's interviewed dozens of the best comedy writers on television for his books, "And Here's the Kicker" and "Poking a Dead Frog". But wait! There's more! Mike also co-wrote the hilarious "Sex: Our Bodies, Our Junk"...
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Episode 49: Sarah Pappalardo
Sarah Pappalardo is the co-founder of Reductress, the first and only satirical women’s magazine. Reductress is a hilarious website conceived, developed, and run by Sarah and her co-everything, Beth Newell. Sarah tells Writers' Bloc all about how she and Beth took an idea and made it into an…
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Episode 48: Matthew Diffee
Matthew Diffee is a very funny man and an excellent artist, which makes him perfectly suited for the world of cartooning. Matt has been contributing cartoons to The New Yorker since 1999 and he now has a fantastically entertaining book out called “Hand Drawn Jokes for Smart Attractive People.” We...
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Episode 47: Arthur Meyer
Arthur Meyer is a writer and performer on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and the proud co-author of the fake menu "FUDS" which he, Dan Klein and Kelly Hudson lovingly crafted into the book, "FUDS: A Complete Encyclofoodia". BUY NOW! Arthur and I somehow manage to shove aside the obvious...
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Episode 46: Ted Alexandro
In an earlier phase of his life, Ted Alexandro was a music teacher, an experience he used to help co-create the web series "Teacher's Lounge" which recently won best Best New Comedy Web Series at the Cynopsis Awards. Ted and I talk almost exclusively about creating the web series and what it…
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Episode 45: Jessi Klein
Jessi Klein is the Executive Producer and Head Writer for "Inside Amy Schumer" which is all an intelligent BlocHead such as yourself should need to know to just go ahead and start listening. She was also a development executive at Comedy Central which means she knows the business as well as the...
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Episode 44: Eric Drysdale
Eric Drysdale is a man of many talents not the least of which is the writing of materials suitable for inclusion in the category of televised comedy/variety. On Thursday, December 18th Eric and his co-scribes ended their long run writing for The Colbert Report on Comedy Central and with any luck...
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Episode 43: Doug Abeles
Doug Abeles is one of the cockiest comedy writers in the business, or more accurately, whatever the opposite of "cockiest" is. Those of you in your late 20's or later might be inspired to hear that Doug is a successful, Emmy Award winning comedy writer who didn't even start trying to get into the...
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Episode 42: Hugh Moore
(undisclosed number of) years, so I was thrilled to find out he was not only working but also willing to talk to me about it. His latest gig was writing for a new sketch show called "Friends of the People" that will air on Tru TV starting in October. Hugh shares that experience with me as well as...
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Episode 41: Jason Ross
Jason Ross is a writer for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, but here's the rub - he lives in L.A. even though the show tapes in New York City. What what?! We discuss how a writer living 3000 miles away from what you would imagine would be his office can, 1 - do his job, and 2 - get his…
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Episode 40: Chris Regan
Chris Regan is a comedy writer who won five Emmys during his seven seasons on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He talks with us about leaving a lucrative (potential) career in advertising to chase a very potentially un-lucrative career in comedy writing. It turned out well. We talk about the…
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Episode 39: Charlie Grandy
Charlie Grandy was a writer on The Daily Show without Jon Stewart. He was also a writer on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and was on staff with me when we won our first Emmy. Good times. We talk about those years, the difference between the “Jon” and “non-Jon” writing processes, and what it’s…
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Episode 38: Lesley Arfin
Lesley Arfin was one of the growing number of fantastic people I'd never met before talking to them on the podcast. Fortunately, we hit it off nicely and had a great conversation about her work as a writer on Girls, Awkward, Portlandia, and Brooklyn 9-9. As you might imagine, these are all very...
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Episode 37: Damien Fahey
Damien Fahey is a writer for Family Guy on FOX. We discuss that. He also voiced two episodes of Family Guy called, “Peter’s Daughter”, & “I Dream of Jesus”. We forgot to discuss that. In addition to writing for the TV box, Damien has also appeared on it, first as the long-running host of MTV’s...
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Episode 36: Rebecca Drysdale
Rebecca Drysdale grew up in Versailles, France and Vancouver and Montreal, Canada, which makes her sound more like a line of designer clothing then a comedy writer, but comedy writer she is! For the fantastically funny Key and Peele show on Comedy Central. Rebecca attended Sarah Lawrence College...
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Episode 35: Mike Royce
In this episode we talk to Mike Royce (executive producer of "Enlisted", Fridays at 9 on Fox) about the intricacies of transitioning from comedian to staff writer to executive producer and showrunner, which is not as easy as it sounds, and it doesn't even sound easy. We also discuss different...
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Episode 34: Lisa Ann Walter
Lisa Ann Walter is, and always has been, a very busy woman. Known for stand-out roles in features such as The Parent Trap, Bruce Almighty, War of the Worlds, Killers and Shall We Dance, Lisa also co-created, produced and starred in several half-hour sitcoms including Life’s Work for ABC, and…
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Episode 33: Chuck Tatham
To say Chuck Tatham's resume speaks for itself... is ridiculous, mainly because resume's don't have the power of speech. They're inanimate objects. The very concept is absurd. As resume's go, however, Chuck's is very impressive to look at: 22 years in the business as a writer and producer at 15...
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Episode 32: Bill Persky
Bill Persky is a veteran Emmy Award winning comedy writer who started, like so many other comedy writers of his era, as a gag writer for established comedians not all of whom, as it turns out, were terribly funny people... until Bill helped them out of course. He soon moved on to writing for...
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Episode 31: Wyatt Cenac - Live at NYC PodFest
Wyatt Cenac joins me for a live taping at NYC PodFest 2014. Wyatt won 3 Emmy Awards during his time as a writer and correspondent for The Daily Show, but did you know that Wyatt was also a writer for the hilarious animated series, King of the Hill? And do you know how he got that job? Did you…
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Episode 30: Opus Moreschi
Opus Moreschi is a classic Hollywood triple threat: a writer, performer and mammal. He also happens to be the head writer of The Colbert Report and a close personal friend of mine... as far as he knows. I've been promising a Colbert writer for a long time now and I'm happy to "report" that it is...
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Episode 29: Travon Free
Travon Free is a comedian, actor and Emmy nominated writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart from Compton California... and that's where our journey begins. After some astonishing twists and turns and shootings and two-on-one street fights and a high school basketball championship and a bunch…
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Episode 28: Mike Drucker
Mike Drucker is a stand-up comedian and staff writer for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, not necessarily in that order. Before landing his "dream job" at Late Night, Mike was a contributing writer for The Onion and Saturday Night Live as well as a localization writer for Nintendo... whatever the…
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Episode 27: David Stassen
Despite his stern and intimidating stare, David Stassen is a very pleasant man. And why not? He has a job writing for The Mindy Project - one of the best sit-coms currently airing on the TV box. Before that he used to bus tables at a sandwich shop in Chicago and would sleep in the booths when his...
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Episode 26: Pilot Season Reviews, Part 2
Hallie Haglund (@HallieHaglund) and Dan McCoy (@dankmccoy, @theflophousepod) are responsible adults with good jobs and healthy eating habits. Also, they have Emmy Awards for writing comedy-based material for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Together we give our unsolicited opinions of sitcom...
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Episode 25: Pilot Season Reviews, Part 1
Zhubin Parang and Daniel Radosh are Emmy Award winning writers for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. In this ground-touching episode we band together to review several of this seasons new sitcoms including Dads (ugh), Brooklyn Nine-Nine (yea!), Mom (meh), The Goldbergs (sure, why not?), and Back…
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Episode 24: Annie Mebane & Steve Basilone
Despite the distinct lack of matching uniforms, Annie Mebane and Steve Basilone are a writing "team". They met in college, kept in touch, wrote a script together, sold it, started looking for work, and found it, ultimately landing at The Michael J. Fox Show. Now they're on Writers' Bloc to share...
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Episode 23: Tom Ruprecht
Tom Ruprecht was a writer for The Late Show with David Letterman for 12 years before he jumped ship to pursue a career in looking for work. Also, he wanted to write some books, which he did! His latest is called This Would Drive Him Crazy: A Phony Oral History of J.D. Salinger, and it's exactly...
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Episode 22: Larry Wilmore
There are a handful of people in this business who can do it all and Larry Wilmore is one of those people. He has not only created successful shows on his own, he has written for every genre known to television comedy, acted on "the TV" and in "the movies", written a book with another one on the...
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Episode 21: Chris Mundy
Chris Mundy is one of my more talented friends. Just ask my other friends. More importantly, Chris is a classic "nice guy" (except for the "finishing last" part.) He started his writing career at Rolling Stone (link to one of his cover stories) before venturing out to TV. His first job was at the...
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Episode 20: Scott Jacobson
Scott Jacobson is not only a friend to man and beast alike, but also the co-producer of Bob's Burgers which happens to be one of my favorite shows. Before that he took the typical route through the slightly lower echelons of the entertainment industry writing for various shows on Adult Swim which...
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Episode 19: David Javerbaum
Don't let the earnest headshot fool you - David Javerbaum (pr. "Javerbaum") is the author of the hilariously funny book, "The Last Testament: A Memoir by God". He also wrote the equally entertaining "What to Expect When You're Expected: A Fetus's Guide to the First Three Trimesters". He also…
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Episode 18: Rob Kutner
Rob Kutner was my fellow writer and officemate at The Daily Show with Jon Stewart for six and a half years. Before that prison sentence he wrote for Dennis Miller Live, and in 2009 he left TDS to board the unsinkable Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien! Unfortunately, that show sunk. Fortunately, Rob...
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Episode 17: Gene Perret
Meet Gene Perret, writer for Love American Style, All in the Family, Three's Company, The Carol Burnett Show, Welcome Back Kotter - do I really need to go on? Okay, I will. Gene was also Bob Hope's head writer for 12 years! And he has graciously brought his vast experience and wealth of knowledge...
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Episode 16: Megan Ganz
Megan Ganz is a 28-year-old comedy writer whose resume reads like someone who's been working her ass off since she was 12... which she has. After writing for the satirical newspaper The Michigan Every Three Weekly at The University of Michigan, Megan was asked to join the staff of The Onion. She...
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Episode 15: Neal Brennan
Neal Brennan is a writer, director and stand-up comedian with some high profile credits well worth mentioning, particularly that he was the co-creator and Executive Producer of Chappelle's Show on Comedy Central and the co-writer - along with Dave Chappelle - of the movie Half Baked. Neal's...
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Episode 14: Rob Corddry
This is the interview fans of Rob Corddry have been waiting for - it's my interview with Rob Corddry! The co-creator and star of the ridiculously hilarious Children's Hospital on Adult Swim is living proof that really-super-crazy talented people can make it in Hollywood. Who knew? Rob is a...
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Episode 13: Lewis Black
Taped in front of a live audience at the University of North Carolina! Lewis Black is a two-time Grammy Award winning stand-up comedian and regular contributor to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart for the past 17 years. (That's not a typo.) He is also an author, a playwright and a mensch in…
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Episode 12: Phil Rosenthal
Whoever came up with the phrase "nice guys finish last" never met Phil Rosenthal. The creator and Executive Producer of the 70-time Emmy Nominated "Everybody Loves Raymond" invites me into his home to discuss sitcoms, books, movies, and insane interviews with huge superstars. Phil has an amazing...
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Episode 11: Sarah Silverman
Sarah Silverman (seen here with monkey) is a popular American actress/comedian perhaps best know for being awesome. She created and starred in "The Sarah Silverman Program," was wildly hilarious in her concert movie "Jesus Is Magic" (Netflix the shit out of that thing!) and most importantly is a...
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Episode 10: Mike Scully
Part 2 of "The Writers' Bloc 'The Simpsons' Mini-Marathon"! Mike Scully is a longtime writer and producer for 'The Simpsons' who also wrote for 'Everybody Loves Raymond', 'Parks and Rec', the list goes on. This is a seasoned professional with willing to share his experience with BlocHeads around...
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Episode 9: Mike Reiss
Mike Reiss has written for "The Simpsons" since DAY 1 -- 22 years ago! -- and Writers' Bloc is thrilled to have him. Mike and J.R. talk about the show's humble beginnings - from an un-air-conditioned trailer parked on the Fox lot to the longest running primetime show in television history. Mike's...
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Episode 8: The Oscars with Rory Albanese
The Oscars are coming up and what better way to pre-celebrate than to listen to two people who've been there tell you what it's like to write for the Academy Awards? Rory Albanese is the Executive Producer of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart having worked his way up from his start as an intern for...
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Episode 7: Reddit AMA
No guest this time around, just little old me talking about my experience doing an AMA (Ask Me Anything) for the website Reddit. I really had an amazing time but believe it or not feedback on the internet was mixed. What!? Seems I didn't adequately "A" some of the "Q's", but all that is about to...
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Episode 6: Ed Helms
Ed Helms is... well, he's Ed Helms. Among other things he's an actor best known for almost everything that he does. Yes, The Hangover was a particularly big hit and yes, The Hangover 3 is coming soon to a theater near you, but Ed's talents go far beyond simply starring in record-breaking...
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Episode 5: Brendan Hay
Brendan Hay is a self-proclaimed geek who's been lucky enough to write for The Simpsons, Robot Chicken (Emmy nominated!), and The Mighty B! Before that, he was a headline producer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and a contributing writer to America: The Book. Currently, he is the head writer…
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Episode 4: Jo Miller
It's episode 4! We made it past the originally planned trilogy! And it's a good one, with Jo Miller, writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Jo and I get into every day operations at TDS as well as what it was like to work on Earth: The Book while we were doing the show at the same time....
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Episode 3: Jon Bines
Jon Bines is a better comedy writer than he is a self-portrait photographer. He's also a brilliant, hilarious guy who writes for Jimmy Kimmel Live, and Writers' Bloc Podcast has him! Jon began his getting-paid-for-writing career at Comedy Central's "Turn Ben Stein On" which he happily left behind...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
J.R. Havlan, 17-year veteran writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, picks the complicated and jittery brains of the writers who help create The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 30 Rock, Letterman, SNL, The Office, and more. Writers’ Bloc Podcast will let you in on how blank pages become your favorite television comedies. You love the sausage, now hear how it gets made.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Writers' Bloc Podcast have?
Writers' Bloc Podcast currently has 53 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Writers' Bloc Podcast about?
J.R. Havlan, 17-year veteran writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, picks the complicated and jittery brains of the writers who help create The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, 30 Rock, Letterman, SNL, The Office, and more. Writers’ Bloc Podcast will let you in on how blank pages become your...
How often does Writers' Bloc Podcast release new episodes?
Writers' Bloc Podcast has 53 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Writers' Bloc Podcast?
You can listen to Writers' Bloc Podcast on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Writers' Bloc Podcast?
Writers' Bloc Podcast is created and hosted by Writers' Bloc Podcast.
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