Podcast episode 597ish: Eddie Izzard

Eddie Izzard stops by the What's So Funny? virtual studio on her Canadian tour. We talk about the real names of Biblical characters, making humanity great again, gender fluidity, and gaming the system.

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Norm Macdonald repeat from 2012

Norm Macdonald was just the greatest guest... and the greatest guy. In this, our most-listened-to episode, we had a semi-serious (okay, almost completely serious) 1.5 hour conversation ranging from family to science to God to comedy to literature to death to cancer. Some of it is especially hard to listen to now that he's gone. Recorded in 2012.

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Podcast episode 596ish: Darcy Michael

Darcy Michael makes his sixth appearance on the program. The break-out star of the Halifax Comedy Festival explains Tik Tok to us, talks about his High School Sucked podcast, we discuss who'd make the best Jeopardy host, and the host promises to get a new computer.

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Podcast episode 595ish: Jacob Samuel

Jacob Samuel has had a great year, Covid be damned. His album, Horse Power, was nominated for a Juno Award. We talk to him about it, jokes, Zoom, cats and dogs, and Larry Sanders. Plus we play a track from his album – it's legit funny.

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Podcast episode 594ish: Jackie Kashian

Jackie Kashian has us in the palm of her hand in this episode. The former Wisconite comedian and host of two podcasts dorks out on The Dork Forest, extols the benefits of Zoom standup, talks of Kinison, Rickles, Burr and Bamford, and tells us where she got her optimism from.

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Podcast episode 593ish: Michael Teigen

Michael Teigen joins us from his cabin but it was the host's computer in civilization that wonked out for half the show. Still, we get unfiltered Teigen, which is always fun. He's an actor with 94 (count 'em... I did) imdb credits and a couple more coming soon. And he's a mainstay on the Vancouver improv scene. We talk about life without social media, William Shatner, Luke Perry, Bruno Kirby, and donating a kidney.

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Podcast episode 592ish: Jimmy Pardo

Jimmy Pardo lives up to his long-running podcast's name. The guy really is never not funny. In this episode, we relive his glory days doing community theatre, debate the term 'yacht rock', inform him on some great Canadian bands, draw a connection between Woody Allen and Chekov, discuss the proper way to hold a bass, and talk about his smart mouth in high school.

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Podcast episode 591ish: Sean Lecomber

Sean Lecomber has been with us from his hotel room, the host's car, and now from the comfort of his home in Alberta. He doesn't care how you pronounce his name. The stay-at-home dad talks about what he has in common with Ricky Gervais, Derek Edwards, and Amy Schumer, and why he prefers doing a podcast to doing standup. And more, of course.

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Podcast episode 590ish: Peter Kelamis

Peter Kelamis was last with us in 2010. We know him mostly as a standup comic but most of his work these days comes from acting. We talk about how Greek he is, Hallmark movies, voice acting, cosplay, Robin Williams, and Dane Cook.

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Podcast episode 589ish: Jon Dore

Jon Dore becomes the first guest of 2021 (we're a little late getting started). And what a great guest he is. He speaks with us from his home in Juneau, Alaska. He's here to shill his new TV program called Humour Resources with Jon Dore on CBC, but we also talk about his job in a butcher shop, his best memory at the Ottawa Bluesfest, his similarities to Chris Elliott, and we relive an old tweet of his.

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Crunching the numbers: 2020 edition

 Well, here we are. A couple weeks into 2021. So far it hasn't looked much different from most of 2020, unfortunately. We haven't recorded a new show in ages, but we haven't gone away. We'll ease into the new year soon. Meanwhile, as is our tradition, we look back at our guests from the last year. We haven't done this since our first year in 2004, but we have records for the last 12 years. Here's what it boils down to:

• in 2009, we did 42 shows
• in 2010, we slipped to 38 shows
• in 2011, we leapt to 44 shows with 53 guests
• in 2012, we did 41 shows with 47 guests
• in 2013, we did 35 shows with 37 guests
• in 2014, we did 36 shows with 39 guests
• in 2015, we did 36 shows with 40 guests
• in 2016, we did 32 shows with 33 guests
• in 2017, we did 36 shows with 37 guests
• in 2018, we did 37 shows with 39 guests
• in 2019, we clocked in at 35 shows with 37 guests.

 It's perhaps no surprise that 2020 was on the low end in shows and guests, but it wasn't the lowest. So that's good news, considering the challenges. Drum roll, please: 

• in 2020, we did 34 shows with a total of 35 guests. 

As you can see, 2016 was the low.

For you math nerds: Our mean is 37 shows. Our mode is 36. Our median is 36.5.

Thanks to the following guests we welcomed either in person or through the wonders of modern technology:

1. Jimmy Shubert
2. Jon Bryant
3. Lars Callieou
4. Andrea Jin
5. Eddie Ifft
6. Ed Hill
7. Paul Myrehaug
8. Damonde Tschritter
9. Carl Turnbull
10. Eddie Brill
11. Dwight Slade
12. Marcus Ryan
13. Michael Gelbart
14. Colin Mochrie
15. Bonnie McFarlane
16. Lachlan Patterson
17. Darren Frost
18. Ellyn Marie Marsh
19. Ron James
20. Dave Hill
21. Sugar Sammy
22. Derek Edwards
23. bbno$
24. Jeremy Hotz
25. Shirley Gnome
26. Ian Bagg
27. Bob Saget
28. Mike Wilmot
29. Blaine Thurier
30. Stuart Jones
31. Kenny Robinson
32. Dylan Rheimer
33. Brian Aylward
34. Todd Van Allen

Thanks for listening. And thanks to the guests for guesting!