Monday
Jimmy Pardo
Jimmy Pardo is as funny talking to a stranger in an elevator as he is talking to a crowd from the comic stage. That’s because everything he observes or thinks, he immediately scans to find the funny. And he always finds the funny. After Jimmy was told for like the thousandth time that he was even funnier offstage than he was onstage, he dropped most of the jokes from his act. Now he spends nearly his entire set interacting with, and making fun of, his audience. And they love it.
Jimmy stands at the very center of the comedy world. That’s not only because he’s the ultimate “comic’s comic,” (as he’s often called), but also because he represents where comedy is going, and everybody wants to come along.
Jimmy’s raucous-but-smart weekly podcast, “Never Not Funny,” has revolutionized the way comedians use the internet to connect with their audiences. It’s the No. 2 paid podcast hosted by a comedian, after Ricky Gervais’s. His guest list reads like a Who’s Who of comedy: Conan O’Brien, Ricard Lewis, Patton Oswalt, and Sarah Silverman have all been guests. Actors Jon Hamm, Ty Burrell and Craig Bierko have appeared on several of the funniest episodes.
“Never Not Funny” was voted by both iTunes and USA Today as one of the top podcasts of 2006. Visit his website here. Follow him on twitter here.
Kevin Bozeman
It was 1999, six years after finishing his collegiate basketball career at Division III Whitewater College, and bouncing around jobs that Kevin found himself in the real world with no real job skills and a strong desire to work an hour a day. What to do? Inspired by nights on the couch watching Def Comedy Jam and challenged by his roommate, Kevin decided to head over to nearby Madison, WI and try the “Open-Mic Night”. “I always was the guy who could make people laugh, and lets be honest I had nothing better going on”.
Thirteen years later Kevin is still going on-stage, and he has found the job that fit his requirements. “For an hour a night I’m wildly successful”. With a smooth and clever style, a great smile and a contagious laugh Kevin has been entertaining in clubs and colleges across the country. In 2000 he was the winner of the Midwest region of the HBO “Comedy Competition” and flew to Los Angeles to compete as a finalist. He performed on Comedy Central’s “Premium Blend” in 2003, and finished 2nd in the Boston Comedy Competition in 2005. He was a semi-finalist on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” in 2010. This past summer he co-starred in the Indie film “Flat Chested” starring Alicia Witt and Luke Perry.
He currently resides in Chicago. Visit his website here. Follow him on twitter here.
Tuesday
Jeff Oskay
Jeff Oskay has made finding faults in himself and others an art form. Through his tales of ‘Bad Life Choices’, he shows us that we are all human and that we should all laugh at ourselves. Whether you’re eighteen or eighty, you will find his comedy accessible and hilarious. Along with comedy, he’s divorced, has a child, always take the easy way out, and once had a day job where he did nothing but slice fruit for nine hours straight every day, seven days a week. He also appeared on the B&T album “Crushed Nuts” and hosts his own podcast. Follow Jeff on facebook and twitter.
Costaki Economopoulos
Costaki Economopoulos is a comedian, true, but he’s also a football fan. Those two factors alone make him the perfect candidate to give us a comedic look back at the NFL each week with his new feature that’s also been picked up by The Huffington Post and Bleacher Report. With his Greek heritage, it’s not surprising that he’s been described as a “joke philosopher,” and we’re sure he’s not the only one saying that. Costaki is also a talented joke writer who’s punchlines have been heard on “The Tonight Show,” Showtime, BET, and MTV. Follow Costaki on facebook and twitter. Visit his website here.
Pat McAfee
Pat McAfee is Number 1 on the field as the punter for the Colts, and he is number one in the hearts of sports fans in Indianapolis. Well, at least he’s in the top 10. Drafted in 2009 out of West Virginia University, McAfee has not only been an important part of the Colts specials teams (and emergency QB if needed), he’s also become one of the faces of the franchise off the field. Follow Pat on twitter. Check out the Pat McAfee Foundation.
Michael Kosta
Michael Kosta is a stand-up comedian who can currently be seen as the resident clown on Fox Sports 1’s flagship series, Crowd Goes Wild. Kosta and Regis Philbin lead a panel of sports experts in a lighthearted look at the daily happenings in the world of sports. Michael is known for the successful segments “This Week in Punting,” “Questions Out of Left Field,” “Stupid Sports Stuff You Can Actually Buy Online,” as well as a few ridiculous others.
Kosta started out as an athlete; he is quick to point out that he was once-ranked number 864 in the world in professional tennis and earned over $11,000 on tour. Don’t laugh, that’s $11,000 more than you made as a pro athlete.
Kosta gained attention as a comedian when he broke out of the HBO Comedy and Arts Festival in Aspen. He quickly relocated to Los Angeles where he began his television career; he is a regular on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Chelsea Lately, and Conan and also starred in his own comedy special, Comedy Central Presents: Michael Kosta. As a host, Michael can currently be seen as a correspondent for E!’s spinoff of The Soup, entitled The Soup Investigates, and was recently seen guest hosting the hit G4 series, Attack of The Show; that stint ended after Kosta caused the show as well as the network to be cancelled (the media says that the network was being reformatted, but we know better).
His other TV credits include TruTV’s The Smoking Gun Presents, Showtime’s Live Nude Comedy and Michael also hosted the 63rd Annual Emmy Awards’ Backstage Live show.
Kosta has also shot pilots with MTV and NBC, developed a late night talk show with Comedy Central and recently developed his own scripted pilot based on his life, produced by Fox. All of those projects were colossal failures.
In the sports world, Kosta hosted Fox Sports Network’s CCHA All Access, a hockey show in Detroit, for which he won two “Michigan Emmys” as performer/host. Those are like regular Emmys, but smaller and a lot less prestigious. He is also the author of a book titled “101 Tips for Winning More Tennis Matches” which earns him quarterly royalty checks of around $110.
Michael lives in New York City where he hopes to someday become famous and forget the little people. Visit his website here. Follow him on twitter.
Martin Short
In this engagingly witty, wise, and heartfelt memoir, Martin Short tells the tale of how a showbiz-obsessed kid from Canada transformed himself into one of Hollywood’s favorite funnymen, known to his famous peers as the “comedian’s comedian.”
Martin Short takes you on a rich, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking ride through his life and times, from his early years in Toronto as a member of the fabled improvisational troupe Second City to the all-American comic big time of Saturday Night Live and memorable roles in movies such as ¡Three Amigos!and Father of the Bride. He reveals how he created his most indelible comedic characters, among them the manic man-child Ed Grimley, the slimy corporate lawyer Nathan Thurm, and the bizarrely insensitive interviewer Jiminy Glick. Throughout, Short freely shares the spotlight with friends, colleagues, and collaborators, including Steve Martin, Tom Hanks, Gilda Radner, Mel Brooks, Nora Ephron, Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Paul Shaffer, and David Letterman.
But there is another side to Short’s life that he has long kept private. He lost his eldest brother and both of his parents by the time he turned twenty, and, more recently, he lost his wife of thirty years to cancer. In I Must Say, Short talks for the first time about the pain that these losses inflicted and the upbeat life philosophy that has kept him resilient and carried him through. In the grand tradition of comedy legends, Martin Short offers a show business memoir densely populated with boldface names and rife with retellable tales: a hugely entertaining yet surprisingly moving self-portrait that will keep you laughing—and crying—from the first page to the last. Buy his book here.
Wednesday
Ms. Pat
Let’s start with Ms. Pat hasn’t lived the life of your typical comedian. Born to a single mother of 5, living on welfare in a tough West end neighborhood of Atlanta, Ms. Pat learned early on she would have to fend for herself in this world. Her Grandfather ran a “bootleg” house where as a kid Pat learned how to roll the drunks for food money. She had her first child at 14 and her second child at 15, “I knew I wasn’t going to college so I figured why not get an early start on my family”. She became a drug dealer in her teens known by the street name “Rabbit”. “I figured there were two things I could do in my neighborhood to earn money, either sell drugs or sell p*@#$y”. At 16 she purchased her first Cadillac. During her teens she was shot twice and arrested numerous times. At 19 years of age she met a man, and with his help and encouragement decided to get out of the “life”. “I was so tired, I thought for sure I was going to end up dead. He was 21 and a military vet and he showed me a way out”.
At 19 with two toddlers and a new husband she is handed 4 more young children from her sister who was struggling with drug addiction. The next 10 years of her life are spent raising those 6 children. Part of that process included visits to the welfare office for food stamps and Section 8 housing assistance for her sister’s children. It was during these visits that Ms. Pat was first told she had a talent for telling funny stories. In 2003 with her case-worker’s encouragement she decided to go on stage and appeared at the Open-Mic-Night at “The Pub” in Atlanta. From the moment she stepped on stage she knew she had found her place. She began pouring punch lines across stages at the rate other moms pour milk at the counter.
With a comedy career now spilling over 9 years this powerful woman brings an honest, in your face, and hilarious perspective to her shows. She has appeared on TV Guide Network’s “Standup in Stilettos”, and Nickelodeons “Mom’s Night Out”. She has an upcoming appearance on BET’s “Comicview” this fall. She is a regular guest on the syndicated Bob and Tom Radio Show, and appears on Katt Williams DVD “Kattpacalypse”.
Ms. Pat currently resides with her husband and three children in Indianapolis. Follow her on twitter and facebook here. Visit her website here.
Brent Terhune
Characters, voices, one liners, and time-tested monologues-comedian Brent Terhune is the embodiment of all these things and more. Not many comics can pull off Brent’s laid-back style of comedy and still remain just as absurd and funny, but equally relevant and relatable at the same time. Currently, Brent is a writer for the nationally syndicated Bob & Tom Radio Show and he’s the creator, writer, and illustrator of the Uncle Frank comic strip. He’s performed at the Laugh Your Ashville Off Comedy Festiva, The Limestone Comedy Festival, The Cleveland Comedy Festival, and Gilda’s Laugh Fest. Follow him on twitter here. Visit his website here.
Donnie Baker
Due to the fact I’m still on probation much of my background is sealed in Court 7. I swear to god it is. You can look it up but good luck getting access because the new judge is a dick and I’d say it right to his face thru a privacy fence. Again!
A lot of people think my Mom Phyllis is my real mom. Well, she ain’t! She’s the one who basically raised me from a little bad ass in adult diapers because I was born with a condition called “Pork-a-phatitis.” Let’s just say my pork sword needed more leg room and regular pull ups wouldn’t fit me. I wasn’t even able to do regular push ups until my arms grew out when I was 14 years old. I was raised in a strip club named XXXandues when my Mom Phyllis (Sheena/Vegas/Champagne) basically ran the place. And she made more money in one summer with a broke arm than most the other girls put together. And she couldn’t even push her boobs together like they could. So you know she’s fire ass hot!
I got my first boat when I was 17 years old. I’ve had 4 boats since including the one I’m trying to sell. When I do sell it, I’m going to get a bigger boat, so take that Mitchell. The worst place to be in life is between boats. I’ve been there too many times and I swear to god I’m never going back to that dark place. I love my boat and hate to see it go. But I’ll never sell my 7 trophies which are still in the front window at Discount Karate. I probably know more about the marshal arts than anybody I know of!
My best friend for life is Scotty Winkler. Scotty is good people and the only honest, friend I can truly trust. I can’t wait until he gets out. Me and Scotty have been with more hot girls than anybody I know of. He was the one who introduced me to Angel Skinners. And I was the one who told him about Patty Fergusons. Looking back it’s kind of like the circle of life because now I’m with Patty and he’s been with Angel. I know. Twilight zones. Scotty is also the only other friend I have who really understands what its like to live and think like the harvest wolf. Welcome to the pack Scotty!
My job sucks. I work for somebody who ain’t even qualified to be a supervisor. And I’d say it right to your face Randy! Dishman hired me anyways and rumor has it your days or numbered anyways. I’m tired of breaking down cardboard boxes for minimum wage especially the boxes are maximum weight. I could sue your ass. And who gave you the right to take FICA out of my check? So Shut Up Randy!!
My Uncle Sonny has played cards with a lot of famous people including Burt Reynolds. I think David Coverales is why rock n roll is still alive today. And my goal is to push Trojan rubbers to keep working until they find one that fits me! I’ve put stretch marks in a can coozie before so do the math! If you have any other questions about my background you can look it up or call my pager to ask me right to my face. Visit the website. Follow him on twitter.