Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac - a daily briefing on comedians, and the comedy industry

Johnny Mac recaps John Mulaney’s Wrigley Field show, hosted by Richard Kind with sets/appearances from Buddy Guy, Fred Armisen, and David Letterman, and quotes reactions praising Mulaney’s two-hour performance. He riffs on a Daily Beast item about Nate Bargatze’s Dan Patrick Show interview, then runs through New York Comedy Festival headliners and notes it will include Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch on Nov. 12. He summarizes Just for Laughs Montreal announcements, including awards for Chris Fleming, Atsuko Okatsuka, Lisa Gilroy, Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, and a legacy tribute for Bruce Hills, plus Gianmarco Soresi and Jay Jurden delivering the State of the Industry address. Other items include Margaret Cho’s TikTok about Lindsey Graham, Jimmy Kimmel spoofing Mitch McConnell, Ali G at Wimbledon, James Corden’s Fox After Hours ratings, Prince Harry on a comedy podcast, and Turkey blocking a comedian’s YouTube special and jailing him pending trial.

00:16 Mulaney Takes Wrigley
01:35 Bargatze MAGA Blowback
02:19 NY Comedy Fest Lineup
03:30 Just for Laughs Awards
04:40 Cicadas and Cho Controversy
05:58 Ali G Wimbledon Bit
06:31 Corden After Hours Ratings
08:32 Prince Harry Podcast Stop
09:05 Turkey Comedy Censorship
 

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Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac is a daily podcast covering comedians, stand-up comedy, late night television, and the comedy industry. New episodes every morning. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

Contact John at John@thesharkdeck dot com 

For Uninterrupted Listening, use the Apple Podcast App and click the banner that says Uninterrupted Listening.  $4.99/month 

John's Substack about media is free.

This is the animal sanctuary mentioned in the February 10 episode.

Johnny Mac records Daily Comedy News from a dark basement during a multi-day power outage as out-of-state crews reconnect lines. He reports a People Magazine item claiming Adam Sandler quickly agreed to officiate Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding and kept it low-key, and notes he couldn’t pull a planned Michael Loftus comment due to no internet. USA Today quotes comedians criticizing Louis CK’s Netflix return, including remarks from Margaret Cho, W. Kamau Bell, and Steve Hofstetter; Mac adds an anecdote about Hofstetter’s past album art targeting Larry the Cable Guy. He discusses a Rob Shuter Substack claiming Stephen Colbert is struggling after his show’s cancellation and is writing, including work on a Lord of the Rings film. In a “Bad Ideas” segment he covers Leslie Jones’ HGTV series Roast My Rental, Chelsea Handler’s Dear Chelsea podcast network launch, and Armisen/Brownstein’s Portlandia rewatch podcast. He also mentions Bobby Flay enjoying golf with Colin Jost and profiles UK satirical candidate Count Binface (formerly Lord Buckethead).

00:48 Sandler Officiates Swift
02:12 Outage Script Chaos
02:41 Comedians on Louis CK
04:44 Colbert Cancellation Gossip
06:11 Bad Ideas Segment
06:14 Leslie Jones Rental Roast
07:54 Chelsea Handler Podcast Network
09:42 Portlandia Rewatch Podcast
11:01 Bobby Flay Golf Talk
11:42 Count Binface Politics
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac-a-daily-briefing-on-comedians-and-the-comedy-industry--4522158/support.

Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac is a daily podcast covering comedians, stand-up comedy, late night television, and the comedy industry. New episodes every morning. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

Contact John at John@thesharkdeck dot com 

For Uninterrupted Listening, use the Apple Podcast App and click the banner that says Uninterrupted Listening.  $4.99/month 

John's Substack about media is free.

This is the animal sanctuary mentioned in the February 10 episode.

Johnny Mac shares daily comedy news, starting with Pete Holmes telling Wired he leaves 55,000 emails unread, uses an iPhone Air from 2025, and keeps screen time low (about 1 hour 15 minutes average), aided by a screen-time widget, no social media, grayscale display, and limiting color/sound. The LA Times profiles comedian Jeff Arcuri, who describes being widely recognized through Instagram Reels while still unknown by name, and says crowd work clips immensely boosted his career; he also discusses writing much of his Netflix special within a year amid his wife’s cancer diagnosis and later improved prognosis, noting their use of dark humor. Seth Meyers mentions an SNL-related group chat with Amy Poehler and Michael Shoemaker called “the tripod” and says Fred Armisen is the funniest texter. Just For Laughs Sydney 2026 (Nov 9–22) announces Gabriel Iglesias, Greg Davies, Bill Bailey, and Dara O’Briain. The Guardian highlights Edinburgh Fringe’s surreal Underground Monk Show and its dates. A Minneapolis Star Tribune review calls Michael Che’s set edgy and notes he avoided SNL talk.
 
00:13 Pete Holmes Email Detox
00:29 iPhone Air Hot Take
01:21 Screen Time Hacks
02:34 Jeff Arcuri Reels Fame
03:11 Crowd Work Career Boost
04:00 Writing Through Hard Times
04:56 Seth Meyers Group Chats
06:04 Just For Laughs Sydney Lineup
06:45 Underground Monk Show Explained
08:18 Michael Che Live Review
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac-a-daily-briefing-on-comedians-and-the-comedy-industry--4522158/support.

Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac is a daily podcast covering comedians, stand-up comedy, late night television, and the comedy industry. New episodes every morning. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

Contact John at John@thesharkdeck dot com 

For Uninterrupted Listening, use the Apple Podcast App and click the banner that says Uninterrupted Listening.  $4.99/month 

John's Substack about media is free.

This is the animal sanctuary mentioned in the February 10 episode.

Johnny Mac marks the 25th anniversary of the original UK The Office, which premiered July 9, 2001 on BBC2, ran 14 episodes across two seasons plus a Christmas special, and initially drew modest ratings before becoming a global phenomenon with 15 adaptations and an ongoing franchise producing new content through 2026. He argues the show’s specific British cringe and tonal blend of comedy and sadness make it hard to translate, and says the successful remakes reinvented rather than copied the format. He highlights Germany’s Stromberg (five seasons, 46 episodes, and a 2014 crowdfunded film) and Israel’s Hamish Rodd (four seasons, 30 episodes), while noting shorter runs in France and other countries and describing India’s version as closest in spirit to the American adaptation. He also covers Gervais’s 2016 film Life on the Road and shares production trivia, including casting, a dropped narrator idea, and a scene requiring 74 takes.
 
01:22 Why It Travels
02:35 UK Original Breakdown
04:11 Germany Reinvents
05:28 Other Global Versions
06:55 What Makes Adaptations Work
07:12 Gervais And Legacy
07:45 Behind The Scenes Facts
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac-a-daily-briefing-on-comedians-and-the-comedy-industry--4522158/support.

Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac is a daily podcast covering comedians, stand-up comedy, late night television, and the comedy industry. New episodes every morning. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

Contact John at John@thesharkdeck dot com 

For Uninterrupted Listening, use the Apple Podcast App and click the banner that says Uninterrupted Listening.  $4.99/month 

John's Substack about media is free.

This is the animal sanctuary mentioned in the February 10 episode.

Johnny Mac previews John Mulaney hosting the first-ever comedy show at Wrigley Field, sharing Mulaney’s comments about the full-circle Chicago moment, a humorous exchange about the Chicago Fire and St. Ignatius, and his picks of comics to watch including Robbie Hoffman, Andrea Jin, Mandal, and Langston Kerman. The 312 Comedy Festival returns Nov. 5–15 with Nikki Glaser, Michelle Wolf, Ali Siddiq, and Bert Kreischer, plus a screening tied to a 2020 John Pinette documentary; Mac reflects on Pinette and other late comedians. Joe Rogan and Tony Hinchcliffe discuss comedians declining the Riyadh Comedy Festival and the value of stand-up for audiences. Other items: Kill Tony dates in Las Vegas, a Cumming, Georgia mayor challenging Kreischer to mini golf, LeBron James trolling Kevin Hart, Fox News highlighting Josh Johnson remarks on Trevor Noah’s podcast, Pete Holmes’ press and film role, Mac’s “comedy stock market,” and British news including BBC’s Ludwig renewal, Rewarding starring Vittorio Angeloni, Diane Morgan’s Anne Droid, and Ed Gamble’s Unacceptable review.

00:13 Mulaney at Wrigley
00:49 Chicago Fire Bit
01:08 St Ignatius Banter
02:09 Comics to Watch
02:26 312 Comedy Festival
02:47 John Pinette Doc
03:46 Pinette Trailer Highlights
06:09 Rogan on Riyadh
07:44 Kill Tony Vegas Dates
08:01 Mayor Challenges Bert
08:59 LeBron Trolls Kevin
09:28 Fox News Trevor Clip
10:26 Pete Holmes Updates
11:12 Comedy Stock Market
12:58 British Comedy Segment
13:09 Ludwig Renewed
14:07 Rewarding Series
14:49 Diane Morgan Anne Droid
16:14 Ed Gamble Unacceptable
17:01 Guardian Review Roast
17:47 Wrap Up and Goodbye

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac-a-daily-briefing-on-comedians-and-the-comedy-industry--4522158/support.

Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac is a daily podcast covering comedians, stand-up comedy, late night television, and the comedy industry. New episodes every morning. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.

Contact John at John@thesharkdeck dot com 

For Uninterrupted Listening, use the Apple Podcast App and click the banner that says Uninterrupted Listening.  $4.99/month 

John's Substack about media is free.

This is the animal sanctuary mentioned in the February 10 episode.