Daily Comedy News with Johnny Mac

On September 17, 2001, David Letterman came back and didn't do a monologue. Jon Stewart came back the same night and cried on camera before becoming recognizably himself again. SNL came back September 29 with Lorne Michaels asking Rudy Giuliani if it was okay to be funny, and Giuliani delivering the best line of the night. Bill Maher said something true at the wrong moment and lost his show. Gilbert Gottfried made a 9/11 joke at the Friar's Club three weeks later, got booed, and pivoted into the Aristocrats and won the room back. Johnny Mac — a New Yorker who was there — traces how comedy came back after the attacks, what it cost the people who pushed too early, and what the whole episode tells you about what comedy is actually for.

What did David Letterman say when he came back after 9/11?"
– "What did Jon Stewart say on The Daily Show after 9/11?"
– "What was the SNL cold open after 9/11?"
– "Why was Bill Maher fired after 9/11?"
– "What did Gilbert Gottfried do at the Friar's Club after 9/11?"
– "When did late night shows come back after 9/11?"
– "What did Rudy Giuliani say on SNL after 9/11?"
– "How did comedy change after 9/11?"
– "What was the first 9/11 joke told by a comedian?"
– "Did the Comedy Cellar stay open after 9/11?"

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Daily Comedy News is hosted by Johnny Mac and releases every weekday. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network. For transcripts and show notes visit www.dailycomedynews.com

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.  

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.

Eighty-five million people watched the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon at its peak in 1976. Almost every significant American comedian performed on it at some point. Don Rickles insulted Lewis to his face at Caesars Palace in 1982 — you can watch it on YouTube. Jerry Seinfeld appeared in 1995 at the height of Seinfeld. Jimmy Fallon did standup on it in 1997, a year before SNL. Ralphie May worked the overnight casino crowd before Last Comic Standing. Johnny Mac looks at what the telethon actually was as a comedy document — what happened in the overnight hours, why the Rickles-Lewis dynamic worked, what the 1976 Dean Martin reunion tells you about what live television could do that nothing else could, and why forty-four years of staying up all night for charity produced one of the longest continuous comedy archives in American television history.

What comedians appeared on the Jerry Lewis MDA telethon?" – "Did Don Rickles appear on the Jerry Lewis telethon?" – "Did Jimmy Fallon perform standup on the MDA telethon?" – "Did Ralphie May appear on the Jerry Lewis telethon?" – "Did Jerry Seinfeld appear on the MDA telethon?" – "What was the 1976 Dean Martin Jerry Lewis reunion?" – "Why was Jerry Lewis fired from the MDA telethon?" – "What did Jim Carrey say about Jerry Lewis?" – "How long was the Jerry Lewis telethon?" – "What happened in the overnight hours of the Jerry Lewis telethon?"

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac--4522158/support.

Today's DCN is brought to you by MyBookie use promo code DCN!

Daily Comedy News is hosted by Johnny Mac and releases every weekday. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network. For transcripts and show notes visit www.dailycomedynews.com

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.  

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.

Johnny Mac closes out the summer with comedy news, led by Ricky Gervais calling a knighthood meaningless, saying he’d do it if his mother were alive, might do it to annoy people, and joking about being offered one. Frank Caliendo recounts on Sage Steele’s podcast that John Madden wanted to sue him over Madden-like impressions in commercials and a video game parody, with Charles Barkley arguing the bits made them money. Clips include Jay Leno telling Adam Carolla he took a 50% Tonight Show pay cut to keep staff, and John Mulaney telling Larry King he knew Ivanka Trump at Georgetown. Leanne Morgan discusses late-career arena success and preferring cleaner portrayals of Southern characters. Emily Catalano describes jokes from her special The Introvert. Bill Burr ribs Kevin Nealon on Hiking with Kevin and reflects on measuring comedic skill. Johnny previews weekend deep dives (Jerry Lewis telethon; 9/11) and offers Comedy Stock Market buys: Stavros Halkias, Jo Koy, Shane Gillis, and Party Down coming to Netflix Sept. 22, plus LA show picks, I Love Lucy’s 2026 Legacy Award, Joan Rivers notes, and Joe Lycett’s new Channel 4 series The Lycett Arms.
 
00:20 Ricky Gervais Knighthood
01:48 Caliendo Madden Lawsuit
03:45 Jay Leno Pay Cut Story
05:18 Mulaney Ivanka Memory
06:23 Leanne Morgan Staying Grounded
07:47 Emily Catalano New Special
09:01 Burr Roasts Nealon
09:54 Weekend Deep Dives Preview
10:40 Comedy Stock Market Picks
13:01 LA Comedy Show Guide
15:38 Lucy Legacy Emmy
16:01 Joan Rivers Remembered
17:43 Joe Lycett Pub Show
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac--4522158/support.

Today's DCN is brought to you by MyBookie use promo code DCN!

Daily Comedy News is hosted by Johnny Mac and releases every weekday. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network. For transcripts and show notes visit www.dailycomedynews.com

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.  

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.

Johnny Mac reports that Pete Davidson and Colin Jost are hosting a free comedy show on their decommissioned Staten Island Ferry (bought for $280,000 in 2022) in NYC on September 17, with Snapple sponsoring it as the “Snapple Island Ferry”; tickets drop daily at 3 p.m. ET through the 8th at register.snappleislandferry.com, one pair per person, and the event is produced by The Stand. Netflix renewed Shane Gillis’ “Tires” for season four, noting 45 million views across three seasons and a recent top-10 peak at #5. The New York Times profiles Hannah Berner after a Dysport injection for TMJ left her unable to smile (“SmileGate”). Jeff Arcuri shares five performance tips. A Lion King lyricist must pay nearly $40,000 in fees after losing a $27 million suit against comedian Jonas Y. Abu Dhabi Comedy Season adds Whitney Cummings, and Stewart Lee criticizes Dave Chappelle. 

00:15 Pete and Jost Ferry Show
02:29 Tires Renewed Season Four
03:19 Hannah Berner SmileGate
04:46 Jeff Arcuri Improv Tips
06:32 W Kamau Bell Tech Picks
07:09 Support the Podcast
08:28 Lion King Lawsuit Update
10:35 Abu Dhabi Comedy Season
10:57 Stewart Lee on Chappelle
11:29 SNL Crossword and LA Comedy
12:29 LA Comedy Nights Rundown
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac--4522158/support.

Today's DCN is brought to you by MyBookie use promo code DCN!

Daily Comedy News is hosted by Johnny Mac and releases every weekday. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network. For transcripts and show notes visit www.dailycomedynews.com

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.  

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.

Johnny Mac covers Jon Stewart’s comments on Michelle Obama’s podcast about not confusing cultural power with real power, the fragility of leaders toward satire, and whether political comedy helps or corrodes discourse. Brian Baumgartner discusses being The Office’s best golfer, joint pain from long tournament weeks, and promotes Voltaren while naming Oscar as his preferred golf partner. The lineup for Last One Laughing UK season three is announced, including Lee Mack, Katherine Ryan, Harry Hill, Katherine Parkinson, Michelle de Swart, Jen Richardson, Morgana Robinson, Josh Jones, Roisin Conaty, and returning Richard Ayoade. Bill Burr talks Massachusetts bar pizza as Anthony Michael Hall praises lobster rolls and Cape fish. Leanne Morgan discusses Season 2 storylines, dating, menopause, elderly parents, and plastic surgery. Trevor Noah adds BaFunny shows in Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban, the LA Times recommends several LA comedy nights, and Veronica Slivka’s indie-pop project “Me As a Girl” is revealed with new music and a NYC debut show.
 
00:12 Jon Stewart on Power
00:47 Office Star Golf Talk
02:13 Voltaren Caddy Pitch
03:15 Last One Laughing Cast
04:17 Bill Burr Pizza Hunt
05:14 Leanne Morgan Season Two
07:14 Trevor Noah Adds Shows
07:51 LA Comedy Night Picks
09:49 SNL Star Secret Music
 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/daily-comedy-news-with-johnny-mac--4522158/support.

Today's DCN is brought to you by MyBookie use promo code DCN!

Daily Comedy News is hosted by Johnny Mac and releases every weekday. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your favorite app. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network. For transcripts and show notes visit www.dailycomedynews.com

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.  

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.