Comedian and Host of Star Party Comedy Show - Wes Van Horn

Speaker 1 00:00:13 I came this cry. Speaker 2 00:00:27 All right, Wes, thanks for coming on the podcast, my man. Of course. Speaker 3 00:00:30 Thanks for having me. Speaker 2 00:00:31 Yeah. Yeah. We were connected through, uh, my guest last week, Lee Penta. Absolutely. Great, great guy, man. Speaker 3 00:00:36 Absolutely. One of the best. He Speaker 2 00:00:37 Really is. I enjoy getting to talk to him, and I thought, you know, if I could talk to Lee about Hotdog for over an hour, then you and I can surely come up with some good material. Speaker 3 00:00:44 I think so. I think we, you know, we can, we can vamp a little bit about, about whatever, man, I, uh, I'm excited to be here and I mean, I could talk to about hot dogs for an hour. I mean, look at, look at me, but, um, let's it, uh, no, but Lee's the authority. I'll, I'll let that, I'll let him have that conversation. He knows more obviously than I do, but Speaker 2 00:01:01 Definitely. So it's West Van Horn, uh, comedian. Speaker 3 00:01:05 Yeah, comedian. Wow. Oh nine. I started in oh nine, I guess right out of the University of Alabama. Found the open mic at the Barking Cudo in Lakeview, which is now sidebar or something, I think it's called. They have like a volleyball <laugh> out front. That's not what we were doing. Uh, we had other interests in the back of the bar, but yeah. So it's been a, been a journey. But how Speaker 2 00:01:29 Did you first get into it? I, uh, so, okay, let me back up. As comedy A gene is funny. A gene, I Speaker 3 00:01:36 Don't know. I don't, I mean, I think it, I think it helps. I don't know if it's, if it's, you know, nurture nature. Um, my dad is, you know, fun-loving, you know, goofy guy. But I think, you know, my brother was probably the biggest influence on me. And, and then movies, TV, older, he was older and, uh, we, uh, you know, we just always made people laugh and I mean, I remember we taped like Dana Car's, like 1995 HBO special, like when it was on. And we would watch that on repeat and quote it, you know, and I was, what, eight or something like that. And then, uh, you know, like Mitch Hedbergs first Comedy Central special, we like would tape and watch. And then we obviously like loved Eddie Murphy movies and, you know, Mike Meyers movies and, you know, all that stuff. So we were, we were big into comedy and you know, a big laughter was huge in our, in our household and, and growing Speaker 2 00:02:32 Up. So you started out as a fan? Yes. And then you're like, I could do this. Speaker 3 00:02:36 Yeah, it's actually, it's kind of funny, I tell people this, but it was like, I was in college, but I was always like, you know, going to parties, making people laugh and stuff like that. But the thing that really made me think about actually trying, it was a, I didn't know where I was going, what I was gonna do, where I was gonna go. I went to school for like, tv, radio, film, not knowing which avenue, and then kind of settled into this just cuz I was so interested in, in television and film. But I didn't know, like production didn't seem, after I kind of got in the, the meat of it, I was like, I don't know, that seems like a different thing and not exactly what I want. And then like, acting in general, I was like, I don't know, I like performing, I guess, but I don't know. Speaker 3 00:03:21 And then the things that got, I started just watching more comedy and, you know, it's a little taboo to say now, but like Louis C K's first couple specials really like, was like, oh, this is, you know, I started like really deep diving and then the movie Funny people came out mm-hmm. <affirmative> with Adam Sandler. Yeah. Great cast. And it's, uh, and they're like, you know, doing standup in it and like going up and it kind of shows you a little bit, I mean, it's still stylized, but like how, like to start from an open micr and like, go. So that was the kind of when I first like, started to think about it. And then I graduated college and moved back to Birmingham and was like, let's just see how, like what's an open mic? Like what is that? You know? And then I went to the Barking cudo and met a group of guys who I'm still friends with, and we would all go up every Monday and just try to make each other laugh. Speaker 2 00:04:15 So like we mentioned, you started out as a fan. Yeah. And that, and that's kind of how I got into podcasting. Yeah. I'm constantly listening to podcasts. I hardly listen to music anymore. I'm a huge fan of podcasts and a lot of the most popular ones are comedians. I'm absolutely, I'm a huge fan as well. So when you told me you were willing to come on, I was excited. <laugh>. So since you're a fan, who are some of the comedians that you enjoy? Speaker 3 00:04:35 Yeah. Who are my guys? Speaker 2 00:04:36 Yeah, who are your guys? Speaker 3 00:04:37 Uh, norm McDonald huge in, in my house. Rory Scoville, Kyle Kna. Those are kind of newer guys, but you know, everybody. Mitch Hedberg back in the day, like I said, you know, early Louie was huge for me. You know, right now I'd say like probably Rory and Kyle, Speaker 2 00:04:59 Do they have podcasts? Speaker 3 00:05:00 Rory's got a podcast called Pen Pals. Uh, Kyle Cane had a podcast called The Boogie Monster with Dave Stone, who's also great comic. And I think he's got another one with Shane Torres, who's also a great comic now. I'm trying to remember the name. But yeah, they have a couple, a couple different ones, but they're super funny. Kyle usually comes and plays Saturn every other year and lets me open up for him, but he's just in terms of like, every year has a new hour that is better than the last one. It is just so, so good. And it's just like, and the writing is so good and sharp and funny. And Sean Patton another good, great comic, but there's so many, I mean, I could name Speaker 2 00:05:39 Yeah, you go all day. Yeah. Yeah. So as you're moving through life, are you just observing consciously looking for a new material? Or does something, do you just notice something and you're like, click, that's, I Speaker 3 00:05:50 Can work that in. Yeah, I think, and obviously as time has gone on and family has happened, and you know, work goes in and, and all this stuff, it's, it's a little different. But, you know, at my best, in my peak, I feel like you, you just train your brain to look at the world through that lens of what could be a bit, what could, what's a funny take on something or you know, it, it's, it's all, and so it literally just defines how you look at things. So everything you're experiencing is put through a filter of like, could that be a bit, could that, is there something funny there? Is there a twist on that that could be funny or? So I think, I think, you know, you start getting into it and you're doing that and then like, you literally just train your brain to do that. And that's <laugh>, which can be good and, and bad. And, uh, so Speaker 2 00:06:41 That can kind of be taught or trained Speaker 3 00:06:43 In order to look at things that way. I think. So I don't, I mean, I don't, I, that's how I, in my experience, kind of have done it. But I feel like once you start getting into kind, you know, you write your first few jokes or whatever, but once you start really like pursuing that, I feel like you can't help it. I feel like you just kind of fall into that of, if you're really passionate about it and you really love it and that's something that you want to pursue, it's like you just naturally fall into that pattern of like seeing the world that way. Speaker 2 00:07:15 I just wanna let you know something about Discover Birmingham's partner Dr. Chase Horton Real Estate with EXP Realty. That's right. I'm talking about my business. Are you or someone you know, considering buying or selling a home within the next six months? If so, let's chat with their permission. Simply send me their name and number and I'll reach out to talk about the best way to achieve their real estate goal, whether they're a first time home buyer or they're selling a home they've cherished for 30 years. I've got 'em covered. And here's the deal, guys. There's a huge local audience tuning into this very podcast right now. And when you list your home with Dr. Chase real Estate, I'll showcase your listing on this show. That way thousands of local listeners and potential buyers will discover your listing before any anyone else. So once again, if you know of anyone who's thinking of buying or selling within the next six months or so, simply text home to 2 0 5 2 1 3 9 7 2 0. That's home. H o m e 2 2 0 5 2 1 3 9 7 2 0. All right, now let's jump back into today's episode of the Discover Birmingham podcast and highlight the best parts of our awesome city. Speaker 3 00:08:38 Yeah. Which is wild. Speaker 2 00:08:39 And everyone's got a, you know, a different flavor, right? I'm sure. Yeah, Speaker 3 00:08:41 Exactly what's it's, it's put through two filters, right? It's put through your filter, like your personal filter, and then through the filter of how do you make this funny or make it interesting for, for an audience or make it funny. Yeah. Um, Speaker 2 00:08:54 Like one of the guys, uh, I guess one of my guys, yeah. One that I enjoy is Theo Vaughn. Yeah. And I like, he just tells stories. Yeah. You know, he's not so much forming jokes Yeah. But just the way he talks and the way that he explains things. Yeah. It's just like, Speaker 3 00:09:07 Yeah, Theios Theios very fun. It's ridiculous. Yeah. I'd got a chance to meet him back when I lived in la Speaker 2 00:09:12 When did you live out there? Speaker 3 00:09:14 I was there from 13 to 17 Speaker 2 00:09:18 Maybe. I think my wife would've been out there around that time. Oh really? Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Yeah. She lived there for like seven years or so. Speaker 3 00:09:22 Okay. Yeah. I was there for about three and a half, four. I met my wife out there. Really? And then we moved back here. What part? Um, I was in East la you know, basically East LA mainly. And we had a crazy place, uh, like near MacArthur Park. That was a story with it itself. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it was like, we moved in, it was like three, it was like me and this other guy from Alabama, and it was like this triplex and like right off MacArthur Park, and it's just like a neighborhood where we probably shouldn't have been very kind of dangerous kind of. Right. But it was this like house and we were like the first people to move in. And then we had this like, back carport area. So we started running a show there, like an Alabama themed comedy show there, where we would like make barbecue or make biscuits and gravy for the whole crowd, or fried chicken for the whole crowd. Speaker 3 00:10:12 Awesome. And we caught it yellow hammered as you know, we had free boos too. And like my buddy Dave Ross, who's also a fantastic comic, like would put it, he is like, you took the place that most people in Los Angeles are probably most scared of Alabama. Yeah. Seriously. And you brought it to the most frightening part of Los Angeles that most people are most scared of that live here. And I was like, that's that's very fun. And, and astute. But it was wild, you know, we were having to walk Eliza Schlesinger to her car after sh <laugh> after shows and just be like, I know. She's like, why would I ever come do this again? And I was like, you shouldn't never do it again, but we got you the first time <laugh>. Uh, but then, so like, we did that and then a family, like first generation Guatemalan family, like no English speakers in the whole house, but like 12 kids in like a one bedroom downstairs thing. Speaker 3 00:11:05 And they moved in and they had like a giant, like vicious pit bull. They kept on a chain back there. They just let a peacock loose in pea the back a peacock. Okay. Yeah. And it was just lived back there. It actually like took over a, like a jaguar that may have been stolen, but it did, it never moved from its parking spot. It was like a, a Jaguar, not the animal, the, uh, car. And the peacock eventually just made that its home. Like it broke a window and like lived inside of it. And it was just covered in peacock <laugh>. It was like, it was hilarious. And, uh, and that was like part of the show. Like, it was, we, we, I would go down and like tell them like, we're gonna have people in the back. And like, it was insane. And like, they're a family living there and we're like doing show next to their barking pit bull. Oh my God. A peacock in a car next to, and it was just like, it was a scene. It was like a whole scene. And it was, yeah. Very, Speaker 2 00:11:55 Very fun. I'm you mentioning Peacock <laugh> thinking about this story. So we have a neighbor who's, uh, who's friends with Katie, and she was a school teacher in Walker County. Okay. Okay. Speaker 3 00:12:05 I'm already, yeah, Speaker 2 00:12:06 Yeah. You, I'm, I'm in. So it was elementary school, second grade, and she would take kids on field trips. And this particular one was to the zoo. She had this kid and he was a bad kid. I mean, like bad kid, so bad that apparently he, uh, managed to sneak into a peacock exhibit. Oh my God. Yes. And because of that, the entire Walker County School system's now banned from the Birmingham Zoo. That's Speaker 3 00:12:35 A fact. Oh. I mean, that's probably for the best. I mean, that's, let's be honest. Yeah. I, you know, um, I don't think that kid's an anomaly in Walker County. No, I'm just kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kind. Speaker 2 00:12:45 I mean, I've heard that, you know, they do have the most hit men per capita of any county, so it's probably good. Well, that's good to have a friend Speaker 3 00:12:50 Now. Well, maybe actually I love Walker County. Yeah. <laugh>. I think it's really great. I think the people there are great <laugh>. I've never, don't have a bad word to say about it. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I forgot about that tidbit, that fact. Yeah. That's very funny. Um, we, if we knew it was so easy, we would've done that instead of listening to it squaw over. Seriously. Roy Wood Jr. Trying to tell jokes on my carport. Speaker 2 00:13:10 Yeah, a hundred percent. Have you ever had any ghost experiences or paranormal experiences? Speaker 3 00:13:16 Oh no. This morning <laugh>, which was funny. No. My daughter, I have a two year old and just outta nowhere she just started punching the air, saying, no, no. And me and my wife were like, she's 100. This isn't the first time, but it's like she's 100% fighting ghosts. Speaker 2 00:13:31 So Banshee. Speaker 3 00:13:32 Yeah, exactly. Which wouldn't surprise me. We, uh, but not really that I can place for me. I know other people have, but Speaker 2 00:13:43 Yeah. Speaker 3 00:13:43 I don't Speaker 2 00:13:44 Know. So do you believe that it's real? Speaker 3 00:13:46 I don't know. I, I feel, so after my, my brother passed and then after that there's this photo of us, it's like the weekend after, or maybe the, it's maybe his, the, a couple weeks after we'd like got, we all got together, his friends, my friends, and we all went down to the lake where we used to hang out and we all took a picture. And then in like the top corner, if you look at the picture, it just like, in the trees, it looks like to be an, like an out, I swear to God, like an outline of like his face. And then if you look to the right, this is insane. It's gonna make me sound crazy. And, uh, but it looks also like Jerry Garcia's and we were a big Grateful Dead fans. Okay. So it made sense. And maybe it was us just looking into it, but like we showed it to people. It was like, don't, don't you see that? And we were all like, it's pretty crazy. Speaker 2 00:14:35 You still have the picture? Yeah. You should post it on your, uh, Instagram. Yeah. We to go look at it. Speaker 3 00:14:40 Yeah. It's, um, maybe that's a good idea. It's wild. Speaker 2 00:14:43 What's, what's your account? Post it. And people will go look, Speaker 3 00:14:45 Yeah, west Vanhorn comedy, I gotta find the right crop. Cuz there's one where it's cropped out a little bit and then I gotta find the, the original one. But that's like the only time where I'm like, oh. And then like, you know, spiritual things kind of happen around that. Especially when you lose somebody so close that you, that you love so much and that you have that relationship with, you start looking or noticing things in a different way, but nothing like truly paranormal. My, it's funny, the podcast I mentioned that was Kyle and Dave's, my Kyle Cana and Dave Stone was called The Boogie Monster because they would like, they were obsessed with all that kind of ghost stuff. They, yeah. I mean, not real, they weren't ghost hunters, but they were obsessed with like, you know, all the, the paranormal stuff that goes on in this country. But Speaker 2 00:15:28 Did you ever read those, uh, 13 Alabama ghost books? Speaker 3 00:15:31 Yeah. Speaker 2 00:15:32 Yeah. Catherine Tucker Windham. Oh yeah. Her daughter is, uh, an upcoming guest on this podcast. Okay. So I'm gonna really pick her brain hard about Oh, that's, yeah, for sure. I'll have to show her the picture that you're talking about and see if she's Yeah. Validated. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:15:43 Just be like, just to, and if, if you don't see my brother, that's one thing. But you gotta see Jerry. Yeah. I mean Jerry's right there. That's so funny. Speaker 2 00:15:50 What about Goosebumps books? Speaker 3 00:15:51 Oh yeah, I read the, I read those, I read those. Speaker 2 00:15:54 So there were Goosebumps books. And then the same author had another series called Fear Street, which was a, for geared towards like a little bit older. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I was always a little bit too chicken for those. I was, Speaker 3 00:16:05 I didn't do Fear Free. Speaker 2 00:16:05 Those were too Speaker 3 00:16:06 Intense for me. I was never a like a horror guy. Speaker 2 00:16:09 Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Even now, Speaker 3 00:16:10 Um, I get into it a little bit, like if, but it like the elevated horror, whatever the, I like if the movie's good, it's Speaker 2 00:16:17 Good. Like a, like a thriller. Speaker 3 00:16:18 Yeah. Yeah. And like all that I was into, but like terms of like, but Goosebumps, I, I messed with. They even had, do you remember like, they did like the Choose your own adventure? Goosebumps after a while Yeah. Where you could like write your own ending or pick out of like three and go a different way. But yeah, I remember, I remember reading those on many a family trip or a, uh, trip to, you know, see my brother play soccer outta state or something like that. Speaker 2 00:16:44 He was a big soccer player. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:16:45 Gatorade Player of the Year. No Way in Alabama. And then went and played at Rhodes for a couple years, but I didn't, our previous guest, Lee was played soccer at Indian Springs as well, where we went to high school. And my, uh, senior year, junior year, Lee was younger than me. So he was on like, he was like the JV keeper. And then I decided I wanted to play that year cuz all I had friends on the team and, uh, I became, I became his number two and we were the keepers. We were, we were both keepers on the JV team together. Nice. He was, he was, you know, better. And also in eighth or ninth grade and I was a junior senior or whatever, but, uh, Speaker 2 00:17:23 There's so much running in soccer though. Speaker 3 00:17:25 I, it was funny. That's why I was a keeper Speaker 2 00:17:26 <laugh>. That's why I chose to stand still. Yeah. Yeah. All my buddies in college were on the soccer team and man, they, even to this day, most of them despise running because for one thing it was use as a punishment. Yeah. So, you know, that's a negative association, but they just did it so much. Yeah. That they just can't even fathom still running Speaker 3 00:17:45 And also running for like no reason. Yeah. Like that, that I've never understood. Like obviously I'm not a big runner in any capacity, but like the idea of just like running to run has never, like, I gotta be playing basketball. I gotta be, there's gotta be a in end goal or like a reason to Speaker 2 00:18:00 Move Yeah. Running from something or Right. Maybe if Speaker 3 00:18:03 I'm being cha I still don't like to, I'll take a charge if someone's coming at me with a knife. Okay. Speaker 2 00:18:07 I'll, uh, you never see anyone running with a smile on their face. No. Speaker 3 00:18:10 <laugh> very, very rarely. Yeah. Yeah. That is true. Speaker 2 00:18:14 I dunno, maybe a mountain broke. Speaker 3 00:18:15 Yeah, maybe. But it's a fake smile. Yeah, totally. There's something on the inside that's eating them up. Speaker 2 00:18:21 Yesterday being Father's Day, was it your, oh yeah. Happy Speaker 3 00:18:23 Father's Day to you. Speaker 2 00:18:24 Belated Father's Day. Was this your first, second, Speaker 3 00:18:26 Third? No, this is sixth. No. Speaker 2 00:18:29 Oh, that's right. Fifth, sixth. Speaker 3 00:18:30 Yeah. Speaker 2 00:18:30 So you have an older, you have six year and Speaker 3 00:18:32 You have a younger one. So my son will be sixth in July, so this was I guess my fifth. Speaker 2 00:18:37 Um, so you're a veteran by now. Speaker 3 00:18:38 I know. I mean Yeah, it's old, old man. Speaker 2 00:18:40 Well, look, this is my first Father's Day. Yeah, man. And my wife is like, what do you wanna do? So I thought about it for a minute and I decided that I wanted to have my own personal yogurt mountain. Like Okay. Ice cream bar. Yeah. Yeah. On the island upstairs. And it was amazing. That's great. And I mean, like, my mom made some cake. I had a few selections of Ben and Jerry's. Oh man. And Speaker 3 00:18:57 You did Speaker 2 00:18:58 It right? All the toppings. Oh my God, you Speaker 3 00:18:59 Did it. Yeah, at this point I'm just like, you know, it's just another Sunday and I gotta, you know, parent, my kids Speaker 2 00:19:06 Just want peace. Speaker 3 00:19:07 Yeah. Yeah. I, no, my wife did it. We did a, she made like a, I don't know if you've ever been to Hero Donuts, which is amazing. Oh, yeah. But they also do, uh, they do like a hash brown, like a loaded hash brown, so it's like hash browns with like up sausage, like fried egg on top, some jalapenos. So she made me like one of the, like a homemade version of that for breakfast. Let me sleep in a little bit, which was That's nice. And then we went over to my, my folks house. But yeah, it's, it's, you know, if I had my druthers, I would, you know, go to like a movie by myself, <laugh>, which I almost did on Saturday. Yeah. They had Kill Bill showing at Sidewalk at, but it was a midnight showing and I was like, it was almost enough to make me stay up past 9:30 PM But <laugh> same. Speaker 2 00:19:53 Yeah. Nine o'clock. Not quite. Speaker 3 00:19:55 Yeah. Not quite. But Speaker 2 00:19:57 Because when, you know, you have to get up at five, six the next morning Yeah. To, to Speaker 3 00:20:00 Parent. Parent. Yeah. Well, and that's like the whole thing about, like, I don't drink anymore, but I, for a while I was, I went pretty hard. Yeah. And, uh, which I don't do it anymore, but also just the idea of like, having to get up that early and parent with a hangover just sounds Oh, no way. Miserable. And it sounds like that sounds, it's hard enough going to bed at nine sober <laugh> and then waking up to that. I can't, you know, that's, that sounds very, very tough. Speaker 2 00:20:26 Yeah. Do you feel any different now that you don't drink anymore? Do you think differently or, Speaker 3 00:20:30 Yeah, I don't know. Maybe clear. Yeah. I mean, I feel better generally, you know, just like, once again, you don't have to deal with with that. But then also, like, I can, I don't have to stay up till 3:00 AM at the bar, shutting it down. I'm also just older and, and those Speaker 2 00:20:44 Were great times. Know Speaker 3 00:20:45 That was great times. It really was. It was some of the best. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:20:48 I can't, I just can't drink like I used to at all, you know? And I, and that's why I don't, you know, like it hurt too bad the next day or the next two days. So like you, I kind of like backed off for the most part, but now and then one or two. Yeah. But for me it's like, what's the point? You know? I don't like love the way it tastes, so why would I just have one beer? Speaker 3 00:21:04 Right, right, right. Yeah. The one, the beer thing never, you know, if I was drinking, I was drinking and that was Yeah, exactly. That was the handle of Jack Daniels and on, on a Mission. Yeah, exactly. But which is also why I had to stop. There's a lot of that. I'm trying to kill this brain. Yeah, exactly. And so, but you know, they say nothing good happens after midnight, but it's like, you start to look around with sober eyes and you're like, there's no reason I need to be out here in these streets away from my family. And then like, I don't know, I get when the, if I'm out, when the sun is down, I start to get nervous now. <laugh>. Yeah. And like, I don't have any illicit materials in my car anymore. I'm not driving under the influence, but I'm still just like, I gotta get home. What the fuck am I doing? <laugh>, Speaker 2 00:21:45 Nothing good's gonna happen Speaker 3 00:21:46 Here. Nothing good's gonna happen out here. I gotta get home. And so it's that, that has changed. But that's also parenthood and getting older. And then, and then I go do comedy at night and that's, but then when the shows are over and I have to drive home at 10 30 or 11, I'm like, this is weird. I gotta get outta here. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:22:11 More cash, more capital and new customers for your business. That's where Moxie comes in. Moxie Birmingham is a growing community of small businesses helping one another Thrive as a Moxie member, you earn more revenue from brand new customers, not spend your hard earned revenue on various expenses and even get a no interest, no payment line of credit all within the Moxie Network. As a Moxie member myself, I can tell you that I choose to support other businesses that also accept Moxie. In fact, I've discovered some of my very favorite restaurants, healthcare practitioners and home and auto service businesses through Moxie. I'm talking soho, social Heavenly Donuts, nothing but cakes, just to name a few. Go to moxie birmingham.com. That's m o x e y b h A m.com to learn more. Moxie. It's the smarter way to barter. Speaking of, tell me about the Saturn shows. Speaker 3 00:23:22 Yeah, so me and, uh, local comic, great comic named Chris Ivy, who's been running shows around Birmingham for a really long time, had been looking for an opportunity to run something together. Like he's, he's had his shows, I've had mine and he had a, you know, an end with the folks at Saturn and they finally, you know, they were looking for kind of a monthly comedy thing. And so me and him wanted to put together the show that Birmingham as a city kind of deserves, which is like, you know, great touring comics coming into the city downtown for that crowd and, and, and, and introducing them some really great comics. So, you know, our, our thought process behind it was we're gonna film it, we're gonna put, we're gonna put clips up, we're gonna like, build it into a thing. But like at the end of the day, we're inviting two three of, you know, great touring professional comedians to come split some time and just like, get in front of a new audience and really just put on a fantastic show just top to bottom. Speaker 3 00:24:20 You know, my, my goal if I do my job correctly, is like, I wanna be the worst comic on the show. Right? Yeah. Yeah. And I'm pretty good. I've been doing it a long time. I like be the smartest guy in the room. You're the wrong room. That's exactly, that's exactly right. And so, so that's kind of our thing is like we are hand selecting, you know, some of our favorite comics in the nation to come to Birmingham, to, to put on a show at the, you know, in our opinion, the best venue. And it's great. They do such an amazing job of, it's as good for the performers as it is for the audience. You know, like the whole experience. The, the sound is top notch. The venues top notch, but they treat the performers the exact same way as the, the show that you're, you know, the audience is getting as just as good a show as like the performers are. Speaker 3 00:25:02 So, um, we love it there. And, and so we've done five, or this might be the fifth, and so we're, we're growing it and, and trying to, trying to build it into something and trying to get the word out because the lineups we've had have been absurd. Like the first one we did was with Sam Talent was recently on Joe Rogan's podcast. Yeah. Don't hold that against him, uh, <laugh>. But, you know, he's one of the best touring comics in the nation. He wrote like, basically the definitive novel on standup comedy that came out a couple years ago called Running the Light. That's amazing. If you're into standup, you should definitely read it. And he's just been plugging away kind of a road dog for years, and he's finally getting his, his just desserts. Um, and then we had Rob Hayes and Kenny de Flores who were both incredible comics. Speaker 3 00:25:47 Rob Hayes is one of the funniest, you know, people on the planet and, you know, writes for all the award shows and has been on Jimmy Fallon, tonight's show and stuff like that. And Kenny Forrest has been on Seth Myers and James Cordon. And so it's like, it's all these people that have done standup on television, been on Netflix, comedy Central. Yeah. He is a big man. Um, yeah. And so we're trying to, uh, Baron Vaughn, we had from, he's on, he's in Grayson Frankie on Netflix and Mystery Science Theater 3000 and has his own Comedy Central special and was on the new Negroes on Comedy Central and just hilarious. So it's like we hilarious. We're trying to hilarious. Yes. Like trying to bring in like really special, funny comedians. And the shows so far have been, you know, amazing comedically, just the performers we've been able to book has have been, we're like outdoing what we thought, you know, we set out to do this knowing it might be tough and we've like outdone ourselves in terms of who we've been able to, to get to come out. And, uh, I'm Speaker 2 00:26:42 Definitely coming to the one on the 2020 second. That's Yeah, that's what, Thursday? Speaker 3 00:26:45 Thursday, yeah. Speaker 2 00:26:45 Thursday. Yeah. I'm excited about that. Yeah, man, I only found out about this, uh, a couple of weeks ago, so I'm, I'm pumped to get up there. Speaker 3 00:26:51 It's great. Yeah, we have Caleb Simon, who's been on Conan twice. He, his Comedy Central Half Hour premiered last year. Super funny. Atlanta guy, I mean, he lives in LA now, but started in Atlanta, some, you know, good southern, southern humor and just really great stuff. And then Ben Roy, who's outta Denver, who co-created those Who Can't, which was a very funny show on, uh, true TV for a few seasons has been on. This is not happening. Like Ari Shafer's storytelling show on Comedy Central and Adam Devine's House Party, couple of different shows on Comedy Central, but just like super, super funny dude who's been doing it, you know, probably twice as long as I have and just, just a pro and amazing. So, and then a couple special guests and yeah, it's gonna be a blast. We're super, Speaker 2 00:27:34 Super excited. Excited. Sounds good. And look, y'all have the perfect venue, like you said, Saturn so fun. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:27:37 And we're making it affordable, like we're making it. Yeah. We want, especially Saturn, it's a big place, but like, we also just want everyone to be able to come to these shows. So like this, we're doing this 10 bucks, you pay 35 bucks plus a two drink minimum to see either one of these comics at a club. And we're doing it for 10 bucks. You can come see both of 'em and me. <laugh> Speaker 2 00:27:57 Very solid. But yeah, Saturn has a special place in my heart because that's where I watched the final episode of Game of Thrones. Speaker 3 00:28:05 Okay. Yeah, yeah, Speaker 2 00:28:06 Yeah, man, what an episode it was. Were you a fan? Yeah, Speaker 3 00:28:09 I was. I was, I I, you know, I think I'm in the camp that was a little let down. A hundred percent. I mean obviously everyone was, which is wild cuz it's like, it's also the footprint and choke hold that that show had on our culture and how it kind of took that all away. Like one, like a bad landing and nobody really talks about it as much. Like, you know, like it was the cultural thing for seven years, eight years, whatever. Like, they didn't land it correctly and so like, it doesn't get brought up as much, you know, it's like, it's like one of the people still talk about the Sopranos and people still talk Speaker 2 00:28:45 About oh yeah. Speaker 3 00:28:46 Breaking Bad and all these shows and stuff, but it's like it fell flat. That one kind of just, it you forgot, you forget about just like how one bad season or couple, a couple maybe at the end, but like not landing it, it took away how great those first or just seems to have, it didn't, but like those first few really were. Speaker 2 00:29:03 Yeah, my wife is, uh, is a big fan of it. But she started watching the whole series Yeah. Halfway through. Yeah. How you gonna do that? You don't even know like how it, so I rip on her all the time, like, babe, we gotta go back and rewatch. Oh, you know, oh, you got to, you will be disappointed this time because she, you know, she wasn't disappointed because she wasn't set up for it. Right. You know, she didn't know that it was a bad ending. Right. She's like living in blissful ignorance. Right. So maybe I shouldn't ruin it for her. Right. Yeah, Speaker 3 00:29:28 Yeah, exactly. If hey, but no. Yeah, I watched from, from episode one, so it was like, and then just like that, those years of like waiting for it to come back around too. It was like, you remember how that felt and then to get kind of dealt the blow at the end. I know. Be like, it was brutal. I've been waiting so long for Speaker 2 00:29:45 This. Yeah, exactly. Speaker 3 00:29:47 Yeah. My, me and my wife kind of, you know, we were in the middle of that as we were falling in love, so it meant a lot. You know, every Sunday we were, we were watching it together. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:29:55 Do y'all have any other shows right now that you're watching? Speaker 3 00:29:58 I mean, we finished Succession, which we love, loved Succession. You like Speaker 2 00:30:02 How it ended? Speaker 3 00:30:03 Yeah, I did. I thought it was, I thought it was pretty spot on. Um, and Speaker 2 00:30:07 I thought that, you know, that was totally in character for Shift to do what she did. Speaker 3 00:30:10 For sure. Yeah. For all of them. I think, I think it made sense. I think they, I think they landed it as best as they could have. Like, could they have squeezed the juice for another season and made it? Yeah, of course. Of course. But um, I would rather show end the way it wants to than to go on and fumble what, you know, Speaker 2 00:30:28 Um, yeah. Quitting while your head is not the same thing as Speaker 3 00:30:31 Quitting. Exactly. Exactly. Exactly, exactly. So love that one. I love Berry. I thought Berry was great too. And what else? I don't know about anything else right now that's on, Speaker 2 00:30:41 Have you seen Dave Little Speaker 3 00:30:43 Dickey show? Yeah, Dave's great. Oh, we have to catch up on that. God's so funny. I haven't watched, we, I think we watched the first episode of this new season and we haven't gone back and revisited it. Um, Speaker 2 00:30:51 Yeah, I've had tears in my eyes on that one. Speaker 3 00:30:53 It's hard to keep up, man. And it's hard to, there's so much stuff and so many apps and it's like my, you know, I go to like HBO first Yeah. And then I'm, and then I'll find something or I don't know. And then it's like when, when I get to Hulu, then I'm like, oh, Dave. Like we haven't, we've got like nine episodes to catch up on. Yeah. So, so it's great though. He's great. And he like, uh, that was one of those unexpected ones too, that we just started in that first season and we're like, oh, this is actually really good and funny. Yeah. And Andrew Santino is great in that. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:31:25 He's, he's another favorite of mine. Listen to Bad Friends. Yeah. That podcast. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> Amazing Impersonations. Yeah. I mean that guy. It's like, yeah. Yeah. He's very Speaker 3 00:31:34 Funny. Um, he's a funny dude and I know I met him a couple times and was always nice to me. What other podcasts do you listen to? Speaker 2 00:31:42 Uh, let's see. So I love a good conspiracy theory. Okay. And partly just because it's like, you know, like almost like a thought jog, you know, whether I totally buy into 'em all or not is a totally different story, but I enjoy hearing some of the theories and thinking like, you know what if that's true. Yeah. Or like, what if it was that way? So there are a couple of good ones there. Uh, one's called the Higher Side Chats. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, uh, the initials there are thc, the higher Side Chats. Yeah. So if you can kind of get an idea what that might be like <laugh>. Right. Uh, another one is called Theories of the Third Con. Speaker 3 00:32:12 Well, that explains the GR house out there. I saw on my way. Oh, oh, sorry, sorry. Speaker 2 00:32:16 Yeah. Behind the curtains. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:32:17 Yeah. Um, that's funny. Speaker 2 00:32:19 So yeah, mainly comedy conspiracies. I do like some of the Joe Rogan podcast. Yeah. My wife's been listening to the most recent one right now, which they had, uh, RFK Jr. Yeah, I saw that was very controversial. Right. I I enjoyed it. Good one. Yeah. Heard Roseanne Barr on Theo VN recently. Speaker 3 00:32:34 Oh yeah. Speaker 2 00:32:35 Yeah. She is not like what I expected her to be like in older age. Yeah. Really interesting lady. Speaker 3 00:32:39 She is. I mean, she was, she's, you know, despite any recency bias, a a legend and like, was so good and like groundbreaking at the time. And that writer's room is ridiculous. That was like Norm was in that writer's room. Yeah. She hired Norm to write. But that show, like, I, I watched, you know, we loved that show in our family. I watched that growing up. Um, every episode. Speaker 2 00:33:00 Yeah. I think they had the first lesbian relationship on that. Yeah. So yeah, it was, uh, paving the Way Speaker 3 00:33:05 And also just like the female driven like sitcom of, and it was like, she was great and, and super funny. And then I think you knows funny, like, I loved her on nor McDonald's podcast too. You got to see like kind of a different side and, you know, everyone has their opinions or whatever, but it's also like once the media or whoever labels you crazy, you know, you're <laugh> you're, you're crazy. Right. Yeah. And people, but they don't ever say what that is and people don't necessarily remember like, why, why was that person crazy? Speaker 2 00:33:36 Um, what's your favorite Disney movie? Speaker 3 00:33:38 Disney Speaker 2 00:33:38 Movie or Pixar Speaker 3 00:33:40 <laugh>? Um, let's see. Like animated. Yeah. I like Aladdin watched that recently. Speaker 2 00:33:49 Did you see the live action one? Speaker 3 00:33:50 No. Speaker 2 00:33:51 It's actually really good. Speaker 3 00:33:52 I heard it was okay. Speaker 2 00:33:53 Yeah. It's lowkey good. Speaker 3 00:33:55 Um, I'm just Robin Williams in any, uh, you know, Speaker 2 00:33:59 You're Robin Williams loyal. Speaker 3 00:34:00 I am, yeah. I am. That was another guy I probably should have mentioned, but I tried to mention some new guys that maybe, that maybe, uh, folks didn't know as well. But Speaker 2 00:34:07 You seen Rati Speaker 3 00:34:09 Rati I've seen, yeah. Not in a while. I think my son was talking about how they watched it at school on like a movie Friday. Yeah. And he got very frightened by one part in particular. Really? I'm guessing it's the critic or some, I don't know. I don't remember what a scary part of Rat two he looks like, but apparently it he Speaker 2 00:34:27 Gets flushed down at Rain or something. Speaker 3 00:34:28 Maybe he didn't sit well with him. Yeah, he's six, Speaker 2 00:34:29 Right? Speaker 3 00:34:30 Yeah. Five, almost six. So Speaker 2 00:34:32 I can't wait for Charlotte to start saying hilarious things. Yes. Oh my God. Speaker 3 00:34:38 I mean, and my, my son, they, they're both very verbal, very early on which they, you know, my wife was also standup comedian and very full presence and a, you know, and so, um, I think they got it on us, but they were both, they were both very verbal, very early. And my son was like insane. Um, like talking in full sentences and saying funny stuff. But then my daughter is like, on another level, like she's like, she's, she thinks she's a star at two and like pose it and like says some of the funniest that you'll ever hear. And it's like, it's so funny. It's like, where do you even pick up on half of this stuff? Like, I don't know. It's, she's our own special. Like, she walks into the room and I was, we were, we were at the beach recently and I had some friends that were staying at a house down the road. And so we went and had dinner with them and I like, was helped cooking and I looked up and it was just 10 adults in a semicircle just watching my daughter like dance and talk and just perform. And I was like, this is not good. This is not good though. This is, this is giving her exactly what she wants, which is not good as a parent. We're gonna have our, our hands full, but those are, that's special when those, when that stuff happens, Speaker 2 00:35:58 I can't wait. Yeah. We have a family friend who has, uh, probably a five year old boy Yeah. And maybe a 10 year old girl and they came over to meet Charlotte soon after she was born. And Chip the boy who's five is so funny. Yeah. He's known for being hilarious. Right. And he had never really been around babies before. So he's very fascinated with Charlotte. Kind of just like looking at her and like, like petting her head and stuff. And when they leave, his mom texts Katie and was like, chip said that he thinks Charlotte's great, but her, but privates are so small. Speaker 3 00:36:35 <laugh>. I mean, astute. Okay. Astute. He's just telling, he's just calling it how he sees it. Speaker 2 00:36:40 Yeah. And he and I were in a room, uh, so the whole family was in a room and he's at the phase where he thinks that, you know, potty humor is just Absolutely. Speaker 3 00:36:50 And and it is and it never gets, it never gets not funny. Yeah. It turns out. Speaker 2 00:36:53 Exactly. So his parents left and it was just, he and I left in the room and he kinda like lowers his voice and leans in. He goes, you ever just take your balls and just stretch it out? Oh Speaker 3 00:37:03 God, yeah. Speaker 2 00:37:05 All the time. Yeah. Actually, how'd you know? Yeah, Speaker 3 00:37:07 I do. It's, but it's a problem in our house. My wife asked me to stop regularly. <laugh>. Um, Speaker 2 00:37:12 You do say the darnest things, man, I can't, I'm, I'm very ready for that. Speaker 3 00:37:16 What was my, my son was bringing up some, I can't even remember. It was probably not a good story, but it was something about like a butt eating farts. Speaker 2 00:37:24 <laugh>. Speaker 3 00:37:25 Like, he reversed it and was like, how could a butt eat farts? And I was just like, I don't, I like it. I like whatever trajectory you're on right now. Yeah. I think we should go with it. I think we should get to the bottom of it because I do, I I have this thought, you know, regularly about butts eating farts and we definitely something we should explore. And I'm not gonna stifle your, your creativity or just your thirst for knowledge. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:37:46 Let's hash this out. We Speaker 3 00:37:47 Should, we should figure this out. And so, um, we're, that's our, we're doing our own research in that real, in that realm. Speaker 2 00:37:53 Um, Hey, hey Siri, how can I butt you to fart? Speaker 3 00:37:55 Yeah, exactly. We did our own research, uh, during Covid and now <laugh>. No, not really. <laugh>. Speaker 2 00:38:01 She actually popped up with answers there. Oh, that's good. Speaker 3 00:38:04 Um, we fart into someone's butt. <laugh> Speaker 2 00:38:07 And Speaker 3 00:38:07 They're, they eat your fart Speaker 2 00:38:09 Like reverse human ed. Speaker 3 00:38:10 Yeah. It's very, this is more, this is now I feel like we're on one of your conspiracy podcasts. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:38:14 Yeah. <laugh>. Oh man. What about, um, okay, so I'm a big food guy. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> huge food guy. Same. Yeah. If you can Speaker 3 00:38:22 Believe it. Speaker 2 00:38:24 If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it Speaker 3 00:38:27 Be? Oh man. Like one kind of food or like one dish. Speaker 2 00:38:31 One Speaker 3 00:38:31 Dish. Oh man. I'm trying to think. Something that encapsulates all the things that I like. Maybe like a lasagna. Speaker 2 00:38:41 Mm. Multiple foods in one. Speaker 3 00:38:44 Yeah. And I just, I love Italian food. Yeah. Cuz I was recently on a, on my buddy's podcast all about food and we talked about, you know, like a death row meal. I made up something on the show and I, I'm gonna share it with your audience as well because I think it's, I need to see it come to life and I'm not, I mean, I can make it, but there are better people out there suited towards it. Maybe I'll ask Lee. Um, short, a short rib lasagna. Speaker 2 00:39:11 Ooh. Speaker 3 00:39:12 Because short ribs so good. Speaker 2 00:39:14 I could get done with Speaker 3 00:39:14 That because I was like thinking of something like with a short rib and then I was like, but like I love that the, the cheese and the sauce, um, of a lasagna. And I was like, what if we combine those and made like a short rib? I'm sure it exists, but if it doesn't we can talk to Rob McDaniel over at Helen or Speaker 2 00:39:33 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Speaker 3 00:39:34 Um, somebody who, somebody who knows their way around a short rib. Speaker 2 00:39:38 So are you more of a sweet or like a savory person? Speaker 3 00:39:40 I'm a savory, yeah. Yeah, for for sure. The sweet. My wife is super like into the sweet. So I n I never was cuz I think I got it all from the whiskey. I think I got all my sugar intake from the booze. So after I stopped drinking and then after, you know, when, when I met my wife, those two kind of things coincided and I become a little bit more of a sweet. But I'm, I'd still take savory any any day. Mm. Speaker 2 00:40:04 Okay. I'm a sweet guy. So I think if I was gonna invent a food, maybe like, uh Okay. Like a pancake ice cream sundae. So I would take a big fat pancake and then like put a couple scoops in the middle toppings fold of pancake around it. Eat it before it melted. Speaker 3 00:40:22 Yeah. Like a Speaker 2 00:40:23 Could be hot pancake. Like Speaker 3 00:40:24 A Yeah, sort of like a ice cream hot dog Speaker 2 00:40:28 Situation. An ice cream hot dog. Speaker 3 00:40:30 Something like that. Yes. It cold dog Speaker 2 00:40:33 Or a, an ice cream cold. Okay. Yeah. <laugh>. Speaker 3 00:40:35 You know something. Um, that's right. We can talk to the folks at Big Spoon about a cold cake and see if they can get it on the, I'm just gonna keep shouting out restaurants I like in hopes that they see this. I'll tag them all and give me a, and gimme a, uh, gift card or something. Yeah. Um, shout out. I'm just gonna shout out doubting establishments just at the end. Just list special thanks everywhere that I want to go eat all the time. But Speaker 2 00:40:58 I think if I'm only going one food for the rest of my life, um, warm chocolate chip cookie. Yeah. Side of milk. Speaker 3 00:41:04 That's hard to beat. Yeah. I used to, my dad was a basketball coach and athletic director and used to run all these basketball camps and as you know, when I was younger I would go to them, but then kind of when I aged up or if they were for littler kids and I was a little older, the weeks that were for Littler kids, I would work the concession stand at the gym. And they had, you remember like Otis Spunkmeyer? Yeah. But then they had like the machines that would like make them warm or like basically cook them Right, right on site. Yeah. Dude, I still dream about that stuff. So good. Just like, I'd just be in the concession stand. And then we had like the Otis Spunkmeyer oven that they came, that came with Itall Speaker 2 00:41:45 Had an oven in Speaker 3 00:41:46 There. It was whatev, it was, it was just like a tabletop thing that kept 'em hot or whatever. Um, Speaker 2 00:41:53 Our concession stand, we just had like fun dips. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> sour straws. Yeah. Big league chew. Of course. So I'm, I'm talking baseball here. Yeah. And then we had after every practice we would get, do you remember those little fruit drinks? They were any like bottle that was shaped kinda like a grenade? Yes. Yes. And you peeled off the foil from the top. Absolutely. Yeah. So that we had that Capri sons Of course. Of course. Uh, Dunkaroos occasionally. Yeah. Dunkaroos what else? What? Oh yeah, we had some nachos in there. So we did have some hot Yeah, fine dining in that concession stand. Speaker 3 00:42:21 <laugh>. That's right. I just, I was like, I don't know, I don't know who Otis Spunkmeyer is, but I'm on board with whatever he's Speaker 2 00:42:28 Is he, maybe he is like the rival of Otis. Um, Redden Backer, the popcorn guy. Speaker 3 00:42:33 Orville Rucker. Oh. Speaker 2 00:42:35 Oh, it's Orville Redenbacher. That's Speaker 3 00:42:36 It. I mean he may, there may have been an Otis. Yeah. Somewhere behind the, but uh, the Redden Backer boys, they, uh, he, yeah. I don't know. I don't know what happened to to Oh Otis. But he's, you know, he's got a place here. Um, Speaker 2 00:42:50 What was Indian Springs like? Cuz I imagine it being kinda like a local Hogwarts and I'm a public school guy. Right. So, uh, where'd you go? Montevallo. Okay. So I, I remember girl fights in the hallway. Uhhuh <affirmative>. I remember Rectangular pizza. Uhhuh <affirmative>. I remember. Um, generally it was, you know, it was fine experience. Yeah. Um, I would do anything I could to not have to go. Right. I mean, I would fake stomach aches. Speaker 3 00:43:19 I would, I mean yeah, that for sure. Speaker 2 00:43:20 Yeah. I would roll my ankle Yeah. On purpose in hopes to get on crutches and maybe get to miss one day. Yeah. And just stay, stay at home and ride the four-wheeler. Watch tv, like do anything but go to school. Yeah. But it was a good experience. So how was Indian Springs? Speaker 3 00:43:34 Uh, it was great. I mean, I didn't know anything else, so my folks both worked there. So I lived my, I lived on the campus so like it was home, you know, it was more home. It was so I, you know, than anything I knew. So that was cool. Did Speaker 2 00:43:47 Some students live on Speaker 3 00:43:48 Campus? They do have like a boarding. Okay. Um, I don't know, maybe a third. At least when I went it was like a third of the students boarded and the rest were kind of day students from around the city. But, um, I, um, but then I lived in a house, like in faculty housing, like all over in its own area. And then like, um, but it was good. I mean it was kind of like, you know, we'd kind of trust you to wander around this 300 acre campus and just, just don't make us regret it, you know? Yeah. And, and most people were pretty cool. And um, did Speaker 2 00:44:22 It have summer camp vibes at all? Speaker 3 00:44:24 Yeah, definitely. Um, and especially before they redid the, um, like dorms and stuff cuz it was straight up like, you know, motel six style open out Yeah. To the, you know, which you can't really get away with this day and age, but at the time. But, um, it was, you know, a hundred percent that and I mean, and but also, you know, great, great education. Yeah. Um, you know, amazing education from people that cared and like really were really intelligent but also kind of knew what was important to teach. What would in a, in a way that would stick, you know, or in a way that mattered to a kid. You know, how do you, how does this make you better at life? Possibly, you know, Speaker 2 00:45:09 Lee was saying that they didn't so much teach you what to think, but they teach you how to think. How to think. I, that's exactly right. Think that's really nice. I don't think that all schools do that. Yeah. So I think that's Speaker 3 00:45:18 Is Speaker 2 00:45:18 Is Speaker 3 00:45:19 It, uh, I would agree a Speaker 2 00:45:19 Hundred percent. Is it K through 12? Speaker 3 00:45:21 No, eight through Speaker 2 00:45:22 12. Okay. So, so students might go to like a Montessori school Speaker 3 00:45:25 First. Yeah, I think we had a lot of people from Highlands and Advent. Um, I think a lot of those kids and then kind of, you know, wherever as well. But um, Speaker 2 00:45:38 We're just trying to, you know, we're having conversations like that because while it's super early we're just deciding, you know, what route we might want Charlotte to go. Yeah. And whether we wanted homeschool or do Montessori school, um, I think it is gonna be something a little alternative like that. Yeah. We're just not for sure settled on what yet. For sure. Speaker 3 00:45:55 And, uh, the Montessori seems to be, there's some good options I feel like, but yeah, I mean that's super important and that's something that we never really, we kept putting off. Right. You know, it's like we don't need to worry about that yet. Yeah. We don't need to worry about that yet. And then it was kind of like, oh, it's time to start thinking about that. And so we got lucky enough to, to move into, um, cuz we were, we were having the same conversations and wanting to make sure, you know, we did right by by my son and get him into somewhere that was gonna help his development. And we were looking around at places and um, then we ended up like moving, like right before he started, uh, kindergarten and you know, one of the highest ranked and you know, a great option. Speaker 3 00:46:40 Yeah. So it was kind of, we just kind of got blessed that we found a place right here with that option cuz we were exploring all these other avenues and then we saw this and it's, and it was, it's been amazing for him and like he loves it and everybody there has been great and it's been like such a good area. It's been such a nice, it was just a nice combination of things that happened that led us kind of right there. And it was, but it's been great. And that, but that's like, once again, that's like, you know, one of the public school places that I would kind of, they do a great job. So Speaker 2 00:47:10 Definitely such a good neighborhood when you imagine a neighborhood Yeah. That, that, that fits. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:47:17 Yeah. And we're like on the outskirts, like up up a hill. Um, but it's, but it's been great. It's been really cool to be kind of, I didn't grow up that, like I just told you, I grew up on a high school campus, you know, with my future high school teachers were my three neighbors. Right. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:47:36 Are you a coffee drinker? Yeah. Have you seen the new shop moving into what used to be Dream Cakes? Speaker 3 00:47:41 I, I saw the sign like for the first time yesterday. Speaker 2 00:47:44 Yeah. Honest Coffee Roast. Cause that's my buddy Chewy. I had him on the podcast recently. I know Speaker 3 00:47:48 Chewy. Oh Speaker 2 00:47:48 You do? Yeah. Yeah. Speaker 3 00:47:49 I know. Great guy. Uh, I know Jose really well from Adios. Yeah. And then, uh, and through him and my buddy Nick Pacas. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. I've met Chewy a couple times for Speaker 2 00:47:58 Sure. I think Chewy's trying to take over Birmingham. Good. Speaker 3 00:48:01 Good. Good. We need more people like him taking over. Really Speaker 2 00:48:03 Do man. He's he's a good man. So I think he's up to two bars. A restaurant, a couple coffee shops. Yeah. He's, he's collecting establishments. Yeah. That, that I love. Speaker 3 00:48:11 That's good. Yeah. And yeah, make it, make it work by all accounts. Uh, a good man. So, you know, Speaker 2 00:48:17 What's your favorite barbecue in town other than Jim and Nick's? Uh, that's, that's, that's a given. Speaker 3 00:48:23 Um, well, that, that was, it was, they sold it so I can it now <laugh>? Uh, no, it was, that was always growing up. That was the place. Yeah. Speaker 2 00:48:30 It's still a Speaker 3 00:48:31 Favor to mine. And it didn't hurt that my best friend since first grade's dad owned the place. But Rodney Scott's, I love Sauls. I love, um, it's hard, you know, it's hard to go wrong. Um, those are probably the two I find myself at the most. You can't really go wrong. They're, they're part of that's proximity. Part of that's just, I like the vibe and I know people involved with both. So I, I freak with them to support. But Speaker 2 00:48:57 I see Rodney Scott all over the place, man, I can't watch a documentary without seeing him on there. He's Speaker 3 00:49:02 A hog. It's a talk about good dudes. He's Speaker 2 00:49:04 A, he is a good dude, man. In fact, uh, right when he opened up the spot in Avondale, I ordered takeout. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> got at home, realized that they had left the sauce out and I was so mad. So I got back in my car, drove back and I was, I was getting ready to make a fuss. Yeah. And he comes out from around the corner, shakes my hand. Yeah. Apologizes gives me the sauce, gives it to me for free. Right. And I was like, I will always support. That's good man. In this place, man. He's a good dude. But yeah, Rodney Scotts is great. And it's, it's over in Avondale. And speaking of Avondale, you have, and they Speaker 3 00:49:34 Have one in Homewood now too? They do. They Speaker 2 00:49:35 Have two. Yeah. But the one in, uh, Avondale is near where you have another show, right? Speaker 3 00:49:40 Yeah. Yeah. So I, I run another show across the street at, at Avondale Brewery in that upstairs. I dunno if you've been up there. They do private events and sometimes they'll do some, is Speaker 2 00:49:48 That the upper room? Speaker 3 00:49:49 It's called the upstairs. The upstairs, uh, the or yeah, the up the upstairs. So my show's called the Upstairs Comedy Series. So I started this right before the Pandemic. I think we did three shows and then everything shut down and then we brought it back. And, but we've had some great shows up there last month or two months ago. I had James Austin Johnson, who's from on Saturday Night Live now. He, he's the one who does Trump and Biden on us now. Now. Amazing. And an old buddy. And he came through and sold the place out. It was amazing. Beth Stelling, who's, you know, one of the funniest comics in the world, her H B O special, if anyone hasn't seen it, called Girl Daddy, is like one of the best specials of the last 10 years. I think it's, you know, joke for joke. One of the best. And she came through and sold it out. And Whitt Thomas, who's from Gulf Shores, Whitmer Thomas came through in November. It was amazing. So try also just booking big acts there too. So along with Star Party, which we're trying to, you know, book these amazing shows and bring people into Saturn. And so Speaker 2 00:50:45 I've, real quick, how can people find all that? Are there Instagram Speaker 3 00:50:47 Accounts or what? Yeah, so West Van Horn comedy is me. And then, um, but also star party comedy and upstairs comedy both on Instagram. And then I, you know, find all the details there. So Speaker 2 00:50:59 Can you get tickets from Instagram or is it something Speaker 3 00:51:01 Usually I have the show linked on there. Yeah. Um, star Party, if you go to Saturn's website, you'll see it on there on the calendar. But they'll be linked at on the Instagrams too. Speaker 2 00:51:10 What's the vibe like? Is it something where people can go get dinner first and then come to you? Speaker 3 00:51:14 What time does it start? Absolutely. We, we doors open at seven shows or at eight for both shows. So it's usually, yeah, usually, you know, go grab a, maybe an early six, 6:00 PM dinner or something and then, and come on out and we usually start eight. You know, I don't wanna tell people later than that cuz they're already bad about showing up on time. Um, show up on time, come on. Yeah. And don't talk as if those are my two rules for the, for the laugh, but it's not a conversation. Um, do Speaker 2 00:51:41 People try to heckle? Speaker 3 00:51:43 Not really. We, we really don't experience that much. You know, I try to try to set it the tone up top that, you know, this is not that kind of environment and I haven't really experienced, and when it does happen, it's someone who's had a little bit too much to drink and they're enjoying themselves. Yeah. But it's, they're enjoying themselves a little too much and it's like, Speaker 2 00:52:00 It's not about you buddy. Speaker 3 00:52:01 Yeah, yeah, exactly. The show is not about you. And this is, you know, it's not a one way conversation between you and the person on stage there. Speaker 2 00:52:07 <laugh>, I saw a guy in the audience get absolutely evaporated the other night. My wife and me too, actually, uh, we follow or, and her fans of Matt Matthews. Yeah, Speaker 3 00:52:17 I Speaker 2 00:52:17 Know, man. And he was at Stard Do and somebody just kept piping up Yeah. Kept piping up and he laid in, in a, in a way that people were just rolling. Yeah. Oh my God, it was so funny. Speaker 3 00:52:28 Yeah. There's, that's, it's, it's that thing, right? Where it's like the crowdwork like clips are now huge on Instagram. Those became like, and like TikTok and stuff, those became like big and those moments are like funny in the moment. Right. And so it, it, it's kind of that, that cycle of like, it's like a self-perpetuating cycle, but it's not a good one. Yeah. For comedy. Like, we don't want that to happen. Right. We don't, you don't, you know, but when it does, like it can be funny or it can get all these views and so it's like, it's one of those things that's, that's troubling, but also like, cuz I feel like it leads to people in the crowd wanting that moment. Yeah, exactly. And then, and then they'll try to pipe up Speaker 2 00:53:07 To give some Speaker 3 00:53:07 Material. Yeah, exactly. And it's like, this'll be funny if I do this. And he comes back and it's like, no, it won't. Like it's, it might be, but it's, there's a show. Yeah. You know, there's a, there's a rhythm to it. Like, Speaker 2 00:53:16 You don't have to make Speaker 3 00:53:17 A moment, you're destroying. Yeah. Don't make the moment happen. There's, it's gonna, this is a, you know, curated experience. Yeah. Without your bullshit. Speaker 2 00:53:24 Um, actually at that show, someone had a seizure in the audience. Oh wow. Uh, mids show and everything had to stop. Oh man. And people are rushing in like saving this person, so. Oh my God. Have you ever had any moments that were kind of unexpected while you're on stage? Speaker 3 00:53:39 Nothing. Speaker 2 00:53:39 Or has it been pretty smooth? Pretty Speaker 3 00:53:41 Smooth. I mean, besides like, yeah, a drunk person, like passing out after they have tried to talk, we had that maybe at the very first star party at Saturn, this guy, he was being super thought he was being super supportive and he was excited to be there. But just, uh, just <laugh>. Sorry, I didn't even ask if we could cuss on this thing. Yeah, I Speaker 2 00:54:01 Did it. No Speaker 3 00:54:01 Problem. Uh, but he was just, yeah. And so, but he was like, and I had to go up to him. I went up to him in the crowd and he was like, oh man, thanks. You were my favorite. You were so funny. I was like, no, I'm not coming to say what's up, shut up. You know, like, <laugh>, like, I'm gonna, like, I hate, you know, you've been laughing and like, I appreciate you being here and all that stuff, but like, and I don't want to have to ask you to leave, but if you don't quiet down, I'm gonna have to. He's like, okay. And then I mean, 30 seconds later he was asleep in his chair <laugh> Speaker 2 00:54:28 Night night. And I was like, Speaker 3 00:54:30 Well, at least that, at least it kind of worked. Yeah. I told him a bedtime story. <laugh> Speaker 2 00:54:34 Lulled Speaker 3 00:54:34 Him. Um, yeah. Held him in my arms as he, I'll leave, Speaker 2 00:54:38 Well kiss on the Speaker 3 00:54:39 Forehead. Yeah, exactly. But that's like, for the most part, nothing too crazy besides those, you know, shows in MacArthur Park <laugh> where a helicopter was flying above us. A dog was barking, a peacock was taking a dump in a Jaguar and the ice cream man's truck, who was for some reason selling ice cream at midnight. Which right. Was, uh, you know, my buddy Rivers, who I ran the show with would, he'd, like, he'd go out and find the guy on his route and be like, here, I'll give you $10 right now if you just don't drive down this street during this one and a half hour period. <laugh>. Yeah. Or, or give him like 30 bucks paying Speaker 2 00:55:17 Off the ice cream driver. Speaker 3 00:55:18 Yeah. It's just so it wouldn't, I mean, and you couldn't pay off the helicopters. They were there besides like, you know, just wild like that <laugh> but nothing, nothing too crowd related that I can recall. And that's not to say it never happened. Now if any of my peers watched this, they're like, why? There's been so many, but my memory is, uh, not as good as it once was. Speaker 2 00:55:38 What does it feel like to bomb? Speaker 3 00:55:41 I wouldn't know. No <laugh> Speaker 2 00:55:44 Me. Never. You're Speaker 3 00:55:45 Asking the wrong dude, man, I've never happened. Uh, I mean, it's the worst feeling in the world. Um, very, very bad. Um, I've gotten to a point where, I mean, honestly, it's, it's, it doesn't happen that often. And it, and there are factors, you know, I'm not gonna be like, it was the crowd's fault or it was the venue's fault, but sometimes it is, um, <laugh>. But cuz it's like, I've seen these jokes work before. I'm telling the same, the same way, the same jokes. Yeah. And I've seen them crush a room of 500. So the, you know, the, it can be your fault. Um, but, uh, it's bad. It's like a terrible, a terrible feeling. Um, but once you kind of get used to it, it's like, you know, it's, the highs are high and the lows are low. That's <laugh>, that's what, that's what comedy's all about. It's like you keep chasing the high of, of crushing and doing well and that's what keeps you going. That's what makes the low. Like, I'm gonna get back on after that just happened. Like that was the worst moment of my entire life. Yeah. Like I just had people staring, like, you're actively trying to get a reaction and it's just nothing. Speaker 2 00:56:52 But at some level do you feel like it's uh, it's giving you more confidence going through that? Speaker 3 00:56:56 I feel like, yeah. I mean, I feel like you have to do it to, cuz also that means you're kind of taking a risk sometimes. Um, but also like, I feel like you have to, it just, it doesn't necessarily make you better, but I think as you're coming up it does. Like, now bombing doesn't make me better. <laugh> <laugh>, it makes me way, makes me worse and makes me think I should quit doing comedy <laugh>. Um, I don't, I don't bomb that often, but I didn't do well at the open mic the other night. But that was a whole different story. Um, I wrote that joke. Were Speaker 2 00:57:27 You working on new Speaker 3 00:57:28 Material? Yeah, I wrote it. Um, but nobody did. Well it was not a, it was not a do well type of Speaker 2 00:57:32 Thing. Well I mean, that happens. Speaker 3 00:57:33 That's, that's what those mics are for. Yeah. You know, that's like, you know, you're just trying out stuff and throwing stuff and, uh, mainly I go to those now to just say the words. I just like, I, I have this bit and I just have to say it so that it, now I know what that sounds like coming out of my head. And so now I, now it's like muscle memory. Next time I get on stage I go, oh, I've said this before. Yeah. And now I know all the beats. And that's like for me, what, what a, what a mic is now. But, um, Speaker 2 00:58:03 Isn't it like I've heard it's like saying the right words in the right order and the right rhythm, Speaker 3 00:58:07 Cadence. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, for sure. In a way. For sure. Yeah. It's like all about, uh, timing. Speaker 2 00:58:12 What are some open mics around here? Speaker 3 00:58:14 Okay. They have one at Cahaba on Mondays. I have one at True Story Brewing on Wednesdays. Where's that? I think it's next to, it's like over there by like the filling station, like where the, the original seasick used to be. Oh, okay. Yeah. Over in that little shopping over in Crestwood. Yeah. Uh, I think that may be it right now. There was one at Marty's for years. Um, that was good. But yeah, I think those are the two right now. And then there's some shows popping up some young, some younger comics younger than me, which is everybody have got some shows going on and, but I don't recommend going to those. Only go to my shows, uh, only spend money and come to my shows. Nothing else matters. Nothing else matters. There's not even any other shows in town. Uh, I dunno what I'm talking about. <laugh> No one, there's no other shows and there's only one podcast. And Speaker 2 00:59:03 You're That's right guys Speaker 3 00:59:04 Watching slash listening to it. So remember, remember those two rules and you'll be fine. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> in the city of Birmingham. Speaker 2 00:59:09 Yeah. West Van Horn. Discover Birmingham. All you need to know. Speaker 3 00:59:12 That's right. Those are, that's that's it. That about sums it up. So, but yeah, the Avondale shows have been really fun and that's kind of more traditional, like full headliner touring headliner doing 45 minutes to an hour. Speaker 2 00:59:26 How many seats are Speaker 3 00:59:27 There hosting? I think we gotta cap it at like one 50. Nice. Um, and that's, it feels full and not, but not too full. But with seating, you know, I think they can hold, they can hold more if it's standing. But those have been fun. I don't have the next one scheduled yet. So that one like, like the Star party's gonna be pretty much monthly. And the Avondale one is like whenever I find someone I want to do that for or when somebody comes through town, I'm kind of curating that to be like, I mean we're curating both of them to be event shows where it's like it's worth putting our time in. But also like the show, I want every show to be like top to bottom. Great. Like, because even if you don't know, you never heard of this comic. Maybe even though they've been touring and they're a great comic, you may have not have heard of 'em, they're not a household name. Speaker 3 01:00:19 But I want you to walk away going, that was fun. And then now you go, it doesn't matter if I know who the person is. I can, I can count on this show being good every single time no matter if I know the person or not. That's like the vibe I want for both the shows that I have. Any show that I run is like, just if you can put your trust in me once and come you won't have a bad time and you'll come back. Like that's kind of, cuz it's, you know, I've got a pretty discerning palette and a pr you know, know enough about comedy where it's like I know how to book and run it to a point where it's gonna be funny. Like there's gonna be something for everybody just cuz the people are so funny. So Katie Speaker 2 01:01:00 And I have a habit of, you know, just falling into a routine and Absolutely. And we, you know, we'll go to a, uh, we'll go to get dinner, maybe we will stop by and grab a drink at audios or something. Yeah. And we just like, that's just what we do. But I feel like a comedy show is such a great way to just like break the habit Absolutely. And get out and do something new. Speaker 3 01:01:16 Absolutely. And it's, you're for sure. And like, like we said, like we're trying to do this, you know, as much as it's self-serving, which it is like I'm not, but it's also like this city needs that. It needs, it's like, it's also a live like, local performance that you support the city, you support people in the city, it's outside of the norm. It's like a great date night alternative that you'll both have a great time on and you didn't, you know, that you didn't think you don't think about. Once again, it's breaking outta that routine and getting people to go do something a little different. But it, it's, it's rewarding, I promise. Yes, Speaker 2 01:01:48 It is. And imagine how many people you actually know who are willing to go up on stage in front of people and just talk, period. Right, right. But also people who are willing to be funny and risk bombing. I mean Right. I I feel like that's worth supporting in itself. That's, Speaker 3 01:02:02 That's right. And you might see some un bomb. That's how much fun is that? No. Um, not at my shows. You won't Right. Speaker 2 01:02:07 Never. Speaker 3 01:02:08 Unless it's me. But that's, um, if I, if you see me vomit, it's cuz I wanted to That's Speaker 2 01:02:13 Right. Take one for the team. Uh, well Wes, thanks for coming on. Yeah man. Is there anything else you wanna mention? Speaker 3 01:02:18 I don't think so, man. Just, just uh, just yeah. If you come out to a show they're so much fun. Like, we're having so much fun and we're like I said, like we're out doing what we thought we could do with, with these shows. And like the main thing is just like, it, the show doesn't work unless the crowd's there. Right. And so like, I can book the best people in the world and I have been, but we, you know, it's so much more fun when the, when the crowd's there. That's why we get made it affordable and we just want Birmingham to come out and support and like, cuz it's a fun, cool thing going on in our city that you might not know about or you might not regularly hear about. And it's like, it's such a cool, fun thing going on and fans of comedy and podcasts and movies and television and, and, you know, entertainment, live performance. It's, it's, it is a fun, fun time. Speaker 2 01:03:04 Yeah. And think about it, what would you rather tell your friends around the water cooler at work on Monday? Like, oh yeah, we went to dinner on Friday night. Right. We would do comedy show or you can do both and you can Speaker 3 01:03:13 Do both. Go to dinner, um, at these five places that I wanna mention real quick. <laugh> and uh, then, uh, and then come it's, it's, and it's, and like shows are 90 minutes, you know, at the worst, let's say you have a bad time, what you want never, never happened. It's 90 minutes of your life. You know, like you deserve to laugh for 90 minutes. You know, we all need a little, a little joy in our lives and that's, we try to keep it around 90 and then you're home by 10. You're home by 10. It's so much fun. So Speaker 2 01:03:44 Thursday the 22nd Yes. Is the next show is the next, and that's just in a few days. So when's the one after that? Speaker 3 01:03:50 Oh, we haven't got the July date yet. Okay. From Saturn, but it, it'll be July. Um, and just follow star party comedy for that one. Follow West Van Horn comedy for both shows or pictures of my children occasionally. And uh, Speaker 2 01:04:02 And I'll share it on the Discover Birmingham page as well. Just Speaker 3 01:04:05 And, uh, and then upstairs comedy at, at Avondale, which we're finalizing a date for, for that next one too. So, but yeah, just, just just follow those and, and come on out. It's, it's so much fun. So Speaker 2 01:04:15 Perfect man. Well thank you again for coming on. Speaker 3 01:04:16 Thank you man. This is awesome. This is great. I loving it. Speaker 1 01:04:44 The made.