When Jason Nash was a few months away from being a father for the first time, and at the same time realized his comedy career wasn’t happening in the way he wanted, he freaked out a little bit. So much going on, so much to think about, so much responsibility. Thoughts about the future filled his head, and he realized he had to channel these feelings somehow. And the therapy didn’t help. He called up his buddies, Jeff and Pete Bumgarner, and asked if they wanted to do something. They did.
The result is Guys With Feelings, an entertaining and laidback podcast which is taped once a week, and then chopped up and portioned out over the course of the following week. The podcast is set up like a typical talk radio show, and the guys share experiences and talk about everyday events, debate current issues, and often have one or several guests in the studio, or on the phone. But what separates GWF from other friendly, chatty podcasts is that it’s being taped in Hollywood, and Jason, Jeff, and Peter are all working in the industry, as comics, writers, musicians and producers. Thanks to their various connections they manage to book some pretty well-known guests on the show, who they have fun but personal conversations with. The guests are for the most part other comics, like Bob Odenkirk, Michael Showalter, Adam McKay and Fred Goss.
Last week’s highlight was when the guys had Ahmet Zappa on, and he told two absolutely outrageous stories. Zappa, not surprisingly the son of Frank, has apparently got a treasure trove of bizarre stories on hand, drawing from his life in Tinseltown. His first story is about Paris Hilton, and is nasty, gossipy and completely x-rated. The other one is the best, and is so imposible to recap that you simply have to listen for yourself.
I asked Jason Nash about the origins of GWF, and what we can expect from the guys in the future.
First of all, how come you turned your getting-older-starting-a-family-freaking-out situation into a podcast? Did the idea of a podcast come first or did you guys say, like, "man, we gotta find an outlet for all these feelings!" and then come up with the format?
Sort of a combination of the two. Basically, I had the idea for a sitcom called Guys With Feelings and then thought sitcoms really suck, but I still really liked the title.
Essentially, my theory was that hardened, tough guy that your father was doesn't exist anymore. Even construction workers put highlights in their hair nowadays. In essence, that is Guy With Feelings. Today's man is so evolved that he can talk about his most embarrasing shit. I mean, I would argue that the guy who faces his inner demons and airs them for everyone to hear is actually tougher than the one who keeps it in.
Also, during this time I was having a baby, and found I didn't really have time for standup, but I knew I could squeeze a few hours a week out with a podcast. And yes, I was sort of freaking out about having a kid and being nowhere with my career. So I talked to Pete, who's a technical wizard, and said, "How hard would it be to do a podcast?" Pete said not hard at all, and we just started doing it.
Who or what were you guys influenced by when you decided how you wanted the podcast to be like? (Other podcasts, radio shows, etc.)
For me there's only one God, and that's Howard Stern. I really got into Stern once Artie Lang joined the show, and I even purchased Sirius Radio. His whole style of reality based comedy is something that I never really tried and the great thing about it is that it's never hacky, because it always comes from a real place.
What's been some of the highlights of the show so far, for you? Those Ahmet Zappa stories the other day were pretty outrageous. "Nash at Night" was another highlight, I think.
Yes, having my Dad on was a huge step for me in ironing my relationship with him. My family is one of these families that always talks about doing something, like "Yeah, one day we'll get you in a radio booth, Dad", and the great thing about that moment was that we actually did it. Drove him to the studio and made it happen, for better or for worse.
Ahmet's story about Paris Hilton, I had heard at Greg Behrendt's show here in LA. It was a no brainer for the show. Ahmet is a pretty amazing guy, he's got a Jack Black type energy, and I'm sure we're not done hearing from him. Also, his wife is dreamy.
My two other favorite moments are Jerry Minor and I talking about going to the same therapist, and our Mary Lynn Rasjkub interview. She's just the sexiest, weirdest, coolest girl around. I find her absolutely fascinating. I think she represents the quintessential GWF type woman: smart, sexy in a off-beat way, and a little kooky.
What do you guys have planned for the upcoming weeks? Any guests we can look forward to?
Can't talk about guests right now, but let’s just say we're working on some of the biggest comedy stars in the business. As far as segements, Jeff and I are going to do "Husband Swap" in a few weeks, where we go and live with each other's wives for 24 hours. Jeff's wife (actress Maureen Cassidy) is fucking hysterical, so I'm looking forward to it. As for Jeff and my wife, I know they're probably going to have a really good time and that makes me sad a little.
For anyone listening in, the GWF podcast is pretty obviously LA-based, with all the references to the entertainment industry and so on, even though you talk about stuff that most people can relate to, like family, jobs, etc. Did you even anticipate that people would be tuning in from around the world?
No, not really. I was shocked that we have fans in Japan, England and Australia. The internet is pretty fucking amazing.
What's in the future for GWF? I hear your publicist is working 24-7...
We're trying to grow this from the ground up. We started in February 2006 and it just keeps getting bigger. We're shooting a pilot for a TV show this month so we'll see we're that leads. We'd love to get on Satelite Radio. I think we'll get there in due time. But it's important that people tell all there friends and subscribe to the show so we can get there.
Finally, any thoughts for your soon-to-be-huge Swedish audience?
I'm just hoping some wonderful Swedish girls take a shine to us and let us stay over when I visit. That is pretty much every American man's dream, Swedish girls in a hot tub. If that happens well then this whole thing was worth it. Wait... hang on, my wife is calling me. The baby just pooped in the bathtub.
Ah, show business.
