Tom Scharpling is celebrating the 25th year of his beloved comedy playground, The Best Show, which was one of the foundational inspirations for WTF back when it launched in 2009. Since then, Tom became a fan of WTF, a frequent guest, and a personal friend of Marc’s. Tom and Marc meet up for one final garage chat, reflecting on their respective achievements and looking toward the future of podcasting, as well as their places in it.
One last time, Marc answers your questions in the final Ask Marc Anything installment for Full Maron listeners, including questions about hairless cats, hot sauce, Kinison, guitar noodling, Lynn Shelton's movies, the name of the podcast, connecting with guests and more.
Mark Hamill gets that you probably know more about Star Wars than he does and he’s ok with that. In fact, he’s so ok with where he’s at in his career, he’s really not worried about what comes next. Mark talks with Marc about his early days on soap operas, the faith he had in Star Wars being a big hit while they were making it, the casting troubles he came up against in Hollywood that made him seek work on Broadway, and the voiceover acting that changed his career. They also talk about his connection to Late Night with David Letterman and his recent work in two Stephen King adaptations, The Life of Chuck and The Long Walk.
Brendan and Kris discuss the new WTF graphic novel, Tim Heidecker, Spike Lee, Blank Check and other odds and ends from the week of WTF. Then they offer suggestions of things that can listeners can do to replace the spot WTF used to have in their weekly routines.
Some of Spike Lee’s most indelible hallmarks, including a story set in New York City, a morality struggle, and a lead performance by Denzel Washington, are on display in his new film Highest 2 Lowest. Spike and Marc talk about this latest undertaking, as well as Spike’s affinity for being a teacher, his documentary work, Marc’s love of Bamboozled, the ever-evolving nature of New York, and of course Spike’s famous double dolly shots.
It's the penultimate installment of Ask Marc Anything on The Full Maron, with Marc answering your questions about guests that never happened, the future of the garage, Chris Rock's tag, record store finds, directing, Blank Check, cigars, experiencing joy and more.
Despite his two previous appearances on WTF, Tim Heidecker was not someone Marc felt truly comfortable around. In fact, Marc was intimidated by Tim. But as they’ve gotten older and connected over common interests, both Tim and Marc can now fully enjoy each other’s company. Meeting in the garage one more time, they talk about their shared pursuit of playing more live music on stage, their insecurities that crop up when making movies, and their lamentations about the regression of comedy and why they are compelled to take swings at the culprits of this reactionary culture.
Since the last time Kris and Brendan recorded an episode, there's been some ups and some downs, so thankfully they get to brighten each other's spirits with discussion of the past two weeks of WTF and then take a look at one of Kris's favorite things in the world: Superman. They'll hear from a special guest about the oldest and the newest Superman movies and then they'll talk about this latest iteration of the Man of Steel.Click here to submit a question for an upcoming Ask Marc Anything episode.
Regina King’s depth and range as an actor won her dozens of awards and allows her to choose projects best suited for her. Regina and Marc talk about her early sitcom days on 227, her breakthrough performances in films like Boyz n the Hood and Jerry Maguire, her acclaimed turns in If Beale Street Could Talk and Shirley, her work as a director, and her latest role in Darren Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing. Regina also explains why she launched a brand of wine to honor her son.
This month's Producer Cuts include: Marc talking about his experience at Comic-Con (0:00); an update on Marc's cat problems (1:40); Questlove's belief in a plant-based food future (7:44); Marc's concern over his toe (10:36); art being under attack (13:07); the Trump Thugocracy (14:25); making adjustments in Marc's brain (16:24); and Jeremy Allen White talks with Marc about the set of Deliver Me From Nowhere (18:50).
Jeremy Allen White played such a believable Bruce Springsteen in the movie Deliver Me From Nowhere that Marc, who was also in the film, can recall times on the set when Bruce couldn’t tell the difference between recordings of himself and recordings of Jeremy. But for Jeremy, that’s all part of the process of finding his focus, something he’s tried to do since he was a kid taking dance classes and playing sports. Jeremy and Marc also talk about Shameless, The Bear, The Iron Claw, panic attacks, and getting your life under control.Click here to submit a question for an upcoming Ask Marc Anything episode.
Brendan and Kris continue their look at Tropic Thunder, a movie they both consider to be one of the very best films of the 21st century and a still-relevant satire of the entertainment industry.
In a world of influencers and content creators, Peter Conheim represents an age of culture jamming and social disruption. Influenced by bands like Can and art collectives like The Residents, Peter talks with Marc about embracing the idea of doing art anonymously, which included his time with the experimental band Negativland. Peter also explains his fascination with audio production and editing, his passion for film curation and remastering, and his work on the new Devo documentary.Click here to submit a question for an upcoming Ask Marc Anything episode.
Marc's full comedy album from 2011, This Has To Be Funny, recorded at Union Hall in Brooklyn, New York.
The last time Ben Stiller was on WTF, it was more than 15 years ago and it was a really big deal for an upstart podcast done out of a small garage to have a global movie star and film director as a guest. Now Ben and Marc reflect on the passage of time, Ben's choices of projects since 2010, and the responsibility he feels as one of the people at the helm of Severance. They also talk about Owen Wilson, Ben's latest Oscar bit, the state of comedy movies, and the documentary Ben is making about his parents.Click here to submit a question for an upcoming Ask Marc Anything episode.
First, Kris and Brendan talk about SNL, Brisbane, Marc's comedy albums, Neko Case and more details from the week's WTF episodes. Then, they take a look at one of their favorite movies on the week it premiered 17 years ago, Tropic Thunder.
After recently releasing her memoir, The Harder I Fight the More I Love You, and finishing her eighth studio album, the upcoming Neon Grey Midnight Green, Neko Case is drawing a lot of conclusions. She tells Marc that animals and nature are more consistent and reliable than people, that she’s at peace with knowing her parents didn’t want her, and that she’s more comfortable choosing her own family. Neko and Marc also talk about her songwriting process, her pro wrestler great-aunt, and The New Pornographers.
Following the release of his latest HBO Comedy Hour, Marc Maron: Panicked, Marc talks with Brendan about his first four comedy albums: Not Sold Out, Tickets Still Available, Final Engagement and This Has To Be Funny.
Bowen Yang never thinks he’s ready for any of the opportunities he gets, including being a guest on WTF for this episode. After a discussion on who gets more nervous before interviews, Marc or the guest, Bowen explains where this lifelong anxiety and insecurity comes from, and a lot of it is rooted in the gay conversion therapy he had to undergo as a teen. They also talk about the vibe of Saturday Night Live during this second Trump administration and the pressures that come with being the gay Asian SNL cast member.
First, some headlines that caught Kris and Brendan's attention having to do with AMC Theaters and Seth Rogen's first WTF appearance. Then, some talk about Questlove's WTF episode and the early episodes with Jim Gaffigan. Finally, Brendan and Kris heard about a movie so bad it had to be seen to be believed. Well, they saw it, and they're still not sure they believe it.Check out Kris's sonic playlist that accompanies the Questlove episode.