Harmon Leon Podcasts

As a tribute to the great Jackie Mason - who passed away this weekend - we have a reprise of our episode on Caddyshack 2. Jackie starred in the movie - which has the notoriety of being the worst sequel OF ALL TIME! Jackie took on the Rodney Dangerfield role for the movie - in this classic battle of the snobs vs. the slobs, (Spoiler Alert: The slobs…

Legendary comedian Rick Overton joins us to talk comedy. Rick's IMDB page is the size of a phone book; which includes Beverly Hills Cop, playing Matt Damon's boss in Steven Soderbergh's, The Informant! - to Showtime's: I'm Dying Up Here. Rick also has a new comedy special, out called: Rick Overton's Set List. We do a deep dive into Rick's comedy or…

From the archives: Sasha Baron Cohen plays activist Abbie Hoffman in the Netflix film, The Trial of the Chicago 7. As seen in the film, by day, Hoffman was in the courtroom - fighting conspiracy charges. By night, he would regularly perform at The Second City. Hoffman's stage appearance marked a transition at the theater - from a bunch of squares d…

To bookend the pandemic, we have a CH101 reprise on comedy helping to deal with tragic events. We look at comedy right directly after 9/11. They said irony was dead - but comedy help us pull through tragedy - especially with The Onion, SNL, Letterman, The Daily Show, and Gilbert Gottfried's legendary joke at the Friar's Club Roast.…

Our guest is Art Bell; the man who pitched the idea that became Comedy Central. Art was also the head of programming at the network. We do a deep dive into the origin of such iconic shows as Mystery Science Theater 3000, South Park, The Daily Show - and talk about the early careers of Jon Stewart, Marc Maron, and Bill Maher. Art also has a new book…

From the archives: I talk to David Litt- former head joke writer for President Obama. We dive into what made Obama funny in the Oval Office; and contrast that to Trump's vastly different sense of presidential humor. (Trump's humor wheelhouse: mocking a disabled reporter and making fun of a sexual assault victim.) You might also know David Litt from…

From the archives: In 1961, Dick Gregory was the first African American comedian to headline a white club. A pioneer in the world of stand-up comedy, Gregory's material mocked the bigotry and racism of the time. Gregory is equally known for his activism as well as his comedy. He's one of the most influential comedians in comedy history; inspiring t…

Our special guest is Wayne Federman author of the new book: The History of Stand-Up: From Mark Twain to Dave Chappelle. Wayne's impressive creds include Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Larry Sanders Show, Silicon Valley - as well as head monologue writer for The Tonight Show. We do some serious deep cuts into the history of stand-up comedy.…

From Our Archives: Remember in Goodfellas when mobster Henry Hill took his date, Karen, to The Copacabana? That was pretty true to form. The mob actually owned the legendary club. We saw this recently in the movie The Irishman - when Don Rickles was on stage performing for Crazy Joe Gallo. We dive into the mob’s connection with The Copacabana - whe…

From the Archives: Since the beginning of the 20th century, slipping on a banana peel has been a comedy trope. We’ve seen such legendary silent comedians as Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, and Laurel and Hardy - all do a variation of the slipping on a banana peel gag. But how did the “slipping on a banana peel” gag come into our lexic…

On January 2, Trump held a conference call with the Georgia Secretary of State and other officials about alleged irregulariets in the November elections. On the call, the president pressured the officials into coming up with election numbers that would flip the result of Georgia’s vote count and give Trump a victory and Georgias votes in the electo…

We conclude our 4-part series on John Belushi - with his sad final years. This involves the film disaster, Neighbors - and what happened the night he died at the Chateau Marmont. Ending on a good note - Belushi is ranked #1 by Rolling Stone - as the best sketch performer on SNL. He also has an Albanian stamp with his likeness.…

The Blues Brothers is one of the most iconic screen comedies of all time. The movie held the record for the amount of cars destroyed - and actually had a budget for cocaine. That's why production was a nightmare - largely due to John Belushi and his proclivity for drugs.By Harmon Leon

John Belushi, at the height of his fame - was on top-rated TV show, SNL, had the #1 movie with Animal House, and had the #1 album with his band, the Blues Brothers. Belushi created iconic comedy characters while on SNL - but backstage, he was kind of turning into a mess. We cover all this and more in Part 2 - of the History of John Belushi.…

In this episode we cover the John Belushi origin story. From his early days growing up in Wheaton, IL - to his stint in Second City and starring in National Lampoon's Lemmings. Plus, all the other theatrical twists-and-turns Belushi took before being cast on SNL - and changing the face of comedy.By Harmon Leon

In celebration of the end of a shitshow era - we bring this CH!01 Select: From mocking a disabled reporter to making fun of a sexual assault victim - Donald J. Trump has proven there is a vastly different sense of presidential humor coming from the White House. I interviewed David Litt - head joke writer for President Obama - for a story in the NY …

Part Two of our episode on the Richard Pryor comedy origin story. We cover his time underground in Berkeley, CA and discovering his true comedic voice. We also talk about the time that Richard Pryor guest starred on The Partridge Family.By Harmon Leon

In the early 60s, Richard Pryor was a clean cut, mainstream comedian who appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. Then he had a meltdown in Las Vegas. Retreating from showbiz, he moved to Berkeley, California and began hanging out with The Black Panthers, the counterculture movement, and African American intellectuals. The experience changed the face of R…

Showtime has a new series on the History of the Comedy Store. Comedian Freddie Prinze was the first big breakout star of The Store. At 19, he appeared on The Tonight Show - and shortly after he got his own sitcom, Chico and the Man. Prinze seemed to have everything in the world. But it was all too much, too fast for Freddie Prinze...…

Although Nixon barely squeaked into office in 1968, the election of 1972 wasn't quite the same. Some people might use the term "blowout" - especially when Nixon won every state except Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. Ouch. But that doesn't mean Nixon turned into a sore winner. On the contrary, in this video he and Secretary of State Henr…

Sasha Baron Cohen is back - with his new movie: Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm. This time the confused Kazakhstan journalist takes on the pandemic and Trump America. In this episode we dive into both the Borat and Sasha Baron Cohen origin story. Where did they both come from and how did they get here? From the early days performing in the Cambridge Fo…

Sasha Baron Cohen plays activist Abbie Hoffman in the new Netflix film, The Trial of the Chicago 7. As seen in the film, by day, Hoffman was in the courtroom - fighting conspiracy charges. By night, he would regularly perform at The Second City theater. Hoffman's stage appearance marked a transition at the theater - from a bunch of squares doing sk…

Showtime has a new documentary series on the legendary Comedy Store in Las Angeles. That's why we're bringing back a CH101 Select on the history of the 1979 Comedy Store strike - which was lead by comedians David Letterman, Tom Dressen, and Jay Leno.It was a pinnacle moment in comedy history, when comedians walked out of the Comedy Store and demand…

What a week. Within the last seven days, Trump's tax returns have been revealed, there was an unhinged presidential debate, and now the president has tested positive for coronavirus - after spending months mocking people who wear masks. But back in 2011, Comedy Central decided to send up Trump in a televised roasts. Trump only agreed to doing the r…

In 2005, Pepe the Frog was created by cartoonist Matt Furie And then his lovable creation got coopted by the alt-right. Ugh! Coinciding with the release of the new documentary, Feels Good Man - we chronicle the crazed, insane journey of Pepe the Frog.By Harmon Leon

Party Records were albums that people would play at night after the kids went to bed. Known for its XXX humor - Party Records helped launch the careers of Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx, LaWanda Page, Skillet & Leroy, and numerous other classic comedians. You couldn't find these albums on the shelves at record stores; they were sold under the counter in …