Theo Von Backlash, Jim Gaffigan Roasts, and Apu Speaks Again

0:00 Hello, I'm Johnny Mac with your daily comedy news. Boy, people are killing Theo Vaughn over his new special. The best comment I saw on social media was that Mark Maron does Theo Vaughn better than Theo Vaughn does. And I think that person might be right. Here's Maron, some edits for language. I think if Hitler were alive today, he'd probably appear on Theo Vaughn's podcast. And Theo would be like. See, y'all did a lot of meth, right? I did some meth once. I was up for three days, and then I ate a live bird. A live bird, bro. Hey, Hitler, you probably. Didn't even hate the Jews. That was just the meth making you crazy, dog. Hey, Hitler.

0:44 Do you want to apologize to all the Jews right now on my show? No, I get it. Saturday Night Live UK took a shot at Shane Gillis now. This is their version of Weekend Update. Anya Magliano at the desk. A ride operator at Munich Oktoberfest was praised for giving out free cycling shorts to female riders. Wearing the gym shorts will protect women from being upskirted, but it does make them vulnerable to something much worse. She did not have a punchline other than showing an image of Shane Gillis behind her. She wasn't done. She continued, and they use naughty language on SNL UK. She said last week on SNL, Comedian Shane Gillis also caused controversy by dropping the F-bomb. Oh, Shane, you know you're not allowed to say that, you stupid effing C-word, the very hard C-word. Donald Trump also made an appearance on SNL UK.

1:43 It was James Austin Johnson doing his Trump. It was pretty good. Johnson's Trump said, you say my name and I appear. I got the idea from my very close friend Beetlejuice, the late great Beetlejuice. It's one of the two ways I'm like him. The other is sex pest. Alleged. They can't prove he did that stuff. Jim Gaffigan likes the college football. He was on Fox Sports before the Indiana-Ohio State game. Tell us about your illustrious college football career. Well, you know, I did play Big Ten ball for at least... For two weeks. Now, let me... Let me explain. I knew that... I knew it. I knew they were going to. I'm like, you're going to show a Purdue picture in Bloomington? So, you got to tell me, what kind of player were you?

2:27 Were you the X Factor out there for your team? I was a lineman. And. But, you know, this is... You know, I was kind of, I mean, I think I was decent. I was definitely not, he was, you know, I was not recruited. It's been a big week for Jim Gaffigan. He also headlined the 81st Al Smith Dinner in New York. That's the annual charity roast where politicians sit in tuxedos and take shots from a comedian. Nobody was safe. Here's Jim Gaffigan. While we were having our entree... President Trump renamed St. Patrick's Cathedral Trump Cathedral. Welcome, Mayor. You are a socialist, you are a Muslim, and you were born in a foreign country. You are everything they accused Obama of being.

3:17 You can tell the age of a tree by counting the rings. With Chuck Schumer, it's how far his readers have come. continue to slide down his nose. The Simpsons brought Apu back. I cannot wait for a statement from the ever so serious Hari Kondabolu. I am Apu! Apu? That's right. You thought you could just get rid of me? That I'd disappear? That there wouldn't be consequences for the horrible thing you did? Uh, what did we Apu spoke on Sunday Night Simpsons. It was his first dialogue in a decade. I'm just doing what the old Apu would have done. The guy who loved this town and everyone in it. You were on our bowling teams, our barbershop quartets, our dead rock cover bands. And we took you for granted. The character no longer voiced by Hank Azaria, now voiced by Sunil Malhotra.

4:20 Bye, honey. We're going trick-or-treating. Which one of you has a peanut allergy again? Puma man, what's shaking? Homer, I just had the most disturbing nightmare. Everyone in town killed me and tried to. Cover it up. It seems so real. The whole town forgot about me. Come on, that could never happen. Executive producer Matt Selman said we love this character and wanted to bring him back in a smart, Simpsons-y way that allowed him to evolve. We're excited by what Sunil has already brought to the role and look forward to seeing more of Apu in the future. You may recall Apu was the centerpiece of the 2017 documentary The Problem with Apu, in which comedian Hari Gondabolu discussed the impact the character had on the people of South Asian descent. In 2021, Hank Azaria went on Dax Shepard's podcast and said, I apologize for my part in creating that and participating in that. Part of me feels like I need to go to every single Indian person in this country and personally apologize, and sometimes I do. Apu would occasionally be seen in Springfield, but never had a spoken line until now. Mahaltra said, when my agent called me about a Simpsons audition, I knew exactly what role it was for and the idea actually made my stomach sink.

5:32 But admittedly, part of me was also curious. It had been eight years since Apu had spoken on the show and it got me thinking, did the writer's room look different now? Could they bring him back in a way that acknowledged and apologized for past mistakes? Could I make the character my own and reclaim him in some way? And could they achieve all of that in an unmistakably Simpsons way that didn't disappoint fans? In the revengening, a man in a Daft Monk Halloween costume is accidentally killed over and over again by Springfield residents all over town. A year later, Daft Monk is still alive and getting his revenge by taking out his would-be killers. Carrot Top is back on stage. He put out a statement that said, I'm truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of love, support, prayers, and well wishes I've received over the past couple weeks. Every message, text, and kind thought has meant more to me than you know. While I haven't been able to respond to everyone individually, please know that I felt your love and appreciate each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for being there for me during this time. It truly means the world to me. Time Out magazine made a list of comedians to keep an eye on. One of them, Andrew Orofo.

6:29 They asked him, what's the funniest thing about your life right now? He said, my mom vapes and sometimes it has a screen on it. The one joke that always lands. Comics, we all dress similar for the most part. I always open with, do you all like the lineup? And then the crowd is like, yeah. And I'm like, yeah, me too. Everybody's been funny, but am I tripping? Or does this whole lineup look like we all work at the same thrift store? This is the most Buffalo Exchange-looking lineup I've ever been on. In other cities, I'll just switch the thrift store. That's fun. And Vulture has their own list of the comedians you will know and should know or whatever it's called. I can never remember what it's called, but it's a good list. They talk to Tenacia Just Nash Rice. We're told she has a way to getting straight to the point. The point being F. Kent Williams, who's got a new book out, by the way. We'll talk about that on the weekend. That's the opener in her first hour-long special, Self-Serve. She says she's not beefing with Cat Williams, she's just trying to get on Club Shea Shea. That's well played. She cuts through the pro-choice versus pro-life debate with one line, I'm pro, who the F gonna take care of this baby? They asked Jess Nash if you taught a comedy class, what's the most crucial lesson you'd want your students to learn? The answer, don't be afraid of silence. As comedians, we're always chasing the big laugh, but there's power in the quiet moments too.

7:37 Silence can mean the audience is listening, thinking, or even learning something new. What's the most earnest goal you have? She said to travel the world, selling out theaters, doing stand-up. That's the dream for me. Of course I want to do movies and TV and continue creating in other spaces, but ultimately I want those opportunities to lead more people back to my comedy. And that is your comedy news for today. Catch you tomorrow.