Lynn Hoffman and Lewis Black Discuss How Comedy Saved Their Lives Through Laughter and Resilience in Tough Times

Welcome to Comedy Saved Me. I'm Lynn Hoffman. And today, my guest is a man who has spent his entire career proving that rage, when properly channeled, is one of the most healing forces on the earth. Louis Black is the Grammy Award winning stand up comedian, author and actor who became a cultural institution through his years as the longest running correspondent on Comedy Central's The Daily Show, where his legendary back-in-black segments turned his volcanic frustration with the world into appointment television. Now, whether he's unraveling the absurdity of politics, the indignities of everyday life, or the sheer stupidity of the human condition, Lewis Black doesn't just make you laugh, he makes you feel seen and heard. Trust me. You may also know him as the voice of anger in Pixar's Inside Out and Inside Out 2, which honestly is the most perfectly cast role in history of animation as far as I'm concerned. His latest special, which is ongoing and has like 2.2 million streams right now on YouTube. It's called Tragically I Need You. And it picks up in the aftermath of the pandemic, exploring what happens to a man whose entire life is built around interacting with audiences when those audiences suddenly disappear. And spoiler, it's not pretty, but it is hilarious. Head to lewisblack.com for his upcoming tour dates because this is one you don't want to miss. And by the way, if you're not already subscribed to his weekly podcast called Rantcast, where Lewis tackles the week's madness and actually lets his fans submit their own gripes for his commentary, please, can we just fix that right now? Immediately? Like, it is seriously like therapy, but just a little bit louder. The great Lewis Black, I can't believe I'm saying it, is next right here on Comedy Save Me. Don't go anywhere. This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Award is. See all the nominees now at iHeart.com slash podcast awards. Audible is a proud sponsor of the Audible Audio Pioneer Award. Explore the best selection of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals all in one easy app. Audible. There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free trial at Audible.com. When segregation was the law, one mysterious black club owner, Charlie Fitzgerald, had his own rules. Segregation in the day, integration at night. It was like stepping on another world. Was he a businessman? A criminal? A hero? Charlie was an example of power. They had to crush him. Charlie's Place, from Atlas Obscura and Visit Myrtle Beach. Listen to Charlie's Place on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This Women's History Month, the podcast Keep It Positive, Sweetie, celebrates the power of women choosing healing, purpose, and faith, even when life gets messy. Love is not a destination. You have to work on it every day. Keep It Positive, Sweetie creates space for honest conversations on self-worth, love, growth, and navigating life with grace and grit, led by women who uplift, inspire, and tell the truth out loud. I have several conversations with God, and I know why it took 20 years. To hear this and more, listen to Keep It Positive, Sweetie on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Comedy Saved Me. Louis Black, welcome to Comedy Saved Me. It is so great to have you here. Well, thank you. Man, you look great, you sound great, and you're still kicking ass, and I just love it. Well, that's nice of you to say. Louis, this show, Comedy Saved Me, is built around the idea that comedy saves people, but I really want to start at the source. Was there a moment early in your life when you first realized that comedy wasn't just something that made you laugh, but it actually was something that kept you going? You know, here's what's interesting. I didn't really start becoming, I didn't go really fully embrace the fact that I was going to do stand up until I was 40. Oh. So, you know, so I, comedy saved me in the sense that when I was a kid, I listened to it a lot. And I, because really what I wanted to be was a playwright or, and I really, well, that's really what I wanted to do. I wanted to be in theater. And have you written any plays recently? I haven't had the time, but one of the things that saved me was by doing stand-up and becoming well-known, They all of a sudden actually did a play of mine and I was able to get plays published. Oh, my gosh. But I had to become a comic to get them to do the plays. It was unbelievable. Well, congratulations on that. So that's sort of like a bucket list checkoff. Yes. And it still is. I still feel, you know, I would have been just as happy pursuing playwriting. But comedy sort of made it easier for you. So that's very exciting. It definitely opens doors for sure. I mean, when you're funny, everyone wants to be around you. Yeah, and it also was, it satisfied the fact that I was, the reason I did stand up initially was that I didn't, I was fascinated by the fact that people would just get up and make people laugh. And I was interested in the mechanics of that. But became really what absorbed me or what I was absorbed in eventually was the fact that it was, I could write, I could find out that the trouble when you write plays, you send them. And then two years later, you find out that they think your play sucks. There's a comic, you get up on stage, you write something. So it was a way in which I could get my writing out there and find out immediately and get an immediate reaction. And, uh, and so it was a way in which I could really be a writer. But as I've said time and again, if I was going to pick somebody to perform, initially I would have picked a hundred other actors that I knew to do the writing, except it was easier for me to just go across town and get up on stage. Yeah, yeah. It's not like you can be at every performance and see the audience reacting to your show that you're not in all the time. Well, you've described performing, Lewis, for a live audience as one of the most important relationships in your life. I found that very fascinating. When the pandemic shut all of that down for you, what did you actually lose and what did you discover about yourself sort of in that silent time when we were all locked away? What I lost was the fact that I could go to a town and people would come out and these people were happier to see me than I ever was to see myself. So there was always something uplifting about that because it was like, wow, I must be doing something. These people seem to be really happy about it. But what I lost, what I found out about, here's the problem I really had was that I was alone for 12 weeks. So I was in lockdown. I was in solitary confinement for 12 weeks. So if I was seeing somebody, I was seeing them on Zoom or talking on the phone, but it was 12 weeks mostly alone. And what I found out is that your brain, when given that much time alone, at first is like all excited. This is going to be the greatest thing ever. I got, finally, it's just us. And then within two days, your brain has gone through everything that you could possibly fascinate it. And it turns on you. And it really did with a vengeance. And that was rough. In what ways? I mean, I guess loneliness can be a killer. It wasn't the loneliness, but it was also, I was going through my whole life now and judging it again. Yeah. And not again, but for the first time, I'm like going through it and I'm like going, oh, and then you screwed this up. Then you screwed that up here. Here are all your relationships. Here's what you did with those. You did this. Then you did that. Then you did this. And I what was funny was the in in tragically, I I need you. I talk about the fact that what I what I found fascinating was when I finally was going on the road. and talking to audiences, I had like this 30 seconds to a minute where I would scream at myself and in the fashion that was occurring in my head and really being like, you know, you're a piece of this, you're useless, you're nothing, and going on and on and on. And I thought, well, you know, and I did it the first time and I thought, well, this, I finished and I thought, well, this will never, I won't be doing this again. And then the audience exploded with laughter And I went, wow, they all went through it. Yeah, you definitely. Everybody in this room experienced it. And that really stunned me and gave me, and actually that's, it really helped me begin to get back on track. Yeah, because too much time alone to think, like you said, can really go down rabbit holes that you don't want to go down. Yeah, especially when, I mean, you know this from probably your schedule. You know, if you've got that schedule, which is I was doing, I was doing 150 shows a year before the pandemic, even more. And so you've got all of that is taking up the time, you know. And so you don't really have time to worry about anything other than, oh, this is great. I'm going to be going there and then I'm going to be going there and then I'm going to be going there and this will be great. And I get out and da, da, da, da. So your time is all full. Yeah. And then it's not anymore. No. And now I remember, I think it was a documentary, Joan Rivers. She made sure that she had to have that calendar full all the time. She wouldn't accept an empty calendar. And now that you're saying that, I'm thinking to myself, that's probably why. Because too much time alone is not good. Well, Tragically, I Need You is such a perfect title for that experience. Where did the title come from and how much? I'm going to guess I might know the answer to that, but how much of the special is about your relationship with the audience versus the world falling apart around you? Well, it's it was pretty close to both. I mean, it was it was a balance, really. But it was really about, you know, the part of it was just to go out there and find out if I was the only one who was spraying the boxes that I was arriving in my apartment. you know with was I bleaching them too much was I going to die of bleach poisoning was this happened and this happened then then you had people unbelievably while I was developing the material you've got people heckling because you're telling him you wore a mask and it's like oh stop it I chose I didn ask you to wear one I chose it you idiots and you finding out all this stuff And then the Tragically I Need You it came at the end was because I do this kind of, you know, there's partly that thing where you're just telling the audience how much they meant to you and how great that is. But also by Tragically I Need You is like, you know, it takes the air out of it in a way. It's like it's, you know, it's great that I love you, but it's really tragic. It's tragic. Like, I need you. It's like the necessary evil. It is. And it's sick. It's sick that I want you. I need you this much. But tragically raises the stakes a little. Yeah. And it's sick in the best possible way, which is so funny. I mean, you really, you just speak for people and they just love it. You've turned anger into an art form, basically. And there's a real difference, though, between anger that destroys people and anger that heals people. And what you're doing is so healing. It's just how do you know when you've crossed the line, you know, from one of the other, you know, on stage or off? Because I literally it's it's when the anger becomes real and you can't. It's not a great comic move to be really angry. And it took me a while to learn that because you've got to play anger, which means, you know, that's if I have my strongest suit is my ability to play anger. I know where that line is. And you've got to go right up to just, you know, a little bit away from the line where you're really angry. And when I hit really angry, I have to stop and go up and basically turn to the audience and say, well, I've certainly gone over the line here. And then they respond because they know that you know that they know. Yeah, they can feel it. Yeah, because it doesn't help. And that was funny. I mean, initially, it was like, how are you going to do that? How are you going to be angry? I always had initially, when I was first doing stand-up, if I got really angry, I would turn around and yell at the wall behind me. I couldn't face the audience. And it took once I'd learned to do that and be able to just yell right at the audience. That was a big turning point. Everything changed. Now it did change. Lewis, do you have a defibrillator nearby or are you blood pressure medication? Like, how do you keep that anger from really affecting you in a negative way? Well, it's weird because. I love you're smiling when you're talking about being angry. Well, it's because it's, I've got perfect, because it's weird. I've got the best blood pressure of anybody I know. You do? My blood pressure is unbelievable. I mean, it's exactly what it should be. So whenever I go to the doctor, they go, well, we're going to take your blood pressure. I'm going to tell you, you're not going to believe this. And they do it, and it always is like, you know, spot on, you know, 120 over 70, but it's close to whatever that is. Yeah. Once early, early on, before I really had become comfortable as a comic, Esquire, somebody from Esquire was interviewing me. And they had a blood pressure thing that they brought. And they made you wear it? They made me wear it. And then they got me upset. They wanted to see what would happen. So they got me upset. And I was yelling and screaming about something. And then they did. And it only took less than a minute for my blood pressure to return to what it should be. Wow. So you're super healthy. And you're like an athlete, like a comedian athlete at the top of his game. Well, that's the kindest thing you've said all day. Oh, well, thanks. Using the word athlete for somebody who's going honk, honk, quack, quack, and really walking no more than 10 feet on either side of the mic. But it's funny. Yeah, my blood pressure is great. But I'm convinced every other organ, all my organs are rotting. Everything else is bad. That's impossible because all that laughter is just so healthy. It's like medicine. You know, a lot of comedians talk about using the stage to process pain. And your material, it often feels like it's processing a shared pain, especially I've seen a few of your rant casts where people write in what really bothers them and pains them. And the frustration that we all kind of feel, but we can't really articulate or do it well, or even do it in public without getting things thrown at them. How conscious are you of being that vessel for other people? It's just, for some reason, one thing that really did it was being able to do the RANDcast. Because not just that, I mean, when it started way back, it's just being able to take from people what it is that really bothers them. Because I'm, you know, what bothers me is the comic is, you know, these people read, you know, I'm not really leading a real life, okay? I understand. Let's face it, I'm up in front of people and ha ha ha, and I'm on The Daily Show and I did a movie. And I am just in a pain that it's fun. You know, it's always been, I've never kind of went high up the ladder, partly because I didn't really care about, what I cared about was doing what I was doing. It wasn't like, let's get a publicist and I'll go out with hootie patootie and then we'll, you know, pretend that we're having a relationship. And, you know, it's insane. So this was it was always about, you know, the reading those things really gave me a sense of like the person who who really is the one who is working in a in a Walmart and has to talk to these people on a daily basis. And what drives them nuts are the person who the one who has to deal with a real health issue, has to deal with trying to get health insurance. So all of that has kept me somewhat in touch with what's going on. And also, all you got to do is pick up a newspaper in a sense. It's always been there. It's always on the front page. These people are getting screwed. These people are getting screwed. These people are getting screwed. Or these people are doing really well. These people are doing really well. And while they're doing really well, you know there's a whole group of people who are getting screwed because they're doing really well. So it's always kind of been there in front of me in a sense. So when I started talking about health insurance, you know, it was easy because it was, how tough is that? Everybody is, it's like, you know, are they kidding? You know? It's so true. Well, they go, you know, I mean, you got an idiot, these idiots, well, we got the best health industry on earth. What is the matter with you? We're dying. We're paying more, dying faster. You just can't, they're facts that we have to deal with. And then what really made it easy was I was hospitalized in Ireland for pneumonia. I said it was like one of the great experiences of my life. I was in there for 10 days, and I had a pretty bad case of it. And they were phenomenal. The whole thing. Because you're always treated, well, you know, you wouldn't want to be treated over there. Yeah, you would. You know, because, you know, like their instruments that they use on you are eerily similar to ours. It's not like they're out there. That's crazy, Lewis. What are you telling me? You know, they're not out there with like, I'm going to clip these. Yeah, exactly. It's, you know, I'm going to clip these things on your ears and we're going to fight. No. Yeah. With no Novocaine. Right. I'm going to sniff your urine and tell you what's wrong with you. It's really, they were great. The nurses were great. The whole thing. And it was, and then in the end, what was truly great was I'm in a hospital for 10 days, soup to nuts, everything, including all of the, you take a massive amount of antibiotics. And all of that, plus the antibiotics they gave me to take home with me, was $850 a day. Wow, that's insane. It's staggering. So it was $8,500 for everything, from the examination, doctors, everything. Nothing, no breakdown, no, oh, but you use this many tissues. No, $850 a day, which I said you could get in New York, you could get. But that's what you might get a room like. A room here might cost $850. But a hooker in a nurse's outfit isn't going to show up. So for $850, you can't. And people really still in the audience didn't realize how cheap it was. Because they still hear, well, that's a lot. Yeah, it's a lot. But in comparison to what you'd be spending here, you know, what we would spend a day in the hospital. Well, it's true. And you touch on something that one thing I learned early on was that you don't mess with people. There's two things you don't mess with. You don't mess with other people's wallets or their family. You know, what you're saying is it touches everybody. And that's why you don't mess with it. Yeah. And it's also it's exactly in its health. Yeah. And the one thing that you will get people to pay a premium on, it's like, well, unless you give us $2 million, you're going to die. Well, you know what? They're going to do everything they can to find the $2 million. Oh, they will. And by the way, boys and girls, this is just a sampling of the Rantcast. But the really cool thing is you literally are reading other people's frustrations to camera. What has that experience taught you about what's really eating people alive right now? It's everything. I mean, and what's really interesting is that you don't really know with some people what's really bothering them because they're screaming about the fact that they like smooth peanut butter more than they like chunks. I mean, I got a thing once from a guy. It's still one of the ones, the great ones, which was the guy who got it. he wanted smooth peanut butter but it was chunky and he flipped out i mean it was it was seven minutes of rage about and i mean and you kind of go wow how do you hate chunky peanut butter that much so there's something else that's going on that's deeper but you but it's you know pickles they get up there was the rotaries uh that's at least any place where they've got to go around you know, in a circle to go that's supposed to be faster. Potholes and drivers who don't know how to merge into traffic. I mean, and it goes up and there's a scale that just goes up until you've got a kid who was going to join the Mormon church. But it was on the day in which, you know, you've got, there's that time frame where you have a ceremony and you're supposed to go down for that. It's also the day in which the Mormons said that homosexuality was a sin or whatever it was that they went out of, you know, they went and, you know, basically they said, you know, you can't be a homosexual and be a part of the church. And he just went, okay, that's it. I'm not done. And that's it. And that was the first, that was unbelievable to me. That was one of the first ones I got. I never had actually there have been all sorts of things that have been really well written and beautifully expressed A lot of the frustration like mayonnaise Mayonnaise I just thought that was awesome You were laughing I wonder if people get excited too when they make you laugh when you reading their rants yeah they get a big kick out of that they really think i made him laugh oh my god you're like a therapist and like you're you're allowing them to feel what you feel when you're on stage yeah which is really uh it's been it's well and it was also it helped me because especially one of the things that got me through the pandemic because I wasn't going to do a Zoom. Zoom comedy made no sense to me. I just, unless I felt the people there, there's kind of like, I mean, it's one thing to be doing what we're doing now and I'd make you laugh. But having 10 people or 20 or 30, it's just different. It's a different kind of a thing. It's not performing in the space with the bodies, with the humans, with them there. Yeah. So it's hugely different. But what I did know, I could stay in touch with my comedy by reading people's rants. Because I knew how it was like a piece of music. I know how to do a rant. To me, it's like music. So you give me the rant, I can read it. And that really is what kept me going. We'll be right back with more of the Comedy Save Me podcast. It's the new me and it's the old them. Everybody's on their journey and your journey is different to theirs. This Woman's History Month, the podcast, If You Knew Better with Amber Grimes, spotlights women who turn missteps into momentum and lessons into power. I think coming out of where I came from, I'm from the Bronx. I think I grew up really poor. I didn't know that then because I very much use my creativity to romanticize life. And I'm like, my mom did a really good job of like, you step back and you're like, whoa, we, I don't know how we made it. So a lot of my life was like built out of like survival to get to the next place. Like my drive, my like tunnel vision of like, I got to be better. I got to achieve this was off the strengths of like, I want to make a better life for us. If You Knew Better brings real talk from women who've lived it. Unpacking career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mindset shifts that changed everything. Listen to If You Knew Better with Amber Grimes on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Almost 30 years together, four kids, and some of reality TV's most unforgettable moments, we know a thing or two about living life out loud. We're taking you behind the scenes in our new podcast, Between Us, with me, Heather Dubrow. And me, Terry Dubrow. Between Us isn't about perfect lighting or curated Instagram grids. It's the unfiltered, behind-closed-doors conversations you wish you could eavesdrop on. Equal parts smart, funny, and a little bit scandalous. Every week, Heather will bring you an unapologetic take on the headlines, the trends, and the cultural moments everyone's texting about. And Terry will deliver insider beauty, health, and wellness insights you won't find on TikTok. Together, we'll tell the stories, spill the secrets, and share the hacks that keep life, marriage, and everything in between feeling fresh and fun. We may live in a gated community, but there's zero gatekeeping here. And plenty of, did they just say that moments? Listen to Between Us on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Usually on This Podcast Will Kill You, we talk about the diseases, infections, and biological threats that can make us really sick. But right now, we're doing something a little different. We're stepping back and looking at what the human body needs to keep going. When you consider what we know about sleep in humans, there's one rule that comes out. We are predictably unpredictable sleepers. We're talking about why sleep works the way it does, why our bodies don't follow neat rules, and why modern life makes rest so hard to come by. The second half of our series takes us to the digestive system with a multi-part series on what happens after we eat. Okay, I just have to say that all of my favorite words apparently are digestive words. Sphincter, peristalsis, duodenum. It's fascinating, it's funny, and it matters so much more than you think. Episodes of our new series run from January 20th through February 17th with new episodes every Tuesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to This Podcast Will Kill You as part of the Exactly Right Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, I'm Danielle Robay, host of Bookmarked, the podcast by Reese's Book Club. And this week on Bookmarked, we're basically hosting the ultimate girls' night. Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Garner, Judy Greer, Rita Wilson, and Gauri Rice, and author Laura Dave. These are the women behind season two of the Apple TV series, the last thing he told me. We're talking about turning a book into a hit show and what it really takes to bring a story to life. The most important metric for me is do I want to share this book with somebody? That's what creates community and that's the main thesis of our book club and why we started it was just to connect people together. Listen to The Bookmarked by Risa's Book Club podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back to the Comedy Save Me podcast. What do you want people to feel when they walk out of one of your live shows, when they come to see you? Not what you want them to think, but more what you want them to feel. Well, it's really both, but I want them to know they're not crazy. Yeah. That's really what I want them to know. you know in a way do you feel that at this point in your life doing this is sort of giving back because of your successes all throughout your career doing it now is just because i'm stupid you are not stupid at all this is the smartest thing i've heard any comedian say in a long time like i'm gonna channel all of your anger and i'm gonna get it out for you and you're gonna get to watch me and i'm gonna laugh at your stuff and you're gonna feel so good it's like you're giving him a taste of your medicine. Yeah, but really for me, it's like anybody else at this point, my age should be going, okay, I did it. See ya. But still, I did stop doing 100 shows a year. I mean, it was just getting, it was, we moved from an industrial age into this technological age. Yes. And with that came the end of the way in which I was able to get audiences to come out, which was through radio and television. And we're now down to, you know, this. Yeah. So and I have not been able to and I really didn't make that transition, nor did I want to. By the way, for those listening, he held up his phone. Yeah. Oh, yeah. I forgot. Not talking to me. Yeah. Sorry. No, it's true. That's funny. So I really did. The phone was really, you know, and my friend Kathleen Madigan, who's very, she's a great comic. She has really found a way to, you know, find that audience, get them, you know, has a whole communication with them. I really just never made that jump because I just didn't have it. Also, kind of my time was up in partly in a sense, in the sense that I really wasn't up for doing 150 shows a year. How many jokes can you make about, I mean, the Democrats to this, the Republicans to that. I've done that 25 different ways. I'm like, you know, look, no, we're not doing it. I'm not looking for the 26th. And then the audience, too, in the part was starting to come in with, we got an audience that's, and it's easier for me if I do it twice a month, is that you've got an audience that are living in two separate realities. I mean, and they really are. Yeah. And it's true. I mean, each group of people, and there may be actually 15 realities. I was going to say that there might be a lot more than just two. Yeah. No, there's a certain group that's really out there. But it really is two separate realities, and both of them can be offended easily, which is lunacy. You know, when you're saying that, how important is it in your book to be able to laugh at yourself? Oh, I think it's really important. Even if you're not a comedian, just an average person, how important is it? And why? I think it's important because it's the ultimate sign of humility is to be able to go, boy, I'm an idiot. Boy, this is really, what did I just do? It shows the fact that you are humble. You're not the smartest one around. And that's really important. I think it's important. I think you're absolutely right. And also the fact that it's okay to laugh at yourself. And when you learn that it is okay, maybe it also might help to teach you to take responsibility for yourself. And then that goes in a really positive direction. Yeah. But I don't think a lot of people give themselves permission to do that, though, because they don't know it's okay. Look, the thing that I find astonishing over my career is I get to a point, too, where it's always worked that whoever was the president, I could make jokes. I could say whatever I wanted about it. And this is the first time where all of a sudden, because it has always been what attracted my audience, I felt in part was just that I had not a lot of respect for authority or stupidity. And so all of a sudden, this whole group of people who are now enamored with the president are, this is a whole group of people who were, a lot of whom were fans of mine. And they were fans because of that, because I didn't have that thing for authority. And now here they are going, well, you can't say about, what are you talking about? People are doing that to you? Oh, yeah. No, still. Oh, yeah, no, they still get angry. I get it on a variety of platforms. They'll say stuff, and I'm stopped. You know, it was like, no, come on, guys. But they'll yell stuff. And then people in the audience will yell at them. You know, you didn't really, you used to be more even-handed. I was never even-handed. Oh, my God. Now you've got to go like the Blues Brothers and perform behind a gate on stage. You know, it's calm. down a bit. It's only in the sense that they don't yell stuff, but they're, it's pretty still amazing to me. Wow. Wow. Yeah. Times certainly have changed. And with all the social media too, it's, it, there's, there's a lot of voices for a lot of people that normally, you know, I was just thinking today, Lewis, you remember that saying that, you know, what somebody else thinks about you is none of your business. Yeah. Like, how does that even work today? Cause everybody wants to know what everyone says about them now. It's unbelievable. It's, It's kind of what, and what really they don't get, because I'll get these, it's amazing. I'll get something on Twitter or something else where somebody comments and, or on my, you know, on the Randcast on the, you know, the comments that come in afterwards. And I'm looking at them and I'm going, and I read it and it says somebody from, you know, says I'm not funny. And I read it as if it's like a review from the New York Times. It's the L.A. papers. I'm going, look at that. Good God. What am I going to do? You know, and I'm going and then it takes like or I should write this person back. What is the matter with me? Do you? Did you? Do I write back? No. Oh, good. I did initially. What I did do initially and I've stopped doing it was I would if I could get to you. They made it more difficult on this. But I would if if there was a thing where I could write to them without writing on the the Twitter itself I would write to them directly and say gee you know I sorry I disappointed you Oh, my God. That is so nice of you. You're like the sweetest person ever. Gee, I didn't really say, wow, I can't believe you wrote me back. Oh, now you're cool because you wrote them back. Yeah. Exactly. Now you're cool. Before, they had no problem being a cowboy keyboard cowboy. Yeah, exactly. No, it's pretty. Well, you probably you probably experience a lot of it. It's horrible. No, no. Zero. That's great. Oh, see, now that I'm saying this now, I will. No. Oh, that's good. I actually right when in the late 90s when I moved or actually at the turn of the century, Louis, when I moved to New York City, that was when all of that tech kind of exploded. It was more like emails and stuff like that. And I always considered myself so lucky that by the time I left, sort of, I was hosting a television show and I sort of went behind the scenes because I enjoyed it all. But it was, you know, I was so grateful not to be sort of public facing with social media because, well, right now we're talking. So you're hearing my opinion. And and but I don't need to go tell everybody every time something happens on social media what I think about it. Right. I just find that it's a waste of my time. So good. Well, it's smart. I mean, you know, I've stopped doing I mean, unless I have a good joke, I don't do it much. No, because it makes you become the worst version of yourself, like because you get sucked into that vortex. And I think what, you know, if you can find a way to give back without having to do that, I mean, there's nothing better. And what you're doing really is that. But I don't think you can ever retire, Lewis, because you'll end up like it was in the pandemic. And then you'll have like rant cast 2.0. It'll be like you won't be able to do it without being in every room of your house. You'll have it live 24-7. I will in part because I want to you know the hard thing right now is I want to clear things out so that I can write I want to write I want to write another play I want to write another book and I don't um it's hard I don't have that kind of energy that I had where I could do stuff and then I really want to give you give the time and the energy to getting getting it out because I really, I think there's another book in me. I think there's a play in me. That's exciting stuff. Well, for anyone who hasn't seen Tragically I Need You streaming now on YouTube, can you give them their best pitch of why they need you and it in their life right now? Well, I think, I don't think, one of the, the only reason I think you watch Tragically I Need You is because we have not, But what's really we have not recovered is the people from the pandemic, not even close. And if you want it for all of this stuff of like, well, gee, what's going on? I'll tell you what's going on. You had a group of people locked up who never were locked up, who socialized, who met over a water cooler, who watched. It occurred at the same time that this phone nonsense that all of that, where there was a complete change in terms of the way in which we get our information. Everything changed at exactly the same time. And we're hit with a virus that can, whether you like it or not, can kill people. And so I think that the reason you watch is because it's a touchstone of what it might help you realize what happened to you or to your kids or your friend. because I'm still a little rocky from that point in time, and it drives me nuts that I am. No, but you're not alone. There's a lot of people, myself included. It was definitely a life-changing experience for hundreds of millions of people. Yeah, it was, and I don't think they've come back from it, and I think it's what makes people go, gee, everybody's yelling at each other. That's why, because they lost the ability to communicate. Yes, and the communicating that was coming in at us was so shocking because everyone had time to actually pay attention for the first time to see what was going on. That's kind of shocking in and of itself. You know, where can people find you, Louis Black, on tour, and where do they go to submit their rage for your rant cast? Because I know a lot of people are going to, want to. Right. Well, if you if you want to if you go to Lewis Black dot com, it'll tell you exactly how to. A, it'll lead you to where you can watch some of the radcasts and see what I mean in terms of that. In terms of what I'm reading, you can write in anything. I don't care what bothers you. It can be small. It can be gigantic. And so that's what I'm you know, you see, go to Lewis Black dot com. And that also will tell you where I'm performing. So like, God, I can't. April 11th, I'm in Chandler, Arizona. I'm impressed. No one ever knows their schedule. Oh, boy. Yeah. When you have six dates, it's no problem. Yeah. Instead of 106. Yeah. So there's a casino in Chandler. I can't think of the name. And then I'm going to be at the Mystic Casino. I think it's called on May 1st outside of Minneapolis in Minnesota. Oh, very cool. Now, let's just do an example of your rants real quick. Because I'm not submitting a rant to you, but I will just give you the topic, if I may. Yeah. Bring your own bags to the supermarket after you've just gone and spent half of your life's fortune for the food. And then they are. Can you just put that is my that. And yeah, we can. That's your main beef. You don't want to eat what you want them to give you the bag. I don't do anything. All I do, my socialization is going to the supermarket and talking. Like all my friends are at the supermarket and then I work. So, you know, at least they could give me a bag for all the money. What's amazing is that first time when you go in there and they go, and I'll never forget it the first time I went in, it's, well, you're going to have to pay 10 cents for a bag. I go just pay, I've spent $42 on stuff. And I got an eggplant. I got this. I got this. I got this. How much money do I have to? No, we're switching to this. But you can buy a bag for 50 cents and you can always use it again. And now we have the bags. I got 100 bags now. I bought them. I've got them. They hand them to me. People have handed me bags. I've bought things where they go, here's this bag. It's recyclable. You'll be able to take it. And I never remember them. I don't go out with an empty bag. But people do it. A lot of people do it. People who seem to have more cognizance than I do. I know. And then you go to the store and you forget the bags. So then you have more bags. And then your whole trunk is filled with bags. There's bags in your basement because you didn't take it out to the car. It's all over the garage. And then all of a sudden it's like, wait a minute. Now we're getting away from the whole reason why we were doing this in the first place? First place, yeah. Oh, my gosh. Thank you for letting me get that off my chest. Oh, yeah, and the other great one, somebody wrote in a thing which is also along those lines. Somebody wrote in a spectacular one about how long the receipt is at a drugstore. But especially a drugstore where, you know, it's like it goes on for days and days and days. You bought three things, but it's a foot and a half that you're taking home with you. Yes, and half of the forest to print out the stupid receipt. Yes, exactly. But you've got to bring your own bags. Yeah. It's insanity. Louis Black, thank you so much for coming on Comedy Save Me and sharing your story with us. It's just amazing. And it's been amazing to watch your entire career. And you're still kicking ass. And I love it. And I love you. I met you in the 90s. And I've always been a fan. And I just can't wait to see what's next. Well, thank you. And, you know, and then for those of you who have kids, I'm the boy. What's really nuts, I'm the voice of SpongeBob, of Santa Claus. Santa Claus on SpongeBob? On SpongeBob. It's like three or four years of it. I just did a whole bunch of others. You're kidding. That is like my nephew's favorite show. Casey, that's all we watch when he shows up here, SpongeBob. When we're eating a meal, we got to watch SpongeBob. Well, if you track down Louis Black on SpongeBob, I'm on a lot of them. I mean, around Christmas. It's crazy. That's awesome. You're so cool, Louis. I love it. Oh, my gosh. Well, I could talk to you for hours more, but I know you're on high demand. Well, give me, we can do this again sometime. It's certainly a pleasure. All right, listen, next time I'm going to send you a car, because I'm right in Connecticut, just over the border. And you can come sit in the studio, and I'll feed you. Oh, great. You got a deal. And we'll have fun. No, that'll be good. Do it when it's warm. All right, I will. Well, that's great. I look forward to it. Me too. Thank you so much. Thank you. I'm Buzz Knight, and thanks for listening to Comedy Save Me with Lynn Hoffman. And do check out our other podcast, Lynn Hoffman's Music Save Me podcast. Also, Sarah Harrelson and Taking a Walk Nashville. And don't forget also about Taking a Walk, hosted by yours truly. All shows are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and are part of the iHeart Podcast Network. When segregation was a law, one mysterious black club owner, Charlie Fitzgerald, had his own rules. Segregation in the day, integration at night. It was like stepping in another world. Was he a businessman? A criminal? A hero? Charlie was an example of power. They had to crush him. Charlie's Place, from Atlas Obscura and Visit Myrtle Beach. Listen to Charlie's Place on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is the biggest night in podcasting. The countdown is on to our 2026 iHeart Podcast Awards. Live from South by Southwest, March 16th, We'll honor the very best in podcasting from the past year and celebrate the most innovative, talented creators in the industry. It's truly a who's who of the podcasting world. Creativity, knowledge, and passion will all be on full display. And the winner of the iHeart Podcast Award is... 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