Sick in the Head: Conversations About Life and Comedy

“I’ve driven across the country,” said Jordi. “It’s not that great.” “It’s not supposed to be! Is a silent meditation retreat ‘great’? Do people hike the Pacific Crest Trail because it’s ‘great’? And this is even higher stakes because if my mind wanders too far I’ll crash and die.” “Oh god, don’t say that.” “But my mind won’t wander! I’ll be totall

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Thirdly, I realised I was much more afflicted by nerves than the rest of the cast. Some people love to perform, and I envy them, but I was often scared that I would make a mistake, get a rhythm wrong, not get the laugh. It was a mixture of lack of confidence and setting myself high standards. Comedians are always talking about how they see the audi

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One interpretation of Sam’s childhood is that he was simply waiting for it to end. That’s how he thought about it, more or less: that he was holding his breath until other people grew up so he could talk to them. “A lot of childhood just never made sense to me,” he said. “If you don’t find it magical to think about Santa Claus then it’s just fuckin

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