Scott Aukerman first came onto the national radar as a writer and occasional performer on Mr Show. In the year’s since Mr Show’s cancellation, he’s probably most famous for his Comedy Death Ray show, which later evolved into the excellent podcast Comedy Bang Bang. He also has created his own network of podcasts under the banner Earwolf.com. Recently, IFC has opted to pick up Comedy Bang Bang as a TV show. He is also bringing Comedy Bang Bang on the road, and he will be doing the show with guests Paul F Thomkins, James Adomian, and opener Kurt Braunohler at The Herbst Theater in San Francisco on August 3rd. Tickets are available here!
SpinningPlatters had the opportunity to ask Mr Aukerman a few questions about his career, his future, and learning that he might not remember every minute bit of every sketch he’s ever written.
SP: Was it your idea or IFC’s idea to adapt Comedy Bang Bang to TV?
SA: Actually IFC came to me and asked if I were interested in having some sort of a talk show, based on the format of the podcast. I thought about it for around two seconds before deciding, “yeah, it would be great to have my own TV show!”
SP:Which radio program that was later adapted for TV do you consider to be most influential? I Love Lucy, Guiding Light, or Rush Limbaugh?
SA: I think the “news” has probably been the most influential – in fact, a lot of people don’t realize this, but it’s still on to this day!
SP: Are there any characters that you don’t think you will be able to adapt for TV?
SA: I’ve been having the most trouble adapting the “Scott Aukerman” character – he’s a tough one to nail down. He has a really weird face – the facial contortions I have to put myself through to look like him are very painful (in real life, I’m quite handsome).
SP: Has a listener ever submitted a “Would You Rather?” scenario that was too disturbing for the show?
SA: No, in fact, they’ve submitted scenarios that would literally change the world if I were to let them get out there – but as I am part of the 1%, I would never do that.
SP: Would you rather go see Phish again or prepare all of your meals with a fooderator?
SA: Not sure what a fooderator is, but since I would rather do literally anything than go see Phish again, I’ll take it.
SP:Is there anybody that you would like to have on your podcast or tv show that you seems unobtainable? Who is on your wish list?
SA: Well, we already had God on the show (and he pitched us some jokes), so at this point, I’m not sure if there’s anyone bigger!
SP: It’s been ten years since Run Ronnie Run was released… Have you worked on any other screenplays since then?
SA: I’ve actually written a bunch of screenplays – I have one at Imagine that I hope to get produced soon. Sort of a “Jumanji”-esque family adventure movie.
SP: Where do you see Earwolf in five years? 10 years?
SA: In five years – burnt to the ground. In ten years – rebuilt and thriving. In eleven years – burnt down again (I’m kind of a pyromaniac).
SP: What can we expect from the Comedy Bang Bang live show? How will it be different from the live Comedy Death Ray performances?
SA: With this tour, I’m trying to bring every part of the “Comedy Bang! Bang! experience – so it’ll be one part prepared live material like the old CDR shows, one part totally improvised character talk show, like the CBB podcast, and I’ll even show a sneak preview of our CBB TV show finale!
SP: Since the bulk of the podcast is improv, have you ever recorded a podcast that just didn’t work on any level?
SA: Yes – and I put them out every week. Haven’t you noticed?
