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TRIGGERnometry

Legendary Comedy Cellar Owner on Louis CK, Comedy & Cancel Culture

TRIGGERnometry

Konstantin Kisin & Francis Foster

News, Politics, Society & Culture

4.62.6K Ratings

🗓️ 14 May 2023

⏱️ 68 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Noam Dworman is the owner of the world-famous Comedy Cellar in Manhattan, New York City. The comedy club's stage has been graced by some of the biggest comics who have ever lived - including Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Bill Burr, Louis CK and Robin Williams.

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About TRIGGERnometry:

Stand-up comedians Konstantin Kisin (@konstantinkisin) and Francis Foster (@francisjfoster) make sense of politics, economics, free speech, AI, drug policy and WW3 with the help of presidential advisors, renowned economists, award-winning journalists, controversial writers, leading scientists and notorious comedians.

00:00 Intro
01:23 Noam Dworman’s Background
03:40 What is So Special About Stand-up Comedy?
05:47 Is the Comedy Industry Shrinking?
07:26 Positives of Censorship in Comedy
16:54 Importance of Freedom of Expression
20:05 Sponsor Message: Locals
21:06 Have People Become More Orthodox in their Thinking?
22:01 How Have We Reached a Time Where People Are Afraid to Speak Out?
25:49 How Social Media Has Changed Comedy
30:04 Louis CK
37:20 Mob Justice
47:41 Identity Politics & the Education System
53:25 Plans for The Comedy Cellar
54:31 What Makes a Great Comedian?
1:01:57 Will the Comedy Cellar Live On?
1:05:11 What’s the One Thing We’re Not Talking About?

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Why do you think that we've reached this point where people are afraid to speak out and people are afraid to say what they think and to challenge ideas?

0:08.0

It started with just more and more solicitiveness towards young people to not be offended by this and not be offended by that.

0:15.0

Has that changed? Comment on the introduction of social media. Do you think people now say things differently or come and do shows differently or anything like that?

0:23.0

It's not just social media. It's the fact that everything is forever. I think what is really important is not mentioning enough is that we really are living in a golden age of comedy.

0:33.0

The seller must be empty because the world is furious that the seller allowed Louis CK to perform, but actually nothing changed.

0:41.0

They were pretending to be much more really bothered than there was. I say, Louis won a Grammy, but it was a secret ballot.

0:48.0

I'm sure many of those people who voted for him would never admit that they voted for him or wouldn't have voted for him if their vote was going to go public.

0:54.0

But primarily, they didn't care enough not to get in the Grammy.

0:58.0

It's two idiot comedians start a podcast and start talking to people. That's brave. What the fuck is going wrong?

1:05.0

Hello and welcome to Trigonometry on the road from the USA. I'm Francis Foster. I'm Constantine Kissen. And this is a show for you if you want honest conversations with fascinating people.

1:26.0

Our terrific guest today is the legendary owner of the legendary comedy seller here in New York.

1:32.0

Welcome to Trigonometry. Do you know what happened there? We were talking about Noam Chomsky all day.

1:42.0

I said to Francis, I better not fuck up Noam. I'm sorry. We've been friends for a long time, but a lot of people who are watching the show will not have any idea who you are because you're behind the scenes.

1:58.0

You don't speak up too much, etc. Who are you? What's been a journey through life? And also tell us about the journey through life of the comedy seller itself because it's a family thing.

2:08.0

I'm the owner of the comedy seller. I've been the owner of the comedy seller since 2004, so when my father died, you want to know what he did before that?

2:18.0

Yeah. Before that, I went to the University of Pennsylvania Law School. I passed the bar and then never practiced law.

2:28.0

People will think I didn't start it, but I started a club called the Cafe Wah, which now has a reputation for having existed all these years.

2:38.0

But actually the Cafe Wah originally closed in 1968. It was a place where Jimmy Hendrix involved.

2:43.0

Anyway, I took that name and restarted a nightclub, and I spent like 20 years just on stage playing music.

2:49.0

It was very successful until my father died, and then I had to make some tough choices, and I sold the Cafe Wah, and I devoted my time to the comedy seller.

2:59.0

That's what I've been doing ever since.

3:01.0

And your dad started the comedy seller?

...

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