Episode 454
with Paula Poundstone, Joey Clift, and Jimmie Herrod
Host Luke Burbank and announcer Elena Passarello share hometown slogans penned by Live Wire listeners; comedian Paula Poundstone makes time to chat between walking her dogs and bleaching her house; comedy writer Joey Clift, creator of Our Fifty States Project, explains how he crowdsourced musicians to make an album for every state in the union; and jazz vocalist Jimmie Herrod performs a spring-inspired song he composed during lockdown in his Manhattan apartment.
Paula Poundstone
Comedian
Paula Poundstone is known for her smart, observational humor and a spontaneous wit that has become the stuff of legend. Time magazine listed Paula’s HBO special, Cats, Cops and Stuff as one of The 5 Funniest Stand-Up Specials Ever. She was the first woman to share the dais with the President and perform standup at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. In addition, she was the first woman to win the CableACE award for Best Stand-up Comedy Special. Her second book The Totally Unscientific Study Of The Search For Human Happiness was one of eight semi-finalists for the Thurber Prize for American Humor, the highest recognition of humor writing in the United States. Recent episodes of her podcast Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone have covered biodiversity, taxes, and polar explorers, among many other topics. Website • Twitter
Joey Clift
Comedy writer
Joey Clift is a writer, performer, and enrolled Cowlitz Indian Tribal Member currently living in Los Angeles. He went to college to be a local TV weather person, because when he was in high school, he didn’t see any Native American comedians on television, so he didn’t think he was allowed to work in comedy. Over the last few years he has learned that that is absolutely not true, and he has written on shows for Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Nerdist, DreamWorks, and many more. Clift is now a staff writer for the animated fantasy-adventure show Spirit Rangers, which follows the adventures of a 21st century Native American family and is scheduled to premiere on Netflix in 2022. Website • Twitter
Jimmie Herrod
Jazz Vocalist
Jimmie Herrod is a singer, actor, composer, and a regular guest vocalist for the musical group Pink Martini. In addition to being the youngest member of the group, Herrod “out-degrees” all the other Pink Martini members with a Bachelor’s in music composition and performance from Cornish and a Master’s in Jazz Studies from Portland State University. In 2018, Herrod released a solo album of original works called Falling in Love and Learning to Love Myself, and in 2019 was the featured vocalist on Pink Martini’s album Tomorrow. Originally from Tacoma, Washington, Herrod is currently based in New York City, where he is active with numerous musical and theatrical groups. Website • Twitter
