The Comedy Cellar: Live From The Table

Jason Furman is the Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy jointly at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) and the Department of Economics at Harvard University.  He served eight years as a top economic adviser to President Obama acting as both President Obama’s chief economist and a member of the cabinet. Furman also served under President Clinton. Myq Kaplan is the host of Broccoli and Ice Cream and his most recent album is called AKA. 

Phillip Lopate is an American film critic, essayist, fiction writer, poet, and teacher. He is a professor at Columbia University’s School of the Arts, where he teaches nonfiction writing. He is also Noam's elementary school teacher. He joins us along with John Engle, Noam's first friend. 

Ariel Elias is a New York based comedian who mixes her unique personal stories with witty, wry observations. She was selected as a 2021 New Face for the Just For Laughs Festival, performed warm-up for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and has been featured in the New York Times, described as, “a sly young comic.” 

Bryan Caplan is a professor of Economics at George Mason University and New York Times Bestselling author. Dov Davidoff is a comedian, author, and real estate  investor. His mutiple television appearances include Crashing, Maron and Shades of Blue. He is a regular at The Comedy Cellar. 

Tim Wise is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and educators in the United States. He is the author of nine books, including his latest, Dispatches from the Race War.

Tanael Joachim (TJ) is a stand up comic who grew up in Haiti. He is an Op-Ed contributor to The NY Times and his debut special, January 3, is available on Amazon Prime. He is a regular at the Comedy Cellar.  Joe Lindsley is an American journalist living in Ukraine and the editor of Ukrainian Freedom News. He was the long time protege of Roger Ailes.  

Eric Neumann is a stand up comic who made his late night debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in February of 2022. He is a regular at the Comedy Cellar and his most recent album / special is called, But Enough About Me: A Crowdwork Album.    

Sean Wilentz is a professor of American History at Princeton.  He is the author of numerous books including Bob Dylan in America, a consideration of Dylan's place in American cultural history.  Myq Kaplan is a stand up comic and Comedy Cellar regular. His numerous television appearances include: Tonight Show, Conan, Letterman, James Corden and more. 

Kliph Nesteroff is the author of The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels and the History of American Comedy and We Had A Little Real Estate Problem: The Unheralded Story of Native Americans and Comedy.    James Mattern is a stand up comic and regular at The Comedy Cellar. His special is called The Check Spot. 

Akeem is a regular at the Comedy Cellar in NYC, was a semi-finalist on Stand Up NBC, has been seen on Kevin Hart’s LOL Network and just recently made his television debut on The Late Late Show with James Corden. He is on the new season of PAUSE with Sam Jay. 

Michael Tracey is a journalist for Substack. Has written for the Wall Street Journal, NY Daily News, The Nation, The Spectator, and other publications. Sean Patton is a Comedy Cellar regular whose multiple TV appearances include Maron, Inside Amy Schumer, Fallon, Conan and many more. 

Noam Dworman, Dan Naturman and Periel Aschenbrand discuss abortion and the overtuning on Roe v. Wade with famed attorney, author and Professor at Harvard Law school for fifty years, Alan Dershowitz. 

Ryder Kessler is a Working Families Party-endorsed candidate for New York State Assembly in the 66th District. He was the founding CEO of DipJar, and since 2016, he has worked in Democratic politics to take back the House, Senate, and White House, with a focus on voting rights. He is a member of Community Board 2 in Manhattan and has written extensively about the need for more vibrant, equitable, sustainable neighborhoods downtown. Mike Feeney’s appearances include NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly, Barstool Sports, Fox’s Laughs, Funny or Die and more. His stand up special is called “Rage Against The Routine.” He is a Comedy Cellar regular. 

Authors Matt Sienkiewicz and Nick Marx of That's Not Funny--which shows how much political and cultural power the right-wing comedy world has gained. Sienkiewicz is Associate Professor and Chair of the Boston College Communication Department and Marx is Associate Professor of Film and Media Studies in the Department of Communication Studies at Colorado State University.  Dan discusses being rejected from The Tonight Show. 

Dr Jo Boaler is a Stanford Professor. Former roles have included being a maths teacher in London schools. She is author of 18 books, numerous articles and a White House presenter on women and girls. Her latest book is called: Limitless Mind: Learn, Lead and Live without Barriers. She co-founded www.youcubed.org, is currently one of the writing team creating a new Mathematics Framework for the state of California, co-leading a K-12 Data Science Initiative and was named as one of the 8 educators “changing the face of education” by the BBC.

Mike Pesca is host of The Gist,and guest hosts the NPR Programs All Things Considered and the news quiz, Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me. His work has been featured on This American Life, Radiolab, and Planet Money. He has frequently appeared on MSNBC, CNN, and The PBS Newshour, and written for The Washington Post, The Guardian, GQ, Slate, and Baseball Prospectus. Tanael Joachim (TJ) is a stand up comic, a regular at the Comedy Cellar and an Op-Ed contributor for the New York Times. His first special, January 3 is available on Amazon Prime. 

Famed attorney, author and Harvard Professor and Comedy Cellar regular, comic Danny Cohen. 

Noam, Dan and Periel catch up: Dan gets to Vegas despite a cancelled flight, Louis CK's Grammy, Noam’s interview with The Hollywood Reporter about the slap, Justice Jackson, "Don't Say Gay" and more. 

A CONVERSATION highlighting the role of comedy as a political, moral and analytic tool in our time: Taboos are everywhere. Plain facts are being denied. Arguable propositions are foisted on us as if they were certainties. Decorum and politeness sometimes blind us or intimidate us or deceive us. The comic makes us laugh, for sure. But, in that act he also creates space for saying the unsayable. He has "plausible deniability." He can be a truth teller, a liberator, a sage... Featuring: Glenn Loury: Professor of Economic and Professor of International and Public Affairs, Brown University. Host of The Glenn Show podcast. He is among America’s leading critics writing on racial inequality. Roland Fryer: Harvard Economist, Macarthur "Genius" Fellow, Time 100 Honoree, McDonalds Employee of the Month specializing in Race and Education. Standup Comedian. Coleman Hughes: Writer, podcaster, rapper, and multi-instrumentalist who specialises in issues related to race, public policy and philosophy. Noam Dworman: Owner

Dan Naturman and Periel Aschenbrand are joined by comedian Mia Jackson and Juanita Dworman to discuss the slap heard around the world.  Mia Jackson is a Georgia native now living in New York.  Her first half hour special is available on Epix and her second half hour special is on Comedy Central. She is a regular at The Comedy Cellar.