For the Love of Funny: Tom Papa Takes His Comedy Personally

2023-09-27

We’re knee-deep in our “For the Love of Funny” series, celebrating all things hilarious and witty. Jen’s been a long-time fan and amateur participant in the world of comedy, and our guest today explores one of her tip-top favorite genres of comedy. He's a master of observational humor, turning even the most mundane moments of life into pure comedy gold. Our guest, Tom Papa, is not just a comedian—he's a whirlwind of talent with a remarkable career spanning two decades. From his uproarious Netflix specials "What A Day" and "You're Doing Great," to his writing and stand-up projects in comedy clubs and for shows like NPR’s "Live From Here," to his acting roles, Tom has done it all. He and Jen discuss the common theme of mining gold from your family to create some of your best comedy material (but avoiding presenting that said material to them, because family can be brutal critics). They also discuss Tom’s new passion–baking, and how between writing, doing comedy and various shows, he’s in the kitchen tending to all the processes involved with producing amazing bread and other baked goods. To that end, Tom also hosts his own podcast called "Breaking Bread with Tom Papa," where he invites guests for lively discussions over meals. Like a lot of comedians, Tom is more than just funny—he's a thoughtful, insightful individual who gives you something to think about between all the laughs.

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Thought-Provoking Quotes:

“My uncle Tony was really funny. He would sit at the table and hold court. Then some cousins were funny, and so I definitely gravitated toward those people; that always kind of informed me. And I started doing that around my friends very, very early.” - Tom Papa

“[In my comedy] I relate through family and the small stuff. It's like it is observational, but it's not. It's very personal observational, in a way." - Tom Papa

"When you’re around people that are doing what you want to do, in time, you just want someone to say, 'it'll work. Just tell me. It'll work out.' It's like sometimes you go to the doctor, 'just tell me everything's all right.'" - Tom Papa

“[My favorite thing] is standup, but that almost goes without saying. That's just me. So to even call that one of the things is kind of not fair. It's so good. It's so great. You get the response, you get the physical, the mental, the applause, the scariness, all of it is so raw and potent out of the other stuff that I do." - Tom Papa

"One of the biggest hurdles that writers have is, is your own head saying, 'is this good enough?' And you start tearing it down and stop yourself from working with your critical mind." - Tom Papa

"There's a quiet joy I have knowing as you're baking over an hour and you're opening the oven and taking the lid off of the dutch oven and then just knowing when you hit that point where the house is now filled with that smell, there's a quiet, I know I'm doing good; I may not be giving you great advice, or maybe, I've been a little short, who knows? But at least I added this." - Tom Papa

“There's a perspective that you get at a certain stage in life. Right now there's lots of change and there's lots of external forces and internal stuff. There's a lot going on, but I feel like I've played this game and have a calmness and a perspective that is really, really valuable.” - Tom Papa

Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

Class Clown (Comedy Album by George Carlin)

Let's Get Small (Comedy Album by Steve Martin)

The Comedy Store

Comedy Cellar

Gary Gulman

Ryan Hamilton

Maria Bamford

Colin Quinn

Mateo Lane

Ali Wong

Live From Here