Have you ever observed a someone famous telling some outlandish story -- on TV, on stage or in an interview -- and wished you could interrupt and get a deeper look at just what the hell was going on in their head? Most of us are too polite (or shy) to do that, but thank god for Eugene Mirman. The comedian and actor best known as the voice behind Gene Belcher on Bob's Burgers is given a unique opportunity to do just that in every episode of his Audible Comedy series, Hold On with Eugene Mirman. A celebrity from the comedy world or Hollywood tells a story, and whenever the mood strikes him, he asks a question. It's kind of like a stand-up set and an interview show all at once, but with no protocol about what you can or can't say. And the results are nothing short of delightful.
Without giving away too much, here are some highlights from Eugene's great Hold On celebrity moments:
Eugene sat down with his Bob's Burgers co-star to hear about her dream vacation to the former set of the wine-obsessed 2004 film Sideways, where things went a little--you guessed it--sideways. A boozy bike ride with her husband gets gruesome after she takes a spill, landing face first. But some time passes before the seriousness of the situation sets in for her.
The champion of parody songwriting (and mind-boggling costume changes) spent decades of his career hiding behind his trademark mustache and chunky glasses. But when he considers ditching the frames and getting laser eye surgery, his optometrist makes him an unusual offer: he'll do the surgery for free if he agrees to have it done live on tv.
Beloved astrophysicist Neil Degrasse-Tyson is no stranger to Eugene's comedy -- Mirman has been a guest on his Star Talk podcast many times--which may be why he's so comfortable dishing about the time in grad school when he considered stripping down to pay the bills. He tells Eugene that he was a competitive ballroom dancer, and when he suggests to some of his dancing pals that he needs more work, they invite him to visit the club. Listen to the full episode to hear what happened next.
The Freaks and Geeks and Vice Principals star sat down with Eugene at SF Sketchfest in San Francisco to tell a very embarrassing story about going to her new boyfriend's ex-fiancee's wedding. Eugene gets into Busy's mind as she recounts an uncomfortable situation she does her very best to make as awkward as possible.
Karen Kilgariff is a familiar face to fans of the 90s comedy series Mr. Show, and her talents are even more familiar the people who watch the many shows she writes for and to listeners of her true crime podcast, My Favorite Murder. Earlier this year, she sat down with Eugene at the Bridgetown Comedy Festival in Portland, Oregon to tell a once-in-a-lifetime story about spending a night on the town with Bill Murray. There's only one catch: she'd had few too many.
