by Ryan Meehan
Adam Newman is a New Hampshire-born, Georgia-schooled, Brooklyn-based comedian who has appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman and John Oliver’s New York Stand-Up Show on Comedy Central. He recently taped his own episode of Comedy Central’s The Half Hour, which comes out later this year. Adam was among Comedy Central’s first class of “Comics to Watch” to perform at the New York Comedy Festival, and was invited to showcase as a “New Face” at the prestigious Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal. His debut stand-up CD, Not for Horses, was released by Rooftop Comedy to critical acclaim. Adam’s TV appearances include MTV’s The CollegeHumor Show, various talking head shows on the TV Guide Network, the Tyra Banks Show (weird!), and dozens of CollegeHumor Originals on CollegeHumor.com. Most importantly, though, Adam is also a co-host of Butt Talk, the world’s #1 Number 2 podcast and he’s our guest today in 7 questions.
RM: When did you first start doing comedy; and what was the first joke you told that got a really positive response? What was that moment like for you?
AN: I started in July 2006. The first joke I had that got a really good response was, “Do you think if they put Jesus on the penny, it would be called a JC Penny?” It got a laugh so big it genuinely surprised me. I still think it’s a pretty good joke, but it’s not THAT good of a joke.
RM: How long did it take for you to get to the point of total control when you are on stage doing stand-up in most situations? How often do you think about control when a crowd is a little bit more rowdy than usual?
AN: Haha. I don’t think I’ve ever been in total control in any stand-up situation! I think I’ve gotten more comfortable and confident the longer I’ve done it, and have just gotten better at rolling with hard-to-control situations.
RM: How did you think your “Comedy Central’s Half Hour” performance went? Are you the type of guy who still gets excited when he sees himself on television; or are you past all of that by this point in your career?
AN: I’m very happy with The Half Hour. I felt comfortable on stage, and Comedy Central let me do the material I wanted. And sure I’m excited to be on TV! I hope I don’t ever get past that point. It’s exciting when the thing you’ve worked really hard on finally gets seen by lots of people.
RM: I’m probably going to regret asking this…but what’s “Butt Talk”? Who is your co-host and what type of things are discussed on that show? How sexy would you consider your own posterior to be on a scale of one to ten; where one is flat and ten is Beyonce?
AN: Butt Talk is the world’s #1 Number 2 podcast. Me and friend Nate Fernald talk about all things butts with a different guest once a month or so. As far as rating my own ass, the only number that should ever be “ass”igned to any butt for any reason is the number 2.
RM: What’s the most overrated aspect of being a stand-up comedian? Why do you think people glorify that particular portion of the profession; and does that frustrate you at all?
AN: I think people think we get tons of money and girls, and that’s frustrating because we only get kind of a lot of money and girls.
RM: I was reading one of the user reviews of your Album “Not for Horses” on Laughspin and someone suggested that you are “A bit verbose at times where verbal economy would drive the joke better”…Would you agree with that statement; or do you think that you only use certain verbiage when necessary? What’s the harshest criticism you’ve heard of your stand-up work, and how did you react to it?
AN: I think I maybe agree with that statement, but I also think I’m a lot better than when that record came out, and that probably wouldn’t be a criticism of me anymore. The harshest criticism I get is from YouTube commenters on a daily basis. I try not to react to them at all, but sometimes for the meanest ones, I can’t help responding with a simple, “Thank you for your view!” I hope this answer wasn’t too verbose.
RM: What can you tell me about this bizarre incident that happened to you back in 2012 where you were being heckled, the heckler got up to use the bathroom, and you grabbed his jacket only to find cocaine in it? How much did he have on him?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/30/adam-newman-finds-cocaine-on-heckler_n_2218699.html
AN: Some guy was heckling the host and opening comedians, and when I went out he had gotten up to go to the bathroom. I thought it would be funny to put his coat on while he was gone, and…well…you can see what happened. I don’t know how much he had, it was just a little baggy. I don’t know much about cocaine, so I can’t tell you in terms of grams, eight balls, or amounts of good times he had.
RM: Out of all the different technological advances that have occurred since you’ve become a headliner, which do you feel is the best way for an up and coming comedian to network with other comics, bookers, and club owners?
AN: I’ve been a headliner for about 8 minutes. But I don’t think it matters how advanced technology gets, I think going to open mics, getting good, and meeting people who you’ll come up with is still the best way. When you’re good enough, the bookers will come for you.
RM: What’s up next for you in the remainder of 2014 and beyond? Anything big in the works that we should know about?
AN: We’re at 9 questions. I already gave you a bonus.
Official Website: http://adamnewmancomedy.com/
Adam on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Adam_Newman
Adam on Facebook: www.facebook.com/adamnewmancomedy
Once again thanks for visiting First Order Historians and enjoying more of the internet’s finest in user generated content.
Meehan
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