I Hate Bill Maher

Well, the content warning doesn't need to be as intense this week, but buddy you'd better believe we still have to talk about Bill Maher's flippant use of rape as a punchline. But who's "we", you ask? Why, it's none other than writer Ella Dawson, who has her own shameful history of teen Maher fandom. There's questions, there's a real time panel from absolute hell (a member of whom is now at least in symbolic hell), there's my ass talking way, way too fucking much... this one really got away from me, I'm trying to keep the run times down, I swear to God.Get Ella's book here (physical) or here (ebook/audiobook)Reminder to follow the Patreon FOR FREE so you can get updates/vote on stuff to cover in the future.

Oh boy! After a brief hiatus to watch a movie (what, did we have a substitute teacher hahahahahahahahaha *has a coughing fit*) we're back to the recaps, and this week we're joined by comedian and writer Emily Heller (What is...? A Jeopardy Podcast!). She very cleverly finds a way to largely not deal with the deep moral quandaries of the judgement free question zone before we plunge into what is absolutely the cruelest and nastiest episode of the show so far: Real Time season 1, episode 11. Genuinely, a big chunk of Real Time was spent talking about the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case, and they do NOT do it with tact or humanity, but look this is what I signed up for. We manage to still have some fun, especially at the end with a reenactment of an interview Bill Maher did on Larry King, followed by the shocking revelation of what Bill Maher's production company was named. If you really don't want to listen to us talk about the world's worst panel discussion about rape, it starts at 52:39 and ends at 1:15:58. No judgement. Also, sorry the episode is a day late.Check out What is...? A Jeopardy Podcast! here.Follow I Hate Bill Maher's Patreon hereAdditional audio in the episode is from:Real Time S1 E12Real Time S15 E25Real Time S18 E29The Daily Beast's The Last Laugh Podcast - Paul F Tompkins: The Best Comedy Podcast Guest

Not unlike Bill Maher himself, I took a little break from Real Time to watch the only Bill Maher star vehicle, 1991's Pizza Man. I was joined by Podcaster/Writer/Comedian Caitlin Durante, so there is officially a witness to the absolutely fuckin' BIZARRE tonal shifts and plot developments in this thing. Which parts were meant to be jokes? Why is it so fucking dark? And why is the director so opposed to getting some God damned coverage? Caitlin was so determined to answer some of those questions that she... I can't believe i'm saying this, but she watched it twice. Twice! Honestly, this is almost entirely just a fun episode talking about a crazy movie, so definitely enjoy it because next week has got some DARK shit in it.Check out Caitlin's stuff here, and check out all of the Bechdel Cast's links here

Jesus Christ, more fucking Ann Coulter! Filmmaker/Musician/Podcaster Lola Blanc is on the show this week, and we are talking about Real Time Season 1, Episode 10. My expectations for what Horror auteur Clive Barker would be like on one of these shows is shattered, the point of having Ann Coulter on these things is debated, plus we witness perhaps the show's worst explained segment yet, as well as a baffling and disgusting analogy that could only come from the mind of a weird, horny old stand-up comedian (so, like 35% of them).Here are all of Lola's links, I trust your ability to scroll through them and find what you want.

Comedian/Writer/Big Dog Haver Andrew Orvedahl is here this week to talk Real Time season one, episode nine. He loved it! No, I'm kidding, it was fucking dreadful. Andrew revealed which camp his past with Maher falls into: "used to be a fan", or "encountered him here and there during my lifetime". Then we got to the episode and its especially bad panel, though panelist Ann Coulter did force us to consider the age old question "Who whines about the whiners?" (roughly translated from the Latin phrase, "Quis queritur de eo qui queritur?")Listen to Andrew's albums here, and maybe someday Those Who Can't will be fucking streaming somewhere again. Who knows, fucking Zaslav wants even more consolidation in the entertainment industry.

Saddam('s statue) has fallen, and comedian/lawyer/podcaster Charles Star is here to remember what it was like through the prism of Real Time Season one, episode eight. Bill wonders why we liberals can't just put away our Bush hatred and be happy that the war is going so well, the rhetorical Molotov cocktail that is weapons of mass destruction is finally denounced, and we describe one of the most sincerely infuriating interviews we've ever seen.Check out ALAB here.

I recorded an episode in-person for the first time ever, and the audio quality is uhhhhhhhhh mixed, we'll say. But hey, when you've got a guest this good, a little diminished audio is worth the trouble. Comedian, Actor, Whole-ass show creator Lindsay Mullan joins us this week, and we spend a lot of time talking about whether or not it's worth it to focus your creative efforts on hating another, much more famous person, and the possible consequences of attaching yourself to someone you don't even like. Then, a quicker than usual Real Time recap but don't worry, there's still a ton of dog shit in there. Aaron McGruder probably takes the title of Best Panel Guest from Connie Rice, for the record.Here's Lindsay's website! Here is Linday's Instagram!

CONTENT WARNING: Roman Polanski comes up in the context of his horrible crimes, and while we don't mention the specifics, we do mention Bill Maher mentioning the specifics.Finally, I get another absolute pervert for Bill Maher on here. Comedian John Hastings joins me to talk about his theory on modern grift culture's role in Real Time's resurgence, the complete and total absence of effort throughout Bill Maher's entire career, and a tonally bizarre episode of Real Time that gets completely fucked up by an absurdly inappropriate throwaway joke. But on the upside, it's the least amount of sexism from Bill so far. So, I don't know, that's good...?Check out John's specials online here.P.S. I told you I would sound better and it would be on time this week. Each of you owes me twenty dollars.