The Late Show - EP493

Hour 1 - Vannessa Hollingshead
Vanessa's is the straight daughter of two drug-addicted, alcoholic, hippy parents. In fact her dad is the man who gave Timothy Leary his very first hit of LSD. Closer to Leary than he was to her, he'd say things like, "The three most important people in my life are 'me,' 'myself,' and 'I' -- setting the scene for some serious low self-esteem issues. But like the phoenix from the flames, Vanessa was able to rise up and turn all the wild characters from her life into comedy gold. A comic, natural story teller and accomplished actor, Vanessa has a unique repertoire of heart-felt, funny characterizations of all the people that cross her path, daily. Constantly writing new and original material, Vanessa is able to transcend a variety of audiences and always leaves them wanting more.

Having just taped her Showtime Special, Funny Women of a Certain Age, hosted by Fran Drescher, she also is on the critically acclaimed WTF Podcast hosted by Marc Maron. She's had a special on Comedy Central, performed for the troops in the Middle East, and opened for Bill Maher Richard Pryor, Chris Rock, Jim Norton, Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano, amongst others.

Vanessa is currently writing a TV series, based on the true story of her father, called, THE DIVINE RASCAL.

https://www.vanessahollingshead.com/

Hour 2
JOE PONTILLO HAS BEEN ON AXS TV'S GOTHAM COMEDY LIVE, MTV'S MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT SHOW, TLC, AND HEARD ON SIRIUS XM. HIS JOKES HAVE BEEN FEATURED IN TIMEOUT NY, THE WASHINGTON POST AND ON ESPN.COM. HE HAS RELEASED TWO COMEDY SPECIALS 'DELETE YOUR ACCOUNT' ON AMAZON PRIME IN 2018 (ALSO DOWNLOADABLE ON SPOTIFY, ITUNES, ETC) AND 2023'S 'NO ONE ASKED FOR THIS' WHICH IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE. YOU CAN CHECK OUT HIS YOUTUBE AND INSTAGRAM FOR VARIOUS STAND UP CLIPS AS WELL AS SKETCHES BOTH SHORT AND LONG. IN 2020 HE WROTE, DIRECTED, AND STARRED IN 'SOCIAL MEDIA KILLED THE SUPER VILLAIN' AND IN 2022 APPEARED IN 'SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY' BOTH OF WHICH RAN IN MULTIPLE FILM FESTIVALS. BORN AND RAISED ON LONG ISLAND AND NOW LIVING IN BROOKLYN, JOE TOURS THE COUNTRY THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AND HAS PERFORMED IN 25 STATES. HE HOPES TO ADD THE OTHER HALF IN 2024.

Hour 3:
Steve Stoliar has been a professional writer for nearly 40 years, providing material for Dick Cavett as well as penning episodes of such television series as Murder, She Wrote, Simon & Simon, The New WKRP in Cincinnati, Legend and Sliders. He has been a consultant on a number of books and documentaries about Groucho and his various siblings. He has also written and produced documentaries on such diverse personages as John Lennon, The Marx Brothers, Elvis Presley, Shemp Howard and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Additionally, he has provided voices for various animated specials including Frosty Returns, The Oz Kids, You’re In The Super Bowl Charlie Brown and Snoopy’s Reunion. Born in St. Louis, he now makes his home in Studio City, California.