How Did We Get Weird with Vanessa Bayer and Jonah Bayer

Today on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome their friend, star of Broadway's Aladdin and of the new Scrubs revival, Michael James Scott! First they check in on their parents' cruise and a very honest critique by their dad. Then Michael and Vanessa get into the absolute blast they had filming Scrubs together and Jonah asks them how much time was spent filming vs. in craft services and the honest answer is 50/50? Plus Michael tells us about his journey from his childhood in Orlando to living his dream of being the longest running Genie in Aladdin on Broadway and around the world! And we reminisce about when pagers were popular- Michael tells us about his actual pager and we all talk about using the brief recording window when calling collect as kind of makeshift pagers. And pagers obviously leads us into The Real World and current status of Chef Puck? Finally, in a rousing game of YES OR NO-STALGIA we discuss "Indie Sleaze", "Fibermaxxing" and the the triumphant return of "The Devil Wears Prada 2." Check out this absolutely hilarious episode and watch Scrubs on ABC on Wednesday night or honestly the next day on Hulu! Michael we 143 you!!

On today's new episode the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome actor, producer and writer Martin Starr to the podcast! You may know that Martin played the adorably geeky Bill Haverchuck on the iconic show "Freaks and Geeks" but did you know he had to make the difficult decision to leave his beloved arts highschool to play that role? And speaking of schools, will Jonah and Vanessa pursue their nominations to potentially join their school's Hall of Fame, especially after complaining so much on this podcast that they weren't already a part of it? Plus we get into Martin's love for candy and our first memorable candy experiences, from Hot Tamales being good until they're bad to Martin being "banned" from a store for stealing Gummy Bears. Plus Martin tells us about his new candy company SWEET STASH and Vanessa attests to the fact that their gummy candy "Jams" is extremely delicious. And in a delightful game of CHANGE DOT DORK: CANDY EDITION, the trio decides which candy they'd like to come back the most, between Sweet Tart Shockers, Jujubes and Milky Way Midnight. So jam out this delightful episode to some Jams candy- you'll be happy you did!

Vanessa and Jonah are thrilled to welcome to the pod Curb Your Enthusiasm star, Susie Essman! In this episode, we get into a real story about an encounter our parents had at their condo complex, Susie talks about how parking in NYC gives her faith in humanity and why having people fear you can be a positive thing when people compare her with her with Susie Greene. We also discuss Susie's strategy for getting out of school as a kid, her favorite shows to watch as a kid and that indefinable feeling of spending an entire day alone doing whatever you wanted. We also play a round of round of CHANGE DOT DORK where we debate the merits of a Curb Your Enthusiasm Movie, decide if the world needs gluten-free Oreos and should schools get the day off after Super Bowl... or do they have to pretend they're sick the way we did as kids?

This week on the podcast we are joined by another dynamic sibling duo, our old friends Eddie and Riley Breckenridge of the post-hardcore band, Thrice! After Jonah gives a quick update on Partygate, we talk about what it's like to be in a band with your brother, Riley's college baseball career and Eddie's barista tips. We also discuss what it was like to go to the same high school as Rage Against The Machine and if their teachers got mad if they wouldn't do what they told them. Finally, we get into our topic, which was supposed to be not thinking through situations, but turns out to be a lot of stories about water balloons. Trust us, when we say that these two guests have thrown (or launched) a water balloon at almost every location in Southern California. Look out! Finally in a stadium food themed version of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA, we debate the culinary prowess of Helmet Nachos, Cotton Candy Burritos and Cannoli Nachos. Don't forget to check out Thrice's latest album "Horizons/West" and catch them on tour when they come to your town!

Today on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome the delightful and hilarious Jesse Tyler Ferguson! You may know Jesse from Modern Family but did you know that he and Vanessa are both winners of The Great American Baking Show Celebrity Edition?? Plus we have some updates and hometown reactions to Jonah's bombshell admission of calling the cops on a party in highschool! Then the trio get into their thoughts on scary movies (we all don't like them) and haunted houses (we really don't like them). And they all get nostalgic talking about having lemonade stands as kids as Jesse prepares to do one with his son. Plus, the trio talk about other childhood businesses they remember having from Jesse's directorial debut in his living room to sitting down for a meal at Cafe Vanessy. Finally, in a rousing game of CHANGE DOT DORK: LEMONADE STAND EDITION we get into a petition for kids not needing permits for lemonade stands in Colorado (!), for Molly not to have to move, and for bringing back Hubert's Lemonade. Plus did you know that Vanessa is a proud graduate of Alarm School? You'll learn of all this and more in today's fantastic episode!!!

This week we have a very special podcast with Joyce Manor guitarist/vocalist, Barry Johnson whose new Lance Bangs-directed video for "Whatever It Was" is inspired by the "The Great British Bake-Off!," a spin-off of which Vanessa won in real life! Barry talks about growing up in Torrance, California, where his single mom was a bartender. From having childhood birthday parties at the Descendents' favorite Mexican restaurant Alfredo's to pretending to study for tests inside of a video game booth shaped like a car, we learn a lot about what it was like for him growing up in the South Bay. Vanessa also grills Barry on his neck tattoo and learns that it was motivated by peer pressure, Barry talks about his stint as a bartender and we discuss the proper etiquette for trying to get served in a timely fashion. Finally in a round of CHANGE ORG we debate the return of Panera's controversial charged lemonades, a skate park in Torrance and—wait for it—is the country ready to come together to change the national anthem to Weezer's "Say It Ain't So"? Regardless of how you land on these issues, make sure you check out Joyce Manor's new album "I Used To Go To This Bar" which comes out on Epitaph Records on January 30th!

This week on the podcast Jonah tells a story that he's been holding onto for over 30 years about calling the cops on a high school party that he wasn't allowed to attend. (If you went to high school with Jonah and ended up getting grounded, he apologizes, but also get over it?) From the humiliation of being rejected from a house party by a power-hungry babysitter to the bittersweet feelings of seeing his classmates take the fall, it's one of those stories where through Jonah's actions, you might just learn a little something about yourself. Vanessa and Jonah also interview each other about their high school experiences from friend groups to study habits and what it was like when Vanessa tried to tutor Jonah for French class. (Spoiler alert: It did not go well since Jonah wouldn't put down his guitar.) Finally in a round of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA we explore the hottest food trends for 2029 including the rise of comfort cooking, the demise of meat alternatives and the undeniable greatness of the cruciferous vegetable known as cabbage. Bon Appetitt! Thanks to our sponsor: Talkiatry! Head to Talkiatry.com/WEIRD and complete the short assessment to get matched with an in‑network psychiatrist in just a few minutes.

We are thrilled to be joined this week by New Found Glory guitarist, Chad Gilbert! We talk about the time Jonah saw Chad sing for Shai Hulud perform in Cleveland on Chad's very first tour in 1996 when he was only 15 years old and how he had to ask his mom for permission to go on the road with a bunch of young adults. We also discuss what it was like for Chad growing up in South Florida, what it was like representing the hardcore genre while performing on TRL in the early 2000s and what Chad thinks of the state of the scene today. We also get an update on Chad's health, how he found out he was diagnosed with metastatic pheochromocytoma four years ago and the miraculous recovery he's made through his current course of treatment. (Go Chad!) Finally we play a round of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA where we discuss the return of Starbucks' Eggnog Latte, Jack in The Box's decision to bring back Nashville Hot Mozzarella Sticks and the upcoming Street Fighter film. More importantly, don't forget to check out New Found Glory's new album "Listen Up!" which comes out on Pure Noise Records on February 20th!

This week on the podcast we are joined by the chef and co-owner of No Comply Foods, Stephen Browning! We delve into the restaurant industry from comping meals to having people post photos of Stephen's food with bad music. (For good music, request the JO-NAH COMPLY playlist next time you're in the restaurant.) We also get into our shared love of skateboarding, from building boards to watching online videos of tricks that are way too dangerous for anyone on this podcast to attempt in real life. Also what's up with Boomers' attachment to crew socks? Don't worry, we're gonna put an entire generation on blast today and absolutely no one can stop us!!! Finally we get into Stephen's first culinary job working at McDonald's as a way to pay court fees as a teenager and find out if he was "lovin' it." Finally we play a round of CHANGE DOT DORK where we debate the merits of all day breakfasts, black olives on sandwiches and should Wendy's bring back their sweet & sour sauce or is sweet chili sauce a worthy substitute? If you're in the Berkshires, be sure to check out No Comply Foods in Great Barrington and tell them that HOW DID WE GET WEIRD? sent you!

For our first ever in-person podcast, this week Jonah and Vanessa are joined by a bonafide musical and pop-culture legend: "Weird Al" Yankovic! Vanessa runs her own song parodies from college by our guest today to get his feedback, we dig deep into the history of Weird Al's favorite cereal and present him with a very special gift. Along the way we also talk about his favorite cartoons from growing up, his tour rider snack situation and what goes through his mind when he's onstage singing his hit song parodies to audiences all over the world. Finally we play a game of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA where we get everyone's take on the return of mood rings, Pizza Hut's New Yorker pizza and Vienetta Ice Cream. You've heard plenty of interviews with Weird Al before but has anyone else asked him about Black Flag or Kudos bars? Terry Gross look out, we're coming from your job!

Today on the pod the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome one of their oldest dearest friends, writer, producer and co-creator of the new Disney Plus show "Electric Bloom" Alex Fox!! They get into the magical history of Alex and Vanessa's friendship AND realize that Alex and Jonah both spent some time living in the storied Oakwoods apartments in college! Plus Jonah gets into some more gripes with Dunkin Donuts and Vanessa shares a new iPhone feature that might make it easier for people like Jonah, Alex and herself to voice their petty complaints to random companies! Plus, they reminisce about "The Running Man" and other fad dances from their childhood- and did you know that "The Roger Rabbit" dance is actually a variation on "The Running Man"?? They also get into sleepover party drama and the time Alex sat out her own sleepover party to watch Barbara Streisand perform live on TV. And in a rousing game of CHANGE DOT DORK: M&M'S EDITION, the trio debate the merits of a new dark chocolate pistachio m&m, a pretzel caramel m&m and an m&m's movie- and would Vanessa play the blue m&m if she got the offer? Be sure to listen to this incredible episode and to check out Alex's new show ELECTRIC BLOOM on Disney Plus! Anything else would be uncivilized!

This week on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome their friend Derek Waters! You may know Derek co-created the beloved show "Drunk History", but did you know he and Vanessa are in a Fantasy Football league together where the first Todd has stirred some major controversy? Plus Vanessa scores a big win by having a confirmed a memory about the Bangles/Bengles, and the group ruminates on who will be the next drummer of Derek's favorite band, Pearl Jam (maybe Vanessa?) And Derek delights us with his memories (and actual copies) of TV Guide magazines and we get into the plots of some pretty insane Movies of The Week listed inside. We also dive deep into how Derek came up with the idea for Drunk History! And in a delightful game of CHANGE DOT DORK, we're debating the return of Tangy Pickle Doritos, turning "peanut butter" into one word, and bringing back Drunk History! Ya gotta check out this hilarious episode!

Show some respect because this week on the podcast we are joined by the pride and joy of Rochester, Daniel Armbruster of Joywave! In this episode we discuss if the return to the golden age of travel is in the cards and why Daniel won't even get near an airport without his trusty Adidas tracksuit. We also take a moment to press the "easy" button and learn about his time working at Staples and internalizing Steve Winwood songs. Speaking of music (or muzak?), we go straight to Europe to learn about the history of the PURE MOODS compilation albums. From Enya to Enigma to the X-Files Theme song, why were these albums so influential and who the hell is the enigmatic graphic designer, Joe Cheese? Finally in a round of CHANGE DOT DORK we discuss if Daniel should be a character in Fortnite, does Rochester need a casino and is there room in the drug store aisle for Baja Blast-flavored Tums? You'll have to listen to this episode to find out!

This week on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome the iconic musician, visual artist and author Kim Gordon of the band Sonic Youth and more! You may know Kim today as an absolute music legend but did you know she went to a lab school as a little kid where she sawed wood to make boats she could actually ride in? We get more into Kim's childhood growing up first in Rochester (and will she take up Rochester Music Hall of Fame on their offer?...) and then in LA. And speaking of, Kim explains to us what the LA tarpits are even though we should know. Plus, Vanessa makes sure to ask Kim about the snack situation at her ad shoot of H&M. And in a rousing game of "YES OR NO-STALGIA" Kim calls a soda's comeback "desperate" (when she's right she's right), we get into a reboot of a popular franchise, and a Costco lasagna's return makes us wonder, how punk would it be to see Kim at Costco?? (Its seems like it could happen.) Ya gotta check out this fantastic ep!

This week on the podcast, we are joined by actor, comedian and musician, our friend Andy Samberg! You know Andy from starring on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE with Vanessa and from his comedy trio The Lonely Island, but did you know that as a kid he was a he wanted nothing more than to stay up late at night watching SNL and eating a sugary bowl of GREMLINS cereal? On this episode we discuss Vanessa's experience working on Andy's hit show BROOKLYN NINE-NINE, the origins of HOT ROD's famous "cool beans" scene and the time Jonah and Vanessa went to one of his movie premieres that may have actually just been a pizza party. We also get deep into Andy's impressive knowledge of movie-themed cereals ranging from GREMLINS to E.T. to BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT CEREAL and what it was like to mail-order items as a kid in the eighties and wait months for your to light saber to finally arrive. Finally we play a powerful round of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA where we explore our dad's disapproval of Wendy's Peppermint Frosty, our optimism about Radiohead's possible reunion (if you can call it that) and explore what our own version of "We Didn't Start The Fire" might sound like for all you Piano Man fans out there!

On today's new episode the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome their friend writer and executive producer on the documentary "Lilith Fair: Building A Mystery", Jessica Hopper! You may know Jessica has written incredible books such as "The First Collection of Criticism By A Living Female Rock Critic" and "The Girls Guide To Rocking", but did you know was the publicist for pretty much every Emo band in the late nineties and early 2000's? Plus Jessica and Jonah get into their time in the trenches together at Warped Tour. But don't worry, we also get into Vanessa's favorite music festival, Lilith Fair! Jessica tells us about working on the new documentary "Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery" which was inspired by an oral history of the festival she wrote for Vanity Fair! We get in all the deets, from the music to how the festival gave a dollar from each ticket to a local charity, to how they changed the iced coffee scene in America, to Justice for Paula Cole! And finally, in a rousing game of LEGIT MOAN OR UNNECESSARY GROAN, we get into some controversies over paying for garbage disposal, cigarette butt etiquette and complaining about the weather. You gotta hear this fascinating and funny episode and if you haven't yet, you MUST check out the documentary "LILITH FAIR: BUILDING A MYSTERY" directed by Ally Pankiw and streaming on Hulu!

This week on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome chef extraordinaire and absolute delight Alison Roman to the podcast! You may know that Alison is a New York Times best-selling food writer who makes incredible food, but did you know she also makes incredible mix tapes? In fact, we dig into an old-school mix tape that Alison made for a friend (shoutout to last week's guest Jeremy Bolm) and Alison teaches us how making a mix tape and creating a cookbook have a lot in common! Plus Alison tells us what her favorite kitchen gadgets are, we discuss reciepe comment etiquette and she teaches Vanessa how to clean a cutting board (it's confusing!) Finally, in a tasty game of YES OR NO-STALGIA, the trio get into the Cheez-It wrap, Carne Asada returning to Chipotle and fall flavors entering the chat on Dairy Queen's Blizzard menu! You've gotta check out this tasty and hilarious episode and also be sure to check out Alison's new book, "Something From Nothing" out November 11th and available to order here!

Get ready for a great episode beacuse this week we are joined by Touché Amoré vocalist and host of "The First Ever Podcast," Jeremy Bolm! We talk to Jeremy about growing up in Los Angeles and what it was like to go to the same high school where they filmed a little show called "The Wonder Years." We also discuss Jonah and Jeremy playing shows together in their respective bands, Vanessa's obsession with re-engineered Dodo Birds and what it was like being a kid and not feeling allegiance to any type of musical scene. Speaking of music, we get deep into Jeremy's love of grunge legends Nirvana, personal interactions with the band members in real life and Touché Amoré's stellar cover of what might be the most underrated song on Nevermind, "Lounge Act." Finally we play a round of YESTOLGIA OR NOSTALGIA where we discuss the return of the indie rock act The Format, debate the neccessity of healthy versions of our favorite candy bars and should there be a "Little House on the Prarie" reboot based on the books? You'll have to listen to find out! Also check out Touché Amoré live next year on their ten year anniversary tour for "Stage Four" which sees them traveling everywhere from Austin to Amsterdam!

This week on the podcast the Bayer siblings are thrilled to welcome hilarious delight and star of "The RIghteous Gemstones" Edi Patterson! You may know that Edi plays Judy Gemstone, but did you know she grew up loving Saturday Morning Shows? And speaking of, what the hell was going on with "Out of This World" and the alien dad? And while we're at it, we get into what the former star of "Small Wonder" is up to today and honestly, it rocks. Plus, Edi and Vanessa discuss several times they met and really liked each other, like when Edi had a very successful run as a guest writer on SNL and made sure a very funny shot of Vanessa made it to air in the NuvaBling commercial. Plus, we get into what media on tv, from what got us to drink milk to Vanessa being scared of drug dealers giving out free drugs to Edi drinking a raw egg. And finally, in a rousing game of "YES OR NO-STALGIA" we discuss the return of Black Bean Soup coming back to Panera (related to the Gilmore Girls?), a Baywatch reboot, and the return of the Never-Ending Pasta Bowl. So check out this gem of an episode with a gem of a guest!

This week on the podcast, the Bayers are joined by not one but two amazing guests: Identical twin comedians Randy and Jason Sklar! We get deep into the mythology of Steven Seagal from the Sklar Brothers experience pitching a television pilot alongside Seagal to Jonah seeing him perform music live as "The Mojo Man." We also discuss the Sklar Brothers' experience on the cutting edge of alternative comedy alongside some entertainment's biggest names and the time that Janeane Garofalo casually brought Eddie Vedder to an East Village comedy gig at the height of Pearl Jam's nineties fame. We also get into what life was like before cell phones and why it made people more responsible when it came to being to places on time. Finally in this edition of LEGIT MOAN OR UNNECESSARY GROAN we discuss celebrity culture, paid parking and should airplane travel in the winter even be an option? After you finish this episode, be sure to check out the Sklar Brothers' amazing podcast "Dumb People Town." You can start with the episode featuring Vanessa!