AND HERE’S MODI
AND HERE’S MODI is an inside look at the man behind the microphone. Hosted by comedian, Modi (@modi_live), AHM features a raw and unfiltered side of the comedian rarely seen on stage. He always finds the funny as he navigates the worlds of comedy, trending topics, his personal life and spirituality. AHM is co-hosted by Periel Aschenbrand (@perielaschenbrand) and Leo Veiga (@leo_veiga_).
AND HERE’S MODI
Jeff Ross
Episode 156: In this very special episode, Modi is joined by his dear friend of thirty years, Jeff Ross. Famously known as The Roastmaster General, Ross is the star of his new one man show on Broadway "Take a Banana for the Ride." They discuss Ross's recent battle with cancer, his lifelong love of Broadway and how roasting is an act of love.
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Welcome to and here's Modi. Welcome to another episode of and here's Modi. Thank you so much for listening. Whatever you're doing washing the dishes, walking the kids, going to the doctor, wherever you have me plugged in I am so grateful and so thankful and thanks for always letting us know what you think, whether it's good or bad. You get bad reviews, not reviews Comments. They let you know what they're thinking the listeners to this podcast.
Speaker 1:And we have wow, wow, wow, wow, wow the fact that we have this guest in the house tonight, jeff Ross. Wow, some of you know him as the Roastmaster, some of you know him as Jeff Ross, who's just been since I began comedy 31 years ago. He was already up there and doing it and anything Comedy Central was doing he was in it and he was roasting and he's just a genius and a neshama, a soul, a full blown soul, always helpful to the comics coming up and always have a nice thing to say. And he is doing a show called Take a Banana for the Ride. It's opening August 8th on Broadway at the Nederlander August 5th. August 5th at the Niederlander Theater on Broadway, which I think is the same where Jackie Mason did his show.
Speaker 2:It might be.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Wow, A lot of pressure. It's a lot of pressure. Everything's available on jeffrossbroadwaycom. Do it, Get tickets. Get tickets. If you're not going to go, give it to your friends as gifts. Buying tickets to a comedy show is Mashiach energy. Be the friend that brings the friends to the comedy show. This is it. This is Jeff Ross is on Broadway. This is it's a comedy. Not what do you call it? Not monument, it's a comedy event.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's huge, jackie Mason. I'm glad you mentioned that, cause he's the reason. He was the inspiration I've ever. Ever since I saw his original Broadway show, I thought maybe someday I could do something like this. Yeah.
Speaker 1:He ran for three years. Yeah, that was before there was there was before there was Instagram, and so we used to go see his show once a month.
Speaker 2:Instagram, and so we used to go see his show once a month. I got enough money to last me for the rest of my life. I don't need this, unless, of course, I want to buy something exactly. I remember every joke from that show Modi.
Speaker 1:Oh my, every joke. We, we listened to it, we saw him once a month and then we had the tape in the car. Right, it was the world.
Speaker 2:According to me, it was I couldn't afford it back then and my aunt Bess took me and she was laughing at the setups. She couldn't even get to the punchlines and he kept looking at her like who's this crazy Meshuggah woman laughing at in between the jokes. So I love that and I always thought that that was the apex of comedy. That's, that's the Oscar for a comic Broadway.
Speaker 1:Is it? Is it.
Speaker 2:It's not like doing a Madison Square Garden or doing those types of events. Not for me, not for me. I don't know Broadway. I grew up going to shows, of course Fiddler and Cabaret and Annie and Oliver and all those types of shows. I always loved Broadway.
Speaker 1:I had no idea you were gay. No, I had no idea. I'm just kidding, it's okay. I had no idea you were gay.
Speaker 2:No, I had no idea, I'm just kidding, it's okay. No, that is my feminine, my nurturing side, my, I don't know. There's something about Broadway that it turns me on. I love the feel of a live audience and the music and all of it.
Speaker 1:There's a vibe to it because there's other theaters around you. People are all rustling and bustling to get into their theaters and the playbills and the and the uncomfortable chairs and you got to deliver a good show. Because you're fighting an uncomfortable chair Right, because people are stuck in that little chair, you got to make sure that it's worth it for them, Especially these giant tuchuses that I'm going to be a trap.
Speaker 2:I have the fattest fans in comedy. I broke the food sales record at the Tempe Improv one time. My fans love to eat. So there's no food at the Nederlander. You're going to have to settle with candy and whatever restaurants are outside. But there's a lot of good catering, kosher catering stories. So you will see food but you can't eat food. But yet everybody leaves with a little snack. So on the bright side, oh, that's great.
Speaker 2:Well, I know your father was a caterer, right, and you talk about that's in the show, right, my great-grandma Rosie was sort of the kosher catering hall in Newark in the 50s, before women really started big businesses like that and the story kind of jumps off with her Amazing. She was like the queen of Newark, new Jersey local celebrity made dreams come true. Judy Blume wrote about Clinton Manor, the catering hall, in one of her books called Wifey, saying it was every Jewish girl's dream to grow up and have a big, fancy wedding at Clinton Manor. So I found some old film of the Clinton Manor it's all from before I was born and that's featured in the show as well and a lot of good family catering stories.
Speaker 1:That's amazing, so it's not going to. So those of you who know Jeff as the roast master, where he has taken roasting to another level, thank you. And come on, I have to say this.
Speaker 2:You're the best Modi.
Speaker 1:No, dude, you and I, I'm doing comedy, 31 years.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And when I began doing comedy you were like the poster child of the Friars Club. There was a Friars Club back then, sure, sure, and they loved you. Yeah, and we were doing shows with comics that were like the old school, with Sid Caesar, freddie, roman, alan King, pat Cooper. We were doing shows with Pat Cooper.
Speaker 2:We were on shows with Pat Cooper.
Speaker 1:It was amazing. We did like I have pictures of, like us at the Danny Kaye Theater, with one time we did a big show for someone's any reason. They needed to do a show and they bring us. You know and here's the younger of the Friars Club you were like the head of that Right. You were the head of that Right and then when you were on TV, televised, they really thought you were the next level.
Speaker 2:Well, I brought those roasts to TV. They were against it. Those guys fought me on that, that's right. But I got them all on the show. So once I got them the TV exposure, they were okay with me.
Speaker 1:Right, the Danny Aiello and all of those. Those were the last ones that were not on TV and you brought it on TV.
Speaker 2:Wow, wow. It was a great time in my life and I love that you remember all that so well.
Speaker 1:All of it, jeff, I remember every moment. I remember almost every interaction I've had with you. I remember one time I came, not crying to you, but I go, jeff man, I sent my five minutes to the Tonight Show and like he said, and it's not for us, but you should give it to the Late Night Show. And like you said to me, mody, he's telling you to give it to his competition. That's how much he doesn't like your set. That was the moment I stopped sending out my tapes. It was so funny. And then you told me, just enjoy the ride, calm down motor, just enjoy the journey. And that's. I remember that that moment. Like there's like specific moments in comedy that you super remember and that was one of them. Was that good advice? It was amazing advice. I I never sent another tape out to those shows. I I didn't give a damn about those shows. I'm on my ride, I was still doing the Catskill shows, the Xtellar shows, all of those shows.
Speaker 2:We were both very different back then. Modi, We've evolved.
Speaker 1:We've evolved, yeah, and all the celebrities just came over to you. You're like a celebrity magnet. No.
Speaker 2:I have a lot of friends, if that's what you mean. I don't think celebrities are non-celebrities.
Speaker 1:Famous people. Okay, famous people, not celebrities. I don't really say celebrities anymore.
Speaker 2:I bet on people. You and I became friends long before you were famous. Yes, I see a good investment and I dig in and I love you and I love you too.
Speaker 1:I remember you said that to me after Bob Saget died. You and I were on the phone for some reason. You just say, hey, modi, I love you, just in case I don't ever get to say that again. And I said back to you yes, I love you too, just in case we don't see each other, I love it. That was a moment where you just did not know if you're going to see anybody again. It's a moment where you realize that you don't have a tomorrow guaranteed. It's not in the barrel of the tomorrow.
Speaker 2:That was the jumping off point for why I'm doing this Broadway show, which was I lost three pals in eight months during the beginning of the pandemic. Norm MacDonald, bob Saget and Gilbert Godfrey had all passed away and that really hit me. And I looked back at a show I did 30 years ago about my grandfather and my parents and how I dealt with losing them, and I realized I had some of the same feelings and some of the same philosophies and even strategies for moving on. And when I looked back at the old show I realized it was the best thing I'd ever done, but no one had seen it. So let me update it with my my life now. And that's what it's become, and I've added music and I've added roasting and and films and elevated it for Broadway expectations.
Speaker 1:That's amazing. So they're not going to be seeing the roasting stuff.
Speaker 2:There's a little bit of roasting in it, oh good, yeah, I don't want to give too much away, but there's some roasting in it. Yeah, I have to give the people what they want. Modi, you know how it is. I know 100%, 100%. It would be like you doing a show and not throwing in seven Yiddish terms that no one remembers.
Speaker 1:Oh, wow, no, but I remember one moment, one time you came to the Comedy Cellar with John Mayer.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And he went on stage after you John Mayer, yeah. And he was like he's John Mayer and you're Jeff Ross, yeah, and you can goer. Yeah, and he was like he's john mayer and you're jeff ross, yeah, and you can go to somebody. Go, that's your girlfriend, you can do whatever the joke is. And he thought he was gonna do that. He thought he was gonna go up and do that. You can do, because you look the way you look. Yeah, you're not pretending. There's a little bit of a belly, there's a little bit. It's not like the guy's better looking than you that you're messing with. And john john mayer comes on. He's the most stunning thing in the world and you just. He's won everything in the world, from a tony to an oscar, to a grammy to a whatever, everything. He has songs that are american icon and now he's trying to to crap on some guy. That's and it. It still didn't work. It's right, it just didn't work.
Speaker 2:Good people can't. It's tough for good looking people to roast. It is Because it's like you know it's tough. Yeah, you know, for me it's easy. Look at me, I look like a Jeff Bezos blow up doll.
Speaker 1:No, jeff Bezos, you also. It's funny because you I always talk about like I'm a Jewish comedian. Yeah, you're a comedian who happens to be jewish, sure, but when you tell the audience that you're jewish, no one's surprised. No, no one's like. I, I didn't know he was jewish, did you? Did you know he was jewish? No one's like shocked that jeff ross is jewish, right, and you lean into it. You, you're super proud and you're super um, and you're super. You have that song, don't f with the jews. Yeah, yeah, and it was amazing.
Speaker 2:It's in the show.
Speaker 1:It's in the show. Oh my God, Modi. It is the best song ever. It's such a great song, you guys.
Speaker 2:it's in the show yeah, where do you see how I make it a part of my story in my life?
Speaker 1:I remember when you were first coming up with it, yeah, and you were writing it. Now it's like it's at a point where it's in a Broadway show.
Speaker 2:Where do you see all these shiks singing along to it? Don't bump with the Jews. Yeah, if you want to hear cheers and not boos, never again Bump with the Jews. Bump, bump, bump, bump. I don't want to drop the F word on your podcast.
Speaker 1:No, there's no need to. My audience says only my only Periel drops it once in a while. I, Periel, drops it once in a while. I never dropped the F word on this thing. Why is that? Because it's the why. What do you need the F word for? What do you?
Speaker 2:need the S word, for it's the name of the song. My song is a little provocative.
Speaker 1:It's a little F with the.
Speaker 2:Jews, but it's also very wholesome and I use it to tell my origin story. Yeah, tough Jews. I had a lot of tough Jews emergency room surgeon in a rough neighborhood and my teacher, my sister, teaches special ed. My nephew, jared, fights wildfires. So I wanted to create the idea of Jews are tough, jews are strong, not this wimpy image that I grew up with uh, that Jews were wimpy and nerdy. I wanted to counterbalance that in my show Amazing, and it's.
Speaker 1:I can't wait to see it. And you've uh, I want to also you. You've recently fought a battle that won. You had, um, colon cancer I did. You talked about it on Howard Stern. I was like I wouldn't have just brought it up. And um, it's funny, in my in my tour now that I'm touring uh, pause for laughter comedy tour I finally had my colonoscopy and of course, every comment that has a colonoscopy right away starts all the jokes come flying out and all that Kind of like the poop out of your butt when you're prepping.
Speaker 2:The jokes fly out the way you prep for the colonoscopy.
Speaker 1:All of those jokes there's so many good ones. What's his name? Schimmel had that. He said I'm going to go look inside with this. It was for what A parking spot. Yeah, every comic has like all these jokes. But and they found cancer in there. And then you fought it, yeah, and you won. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, with a lot of help. Yeah, it's not just the fight, it's the army, my family, my friends. That's what got me through it. Yeah, it's unity and that like it's godly energy. It's almost. This is where you need you talk about Meshkiach energy, meshkiach, meshkiach, not Meshkiach. I think about the guy that used to check to see if everything was kosher at my parents' catering hall.
Speaker 1:That's Meshgih, yeah, that's Meshgih, I'm Meshgih energy what?
Speaker 2:does that mean?
Speaker 1:Messianic energy. Meshgih the Messiah. Oh, okay, that's Meshgih.
Speaker 2:I never understood what you were saying until now. Really yeah.
Speaker 1:You're kidding. I thought that was what I was so confused. No, by the way, I found a fan of mine sent me that when they punch in Google Moshiach energy, messianic energy it says that it's my. It's an expression I came up with. Moshiach energy, jeff, when you're doing a show and the entire room is all united on your laughter and they're all laughing together, that's a messianic energy. That's what the goal is for Jews that we create messianic energy, hopefully 24-7. But until then, you have a little. You have a Broadway show. They all come in, they're all united. We're going to laugh together. We're going to have an amazing time. We're going to hear the story. That's a Mashiach energy, that's a Messianic. That's the goal of being Jewish. I love this. It's the goal of being our function in. That is comedy, right, making them laugh. Right, uniting them. Some people do tell history of what's happened, and that unites them. Some people do singing. Yeah, they sing songs. Yeah, it's Mashiach energy. That Mashiach energy, not Mashiach energy.
Speaker 2:Oh, you really were bringing in kosher catering huh, I was so confused, but I always kind of liked it. I figured you were bringing a rabbinical idea to life.
Speaker 1:No, it's a messianic idea to life.
Speaker 2:Now I've learned my show is well. I guess it fits really well to what you're saying, because not just like sing-alongs the song we talked about but there's other cathartic things that I do with the audience that unites everybody that's, that's amazing, that's, that's, that's great.
Speaker 1:I'm, I'm, I'm just just. First of all, you're a friend, and any friend of mine that is sick or buys a house, yeah, I always get them this and you're no longer sick. No, you're B'chashem, you're good. So this is in a mezuzah. You know what a mezuzah is? Of course, on your wall.
Speaker 1:Yeah of course, inside those of you who don't know, it's parchment, and on that parchment, with a feather, a quill, a quill, a sofa, somebody who writes they do the Shema Yisrael, the prayer of Shema, and then you roll it up and you put it on your door and it has to be all the letters have to be proper and kosher, and no one ever sees the roll. It looks like a joint inside of a. Yeah, sure, right, but I, for my friends who bought a house or just went through some ailment or going through something, I always get one framed for them. Let me see this.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so you see, here in the top line, the top line is Shema Yisrael, adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad, hear O Israel, the Lord, our God. The Lord is one and it's saying that God is one. It's not that there's one God, it's oneness. And it's saying that God is one. It's not that there's one God, it's oneness. And it's so funny because if you look at it, if you see here the echad, the alef, chet dalet is the dalet. The letter is written super big. Yeah, because if just the wrong, if you make it a resh, it becomes aher and becomes different. Yeah, and becomes different.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And God forbid, we were not no one's different. We're all the same, we're all um, just uh. Here's for the camera. On the back, I wrote Jeff my prayerful wishes for your complete health, continued success and Mashiach energy, lots and lots of love.
Speaker 2:Modi, love modi. So this is just in your house or on your desk. How about my dressing room anywhere at the niederlander theater? Absolutely they. They want me to take a tour and figure out which dressing room to pick. And I and I was like, what am I gonna? What's my inspiration gonna be? What's gonna be on the walls? Eight shows a week, and this is the first thing that I'll put it up there, I'd be my pleasure, my pleasure, I love it, yeah.
Speaker 1:So it's like having a mezuzah Wherever you go Wherever I go, yeah. Or before every show, yeah. Also, when people ask you what's on your door, you could show it to them. And plus, it brings an energy antenna to bring protection into your life. So that's what I definitely want for success and protection, and nothing should come back health-wise and you should just be blessed and keep making people happy through all the mediums that you do through the shows, through the singing, through the roasts, when people just love that. It's just so. You think it's the opposite of what. You think you're making fun of someone, but it's you're getting, you're liberating oh, you have to yeah they feel so honored.
Speaker 2:My show is very normalizing. You know, I get all types of people and, like you say, we're all one. Yeah, god is one, we're not different. And by roasting people, you take the stigma out of whatever they have. There's no such thing as a normal person in society anymore. We're all the same good looking ugly. I don't see people that way. I see them as individuals and I roast with love.
Speaker 1:I see people as people who buy tickets to my show, people who don't buy tickets to my show. That's all I see the world is. I don't see any color. Fat, jewish, non-jewish, sephardic, ashkenazi, kosher, not kosher. People who buy tickets to the show, people who don't. And jeffrossbroadwaycom get your tickets. I'm so nervous. I have an outfit I can't wait to. I've been wearing oh it. I put I'm not gonna. You have to see the pictures when I'm wearing it to your show. August 18th opening night. I want you there. August 18th is the opening night. It's a Monday, but tickets are available from the 5th.
Speaker 2:From the 5th. The previews start on the 5th.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's gonna be cool and what are like. So you were. Kimmel said it was amazing. Yeah, and Stern see it.
Speaker 2:You know he's done a lot of Broadway. Yeah, I did it in Chicago for a few nights at the Den Theater and Helen Hunt, who's a great actress, she saw it. And then when I saw that actors liked it, I realized that oh, I'm not just telling a story, I'm acting, and that was kind of a new idea to me, like acting on stage. I'm really not a stage actor, I'm a comic Right, but I am bringing some emotion. I did a run-through last night, a rehearsal, and I got very emotional. Really.
Speaker 2:The show definitely shows a vulnerable side, not just of me but of life. That's amazing. I'm learning a lot and I've been working on this show since I'm a kid. I found a notebook from when I was 15 in a storage unit and there's things in the show that I wrote down when I was 15. Wow, going through mourning and with my mom passing away when I was a teenager and how to get through that. So anybody who's going through something challenging emotionally or physically, whatever it is. This show is meant to be cathartic and and inspirational and ultimately joyful.
Speaker 1:Great, I mean I can't wait, I can't wait. Oh, you're going to love it and people should be getting tickets to this stuff, yeah, so hold on on. You still have your apartment in new york, first of all. Do you remember when you wanted a watch, you called me. We went to go buy a watch together.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you still have that. Oh yeah, I wear it all the time, do you? I gotta get it fixed. Maybe you can help me. I have a guy, I have a rolex.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I know what it is. I know exactly what it is the blue face, rolex, two-tone. I remember I never forget he didn't want to bargain with the guy. He said to me we were standing there, we're on 47th street and and he's, and he found the watch he liked and the guy's like he gives him a blue, mariner blue face, but it was beautiful, very nice, and it was, and and uh, and the guy off had gave the price and jeff's like, okay, go, jeff, what do you mean? Okay, work this out with the guy a little bit. He goes, marty, let the guy make some money. You were so sweet. I was like I never even thought of it. He was like I just figured the guy already put in a price to do we should go down to them. But you got the watch and they adjusted it for you and you still have it.
Speaker 2:I still have it. I wore it on howard stern the other day. I didn't see it was on and I, I, I, I didn't want to leave it in la, so I threw it in my pocket. And I'm not a big watch wearer. Yeah, I don't have the swag. You love, love watches. Yeah, but um, when it's hot out and you're wearing like a t-shirt, oh nice, watch makes you look a lot like a slob. It takes the slobbyness away. Right, it elevates you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I always say if I was a woman, I would always have a Birkin bag with me, no matter what. Yeah, just whatever schmata somewhere and coming in and out of the store, birkin bag says you're better than you look. You're doing better than you look. Yeah, you're doing better than you look. That's important, that's an important thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, but you've I mean the costumes you've pulled out. I'm always in a suit, I'm always in a suit, that's it. I can't even imagine performing not in a suit, except at the comedy style. I'd be like when I do my shows, beacon Schmink with outfits. You came out as Gaddafi. Yeah, you came out as all those things you've done on the roast and it's so, it's acting. You've been, you have been acting.
Speaker 2:Well, I see it as an extension of the writing. I never like if I'm doing a roast. What was you know? The last one was Tom Brady. I came out as OJ Simpson in a tear away OJ uniform and you, you know, uh, what? What did I say on the back? Uh, uh, the juice is loose, but I spelled the J, e, w, c, e Right.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And, uh, I don't add the costume until I've got the act. Okay, once the jokes are 10 out of 10, home run, yep, I go now I can add something silly to it, but I don't. I. I need a foundation, yeah, and then I'll add the costume and you get help sometime from.
Speaker 1:I know people who like their pride, like I gave jeff a joke, of course, and you take it and you and you of course, yeah, yeah, I always I say people when people give me jokes. I some of them are the best jokes I have are the ones that a comic saw and gave me a tagline to it.
Speaker 2:Yes, you have to be open to that. You can't always see it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you can't be like oh no, I don't take jokes.
Speaker 2:No, no, I love getting suggestions from funny people. It's annoying when unfunny people tell you what the joke is and send you a stupid meme or whatever. Yeah, but yeah, no, I love the collaboration. Yeah, the roast. We have some of the best writers and it's so much fun. The process of putting it all together. It's so good, yeah, it's. And the fact that and that's yeah, yeah, go ahead. And that's to do five, six minutes. Now I'm doing an hour and a half every day.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but no 90 minutes.
Speaker 2:Yeah Hour and 20, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah. Hour and a half or so, depending on how big the audience is and what I'm doing.
Speaker 1:I feel like once you're on stage, who wants to get off? Right? There's comics that do 59.9 minutes, 59.59 minutes, and they get right off Like in the middle of a joke. They're like, okay to come on, and I just do an hour hour 20. You don't have an opener. I sometimes, if it's in the new york area, I have a an opener here and there, um, but mostly on the road, we don't right, we don't. Leo, my husband, yeah, who's really changed my, my life, you, you, you. You've met leo, right, many times, yeah, so leo's great. I thought I'd see him today. He took over my career.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and he got me. Oh, I heard him on the podcast saying he needs help and he doesn't want to do the logistics anymore.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, we took on. We're working with Levity now and we're really blessed with the people at UTA, the touring people. They're amazing and so we're super busy, but it's all him. But the audience comes out there, so he comes out, yeah, I go, go out as the producer, yeah, and just thank them. Yeah, you've created a show. You want to make sure there were links, you made sure there was a place and the, the, the, the, the, the Go. Thank them for being here, love that. While you're there, maybe you want to mention that, this and this and that and that and that, and a few jokes came together. Yeah, and they love him and it's adorable. And then I'll go on Like he'll do not even two minutes. And they know he's your husband, they know he's my husband. Then I can always refer back to him as the husband.
Speaker 2:You know what I do with that kind of material, how do the religious people feel about all this, because this used to be a concern.
Speaker 1:So it's not really a concern. They really my audience. When they see him, they go. You're Modi's gay husband.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Like, not like you're his gay husband. It's like I'm almost not gay, but the fact that I married a gay guy Right.
Speaker 2:It's so weird to them because to them I'm still like, still, like you know, giving mezuzahs out. Oh, I remember when you had a mezuzah on the closet you were stuck in. Oh, everyone knows, for a long time modi put the buy in rabbi. I love this free modi. I love where you're at now with Leo and your openness and the fact that you're so accepted is really truly wonderful, Really accepted by the orthodox and the non-orthodox. Modi always had a little extra fringe on his talus.
Speaker 1:Now we have Goyim Gaze and Vase coming to it. The show it's amazing, it's so, so good. Yeah, yeah, you've met any guy. Yeah, yeah, I was never in the closet with the comics. No, on the stage I wasn't in the closets, didn't talk about relationships, right yeah, by the way, I'm straight, I don't talk about relationships exactly.
Speaker 2:It's not interesting to me, no one cares, I don't, it's not, you know. So I respect that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you were doing what you, what you wanted to do create I was more jewish than I was gay and that's where my material went. And right and there's yeah, it's great. So the show is starting august 5th. And reviews, which is a whole new thing to me. Yeah, what. What's the difference? Previews where you work. So the show is starting August 5th.
Speaker 2:Previews, which is a whole new thing to me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what's the difference.
Speaker 2:There's previews, where you work out the show, like the unions are very strict, like I can't rehearse in a theater until a few days before, so that's when they bring in the set and all the tech, people and the lights and there's a lot the sound design. So I only have a few days in the theater before we start. Then design so I only have a few days in the theater before we start. Then previews go for two weeks and somewhere in there reviewers come so that if you get a good review, that could starts word of mouth and you know and and and. Then opening night is when you bring your friends and your colleagues and then once you do that, you're kind of in my what they call a limited run. Eight weeks, uh, eight shows a week. So I've never done anything. Vaudeville, it is like old show but it's like old show business.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a lot yeah, yeah, I'm trying to figure out how to do it you gotta save your voice.
Speaker 1:There's no talking when you're off stage, which is a very hard for me very, very hard right, yeah I remember I was, uh, I saw john leguizamo one time while he was doing his show and he's yelling the whole show, yeah, and he had a button that oh, I don't know if it was him, but he he had a way to tell people that he doesn't talk, right, when he's off. You gotta save your voice, right?
Speaker 2:yeah, you're gonna be doing that holland quinn sent me some links, links. Alex Edelman sent me some ideas on different ways to help your voice preserve your voice. Yeah, vocal warm-ups and the way you project and stuff like that.
Speaker 1:So I'm learning luckily I learned cantorial singing. Yeah, so I I see it in my act. You know I breathe from here. Put it out there in the facial mask rather than yeah, yeah, yeah, it's uh, but yeah you got. It's amazing. I can't believe you're on broadway. It's wild and I have to sing it's gonna be wild it's, it's, you know, when you see a friend succeed and somebody who deserves it, you're so happy.
Speaker 2:You're so happy when you I see jeff ross broadway, I'm like yes, yes yes, thank you sometimes you see comics like this son of a bitch but you I you're going to wind up doing the same thing. I have a feeling Eventually, yeah, I think your show could be very Jackie Mason-ish. It could be Because you're such a crowd pleaser, yeah, and I think you'll demolish people.
Speaker 1:And my fans are just I'm in love with them and they're in love with me. You're also a comic that loves the audience. Yes, some comics people don't understand like hate the audience and they're fighting with them, right, and they're like yo man, I'm going to kill them. It's like kill, it's not, it's like I love the audience, they love you back, they show it to you, they buy tickets. We did three shows at the incredible. What do you think? What do you think catapulted you to that sellout level? Like I said, my, my, my husband managing all the stuff that needs to get out there clips and films and and clips and videos and and the right management and the right people. I never had a team and now he built it and that they didn't know about me. Luckily, covid came around and there was a captive audience and we hit them and he was working with me during that and then he just built it and built it and built it and you feed that Instagram thing.
Speaker 1:I went to the cell to work on my new hour while this hour is coming together and we just ended up posting all of it. It was just all this new material and I just you gotta feed them, you gotta give them clips. They share the clips. Everybody comes to me. You know I was in chemo. All I did was watch your clips. It's the work we do is so insane. It's so, it's so amazing, it's real. Moshiach energy yeah, I love it, it's real.
Speaker 2:Moshiach energy. Yeah, I love it. Yeah, you're the only person I have who said luckily COVID came along.
Speaker 1:Luckily COVID came along. Thank God I had COVID, I didn't have. I never got COVID. I never got COVID Right and during COVID I was working so much, the Jews didn't stop Right.
Speaker 2:The Jews were having you were popping on stage, recording it, posting it.
Speaker 1:We you were popping on stage, recording it, posting it. We were doing Zoom shows and all that stuff. But the clips get out there and then it builds the audience and, like I said, you and I both love the audience.
Speaker 2:Yeah, love, but I've never been good at the internet. Part of it, I'm better at the live thing and the internet. I get bored. I never want to put my best stuff on the internet. I haven't put any of my show this new show on the internet. I get bored.
Speaker 1:I never want to put my best stuff on the internet I haven't put any of my show, this new show, on the internet. Obviously you can't put your new show on, but all your old material I guess I should chop it up, it's all, don't you?
Speaker 1:uh, do you? Do you go on instagram once in a while? Yeah, so, and you see all the clips of george carlin and everything's chopped up. Yeah, I mean, nobody sits through a special anymore. No, no one. These young kids don't even know that it's a part of a special Right and they just so. That's how they're still alive. All those Don Rickles on, on, on Johnny Carson, those little clips.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's. That's the internet's amazing.
Speaker 1:Don Rickles a beacon?
Speaker 2:no one knows he passed away five years ago anyway, no, but you especially no, your stuff pops up, your roast stuff. Yeah, no, people posted that has nothing to do with me, just tiktokers put up the roast. So yeah, which is fun.
Speaker 1:Which is fun, it's great, yeah, great, and sometimes they even give you the credit yeah, that it's you.
Speaker 2:No, I'll put a comment on going.
Speaker 1:Thanks for the at least tag me, at least tag me, you, son of a bitch, yeah nazi bastard, nazi bastards, nazi bastards.
Speaker 2:What kind of guy puts up a clip without giving a credit?
Speaker 1:exactly. It's uh, he's uh. But the, the jewish voice has changed. Jackie mason has changed. It's not that voice anymore. It's not that. How are you? I want you know that it's. It's. There's a proud voice. There's, uh, there's a proudness. It's not that voice anymore, it's not that. Well, yeah, I want you to know that it's. It's. There's a proud voice, there's a there's a proudness. It's not. This just came out of the Holocaust. Living in in in the low resides. It's Jewish, it's gay, it's. It's a road, it's surviving cancer.
Speaker 2:It's my parents' history, a different voice, now the, the jewish voice. Huh, interesting, I think. So I think I try to be a strong. Strong, yeah, I come from a blue collar working class people and not not accountants, but construction workers and catering and catering, which is very hard work.
Speaker 1:No, one has any idea how hard catering is. It's one of the things I look at and I can't even imagine. I don't grasp it. And I work a lot of events that are private events, but there's the caterer involved and all those Passover programs. It's a mindset that if you used to know how much food to order, I went to put it out. Did your family have-? I never go on before dinner. My contract has a whole thing. After dinner cleared plates. No waiter. No waiter on the floor. If a Jew sees a waiter, sir, just water. Anybody need anything. They will ruin your whole show. No wait, step on the table. I totally get that. Did your family ever have the Hasbusholam table?
Speaker 2:What's that?
Speaker 1:The God forbid table. Hasbusholom is God forbid, no, and so they would serve everybody chicken steaks, whatever the fish, whatever the meals were, and there was a whole table of extras. So if has V'sholom, if God forbid, someone was still hungry, they can go get a little extra. There's the has V'sholom table in the kosher catering. We definitely had that, I just didn't know what it was called. Yeah, it's the God forbid. God forbid, you didn't get enough table. You go, go, go, go get some more.
Speaker 2:I love that yeah.
Speaker 1:Tom, anything else you want to tell us before we check out of here?
Speaker 2:Well, this is my first time telling what I feel like is a not predominantly, but a very Jewish-friendly audience about my show and I didn't even sometimes, like you, forget how, what that even means. And one of the reasons I think I loved Broadway and seeing Jackie Mason as a young man was how Jewish it was and for years. You know me, modi, I don't really talk about religion or even politics, but for some reason this look back into my life, going back to my earliest memories of the catering hall. It all comes back to my Jewishness, my cultural not religious my cultural Jewishness and the Katz's Deli, the Jackie Mason, the Fiddler on the Roof. There's a little homage to Tevye in the show. So I feel like and I'm not usually a hard sell comic, like I said, I don't do the internet, I don't do a hard sell comic. Like I said, I don't do the internet, I don't do a lot of interviews, but the Jewish people are going to love this show. It's a good bonding. Hamish is the word you're looking for. It's a Hamish night full of belly laughs and if you're willing to let go a little bit and let it be a release, I think people are going to be blown away and the reason I'm doing the show isn't for me, it's not for the money, it's not a big play like that, because I want people to see it.
Speaker 2:I got offered a three-week run and I could have been in and out and it would have been sold out every night. It would have been a big hit. But I said you know what I think have been in and out and it would have been sold out every night. It would have been a big hit. But I said you know what? I think people need to find out about it. I want as many people to see this show. I think it's going to be important and I think Jews and non-Jews are going to love it, but I think Jews are going to have a big, big chin up. Prideful moment.
Speaker 1:Yeah, listen, it's, it's. You know, when people see John Lilligrisamo, if you are Puerto Rican, you have a different experience than somebody who's American Sure, you're gonna see the show. If you're Jewish, you get a different experience. It's not a better or worse, it's a different experience than people who, the Jews, are gonna see the show. I can tell From what I've saw with that song and what I put and I and I've seen kind of like a parts of the show when we did um, the roast of anti-semitism and and um, yeah, and that big show we did in in brooklyn, I I've seen kind of like this, the jewishness of you coming out again, not a religious, it's a cultural jewishness and, uh, that's it.
Speaker 1:Speaking of of kosher catering, jeff, one of the reasons we do this podcast and are blessed we have A&H Provisions. What is that? They are a kosher glot kosher company. That is one of the best glot kosher foods, packaged beautifully, shipped beautifully. They're available in stores everywhere. I think they're at Trader Joe's now, which is where we got our hot dogs for 4th of July. With promo code MODY, you get 30% off of the first order and everything is on kosherdogsnet. Also Weitz and Luxembourg, the law firm that not only does well, they do good, super philanthropic and amazing things they do like help our podcast and we want to thank Weitz and Luxembourg and the website is weitzluxcom and thank you.
Speaker 2:I've never, ever in all the years of podcasting, heard a law firm get plugged. That's the most Jewish thing I've ever heard.
Speaker 1:He's like my brother, it's beautiful. The author of Luxem he's like my brother, it's beautiful. Arthur Luxenberg is like my brother, it's like a joke in itself. No, we have a kosher, a kosher, a lot of kosher food and a law firm sponsoring us. That's really great. It's amazing. We love them and they're fun and we'll all be at your show, jeffrossbroadwaycom.
Speaker 1:Get your tickets. Get tickets for friends. Be the friend that brings the friends to the comedy show. That is Moshiach energy. When you're bringing friends to laugh, you're creating Moshiach energy. And look at his just. If you're stuck somewhere, just deep dive, jeff Ross, you're going to plot. You're going to plot, you're going to laugh. Love it, roast, the, everything, the comedy specials from back in the day. Oh, my God, jeff Ross is when we say legend and all that, that's Jeff Ross and that's it. We love you. I'm going to be. I'm on the road too. Where are you going? I'm going to tell you where I'm going to go Indianapolis, July 23rd, and then Columbus, ohio, july 24th. August. Sold out the Hamptons, two shows there. So never mind that. November 2nd we are in Vancouver and the 13th San Francisco. Then we're back in Europe. We love Europe, jeff. Where are you going. We love Europe. Jeff, where are you going? Vienna 16th Beautiful, beautiful community there, unbelievable August, november 18th. Amsterdam 20th Berlin that's a vibe, wow, wow. Berlin's my second time back there.
Speaker 2:What's the crowd like there? German, and they speak.
Speaker 1:English and they speak English better than we do. And then we're going to be in Paris the 23rd, where the English is a little more. What venue do you know? The Paris venue? Yeah, I forgot, but it's a big one. That's cool, it's a big one. Last time we were there, we did five shows. Now we're back, for we're doing one big, big show. Oh yeah, I'm so proud of you. Thank you world celebrity no, thank you.
Speaker 1:December 6th, seattle. And listen to where I'm taping. My special yeah was taping it in georgia, atlanta, georgia. That you think I was black? That's what the black it means. That's what the rappers are. The rappers are magic city baby, but the jews out there. The first show was sold out. The 11th, we're adding the 10th. Two nights of the taping. A comedy show taping come. Why comedy show taping? Why did you pick there? It just fit and the shows, the tickets are selling good there and the people there are great and they haven't seen this new show that I'm doing. Pause for Laughter and that's basically it. But again, I thank you so much for coming here and you got your mezuzah. I love it. And also I'm going to give you, of course, more A Mashiach Energy yarmulke. What? Yes, yes, it doesn't stop. Oh, jeffrossbroadwaycom, get your tickets. I love this. It's a comedy event. I'll see you opening night, my man, exactly. Thank you very much for listening, anything you need.