Epstein Emails Implicating Trump Surface as Ghislaine Gets VIP Treatment in Prison | Jay Jurden

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Episode: Epstein Emails Implicating Trump Surface as Ghislaine Gets VIP Treatment in Prison | Jay Jurden
Date: November 13, 2025
Host: Josh Johnson (plus The Daily Show News Team and guest Jay Jurden)

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Episode Overview

This episode dives headfirst into two headline-making stories: newly surfaced Jeffrey Epstein emails that mention Donald Trump and accusations surrounding Ghislaine Maxwell’s VIP treatment in prison. Host Josh Johnson and contributors infuse their signature sharp wit, skepticism, and irreverence into these hot-button stories, then pivot to lighter territory with a thoughtful, funny conversation with standup comic Jay Jurden and a comedic opinion piece by Nick Offerman skewering America's industrial food system.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Epstein Emails Implicating Trump (01:32–08:39)

Summary:
The show opens with mock celebration around Trump’s political luck quickly derailed by the latest “Epstein file.” Josh Johnson and the news team read out and riff on email excerpts from Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell, parsing whether Trump is truly implicated or just "the dog that hasn't barked." There are jokes about American embarrassment and the hope to avoid a “sexual predator as president.” Forensic comedy is applied to the oddly candid and self-incriminating style of Epstein’s emails.

Notable Quotes:

• "How embarrassing would that be if we, America, went from being the shining city on a hill to... not being allowed within 1,000ft of the hill?" – Josh Johnson (02:50)
• "I want you to realize that the dog that hasn’t barked is Trump." – Quoting Epstein’s email (03:43)
• “All I’ve seen so far is Epstein and Maxwell saying Trump is a dog that hasn’t barked. We don’t know what he didn’t bark about.”—Josh Johnson (04:28)

Timestamps:

• [01:32] – Josh Johnson introduces the day’s bombshell
• [03:28] – Reading of key Epstein email ("the dog that hasn't barked is Trump")
• [04:05] – Strategic emails about leveraging Trump connection
• [05:05] – Jokes about email incrimination and political fallout

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2. Ghislaine Maxwell's Alleged VIP Prison Perks (06:07–10:22)

Summary:
Allegations surface that Ghislaine Maxwell is enjoying extraordinary comforts in prison: custom meals, private recreation, unrestricted guest access with refreshments, staff-only areas, and even sessions with a service puppy. Johnson and correspondent Ronny Chieng lampoon the absurdity, with Ronny humorously “on location” in Maxwell’s luxurious “cell,” bemoaning the king-size bed’s lack of aesthetic balance and unironically rejecting "shrimp puffs."

Notable Quotes:

• "There is not another convicted child sex trafficker in the world who would get this kind of treatment in prison. There’s actually no way within the confines of prison that her life could get any better." – Josh Johnson (07:08)
• “She gets work from home for prison?” – Josh Johnson (09:53)
• “It’s not private. It’s for her and her puppy.” – Ronny Chieng (10:20)

Timestamps:

• [06:07] – Clip of Maxwell denying witnessing Trump act inappropriately
• [06:45] – Details on alleged luxury treatment
• [07:31] – "Puppy time" for Maxwell
• [08:39] – Live “report” from Maxwell’s prison cell (comedic sketch)

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3. Nick Offerman’s Opinion: The American Food System Crisis (11:18–19:27)

Summary:
Nick Offerman delivers a tongue-in-cheek, searing monologue about the decline of small, diverse U.S. farms and the rise of ultra-processed, corporate-controlled food. He compares American and European agricultural models, highlights the health consequences of industrial food, and pleads for help for American farmers, mixing earnest advocacy with trademark deadpan.

Notable Quotes:

• “You capitalist pigs have ruined our normal pigs. How dare you trick me with bacon like I'm some dog you’re training to sit.” – Nick Offerman (15:39)
• “Ultra processed foods make up 73% of the US food supply.” – Josh Johnson (16:33)
• “I enjoy junk food... They're like butt plugs. Fun in moderation, and you can stick them up your butt. Or so I’ve read.” – Nick Offerman (14:25)
• “America cannot afford to lose this many farms. Without them, we’ll have nothing to point at and shout 'cow!' on road trips.” – Nick Offerman (13:49)
• “We can have a system that lives up to the words of America's greatest agrarian mind. I love cows.” – Nick Offerman (19:23)

Timestamps:

• [11:18] – Offerman’s intro: on the value of farmers
• [13:30] – Shocking farm decline statistics
• [14:09] – The real reason small farms are disappearing
• [16:33] – Health impacts of ultra-processed foods
• [17:27] – Why European food and farms are better
• [18:21] – The contradiction between government rhetoric and farm policies

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4. Interview: Jay Jurden on Comedy, the South, and Standup Today (21:23–37:44)

Summary:
Josh Johnson hosts comedian Jay Jurden for an extended, candid chat about growing up in the South, moving to New York, how their backgrounds color their comedy, the evolution of standup through social media, and pandemic-era park performances. They swap stories about mistaken identity, Southern manners on the subway, college theater programs, and nurturing a new generation of comedians. Jay shares his philosophies about being present onstage and the joys of sharing new jokes, and spotlights the inclusivity and service ethic at the heart of comedy.

Notable Quotes:

• “I'm still very Southern. When I see an old lady sometimes on the train, you know this feeling. You see an older woman get on the train, you instantly get up because you’re a Southern gentleman. And what you just said to her as a New Yorker is, 'Sit your old ass down.'” – Jay Jurden (23:13)
• “We used to, like, protect and hoard our stuff. Now I feel so happy when people go, 'Oh, I love this joke. Oh, I love this bit.'” – Jay Jurden (29:59)
• “If you do comedy in the park and you don't have a microphone, you are just a man screaming in the park.” – Jay Jurden (33:24)

Timestamps:

• [21:23] – Jay Jurden introduction
• [22:14] – Mistaken identity and Club Cellar stories
• [23:13] – Being Southern in NYC
• [24:58] – Theater degrees at Southern universities
• [28:18] – Comedy clips and social media's influence
• [29:23] – The real magic of live performance
• [31:45] – Favorite jokes that didn't make it into his special
• [33:56] – Doing standup in the park during the pandemic
• [36:32] – Jay and Wanda Sykes’ jokes: personal favorites

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Memorable Moments & Quotes (with Timestamps)

• [02:50] Josh Johnson: "How embarrassing would that be if we, America, went from being the shining city on a hill to... not being allowed within 1,000ft of the hill?"
• [07:08] Josh Johnson: "There is not another convicted child sex trafficker in the world who would get this kind of treatment in prison."
• [10:20] Ronny Chieng: "It’s not private. It’s for her and her puppy."
• [14:25] Nick Offerman: "I'll eat a Twinkie... They're like butt plugs. Fun in moderation, and you can stick them up your butt. Or so I’ve read."
• [15:39] Nick Offerman: “You capitalist pigs have ruined our normal pigs...”
• [23:13] Jay Jurden: "What you just said to her as a New Yorker is, 'Sit your old ass down.'"
• [33:24] Jay Jurden: "If you do comedy in the park... you are just a man screaming in the park."
• [36:32] Jay Jurden: “I say, I'm sorry, y'all, I'm not even gay. I just wanna be marketable… I'm queer, as in everybody’s hot. Not gay, as in remind the teacher we have homework.”

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Structure & Tone

• The episode is rapid-fire, satirical, and playful even when dissecting disturbing news, layered with banter and absurdist asides.
• The interview segment is warm, personable, and full of inside-comic camaraderie.
• Offerman’s opinion segment is vintage: deadpan, slightly surreal, and pointedly critical of corporate ag overreach.

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Takeaways for Listeners

• The Trump–Epstein connection remains shadowy but is made fun of with biting satire.
• The Maxwell prison story illustrates, through madcap parody, the inequity of the criminal justice system—especially for the wealthy or connected.
• Offerman’s segment packs genuinely educational content about America’s agricultural system’s decline, wrapped in jokes.
• Jay Jurden’s interview is a celebration of comedy’s evolving landscape and the importance of community and authenticity in performance.

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Perfect for fans of sharp political satire, showbiz behind-the-scenes, and anyone interested in the intersection of news and comedy.

Transcript

[GoFundMe Announcer]

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[Ronny Chang]

You're listening to Comedy Central from the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central.

[Narrator/Announcer]

It's America's only source for news. This is the Daily show with your host, Josh Johnson.

[Josh Johnson]

Welcome to the Daily Show. I'm Josh Johnson. We've got so much to talk about tonight. We read some emails that should have been a meeting. An emotional support dog is about to quit on the job. And Nick Offerman has a beef with how we make beef. So let's get into the headlines. Donald Trump's been having a pretty good time. The shutdown ended. He didn't have to concede anything. And he didn't even have to give poor people health care, his favorite kind of deal. Everything's coming up Trump. Nothing can stop the Trump train now.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Breaking news. Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein mentioned Donald Trump by name several times in private emails.

[Josh Johnson]

Ladies and gentlemen, the Trump train is experiencing a slight delay there. There is an epic Epstein file on the tracks. We should be moving as soon as we get that cleared, but fine. Epstein mentioned Trump in an email. That doesn't mean he did anything wrong. Maybe the email was about how Trump never comes to his sex parties.

[GoFundMe Announcer]

Rude.

[Josh Johnson]

I say this because I'm an American living in America, and no matter what party you're in or who you voted for, it would be better for all of us as a general matter, if we do not have a sexual predator as president, because it would. It would make our country look so bad. You know, how embarrassing would that be if we, America, went from being the shining city on a hill to. To not being allowed within 1,000ft of the hill. So let's just stay calm and see what the email said before we jump to conclusions.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

These are emails from Jeffrey Epstein to Ghislaine Maxwell. This is one from April 2, 2011. And in this email, Jeffrey Epstein writes to Ghislaine Maxwell and says, quote, I want you to realize that the dog that hasn't barked is Trump.

[Josh Johnson]

Okay, that doesn't sound good at all. But, you know, that dog hasn't barked could mean a lot of things. Maybe Trump's feet hurt. All right, so that's all the news in terms of bombshell emails. It's not a lot. It's not like there's an email with a journalist where he's strategizing how to blackmail Trump.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Michael Wolf says, quote, I hear that CNN is planning to ask Trump tonight about his relationship with you. If he says he hasn't been on the plane or to the house, then that gives you a valuable PR and political currency. You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you, or if it really looks like he could win, you could save him generating a debt.

[Josh Johnson]

I like that Epstein was like, yeah, that seems like a lot of work. I'm probably just going to kill myself. And did he really have leverage? Anyway, all I've seen so far is Epstein and Maxwell saying Trump is a dog that hasn't barked. We don't know what he didn't bark about. Maybe the rest of that email clears him. I want you to realize that that dog that hasn't barked is Trump. Unnamed victims spent hours at my house with him.

[GoFundMe Announcer]

He has never once been mentioned, according to the released emails.

[Josh Johnson]

Maxwell responds, I have been thinking about that. Oh, shit. I. I think the Trump train crashed because this isn't just not a good look. It's one of the worst looks I've ever seen. Like, I'm talking Adrien Brody in a rasta wig. Bad. Also, why was Jeffrey Epstein writing about his crimes in emails? That's so dumb. He's. He's firing off his BlackBerry to Ghislaine, like, hey, girl. Following up about the sex crimes. Uh, hope Trump doesn't snitch about the sex crimes. Hit me up if you this weekend, say what you want about Donald Trump, but he knows better than to put incriminating shit in emails. He does it in person or on the phone or reportedly inside a sketch of a naked lady, but never email. Trump has to be pretty Unhappy that new evidence is coming out because he's worked so hard to prevent that. Remember Ghislaine Maxwell got moved into a country club prison after she gave an interview saying this.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

I never witnessed the president in any inappropriate setting in any way in the times that I was with him. He was a gentleman in all respects.

[Josh Johnson]

Well, no, no, that's something. And she said it British, so you gotta believe her. I don't know what she's got on him, but it must be bad because she didn't even exonerate him. She didn't say Trump is innocent. All she said was, I didn't see him do anything. I also didn't see him do anything. What do I get? That's all she said. And now she's being treated like royalty.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

A whistleblower alleges that Ghislaine Maxwell is getting special treatment in prison. Maxwell's meals have been customized. They are delivered directly to her cell. She is personally escorted to the exercise area after hours and gets to enjoy recreation time in staff only areas when she wants private meetings. The warden providing an assortment of snacks and refreshments for her guests.

[Josh Johnson]

I mean, she gets to hang out in the staff areas. Can you imagine being a prison guard who can't watch TV in the break room because Ghislaine taking a nap on the couch? But this is truly insane. There is not another convicted child sex trafficker in the world who would get this kind of treatment in prison. There's actually no way within the confines of prison that her life could get any better.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Add to that one more perk for the convicted sex offender. Puppy time. According to the whistleblower, an inmate who trains puppies to become service dogs was instructed to provide one to Maxwell for a time so she could play with the puppy.

[Josh Johnson]

Do not give that dog to Ghislaine. That's not what they meant when they said take the dog to the groomer. So, look, I don't know what Ghislaine knows about whatever Donald Trump did. All I know is that every detail that comes out makes him look more and more suspicious. And if you thought this couldn't look any worse, wait till you see the birthday card that Trump sent that doll. For more on the fallout of these new emails, let's go live to Ghislaine Maxwell's prison with our own Ronny. Ronny, what's the latest?

[Ronny Chang]

Well, Josh, I've been talking to White House officials and they say this is absurd. Ghislaine Maxwell is not being treated differently from any other federal prisoner.

[Josh Johnson]

Wait, where are you? Are. Are you in Trump's new ballroom? I thought you were supposed to be reporting from her prison.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, this is.

[Narrator/Announcer]

This is her prison.

[Ronny Chang]

This is. This is Ghislaine Maxwell's cell.

[Josh Johnson]

That whole room is just for her.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes, but it's not that nice, okay? The bed is king size, but the pillow is only queen size. It's like the aesthetics are all off. Believe me, this woman is doing hard time. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hang on, hang on. Can I. Can I get one of these?

[Josh Johnson]

Wait, is this.

[Ronny Chang]

Is this shrimp?

[Josh Johnson]

Would you like shrimp? No, I'm allergic to shrimp.

[Ronny Chang]

What a hellhole.

[Josh Johnson]

Ronnie, Ronnie, come on. Most prisoners don't get past apps in their cell.

[Ronny Chang]

Uh, I wouldn't call shrimp puffs an app, okay? It's an hors d' oeuvre at best. Let's tone down the rhetoric.

[Josh Johnson]

The point is that Trump is clearly trying to hide something here. I mean, just look at all those emails.

[Ronny Chang]

Don't take my word for it, okay? Just ask d' Lane when she gets back.

[Josh Johnson]

What do you mean back? Where is she? Oh, I. I don't know.

[Ronny Chang]

I think this is one of her.

[Josh Johnson]

Work from home days. She gets work from home for prison?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, but don't twist this into sounding like special treatment, okay? It's two days days in. Talk about human rights violation.

[Josh Johnson]

Wait, is that music?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think the concert's about to start.

[Josh Johnson]

Don't tell me they are doing a private concert for Ghislaine.

[Ronny Chang]

No, no, no, no.

[Narrator/Announcer]

It's not.

[Ronny Chang]

It's not private. It's for her and her puppy.

[Josh Johnson]

All right, Ronny Chang, everybody. When we come back, Nick Offerman will give us his opinion.

[Ronny Chang]

So, Don.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

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[Josh Johnson]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. We all know I've got great opinions, but I'm not the only one. Studies show that other people also have opinions. So here with another installment of In My Opinion is our good friend, Nick Offerman. Offerman.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Hello. I am that guy from that show, Nick Offerman. And today I am here to talk to you about farmers. Now, farmers aren't just guys mowing down their corn field to build a baseball field for ghosts. They are also a vital part of America's economy and national identity. Now, luckily, they have a staunch ally.

[Ronny Chang]

We have the greatest farmers in the world.

[Josh Johnson]

I cherish our farmers.

[Narrator/Announcer]

I'm a big farmer person.

[Ronny Chang]

I love the farmers. I think they're great. I love the farmers.

[Narrator/Announcer]

They're great. They're the greatest. The farmers love Trump and I love the farmers. I love cows. Come on, come on. Love is love. And I've seen that guy dance. I bet he knows his way around an udder. And look. I happen to share the non sexual part of his affection for our farmers. I've been lucky enough to work on the small farms of people like English farmer James Rebanks and Kentucky's Mary and Wendell Berry. They let a Hollywood muckety muck like me help with herding the cattle, scrubbing the animals, and of course, testing the semen. They assured me that's the most coveted job on the farm. So please consider my hands sticky with experience. Unfortunately, small farms like those have been tragically disappearing for decades.

[Ronny Chang]

According to census data, there are already.

[Josh Johnson]

10% fewer farms than there were just five years ago.

[Narrator/Announcer]

We've lost half the cattle ranchers in.

[Ronny Chang]

The United States since 1980, about 90%.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Of the hog farmers.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

In the last two decades, more than 100,000 small farms have disappeared across America's landscape.

[Narrator/Announcer]

America cannot afford to lose this many farms. Without them, we'll have nothing to point at and shout cow on road trips. But the real reason these small farms are going is in America, we don't farm to feed people because we are not growing food. What we're growing is ingredients.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

The number of farms and what they produce for human consumption have been on a steady decline over the past few decades in the U.S. instead, what's being grown is corn and soybeans used for livestock feed and ethanol or as cheap sugars, starches and oils in highly processed foods.

[Narrator/Announcer]

In other words, we're not growing corn and beans to eat. They're being grown to turn them into whatever the f a Dorito is. I believe that is short for dirt burrito. And this is something America's farmers have known for decades. Our food system is no longer about food. It's now about corporate interests. And everything is engineered to make more profit than nutrition. Now, don't get me wrong, I enjoy junk food. I'll eat a Twinkie. I mean, they're like butt plugs. Fun in moderation, and you can stick them up your butt. Or so I've Read. But as the number of small farms shrinks, the diversity of our food supply shrinks with it. And you might think, well, that can't be true. Look at all the choices I have at the grocery store. Well, look closer. Tyson, Cargill, JBS and National Beef together control roughly 85% of all beef production in America.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

This bacon is a good example. You know, these look like three different choices of bacon. They're all actually the same company.

[Narrator/Announcer]

You capitalist pigs have ruined our normal pigs. How dare you trick me with bacon like I'm some dog you're training to sit. Now, in fairness, I will present my paw for meat snacks. Nevertheless, giant food conglomerates have turned America's farms into what we call factory farms, which is an oxymoron like bittersweet veggie burger or Canadian football. Well, we're all friends now. Just look at some of the wonderful benefits of our current industrial food system.

[Josh Johnson]

Ultra processed foods make up 73% of the US food supply.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

This actually has very real health impacts. High blood pressure, cardiovascular disease. Ultra processed foods may be linked to anxiety and depression and sleep problems. In 2015, the WHO classified ultra processed food meat as carcinogenic.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Jesus. I'm trying to make a BLT here, not become Spider Man. Now, you don't need me to tell you that our food system is a nightmare. We all understand in our guts that the quality of food is better in other countries. It's the one time even Fox News will praise Europe.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

When you go to Europe, the food is delicious. It's so fresh, and you don't gain weight. If you eat a big bowl of pasta, we can eat pizza. We don't gain any weight. You feel fresh, you feel clean, you come back here, you start eating pasta, and you gain weight immediately again. So there's something wrong with our foods?

[Narrator/Announcer]

Yes. Why is it that the food tastes better in Europe? It's not just because you're starving after waiting in line for 12 hours to see a painting of a modestly breasted woman not smiling. It's not. It's because they prioritize organic food made on smaller farms. The average farm size In Europe is 39 acres. In America, it's 500 acres. European farms are like their bathing suits, much smaller. So you can see every detail of their meat and veg. And the good news is we can be more like Europe. But unfortunately, right now, our policies seem to be making it even harder on all our farms. American soybean farmers have been hit hard by Trump's trade war.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Cattle ranchers are furious over President Trump's plans to bring down beef prices by bringing in more from other countries.

[Narrator/Announcer]

You're telling me the President is disappointing beef boys and soy boys. That's practically all the boys. So, Mr. President, please live up to your pro farmer rhetoric. Help us refocus America's agriculture on things that Mother Nature would recognize and not the producers of hydrogen high fructose corn syrup. We can change our approach to food to make it more like actual food. We can change our approach to farming to reflect respect for farmers and for the animals we consume. We can have a system. Yes, we can have a system that lives up to the words of America's greatest agrarian mind. I love cows. I couldn't agree more. But hey, that's just my opinion.

[Josh Johnson]

Nick Offerman, everyone.

[Ronny Chang]

Be sure to check out Nick in the new Netflix series Death by Lightning. Also, Nick's booklet Woodchucks is out now.

[Josh Johnson]

When we come back, Jake Jordan will be joining me on the show.

[Ronny Chang]

Don't go away.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

This episode is brought to you by Netflix from the creator of Homeland. Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys star in the new Netflix series the Beast in Me as ruthless rivals whose shared darkness will set them on a collision course with fatal consequences. The Beast in Me is a riveting psychological cat and mouse story about guilt, justice and doubt. You will not want to miss this. The Beast in Me is now playing only on Netflix.

[GoFundMe Announcer]

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[Josh Johnson]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is a writer, actor and comedian Whose debut special for Hulu is called yes Ma'.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Am.

[Josh Johnson]

Please welcome Jay Jerden. Thank you so much for coming.

[Ronny Chang]

Thank you for having me.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, absolutely. This is so cool. Cause I actually know you.

[Ronny Chang]

Yes.

[Josh Johnson]

Like, I really know you.

[Ronny Chang]

We know each other very well. We know each other so well that every now and then you get this and I get this. People say, hey, Jim, great job on the Daily Show. And I go, okay, what segment? They go at the desk. I go, oh, Josh.

[Josh Johnson]

It's funny because. Okay, so we got passed at the Cellar around the same time. And I remember I was at the Cellar waiting to go up, and I was just, like, eating or something, and this person came up, and they were like, dude, you, the other day were so funny. You were so. And, like, your jokes were like, boom, boom, boom. It was like rapid fire. It was crazy. And in my head, I was like, I know they're not talking about me. Like, that's not even what I do. And then they told me one of your jokes. I was like, oh, this is Jay.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah. Josh was like, I'm not married to a man.

[Josh Johnson]

Thank you so much for coming. I'm so excited about your special.

[Ronny Chang]

Thank you. That means a lot.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah. So you grew up in Mississippi. Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

And you grew up in Louisiana. Yes.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes. And so we're both.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, look at that. Yeah, look at them. We got teeth. Look at that. See, they don't think we do.

[Josh Johnson]

So we've both been here now for a long time. Do you feel like a New Yorker?

[Ronny Chang]

So I've been in New York officially 10 years, but I will never say I'm a New Yorker because I still speak to everybody on the street. I'm always like, how you doing? Hey, hey. Yeah, baby. I'm still very Southern. When I see an old lady sometimes on the train, you know this feeling. You see an older woman get on the train, you instantly get up because you're a Southern gentleman. And what you just said to her as a New Yorker is, sit your old ass down.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

So I don't know how to get rid of that.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, no, absolutely. There's. Sometimes. There was. There was one time.

[Ronny Chang]

Where?

[Josh Johnson]

To your point, right? And I was new. New. I was like, a month. I only lived here.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah. They still smelled the Creole on you.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, hundred percent. Because then I saw this guy on the train, and it was like. It was one of, like, those six train stops where the gap is, like, slightly higher on the train than it is on the platform. And I saw a guy basically back up his wheelchair when the Door was open and tried to back in and he couldn't quite get it. And so I walked up and went ahead and like grabbed the back of it and I was like, hey, do you need some help? And then I started pulling him in and this dude, I pull him the rest of the way in and he goes, yo, get up off my chair, man. And he stands up and I was like, my bad. I don't know, I didn't know I was ruining something.

[Ronny Chang]

He said, you messing up my hustle, man.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Yeah.

[Ronny Chang]

That'S the most intimate thing you can do is like help someone back up in a wheelchair. Now I'm still Southern. The special is about being Southern. I think it's what makes me funny. I think sometimes the juxtaposition of being Southern and sweet and slow in a fast paced city, it creates some comedy.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, yeah. Not just some, a lot.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And so you, you have a BFA and an mfa?

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, you can say I'm in debt. You don't have to be. I got a ba, BFA and an mfa. I was in school forever.

[Josh Johnson]

And you, you went to school at Ole Miss and Alabama.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, because I love being scared.

[Josh Johnson]

And they're known as like it NCAA schools. Like, is their theater program as strong as there? Like football?

[Ronny Chang]

Here's the thing. No, but, but the theater programs were very strong. But whenever I was at both of those big SEC schools, there were times when we couldn't rehearse. Cause they were like, hey, these kids gonna be drunk and hungover. We cannot make them rehearse with swords. We can't be doing, we can't be doing any rapier sword fights. These kids went to the game. So every now and then. And football would supersede theater. But the football culture, especially Alabama, the culture of winning, excellence and kind of excelling and executing properly, that was in the MFA program at Alabama at Ole Miss. It was so fun because you have like these party kids who really wanna go to college to have the college experience. The next day they'd be like, and now a scene from Streetcar Named Desire. Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And so you. Did you see much of that crossover? Like, is that how. Cause to me, I also studied theater and I didn't go as far as you. Like, I didn't. I stopped and we get it, you're straight.

[GoFundMe Announcer]

God.

[Josh Johnson]

I'm just trying to give you a copy of that.

[Ronny Chang]

But I know what you mean. I know what you mean.

[Josh Johnson]

No, it's just, I think that when you have all these sort of like intersections happening at one time, it just Gives you a lot of perspective on what people are like. And I think I see a lot of that in your standup. I think I see a lot of the experiences that you've had, and I see you bring more of your personality to every situation than just sort of like taking life for face value and stuff.

[Ronny Chang]

So I was lucky. I had to do that not only for myself, but also for my students. So when I got my mfa, I was a graduate teaching assistant at the University of Alabama. So I had to introduce these 18 year olds, 19 year olds, 20 year olds to theater. And I had to make it interesting enough that they would sit through a 10am class when they knew we had a big SEC game, the next day, they were ready to start partying. I had to be like, no, no, no, wait, wait, wait. Y' all heard about Ipsen? Y' all know about A Doll's House? This is crazy. Nora and Torvald, they getting into it.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And so in the time that you've.

[Ronny Chang]

Been doing Nerd, that was one realism nerd, that was like dog house.

[Josh Johnson]

I wasn't gon say anything and then you called it. So in the time that both of us have been doing standup, I feel like the landscape has changed for how to get your jokes out or how you present to people and everything. And there's, there's a lot of this, like old school approach that everything happens in the club. Everyone that wants to discover good comedy should like, buy a ticket, go to a comedy show, live in person and everything. But we see so many millions of people digesting comedy through their phone, their laptop, the tv, whatever. And I guess, how are you feeling about the state of that change?

[Ronny Chang]

I think that change is this kind of really cool new pattern of people will discover you on the phone and then come to the club, or people see you in the club and they go back and follow you on the phone. I think it's a cycle that actually helps itself. The clips are Nothing but like 15 to 30 second commercials for us as comedians as we, like, pedal our wear. I would love, I would love whenever people come to me after a show and they go, hey, I don't usually go to comedy clubs. They go, I don't like comedy, I don't like stand up. But I liked your clips. So I started going to the club and I got to see all these other comics whose work I also enjoy. Because at the end of the day, what I want is for people to enjoy not just me, but also enjoy. You also enjoy other comedians who I think Are very funny. I want people to go out and be in community. It's live theater. Essentially. It's a live performance. And I think it's a really cool thing when people go, okay, this is. I'm gonna look at this thing on this phone. We're all locked in the house. I'm gonna look at this thing on this phone, and it's gonna get me out of the house and go make me be in community with other people. So I'm happy. Have you.

[Josh Johnson]

Have you. Have you found yourself in any way attached to those outcomes, though? Like, I feel like so many comics, when you see their set, you see them thinking about the clip more than the people that are in front of them. And I feel like every time I watch you, I feel like you're really present and everything. And so I. Because I know you, and because I watch a lot of comics, I don't usually pay much attention to, like, social media footprint as much as, like, what they're doing on stage. And so that's why I say that. Cause I feel like every time I've seen you, you're like, you're here with us, you know?

[Ronny Chang]

Well, I want to be honest. And I think one thing that my theater background has taught me is that people love standup and people love crowd work, and people love being in and of the moment. Cause theater and comedy, they're ephemeral. They're fleeting. It happens this way with this audience, with this host, with me, at this moment, with this camera. It all happens just once. And when you digitize it, when you put it up, it's still a little different. Cause it's not in and of the moment. I think I try to stay in the moment. I also love my jokes so much. I love sharing them. I used to be so. I used to be so, like, precious with the material. Everyone was like this before the pandemic. They go, no, it's mine. You can't. Mm. I'm saving this joke about penises. No. Yeah. By the way, speaking of penises, can't say Nick Offerman. No, let me get it out. Nick Offerman likes twinks. That's gonna be on gay Twitter now. I want everyone to know, but, like, we used to, like, like, protect and hoard our stuff. Now I feel so happy when people go, oh, I love this joke. Oh, I love this bit. And because we kind of produce a lot of material now, and because we gestate and because the world is crazy enough, we keep having more stuff to make jokes about. I feel happy sharing My stuff. I'm very happy that people see a clip and then they come see me, but I'm even happier if they watch the special. So.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, you've already referenced it, but I know that sometimes comics are so precious about everything that goes in the special, everything that gets cut and everything. Was there anything. Was there any, like, story or any idea that didn't make it in that now that it's out, you wish you would have put in?

[Ronny Chang]

Okay, so one of my favorite jokes that I didn't put in the special simply because I like it, just, like, escaped my mind because I was working with so many other things. I have this wonderful joke where I kind of talk about my core personality where I say, I'm a black queer man, also known as a gospel choir director. And that didn't. Right. Let the church say, mm, that didn't make it to. So now I'm happy when I get to do it live for people. But that's a joke. I go, ugh, okay, I forgot that one. But even right now, I filmed the special in April, and so now I have a new hour that I'm doing that's completely different from the special. Cause I want people to feel like they get their money's worth. I don't. You know, I want people to go, oh, my gosh, Jay is really spoiling this, because at the end of the day, as a comedian, I feel this is an industry of service and patronage. Like, I want to be funny enough that I justify the babysitting cost, the Uber cost, the ticket, the two drinks, the meal, the merch, the picture. Like, that's. That's what I want to do as a comedian. So whenever I go, oh, I didn't get to do that joke. My creative kind of like, North Stars. I'll write another one. So.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm with you.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah, I know you are. Oh, my God. You make more stuff than all of them.

[Josh Johnson]

That's very cocky. No, but what I also love about the special is that knowing you from starting and just. It just feels like a really. Yeah, I know. It's just us. Like, I know y', all, like, don't know that we know each other.

[Ronny Chang]

Y' all don't gotta be here.

[Josh Johnson]

But this is, like, one of the reasons I'm so excited for you is that I watched you when we were all doing, like, mics during the pandemic, which actually felt like mental illness.

[Ronny Chang]

Y' all don't even know we were doing comedy outside every now and then in the park, you know, if you do comedy in the park, if you don't have a microphone, you are just a man screaming in the park.

[Josh Johnson]

Yeah, yeah. Hundred percent.

[Ronny Chang]

That was us. Yeah. Or a little bit.

[Josh Johnson]

100%. And so I. Cause I remember doing, like. They were like, oh, we're gonna do a show. And I was like, where we're all gonna die then. And they were like, no, it's gonna be fine. We're gonna do it in the park. And then I get to the park. Cause I came because I was like, I'm about to lose my mind.

[Ronny Chang]

Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

And then I get to the park, and they're like, hey, we actually can't use the PA System because it would be everybody talking to the same mic at the Droplets. And so we would all kill each other. And so I was like, what do you want me to do? And they were like, project.

[Ronny Chang]

They said, use that theater trainer. They said, josh, Diaphragm. That's what they said. And then at one point, we had the little condoms for the mics, the little cupcake prophylactics on the mics.

[Josh Johnson]

Y' all don't understand.

[Ronny Chang]

I think we joke. Yeah.

[Josh Johnson]

This is, like, not a joke at all. Like, they did not work. Like, the idea that this piece of cloth, they were gonna wrap over the mic, and we would be safe. It's like. You mean a mask for the mic that we're all spitting on?

[Ronny Chang]

And there were a couple guys who were like, I brought my own mic. I was like, ooh, you nasty. You on everybody's show. I know you a comedy hoe. Okay.

[Josh Johnson]

And so then to see. To see you from there to getting past at the Cellar, seeing you at the Cellar, seeing you have your special come out, it is very, very beautiful.

[Ronny Chang]

That means a lot, Josh. Thank you. It's also. I also have to say this. I have. I watched your Tonight show set. I watched your Comedy Central new Negro set. I like, we've always been, like, comedy peers, but I also love the work you create and also just navigating a space. Cause, like, right now, in comedy, sometimes as a younger comic, you get to say something, and older comics are like, you can't do it that way. And then you go, well, why not? And they go, we've always done it this way. And so, like, to see you kind of forge your own path and to see other comics kind of, like, break these trends and kind of, like, spread out their material however they do it, that's inspiring. Cause you go, oh, there isn't just one way to do this. And that Makes me very happy. And look at us now. That's crazy.

[Josh Johnson]

So before you go, okay, I.

[Ronny Chang]

You're kicking me out, y'. All.

[Josh Johnson]

No, no, no.

[Ronny Chang]

It's.

[Josh Johnson]

I kicking out. I wish we could talk forever, but you know they can't stay forever.

[Ronny Chang]

I know.

[Josh Johnson]

And we don't want them to leave one at a time. So I know that this, like, almost breaks host to comic, like, unspoken rule, because it is very difficult to just recite a joke out of nowhere. And it's like, I've done morning news where they've been living. Do one of your jokes now. And you're like, ah, I didn't think that far. But I'm curious, because I'm curious about you. What is your favorite joke of all time?

[Ronny Chang]

Okay, so I have two. I have one that's mine and one that's Wanda Sykes. So the Wanda Sykes joke. Wanda Sykes, the special. I'mma be me. She had a joke about how she had to come out as a lesbian. And she had kind of extrapolated. She said, what would it be like if I had to come out as black? And she came out as black. And her mom was like. Like, anything but black. Lord, please give a cancer. Jesus, anyone? And so that's my favorite. That's probably my favorite Wanda Sykes joke. My favorite joke of mine, and that's just because it's a fun little tip of the hat and a calling card, is that I say, I'm sorry, y', all, I'm not even gay. I just wanna be marketable. I'm not gay. No, I'm not. But I'm also not straight.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

I'm.

[Ronny Chang]

I'm queer, as in everybody's hot. Not gay, as in remind the teacher we have homework. So that's probably my favorite.

[Josh Johnson]

That is my favorite now, too. Jay Jordan, everybody. Thank you so much.

[Ronny Chang]

Jonathan, everybody. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you for having me. No, absolutely. 100% isn't crazy. Watch.

[Josh Johnson]

Yes, ma'.

[GoFundMe Announcer]

Am.

[Ronny Chang]

Exclusively on Hulu. Jay Jordan. We're gonna take a quick bake, but.

[Josh Johnson]

We'Ll be back after that. That's our show for tonight. Now here it is, your moment of sin.

[Narrator/Announcer]

That's Barack Hussein Obama. Okay, this is Biden right here.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Wait a second.

[Josh Johnson]

The profile.

[Ronny Chang]

The profile of Biden.

[Narrator/Announcer]

So he's the worst president in the history of our country. And Barack Hussein Obama's top five, meaning bad.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

Are you going to replace that with his actual photo?

[Josh Johnson]

I don't think so.

[Narrator/Announcer]

Explore more shows from the Daily show podcast universe by searching the Daily show wherever you get your podcasts watch the Daily show weeknights at 1110 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount.

[Ronny Chang]

Plus, this has been a Comedy Central podcast.

[Segment Contributor/Reporter]

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