Zac Amico's Morning Zoo – Ep. 94

Guests: Maddy Smith, Katie Boyle
Date: March 8, 2026
Network: GaS Digital

Episode Overview

This episode of Zac Amico's Morning Zoo delivers what regular listeners expect: twisted takes on bizarre news, irreverent comedian roundtable banter, and authentic industry insights. Comedians Maddy Smith and Katie Boyle join Zac for a chaotic drive-time hang, tackling weird event scams, comedy culture gripes, moral quandaries for comics, and more. The trio keep the energy unpredictable and uncensored, roaming from fake kid’s events to the struggles of keeping your stand-up act clear of walkouts—plus stories from the wilds of their careers, jokes about fast food, and a rollicking celebrity guessing game.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Comic Bookings Tied to Identity & Holidays

• [02:29] Zac observes that Irish comics get booked heavily in March (St. Patrick’s Day), just like he gets booked around Halloween due to his persona.
• The comedians riff on how their identities (e.g., “token Irish person”) shape their bookings.

2. Scam Children’s Events & Parental Outrage

• [04:33–07:18] Zac brings up recent scam events for kids—specifically an “Ice Cream with Ms. Rachel Experience” in Florida that delivered a lackluster impersonator, misleading advertising, and a full bar at a kids’ event.
  • “Ms. Rachel, more like Rachel is missing.” – Zac, relaying the event disappointment [05:20]
  • Discussion on how easy it is to fake characters cheaply and trick people (Bluey costumes, bad impersonators).
  • Katie shares a similar miscommunication story about Belfast moms buying tickets for the wrong K-pop event, mistaking it for a Christian band.

3. Audiences Not Doing Their Homework

• [08:07–13:24] Comedians vent about people showing up to shows without knowing the performer or their style, leading to shocked walkouts (especially with controversial material).
  • Katie: “I literally say, this is why it’s really important to Google the comic before you go… two people stormed out during my set… 'you don’t joke about abortion.'” [08:24]
  • Zac: shares story of being called racist by a woman who then claimed she was a comic herself ("My mother said she was laughing when I was still in the womb"), mocking the entitlement and delusion.
  • Katie: complaints about young “influencer” comics bypassing comedy traditions and rules—a pet peeve amongst the old guard.
  • Zac: “My pet peeve is people starting podcasts and on the second episode asking me for advice… like, I don’t know, six years, every week, a couple times. What if we do like five, and advertisers will let us quit our jobs?” [11:13]

4. Adults/Teens at Comedy Shows

• Debate on warnings for “adults only” shows, and how some clubs/acts should or shouldn’t allow kids, referencing times when minors attended and how to handle touchy material responsibly.

5. Female Mayor’s Scandal Story

• [13:43–17:14] They discuss the news about a female mayor (Misty Roberts, DeRidder, LA) allegedly caught having sex with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a party, with a doordash driver and her son serving as witnesses.
  • “I just never understand when women want to have sex with younger men because they’re icky.” – Katie Boyle [15:03]
  • Discussion of double standards, and references to the notorious Mary Kay Letourneau case.

6. Comedians’ Morals & Professional Choices

• [23:08–26:17] Segment about Gabriel Iglesias (“Fluffy”) unapologetically doing gigs in Saudi Arabia for the payday:
  • Fluffy: “I don’t care. I bought a house with that money, so I don’t care what you say. Fluffy is a sellout. Damn right I am.” [23:08]
  • Comedians debate industry hypocrisy, the perils of having an overtly moral brand, and “double-edged sword” of speaking out vs. getting caught being hypocritical.
  • Katie: “There’s things that I’ve turned down because of morals… so annoying, but at the same time I’m still… happy because I don’t like guilt.” [23:49]
  • Discussion of predators in comedy, influence on booking decisions, and how some “allies” end up being the worst offenders.

7. Human Psychology: Projecting & Therapy Lessons

• [27:43–28:52] Zac and Katie swap reflections on how people who point fingers are often projecting or hiding their own flaws (“When you point a finger, there’s four more pointing back at you.” [27:39])
• Zac shares a personal family story about trauma and triggers with white shirts, linking to his dad’s hospital experiences—a moment of earnest vulnerability mid-chaos.

8. “The Irish Curse” & Stereotypes About Men

• [31:52–33:45] Raunchy, comedic breakdown of stereotypes about penis sizes across ethnicities, debunking tropes, and sharing brutal stories from their lives and other comics.

9. Old School Comedy Club Stories

• [21:30–22:32] Zac reminisces about CB’s and other infamous NYC comedy spots: topless bar deals for women, club politics, wild after-hours antics.

10. Run at Pop Culture & “Traitors” Reality Show

• [36:43–41:02] Lively talk about new seasons of reality show “Traitors,” cultural perceptions of ‘bimbos’ (riffing on how that archetype is treated), and real/debated instances of racism within the game.
  • “They think she’s a stupid bimbo, but… she’s just funny and silly, but she’s also gorgeous and fashionable.” – Katie (about Maura Higgins) [37:16]
  • Discussion about online reactions, perceptions of women on the show, and how strong personalities are attacked.

11. “Celebrity Comics Headband” Game

• [44:01–51:06] The three play a version of “Headbands”/Guess Who with comic names on their foreheads—trying to deduce their comic identity via yes/no questions, riffing on stereotypes and careers. Notable comics guessed: Bonnie McFarlane, Bobby Kelly, Joe List, Luis J. Gomez, and Tim Dillon.
  • "You're gay and white... Who is it? ...Tim Dillon." – The crew, as Katie tries to guess [49:13]
  • "Am I fat? ...Formerly." – Highlights the comic inside jokes (about Bobby Kelly) [48:11]

12. Fast Food CEO Taste Tests and Wedding Catering

• [51:06–54:50] Reactions to recent viral videos of McDonald’s and Burger King CEOs trying their own food; which chains actually taste good; Zac and Katie’s love for Bear Burger, which catered Zac’s wedding (surprisingly affordable and a major crowd-pleaser).
  • “Burger wedding. We put it on the invitation. The RSVP was if you can come, do you want a hamburger, a cheeseburger, a turkey burger, or a veggie burger?” – Zac [54:10]
  • “They had Brussels sprouts as a side. So we got fries and Brussels sprouts for people that didn’t want fries.” – Zac [54:25]
  • “And we had a candy bar on the way out… and the last thing was a can of A&W cream soda and a shot of Fireball.” [55:20]

13. American vs. European Life & Food

• [59:10–61:00] Discussion of America’s food, class connotations (cold cuts/hot dogs as childhood poverty memories), and stark differences between states versus small European countries.
  • “I feel sorry for America, though… your United States is huge. So trying to compare between, like, Ireland or England or France…” – Katie [59:56]
• Comedic takes on stereotypes about American geographic ignorance and how perspective maps distort global perceptions.

14. Slang, Language, Political Correctness

• [61:30–62:52] Mini-segment on changing language: “Third world country” vs “developing nation,” not saying “Middle East,” etc.
  • “In a developing nation, you can’t drink the water.” [62:04]
  • “When I was in Detroit, I was in a developing nation.” [62:07]

15. Drug Culture in Ireland & UK

• [65:51–66:46] The panel marvels at the open drug scene in Ireland and London, comparing the availability of coke vs. weed, and the rise of American weed quality over Amsterdam’s.
  • “I went to a billiards place in London and everyone just had bags of coke out.” – Zac [66:21]
  • “If you wanted coke, it'd be easier to get coke.” – Katie [66:45]

Notable/Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “This lady was shithouse.” – Zac, on the fake Ms. Rachel event [06:16]
• “My pet peeve is people starting podcasts and on the second episode asking me for advice… ‘we’ll do like two or three proof of concepts and wait for advertisers.’” – Zac [11:13]
• “You have to really Google the comic before you go.” – Katie Boyle [08:24]
• “Fluffy is a sellout. Damn right, I am.” – Gabriel Iglesias, via recounting his Walk of Fame speech [23:08]
• “I am a very nice man. I've been with the same woman for a long time. I don't fuck around. Name a bad story about me.” – Zac [24:12]
• “The loud you are about something, the more somebody’s like, ‘I’m not racist.’ It’s like, I bet you’re so racist.” – Zac [26:52]
• “Bring up Alf. This is all I remember my dad’s dick looking like when I was a little kid.” – Zac [31:28]
• “If his dick was a knife, I could carry it legally.” – A friend of Zac’s, relayed via Maddy [34:00]
• “Am I gay and white?” – Katie (guessing Tim Dillon in the game) [49:02]
• “Burger wedding. The RSVP was if you can come, and if you're coming, do you want a hamburger, a cheeseburger, a turkey burger or a veggie burger?” – Zac [54:10]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:50–03:07: Comedian plugs and bookings, Halloween and St. Patrick’s booking pattern.
• 04:33–07:18: The Ms. Rachel impersonator fiasco and event scam stories.
• 08:07–13:24: Audience cluelessness, walkouts, influencer comics, show warnings.
• 13:43–17:14: Mayor sex scandal story.
• 23:08–26:17: Comedians taking controversial gigs, “selling out.”
• 27:43–28:52: Finger-pointing, projections, and therapy.
• 31:52–34:00: Raunchy “Irish curse”/dick size segment.
• 36:43–41:02: “Traitors” reality TV and pop culture commentary.
• 44:01–51:06: Celebrity guessing game (“Headbands” with comics).
• 51:06–54:53: Fast food CEO taste tests, wedding catering with Bear Burger.
• 59:10–61:00: America vs. Europe food, size, and life comparison.
• 65:51–66:46: Drug trends in Ireland/UK.

Tone & Vibe

Rowdy, unfiltered, self-mocking, smartly crude, and emotionally honest when it matters. The dynamic between Zac, Maddy, and Katie is loose and friendly, giving listeners a sense of dropping in on a real, unvarnished morning comedian hang. There’s no sacred cow—everything from personal flaws and parental issues to industry shockers and social hypocrisy gets the zoo treatment.

Summary

This episode is a classic “Morning Zoo” ride: it’s uproarious, off-color, and deliberately all over the place—skewering scam news, arguing about comedy’s weird rules, revealing insecurities, and playing with pop culture. Comedy diehards and fans of unfiltered comic banter will especially enjoy the blend of cringe stories, inside-baseball references, and unapologetically weird games.