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Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 177: Blessed and Highly Favored by Chris Marcil & Sam Johnson - Live from the Elysian TheaterEpisode 177: Blessed and Highly Favored by Chris Marcil & Sam Johnson - Live from the Elysian TheaterWe have such a great dead pilot for you this month. It's called Blessed and Highly Favored. It’s a hilarious comedy about a rookie pastor struggling to keep her progressive Baptist church afloat while dealing with megachurch competition, financial strain, and the looming presence of her father—the church’s legendary former pastor.The pilot comes from seasoned writers Chris Marcil and Sam Johnson, whose combined credits include Frasier, NewsRadio, What We Do in the Shadows, Beavis and Butt-H...2025-07-2449 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 175: How To Get Over Bryan Byers Written by Ilana Peña & Anne SundellEpisode 175: How To Get Over Bryan Byers Written by Ilana Peña & Anne Sundell (Recorded Live at the Elysian Theater)This month on Dead Pilots Society, we’re bringing you How To Get Over Bryan Byers, a hilarious comedy pilot from Ilana Peña (Diary of a Future President) and Anne Sundell (writer and comedian).The show follows two former enemies, Anna and Izzy, who become best friends after realizing they’ve both dated—and been dumped by—the same guy. Together, they tackle the ups and downs of their twenties: work, dating, and moving on. In the...2025-06-1954 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 173: Letters to Beyoncé written by Austen Earl (Up All Night, The Millers, Happy Together)Episode 173: Letters to Beyoncé written by Austin Earl (Up All Night, The Millers, Happy Together) In this episode of Dead Pilots Society, we bring you a heartfelt and hilarious pilot from Austen Earl (Up All Night, The Millers, Happy Together, About My Father). The script, Letters to Beyoncé, tells the story of a middle-aged schoolteacher in rural New England who decides to reclaim her life—with a little inspiration from an unlikely source: Beyoncé. Inspired by Earl’s own mother (who was in attendance for the table read on Zoom!), the pilot balances sweetness with big...2025-05-2253 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 170: Riki Lindhome and Natasha Leggero Interview (Another Period)This is the After Show episode for Buffalo Tens featuring Andrew’s interview with Riki Lindhome and Natasha Leggero (Another Period). It’s also our last episode of MaxFunDrive 2025. If you haven’t joined, boosted or upgraded yet, what are you waiting for?! You’re reading the show notes! You’re obviously a fan! Go to maximum fun.org/join right now! And then you can enjoy the insane story of how malaria brought Riki and Natasha together, how Another Period came to be, and the many times Buffalo Tens almost made it to a screen big or small. But first go t...2025-03-271h 06Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode: 169: Buffalo Tens Episode 2 by Riki Lindhome and Natasha Leggero (Another Period)MaxFunDrive 2025 continues with a second episode of Buffalo Tens from Riki Lindhome and Natasha Leggero (Another Period). Fox liked this show about two Matchmakers from Hell in Buffalo, New York enough to order a second episode from Riki and Natasha. And then they passed, but we have revived it and are bringing it to you here! Remember, this is the time of year where we celebrate MaxFun members and remind you that this show exists because listeners like you support it. We recorded this live at the Elysian Theater with a cast that included Riki as Sherri, Natasha as Cami...2025-03-2433 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 168: Buffalo Tens Episode 1 by Riki Lindhome and Natasha Leggero (Another Period)You can support Dead Pilots Society and get access to all of our bonus content, and the bonus content from every other Maximum Fun show, by becoming a member at maximumfun.org/join. And if you're already a member, first of all - thank you!, you can upgrade or boost your membership and get some cool gifts. Go to maximumfun.org/join now! 2025-03-2236 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 163: Amy Reed (The Diary of a Future President) & Brendan Scannell (Bonding) Interview (The 14th Floor After Show)A happy holidays to you! Hopefully you're wearing that Dead Pilots Society shirt you bought for yourself as a gift while listening to this episode! This is our interview with Amy and Brendan. In it you'll hear an honest take about how hard it is to sell things and make a living in Hollywood these days. We get into Amy & Brendan's writing dynamic, navigating writing with a partner versus writing solo, and the shows Amy and Brendan go back to for inspiration. Thanks for listening—we know you’re going to love this episode!WE HAVE MERCH! Merc...2024-12-251h 11Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 162: The 14th Floor written by Amy Reed (The Diary of a Future President) & Brendan Scannell (Bonding)It's the end of the year and we have a very special dead pilot for you! This is The 14th Floor written by Amy Reed (The Diary of a Future President) & Brendan Scannell (Bonding).  It centers around an ambitious young executive at multinational McKenna Corp who gets hip-checked by her threatened CEO, and is then banished to the depths of the 14th floor, where a staff of castoffs collect checks doing absolutely nothing. It was setup at HBO and this episode was recorded live at The Elysian Theater in Los Angeles, CA. The cast for this one wa...2024-12-2038 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 161: Bill Callahan Interview (Massholes After Show)Happy Thanksgiving! In this episode, Andrew interviews Bill Callahan about his pilot Massholes. Bill has an impressive résumé, having worked on Spin City, 8 Simple Rules, Scrubs, Psych, American Housewife, and The Goldbergs.A former college athlete turned comedy writer, Bill shares his journey from football to comedy, starting in an agency mailroom and learning from legends like Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence. He discusses the differences between multi-camera and single-camera comedy writing, what he looks for when staffing a writer's room, and the group of friends that inspired Massholes.Thanks for listening—we know...2024-11-291h 14Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 160: Massholes written by Bill Callahan (Scrubs, Spin City)This month's pilot is Massholes. It was set up at ABC and written by Bill Callahan (Scrubs, Spin City). Bill is a veteran comedy writer who's worked on so many shows you know and love. This is a Friends-style ensemble pilot inspired by Bill's group of friends from Massachusetts. To keep things authentic, we assembled an all-star cast of actors from the Boston area.Massholes stars Rob Corddry (Ballers, Hot Tub Time Machine), Nicholas D'Agosto (Trial & Error, Criminal Minds), Misha Collins (Supernatural), Josh Gondelman (Last Week Tonight, Desus & Mero), Alyssa Limperis (What We Do in the Shadows...2024-11-2143 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 159: Al Madrigal & Chris Harris Interview (Mr. Macho After show)Welcome to the after-show for Mr. Macho! Andrew and Al recount their unusual first meeting during a casting session for a show that came together under extraordinary circumstances. They discuss how close Al has come to getting his story on air as a half-hour comedy, as well as the ongoing challenges of Latino representation in TV comedy. Chris also shares his wisdom on guiding and helping sell this pilot as its supervisor. This is a great interview packed with so much insight, and we know you're going to love it! Enjoy!TICKETS TO OUR LIVE SHOW ON 11/172024-10-311h 09Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 158: Mr. Macho written by Al Madrigal (The Daily Show, Lopez vs. Lopez, Night School)Our featured dead pilot this month is Mr. Macho, written by Al Madrigal. You might know Al from his stand-up, his time on The Daily Show, or his many TV and film appearances over the years. His autobiographical, focuses on a man struggling with his cultural identity and his place in a newly gentrifying neighborhood. The project was supervised by Chris Harris (How I Met Your Mother) and was set up at CBS with CBS Studios attached to produce. It's an incredibly funny pilot that we know you're going to love.Mr. Macho stars Al Madrigal, Sherry...2024-10-2452 minDr. GameshowDr. Gameshow143. Call WernerHosts Jo Firestone & Manolo Moreno play listener-created games with callers!Games played: I’ll Have The Special submitted by Chelsea Quilling from Boulder, Colorado, Hot Mess Monster submitted by Robert McDougall from Celbridge, Ireland, and Beetlejuice 2: Beetlejuicier submitted by JJ van der Put from Spokane, WashingtonCallers: Adrian from the Philippines; Travis, Meg, & Jenna from Loch Sheldrake, New York; Ben from Cheshire, England; Mary Anne & Lydia from Phildadelphia, Pennsylvania; Mike from Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Matthew from San Diego, CaliforniaOutro theme (Werewolf Elton John Edition) by Andrew Thomas from Hallowell, MaineMa...2024-06-121h 23Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 146: Frenemies - The Journey Of Lewis & Clark written by Michael Lisbe & Nate Reger (Acapulco, The Cool Kids)Thank you to everyone who upgraded their max fun membership this year. We had more upgrades than last year and we're so grateful for all of you. You're support allows us to keep bringing you dead pilots. Our dead pilot this month is called Frenemies: The Journey Of Lewis & Clark  written by Michael Lisbe & Nate Reger (Just Shoot Meet, Cougar Town, 2 Broke Girls). Their dead pilot is a comedic take on Lewis & Clark's epic journey of discovery through the American west. This pilot is hard funny and it's also NSFW. We warned you! It was a spec Mike & Nate w...2024-04-2146 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 145: Unscripted Dead Pilots with J. Keith van Straaten, Jordan Morris, John MoeThis is an episode dedicated to unscripted television.  J. Keith van Straaten, Jordan Morris, and John Moe talk about their dead unscripted projects that were sold to networks and streams but never produced. This conversation went to a ton of unexpected places and that's definitely a part of it's charm. Enjoy it!There's still time to help support our podcast by becoming a maximum fun member for as little as $5 a month.  Help us support what we do by going to maximumfun.org/join. 2024-03-2852 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 144: Andy Bobrow's List Of Sitcom Writing RulesAnother #maxfundrive bonus episode for you! Thank you to everyone who has boosted or become a #maxfundrive member, it's because of you that we can put out episodes like this. We sat down with comedy writer Andy Bobrow about his sitcom writing rules. Andy is a writer who's script Greatest American Heroes (ep link here) was last year's MaxFunDrive episode. We had an incredible cast for that one including Will Forte, Stephen Root, Rachel Harris, Sam Richardson and more.  Andy has written on Malcolm In The Middle, Community, Last Man On earth, Brooklyin Nine-Nine and currently he's b...2024-03-251h 10Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 142: Principle written by Open Mike Eagle (The New Negroes) & Mike Benner (Bob's Burgers) LIVE at The Elysian TheaterWe have a hilarious MAX FUN DRIVE episode for you!  It's the table read for Principle written by Open Mike Eagle (The New Negroes) & Mike Benner (Bob's Burgers) recorded LIVE at THE ELYSIAN THEATER! Principle was sold to Comedy Central. It's about a rapper trying to change his life and image but keeps being pulled back into the gangster character that made him famous. This show should be on the list along with Atlanta and Dave of the great television hip hop comedy of the last decade but alas it never it never made it to air. It...2024-03-2048 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyGo Fact Yourself #MaxFunDrive Kick-off Spectacular featuring Austin Taylor, Brenda Snell, Manolo Moreno, and Andrew ReichThis special network wide event is a celebration of The MaxFunDrive! If you’d like to support podcasts you love for just $5 a month and get bonus gifts in the process, go to maximumfun.org/join. We’re kicking off the most exciting time of the year for the MaxFun Network with a trivia game show featuring hosts from tons of great podcasts.J. Keith van Straaten and Helen Hong from “Go Fact Yourself” are joined by:Austin Taylor & Brenda Snell -“Secret Histories of Nerd Mysteries” Manolo Moreno - “Dr. Gameshow”...2024-03-1817 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 141: Q & A with Ben Blacker & Andrew Reich moderated by J. Keith van Straaten (Go Fact Yourself)This is a special  episode in honor of The MaxFunDrive where Andrew and Ben answer a variety questions sent to us from listeners.  We had J. Keith van Straaten from Go Fact Yourself drop by to moderate. It was a lot of fun and we know you're going to love it.  Thank you for supporting our show!This special network wide event is a celebration of The MaxFunDrive! If you’d like to support podcasts you love for just $5 a month and get bonus gifts in the process, go to maximumfun.org/join.    2024-03-181h 06Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 130: Santina Muha, Lindsey Kraft and Andrew Leeds Interview (Pretty After Show)We have a terrific after show interview for you with the creators of Pretty, Santina Muha, Lindsey Kraft and Andrew Leeds. This is a truly uplifting and inspiring conversation. You’ll hear Santina talk about how she got her start in comedy and how her childhood accident forced her to hone her comedy skills. She discusses the importance of making light of a terrible situation, simple things people take for granted like sidewalks, and her passion of using comedy as a platform to discuss important issues. This was a great interview with some of our favorite creators. We know yo...2023-09-291h 06Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 128: Matteo Borghese & Rob Turbovsky Interview (Trial After Show)This week we sat down with the writers of Trial, Matteo Borghese & Rob Turbovsky. Spoiler alert! Rob and Matteo reveal who the killer in their pilot is. We’re not going to spoil it for you in the show notes though. You’ll have to listen to this episode to find out. The Emmy nominated duo also discuss their experience staffing on Silicon Valley, Always Sunny In Philadelphia and Only Murders In The Building. They explain what they believe a TV writer’s job is. We’ll give you a hint, it has something to do with reading your boss’s m...2023-08-3153 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 126: Michele Mulroney & Kieran Mulroney (Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Power Rangers) Interview (The Sleeping Father After Show)We have an incredibly insightful interview with Michele & Kieran Mulroney. If you haven’t listened to both episodes of their show The Sleeping Father, you must do so now. It’s truly outstanding! This interview is crucial for anyone who wants to know the real story of how so many careers in Hollywood go. It’s mandatory listening for aspiring writers and striking writers in a dry spell creatively. Michele & Kieran talk about getting their start in the business, adapting Dickens for dogs, and they discuss the ten year draught they had where they wrote a dozen spec screenplays that d...2023-08-091h 00Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 121: Kat Likkel & John Hoberg (Elemental, My Name Is Earl) Interview (The Kings Of Ohio)We had a delightful conversation this week with the writers of Kings of Ohio, Kat Likkel & John Hoberg.  Kat & John kicked off the interview by telling us about their six adopted goats. They gave us an in-depth recap of what it was like to work with Pixar on their new movie Elemental (coming out on June 16th, 2023). How their years in TV writing prepared them for that development process, a process that taught them to be more flexible and less precious in their own writing. They also share their origin stories into Hollywood, how they got staffed on My N...2023-05-251h 14Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 119: David Litt (White House Speechwriter) Interview (Young Professionals)We caught up with David Litt this week about his pilot, Young Professionals. At age 24, David, became one of the youngest White House speechwriters in history. In this interview, you’ll hear about David’s journey into politics and comedy writing. David and Andrew reminisced about their time on The Exit Players, the oldest improv troupe at Yale. David told us why he joined the Obama campaign in 2008 and how he became the head writer for The White House Correspondents dinner. He shared a story about the hardest he ever made President Obama laugh and spoke on how challenging it i...2023-04-271h 01Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 117: Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)There’s only a few more days left of Max Fun Drive and we’re sad to see it go! This is the one time of year where we ask you to become a member or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. If you’ve already done your part, thank you so much for your support. We couldn’t bring you the best damn dead pilots in Hollywood without it. There’s always time to become a Max Fun member, so if you want to help us keep fighting the good fight go to maximumfun.org/join ! For...2023-03-301h 03Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 116: Wheelan Motors "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" written by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where we ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. For this year’s Max Fun Drive we’re bringing you something super special. A full on Dead Pilots Society Series. Well, the first three episodes of one at least.Today we’re releasing the third and final episode of Wheelan Motors written and created by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night). The title of this one is “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” and it’s about B...2023-03-2749 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 115: Wheelan Motors "Bad Press" written by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where we ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. For this year’s Max Fun Drive we’re bringing you something super special. A full on Dead Pilots Society Series. Well, the first three episodes of one at least.Today we’re releasing episode two of Wheelan Motors written and created by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night). In this episode, Wheelan Motors becomes embroiled in an insurance scam and Jim sponsors a little l...2023-03-2353 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 114: Wheelan Motors "The Pilot" written by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where we ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. For this year’s Max Fun Drive we’re bringing you something super special. A full on Dead Pilots Society Series. Well, the first three episodes of one at least.This week’s pilot is called Wheelan Motors written and created by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night). Brooks and Isaac sold this show to Fox and the network was so excited about it that the...2023-03-2000 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 113: Andrew Leeds (The Patient, Barry) Lindsey Kraft (Grace & Frankie) and Richie Keen (It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia) Interview (Throuple)The theme of today’s episode is friendship! We sat down with three great friends and writers of Throuple, Andrew Leeds, Lindsey Kraft and Richie Keen. In their interview they debate whether handing out ice cream to executives during their network pitches was a good idea or not. They told us about how their pitch made no sense. Their words not ours. Andrew Leeds told us about how Richie coached him for an audition for Andrew Reich’s pilot. Insight into mining comedic characters from real ones and how they went about adding a hook to a show about noth...2023-02-231h 19Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 111: Steve Basilone (Happy Endings, Community) Interview (Falling/Apart))Steve Basilone is on the podcast today! Steve has written for Happy Endings, The Goldbergs, and Community. He’s also the writer of last week’s dead pilot, FALLING/APART. In our discussion, Steve told us about his beginnings in Hollywood. How helpful it was to finish his last semester at Emerson College in LA. He told us about how he pivoted from acting to writing after realizing he could write a script as bad as the projects he was auditioning for. Steve discussed his first feature sale, his experience in the Happy Endings room, and a tale or two...2023-01-2659 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 109: Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Ma) Interview (Dear America: We've Seen You Naked Interview)This week’s episode is an insightful interview with the writer of Dear America: We’ve Seen You Naked, Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Ma). In it, Scotty discusses the Politico article his pilot is based on. You can check that out here. He tells us how he wrote a pilot with 9 main characters, the best breaking into the business story we’ve ever heard, his transition from a reality TV producer to a scripted TV writer and how working in reality made him a better TV writer. Scotty’s insightful stories made this a delightful interview and his pilot was truly hi...2022-12-291h 00Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 107: Emily Cutler (Fresh Off The Boat, AP Bio) Interview (Step Dave After Show)Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Dead Pilots Society listeners! This week we caught up with Emily Cutler (Fresh off The Boat, AP Bio) the writer of Step Dave! Emily talks in depth about how the Step Dave format came to her. Also, Andrew will give you a brief education about what a format even is! Emily felt a special connection to the material because, like Annie in the pilot, her husband is 10 years younger than her. She told us about how she mined material from her own marriage to pitch and develop the show. Emily also discusses her...2022-11-2452 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 105: Niki Schwartz-Wright (The Office, Speechless) Interview (Valley Trash After Show)This is the after show interview with Niki Schwartz-Wright (The Office, Speechless). Niki was the writer of Valley Trash which we released last week. In this interview, Niki lets us in on how autobiographical and personal this pilot was. She dishes on some advice her father gave her on how to handle bullies. Niki walks us through her journey to becoming a TV writer: starting as an assistant at a talent agency and transitioning to being a script coordinator on a show she would later get staffed on. She shares a story about joining The Office staff in the sho...2022-10-2754 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 100: Electric Youth written by David Iserson (The Spy Who Dumped Me, Mad Men, New Girl, SNL)This month’s pilot is going to make you want to go back in time and start this summer all over again. That’s right it’s our very first time travel pilot. It’s called Electric Youth and it comes from the prolific screenwriter David Iverson (The Spy Who Dumped Me, Mad Men, New Girl, SNL). It centers around Britt, a woman in her 30s who gets a knock on her door one night and finds her high school boyfriend, only he’s still sixteen and just successfully traveled in time. This comedy explores our relationship to the past and h...2022-08-1945 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 94: How To Be A Couple written by Naomi Ekperigin (The Standups on Netflix) & Andy Beckerman (Co-host of Couples Therapy Podcast)We have another great episode for you this month, but before we tell you about it, we want to thank everyone who became a Maximum Fun member or upgraded their membership during the MaxFunDrive this year. If you haven’t done so yet you still can by going to maximumfun.org/join.  Moving on to this month’s dead pilot! It’s called How To Be A Couple written by Naomi Ekperigin (The Standups on Netflix, Mythic Quest) & Andy Beckerman (The Pete Holmes Show). Naomi and Andy are the co-hosts of the fantastic Couples Therapy podcast...2022-05-1944 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 93: Andy Bobrow (Community, Last Man On Earth) Interview (Greatest American Heroes After Show)It’s week two of the Max Fun Drive! This is the one time of year where all of the shows on the Maximum Fun Network reach out to you and ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. We’re following up last week’s table read of Greatest American Heroes with an interview with its writer, Andy Bobrow (Community, Last Man On Earth, Brooklyn 99!) In it you’ll hear Andy talk about his fifteen years in advertising before becoming a television writer. He let us in on some of his worries...2022-05-021h 25Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 92: Greatest American Heroes written by Andy Bobrow (Community, Last Man On Earth, Brooklyn 99)It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where all of the shows on the Maximum Fun Network reach out to you and ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. We have an amazing and special Max Fun Drive episode for you this month! We’re bringing our first ever 1-hour dead pilot. Don’t worry! It’s not a dry police procedural or boring medical drama. It’s a funny update of the beloved eighties TV show Greatest American Hero.  The pilot was written by Andy Bobrow (Community, Last Man On...2022-04-271h 19Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 87: Tim Long (The Simpsons) & Jon Radler Interview (Perfect Harmony After Show)It's the After Show for Perfect Harmony featuring Andrew's interview with writer Tim Long (The Simpsons) along with the producer on the pilot, Jon Radler. Jon was an executive at Imagine Entertainment, the production company on this project. He offers great insight to what a producer does during the development of a pilot. Tim is a former head-writer for The Late Show with David Letterman and has been a writer & producer on The Simpsons for 24 years. The conversation follows the story of the pilot from a germ of an idea in a general meeting to a powerhouse package with...2022-01-271h 02Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 86: Perfect Harmony written by Tim Long (The Simpsons)We have a great pilot for you this month! It’s sure to be a hit with fans of music and character driven comedy. It’s called Perfect Harmony written by Tim Long (The Simpsons). Inspired by Art Garfunkel & Paul Simon’s relationship, Perfect Harmony centers around a pair of warring former musical partners. It was set up at Amazon and it’s a hilarious pilot with an incredible cast! Two legends playing the leads. Harry Shearer from This Is Spinal Tap and The Simpsons and Clancy Brown from The Shawshank Redemption, Paget Brewster (Criminal Minds), Naomi Ekperigin (Mythic Quest, C...2022-01-2052 minDunktownDunktownHal Lublin + 30 for 30 for 30: No Crossover - The Trial of Allen Iverson (2010)A From Here Guy! Hal Lublin (Good Morning Night Vale, We Got This with Mark and Hal) joins Agata and Anastasia to discuss the 30 for 30 doc No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson. Hal shares his Beatles impressions, thoughts on Mare of Easttown, and love for AI. The gang also chats Philadelphia, canceled games, Tyrese Maxey, Agata the Assman, Wawa, sausage rolls, systemic racism, Christkindl Market, Ben Simmons, practice, mulled wine, Steve James, Bucky's, Virginia, and the thug label. Will the gang get addicted to li hing mui? Listen to find out!📺 Reference + SourcesNo Crossover - T...2021-12-291h 08Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 85: Kristen Bartlett (Full Frontal, SNL) Interview (Big Wishes After Show)It’s the after show for Big Wishes written by Kristen Bartlett (Head writer of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee)! Andrew sat down with Kristen to discuss her dead pilot, her arduous journey into comedy and her day job in standards and practices for a few major television networks. She opens up about the passing of her father, how she cultivated the mentality: “F*ck you, I’m doing my own thing…” and some insight into her days writing on Saturday Night Live. This is an enlightening and heartfelt interview with someone with a deep understanding of hard work. Enjoy it a...2021-12-2359 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 84: Big Wishes written by Kristen Bartlett (SNL, Full Frontal)Another great pilot for you this month! It’s called Big Wishes written by Kristen Bartlett (Full Frontal, SNL) Her pilot is called Big Wishes. It follows Karla, a guilty pushover, and her best friend Hyacinth, brash and full-of-life despite having Stage 3 breast cancer, as they form a Make-a-Wish Foundation for adults. Together, Karla and Hyacinth set out to grant the strange, occasionally selfish wishes of dying adults. It was sold as a spec to ABC Signature and set up at ABC Network for the 2020 development season. James Griffiths was attached to direct and his production banner Fee-Fi-Fo Films were a...2021-12-1644 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 83: Ty Burrell (Modern Family) InterviewWe have a very special bonus episode for you! Andrew sat down with Ty Burrell (Modern Family) to discuss the dead pilot he produced, Yours, Mine and Paul’s written by Julia Meltzer. In their interview they discuss breaking new voices, what exactly that entails, what Ty looks for in specs from green writers, and the effort his company puts into finding them. He told us the story about how Julia’s pilot came to him and how his whole production company flipped for it. The benefits of developing a well oiled spec versus a pitch. An enlightening conversation abou...2021-12-0945 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 82: Julia Meltzer (UCB) Interview (Yours, Mine and Paul's After Show feat: Abraham Higginbotham of Modern Family)Have you listened to Julia Meltzer’s pilot Yours, Mine and Paul’s yet? Throw it on while you’re whipping up your Thanksgiving meal! Then listen to Andrew's interview with Julia, one of comedy’s next great writers! Joined by her supervisor Abraham Higginbotham (Modern Family), Julia tells us about how she went from being Ty Burrell’s development assistant to attaching him as a producer on her pilot ... the long arduous process of packaging this project with a studio, a showrunner, two stars, and selling it to a major television network ... why Julia chose Abraham to be her superv...2021-11-251h 05Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 81: Yours, Mine and Paul's written by Julia Meltzer (UCB)A first-time writer hits it out of the park in this month's dead pilot! The pilot is Yours, Mine and Paul’s written by Julia Meltzer. It centers around Lauren, a woman who agrees to be a surrogate for her best friend, Paul, and his husband, Xander. There’s just one problem: Lauren and Xander hate each other. Oh, also Paul dies in the cold open. Some great Will & Grace vibes here. It was developed during the 2019-2020 pilot season, set up at ABC Network with Ty Burrell’s Desert Whale Productions and 20th Century Fox attached to produce. Abraham Hi...2021-11-1833 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 80: Lindsey Shockley (Black-ish) Interview (The End After Show)If you haven’t listened to The End written by Lindsey Shockley then you have to do it before Halloween or you might turn into a zombie! This episode is the After Show! In it, Andrew sits down with Lindsey to discuss her career and the development of her pilot The End. You'll get the story of how he hired Lindsey as the writer’s assistant for one of his shows, and as a writer on another one. Lindsey dishes on how she made the jump from assistant to staff writer. She talks about what it’s like to write o...2021-10-281h 32Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 79: The End written by Lindsey Shockley (Black-ish)This month’s pilot is definitely going to put you in the halloween spirit! It’s probably our goriest script yet and without a doubt one of our funniest. It’s The End written by Lindsey Shockley (Black-ish), is a genre-bending comedy about an adorably neurotic woman who gets engaged on the same day zombies take over the world.  But even more terrifying?  Meeting her new in-laws. It was set up at Showtime with Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky attached to produce and Marc Webb attached to direct.The End stars Hannah Einbeinder (Hacks) as Lila Silver, Biniam B...2021-10-2144 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 78: Megan Gailey (Conan) and Aaron Burdette (Man Seeking Woman) Interview (Everything's Under Control After Show)Have you listened to the table read of Everything’s Under Control written by Megan Gailey (Conan) and Aaron Burdette (Man Seeking Woman)? If not, get on that! This episode is the After Show! In it, Andrew sits down with Megan and Aaron to talk about the development of their brilliant and heartwarming pilot. They open up about their experience dealing with grandparents who suffered from Alzheimer’s, working with legendary late television producer Jamie Tarses, the fantasy that comes with an “If come deal”, and a story about the longest network pass of all time. Enjoy it and thanks for...2021-09-301h 00Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 77: Everything's Under Control written by Megan Gailey (Conan) and Aaron Burdette (Man Seeking Woman)This month’s pilot is a real doozy! It’s called Everything’s Under Control written by Megan Gailey (Conan) and Aaron Burdette (Man Seeking Woman). It centers around a working-class Midwestern family who are just barely keeping it together  when their grandmother develops Alzheimer’s. It was developed during the 2019-2020 pilot season. It was set up at ABC Network with the late Jamie Tarses and ABC Studios attached to produce. Everything’s Under Control stars Megan Gailey, Patricia Richardson (Home Improvement) as Gail, Suzanne Cryer (Silicon Valley) as Beth, Joshua Malina (The West Wing) as Darryl, Jake No...2021-09-2354 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 76: Trae Crowder, Corey Ryan Forrester, Drew Morgan Interview (Middle Of Somewhere After Show)We hope you had a chance to listen to the table read for Middle of Somewhere written by Andrew Reich (Friends) and the WellRED crew aka Trae Crowder, Corey Ryan Forrester, and Drew Morgan. In this episode, Andrew sits down with the guys for a deep dive into the development of this pilot, including an expansive conversation about some of the more controversial story ideas that the studio and network nixed. They break down how studios pair showrunners with talent, how the news cycle can affect projects for better or worse, and the challenges of getting authentic Southern characters...2021-08-261h 07Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 75: Middle of Somewhere written by Andrew Reich (Friends), Trae Crowder (Well Red), Corey Ryan Forrester (Well Red) and Drew Morgan (Well Red)Our pilot this month is called Middle of Somewhere written by Andrew Reich (Friends), Trae Crowder (Well Red), Corey Ryan Forrester (Well Red), and Drew Morgan (Well Red). This is an ensemble comedy about three best friends in the rural south and the women in their lives. Middle of Somewhere was set up at ABC with The District and ABC Studios attached to produce.Middle of Somewhere stars Trae Crowder, Corey Ryan Forrester, Drew Morgan, Dylan Gelula as Paige, Beth Stelling as Amber, Keith Johnson as Ballard, Broti Gupta as Katie, Jake Nordwind as teenage boy/golfer...2021-08-1948 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 74: Hilary Winston (My Name Is Earl) & Mat Harawitz (Angie Tribeca) Interview (Common Areas After Show)We have a great after show interview for you! It’s an enlightening conversation with Hilary Winston (My Name Is Earl, Community) & Mat Harawitz (Angie Tribeca, Will & Grace) writers of last week’s episode, Common Areas. Hilary spills some life changing advice she got from Kerry Washington in college and tales from her first staff writer job on The Orlando Jones Show. Mat tells us about his most embarrassing job interview moments, some sage (and practical) writing advice, and a conversation about the history of TV pilots. Hilary also taught us about Dan Harmon’s story circle, which she learne...2021-07-291h 06Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 73: Common Areas written by Hilary Winston (My Name Is Earl) & Mat Harawitz (Angie Tribeca)Our pilot this month is called Common Areas written by Mat Harawitz (Angie Tribeca) & Hilary Winston (Happy Endings). In cities where rents have sky rocketed, people are turning to micro-units in luxury buildings, where they can get a bedroom for the price of an apartment in any other city. These dorm residents are getting a lot more than just a tiny bedroom and athlete’s foot, they’re getting a community (but also probably athlete’s foot). Common Areas centers around the tenants of one of these adult dorms. The project was set up at ABC with Stoller Global Soluti...2021-07-221h 04Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 72: Paul Scheer & Andrew Guest Interview (Voice Of The People After Show)We caught up with the writers of Voice Of The People this week! Andrew sat down with Paul Scheer (The League, Black Monday) and Andrew Guest (30 Rock, Community) for their after show interview. They talked about the development process for Voice Of The People and where they saw the series going. They go in depth about the notes they received from HBO and what it was like to work with Adam McKay and Owen Burke at Gary Sanchez. A deep dive into news pundits and Paul realizes that he actually was a pundit on Best Week Ever! They also...2021-06-241h 01Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 71: Voice Of The People written by Paul Scheer (The League) & Andrew Guest (30 Rock)We’re kicking off summer with a hot pilot! It’s called Voice of the People written by Paul Scheer & Andrew Guest. It’s a behind the scenes look at the cutthroat world of cable news punditry, where people treat the news like entertainment, in which one woman slowly loses her integrity as a journalist on her path to becoming an “expert.” It was set up at HBO with Adam Mckay’s company, Gary Sanchez attached to produce.Voice of the People stars Sasheer Zamata as Lucy (Woke, Saturday Night Live), Paul Scheer as Frank (The League, Black Monday...2021-06-1751 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 70: Riki Lindhome & Monica Padrick (Tails After Show)It’s week two of the Max Fun Drive! Thank you so much if you’ve already supported the show  by becoming a MaxFun member. Make sure you  let us know on twitter or instagram so we can properly thank you! For week two we caught up with Riki Lindhome (Knives Out, Another Period) and Monica Padrick (Community, Central Park) about their pilot Tails. They were so great to talk to. Monica told us about her transition from being a journalist to a TV writer and how a dinner with a family friend changed her career. Riki gave us the or...2021-05-1156 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyFeed Swap! Dead Pilots Society loves The JV ClubDead Pilots Society producer Ben Blacker chats with Janet Varney, host of MaxFun's The JV Club podcast. DPS fans will enjoy Janet (you know her from several of our episodes!), the funny and frank conversations about our most awkward years, and the celebrity guests.Don't forget to check the boxes for Dead Pilots Society and The JV Club when you become a MaxFun member! Please help support the little shows that can and do!To become a MaxFun member go to maximumfun.org/joinJanet shares episode 9 with us: Angela Kinsey...2021-05-101h 20Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyFeed Swap! Dead Pilots Society loves We Got This!Dead Pilots Society producer Ben Blacker chats with Hal Lublin and Mark Gagliardi, hosts of MaxFun's We Got This podcast. DPS fans will enjoy the comedy arguments, the silly decisions, and the celebrity guests of We Got This.Don't forget to check the boxes for Dead Pilots Society and We Got This when you become a MaxFun member!Please help support the little shows that can and do!"Mark and Hal share episode 56 with us: Batman vs Superman with guests Travis McElroy and Ben Blacker.The Man of Steel vs The Dark Knight...2021-05-0853 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyFeed Swap! Dead Pilots Society loves Mission to ZyxxTo keep in line with the spirit of #MaxFunDrive, we are feed swapping with fellow MaxFun podcast Mission to Zyxx. Dead Pilots Society producer Ben Blacker chats with Mission to Zyxx hosts/comedians Seth Lind and Moujan Zolfaghari. DPS fans will LOVE this podcast! Each episode features a special guest comedian who plays an inhabitant of the Zyxx Quadrant unlucky enough to encounter our crew. Episodes are fully improvised, then lovingly edited and sound designed. Don't forget to check the boxes for Dead Pilots Society and Mission to Zyxx when you become a MaxFun member!Please help support the l...2021-05-0545 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 66: Tails written by Riki Lindhome (Knives Out, Another Period) and Monica Padrick (Community, Central Park)The MaxFunDrive is here and we have a very special episode for you. It’s Tails written by Riki Lindhome (Knives Out, Another Period) and Monica Padrick (Community, Central Park). Tails follows Erika, a woman in her late 30s, who despite the pressure she feels from the world around her, refuses to settle in any area of her life. It was set up at Fox with Universal TV, Paper Kite Productions and 3 Arts attached to produce.Our table read stars Riki Lindhome as Erika, Maria Bamford as Greta, Ron Funches as Cyrus/Man, Moshe Kasher as Guy/Ad...2021-05-0344 minDead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyFeed Swap! Dead Pilots Society loves READING GLASSESIn our episode today, we are feed swapping with Reading Glasses! Dead Pilots Society producer Ben Blacker chats with Brea Grant and Mallory O'Meara, hosts of MaxFun's Reading Glasses podcast. This is a podcast all about book culture and literary life. No matter how much you read, you can listen to this show! Brea Grant and Mallory O’Meara are joined this week by Rider Strong to discuss bad book habits. Is it okay to dog ear a library book? What about writing in a book you know you’re going to give away? Take a listen to find out...2021-04-281h 00Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 51: Elsewhere written by Corinne Kingsbury (In The Dark) and Noelle Valdivia (Little America)We know you're all avid TV watchers so this logline probably makes you think of The Good Place. You’re not wrong for thinking that! In Andrew’s interview you’ll hear Corinne and Noelle talk about the coincidental parallels between Elsewhere and The Good Place. How they felt after seeing The Good Place get picked up to series while they were still developing their pilot. They also discuss their origin stories into the business, the double standards executives set for female characters and how much they hated pitching Elsewhere, despite selling it. Enjoy! ELSEWHERE stars Kate Walsh as...2020-07-161h 49Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 49: Revival written by Sally Bradford McKenna (Will & Grace, The Grinder, Don't Trust The B--)In Andrew's interview, Sally talks about how going to hear Jimmy Burrows speak at her college changed the direction of her life, her rise from PA to writer on the original Will & Grace, and why REVIVAL was truly "the one that got away."  This is a great interview with lots of golden nuggets about show business! EnjoyREVIVAL stars Will Forte as Elliot, Kelly Marie Tran as Jenny, John C. McGinley as Cal Keating, Larry Wilmore as Sam Fishkin,  Mimi Kennedy as Veronica, Anna Camp as Female Host/Alice/Cop/Waitress, Ayden Mayeri as Reagan, Craig Cackowski as...2020-05-141h 31Dead Pilots SocietyDead Pilots SocietyEpisode 36 - Pearl written by Andrew Reich (Friends)This month's episode was recorded live at SF Sketchfest 2019 and it’s Andrew's all-time favorite of his own dead pilots. Inspired by his own mother, "Pearl" tells the story of a woman who receives a diagnosis of terminal cancer, and decides to use the time she has remaining to orchestrate the lives of her loved ones to her liking. Our cast for this one was incredible: Julia Duffy as Pearl, Tony Hale as Billy, Alice Wetterlund as Olivia, Craig Cackowski as Kurt, Atsuko Okatsuka as Sara, Lucy Davis as Joy, Keiko Agena as Arlene, Carla Cackowski as De...2019-03-181h 03Troubled WatersTroubled WatersEp. 118: Westworld for DucksKat Bond, Ben Targét, Andrew Ti and Lisa Linke join host, Dave Holmes, stupid behavior fueled by love, cat crime dramas, numbers in music and international musical adaptations. Kat wants to plug her upcoming live gigs and recommends the Fact Up Podcast. Ben wants to plug Battersea Arts Center and recommends The Arts Emergency charity. Andrew wants to plug his podcast "Yo, is this racist?" and recommends  The Chinese rap group Higher Brothers. Lisa wants to plug  keeping up with her on Twitter and recommends The book "The Power". And finally...2018-03-1648 minmilesbelli on Huffduffermilesbelli on HuffdufferDead Pilots Society: Episode 2 - Only Child written by John HodgmanShow:  Dead Pilots Society Guests:  John Hodgman Janet Varney John Ross Bowie Abe Chabon Mark Gagliardi Josh Malina Adam Savage Sage Ryan Hal Lublin Ben Acker John Roderick Samantha Sadoff Abby Wait In this episode of Dead Pilots Society, Ben Blacker interviews John Hodgman (The Daily Show, Pitch Perfect 2, Married, Ragnorak) regarding his dead pilot, Only Child.This episode was recorded live from San Francisco Sketchfest 2016. Along with John's interview, you'll also listen to a never-before-heard live table read of Only Child performed by some of today's funniest comedic actors like: John Hodgman as John Hodgman, Janet Varney as Bridget an...2016-10-1400 min