You can follow this podcast on:

Google Play | iHeartRadio | iTunes | SoundCloud | Spotify | Stitcher

It’s 2019. It’s a new year. Maybe it’s a new you. But this is still the Comedic Pursuits podcast, and we’re still doing the same thing we did in 2018. We’ll be sitting down, talking with comedians in the area about their experiences, gaining their knowledge, and having a few laughs along the way.

In this episode, I finally got to interview someone I’ve wanted to know more about. He fascinates me. He warms my heart. He explodes my brain with how fast and good he is at improv. He’s been a role model for me. I’m talking about Denny Johnson, everybody.

Highlights from my interview with Denny Johnson

We’ll cover Denny’s backstory and how he went through the WIT program, how he was introduced to improv, his time on Madeline, his hit FIST team, Going to the Movies Alone, being cast on former WIT ensemble Commonwealth, and what he’s been doing since then.

We’ll also talk about his indie teams, To Be Frank and Ugh. When we recorded this episode a couple months ago, Denny had proposed a new concept show to Washington Improv Theater, and it’s since been approved. It’s called Starship Odyssey: The Final Mission. It’s an improvised sci-fi experience launching at WIT in 2019. Denny is a creator and co-director.

But I think you’re ready to dig into this lovely, hilarious episode. Without further ado, Denny Johnson.

Some parts of this interview have been edited for clarity. To hear Denny’s full responses, listen to his podcast episode.

Listen to Denny’s podcast episode or else

The early years

I grew up in very rural Ohio. My grandfather was a dairy farmer, and my dad was a coal miner. We only had two channels on television, so my comedy exposure was limited. But I think I was still drawn to all the comedy classics.

When Ghostbusters was released, I was probably in first grade. Watching Bill Murray do his thing next to Dan Akroyd doing his thing—which is sort of their classic thing—I was rolling. I don’t think I even understood why it was so funny. My brother and I can still say lines from the movie to each other. But other than that, all we had was NBC and CBS.

I also watched SNL. My first foray into SNL would have been the Mike Myers and Dana Carvey era, the “Wayne’s World” years. Saturday Night Live was great television for us, and you had to watch it live at the time.