WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.839 Welcome back to the Deep Dive. Today we're exploring 00:00:02.839 --> 00:00:05.440 the life of someone who's, well, really managed 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:08.160 a career full of interesting, maybe even profound 00:00:08.160 --> 00:00:11.220 contradictions. Yeah, it's fascinating. How does 00:00:11.220 --> 00:00:13.460 someone with degrees in political science journalism 00:00:13.460 --> 00:00:17.199 end up as a stand -up, known for, you know, pretty 00:00:17.199 --> 00:00:20.039 crude blue comedy, and at the same time hold 00:00:20.039 --> 00:00:22.760 down a major role on a serious financial drama? 00:00:23.339 --> 00:00:27.120 It really is a path that defies easy labels. 00:00:27.300 --> 00:00:29.519 It totally does. We are diving deep into the 00:00:29.519 --> 00:00:31.760 sources you shared about Dan Soder, an artist 00:00:31.760 --> 00:00:34.520 who for almost a decade was successfully juggling 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:38.200 stand -up, acting, and that really unique, challenging 00:00:38.200 --> 00:00:40.899 world of live satellite radio. Right. So our 00:00:40.899 --> 00:00:42.799 mission today is to quickly pull out the key 00:00:42.799 --> 00:00:45.000 insights into his journey. We need to see past 00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:48.000 just Dudley Manfee from Billions, obviously a 00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:50.320 huge role. Absolutely central, yeah. But to really 00:00:50.320 --> 00:00:53.079 understand him as... like this deep -rooted figure 00:00:53.079 --> 00:00:55.200 in the New York City comedy scene, that whole 00:00:55.200 --> 00:00:58.719 ecosystem. Exactly. So high level. Dan Soder, 00:00:58.820 --> 00:01:01.539 born in 83. He's an American stand -up, an actor, 00:01:01.640 --> 00:01:05.260 and a radio personality. And that dual fame is 00:01:05.260 --> 00:01:07.120 kind of remarkable because the audiences don't 00:01:07.120 --> 00:01:09.659 always overlap, you know? Not at all. You've 00:01:09.659 --> 00:01:11.959 got the billions crowd. Interested in a high 00:01:11.959 --> 00:01:14.579 finance, complex drama. And then you've got the 00:01:14.579 --> 00:01:17.260 really, really loyal fan base for The Bonfire 00:01:17.260 --> 00:01:20.640 on SiriusXM. He co -hosted that from 2015 right 00:01:20.640 --> 00:01:23.359 up until 2023. And you see right away his career 00:01:23.359 --> 00:01:25.280 has been defined by committing to those three 00:01:25.280 --> 00:01:28.560 main things. Stand -up, radio, TV. Keeping all 00:01:28.560 --> 00:01:30.799 those plates spinning at a high level. That takes 00:01:30.799 --> 00:01:33.280 immense focus. Serious discipline with scheduling. 00:01:33.500 --> 00:01:36.200 It really does. And maybe, surprisingly, that 00:01:36.200 --> 00:01:38.219 discipline could trace back to his academic life. 00:01:38.540 --> 00:01:41.060 But OK, let's start at the beginning. Where did 00:01:41.060 --> 00:01:42.560 he get this sort of foundational perspective? 00:01:42.920 --> 00:01:45.180 OK, so geographically, the journey starts in 00:01:45.180 --> 00:01:46.680 Hartford, Connecticut. That's where he was born. 00:01:47.060 --> 00:01:49.840 Background is Irish and Swedish. But the really 00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:51.540 formative years, those were spent growing up 00:01:51.540 --> 00:01:55.480 in Aurora, Colorado. OK. East Coast roots, Western 00:01:55.480 --> 00:01:58.000 upbringing. Yeah, that kind of blend. It often 00:01:58.000 --> 00:02:00.879 gives a comic a specific viewpoint, maybe a bit 00:02:00.879 --> 00:02:03.439 more grounded somehow. And then we look at his 00:02:03.439 --> 00:02:07.290 education. And this is where it gets, well. Pretty 00:02:07.290 --> 00:02:09.770 striking. The sources say Smoky Hill High School, 00:02:09.909 --> 00:02:13.689 then University of Arizona, graduated 2005. And 00:02:13.689 --> 00:02:18.409 the degrees. Journalism and political science. 00:02:18.509 --> 00:02:20.150 I mean, that's a curriculum built for analyzing 00:02:20.150 --> 00:02:23.409 policy, elections, investigative stuff. How does 00:02:23.409 --> 00:02:25.949 that connect to the kind of, you know, observational 00:02:25.949 --> 00:02:28.409 but blue comedy he ended up doing? Well, that's 00:02:28.409 --> 00:02:30.270 the really interesting part, isn't it? Journalism, 00:02:30.289 --> 00:02:33.939 political science. These fields train you to 00:02:33.939 --> 00:02:37.180 observe, to synthesize information, report complex 00:02:37.180 --> 00:02:39.419 things pretty concisely. Right. Spotting patterns. 00:02:39.539 --> 00:02:41.379 Exactly. Spotting patterns in human behavior, 00:02:41.539 --> 00:02:43.719 policy failures, whatever. So maybe he didn't 00:02:43.719 --> 00:02:45.599 end up reporting from Capitol Hill, but he definitely 00:02:45.599 --> 00:02:47.919 applied that kind of intellectual tool pit to 00:02:47.919 --> 00:02:50.319 stand up. Just instead of analyzing policy, he's 00:02:50.319 --> 00:02:52.500 analyzing pop culture or everyday weirdness, 00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:55.969 human flaws. It's like he learned the how of 00:02:55.969 --> 00:02:58.330 observation in college and just pointed at different 00:02:58.330 --> 00:03:01.289 subjects. The academic path was serious, but 00:03:01.289 --> 00:03:04.629 the comedy bug clearly bit him pretty hard while 00:03:04.629 --> 00:03:06.569 he was still there. Oh, yeah. While he was still 00:03:06.569 --> 00:03:08.650 a student at U of A, he started doing stand -up. 00:03:08.689 --> 00:03:11.050 It was an immediate pivot, apparently. Wow. And 00:03:11.050 --> 00:03:12.969 that commitment was strong. Just a year after 00:03:12.969 --> 00:03:16.129 graduating in 2005, he makes the big move, New 00:03:16.129 --> 00:03:20.550 York City, 2006, to pursue comedy full -time. 00:03:21.159 --> 00:03:23.620 He knew, I guess, that the New York grind was 00:03:23.620 --> 00:03:26.159 where he needed to be to really hone his craft. 00:03:26.699 --> 00:03:29.400 But before he jumped into that really competitive 00:03:29.400 --> 00:03:31.539 comedy world, we should probably acknowledge 00:03:31.539 --> 00:03:34.259 the sources mentioned some significant personal 00:03:34.259 --> 00:03:37.180 tragedies early on. These kinds of losses, I 00:03:37.180 --> 00:03:38.740 mean, they often fuel a comedian's worldview, 00:03:38.900 --> 00:03:40.439 right? Their resilience. It often seems that 00:03:40.439 --> 00:03:43.340 way in comedy, yeah. And the sources do highlight 00:03:43.340 --> 00:03:46.180 some defining losses for Soder. While he was 00:03:46.180 --> 00:03:47.840 still in high school, his father passed away 00:03:47.840 --> 00:03:50.919 after a long illness. Then, just two years later, 00:03:51.060 --> 00:03:53.599 devastatingly, his sister died in a car crash. 00:03:53.939 --> 00:03:59.110 Wow. Two huge losses, one slow, one sudden, hitting 00:03:59.110 --> 00:04:02.030 him right in those really formative teenage years. 00:04:02.210 --> 00:04:05.129 It's hard to imagine that kind of pain not informing 00:04:05.129 --> 00:04:07.430 his later stuff somehow. Yeah. Lending maybe 00:04:07.430 --> 00:04:09.930 a darker edge or perspective even to lighter 00:04:09.930 --> 00:04:12.530 topics. Definitely. And that resilience you mentioned, 00:04:12.569 --> 00:04:15.270 it's absolutely crucial for surviving that initial 00:04:15.270 --> 00:04:17.790 brutal grind of the New York comedy scene. For 00:04:17.790 --> 00:04:20.470 sure. And if we look back even earlier, there's 00:04:20.470 --> 00:04:23.680 that sort of. almost movie -like bit of trivia 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:26.259 from his childhood. Ah, yeah, the Mike McDaniel 00:04:26.259 --> 00:04:28.399 connection. Exactly, his close childhood friendship 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:30.680 with Mike McDaniel, who's now, you know, head 00:04:30.680 --> 00:04:32.819 coach of the Miami Dolphins. It's such a wild 00:04:32.819 --> 00:04:35.519 connection, this, like, brilliant kind of eccentric 00:04:35.519 --> 00:04:38.860 NFL coach and this blue comedian who's also known 00:04:38.860 --> 00:04:41.560 for... playing a finance guy but they grew up 00:04:41.560 --> 00:04:43.879 together in aurora colorado it's just a great 00:04:43.879 --> 00:04:46.759 example of how talent develops side by side you 00:04:46.759 --> 00:04:48.779 know two people who went into these incredibly 00:04:48.779 --> 00:04:52.300 demanding fields one needing deep strategic thinking 00:04:52.300 --> 00:04:55.920 like coaching and the other needing deep observational 00:04:55.920 --> 00:04:59.160 and analytical skill like comedy and acting both 00:04:59.160 --> 00:05:01.360 need serious discipline just applied in totally 00:05:01.360 --> 00:05:03.540 different ways it says a lot i think about the 00:05:03.540 --> 00:05:05.660 environment they shared growing up yeah that's 00:05:05.660 --> 00:05:07.899 a great point okay so let's shift into the core 00:05:07.899 --> 00:05:11.230 of his craft then The stand up for someone listening 00:05:11.230 --> 00:05:13.870 who wants to understand, like the technical side 00:05:13.870 --> 00:05:16.470 of his style. How would we break down the Soder 00:05:16.470 --> 00:05:18.769 brand of humor? Well, the sources give us a pretty 00:05:18.769 --> 00:05:21.509 detailed map of his genres. It paints him as 00:05:21.509 --> 00:05:25.449 a specialist in that kind of edgy but still grounded 00:05:25.449 --> 00:05:27.370 school of comedy. We're talking observational 00:05:27.370 --> 00:05:29.470 first and foremost. That's the baseline probably 00:05:29.470 --> 00:05:31.610 from that journalistic training. Right. But then 00:05:31.610 --> 00:05:34.240 layered on top, you've got. Blue comedy, crude 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:37.759 humor, off color stuff, insult comedy, impersonations 00:05:37.759 --> 00:05:41.180 and a lot of sarcasm. So it's where that high 00:05:41.180 --> 00:05:45.220 structure observer meets the sometimes lowbrow 00:05:45.220 --> 00:05:47.500 subject matter. Yeah. Using that analytical eye 00:05:47.500 --> 00:05:50.800 to dissect things people usually dismiss. Precisely. 00:05:50.800 --> 00:05:53.980 Yeah. Blue comedy, just for clarity, is usually 00:05:53.980 --> 00:05:57.579 material that leans on. vulgarity, sex themes, 00:05:57.899 --> 00:06:00.379 profanity, often delivered pretty unfiltered. 00:06:00.459 --> 00:06:03.000 What Soder does, I think, is bring this dry, 00:06:03.300 --> 00:06:05.759 often self -deprecating intelligence to that 00:06:05.759 --> 00:06:07.920 vulgarity, which kind of elevates it beyond just 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:10.639 shock value and his subjects. Pulled straight 00:06:10.639 --> 00:06:13.480 from that observational training, everyday life, 00:06:13.680 --> 00:06:17.199 pop culture, how people act, sex, recreational 00:06:17.199 --> 00:06:20.350 drugs, celebrities, current events. He seems 00:06:20.350 --> 00:06:22.629 to apply the same focus to a joke about getting 00:06:22.629 --> 00:06:25.769 high as a police major would to analyzing, like, 00:06:25.850 --> 00:06:28.689 a trade agreement. It's the method, not just 00:06:28.689 --> 00:06:30.959 the subject, that hints at his background. That 00:06:30.959 --> 00:06:32.839 sharp observation definitely seemed to help him 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:35.240 get noticed early on. Let's chart that guest 00:06:35.240 --> 00:06:37.120 era you mentioned, those early national exposure 00:06:37.120 --> 00:06:39.240 points that kind of paved the way for his radio 00:06:39.240 --> 00:06:41.060 career. What were the key steps there? Yeah, 00:06:41.079 --> 00:06:43.079 his early TV visibility was really important 00:06:43.079 --> 00:06:46.040 for establishing his persona. He was on MTV2's 00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:48.420 Guy Code a lot, like a frequent face across seasons 00:06:48.420 --> 00:06:51.300 3 to 5. That's 2013 to 2015. Oh, yeah, Guy Code. 00:06:51.379 --> 00:06:53.420 That show launched a lot of comics. It really 00:06:53.420 --> 00:06:55.980 did. Huge exposure to a key demographic. And 00:06:55.980 --> 00:06:57.500 at the same time, he's climbing the stand up 00:06:57.500 --> 00:07:00.160 ladder, you know. Yeah. Doing Combi Central's 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:02.620 The Half Hour, getting those crucial late night 00:07:02.620 --> 00:07:05.240 spots like on Conan. Right. Building legitimacy. 00:07:05.579 --> 00:07:08.980 Yeah. But maybe the most significant apprenticeship, 00:07:09.300 --> 00:07:11.620 sort of a trial by fire, was in Satellite Radio. 00:07:11.740 --> 00:07:15.110 He plugged into that notoriously. volatile world 00:07:15.110 --> 00:07:18.050 pretty quickly, appeared on podcasts like Come 00:07:18.050 --> 00:07:20.990 Town and really crucially became a frequent guest 00:07:20.990 --> 00:07:23.509 on the Anthony Cumia show. Okay. And that connects 00:07:23.509 --> 00:07:25.730 directly to his regular gig on the show that 00:07:25.730 --> 00:07:27.870 really launched his Sirius XM career, right? 00:07:28.009 --> 00:07:30.490 The source to say after the whole Anthony Cumia 00:07:30.490 --> 00:07:33.009 firing. Right. The controversy. So Natter became 00:07:33.009 --> 00:07:35.189 a frequent guest, kind of the third Mike, on 00:07:35.189 --> 00:07:37.290 the Opie with Jim Norton show. That was on Faction 00:07:37.290 --> 00:07:40.629 Talk. Exactly. And that environment, post -controversy, 00:07:40.629 --> 00:07:43.230 super uncensored, live four days a week. That 00:07:43.230 --> 00:07:46.009 was the real proving ground. It wasn't just popping 00:07:46.009 --> 00:07:48.990 in as a guest. It was like a residency that tested 00:07:48.990 --> 00:07:51.829 if he could be quick, improvisational, funny 00:07:51.829 --> 00:07:54.509 under pressure, consistently. Working alongside 00:07:54.509 --> 00:07:56.490 Jim Norton, too, who's known for being incredibly 00:07:56.490 --> 00:07:59.339 sharp. Oh, yeah. That apprenticeship on Opie 00:07:59.339 --> 00:08:01.800 with Jim Norton, it definitely prepared him for 00:08:01.800 --> 00:08:03.680 the kind of demanding schedule that was just 00:08:03.680 --> 00:08:06.160 around the corner. We also probably shouldn't 00:08:06.160 --> 00:08:08.939 skip over his connection early on with arguably 00:08:08.939 --> 00:08:11.740 one of the biggest comedy forces of the mid 2010s, 00:08:11.740 --> 00:08:14.540 Amy Schumer. Good point. Yeah. He guest starred 00:08:14.540 --> 00:08:17.860 on Inside Amy Schumer four times between 2014 00:08:17.860 --> 00:08:22.220 and 2016 and had that small but. you know, memorable 00:08:22.220 --> 00:08:24.579 part in Trainwreck in 2015. Right, the dumpster 00:08:24.579 --> 00:08:26.839 guy. Yeah. Being part of that Schumer circle 00:08:26.839 --> 00:08:30.000 was a huge seal of approval in the NYC comedy 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:32.519 scene back then. Even playing dumpster guy put 00:08:32.519 --> 00:08:34.899 his name in the credits of a major movie, kind 00:08:34.899 --> 00:08:37.320 of bridging his exposure from niche radio and 00:08:37.320 --> 00:08:39.639 stand -up towards the Hollywood mainstream. It 00:08:39.639 --> 00:08:41.360 just shows how well he networked within that 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:44.279 scene early on, maximizing his visibility across 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:47.159 different platforms. Okay, so solid foundation, 00:08:47.340 --> 00:08:50.610 then stand -up, successful apprenticeship. in 00:08:50.610 --> 00:08:53.190 pretty wild live radio. So the Nelder then launches 00:08:53.190 --> 00:08:55.649 into what really became the defining radio era 00:08:55.649 --> 00:08:58.230 for him, the bonfire. This is where he cemented 00:08:58.230 --> 00:09:00.470 his identity and built this massive, dedicated 00:09:00.470 --> 00:09:03.490 following. Yeah, the bonfires launched July 27, 00:09:03.909 --> 00:09:06.490 2015. That was huge for him. Partnering with 00:09:06.490 --> 00:09:09.250 Big Jay Oakerson, another great comic, they created 00:09:09.250 --> 00:09:12.039 something really unique, I think. How so? Well, 00:09:12.120 --> 00:09:13.940 it wasn't like a typical morning show, you know, 00:09:13.940 --> 00:09:16.580 with planned bits or even a structured interview 00:09:16.580 --> 00:09:20.480 show. It felt more like an authentic, often chaotic, 00:09:21.019 --> 00:09:23.860 just stream of consciousness hang. Like you were 00:09:23.860 --> 00:09:26.080 in the green room with two of the sharpest, funniest 00:09:26.080 --> 00:09:28.759 guys at the club. Right. That feeling of eavesdropping. 00:09:28.919 --> 00:09:31.700 Exactly. And it started on Sirius XM's Comedy 00:09:31.700 --> 00:09:34.159 Central Radio. But the commitment level right 00:09:34.159 --> 00:09:36.179 from the start, this wasn't just a weekly podcast 00:09:36.179 --> 00:09:38.220 thing. No, definitely not. No, it was a huge 00:09:38.220 --> 00:09:40.820 time sink, needed incredible consistency. It 00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:43.179 quickly ramped up to airing Monday through Thursday, 00:09:43.399 --> 00:09:46.659 two hours live, 6 to 8 p .m. Eastern, hosting 00:09:46.659 --> 00:09:49.720 live, uncensored, four times a week. That forces 00:09:49.720 --> 00:09:52.360 you to constantly generate material from everything 00:09:52.360 --> 00:09:54.659 around you. Eight hours a week of live radio. 00:09:54.820 --> 00:09:57.340 Wow. Yeah. It's a real application of those journalistic 00:09:57.340 --> 00:09:59.500 observation skills, but applied to the immediate 00:09:59.500 --> 00:10:02.759 moment constantly. And their chemistry, Soder 00:10:02.759 --> 00:10:05.259 and Oakerson's, it became pretty legendary in 00:10:05.259 --> 00:10:07.759 that world. What was the dynamic that clicked 00:10:07.759 --> 00:10:10.179 so well with the audience for... What, eight 00:10:10.179 --> 00:10:12.980 years? Well, Oakerson brought that big, loud, 00:10:13.200 --> 00:10:16.259 often really self -deprecating energy, you know, 00:10:16.279 --> 00:10:18.659 the sort of ultimate fun -loving older brother 00:10:18.659 --> 00:10:22.080 type. So Waiter, drawing on that analytical side 00:10:22.080 --> 00:10:24.240 we talked about, was often the drier, sharper, 00:10:24.320 --> 00:10:26.559 quicker wit, the foil. He'd be the one maybe 00:10:26.559 --> 00:10:29.120 synthesizing the chaos or dropping that unexpected 00:10:29.120 --> 00:10:33.269 killer punchline. That balanced Big J's warmth 00:10:33.269 --> 00:10:35.710 and Soder's sort of cutting observation. It made 00:10:35.710 --> 00:10:37.889 listeners feel really involved, like part of 00:10:37.889 --> 00:10:41.570 an ongoing, unfiltered chat about life, pop culture, 00:10:41.730 --> 00:10:44.409 the comedy scene. That personal connection is 00:10:44.409 --> 00:10:47.029 key for satellite radio. And it's interesting 00:10:47.029 --> 00:10:49.649 how the show navigated the business side of things, 00:10:49.710 --> 00:10:51.669 the volatility of satellite radio. Yeah. They 00:10:51.669 --> 00:10:53.549 didn't stay put on one channel the whole time. 00:10:53.669 --> 00:10:55.450 No, they didn't. And that says a lot about their 00:10:55.450 --> 00:10:57.970 resilience, I think. In March 2021, Comedy Central 00:10:57.970 --> 00:11:00.070 Radio basically pulled the plug on all its talk 00:11:00.070 --> 00:11:02.470 shows. So the bonfire had to move. They shifted 00:11:02.470 --> 00:11:04.750 over to the Faction Talk channel, adjusted their 00:11:04.750 --> 00:11:09.029 time slot a bit, 5 to 7 p .m. ET. And the fact 00:11:09.029 --> 00:11:12.509 that their audience, this huge established fan 00:11:12.509 --> 00:11:15.710 base, just followed them. It proves the show's 00:11:15.710 --> 00:11:18.610 success was about them, the hosts, their chemistry, 00:11:18.750 --> 00:11:20.730 not just the channel brand. They were kind of 00:11:20.730 --> 00:11:22.509 corporate restructure proof. That's impressive. 00:11:22.649 --> 00:11:25.629 So that eight -year run delivering that high 00:11:25.629 --> 00:11:28.269 -level, high -commitment radio, it ended fairly 00:11:28.269 --> 00:11:30.720 recently. Can you give us the timeline for the 00:11:30.720 --> 00:11:32.779 end of that partnership? Sure. Soder's departure 00:11:32.779 --> 00:11:36.639 was announced February 22, 2023. So that wrapped 00:11:36.639 --> 00:11:39.019 up the eight -year tenure. But the transition, 00:11:39.080 --> 00:11:41.840 it kind of speaks to how tight that NYC comedy 00:11:41.840 --> 00:11:44.419 scene is. He was replaced by another well -known 00:11:44.419 --> 00:11:46.720 comic from that circle, Robert Kelly. So there 00:11:46.720 --> 00:11:49.039 was continuity for the audience. And Soder, true 00:11:49.039 --> 00:11:51.860 to form, didn't really take a break. He immediately 00:11:51.860 --> 00:11:54.840 spun that huge audio platform he'd built into 00:11:54.840 --> 00:11:57.779 new independent podcast projects, kept that output 00:11:57.779 --> 00:12:00.240 going for his audience. Instantly, yeah. Launched 00:12:00.240 --> 00:12:03.519 his solo thing, Soder, in November 2023, capitalizing 00:12:03.519 --> 00:12:06.100 directly on his name and his distinct point of 00:12:06.100 --> 00:12:09.899 view. And then early 2024, he co -launches The 00:12:09.899 --> 00:12:12.820 Regs, joining an existing group with Luis J. 00:12:12.899 --> 00:12:15.960 Gomez, Joe List, and Robert Kelly, the guy who 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:18.409 just replaced him on The Bonfire. Ah, okay, yeah. 00:12:18.529 --> 00:12:20.289 It's a great example of how that scene works. 00:12:20.429 --> 00:12:22.970 Competition, sure, but also a lot of collaboration, 00:12:23.330 --> 00:12:25.470 keeping the talent working together even if they 00:12:25.470 --> 00:12:28.070 switch chairs or platforms. Okay, time to pivot 00:12:28.070 --> 00:12:30.809 now to the third dimension of his career. And 00:12:30.809 --> 00:12:34.590 specifically, the longest, most widely recognized 00:12:34.590 --> 00:12:36.750 role, the one that introduced him to a whole 00:12:36.750 --> 00:12:38.950 different global audience, far from the blue 00:12:38.950 --> 00:12:42.210 comedy radio fans, Deadly Matthew on Billions. 00:12:42.210 --> 00:12:44.950 Yeah, the Billions role. Started late 2016, ran 00:12:44.950 --> 00:12:47.629 right through 2023. This is maybe the ultimate 00:12:47.629 --> 00:12:49.389 example of that professional sport we talked 00:12:49.389 --> 00:12:51.809 about. Namathy isn't a comedian, not really a 00:12:51.809 --> 00:12:54.350 sidekick in the traditional sense. He's a key 00:12:54.350 --> 00:12:56.750 recurring character on a prestige drama series 00:12:56.750 --> 00:12:59.230 about, you know, the moral gray areas of high 00:12:59.230 --> 00:13:01.389 finance. And what makes Maffy work so well as 00:13:01.389 --> 00:13:03.169 a character, especially with Soder playing him? 00:13:03.370 --> 00:13:05.389 Well, Maffy often functions as the audience's 00:13:05.389 --> 00:13:08.409 weigh -in, right? And the comedic relief, but 00:13:08.409 --> 00:13:11.149 still a highly competent guy. He's often the 00:13:11.149 --> 00:13:13.830 slightly awkward one, the nervous one, but maybe 00:13:13.830 --> 00:13:15.889 the most fundamentally ethical person inside 00:13:15.889 --> 00:13:19.309 the pretty morally bankrupt world of Axe Capital. 00:13:19.529 --> 00:13:21.789 I feel for him. You do. And Soder's delivery, 00:13:21.990 --> 00:13:25.309 that dry, grounded quality, that inherent observational 00:13:25.309 --> 00:13:28.340 skill. It makes Mafi a believable counterpoint 00:13:28.340 --> 00:13:31.100 to the huge egos and, frankly, sociopathy of 00:13:31.100 --> 00:13:33.720 the main characters. His ability to deliver serious 00:13:33.720 --> 00:13:36.159 lines, but with this underlying current of, like, 00:13:36.220 --> 00:13:39.720 nervous, honesty, it's the total opposite of 00:13:39.720 --> 00:13:41.360 his stand -up persona, and it really shows his 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:43.899 range as an actor. It really is remarkable. One 00:13:43.899 --> 00:13:46.720 day he's riffing totally uncensored about God 00:13:46.720 --> 00:13:48.840 knows what on live radio. And the next day he's 00:13:48.840 --> 00:13:51.279 on set delivering complex dialogue about market 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:53.480 manipulation for Showtime. That's a level of 00:13:53.480 --> 00:13:55.740 professional separation not many artists can 00:13:55.740 --> 00:13:58.299 pull off. It really speaks to discipline, doesn't 00:13:58.299 --> 00:14:00.440 it? Maybe learned back in that Polishite program. 00:14:00.919 --> 00:14:02.879 You have to understand the structure of the world 00:14:02.879 --> 00:14:05.059 you're in, whether it's the structure of a joke 00:14:05.059 --> 00:14:07.419 or the structure of a multibillion dollar hedge 00:14:07.419 --> 00:14:11.460 fund. He somehow maintains the integrity of two 00:14:11.460 --> 00:14:13.559 completely different performance worlds at the 00:14:13.559 --> 00:14:15.889 same time. Okay, let's quickly run through the 00:14:15.889 --> 00:14:18.149 timeline of his stand -up specials. These are 00:14:18.149 --> 00:14:20.190 the purest expression of his comedy, right? And 00:14:20.190 --> 00:14:23.210 they show a clear climb up the distribution ladder. 00:14:23.429 --> 00:14:25.970 Right, so first hour -long special was not special. 00:14:26.110 --> 00:14:29.129 That came out on Comedy Central in 2016, established 00:14:29.129 --> 00:14:31.269 his early style, showed he could hold an hour. 00:14:31.450 --> 00:14:34.830 A year later, 2017, he's part of that big Netflix 00:14:34.830 --> 00:14:37.889 push for stand -up. He had a tight 30 -minute 00:14:37.889 --> 00:14:40.210 set on the final episode of their series, The 00:14:40.210 --> 00:14:42.149 Stand -Up. And then the big one, the sort of 00:14:42.149 --> 00:14:45.279 ultimate validation for... mainstream stand -up 00:14:45.279 --> 00:14:47.820 appeal, getting an HBO special. Yeah, absolutely. 00:14:48.220 --> 00:14:51.740 Son of a Gary. That dropped in 2019. HBO, I mean, 00:14:51.759 --> 00:14:53.620 that's still often seen as the peak for stand 00:14:53.620 --> 00:14:55.679 -up specials. Signals, critical and commercial 00:14:55.679 --> 00:14:58.919 success. And Son of a Gary, it felt like a comic 00:14:58.919 --> 00:15:01.500 maturing a bit. More reflective material, maybe 00:15:01.500 --> 00:15:03.700 touching on some of that earlier tragedy we mentioned. 00:15:04.019 --> 00:15:07.019 But still keeping the edge and the sharp observations 00:15:07.019 --> 00:15:10.159 showed he could really craft a compelling hour 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:12.659 -long narrative. And even after leaving the daily 00:15:12.659 --> 00:15:15.889 radio grind, He kept producing stand -up. His 00:15:15.889 --> 00:15:18.169 latest special, On the Road, came out in 2024, 00:15:18.570 --> 00:15:21.409 but this time on YouTube. Yeah, and that move's 00:15:21.409 --> 00:15:23.250 interesting, too. It shows his confidence in 00:15:23.250 --> 00:15:25.110 his fan base, right? And comfort going direct 00:15:25.110 --> 00:15:27.129 -to -consumer, releasing it himself on YouTube, 00:15:27.269 --> 00:15:29.429 bypassing the traditional networks. It shows 00:15:29.429 --> 00:15:32.090 the kind of leverage audience -wise and maybe 00:15:32.090 --> 00:15:34.710 financially that he built up over all those years 00:15:34.710 --> 00:15:36.649 on radio and acting. We should probably also 00:15:36.649 --> 00:15:38.629 mention his supporting movie work, like playing 00:15:38.629 --> 00:15:42.049 Randall in that 2019 comedy Drunk Parents. Alec 00:15:42.049 --> 00:15:44.490 Baldwin, Salma Hayek, just keeping his hand even 00:15:44.490 --> 00:15:46.990 in supporting roles. Yeah, it rounds out the 00:15:46.990 --> 00:15:49.649 filmography. But if we're looking for those things 00:15:49.649 --> 00:15:51.950 that really resonate with his core fans, those 00:15:51.950 --> 00:15:55.330 aha moments, we have to talk about that specific 00:15:55.330 --> 00:15:59.230 niche expertise he has. His deep love for pro 00:15:59.230 --> 00:16:02.049 wrestling and especially. That legendary impression. 00:16:02.330 --> 00:16:06.049 Ah, yes, the Macho Man. This is crucial for understanding 00:16:06.049 --> 00:16:08.450 his whole vibe. Soder's a lifelong wrestling 00:16:08.450 --> 00:16:11.049 fan, and it's not just caggable fandom. It's 00:16:11.049 --> 00:16:13.350 baked into his persona, particularly through 00:16:13.350 --> 00:16:16.070 his impression of Macho Man Randy Savage. And 00:16:16.070 --> 00:16:18.169 it's considered top tier for a reason. Doing 00:16:18.169 --> 00:16:20.409 impressions well, it's not just mimicking a voice. 00:16:20.529 --> 00:16:22.450 It's understanding the cadence, the timing, the 00:16:22.450 --> 00:16:24.950 whole personality behind it. So during nailing 00:16:24.950 --> 00:16:28.470 the unpredictable intensity and just bizarre 00:16:28.470 --> 00:16:31.309 phrasing of Macho Man. It proves he's a real 00:16:31.309 --> 00:16:33.850 deep cut expert. He's applying that same observational 00:16:33.850 --> 00:16:36.830 rigor to the tiny details of this niche pop culture 00:16:36.830 --> 00:16:39.049 icon. And that passion actually turned into professional 00:16:39.049 --> 00:16:41.549 gigs, right? Monetizing that deep knowledge. 00:16:41.750 --> 00:16:44.509 The sources confirm that, yeah. He guested on 00:16:44.509 --> 00:16:47.169 the Wrestling Soup podcast back in March 2016, 00:16:47.429 --> 00:16:50.409 kind of a nod to that community. And importantly, 00:16:50.629 --> 00:16:53.070 his impression skills landed him voice acting 00:16:53.070 --> 00:16:56.409 work. In 2022, he actually voiced the Macho Man 00:16:56.409 --> 00:16:58.909 character in five episodes of the animated show 00:16:58.909 --> 00:17:01.899 Paradise PD. Wow. When you can turn a really 00:17:01.899 --> 00:17:04.779 specific, high quality impression into paid acting 00:17:04.779 --> 00:17:07.980 work, you know you found a sweet spot. OK, let's 00:17:07.980 --> 00:17:10.319 bring in some recent personal context to connections 00:17:10.319 --> 00:17:12.539 that have maybe broadened his public profile 00:17:12.539 --> 00:17:15.140 even more. We should probably touch on his partnership 00:17:15.140 --> 00:17:17.740 with Katie Nolan, the sports personality. Right. 00:17:17.819 --> 00:17:20.940 December 2022, Katie Nolan announced their engagement, 00:17:21.140 --> 00:17:22.799 publicly confirmed they'd been together for a 00:17:22.799 --> 00:17:25.200 while. And that's a classic kind of merging of 00:17:25.200 --> 00:17:28.710 two very visible media spheres. Right. Comedy 00:17:28.710 --> 00:17:31.390 acting meets sports media. And looking back through 00:17:31.390 --> 00:17:33.150 the sources, it's not totally out of the blue. 00:17:33.569 --> 00:17:36.390 He'd appeared on her Fox Sports 1 show, Garbage 00:17:36.390 --> 00:17:38.329 Time, with Katie Nolan earlier in his career. 00:17:38.650 --> 00:17:42.109 Yeah, it just reinforces the idea of how... interconnected 00:17:42.109 --> 00:17:45.250 the New York media and comedy worlds are. Professional 00:17:45.250 --> 00:17:47.849 collaborations often bleed into personal relationships, 00:17:47.950 --> 00:17:50.470 which further cements his position across different 00:17:50.470 --> 00:17:52.269 industry segments. He's not just stuck in the 00:17:52.269 --> 00:17:54.349 comedy bubble. He interacts with high profile 00:17:54.349 --> 00:17:57.450 people across the media landscape. So just to 00:17:57.450 --> 00:17:59.430 give the listener the full picture of his work 00:17:59.430 --> 00:18:02.609 rate, let's quickly recap his consistent TV film 00:18:02.609 --> 00:18:04.509 stuff over the last decade or so. It just shows 00:18:04.509 --> 00:18:06.309 how he was juggling all this. It really is a 00:18:06.309 --> 00:18:10.259 decade of steady work. OK, so. 2013 -2015, Guy 00:18:10.259 --> 00:18:14.200 Code. 2014 -2016, Inside Amy Schumer. Trainwreck 00:18:14.200 --> 00:18:16.799 movie, 2015. Then the big acting commitment, 00:18:17.140 --> 00:18:19.559 Billions, running 2016 all the way through 2023. 00:18:20.059 --> 00:18:22.859 Right. Plus, Drunk Parents in 2019, Flatbush 00:18:22.859 --> 00:18:25.799 Misdemeanors in 2022. I mean, that's basically 00:18:25.799 --> 00:18:28.200 a full -time screen career happening alongside 00:18:28.200 --> 00:18:30.160 the daily grind of the bonfire and touring as 00:18:30.160 --> 00:18:32.619 a stand -up. It's pretty intense. Yeah. So, okay, 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:35.079 let's step back. Look at the whole arc of Dan 00:18:35.079 --> 00:18:37.420 Soder's career. We started with this idea of 00:18:37.420 --> 00:18:39.819 contradiction. the serious academic background 00:18:39.819 --> 00:18:43.180 versus the crude comedy. How do we synthesize 00:18:43.180 --> 00:18:46.440 his success? What does this career tell us about 00:18:46.440 --> 00:18:48.970 the kind of discipline needed to succeed? across 00:18:48.970 --> 00:18:51.130 such different platforms well what's fascinating 00:18:51.130 --> 00:18:53.750 i think is that the evidence suggests the rigor 00:18:53.750 --> 00:18:57.329 wasn't ditched it was just re -aimed soder seems 00:18:57.329 --> 00:19:00.089 to have succeeded because he brought the discipline 00:19:00.089 --> 00:19:03.390 of a reporter and a political scientist you know 00:19:03.390 --> 00:19:05.410 observation synthesis working under pressure 00:19:05.410 --> 00:19:07.509 meeting deadlines like four live shows a week 00:19:07.509 --> 00:19:10.710 yeah he brought that discipline to the seemingly 00:19:10.710 --> 00:19:14.109 chaotic worlds of blue comedy and live radio 00:19:14.109 --> 00:19:17.309 so he used that formal training to impose structure 00:19:17.309 --> 00:19:19.579 where maybe you wouldn't expect it. Maintain 00:19:19.579 --> 00:19:21.759 these multiple high -profile roles for almost 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:24.160 10 years by treating comedy and acting with the 00:19:24.160 --> 00:19:26.380 same kind of seriousness he might have once applied 00:19:26.380 --> 00:19:28.819 to political science. Exactly. He's like a living 00:19:28.819 --> 00:19:31.640 embodiment of that tension between analysis and 00:19:31.640 --> 00:19:34.220 absurdity. He took the tools for serious reporting 00:19:34.220 --> 00:19:36.279 and pointed them at the human condition, whether 00:19:36.279 --> 00:19:38.980 that's crafting a complex joke about celebrity 00:19:38.980 --> 00:19:41.460 meltdowns or playing a character dealing with 00:19:41.460 --> 00:19:43.819 billions of dollars in high finance, switching 00:19:43.819 --> 00:19:46.720 between being McAfee and being that sharp, quick 00:19:46.720 --> 00:19:50.089 radio host. took more than just talent. It required 00:19:50.089 --> 00:19:53.190 immense professional focus and, yeah, discipline. 00:19:53.450 --> 00:19:54.950 Which brings up a really interesting question 00:19:54.950 --> 00:19:56.890 for you, the listener, as you think about this 00:19:56.890 --> 00:19:59.309 journey. Solicitor's degrees, right? Journalism 00:19:59.309 --> 00:20:01.309 and political science fields focused on facts, 00:20:01.329 --> 00:20:04.529 structure. But his main comedy vehicle, heavily 00:20:04.529 --> 00:20:06.470 focused on pop culture drug use, his biggest 00:20:06.470 --> 00:20:09.250 acting role, a financial drama about moral ambiguity. 00:20:09.670 --> 00:20:12.670 Yeah, so we have to ask. Which part of that highly 00:20:12.670 --> 00:20:14.390 structured background do you think was the most 00:20:14.390 --> 00:20:17.210 crucial tool for him? Was it the college training 00:20:17.210 --> 00:20:19.769 and analytical observation? Was it the trial 00:20:19.769 --> 00:20:22.470 by fire of that early radio apprenticeship on 00:20:22.470 --> 00:20:25.430 Opie with Jim Norton? Or maybe even the resilience 00:20:25.430 --> 00:20:28.410 built from early tragedy or the discipline learned 00:20:28.410 --> 00:20:30.410 at hanging out with a rigorous mind like Coach 00:20:30.410 --> 00:20:33.369 McDaniel back in childhood? Which of those was 00:20:33.369 --> 00:20:35.710 the key ingredient for sustained success across 00:20:35.710 --> 00:20:38.170 such different improvisational fields for so 00:20:38.170 --> 00:20:41.579 long? It really makes you think that. True comedic 00:20:41.579 --> 00:20:44.579 depth might require, well, depth of knowledge. 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:46.839 It's not just about being funny, right? It's 00:20:46.839 --> 00:20:49.299 about understanding why something's funny, how 00:20:49.299 --> 00:20:51.680 to sustain it, and how to deliver it consistently 00:20:51.680 --> 00:20:54.160 across four different platforms week after week. 00:20:54.440 --> 00:20:57.160 It's a powerful thought to chew on. The intellectual 00:20:57.160 --> 00:20:59.380 discipline of a journalist fueling the success 00:20:59.380 --> 00:21:02.059 of a blue comedian. Always great unpacking a 00:21:02.059 --> 00:21:05.000 career with such compelling contradictions. Absolutely. 00:21:05.079 --> 00:21:07.079 Thank you for joining us for this deep dive. 00:21:07.220 --> 00:21:08.440 We look forward to hearing your thoughts.