Interview · moment 17 of 17
Staying Sane by Avoiding Attention-Seekers
from It Ends Bad (with Yannis Pappas) · #67
Audio-only archive episode — no video to seek.
3 minGuest
Both comedians share how they get an adrenaline/heroin-like high or sense of peace from a good set, and agree the key to survival in comedy is surrounding yourself with people who don't crave attention rather than other performers.
- 54:13Tim describes performing comedy like being a dictator commanding people's reactions, claiming Hitler would have been great at standup and sold out Madison Square Garden.
- 54:36Getting an adrenaline high from comedy that feels like heroin when it goes well, but anger and withdrawal when the set bombs.
- 54:53Feeling at peace only when a set is going well—the only time serenity arrives.
- 55:12Standing on stage in Cleveland in front of strangers is the only place he feels at home, more fulfilling than any apartment or house.
- 55:49Standup comedy saves guys like them who float around noticing things others don't, and the stage is where he first felt completely sane.
- 56:15Tim admits vulnerability to ego corruption—if someone feeds his ego in Hollywood, he'd lose his mind and think he's Jesus or Hitler.
- 56:38The strategy to survive emotionally: surround yourself with normal people who don't need attention, people with no childhood ego that requires feeding.
- 57:00Normal people understand sacrifices, don't chase the dragon of addiction, just want to raise kids, read, sit in silence, and live boring lives.
- 57:22Closing LA dismissal: telling someone to stay in touch because maybe this business isn't for them.