Episode 173 — Autism on the Playground

[agata 2789]

Kyle talks about his gluten-free life and the gang discusses gender reassignment surgery. Then, Mark Kretzmann, post-doctoral scholar from UCLA’s Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior is in the hatch to talk about autism, socialization, intervention tools, diagnostic procedures, aspergers, and much more!

[syates59 120]

What a great episode! Dr. Kretzmann is a terrific resource and great guy. Tons of good information here.

 

Special thanks to David for the plug for my book, "Getting My First Hug" (available on amazon.com).

 

Everyone please contribute a few (or many) bucks to David's Kickstarter. His animation project looks to be super-fun and you can help make it happen.

 

Have I mentioned that I love Tig, Kyle and David? I do! And Aaron too!!! Gone but not forgotten.

 

Welp, that's been comment.

[Kickpuncher 5012]

And Aaron too!!! Gone but not forgotten.

 

AB4%, gone but not forgotten.

 

Great episode!

[mattman92ish 823]

Marks voice kinda sounded like Brian Huskey but a bit deeper haha great ep!

[Dhezballah 462]

Good guest, nice mix of information and humour.

[imhatch 271]

hooray for a tig tour i already got my..................tigkets ha ha still got it hatch

[EdDykhuizen 20]

I recently went back and listened to all of the Professor Blastoff episodes. One thing I noticed was that in the early days, David was so much more fun! He was goofy, he was forthcoming, and he was willing to say whatever came to into his head without worrying about what Tig and Kyle would latch onto and poke some gentle fun at.

 

David would even do characters! Granted, his characters were never as good as Kyle's, but so what? David was the center of the show. He was the Jerry Seinfeld of the bunch: He didn't get most of the laughs, instead being the (mostly) straight man who made the show function. Comedians often don't want to be the straight men, and I can understand that. The straight men are always underappreciated. Comedians are out to get laughs, and Lou Costello or Dean Martin didn't get many laughs. But without Costello and Martin, Bud Abbott's and Jerry Lewis's jokes just wouldn't have worked at all. (Sorry that all my references are 50 years old, but I'm old.) The straight men provide a vital grounding in reality, from which silliness can grow and find humor and defying expectations. Maybe when they chat together, comedians don't need that grounding in reality. But us regular folks definitely do.

 

David seems very sensitive lately about how he's coming across. I understand that the role he's been given is a difficult one. But I feel that when he fights against his role as a (mostly) straight man, as he seems to do nowadays, it backfires completely. He just comes across as petulant and withdrawn.

 

C'mon man, just relax and embrace what has come to you! In the beginning of each podcast, come out and say whatever you're thinking or doing (provided that Kyle doesn't make snoring noises when you're talking -- that's definitely out of bounds, regardless of what he might say about it being a joke). Then once the guest comes on, use your natural talent (and it is a great talent) of carrying the podcast, discussing the topic with no hesitation or reservation. Yes, you are always the one to put it back on track, and thank God you are. Rest assured that without you, the show would become a formless mess, one that people might enjoy at first but would then find tiresome. Every show needs a structure in which silliness can occur. Through your considerable intellect and curious nature, you provide that structure.

 

And hey, tell some personal stories, beyond just beach poop. What do you have to lose? You're an entertainer! That means, by definition, that people are have come to you hoping to love you. We are ordinary, bored plebes pushing buttons all day, every day. While completing such mindless, soul-sucking tasks, we need to devote the rest of our brains both intellectually and emotionally to making virtual friends who are more fun and interesting than we'll ever be. Yes, it's sad, but if you want to maintain the insurance companies and exigency management organizations that keep modern civilization humming, you need to keep feeding stimulation to us bored, timid worker bees.

 

Keep doing your thing! Please! I don't want to lose my favorite podcast!

[Graham Wheeler 344]

between PBO and CBB, there has been A LOT of sex robot talk on Earwolf recently. not a complaint.