I agree. If everyone is mediocre, there's no reason for audiences to keep showing up at Goldie's, let alone casting directors and scouts. Bad stand-up also makes for a depressing TV show.

I read William Knoedelseder's nonfiction book, which serves as inspiration for this series. It's been a while since I read it, but if I recall correctly, the term "comic" was used. Phil Berger's nonfiction book "The Last Laugh," which covers stand-ups starting in the '50s is subtitled "The World of Stand-Up Comics." I…

The Goldie character is loosely based on Mitzi Shore — who was self-serving and manipulative. Melissa Leo is great in this role. I want to know more about the character too. The pain behind the meanness is slowly being revealed. Her daughter took off. Her ex-husband is a violent, untalented a-hole. She's developed…

I have read the book. It's nonfiction and it's quite good, although most of the people it covers are not exactly fun to know. The real comedians in the book are actually in the 30s and older — and they refuse to get jobs. Tom Dreesen, who had a successful gig playing Vegas at the time, worked hard to get the small…

The stand-up he did in this episode was extremely weak. Pretty sad if he wrote it himself. It was hard to believe that he was the one chosen for the Midnight Special appearance.

The funniest joke in this episode was the one Goldie translated for Adam.