Moontower, Day 3: Live Podcast of 'WTF'

Marc Maron’s WTF podcast taping at the Stateside on Friday was an eventful and star-studded spectacle. By the time taping wrapped and the host bade farewell, comedians Jim Norton,Michael Ian Black, Maria Bamford, Todd Barry, Janeane Garofalo, and Dom Irrera had been interviewed.

All stuck around, with the exception of Irrera, who had to make a show at the Swan Dive with Joe DeRosa, Kurt Metzger, and others. Each performer spent approximately 10-15 minutes directly chatting with Maron about anything and everything – comedy-related or otherwise – in classic WTF fashion.

Norton had the packed Stateside audience howling with lurid tales of his own sexual deviance. He’s a sick man, but well-liked for it. The tenor was a marked change of pace from Maron and Ian Black’s contentious jaw-session only moments before. Their relationship is perhaps best described as “passive-aggressive.” A recent Twitter spat between the two and Ian Black’s interview-ambush of Maron for Gothamist climaxed in direct confrontation while the panel looked on with a mixture of bemusement and, in some cases, discomfort. The pair traded thinly veiled, acid-tongued barbs at one another that mocked each other’s career lows, missteps, and even their personal lives. Ian Black, in particular, issued the lowest blows of the night by invoking Maron’s two failed marriages on several occasions. Maron came across as much more sympathetic but just as quick-witted and caustic. Ian Black, on the other hand, has the look, sound, and comportment of a total asshole. Not sure how much of that is character-driven or even if there’s a genuine antipathy between him and Maron. Luckily, it was all recorded and should become available to download by the end of next week.