Jimmy Pardo has been a stand-up comic for more than 20 years and none of it ever came easy. He isn’t on sitcoms or selling out stadiums, even though, after seeing him perform, you’ll agree he should be. Pardo is energetic, funny as hell and has a quicker wit than anyone else in show business. While he’s not a household name, Pardo hasn’t gone unappreciated. His podcast, “Never Not Funny,” is one of the most popular in the world and he’s the warm-up act for “Conan.” Not bad gigs.
On Nov. 25, the guys behind “Never Not Funny” are producing the Third Annual Pardcast-A-Thon benefiting The Smile Train. Do yourself a favor on Friday, take a break from your family and tune into Pardcast.com to watch a posse of great comedians and surprise guests from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
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Serial Optimist: Hey Jimmy how are you?
Jimmy Pardo: I’m doing well. Just had a terrific week that included an appearance on “Conan“.
SO: How has 2011 treated you?
Jimmy: It’s been a good year. In addition to my podcast growing and hitting the road a little bit, I’m having a great time doing the “Pardo Patrol“, which are backstage interviews for teamcoco.com.
SO: What have been some of your personal favorites from “Never Not Funny” this year?
Jimmy: We made an effort to get a lot of guests we haven’t had on in the past and I think it’s brought some new excitement to the program. Opening it up a little, learning about new people, etc…
SO: Your 3rd annual Pardcast-A-Thon is coming up November 25th. This is such a fun event that benefits a great cause in Smile Train. First, can you tell us how you became involved with Smile Train?
Jimmy: It was a perfect storm of events… on a Sunday, I saw the ad for Smile Train and it just made sense to me… donate $250 and a child gets a surgery to fix a cleft pallet. I donated that day, and the next day Pardcast-a-Thon co-host Pat Francis came up with the idea to do a contest where we auction of a chance for a listener to be a guest on the show with money going to ST… the timing seemed too perfect, so I have made it my charity of choice.
SO: How did you develop the concept of Pardcast-A-Thon?
Jimmy: I always had a love of telethons. As a young man, I would stay up all night and watch to see what kind of acts would come out at 3:30 in the morning. It was also fun to see how punchy the hosts would get as the day(s) wore on. So, I approached my producer/co-host Matt Belknap about doing an all night marathon version of our show to benefit Smile Train. It was 9 hours the first year and a great success. It was an amazing feeling to be able to raise a nice chunk of change that would change children’s lives.
SO: The Pardcast-A-Thon goes on from 6pm-6am, what can people expect during that time?
Jimmy: a lot of talking, probably some singing and maybe some rambling.
SO: Do you have any special appearances lined up?
Jimmy: I think we have a terrific line-up this year. I’m lucky to have a great group of friends who are willing/wanting to donate their time at any given hour to help with this cause.
We have over 20 performers booked. I want some names to be left as a surprise, but I can tell you we have Andy Richter, Sarah Silverman and Walter Koenig from the original “Star Trek”.
We will also be auctioning off some neat items during the show as well to entice some donations.
SO: What will be your drink of choice to keep you going for 12 straight hours?
Jimmy: It’s well known that I have given up drinking Lo-Carb Monster Energy Drink as it was making me a little too hyper… but I foresee me falling off the wagon and having a couple. Twelve hours is a long time. Maybe a Coke Zero thrown in there.
SO: For all the people that will be spending that night getting ready for the horrors of black Friday all night shopping, do you have any convincing words to keep them home (or plugged in) and listen to the Pardcast-A-Thon?
Jimmy: We actually start the night of Black Friday… so hopefully folks will be done shopping and ready to sit back, relax and strap it down for 12 hours of comedy.
SO: How has Conan been this year? It’s seems like the environment is super loose and creative, like his early days on television.
Jimmy: The move to TBS has been a great one. There is something to be said to be on a network that wants you. I have often said how lucky I am to get to show up everyday and work along side this amazing group of funny, creative people.
SO: You have a wide range of taste when it comes to music. What albums are you currently listening to on a regular basis, and has anything really stood out to you this year?
Jimmy: You know I am a sucker for classic rock. I am really enjoying Darryl Hall’s new solo CD “Laughing Down Crying”. It will probably battle it out with Lindsey Buckingham’s “Seeds We Sow” for my favorite album of the year. I actually like the new Chickenfoot as well. I’m also spending a lot of time listening to the 2006 OBC recording of “Company”.
SO: How can people listen and watch the Pardcast-A-Thon, and how can they get involved and donate?
Jimmy: We will be live streaming the show at www.pardcast.com and they can donate at PARDCAST-A-THON 2011 DONATION PAGE