2019-09-01 Emmy Magazine

N

Notmanypeoplecanclaimlandingonedream

jobafteranother.Butthat’sthecaseforJosh

Gondelman, who moved from HBO’s Last

Week Tonight with John Oliver — where

he won three Emmys for writing — to

Showtime’s Desus & Mero, where he is a

writerandproducer.

Eversince Gondelmanleft his Bostonstand-up

careerbehindeightyearsagototesthimselfinNewYork,

he’sbeencollectingmajorcredits.Hisrésuméincludes

performingstand-uponConan,LateNightwithSethMeyers

andTheLateLateShowwithJamesCorden; he’srecorded

threecomedyalbums;andhecocreateda Twittersensation—

thebrilliant@SeinfeldTodayaccount—withJackMoore.

Gondelmanis an author, too. Hecowrote the

humorous 2015 bookYouBlewIt!AnAwkward

LookattheManyWaysinWhichYou’veAlready

RuinedYourLifewithJoeBerkowitz.

Thisfall,he’llreleasea solobook

ofessays, NiceTry:Storiesof

Best Intentions and Mixed

Results. All the pieces

grapple with making an

earnesteffortbutfailing.Towit:oneessayisabout“afailedattempt

tododrugsinabowlingalley,”hesays,whileanotherchronicles

howheandhiswife,writerMarisKreizman,acquiredtheirdog“by

accidentthroughareallyuntrustworthydistantacquaintanceof

anacquaintance.”

Gondelman—whosefallbackcareerwasteaching—says

helearnsfromeveryopportunity.“Idon’tthinkI couldhave

gottena betterclinicinrigorousjoke-writingandclarityofpoint-

making,andmarryingthosetwotogether,”hesaysofhistime

asa staffwriteronLastWeekTonight. Hewaspromotedtothat

roleafterworkingoneseasonasa webproducerfortheshow.

Nowhe’sdevelopingdifferentcreativemusclesonDesus&

Mero, whereheworkscloselywiththegraphicsteamandeditors.“It

isanextensiveeditfora late-nightshow,”heexplains.“Mostshows

comeinknowingwhatisgoingontheairandhaving

tomakea coupleoflittletrimsfortime.Butwe’re

constructingthearcoftheshowfromthe

materialthathappensonstagea lot

ofthetime.So,it’sadifferent

workflowandchallenge.”

And“veryfun,”headds.As

everydreamjobshouldbe.

—ChristineChampagne

mix

in the

MINDY TUCKER

Dream Big

BIO PICK