Bill Maher has a wide range of guests on Real Time, from military leaders to cultural commentators. Some of the most rewarding segments, though, come when he gets to go deep on a subject near and dear to his heart: comedy itself. A 2023 interview with Keegan-Michael Key and Elle Key provided one good example, as all three had plenty to say about the history of sketch comedy.
This week, Nate Bargatze — one of the biggest names in comedy right now — joined Maher for a candid conversation that touched on everything from chain restaurants to Bargatze’s reading habits. Maher began their conversation by discussing the very different personalities that are drawn to stand-up comedy. “You and I, we could not be more different,” Maher said. “You met your wife at Applebee’s.”
As he pointed out, Maher is unmarried. That brought a question to mind: Bargatze asked Maher, “When was the last time you were at Applebee’s?” “Never,” Maher replied. Shortly thereafter, he explained why: “I don’t think it existed when I was poor, and now I’m fucking rich.”
The two men did have some similarities, though: both grew up raised Christian. “I think you took a much harder turn than I did,” Bargatze observed.
Where things got interesting was where the generational divide came up. (Bargatze is 46; Maher is 70.) Bargatze pointed out that when Maher was a young comedian, television was the only path to success; now, there’s more infrastructure to build a larger audience doing stand-up. As someone who was in Kansas City a few years ago and saw the massive crowds Bargatze drew to a pair of arena shows there, I can confirm the accuracy of his comments.
Later in the segment, Bargatze talked about the importance of helping younger comedians develop their skills and careers. It was an interesting position, especially in light of a recent Vulture piece by comedian Chris Gethard about the decline of middle-class jobs in comedy. I’m left with the feeling that both Bargatze and Gethard are approaching the same problem from different ends — but it seems notable that prominent names are addressing it, full stop.
Bargatze also addressed his expansion outside of comedy; he has a game show and a movie set for release soon. “I’m excited about the movie and the game show,” he said. “But to create something where I have to really wait for the reaction is kind of weird.”
To close out their conversation, Maher brought up a specific piece of Bartgatze’s comedy: his 2023 SNL monologue about not reading. Bargatze admitted that it was something he was working on. “I look at books and I say, ‘Buddy, I want to get in there,’”
Maher then challenged Bargatze to read Maher’s novel True Story. (He had a copy on hand.) “These words look okay,” Bargatze said. And, shortly thereafter: “You’re going to get me rolling! I’m going to be a book guy.” He wouldn’t be the first comedian in that club.
For the evening’s panel discussion, MSNOW’s Joe Scarborough and former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene took to the stage. The overarching theme of their conversation was the current state of the Republican Party. There were some moments of disagreement, including Greene balking at Maher’s description of her as “Liz Cheney 2.0.” But there was more agreement than not over the course of their conversation.
Maher closed out the night by addressing awards season, and not winning a Golden Globe. (“I’ll put it with the 33 Emmys I lost. That’s a real number.”) This led him to express his frustration with pins touting the wearer’s politics. (Or, as he phrased it: “ICE, thugs. Pins, stupid.”) This led him to a broader point about celebrities endorsing Democratic politicians and its effectiveness, or lack thereof. The midterm elections are just over nine months away, after all.
Other notable moments from this week’s episode:
- Maher on expansionist rhetoric: “If America needs to stretch out, you can always go to the Melania movie.”
- Maher on ICE’s plans: “One place ICE is still going to go? They haven’t changed on this: they’re going to the Super Bowl. Even worse, Kristi Noem is going to the Puppy Bowl.”
- Maher on the president’s overreach: “He once famously said that he could stay popular if he shot somebody in the middle of Fifth Avenue. Maybe — but not Minnesota.”
Meet your guide
Tobias Carroll
Tobias Carroll lives and writes in New York City, and has been covering a wide variety of subjects — including (but not limited to) books, soccer and drinks — for many years. His writing has been published by the likes of the Los Angeles Times, Pitchfork, Literary Hub, Vulture, Punch, the New York Times and Men’s Journal.
At InsideHook, he has…
More from Tobias Carroll »
More Like This
This article appeared in an InsideHook newsletter. Sign up for free to get more on travel, wellness, style, drinking, and culture.
