HENRY ALFORD
The one and only “investigative humorist,” Henry Alford is an acclaimed funny man and journalist who has written for the New Yorker, the New York Times and Vanity Fair for two decades. Henry’s books include Would It Kill You to Stop Doing That?, about modern manners, and Big Kiss, which won a Thurber Prize for American Humor. His latest book, about dancing, And Then We Danced, was published in June.
JENNY ALLEN
Jenny Allen's humor pieces appear in the New Yorker, the New York Times, and others, and in the anthology The 50 Funniest American Writers, edited by Andy Borowitz. She wrote and performs I Got Sick Then I Got Better, which she has presented at the New York Theater Workshop and around the country. She is also a Moth contributing storyteller. Her new book is Would Everybody Please Stop.
MICHAEL ARKIN
Michael Arkin began his impressive acting career performing theater on the streets of his native Brooklyn as a member of Everyman Co. With a BA in Theater from Wesleyan, he has played principal roles on TV (Law & Order), in film (Fatal Attraction) and on stages across the U.S. Active in actor’s organizations, he has served on the National Board of the Screen Actors Guild.
LISA BIRNBACH
Lisa's classic New York Times bestseller The Official Preppy Handbook became tongue-in-cheek reference guide for a generation. An award-winning journalist, she has written for the New York Times, The New Yorker, and other magazines, and has written 21 additional books. She was a correspondent on CBS's The Early Show. The Lisa Birnbach Show, a daily radio program won Gracie Awards for Outstanding Talk Show and Outstanding Humor Show. Her podcast is Five Things that Make Life Better."
ANNABELLE GURWITCH
An actress and author of four books, including the New York Times bestseller I See You Made an Effort, Annabelle is also a finalist for the Thurber Prize for American Humor. Her book Fired! became a Showtime Comedy Special. She has written for The New Yorker, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and other publications. A former host of Dinner & a Movie on TBS, she was a regular contributor to NPR. Her latest book is Wherever You Go, There They Are.
MAEVE HIGGINS
Maeve is an Irish comedian and author of the best-selling memoir Maeve in America: Essays by a Girl from Somewhere Else. A contributing Op-Ed writer for the New York Times, she also hosts the hit podcast Maeve in America: Immigration IRL and cohosts the StarTalk podcast and TV show on National Geographic. She has appeared on Comedy Central’s Inside Amy Schumer and has performed in comedy venues worldwide. She created the audio series Aliens of Extraordinary Ability.
SLOANE CROSLEY
Sloane Crosley’s humorous essay collections include The New York Times best sellers, I Was Told There’d Be Cake (a 2009 Thurber Prize for American Humor finalist), How Did You Get This Number, and Look Alive Out There (a 2019 Thurber Prize for American Humor finalist). Her writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New York Times Book Review, and others. She is featured in The Best American Nonrequired Reading and in The Library of America’s 50 Funniest American Writers. Her new novel, Cult Classic will be out from FSG in June 2022.
PATTY KIERNAN
Patty Kiernan is a recent convert to comedy and she’s off to an amazing start, with appearances at the New Talent Showcases of the Gotham Comedy Club, the West Side Comedy Club and Caroline’s. Her comedy performances build on her previous career as an actor, which she launched in her first acting job at the precocious age of twelve. She has appeared in numerous movies, including After Midnight and American Southern, and on the TV series, Another World. The multi-talented New Orleans native is also the author of an award-winning screenplay.
JOAN JULIET BUCK
Well known for her illustrious career as a writer and fashion editor - she’s the only American woman to have edited Paris Vogue - Joan Juliet Buck also has a vivacious humorous streak. Her Moth stories are so funny that she has twice been included in national Moth storytelling tours. Her articles and profiles have appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Vanity Fair, American Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. Her latest book is her memoir, The Price of Illusion.
TOM PERROTTA
Tom Perrotta’s exquisite sense of humor is at the heart of his fiction, which includes best selling novels and comic short stories. Two of his novels, Election and Little Children, were made into Oscar-nominated films, and his novel, The Leftovers, was adapted into a critically acclaimed Peabody Award-winning HBO series. His other books include Bad Haircut, The Wishbones, Joe College, The Abstinence Teacher, Nine Inches and Mrs. Fletcher. Described as “an American Chekov” by The New York Times, he is now a screenwriter and producer as well as a much-loved fiction writer.
CHIP KIDD
The legendary designer of book jackets for Alfred A. Knopf (33 years and counting), Chip is also an award-winning writer. His first novel The Cheese Monkeys, was a national bestseller; he also wrote Go: A Kidd's Guide to Graphic Design. A recipient of the National Design Award for Communications, he reveals his art and philosophy in two TED Talk videos viewed by over 4.4 million people: The Art of First Impressions, in Design and Life and Designing Books Is No Laughing Matter. OK, It Is.
DAVID LITT
The "comic muse" and speechwriter for President Barack Obama from 2011 to 2016, David is the author of Thanks, Obama: My Hopey Changey White House Years, a New York Times best-selling memoir and an Esquire Best Book of 2017. Since leaving the White House, he has written for the Onion, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, Vanity Fair, the Atlantic, Esquire, GQ, and the New York Times. His second book, Parties on the Fault Line, will be published by Ecco Press in Summer 2020.
KAREN BERGREEN
Karen Bergreen, a standup comedian, writer and former lawyer, has appeared on Comedy Central and on ABC’s The View. She recently filmed a pilot for CBS. A Harvard graduate, she also performs regularly in the city’s comedy clubs, including Gotham Comedy Club, The Comic Strip, and the Broadway Comedy Club. Her latest book is a novel, Perfect is Overrated.
EMILY BLOTNICK
A Comedy Central “Comic to Watch,” Emmy’s first half-hour special aired on Comedy Central last year. She recently recorded her first stand-up comedy album and is currently writing for CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Her credits also include appearing on Conan O’Brien late-night show, head writer for The President’s Show on Comedy Central, and writing stints for @midnight with Chris Hardwick, Not Safe with Nikki Glaser, and the Roast of Rob Lowe. On the comedy festival circuit, she has appeared at SF Sketchfest in San Francisco, Riot LA and the New York Comedy Festival.
ROZ CHAST
A beloved New Yorker cartoonist for almost 40 years, Roz Chast chronicles the anxieties, superstitions, furies, and surreal imaginings of modern life. David Remnick, the magazine’s editor, calls her “the magazine’s only certifiable genius.” She is the author of Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant, a 2014 New York Times’ Best Book of the Year, and numerous children’s books, including collaborations with Steve Martin and Calvin Trillin. Her new book is Going into Town: A Sort-of Guide to the City (NYC). (This event was co-sponsored with the New York Society Library.)
KAREN CHEE
A comedy writer and performer, Karen Chee writes Shouts for The New Yorker and has contributed to McSweeney's, Reductress, Catapult and others. She does stand-up all around town and recently opened for Ronny Chieng at Caroline's on Broadway. She graduated from Harvard, where she studied History and Literature and performed with the improv troupe the Immediate Gratification Players. Winner of the inaugural Erma Bombeck Humorist-in-Residency award, she was also named one of 20 comedians to watch in New York City in 2018.
JOCELYN CHIA
Winner of the Ladies of Laughter Competition in 2016, Jocelyn was a finalist in the New York’s Funniest competition in 2017 at Carolines. She made her Comedy Central debut last year and has appeared on AXS TVs Gotham Comedy Live, hosted by William Shatner. The bi-continental standup comedian splits her time between New York and Singapore. She has received the Asian American Television and Film Festival’s Rising Star Award for Comedy. She has also performed at the Boston Comedy Festival and at colleges including NYU and Harvard and is a two-time winner of Moth Storyslams.
TRISHA COBURN
Trisha Coburn is a story teller, an artist and an interior designer. She graduated from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Tufts University. She is currently working on a book of southern short stories from her childhood living in Alabama. She has performed her humorous southern stories at The Moth.
DOROTHEA BENTON FRANK
A New York Times bestselling author, Dorothea Benton Frank tells tales of her native South Carolina Low Country from the vantage point of her New York area life. Her first novel, Sullivan’s Island, debuted at #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list. An amazingly prolific writer and storyteller, she recently published her 18th novel titled Same Beach, Next Year.
KAREN BERGREEN
Karen Bergreen, a standup comedian, writer and former lawyer, has appeared on Comedy Central and on ABC’s The View. She recently filmed a pilot for CBS. A Harvard graduate, she also performs regularly in the city’s comedy clubs, including Gotham Comedy Club, The Comic Strip, and the Broadway Comedy Club. Her latest book is a novel, Perfect is Overrated.
ROZ CHAST
A beloved New Yorker cartoonist for almost 40 years, Roz Chast chronicles the anxieties, superstitions, furies, and surreal imaginings of modern life. David Remnick, the magazine’s editor, calls her “the magazine’s only certifiable genius.” She is the author of Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant, a 2014 New York Times’ Best Book of the Year, and numerous children’s books, including collaborations with Steve Martin and Calvin Trillin. Her new book is Going into Town: A Sort-of Guide to the City (NYC).
(This event was co-sponsored with the New York Society Library.)
DOROTHEA BENTON FRANK
A New York Times bestselling author, Dorothea Benton Frank tells tales of her native South Carolina Low Country from the vantage point of her New York area life. Her first novel, Sullivan’s Island, debuted at #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list. An amazingly prolific writer and storyteller, she recently published her 18th novel titled Same Beach, Next Year.
KAREN BERGREEN
Karen Bergreen, a standup comedian, writer and former lawyer, has appeared on Comedy Central and on ABC’s The View. She recently filmed a pilot for CBS. A Harvard graduate, she also performs regularly in the city’s comedy clubs, including Gotham Comedy Club, The Comic Strip, and the Broadway Comedy Club. Her latest book is a novel, Perfect is Overrated.
ROZ CHAST
A beloved New Yorker cartoonist for almost 40 years, Roz Chast chronicles the anxieties, superstitions, furies, and surreal imaginings of modern life. David Remnick, the magazine’s editor, calls her “the magazine’s only certifiable genius.” She is the author of Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant, a 2014 New York Times’ Best Book of the Year, and numerous children’s books, including collaborations with Steve Martin and Calvin Trillin. Her new book is Going into Town: A Sort-of Guide to the City (NYC).
(This event was co-sponsored with the New York Society Library.)
JANE CONDON
Jane Condon won NBC’s Last Comic Standing Audience Favorite award (NY) and was the grand prize winner in the Ladies of Laughter contest nationwide. She has appeared on The View and the Today show and at Caroline’s Comedy Club. Her one-person Off-Broadway show, Janie Condon: Raw & Unchained!, received rave reviews. She recently co-authored her first cartoon book, Chardonnay Moms.
MEGHAN DAUM
My Misspent Youth, Meghan Daum's first book, is a cult classic collection of humorous essays. Her most recent book, The Unspeakable: And Other Subjects of Discussion, won the 2015 PEN Center USA Award for creative nonfiction. She has also written for numerous publications, including The New Yorker and The New York Times Magazine, and has been an opinion columnist for The Los Angeles Times. A recipient of a 2015 Guggenheim Fellowship and a 2016 National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, Daum teaches in the MFA Writing Program at Columbia University's School. of the Arts.
MARTIN DOCKERY
A storyteller extraordinaire, Martin Dockery has spent the last decade performing his nine comedic, full-length storytelling shows in theaters throughout the US, UK, Canada and Australia. He's performed at virtually every fringe theater festival worldwide, winning countless "Best of Fest" awards. He's also performed at The Melbourne Comedy Festival, the Edinburgh Fringe, the Piccolo Spoleto Festival, and twice headlined the London Storytelling Festival. Dockery holds an MFA in playwriting from Columbia. He is working on a fictional 10-episode podcast. In November he'll be performing his play, "Inescapable," Off-Broadway at The Soho Playhouse.
SARAH FEARON
Sarah Fearon is a comedienne, award-winning playwright, writer and actress (The Comedian, The Departed). She has performed her original comedy at the Gotham Comedy Club, Stand Up New York, Caroline’s, and The Metropolitan Room. Her TED Talks NYC recently won first place in the Players Theater Short Play Festival. She also regularly performs as an extra on Saturday Night Live.
TYLER FISCHER
Tyler Fischer is a comedian who has performed on America’s Got Talent and in top comedy clubs nationwide. An actor as well, he’s had guest-star roles on NBC’s Chicago Med and co-stars on TV Land’s Younger. He is also an internet star whose hilarious YouTube videos have garnered over seven million views and are regularly featured in the Huffington Post, Elite Daily, and on the Today show.
DOROTHEA
BENTON FRANK
A New York Times bestselling author, Dorothea Benton Frank tells tales of her native South Carolina Low Country from the vantage point of her New York area life. Her first novel, Sullivan’s Island, debuted at #1 on the New York Times Best Seller list. An amazingly prolific writer and storyteller, she recently published her 18th novel titled Same Beach, Next Year.
C.S. HANSON
C.S. Hanson’s hilarious plays have been performed at the Cherry Lane, Theatre for the New City, NY Fringe Festival, among others, and in Miami, Washington D.C., Pittsburgh and Montreal. A Tennessee Williams Scholar at the 2010 Sewanee Writers’ Conference, she has received commissions from the Experimentals at LaMama and America-In-Play, where she was an Artist Associate. Her six-week Library workshop “The Art of the Ten-Minute Play” culminated in a vivacious reading by the participating writer/actors. Her latest work, TV in My Bones, was recently presented Off-Broadway by Tribe Players.
JAMES HARVEY
A musical comedian, composer and playwright, James created the one-man show, The Bald Faced Truth: Comedy Songs by James Harvey. His darkly comedic musical, The Crack in the Ceiling, was presented at the New York Musical Theatre Festival and the New York International Fringe Festival, where it received the award for Overall Excellence in a Musical. He is currently writing the music for a show about the U.S. Supreme Court as well as the book, music and lyrics for a musical about Amazon. He also cohosts The Second Cousins Show, a monthly variety show at Sidewalk Cafe.
NANCY McCABE KELLY AND BRUCE JARCHOW
Nancy McCabe Kelly and Bruce Jarchow, improv comedic actors, met performing at Chicago’s famed Second City. Jarchow’s film and TV appearances include Seinfeld, Coach, and Continental Divide. The couple’s latest production, “Been There, Still There,” was performed in New York and in Chicago, where they received TimeOut’s Critic’s Choice award for being “funny, tender and funny again.”
SARAH LECHNOS
Sarah Lechnos is a Brooklyn-based writer whose work has been published in Parody; she is working on her first novel. She has read her humorous short stories at The New York Society Library.
JACK LEVIN
Jack Levin’s stories and poems are audience favorites at the New York Society Library’s Live at the Library series. In his professional life, he is a distinguished arbitrator and mediator. Named a New York Super Lawyer in multiple years, he holds a JD degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
GEORGE LOMBARDI, MD
A most unusual humorist, Dr. George Lombardi is an international man of medicine who also shines as a favorite storyteller on the Moth. He is a distinguished internist and an expert in infectious diseases. In addition to his New York City practice, he is affiliated with the New York Presbyterian Hospital. His practice consists of saints and sinners, as his story will reveal.
CARMEN MARIA MACHADO
Carmen Maria Machado’s most recent book, Her Body and Other Parties, was named a Finalist for the National Book Award, a New York Times critic's choice for 2017, and a Best Book by the Washington Post, the LA Times, PBS Books, and many others. Her humorous stories and commentary have appeared in the New Yorker, Granta, The Paris Review, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA from The Iowa Writers Workshop.
MATTHEW MERCIER
Matthew Mercier, a two-time Moth Story Slam champion, is a writer and storyteller who recently completed his first novel. He holds an MFA in fiction from Hunter College. His stories and essays have appeared in numerous literary journals and have been broadcast on the Moth Radio Hour. Mercier has performed at The Story Collider, The Liar Show, and on The Moth Mainstage in Brooklyn and in Nantucket.
LAURIE ROSENWALD
Laurie Rosenwald is a writer, painter, designer, and animator. Her animations include David's Diary, an app created with the humorist David Sedaris, and her drawings have appeared in The New Yorker and in The New York Times. “How to Make Mistakes on Purpose,” her popular workshop, has been held for many companies, including Starbucks and Google. Her most recent book is titled “All the Wrong People have Self Esteem.”
JIM SHEPARD
Jim has written five story collections, including Like You'd Understand, Anyway, a finalist for the National Book Award and Story Prize winner. His seven novels include The Book of Aron, which won the Sophie Brody Medal for Jewish Literature, the PEN/New England Award for Fiction, and the Clark Fiction Prize. He’s also won the Library of Congress/ Massachusetts Book Award for Fiction and the ALEX Award from the American Library Association. He teaches at Williams College.
JOHN SNYDER
John Snyder's magical memoir Hill of Beans: Coming of Age in the Last Days of the Old South was named a Best of 2012 book by Kirkus Reviews. He is also an inventor with seven patents, a sculptor, and a former Executive Director of Morgan Stanley. In addition, he has written two Off-Broadway plays and produced an industrial film that won first place at the New York Film Festival.
