Radio Happy Hour is a live variety show featuring an old-time radio comedy/drama and your favorite guest stars from the worlds of film, music, and letters. Hosted by Sam Osterhout, the show engages its guests in a wildly right-angled conversation that careens between interviews, performances, and trivia. And at the center of it all is a short, old time radio comedy in which the guest stars as him or herself or, in some cases, as Nancy Drew. Audiences will see all of this--the interviews, the corny jokes, the guest performances, and the behind-the-scenes making of a radio drama--live every month, and podcasted online as well. Trust us, it will make more sense when you see it.

Drinking in the afternoon. Radio Drama. Cheap tickets to a show where you can make chit chat with your favorite celebrities. It’s like the depression, but funnier.

You can download past episodes of Radio Happy for free at iTunes or at RadioHappyHour.com.

From the New York Post: "RETURN TO RADIO DAYS: LIVE VARIETY SHOW SERIES IS ALL WIRED UP" by BRIAN NIEMIETZ

Check out the podcast for Radio Happy Hour here.

Jolie Holland conveys motion and arrival with her fourth album, The Living and The Dead, a work between worlds, of moving on and finding something new, of missed chances, and promises on distant horizons. From the past (the haunting simplicity of "Love Henry,"which Bob Dylan tells us pre-dates the Bible) to the future (the stunning emotional complexity of her song,"The Future"), the Texas-bred singer-songwriter navigates a new rock approach that is built upon the folk, blues and jazz spectors that populated her three acclaimed previous albums.

Holland composed these songs in her old home town of San Francisco, as well as on the road across North America and Europe. A few were born during a writing retreat in New Zealand. Arising out of her life stories, and from the rich estuaries of the mysterious tales of other adventurers, her songs are grounded by true experience.

The Living and the Dead is an exhilarating ride with a higher voltage than the previous albums, music that had already left fans and critics at a loss to describe her singular vision as performer and writer. Holland worked with co-producer Shahzad Ismaily (Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Two Foot Yard, Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog) in sessions both in Brooklyn, New York and Portland, Oregon. With contributions from guitar maestros Marc Ribot (who played with Tom Waits and Elvis Costello) and M. Ward (who also produced one song and helped shape the sound of others) and drummer Rachel Blumberg (M. Ward, Bright Eyes, the Decemberists), Holland has created an album that serves as a career statement. Holland's voice is the same beautiful instrument, which has never before sounded so confident, relaxed or emotive.

With 2003's Catalpa (essentially home-made demos released due to popular interest and then nominated for the prestigious Short List Music Prize by Tom Waits), 2004's Escondida and 2006's Springtime Can Kill You (which Rolling Stone said "feels better than a good cry"), she evolved a sound that existed in its own time, as if it could have been recorded anywhere between God knows when and yesterday. The Living & the Dead shares that same quality, but its timelessness is rooted in the present. Take Holland's description of the song “Your Big Hands”:

"It's just terribly naïve—it’s the kind of song Daniel Johnston made me feel brave enough to write," she says. "It starts out with these beautiful dirty guitar chords from M Ward, almost like a Rolling Stones song...the overall feel of this song owes a debt to Waits' version of rock ala 'Downtown Train'...then, in the middle of the song, all that has disappeared...you feel as though you're wandering around in the woods--there are owls and shooting stars…but then the song burns out with a mess of distorted guitars.”

Check out Jolie Holland's Daytrotter Session and an article from Daytrotter.

Jessi Klein was born and raised in New York City. She attended Vassar College, where she spent 4 years as a writer and performer for the school’s sketch group. After college, Jessi moved back to Manhattan and began performing stand-up comedy. She quickly caught the eye of scouts at NBC who made her a regular at the PSNBC workspace. After only two years of doing stand-up, Time Out NY called her one of their “Top 10 Comics We Never Get Tired Of” in December 2002, listing her alongside such names as Sarah Silverman and Dave Attell.

After winning the first ever “Emerging Comics of New York” award for Best Female Stand Up in March 2003, she made her television stand-up debut on Comedy Central’s Premium Blend last August. She is currently a regular commentator on VH1’s talking head hit, “Best Week Ever,” a weekly roundup of pop culture. Jessi’s sharp insights on that show have led to appearances on CNBC’s “Topic A with Tina Brown” as well as an appearance on NBC’s “The Today Show,” CNN’s “American Morning” and “Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn” on Comedy Central. She has also just completed work as the lead voice on a pilot for Cartoon Network from the creators of the cult hit Home Movies.

This past March she appeared at the Aspen HBO Comedy festival as a storyteller for The Moth, a NYC storytelling phenomenon. Through the Moth, Jessi also performed at Central Park’s Summerstage last July 2003 to a record crowd. Her story about researching the aftermath of a breakup on Google made the Moth’s “Best of 2003” CD.

She has also been a commentator for Andy Borowitz’s satirical “Borowitz Report” on NPR. This year she’ll be writing a chapter for an up and coming book, “Bar Mitzvah Disco,” a humorous collection of photos and essays about the Bar Mitzvah culture of the 1980’s, which is scheduled to include work from Jon Stewart, Esquire’s AJ Jacobs, Joel Stein, Sarah Silverman, Corey Feldman, and obviously, the Village People.

Jessi continues to be a favorite at clubs and alternative rooms all over the city, performing alongside such names as Dave Chappelle, Louis CK, Janeane Garofalo, Patton Oswalt, Sarah Silverman and Roseanne. Roseanne told Jessi that she thought she was really funny, which Jessi thought was a big deal. Other people who’ve told her she’s funny include Robert Smigel, Ethan Hawke, Stephen Baldwin, and still other people who aren’t famous. Stephen Baldwin gave her his pager number.