The novel coronavirus has started to take its toll on figures from our popular culture. Adam Schlesinger, who founded Fountains of Wayne and wrote songs for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend among other things, died on Wednesday. The great playwright Terrence McNally died last week. The list goes on: songwriter Alan Merrill, country music star Joe Diffie, fashion designer Jenny Polanco, college basketball star Dave Edwards, actor Mark Blum, soccer star Lorenzo Sanz. And it seems like the jazz community has been especially vulnerable: guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, pianists Ellis Marsalis and Mike Longo, and trumpeter Wallace Roney have all died.
And then: Dave is an FXX comedy series that tells a fictionalized version of the rise of rapper Lil Dicky, and John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch is a Netflix children's special that Mulaney made "on purpose."
Some other stuff that happened this week, give or take:
- 'Lean On Me,' 'Lovely Day' singer Bill Withers dies at 81
- The Stupidest [...] Movies Guaranteed To Make You Laugh During This Catastrophe
Who needs a plot right now? Let’s just slap some jokes in our faces instead - You Can Watch the First 8 Minutes of 'Sonic the Hedgehog' Online Now
- April fools' day is canceled, you monsters
Don't you dare, brands - Joe Buck: Stop Sending Me Your Sex Tapes ... I'm Not Gonna Narrate Them!!!
- Llandudno marauders: the herd of goats running riot through a Welsh town
Taking advantage of the town’s deserted streets because of the coronavirus lockdown, the goats have been branded vandals for munching through gardens - Companies Avoid Advertising Next to Coronavirus News
The name of the virus overtakes 'Trump' as the keyword blocked by the most brands, a problem for digital news publishers - New York is one of the world's great cities for the arts -- but the damage from the pandemic is proving to be catastrophic
- Ina Garten Made A Giant Cocktail For Herself At 9:30 A.M. And Now She's My Quaranqueen
- Tom Perrotta's 'The Leftovers' imagined 2 percent of the population disappearing. That could be our reality.
- Shudder Subscriptions Are Surging During the Coronavirus Pandemic
- HBO's #StayHomeBoxOffice Campaign Is Offering Hundreds of Hours of Programming for Free
- Uranus blasted a gas bubble 22,000 times bigger than Earth
It happened back in 1986 -- but it could happen again.
GUESTS:
- Stosh Mikita - A stand-up comedian and writer based in New Haven
- Mercy Quaye - Founder and principal consultant for The Narrative Project and a columnist with Hearst Connecticut Media Group
- Brian Slattery - Arts editor for the New Haven Independent and a producer at WNHH radio
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Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.
