''Judge John Hodgman'' is a weekly,

comedic Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term ...

court show

podcast A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosin ...

hosted by John Hodgman and

Jesse Thorn Jesse Thorn (born April 24, 1981) is an American media entrepreneur and public radio and podcast host/creator. He is the owner and founder of the Maximum Fun podcast network, and the host and producer of the podcasts '' Judge John Hodgman'' and ...

. The show is distributed online by

Maximum Fun Maximum Fun is an independent podcast and radio show production organization founded and run by Jesse Thorn. The organization originated with Thorn's college radio show '' The Sound of Young America'' which continued in an adapted format and wit ...

. The program features host John Hodgman acting as a

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

(with

bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their o ...

) adjudicating real-life disputes within a fictional courtroom setting. The cases answer questions like, "Should the kitchen sink's built-in dispenser be filled with dish soap or hand soap?" and "Can you stop family members from using your childhood nickname?"

History

''Judge John Hodgman'' was originally a segment of the Maximum Fun podcast ''Jordan, Jesse Go!'' When Hodgman ended his podcast ''Today In The Past'', he began ''Judge John Hodgman'' as a full-fledged podcast. The podcast launched in November 2010, and released its 500th episode in January 2021.

Format

In each episode, "

Judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

" John Hodgman hears and renders a judgment on a dispute (often over petty or trivial matters) between two people (calling in via

Skype Skype () is a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for VoIP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also has instant messaging, file transfer, debi ...

or similar program from their home location) in a virtual "

courtroom A courtroom is the enclosed space in which courts of law are held in front of a judge. A number of courtrooms, which may also be known as "courts", may be housed in a courthouse. In recent years, courtrooms have been equipped with audiovisual ...

" setting. Hodgman's co-host most episodes is "

, who introduces each episode, interjects humorous questions and observations during cases, and interviews the disputants before and after Hodgman's verdict is announced. Several episodes have also included notable "

expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

es" who call in and offer their insight into the case. Though Hodgman has no formal legal training or experience (often describing himself as dispensing "fake internet justice"), and much of the content is played for laughs and entertainment, the disputants in each episode do verbally agree to abide by Hodgman's ruling before their case is heard. The NPR show All Things Considered reported, "The show is a vehicle for comedy, but Hodgman and Thorn both say the podcast has an earnest side, too. Jokes aside, they say, Hodgman really does take the job of fake internet judge seriously. 'The best Judge John Hodgman cases,' Thorn says, 'are always about the relationship between the litigants.'" There are also separate episodes in which Hodgman and Thorn "clear the docket", discussing and ruling on cases which were not selected for a full hearing.

Guests

When Jesse Thorn is not available, his role has been filled by "Guest Bailiffs", including

Scott Adsit Robert Scott Adsit (born November 26, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Adsit joined the mainstage cast of Chicago's The Second City in 1994 after attending Columbia College Chicago. He app ...

Elna Baker Elna Baker (born January 1982) is an American writer and comedian. She has worked for the radio program ''This American Life'' since 2010, and is currently a producer. She has made appearances on ''The Moth'', BBC Radio 4 and ''Studio 360''. In ...

, Monte Belmonte, Elizabeth Gilbert, Jean Grae, Jordan Morris, Tom Scharpling, and

Jake Tapper Jacob Paul Tapper (born March 12, 1969) is an American journalist, author, and cartoonist. He is the lead Washington anchor for CNN, hosts the weekday television news show '' The Lead with Jake Tapper'', and co-hosts the Sunday morning public a ...

. "

Expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

es" calling in to offer their insights into cases have included

Kurt Braunohler Kurt Braunohler (born February 22, 1976) is an American comedian and co-host of the podcast ''Bananas'' on Exactly Right Podcast Network. He was previously the host of IFC's comedy game show '' Bunk'' and has appeared on Comedy Central, ''This ...

, Alton Brown,

Brother Ali Ali Douglas Newman (born Jason Douglas Newman, July 30, 1977), better known by his stage name Brother Ali, is an American rapper, community activist, and member of the Rhymesayers Entertainment hip hop collective. He has released seven albums ...

, Jonathan Coulton, Dante, John Darnielle,

Jane Espenson Jane Espenson (born July 14, 1964) is an American television writer and producer. Espenson has worked on both situation comedies and serial dramas. She had a five-year stint as a writer and producer on ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and shared a ...

, Jonathan Goldstein, Jonathan Miles,

Eugene Mirman Eugene Boris MirmanJackson, Todd (2009). Eugene Mirman. Retrieved on May 13, 2009 from . (born July 24, 1974) is a Russian-American actor, comedian, and writer, known for playing Yvgeny Mirminsky on ''Delocated'' and Gene Belcher on the animated ...

David Rees David or Dai Rees may refer to: Entertainment * David Rees (author) (1936–1993), British children's author * Dave Rees (born 1969), American drummer for SNFU and Wheat Chiefs * David Rees (cartoonist) (born 1972), American cartoonist and televis ...

Mary Roach Mary Roach (born March 20, 1959) is an American author specializing in popular science and humor. She has published six New York Times bestsellers: '' Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers'' (2003), '' Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlif ...

, John Roderick,

Paul F. Tompkins Paul Francis Tompkins (born September 12, 1968) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television on such programs as ''Mr. Show with Bob and David'', '' Real Time with Bill Maher'', and ''Best Week Ever'', later ...

Morgan Webb Morgan Ailis Webb (born October 5, 1978) is a former co-host and senior segment producer of the G4 show '' X-Play''. She was previously the host of the podcast ''WebbAlert'' and a monthly columnist for the United States edition of '' FHM'', whe ...

, and

Jon Wurster Jonathan Patrick Wurster (born October 31, 1966) is an American drummer and comedy writer. As a musician, he is best known for his work with Superchunk, the Mountain Goats, and Bob Mould. He is also known for appearing on '' The Best Show'' with ...

. When ''Judge John Hodgman'' has been taken on the road and performed in front of a live audience, one or more musical guests have been invited to perform after or in between cases. These performers include John Darnielle, Jonathan Coulton, Jean Grae,

Mr. Len Mr. Len (Leonard "Lenny" Smythe) is a hip hop DJ born in the Bronx, New York. He moved to Hillside, NJ when he was 12 years old. He was a member, with Bigg Jus and El-P, of the underground hip hop trio Company Flow, which disbanded in the la ...

, John Vanderslice, and MeLa Machinko. On occasions that Hodgman was not available to record an episode, Jesse Thorn has acted as judge, with Jordan Morris of ''

Jordan, Jesse, Go! ''Jordan, Jesse, Go!'' (often abbreviated to ''JJGO'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which began airing in 2007. It is hosted by comedian Jordan Morris, a television writer, producer, and actor, and Jesse Thorn, a public radio host. The sho ...

'' filling in as bailiff.

Episodes

In January 2021, the podcast released its 500th episode.

Special episodes

Judge John Hodgman: Maritime Edition

In January 2011, two cases involving participants on the Jonathan Coulton Cruise Crazy were adjudicated by Judge John Hodgman and posted on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

Bonus episodes

Newspaper column

Since October 2015, ''Judge John Hodgman'' has appeared as a newspaper

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression (physical), compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column i ...

in ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine supplement included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. ...

'' every Sunday, in which Hodgman settles disputes in a similar fashion. Topics range from appropriate household toilet paper quotas to the proper way to wear a wedding band.

Live Show

Judge John Hodgman has held live recordings on numerous occasions in the US and UK. In the U.S. the show has been held in venues ranging from 1000-1400 seats, including Boston's Wilbur Theatre, San Francisco's Castro Theatre, Seattle's Neptune Theatre and Brooklyn's Murmrr Theatre. In September 2017 two shows were held live at the London Podcast Festival at

Kings Place Kings Place is a building in London’s Kings Cross area, providing music and visual arts venues combined with seven floors of office space. It has housed the editorial offices of '' The Guardian'' newspaper since December 2008 and is the ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Reception

Judge John Hodgman has received critical praise in the media, from outlets including Rolling Stone, NPR's All Things Considered, HuffPost, Vox, Splendry, BoingBoing and Boston Magazine. In November 2010, ''

Boing Boing ''Boing Boing'' is a website, first established as a zine in 1988, later becoming a group blog. Common topics and themes include technology, futurism, science fiction, gadgets, intellectual property, Disney, and left-wing politics. It twic ...

''s Mark Frauenfelder wrote "Only three episodes of the ''Judge John Hodgman'' podcast have been produced, but I know that it's going to be one of my favorites." ''

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

'''s Thomas Lewis called ''Judge John Hodgman'' a "hilarious podcast". A 2017 review on Splendry wrote, "Yes, these are silly disputes. And while there is much laughter, there is also much wisdom. I have found myself laughing uproariously and nodding thoughtfully in the same episode." In 2013, Arizona muralist Joe Pagac created art for ''Judge John Hodgman'' entitled "Sexy Justice". "Sexy Justice" has since been made available via online retailer TopatoCo as prints. In 2014, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' ranked ''Judge John Hodgman'' #15 in their list "The 20 Best Comedy Podcasts Right Now". ''Judge John Hodgman'' won the 2020 Webby Award for Comedy in the category Podcasts.

References

External links

* {{John Hodgman Audio podcasts Comedy and humor podcasts 2010 podcast debuts Maximum Fun The New York Times Magazine Works originally published in The New York Times Magazine