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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 ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by comedian and political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy Central and later on ABC, ''Real ...
'', and '' Best Week Ever'', later renamed ''Best Week Ever with Paul F. Tompkins''. He is known for his numerous appearances on podcasts, including his 200-plus appearances on ''
Comedy Bang! Bang! ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...
'' He has also been the host of the Fusion Channel talk show '' No, You Shut Up!'', '' The Dead Authors Podcast'', the online Made Man interview series ''Speakeasy with Paul F. Tompkins'', the
Earwolf Earwolf is an American comedy podcasting network founded by Scott Aukerman and Jeff Ullrich in August 2010. In 2011, they announced a partnership with Funny Or Die. It merged with podcast advertising network The Mid Roll in 2014, a separate com ...
podcast '' Spontaneanation with Paul F. Tompkins'', and ''The Pod F. Tompkast'', which was ranked #1 by ''
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 ...
'' on their list of "The 10 Best Comedy Podcasts of the Moment" in 2011. He is also a main cast member of the '' Superego'' podcast and was a regular player on '' Thrilling Adventure Hour'' podcast, which ended in 2015. Tompkins was the voice of Mr. Peanutbutter, an anthropomorphic yellow , on the
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...
animated series '' BoJack Horseman'' from 2014 to 2020. He has also appeared in drama films like ''
There Will Be Blood ''There Will Be Blood'' is a 2007 American period drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, loosely based on the 1927 novel '' Oil!'' by Upton Sinclair. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview, a silver miner turned oilm ...
'' and ''
The Informant! ''The Informant!'' is a 2009 American biographical-crime comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh. Written by Scott Z. Burns, the film stars Matt Damon as the titular informant named Mark Whitacre, as well as Scott Bakula, Joel McHale and Melanie ...
''. In 2021, he had a recurring role on the sitcom '' Rutherford Falls''. In December 2014, '' Paste'' named his Twitter one of "The 75 Best Twitter Accounts of 2014", ranking it at #70.


Early life

Paul Francis Tompkins was born September 12, 1968, in Mount Airy, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. He has two brothers (one older, one younger) and three sisters (all older).


Career


Early work

In 1986, Tompkins first performed comedy at 17 years of age at The Comedy Works in Philadelphia (a club now located in Bristol, Pennsylvania), where he performed as half of a sketch comedy duo with Rick Roman. Tompkins attended
Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...
; however, he dropped out and left for
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
,
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, in 1994.Paul F. Tompkin's bio at TheDailyShow.com
Retrieved May 31, 2012.
Tompkins met actor
Jay Johnston Jay Johnston (born October 22, 1968) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his work as a writer and cast member on ''Mr. Show with Bob and David'' and for his roles on ''The Sarah Silverman Program, Arrested Development,'' and ...
in L.A. through their mutual friend, actor and director Adam McKay. McKay and Tompkins had become friends in Philadelphia, where they had both started to perform stand-up at around the same time. McKay later moved to Chicago and met Johnston; Johnston moved to L.A. at around the same time as Tompkins and McKay introduced the two. Tompkins and Johnston went on to create a live sketch comedy show called "The Skates" that was seen by Bob Odenkirk and David Cross and helped get them hired to work on '' Mr. Show with Bob and David'' in 1996.


Live comedic performance

Tompkins' comedy career has included stand-up, sketch comedy and a variety of other live performances. Tompkins' stand-up comedy performances are of a storytelling and observationalist style. His shows often consist of extended riffs and long anecdotes. Tompkins deals with topics of the bizarre and the absurd—such as a rant about peanut brittle, a discussion about cake versus pie, and smashed coins—in addition to recounting stories about his own life experiences and family. His comedic style has been described as alternative comedy; Tompkins has stated that he is not bothered by the label and that he likes the term. Tompkins is known for his style of dress during his live comedic performances, always performing in suit and tie, sometimes in pinstripes and with a bowtie; his look has been described by some in the press as "dapper". Tompkins has described his look as "
fop Fop is a pejorative term for a foolish man. FOP or fop may also refer to: Science and technology * Feature-oriented positioning, in scanning microscopy * Feature-oriented programming, in computer science, software product lines * Fibrodysplasia ...
pish" and "just this side of
Cedric the Entertainer Cedric Antonio Kyles (born April 24, 1964), better known by his stage name Cedric the Entertainer, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He hosted BET's '' ComicView'' during the 1993–1994 season and '' Def Comedy Jam'' in 1995. He is ...
." Tompkins is based in Los Angeles and performs regularly in the city. Since 2002 he has performed a monthly show called ''The Paul F. Tompkins Show'' at Largo, an L.A. nightclub and cabaret. His show has featured such guests as Fiona Apple, Jack Black,
Dave Foley David Scott Foley (born January 4, 1963) is a Canadian actor, stand-up comedian, director, producer and writer. He is known as a co-founder of the comedy group The Kids in the Hall, who have appeared together in a number of television, stage and ...
, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Aimee Mann, and
Weird Al Yankovic Weird derives from the Anglo-Saxon word Wyrd, meaning fate or destiny. In modern English it has acquired the meaning of “strange or uncanny”. It may also refer to: Places * Weird Lake, a lake in Minnesota, U.S. People *"Weird Al" Yankovic ...
. Since its inception in 2005, Tompkins has taken part in the '' Thrilling Adventure Hour'', a staged production in the style of old-time radio that is also held monthly at Largo. The show began
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 ...
ing in January 2011; in October of that same year the show's podcasts moved to the
Nerdist Industries Nerdist Industries, LLC is part of the digital division of Legendary Entertainment. Nerdist Industries was founded as a sole podcast ( The Nerdist Podcast) created by Chris Hardwick but later spread to include a network of podcasts, a premium cont ...
podcast network created by
Chris Hardwick Christopher Ryan Hardwick (born November 23, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, television and podcast host, writer, and producer. He hosts ''Talking Dead'', an hourlong aftershow on AMC affiliated with the network's zombie drama series '' The ...
.Thrilling Adventure Hour: Beyond Belief – "White Hunter, Drunk Heart"
, ''Thrilling Adventure Hour'' first podcast episode on the Nerdist network including comments from the creators Acker and Blacker. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
Tompkins is a member of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (UCB) Los Angeles. His comedy album "Impersonal" was recorded live at the UCB Theatre. He also performs monthly at the "Dead Authors" show at UCB Theatre in support of the nonprofit organization
826LA 826LA is a Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6–18 with their creative and expository writing skills and helping teachers inspire their students to write. Programs are structured around the beliefs th ...
; Tompkins plays the role of H.G. Wells who serves as the host of the show. Tompkins has toured in the US and Canada and prefers to perform in independent venues, rather than conventional comedy clubs. Starting in 2009 he embarked on his "Tompkins 300" tour. Tompkins had been preparing for his one-hour Comedy Central special ''You Should Have Told Me'' at the Laughing Skull Lounge theatre in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
—a small theatre that seats about 74 people. In order to fill the seats for the recording of his special, Tompkins required about 280 people in the audience over the course of four nights for the recording of his show. Tompkins decided to announce on Twitter that he needed 300 people to fill the seats each night. Bob Kerr, a Canadian comedian, saw the Twitter post and asked if Tompkins would like to perform in
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
. Tompkins advised Kerr that if he was able to get 300 people to state that they would definitely see his show he would come to Toronto. Kerr then started a Facebook group called "I Wanna See Paul F. Tompkins in Toronto" and managed to get 300 people to join. In October of that same year Tompkins performed at
The Rivoli The Rivoli is a bar, restaurant and performance space, established in 1982, on Queen Street West in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The club originally earned a reputation as one of Canada's hippest music clubs, and many major Canadian comedy and mu ...
night club in Toronto, the same club in which the sketch comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall got their start. Facebook groups were subsequently started in other North American cities and in 2010 he stated that he had stopped promoting his shows on the radio. In 2011 he said that the Facebook 300 groups had become his main method of booking comedy shows. Tompkins wrote and performed in his one-man show, ''Driven to Drink'', which aired on HBO in 1998. He appeared on 6 episodes of ''
Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...
'' between 1998 and 2008 as well as two episodes of '' Conan'' in 2011 and 2012. He has recorded three comedy albums: ''Impersonal'' in 2007, ''Freak Wharf'' in 2009, and ''Laboring Under Delusions'' in 2012. His stand-up appearances on the Comedy Central network include being featured in episodes of ''
Comedy Central Presents ''Comedy Central Presents'' is an American stand-up comedy television series created for Comedy Central. It is the network's main half-hour program which highlights either one or a series of stand-up comedians each episode. In 2011, the series ...
'' in 2003 and 2007, hosting an episode of ''
Live at Gotham ''Live at Gotham'' is a standup comedy television show airing on Comedy Central in the United States. The show features up and coming stand up comedians performing live at the Gotham Comedy Club in New York City ...
'' in 2009, performing on '' John Oliver's New York Stand Up Show'' in 2010, and recording two original one-hour comedy specials—''You Should Have Told Me'' which aired in 2010 and ''Paul F. Tompkins: Laboring Under Delusions'' in 2012. He also appeared in the
RiffTrax RiffTrax is an American company that produces scripted humorous commentary tracks which are synced to mostly public domain feature films, education shorts, and television episodes. With the talents of former ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (''M ...
live broadcast of ''
House on Haunted Hill ''House on Haunted Hill'' is a 1959 American horror film produced and directed by William Castle, written by Robb White and starring Vincent Price, Carol Ohmart, Richard Long, Alan Marshal, Carolyn Craig and Elisha Cook Jr. Price plays an ...
''.


Acting and writing

Tompkins wrote for and performed on ''Mr. Show with Bob and David'' from 1995 to 1998; the show's writers, including Tompkins, were nominated for an Emmy Award in 1998 for "Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Program". Tompkins's work with Mr. Show's creators Bob Odenkirk and David Cross also led to his recurring role on the ''
Tenacious D Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles, California in 1994. It was founded by actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass, who were members of The Actors' Gang theater company at the time. The duo's name is derived from "ten ...
'' TV series. Tompkins played the character of a nightclub manager who is duped into reading Tenacious D's ridiculous introductions during their
open mic An open mic or open mike (shortened from "open microphone") is a live show at a venue such as a coffeehouse, nightclub, comedy club, strip club, or pub, usually taking place at night, in which audience members may perform on stage whether t ...
performances. He revived the role in the comedic band's film ''
Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny ''Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny'' is a 2006 American musical fantasy comedy film about comedy rock duo Tenacious D. Written, produced by and starring Tenacious D members Jack Black and Kyle Gass, it is directed and co-written by musician a ...
'' released in 2006. Longtime friend Adam McKay consulted Tompkins regarding the screenplay for '' Talladega Nights''. Tompkins also played the MC of a
cat show A cat show is a judged event where the owners of cats compete to win titles in various cat registering organizations by entering their cats to be judged after a breed standard. Both pedigreed and companion (or moggy) cats are admissible, althoug ...
in McKay's '' Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy''. Tompkins has appeared on television programs including ''
NewsRadio ''NewsRadio'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 21, 1995 to May 4, 1999, focusing on the work lives of the staff of a New York City AM news radio station. It had an ensemble cast featuring Dave Foley, Steph ...
'', ''
Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...
'', '' Weeds'', ''
The Sarah Silverman Program ''The Sarah Silverman Program'' is an American television sitcom, which ran from February 1, 2007, to April 15, 2010, on Comedy Central starring comedian and actress Sarah Silverman, who created the series with Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab. ''The Sa ...
'', ''
Pushing Daisies ''Pushing Daisies'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007, to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to li ...
'', ''
Community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, ...
'', and '' Curb Your Enthusiasm''. Tompkins played the role of Prescott in Paul Thomas Anderson's film ''
There Will Be Blood ''There Will Be Blood'' is a 2007 American period drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, loosely based on the 1927 novel '' Oil!'' by Upton Sinclair. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview, a silver miner turned oilm ...
'' (2007); Anderson had previously cast Tompkins in a small role in the 1999 film ''
Magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...
'' after watching Tompkins perform at Largo. Tompkins also played FBI Agent Anthony D’Angelo in Steven Soderbergh's ''
The Informant! ''The Informant!'' is a 2009 American biographical-crime comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh. Written by Scott Z. Burns, the film stars Matt Damon as the titular informant named Mark Whitacre, as well as Scott Bakula, Joel McHale and Melanie ...
'' (2009). He has a recurring role in the Canadian TV series '' The L.A. Complex'' as a fictionalized version of himself. He also appeared in the music video for Nick Lowe's song "Stoplight Roses" and in the Ted Leo and the Pharmacists song "Bottled In Cork". Tompkins wrote for ''
Real Time with Bill Maher ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by comedian and political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy Central and later on ABC, ''Real ...
'' in 2003 and 2009, in addition to being a show correspondent in the show's first season. In 2011 Tompkins was asked to write humorous recaps of ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' episodes for '' New York'' magazine's online blog ''Vulture''. Tompkins has expressed in interviews that he dislikes writing (particularly writing for others), preferring instead to perform in front of a camera.


Voice acting

Tompkins has done voice work for many animated television series including ''
Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist ''Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist'' is an American adult animated sitcom that ran on Comedy Central from May 28, 1995 to February 13, 2002. The series starred the voice talents of Jonathan Katz, H. Jon Benjamin, and Laura Silverman. The show w ...
'', ''
King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired its original non-syndicated run from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, and centers on the Hills, an Am ...
'', and ''
Bob's Burgers ''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob Belcher, Bob and Linda Belcher, Linda and t ...
'', in which he voices the recurring character Randy. He lent his voice to a character in an unaired 2007 episode of ''
Aqua Teen Hunger Force ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'' (also known by various alternative titles), sometimes abbreviated as ''ATHF'' or ''Aqua Teen'', is an American adult animated television series created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Cartoon Network's late ni ...
'' titled "Boston" that was supposed to be the premiere episode of the show's fifth season, but it was pulled by
Turner Broadcasting System Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (alternatively known as Turner Entertainment Networks from 2019 until 2022) was an American television and media conglomerate. Founded by Ted Turner and based in Atlanta, Georgia, it merged with Time Warner (lat ...
to avoid further controversy surrounding the 2007 Boston bomb scare. Tompkins later appeared in an episode during the show's 7th season. He was also the voice of one of the thugs in
Walt Disney Animation Studios Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that creates animated features and short films for The Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a scene fro ...
' 2010 computer animated film ''
Tangled ''Tangled'' is a 2010 American 3D computer-animated musical adventure fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Loosely based on the German fairy tale ''Rapunzel'' in the collection of ...
''. Tompkins was the voice of Benton Criswell, a character in MTV series '' Super Adventure Team'' which featured
marionettes A marionette (; french: marionnette, ) is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a marionettist. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed ...
in the style of the 1960s British series '' Thunderbirds''; the role was credited under the stage name Francis Mt. Pleasant. He was the voice of a puppet in ads for the
Ford Focus The Ford Focus is a compact car (C-segment in Europe) manufactured by Ford Motor Company since 1998. It was created under Alexander Trotman's Ford 2000 plan, which aimed to globalize model development and sell one compact vehicle worldwide. The ...
. Tompkins played Mr. Peanutbutter in the 2014 Netflix original animated series '' BoJack Horseman''. Tompkins voices the recurring character, Gladstone Gander, in the reboot series of ''
DuckTales ''DuckTales'' is an American animated television series produced by Disney Television Animation. The original cartoon series premiered on syndication and on Disney Channel on September 18, 1987 and ran for a total of 100 episodes over four sea ...
''. In 2020, he voiced Dr. Migleemo, a therapist aboard the USS Cerritos in the
CBS All Access Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures (including CBS Studios), Paramount Media Networks (formerly Viacom Media ...
animated series '' Star Trek: Lower Decks''.


Political and social commentary

Tompkins has appeared on several television programs devoted to discussing politics,
popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
and current events; however, he says he does not consider himself to be a political comic. Tompkins was a contributor to the "Us People's Weekly Entertainment" segment of '' The Daily Show'' in 1998. In 2003 he was a writer and correspondent for ''
Real Time with Bill Maher ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by comedian and political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy Central and later on ABC, ''Real ...
'' in the show's first season and wrote again for the show in 2009. He appeared on ''
Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn ''Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn'' is a comedic talk show which aired on Comedy Central from 2002 to 2004. The show featured host Colin Quinn and a panel of comedian guests, discussing politics, current events, and social issues. Show history an ...
'' in 2004. In 2004 he also became a pop culture analyst on VH1's '' Best Week Ever''; in 2008 the show was retooled and relaunched as ''Best Week Ever with Paul F. Tompkins'' with Tompkins as host. From 2006 to 2008 he was a regular guest on '' Countdown with Keith Olbermann''. In 2008 he appeared on '' Lewis Black's Root of All Evil'' and took part in a panel on ''
Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles ...
'' in an episode titled "Politics & Humor". Tompkins has appeared in documentaries such as Jamie Kennedy's '' Heckler'' (2007) and Doug Benson's '' Super High Me'' (2007). He also appeared in ''The Bitter Buddha'' (2013), a documentary about the career of actor and comedian
Eddie Pepitone Edward David Pepitone (born November 5, 1958) is an American character actor and stand-up comedian. Early life Pepitone was born to a Sicilian father and a Jewish mother in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, and was raised from the age of nine ...
. Tompkins later became the host of a discussion show called '' No, You Shut Up!'' by
The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known for ...
under its Henson Alternative banner.


Podcasts, webcasts and radio

In 2010, Tompkins launched his podcast called ''The Pod F. Tompkast''. The podcast was a mixture of Tompkins discussing various topics, clips from his live show at Largo, and segments where Tompkins voices a variety of celebrities speaking with one another. Comedian Jen Kirkman was a regular contributor on the show. The podcast ended in 2012. The '' Thrilling Adventure Hour'' comedy show at Largo began
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 ...
ing in January 2011; in October of that same year the show's podcasts moved to the Nerdist Industries podcast network created by
Chris Hardwick Christopher Ryan Hardwick (born November 23, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, television and podcast host, writer, and producer. He hosts ''Talking Dead'', an hourlong aftershow on AMC affiliated with the network's zombie drama series '' The ...
. The show ended in 2015. '' Dead Authors'', a live show that Tompkins hosts at the UCB Theatre in Los Angeles, also began podcasting in September 2011. In May 2012 Tompkins started a weekly web series called ''Speakeasy''. Hosted by the
Break Media Break Media was an American digital media company that owned several Internet properties targeted at men (males aged 18–34 make up 70% of their visitors), including Break.com (its first website), Screen Junkies, CagePotato, Chickipedia, Hol ...
site MadeMan.com, the series features Tompkins interviewing various guests in the entertainment industry, such as
Ty Burrell Tyler Gerald Burrell (born August 22, 1967) is an American actor and comedian. Burrell is best known for his role as Phil Dunphy on the ABC sitcom ''Modern Family'', for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor i ...
,
Nathan Fillion Nathan Fillion (; born March 27, 1971) is a Canadian-American actor. He played the leading roles of Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds on '' Firefly'' and its film continuation '' Serenity'', and Richard Castle on '' Castle''. , he was starring as J ...
, Zach Galifianakis,
Chris Hardwick Christopher Ryan Hardwick (born November 23, 1971) is an American comedian, actor, television and podcast host, writer, and producer. He hosts ''Talking Dead'', an hourlong aftershow on AMC affiliated with the network's zombie drama series '' The ...
,
Oscar Nunez Oscar Nunez (born November 18, 1958), sometimes credited as Oscar Nuñez, is a Cuban-American actor. He is best known for his role as the Dunder Mifflin accountant Oscar Martinez on NBC's ''The Office''. He was a member of The Groundlings and l ...
,
Weird Al Yankovic Weird derives from the Anglo-Saxon word Wyrd, meaning fate or destiny. In modern English it has acquired the meaning of “strange or uncanny”. It may also refer to: Places * Weird Lake, a lake in Minnesota, U.S. People *"Weird Al" Yankovic ...
, and
Alison Brie Alison Brie Schermerhorn (born December 29, 1982) is an American actress. Her breakthrough came with the role of Trudy Campbell in the drama series '' Mad Men'' (2007–2015), which won her a Screen Actors Guild Award. She gained recognition fo ...
. The interviews are conducted as casual conversations between Tompkins and his guests over cocktails at various bars in the L.A. area. Tompkins has appeared well over 200 times as a guest, and occasionally as a guest host, on ''
Comedy Bang! Bang! ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...
'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio''), a weekly audio podcast hosted by
Scott Aukerman Scott David Aukerman (born July 2, 1970) is an American writer, actor, comedian, television personality, director, producer, and podcast host. Starting as a writer and performer in the later seasons of the sketch series ''Mr. Show'', Aukerman is ...
, a comedian who also wrote for ''Mr. Show with Bob and David''. The show's format mixes conversation between the host and guests, and usually includes improv games. Some guests play characters or impersonate certain celebrities, usually for the entirety of the episode; Paul F. Tompkins has impersonated celebrities such as rapper Ice-T, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Buddy Valastro from the
reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early ...
series ''
Cake Boss ''Cake Boss'' is an American reality television series, which originally aired on the cable television network TLC. The series premiered on April 19, 2009, and has spawned four spin-offs: '' Next Great Baker'', ''Kitchen Boss'', ''Bake You Ric ...
(cakeboss.)''. In addition to Aukerman's ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'', Tompkins has appeared on the podcasts of other fellow comedians such as ''
WTF with Marc Maron ''WTF with Marc Maron'' is a weekly podcast and radio show hosted by stand-up comedian Marc Maron. The show was launched in September 2009. The show is produced by Maron's former Air America co-worker Brendan McDonald. Background The show's ti ...
'',
Jimmy Pardo James Ronald Pardo, Jr. (born July 28, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and host of the long-running comedy podcast '' Never Not Funny''. From the show's inception until mid-2015, he performed as the Conan O'Brien program ''Conan ...
's '' Never Not Funny'', Jessica Chaffin and
Jamie Denbo Jamie Denbo (born July 24, 1973) is an American actress, writer, comedian and half of the comedy duo Ronna and Beverly with Jessica Chaffin. She also co-starred in the FX series ''Terriers'' and appeared in '' Spy'', '' The Heat'' and ''Ghos ...
's ''
Ronna and Beverly Ronna Marlene Glickman (née Levine) and Beverly Ginsberg (née Schiff, formerly Ginsberg, Kahn, Frisch) are the 50-something (born 1962) characters created and embodied by actors and comedians Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo. They hosted a pod ...
'' podcast, and the '' Superego'' podcast with Jeremy Carter, Matt Gourley, and Mark McConville. Tompkins has also been a regular guest on the radio show and podcast '' The Best Show on WFMU with Tom Scharpling''. In 2015, Tompkins created his own podcast on the
Earwolf Earwolf is an American comedy podcasting network founded by Scott Aukerman and Jeff Ullrich in August 2010. In 2011, they announced a partnership with Funny Or Die. It merged with podcast advertising network The Mid Roll in 2014, a separate com ...
podcast network called '' Spontaneanation with Paul F. Tompkins''. This podcast is similar to the ''Pod F. Tompkast''; however, ''Spontaneanation'' is fully improvised and in-the-moment, as opposed to the ''Tompkast'', which was highly produced. ''Spontaneanation'' begins with an improvised monologue, accompanied on piano by Eban Schletter, much like the ''Pod F. Tompkast''. The next segment is an interview with one of Tompkins' famous friends. The final segment is one long improvised story performed by Paul and guest improvisers, based on ideas discussed in the interview segment. The podcast ended in 2019. Since 2019, Tompkins has cohosted, with
Nicole Parker Nicole Frances Parker (born February 21, 1978) is an American actress. She is best known for her work on Fox's sketch comedy show '' Mad TV'' (2003–2009, 2016), which she was a regular cast member. In July 2009, Parker concluded her run as El ...
, ''The Neighborhood Listen'' on Stitcher Premium. Along with Tawny Newsome, he also hosts ''The Pod Directive'', the official Star Trek podcast, which launched in September 2020. In March 2020, during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Paul started a weekly podcast with his wife, Janie Haddad Tompkins, called ''Stay F. Homekins''. The first season ran for 41 episodes throughout the rest of 2020, and season two started in January 2021.


Personal life

Tompkins is married to actress Janie Haddad Tompkins. In 2017, Tompkins stated on Twitter that he was once a Catholic, but later went on to become an atheist. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and helped canvass for Eunisses Hernandez and Hugo Soto-Martinez during the
2022 Los Angeles elections The 2022 Los Angeles elections were held on June 7, 2022. Voters elected candidates in a nonpartisan primary, with runoff elections scheduled for November 8, 2022. Eight of the fifteen seats in the City Council were up for election while three ...
.


Filmography


Film


Television


Discography

* 2007 – ''Impersonal'' (CD; released on AST Records) * 2007 – ''
Comedy Death-Ray ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...
'' (Compilation released on Comedy Central Records) * 2009 – ''Freak Wharf'' (CD) (Released on AST Records) * 2010 – ''Sir, You Have Fooled Me Twice'' (EP; released on AST Records) * 2010 – ''You Should Have Told Me'' (DVD; released on AST Records) * 2012 – ''Laboring Under Delusions'' (DVD; released on Comedy Central Records) * 2012 – ''Laboring Under Delusions: Live in Brooklyn'' (CD; released on AST Records)


Podcast and radio appearances

Tompkins is known for his many podcast appearances, as well as hosting a few of his own. He is often referred to as the mayor of podcasts.


References


External links

* * * *
The Pod F. Tompkast
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Tompkins, Paul F. 1968 births 20th-century American comedians 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American male actors American atheists American male film actors American male television actors American male television writers American male voice actors American people of Irish descent American podcasters American sketch comedians American stand-up comedians American television talk show hosts American television writers American writers of Italian descent Former Roman Catholics Living people Male actors from Philadelphia Members of the Democratic Socialists of America Screenwriters from Pennsylvania Temple University alumni