Episode 58 with The Talented Writer and Comic Genius (and also WWE's Dr. Shelby!) Mike Aspinwall

       On Episode 58, Pete is thrilled to speak with friend, former colleague, and comedy writer and actor with The Groundlings, Michael Aspinwall. Mike and Pete talk about Mike’s formative years involving comedy, his inspirations, his days with The Groundlings, what he looks for in good comedy writing, his incredible run on WWE as Dr. Shelby, and some of his own writing and writing process. 

 

         Michael Aspinwall was inspired to move to Los Angeles and become an actor after a very successful performance in a Paris Gibson Middle School play entitled Tied to the Tracks in his home town of Great Falls, Montana.  Many of his mom’s friends said he was good, and Michael took them seriously.  He went on to high school where he really fell in love with theatre, which further solidified his desire to act, direct, and write professionally, while simultaneously solidifying his social position in the caste system that is high school. 

Michael attended UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film, and Television, and while there, he studied performance primarily, in John Hall’s Musical Theatre Workshop.  He appeared in John’s productions of Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party and West Side Story (not by Andrew Lippa).  He was the 2004 recipient of the Carol Burnett Award for Outstanding Male Performer. 

In 2005, Michael earned his Master’s degree from UCLA’s TFT under the guidance of Dr. Pat Harter.  He created a program that paralleled the California Arts Bridge program, using theatre and art to help younger students access the core curricula. 

After college, Michael began his career as an actor by waiting tables at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, where he performed Forrest Gump themed trivia nightly, and acted as though he cared about whether the temperature of the guests’ fare was to their liking.  He worked a slew of odd jobs, became a certified yoga teacher and a credentialed high school English teacher, and eventually found his home as an actor at The Groundlings’ Theater in Hollywood.  

Michael found The Groundlings at a moment when the LA audition process was taking its toll.  That place and the people in it breathed life back into a ten-year-old kid who used to stay up to watch SNL, then perform Mike Myers’s bits in front of his fourth grade class.  At The Groundlings, Michael met his sketch group, Big Boss Comedy, and a slew of other mind-blowingly talented people he gets to call his friends. 

Since his turn in the Groundling’s Sunday Company, Michael continues to write and produce original work with his writing partner and fellow Sunday Company Alum, Patric Cagle.   He has toured Southern California with Kevin Broberg’s Quote/Unquote show, was a featured performer at Chicago Sketch Fest 2014 with Big Boss Comedy, and he appeared on television as WWE’s anger management specialist, Dr. Shelby. 

 

Allusions and References from Episode 58

 

Mike Aspinwall’s IMDB Page

 

Dr. Shelby’s Wiki

 

Dr. Shelby talks about Kane & Daniel Bryan's progress getting over their anger issues during the commercial break of Raw (Video)

 

Dr. Shelby “Enough” Meme

At about 3:20, Mike talks his early influences, including his hilarious father and his lifelong love for Saturday Night Live

 

At about 6:45, Mike talks about his early forays into writing comedy sketches

 

At about 8:00, Mike talks about his early innocent humor and how he realized the pull of dark comedy, too

 

At about 9:20, Mike talks about early comedy influences

 

At about 10:15, Mike talks about observational humor and its draw

 

At about 11:50, Mike talks about gratuitous humor, lowbrow humor, and different kinds of comedy

 

At about 13:30, Mike discusses crafting a joke without making people think about it too much, thereby lessening the humor

 

At about 14:45, Mike recounts the story of a “eureka” moment when he felt much more confident that he could do comedy work-the “oasis” that was The Groundlings-with a story involving the great Mikey Day

 

At about 18:45, Mike talks about his comedy training at The Groundlings

 

At about 20:00, Mike uses the example of an everyday observation through a Trader Joe’s trip as an an illustration of comic voice and tone

 

At about 24:45, Mike talks about taking reactions to autobiographical comedy “personally,” and the gift of “sitting in silence,” and being resolute in one’s comedy, as seen with friends and colleagues Allison Dunbar and Stephanie Allynne 

 

At about 28:20, Mike shouts out some of his favorite comedy writers, like Tina Fey and Jordan Peele, Danny McBride

 

At about 30:35, Mike and Pete discuss the comedy ethic of “punching up, not down”

 

At about 33:00, Mike helps out Pete, who has always wondered what exactly it means that “the writing is so good” in a tv show, etc.

 

At about 36:00, Mike talks about his thrilling run as Dr. Shelby on WWE

 

At about 40:45, Mike talks about the incredible adrenaline rush involved in taking part in WWE

 

At about 43:20, Mike talks about the later iteration of Dr. Shelby, including his being immortalized as a meme

 

At about 46:00, Mike talks about the video for Funny or Die that he performed in and wrote-“Baby, It’s Cold Outside”

 

At about 49:30, Mike talks about the sketch that he wrote that plays off the questionable lyrics of “Alone,” covered by multiple artists

 

At about 54:50, Mike talks about whether or not some laughs are undesirable and problematic, and how he likes “losing people at the turn” in the sketches he writes

 

At about 57:50, Mike reads from his storytelling piece, “Surprises are Foolish Things,” and he also discusses some of the background of the piece

 

At about 1:09:15, Mike discusses upcoming creative projects

 

You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow me on IG, where I’m @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where I’m @chillsatwillpo1.

This is a passion project of mine, a DIY operation, and I’d love for your help in promoting what I’m convinced is a unique and spirited look at an often-ignored art form.

The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com.