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Tom Rhodes Smart Camp — Comedy
Tom Rhodes Smart Camp

About Smart Camp podcast
Tom Rhodes Smart Camp is a festival of ideas, knowledge, stories, books, and adventures. I have been a comedian for more than 40 years, traveling the world to perform comedy. Whenever I can, I will share my adventures with you on this podcast. Together with my creative partner and best friend, Ashna, we ‘re offering a blend of wisdom, humor, and heart.

Tom
I have been a comedian for more than 40 years. I travel the world, performing comedy. Exploring diverse cultures and connecting with people from all walks of life while doing comedy is at the heart of my journey. Whenever I can, I’ll share my adventures and a global perspective with you on this podcast.

Ashna
Ashna, Dutch artist, photographer, and my ex-wife, is my best friend and she’s an essential part of the Rhodesies production team. We’ve traveled the world together for 8 years. With her background in cognitive psychology and her passion for philosophy and the arts, Ashna shares her unique European perspective.

Copyright: © 2011 Tom Rhodes

Latest Episodes:

231 Paris, C'est La Vie Jul 12, 2017

Show notes

Bonjour mon amis! In this episode Ashna and I come to Paris for me to do a show and we stretch it out into a week long visit with summer in full swing.

We start the episode with the update on the crazy downstairs neighbors we have who got in Ashna's face and challenged me to a fight right before we left for Europe. If you arrive in Paris we are jet lagged and walking the streets until sunrise. Learn why the apartment we are staying in Ashna describes as the Horror Toilet. We have books on philosophy and jazz records but one theme keeps repeating itself over and over of our Parisian home for the week. In this episode you will learn the best travel tips we have discovered like Rue Montorgueil otherwise known as Tasty Street. Learn how we made an art out of collecting items and perfected the joy of picnicking in Paris. Where are the best places to picnic in Paris? We reveal the feature of our neighborhood in Paris that reminds me of every Henry Miller book I have ever read. My show in Paris was in a sweltering hot room and I performed while soaking with sweat. We discuss how the meaning of jokes can change and the best response to this persistent problem. How do you create timeless comedy? How do you choose the best cheeses and pastries in Paris? Where is the best place to watch the Super Bowl in Paris? When is the worst time to try to visit the catacombs in Paris? How best to visit the Pere Llachaise cemetery? After answering these questions I read to Ashna the best quotes by the most famous authors who are buried in Pere Llachaise cemetery. If you can't afford to travel this summer or are planning a trip to Paris you can take a trip with Ashna and I now to the city of love while in the full bloom of summer. I have a long history with Paris and in this episode I try to give all the knowledge nuggets on Paris that will enrich your life, like the secret hidden latin phrase on Jim Morrison's grave. As an insult my brother once said to me "You know Tom, you just want to hang out in cafes in Paris and read books that no one else understands." He was correct and now I'm back and sharing my thoughts on this magic city with you. Bonne Journee!

230 Kliph Nesteroff Jul 03, 2017

Show notes

For the comedy nerd in all of us I am proud to present to you this lengthy chat I had with Kliph Nesteroff about the history of stand up comedy.

Last year Kliph published the excellent book 'The Comedians.' I loved this book tremendously and highly recommend it to anyone who loves comedy and is interested in all of its exciting and sordid history. From the earliest comedians in vaudeville to the mafia's grip on the development of stand up comedy as an art form there is fascinating facts to delight everyone's brain who will listen to this conversation. As comedy is my favorite topic in the world and the fact that I enjoyed his book so much there were endless questions I had for Kliph as we gabbed it up for the microphone. He has also been asked to host a show on the Vice network about comedy that premieres on July 10. Kliph's own history with doing comedy, experimenting with acid and giving up drinking also adds to the mix boundless enjoyment of tales of adventure. If you love comedy as much as I do I know this episode with produce a brain bath of natural amphetamines inside your skull and that is why it is my pleasure to present to you now the one and only Kliph Nesteroff!

229 Woman Is The New Church Jun 28, 2017

Show notes

How should you act when a neighbor is harassing and trying to intimidate you? Learn the outcome of the ongoing saga we have had with our downstairs neighbors who keep making noise complaints against us. Listeners sent us legal advice, we were acting like civilized adults when everything came to a head when they came to our door accusing Ashna of stomping. I flew home the next day in a fury of anger and had to go talk to these people. This week's movie talk is about Wonder Woman, Gal Gadot's breathtaking portrayal and rebranding of the old red booted Wonder Woman, into the new compassionate feminist icon and ass kicking heroism of this year's cinematic Wonder Woman. The subtle messages in the dialogue were just as powerful as the jumping side kicks and skull crunching punches. June 2017 marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the Summer Of Love. Is this the Summer of Love or hate? We conclude this episode with a recap of life enriching quotes by Voltaire, Oscar Wilde, Alan de Botton, Willie Nelson and George Orwell. Everything we can give you that can improve your life at this particular moment. Happy summer time! Shalom amigos y amigas! Long may you run!

228 Cheer up! Jun 24, 2017

Show notes

What are the limits of freedom of speech? Who went to far with freedom of speech Kathy or Bill Maher? Take a ride out of the doldrums and depression by letting us show you how to look on the bright side. In this episode Ashna and I talk about out trip to New York where we hung out with Dave Attell and Michael Che. Learn how I dealt with following Amy Schumer and her story about paying someone to masturbate her father. Learn how to deal with your buzz kill neighbors the Seneca way and what Netflix really thinks of white guys. Learn who Tony Woods thinks is the second most angry black man that he knows. We also discuss the shooting of Republicans on a baseball field in Virginia and the verdict in the Philander Castille killing. On a happier note we talk about the book Paris, a biography of a city and the excellent Ken Burns documentary The Roosevelts and the lesson to be learned from Teddy Roosevelt's life that can be valuable to all. The Einstein series called Genius gets a favorable mention as does the Jimi Hendrix baby gift we sent to fans of our podcast we met in Texas. There are 7.5 billion people on the planet and a lot of them are in a bad mood right now. We packed this episode with lots of knowledge nuggets and ways we have found to not be set back by irritating bad news that might threaten your joy. Ashna and I injected vitamin love in this episode and bring you up to speed on our lives, the journey that was undertaken to bring you my new live album and the most important exercise you should be doing this summer. Improve your heart, fill your brain and cheer up!

227 T. Sean Shannon Jun 13, 2017

Show notes

Emmy winner T. Sean Shannon has written for Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show & In Living Color. He is one of my oldest & best friends in comedy since the day I met him at Yankee stadium when we smoked a joint together in the upper deck. He is the pride of Houston, Texas and will enrich your life with wisdom & laughter!

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226 Viva Las Vegas May 16, 2017

Show notes

Our lives are are collection of stories and memories. I tell the story of smoking pot with Jack Nicholson at a Rolling Stones concert and how people watching in Las Vegas says more about you than the people you are watching. This episode is all about my own personal history with Las Vegas. The city I used to hate and avoid like the plague is now a place I come to several times a year full of entertainment friends, culinary delights and audiences of people from all around the globe. Shalom Amigos!

225 Wanna Buy A Puppy? May 11, 2017

Show notes

In this episode we talk about how I surprised the squirrel on my balcony.

Trump firing Comey, late night shows and if American satire works. How the 1937 book 'Invertebrate Spain' applies to what is happening in America today. How CNN is responsible for the puppy we just lost. How the Paul Newman movie 'Nobody's Fool' will teach you to make brave choices in your life. And I read you my thoughts on the Spanish conquest of Peru while standing in the main square of Cuzco. Big fresh slices of my life are yours with Ashna's two scoops of ice cream goodness on the side. And finally Ashna and I decide on a kid's name that we both like.

224 Yosemite Mom May 04, 2017

Show notes

My mom is visiting me this week and I took her to Yosemite National Park to recreate one of the best mother and son memories we have together.

In this episode my mom Sara Rhodes sits in with us and tells the story of watching Bugs Bunny cartoons right before I was born. The best advice she has ever given me and how we were once chased by a bear. We review the Netflix original Cable Girls and for book time I talk about one of my all time favorites: Hagakure - The book of the Samurai and how this book can improve your life. Tupac was grateful ti his mother even though she was a crack fiend. In this episode I am grateful to my mom for teaching me how to smack the shit out of the big ones!

223 Stylish Seneca Apr 26, 2017

Show notes

How should you react when hate is shot in your direction?

In this episode we talk how Ashna received a hate filled Facebook from an old white coward telling her to move back to the Netherlands. My reaction was to start searching flights to Houston so that I could go punch this old fooling the face but Ashna reminds me that it is always best to remain stylish like Seneca. We talk about our wedding anniversary date that included popping into an open mic night in our neighborhood where an untalented comedian started verbally attacking the crowd, me included because his poorly written jokes weren't being appreciated. Seneca style counseling is recommended to me again for how to conduct yourself in the face of hate filled white men. From there we popped into the Kibitz room where we delighted in our neighborhood watering hole where hate was nowhere to be found.

For brain candy morsels we talk about the book 'A Flame Of Pure Fire' Jack Dempsey And The Roaring Twenties' The movie 'Moon' and the new Ray Davies album 'Americana'. Also human behavioral moments I witnessed this week of a passenger having a meltdown on a plane, police harassing a man and the emotional slot machine that threatens all of our personal happiness.

222 Cosmic Vinyl Apr 20, 2017

Show notes

What kind of music does Tom like? On this episode a selection of his vinyl > My amazing wife Ashna has booked an acting job portraying the historic powerhouse and badass woman Sojourner Truth. She is in the next room running her lines and I am left alone with my vinyl record collection to play some of my favorite cosmic slices. Ashna is kind enough to share her speech in front of the microphone at one point for the scene she will film tomorrow. For anyone keeping track of what I played on this episode, the running order of the artists appearing here are:

AC/DC Velvet Underground The Animals Rodney Dangerfield David Bowie George Carlin Warren Zevon Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Bill Hicks Prince James Brown Ashna Rodjan Terrence Trent D'Arby Aretha Franklin Ray Charles Lightning' Hopkins Gil Scott-Heron

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