In my recent features, I\u2019ve covered the fusing of Politics and True Crime and Business and True Crime in podcasts, so why not Sports and True Crime? As it turns out, when you mix the two with humor, you get a triple combo better than pizza, garlic knots, and beer while watching the World Series!<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the beauty of Crime in Sports\u2014a podcast started in early 2016.<\/p>\n

Comedians James Pietragallo and Jimmie Whisman turn two guys cracking jokes about athletes who screw up their lives in the strangest ways into the best laugh-fest escape you could ever want. Having worked their way into the ears and hearts of listeners around the world, they\u2019ve also landed on Podcast Magazine\u2019s Hot 50 Chart for a number of months now.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s our baby! Crime in Sports is what started this,\u201d exclaimed Jimmie, referring to their true-crime-comedy-podcast empire which also includes Small Town Murder. \u201cWe\u2019re really proud of it, because it\u2019s what got us into podcasting.\u201d<\/h4>\n

With two successful podcasts under their belt, I asked if they feel if they are comedians who produce podcasts, or podcasters who happen to be comedians. \u201cWe are always comics first,\u201d answered James. \u201cThat\u2019s where everything comes from. That\u2019s our base.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cComedy is so difficult without a credit,\u201d added Jimmie. \u201cYou\u2019re pretty much pigeonholed into whatever geographical area you\u2019re in to get an audience. With podcasting, you have the world.\u201d (By \u201ccredit,\u201d Jimmie referred to the need to have a TV or movie credit in order to be a headliner.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went from opening for other comics at local clubs to selling out theatres all over the country on our own,\u201d James pointed out. \u201cPodcasting allowed us to do that. Otherwise, it would have taken us 15 years to do it, if we were even able to at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

As we continued to discuss their successful strategy of using podcasting to propel their career, we delved into the reasoning behind a true-crime-based show rather than one specific to the comedy genre. \u201cThe market [Comedy Category] was flooded, and continues to be flooded, with the \u2018comedian-interviewing-comedian\u2019 show,\u201d James said. \u201cWe can\u2019t compete with a hugely famous comic who does that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead, they decided to choose a topic and make it extremely humorous. \u201cI wanted a show about criminal athletes. That\u2019s interesting to me,\u201d James continued. \u201cAnd I wanted it to be funny. That\u2019s what I wanted to hear, and it didn\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now with over 200 (and counting) of published Crime in Sports episodes, it certainly exists today.<\/h3>\n

There would be more installments if they covered their stories in parts, as their episodes tend to run a bit long. Case in point, each of the June episodes went well over two hours. \u201cMore people listen when they have the whole story,\u201d commented Jimmie. \u201cIt\u2019s a credit to James and his commitment to finding everything there is to know about a story. This way, you get a whole picture of who somebody is and what somebody did in one episode.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re going to break somebody\u2019s balls, we better have all the information,\u201d James chimed in. \u201cI never want to be called \u2018lazy\u2019 with the show. Plus, our most-listened-to episodes are our longest ones. I\u2019m not sure why that is, but I\u2019m happy our listeners [enjoy them].\u201d<\/p>\n

After a few more laughs among the three of us, I asked each what they thought were the strangest stories they\u2019ve covered so far. \u201cMitch \u2018Blood\u2019 Green,\u201d James yelled without hesitation, referring to episode #156, which aired on April 8, 2019. \u201cHe started a street fight with Mike Tyson, which is the craziest thing anyone has ever done in any of our stories. This was in \u201986 when he was heavyweight champ of the world!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe challenged him while Mike Tyson was obliterating men with rules in place in the ring,\u201d Jimmied chimed in. \u201cI also enjoyed the story of the boxer who had a wife and children, but left the country and created a life with another woman, and ended up shooting her.\u201d This refers to episode #207\u2014”A Mushy-Minded Murder\u2014the Audaciousness of Del Fontaine,\u201d which aired on May 4, 2020. Apparently, long episodes and crazed boxers are popular on Crime in Sports!<\/p>\n

Given the joy both James and Jimmie have for live events, I wondered what\u2019s next for this duo, as they face the challenges that come with performing in a world with COVID-19. \u201cWe have a full tour that\u2019s been rescheduled for the third time this year,\u201d James laughed. \u201cWe\u2019re just waiting for everything to clear up, so we can get back on the road. We can\u2019t wait. We\u2019re comics. We love doing live shows.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want this world to go back to \u2018normal,\u2019 so we can get back to touring and meeting the people who support us,\u201d Jimmie added. \u201cI miss \u2018em!\u201d<\/h3>\n

While they are waiting, James and Jimmie are working on a new podcast to add to their media company. \u201cVile Human Beings is coming out soon,\u201d explained James. \u201cBasically, we take two terrible people from history, debate who was worse, and award a winner at the end. Who\u2019s worse\u2026 Dahmer or Bundy? Who\u2019s worse\u2026 Stalin or Pol Pot? Let\u2019s talk about it! But let\u2019s get into the little things, too, like who would be most likely to leave the toilet seat up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fortunately, until touring begins again, we can hear from this duo on a weekly basis. \u201cHad we not done [these podcasts], comedy wouldn\u2019t exist for guys like us right now,\u201d Jimmie pontificated. \u201cWe\u2019re very lucky that we are retaining our audience. People are sticking with us in the podcast world. When we do go out on the road, they will still be there. Had we not done this, we would be screwed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would have had to start over after months off without the shows,\u201d added James. \u201cWe are very lucky. The podcasts are the best things we have ever done. They have really given us a career that\u2019s viable, and we are so thankful for our audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Personally, as a member of their audience, I can honestly say we are thankful to have Crime in Sports. While we may not have too many athletes performing just yet, we can have a hearty laugh about some of their stories, thanks to James and Jimmie.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

August 2020 Issue<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In my recent features, I\u2019ve covered the fusing of Politics and True Crime and Business and True Crime in podcasts, so why not Sports and True Crime? As it turns out, when you mix the two with humor, you get a triple combo better than pizza, garlic knots, and beer while watching the World Series! That\u2019s the beauty of Crime in Sports\u2014a podcast started in early 2016. Comedians James Pietragallo and Jimmie Whisman turn two guys cracking jokes about athletes who screw up their lives in the strangest ways into the best laugh-fest escape you could ever want. Having worked<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":9334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[602,604,603,216],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n