The China History Podcast · Laszlo Montgomery

This Was Funnier in China | Laszlo and Jesse Appell

·1 hr 11 min·10 clips

Laszlo opens by saying he drove downtown to meet Jesse Appel and that Jesse needs no introduction. The two share 30-year-old white tea and spend about an hour in an unedited conversation built around Jesse's book, This Was Funnier in China. Jesse does most of the talking, with Laszlo steering and reacting along the way. Jesse tells stories from the book and talks about learning Chinese comedy by following Master Ding, memorizing the script, and showing up for the work. He describes going to South Beijing and getting measured for a robe, and he frames the book as his experience learning how to be a disciple as much as learning how to be funny. Master Ding's background comes up too: he was an old Beijinger whose family sold xiaobing on the street, and one of their customers was Great Master Ho, who lived nearby. Jesse says he kept showing up with jokes until he wore Ho down, and eventually he was told to keep going and get better. Tianjin comes across as the hard audience, where the serious Xiangsheng fans have heard every bit and make the performer rely on talent and technique. Laszlo mostly lets the stories breathe, then wraps by pointing listeners to Jesse's book and tea house links. It is a steady conversation about craft, lineage, and what it takes to keep getting laughs when the room already knows the punchline.

As heard by us

A relaxed interview about learning Chinese comedy through practice, tradition, and discipline.

Jesse Appell gets most of the room here as he talks about This Was Funnier in China and the apprenticeship around it. The talk stays relaxed and conversational, moving through 30-year-old white tea, Master Ding, Great Master Ho, Beijing street snacks, and Tianjin Xiangsheng…

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Why you'd press play

You want a roomy, unforced conversation about learning Chinese comedy the hard way.

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