Dale Radio

Many an aspiring chitchatter has reached for podcasting glory in the last few years. The locations they hail from are as plentiful as stars on a map; the topics they cover could fill a phone book. (We wouldn't be surprised if there's actually a podcast devoted strictly to phone books, in fact.)

But few podcasters win that prized cult following, and fewer still can attract the offbeat and interesting guests that inspire a prized cult following. Dale Seever -- aka James Bewley -- is that cult-following-inspiring podcaster. His lively shows can cover subjects like "holiday nog" and "quality '70s menswear" and "time travel" and "fame" and "burritos," just to cherry-pick from his site. In short? Whatever the gamut is, Dale Seever laughs at it and runs, with mirth, past its borders.

Now he's bringing his Dale Radio Live! show to the Hammer Museum on Thursday, Jan. 19. There will be guests, including Mary Lou Metzger of "Lawrence Welk" fame. And "onstage mixology." And tunes from the UCLA Jazz Ensemble. Gamut? Prepare to tested, and then broken.

It's a free show, so people who like free shows, podcasts, sassy banter, and facial hair will surely be in attendance. Mr. Seever is quite the hirsute gentleman, a plus in our books.

Time is 7 p.m. Park beneath the Hammer for three bucks after 6 p.m.

Inspired, podcasters? Want, someday, to put on your own show at a big museum? Beards, onstage mixology, and burrito talk are all obviously key. But so is having a really solid show. - NBC4 Los Angeles

Many an aspiring chitchatter has reached for podcasting glory in the last few years. The locations they hail from are as plentiful as stars on a map; the topics they cover could fill a phone book. (We wouldn't be surprised if there's actually a podcast devoted strictly to phone books, in fact.)

But few podcasters win that prized cult following, and fewer still can attract the offbeat and interesting guests that inspire a prized cult following. Dale Seever -- aka James Bewley -- is that cult-following-inspiring podcaster. His lively shows can cover subjects like "holiday nog" and "quality '70s menswear" and "time travel" and "fame" and "burritos," just to cherry-pick from his site. In short? Whatever the gamut is, Dale Seever laughs at it and runs, with mirth, past its borders.

Now he's bringing his Dale Radio Live! show to the Hammer Museum on Thursday, Jan. 19. There will be guests, including Mary Lou Metzger of "Lawrence Welk" fame. And "onstage mixology." And tunes from the UCLA Jazz Ensemble. Gamut? Prepare to tested, and then broken.

It's a free show, so people who like free shows, podcasts, sassy banter, and facial hair will surely be in attendance. Mr. Seever is quite the hirsute gentleman, a plus in our books.

Time is 7 p.m. Park beneath the Hammer for three bucks after 6 p.m.

Inspired, podcasters? Want, someday, to put on your own show at a big museum? Beards, onstage mixology, and burrito talk are all obviously key. But so is having a really solid show. - NBC4 Los Angeles

BY PHILLIP HORLINGS
DALE RADIO LIVE
Thursday, 7 p.m., FREE
Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theater

Clark Kent has a famous alter ego with the power of flight, superhuman strength and X-ray vision. James Bewley’s alter ego, Dale, simply has a propensity for cheap teal business suits and whiskey in all of its forms.

Cult podcast “Dale Radio”? chronicles Dale Seever’s idealistic adventures through life. A live taping of “Dale Radio Live!”? featuring Kenny Burrell and the UCLA Jazz Ensemble will be performed at the Hammer Museum Thursday evening, with guests including artist Marc Horowitz and Mary Lou Metzger of the “Lawrence Welk Show.”? Daily Bruin’s Phillip Horlings spoke to Bewley about eating pie on the radio and why a live mixologist beats a DJ any day of the week.

Daily Bruin: Tell us how you created Dale. What is he like?
James Bewley: I was a part of a sketch comedy group. This character was developed there as part of a cabaret night. I had a collaborator who would play my wife and we would sing inappropriate duets … talk about the problems of our marriage, etc. She had gone off to nursing school and we weren’t performing as a couple anymore, so I made it that the stage marriage had dissolved and Dale was somebody that was on his own now trying to make a go of it.
Dale is very comfortable talking about his issues onstage. … I try to make it that he isn’t somebody (who) goes negative. Even though things may annoy me, James, he takes those things and tries to find the positive … like subway smells or the Gowanus Canal as being a source of inspiration. … There is more comedy in trying to like something as opposed to disliking something.

DB: How did you decide to pursue the “Dale”? character in podcast form?
JB: It was as simple as being able to buy a microphone. The first one I used was a headset … for a Playstation. I realized I could record into my laptop with it. So I poured myself a scotch and I just started talking as this character for a little 20-minute set, and just put it out there.

DB: What different forms of “Dale Radio”? have you done over the years?
JB: I do a mix of just Dale, Dale talking to people in their studios and apartments and the live shows. I’ve been doing those since early 2011. I’ve had people that are liquor experts, people that were on SNL, people that are great pie makers in Brooklyn. We’ve had a good mix of Dale eating pie on the radio, which makes a fantastic podcast experience.

DB: Where do you generally perform your live shows?
JB: Most shows I’ve been doing at a place that was a former public bathhouse along the Gowanus Canal called the Brooklyn Lyceum. … It’s a little bit run down, it’s a place that’s emerging as a cultural center … and it seems like a place that Dale would perform. I’m very happy to be there.

DB: The Hammer Museum is a larger venue, but you have a lot of people participating.
JB: Yeah, I’m pretty sure that they don’t really have a solid idea of what’s in for them. I don’t know what their take on this is, but I’m just happy that everyone can be involved ““ including the UCLA Jazz Ensemble and Kenny Burrell. That is mind-blowing that they are going to be playing my theme song. … And my dear friend Daniel is going to be up there, mixing some drinks on stage. Some people have felt that I should have a live DJ, but he’s going to be making drinks. I like to pair each show with a particular scotch, or whiskey, or some sort of enjoyable drink.

DB: What can a UCLA student expect from going to your show?
JB: You are going to see people that are making entertainment possible … in a variety of different ways. Marc Horowitz is doing films and commercial projects, using the Internet to create his work. From a completely different perspective, Mary Lou has been in the game a long time but is still making things happen. And (there’s) me, who is in the mix, somewhere, just trying to be entertaining. - UCLA Daily Bruin

BY PHILLIP HORLINGS
DALE RADIO LIVE
Thursday, 7 p.m., FREE
Hammer Museum's Billy Wilder Theater

Clark Kent has a famous alter ego with the power of flight, superhuman strength and X-ray vision. James Bewley’s alter ego, Dale, simply has a propensity for cheap teal business suits and whiskey in all of its forms.

Cult podcast “Dale Radio”? chronicles Dale Seever’s idealistic adventures through life. A live taping of “Dale Radio Live!”? featuring Kenny Burrell and the UCLA Jazz Ensemble will be performed at the Hammer Museum Thursday evening, with guests including artist Marc Horowitz and Mary Lou Metzger of the “Lawrence Welk Show.”? Daily Bruin’s Phillip Horlings spoke to Bewley about eating pie on the radio and why a live mixologist beats a DJ any day of the week.

Daily Bruin: Tell us how you created Dale. What is he like?
James Bewley: I was a part of a sketch comedy group. This character was developed there as part of a cabaret night. I had a collaborator who would play my wife and we would sing inappropriate duets … talk about the problems of our marriage, etc. She had gone off to nursing school and we weren’t performing as a couple anymore, so I made it that the stage marriage had dissolved and Dale was somebody that was on his own now trying to make a go of it.
Dale is very comfortable talking about his issues onstage. … I try to make it that he isn’t somebody (who) goes negative. Even though things may annoy me, James, he takes those things and tries to find the positive … like subway smells or the Gowanus Canal as being a source of inspiration. … There is more comedy in trying to like something as opposed to disliking something.

DB: How did you decide to pursue the “Dale”? character in podcast form?
JB: It was as simple as being able to buy a microphone. The first one I used was a headset … for a Playstation. I realized I could record into my laptop with it. So I poured myself a scotch and I just started talking as this character for a little 20-minute set, and just put it out there.

DB: What different forms of “Dale Radio”? have you done over the years?
JB: I do a mix of just Dale, Dale talking to people in their studios and apartments and the live shows. I’ve been doing those since early 2011. I’ve had people that are liquor experts, people that were on SNL, people that are great pie makers in Brooklyn. We’ve had a good mix of Dale eating pie on the radio, which makes a fantastic podcast experience.

DB: Where do you generally perform your live shows?
JB: Most shows I’ve been doing at a place that was a former public bathhouse along the Gowanus Canal called the Brooklyn Lyceum. … It’s a little bit run down, it’s a place that’s emerging as a cultural center … and it seems like a place that Dale would perform. I’m very happy to be there.

DB: The Hammer Museum is a larger venue, but you have a lot of people participating.
JB: Yeah, I’m pretty sure that they don’t really have a solid idea of what’s in for them. I don’t know what their take on this is, but I’m just happy that everyone can be involved ““ including the UCLA Jazz Ensemble and Kenny Burrell. That is mind-blowing that they are going to be playing my theme song. … And my dear friend Daniel is going to be up there, mixing some drinks on stage. Some people have felt that I should have a live DJ, but he’s going to be making drinks. I like to pair each show with a particular scotch, or whiskey, or some sort of enjoyable drink.

DB: What can a UCLA student expect from going to your show?
JB: You are going to see people that are making entertainment possible … in a variety of different ways. Marc Horowitz is doing films and commercial projects, using the Internet to create his work. From a completely different perspective, Mary Lou has been in the game a long time but is still making things happen. And (there’s) me, who is in the mix, somewhere, just trying to be entertaining. - UCLA Daily Bruin

Love stand-up but hate sketch comedy? Dig the interactive combo of video and live commentary, but hate it when stand-ups single out audience members for ridicule? In LOL, our comedy column, Kyle McGovern, an aspiring stand-up himself, explores regular comedy shows around Brooklyn and reports back on what brand of hilarity to expect when you settle into your seat.

Once the live intro music started, Dale Seever was dancing his way onstage, shaking hands with and greeting audience members.

Despite the side-slicked hair and lounge lizardesque ensemble (his teal suit and aviators set him back $13 ten years ago), Dale is a charming guy. As soon as he settled into his musty armchair and his laid back-yet-enthusiastic voice slipped out, it was clear that the crowd was in good hands.

“Our intimacy will only grow as the evening progresses,” Dale said to open last month’s live edition of his comedy talk-show podcast, Dale Radio. “I want you to just take a look at the room and do what I do whenever I get on a subway car and just think about this: if this is the group you’re destined to repopulate new Earth with, or Gaia, if the women have their way.”

“That’s why I run around and shake everybody’s hand,” he said while kicking out a chuckle. “Just to get a good look at everybody.”

The venue, Film Biz Recycling, does feel a bit like a post-apocalyptic bunker, considering the lack of natural light and being filled with antique furniture for sale and free beers being handed out (yes, you read that right).

But because of all that, seeing Dale during one of his monthly live shows feels like you’re eavesdropping on a private conversation. And you sort of are–it’s a small local crowd that gathers at Film Biz most nights.

This Thursday’s show (July 28) is the last before Dale’s summer hiatus and will feature Kerri Doherty, humorist, performer and Fucked In Park Slope managing editor; as well as comedian Jena Friedman, actor Michael Crane and video and performance artist Nao Bustamante.

Simply relaying the exchanges between Dale and his guests doesn’t do his spot-on timing any justice. Just listen to some of the episodes, or at least take my word for it: this guy has a tremendous level of commitment to his character and he skillfully blends improv with scripted material.

It also helps that he’s lovable. Dale’s a sweet, sincere guy who’s having a great time just talking to people.

“There’s not really a level of elitism in this character,” said James Bewley, the actual man behind the “Voice of Gowanus.” “People know that I’m not going to go after them, there’s not a mean-spiritedness to the character.”

The final line on his biography page speaks for itself: “Dale enjoys meeting people and would love to meet you.”

Bewley doesn’t have a set idea of whom that “you” may be, since he’s still figuring his target audience. “Who’s the person that goes to a podcast taping in a basement on the Gowanus to see somebody who’s not real?” he asked.

But here’s the bottom line: it’s a free, fun, light-hearted show in a cool space that also has free beer. But the best part about is seeing someone who’s really talented and committed to his craft, work really hard and give a great performance.

“It’s something you’re not going to see anywhere else and it taps into the creative energy that’s happening around Gowanus, around Brooklyn, around New York,” Bewley said. “It’s a very unique thing in a town full of unique things.”

Do yourself a favor–don’t miss Dale.
- Brooklyn Based

Love stand-up but hate sketch comedy? Dig the interactive combo of video and live commentary, but hate it when stand-ups single out audience members for ridicule? In LOL, our comedy column, Kyle McGovern, an aspiring stand-up himself, explores regular comedy shows around Brooklyn and reports back on what brand of hilarity to expect when you settle into your seat.

Once the live intro music started, Dale Seever was dancing his way onstage, shaking hands with and greeting audience members.

Despite the side-slicked hair and lounge lizardesque ensemble (his teal suit and aviators set him back $13 ten years ago), Dale is a charming guy. As soon as he settled into his musty armchair and his laid back-yet-enthusiastic voice slipped out, it was clear that the crowd was in good hands.

“Our intimacy will only grow as the evening progresses,” Dale said to open last month’s live edition of his comedy talk-show podcast, Dale Radio. “I want you to just take a look at the room and do what I do whenever I get on a subway car and just think about this: if this is the group you’re destined to repopulate new Earth with, or Gaia, if the women have their way.”

“That’s why I run around and shake everybody’s hand,” he said while kicking out a chuckle. “Just to get a good look at everybody.”

The venue, Film Biz Recycling, does feel a bit like a post-apocalyptic bunker, considering the lack of natural light and being filled with antique furniture for sale and free beers being handed out (yes, you read that right).

But because of all that, seeing Dale during one of his monthly live shows feels like you’re eavesdropping on a private conversation. And you sort of are–it’s a small local crowd that gathers at Film Biz most nights.

This Thursday’s show (July 28) is the last before Dale’s summer hiatus and will feature Kerri Doherty, humorist, performer and Fucked In Park Slope managing editor; as well as comedian Jena Friedman, actor Michael Crane and video and performance artist Nao Bustamante.

Simply relaying the exchanges between Dale and his guests doesn’t do his spot-on timing any justice. Just listen to some of the episodes, or at least take my word for it: this guy has a tremendous level of commitment to his character and he skillfully blends improv with scripted material.

It also helps that he’s lovable. Dale’s a sweet, sincere guy who’s having a great time just talking to people.

“There’s not really a level of elitism in this character,” said James Bewley, the actual man behind the “Voice of Gowanus.” “People know that I’m not going to go after them, there’s not a mean-spiritedness to the character.”

The final line on his biography page speaks for itself: “Dale enjoys meeting people and would love to meet you.”

Bewley doesn’t have a set idea of whom that “you” may be, since he’s still figuring his target audience. “Who’s the person that goes to a podcast taping in a basement on the Gowanus to see somebody who’s not real?” he asked.

But here’s the bottom line: it’s a free, fun, light-hearted show in a cool space that also has free beer. But the best part about is seeing someone who’s really talented and committed to his craft, work really hard and give a great performance.

“It’s something you’re not going to see anywhere else and it taps into the creative energy that’s happening around Gowanus, around Brooklyn, around New York,” Bewley said. “It’s a very unique thing in a town full of unique things.”

Do yourself a favor–don’t miss Dale.
- Brooklyn Based

Once a month, Dale Radio makes a little magic at Union Hall. The podcast, taped in front of a live audience, features the musicians, comedians, performers, and filmmakers that make Brooklyn so dynamic and intriguing. Dale Seever, the host, is an intriguing character himself. The alter-ego of the podcast’s creator James Bewley, Dale has a quirky sincerity and enthusiasm that stands out to both his listeners and his guests. The next show will be taped at Union Hall tonight and will feature Adira Amram, Drew Grant, Keisha Zollar, and Allen Katz. James Bewley spoke to us about where Dale came from, what makes the Gowanus so lovable, and the importance of showcasing emerging artists.
How would you explain Dale Radio in a few words?
A podcast that rewards curiosity. It has interesting people from all different walks of life, hosted by a friendly older fella who enjoys the drink. I’m always so bad at boiling it down. It comes from a lot of different places, so I’m always coming up with exactly what it is I’m doing. It’s a basement talk show hosted by a fictitious person.

So, where did Dale begin? What’s his life story?
I started actually performing the character 11 years ago, but I think I was probably born with it, if it’s not too weird to picture, like, a symbiotic 55-year-old entertainer twin being born with a child. Dale’s a combination of people I grew up with and comedian hosts that I’ve looked at or have always been influenced by. There’s a good foundation of storytelling and a lot of humor in my own family, and this is a way of sort of honoring that and of channeling a lot of that. I started performing him in San Francisco, when I was part of a sketch comedy group there and hosting cabaret nights. It’s like a second skin for me to be him; it came out fully realized. There was no hunting for the character.

Dale always lived!
He was always there, just waiting for me to release him. And of course, you find a good $13 suit and a dollar pair of sunglasses, give yourself a combover, you’ve got a character. I had done theater and that kind of stuff growing up, and I was always cast as an older character, so at some point I kind of remember saying, “I just want to be a great character actor when I’m 55,” which is kind of a terrible career plan. You would just be an obscure 55-year-old person, which is ok, but it wasn’t like, “I’m gonna be rich and famous when I’m 20!” Some people do that, and good for them, but I set this other kind of weird goal to do and I said, “Well, I might as well just be this guy now and see what that trajectory leads me to.” I’m sure it’s going to be a lot of fun to do Dale when I’m 55. Did that answer it?

There is a complicated backstory for him, and I just came from the Whitney Museum to see their Rituals of Rented Island exhibition that they have up. It’s all performance artists and things from the 70s and 80s and making work in New York. That is my touchstone: performance art, and theater and visual performance is my background. So it was kind of nice to touch base. I did that today, and this whole Dale thing is my artistic practice. It’s connected to that world, and I’m not trying to get a tight five minutes, obviously. In 130 episodes, I haven’t had a tight five minutes ever, or even a tight hour. I don’t do the same jokes over and over again, I’m not working on material, I’m really trying to craft this character and make a story for him that’s evolved over the last 11 years. As I’ve done it more, I just incorporate my own stories for him. I just give voice to the things that have happened to me through the lens of Dale.

When you’re talking to other creative people for your web series or for your radio show, do you stay Dale the entire time, even when you first meet them?
I don’t show up in the costume when I do the one-on-one interviews and things, so I go as me. I say hello and kind of introduce them, but I don’t like to talk too much beforehand because I’m really awkward in that moment; I’m kind of between characters and I have something I want to get into. So as soon as we turn on the mic, it’s an hour of just me doing Dale and then I stop and then it’s, “Thank you very much and have a good day!” Then I might never see that person again—it’s weird, I’m not gonna say it’s not weird. And many times I’ve been having a conversation with somebody as Dale and think, “Why am I not just having this conversation as myself? Why this level of artifice?” But I don’t know, I can’t break it now! [Laughs] I’m very comfortable as him, he allows me to do things and say things and go on tangents that would for whatever reason be inhibited in my everyday life.

Why did you choose Gowanus?
Or did the Gowanus choose me? I moved a few blocks from there. When I moved from LA to New York, we moved to Carroll Gardens and lived very close to the Gowanus and there’s a literal stink in there, but there was also a little bit of a buzz and things were happening. I knew some people that were getting involved in art collectives and art projects that were happening around there. So it was just like, here’s this horrible, ugly, forgotten child kind of a thing that is just rank and filthy and disgusting, yet it’s also one of these places where investment is coming in, and you can see that creative class wave trying to make something happen and push it forward. It just seemed like this is the right time to, in a way, document some of the creative people that are making work around there. So, a lot of the early seasons were talking to people that were making work around the Gowanus or running businesses down there and I still try to have that aspect of the show. With Gowanus, I keep having this theory that if you just pick the thing that was the least cool 10 years ago or five years ago, that’s the thing that’s going to make it back. Like mom jeans and big glasses and scrunchies, or whatever it is, you can bet on that. Whatever is the most uncool thing now, buy a bunch of it. Put it in your closet.

Those are words of wisdom.
Thank you. People should listen! Yeah, with the Gowanus it was like, “Ok, let’s see what happens with this place.” And now there’s condos going up and it’s a moment of transition. My professional life has been supporting emerging artists, emerging practices, and that kind of stuff, so there is a consistency with my outside-of-Dale life. I was like, ok, let’s support, let’s identify, let’s acknowledge that there’s really great creative things happening.

How do you find the talent that you highlight on the show?
I find them charming and delightful! I used to program museums and run public programs, and so I know how that works; I think I have a good email voice. But most days, if it’s people that I’m intrigued by or I think they’re doing something that’s interesting, I try to have a good balance for an evening to make sure it flows or that we’ll get someplace interesting. I have a lot of art contacts and that kind of thing, but it’s reaching out to people that I admire, that I think are doing really great work, and bringing them into the fold to kind of play with Dale. To have some fun—and some people do more than others, and I think some people are kind of thrown by it. But others get it, and we have a great time.

Do you have a favorite past guest?
There have been shows that I felt like I’ve been more energized by. I script all the shows but leave room for improvisation, but I think there are some nights that I get off of that script and just go with whatever’s happening, and when those guests have allowed that to be the case, those tend to be my favorite shows. And that can be a bunch of different guests. It’s not any one guest that kind of pushes that over the top. There have been people that I’ve been like “I am so thrilled that I get to talk to you,” and one of them has been somebody who was on The Lawrence Welk Show. I did a show in LA and I reached out to her and she did it, which is like a miracle to me. But I love The Laurence Welk Show and to have Mary Lou Metzger on the program talking to me is really fantastic. But in this whole season, we’ve had great people, and sometimes it’s the people that you think are… they’re not performers. There are people who are pie-makers or they’re people who are alcohol enthusiasts that write for Liquor.com. It can be from very different worlds, but it just opens up whole new avenues of conversation, and I think that’s great. I get to let slip some other knowledge that I may have that's hard to bring up within the context of comedian to comedian. But if we’re talking about some kind of obscure theater practice or art world or art school or making a go of it, you get into some stuff. It’s kind of interesting.

Why did you choose podcasts as a medium?
I can remember carrying around my little black radio, it was a cassette player. I used to do radio, little programs and things, little audio pieces sometimes. They weren’t even necessarily connected to the radio, it was just, “What happens with this? What can you record, and can you make a world out of that?” I’ve been drawn to NPR and that kind of thing, and experiment with audio. There’s something about that thing that everybody says about immediacy and that intimacy that’s afforded by that. Also, when I started, I’d just moved to New York; I didn’t have a lot of space. This is something that you can set up in your home, and put a cushion behind the microphone, and I can conjure this character through. So much of it is the voice, and the intonation and the kind of musicality of Dale. So, honing that by doing the recording was very helpful. Then the live show kind of came out of that.

What is the number one thing you hope people take from Dale Radio?
Well, I certainly hope they have a good time. It’s got a lot of joy to that character. He’s sometimes described as like your uncle. I feel like an older uncle who’s drinking whiskey. What I think is different about it is that it’s not creepy, it’s not mean-spirited; whatever dark side there is has to do with Dale’s own impatience with not only his own success, but, like, he wants to make a difference in some weird way. He wants to connect. If that doesn’t happen, he gets very impatient or dismissive. But, in general, I’m up there and you laugh. It’s a ridiculous situation. So, I’d hope that people learn something about the guests or are inspired to do something, but we’re really just having a good time in a basement with great people and it’s really that, it’s just to lift things up a little bit. Sometimes, I try to find things that I personally am not enthusiastic about and put it through the Dale lens, which is that he’s excited about it. So, if he gets to wait while somebody checks their phone at the top of the subway stairs, he’s going to talk about how great that is, because it gives you so much more room to make it funny. If you say, “That's annoying” or “I don’t like it” and go negative with it, you don’t have as much room to play. I think that's part of his character: “Let’s be enthusiastic and see where that leads us.”

That seems like a good life philosophy in general.
Yes. Dale’s a kind person, and I hope people come out and support the show and tune in and all that kind of stuff. We’re doing something that I think is unique. It’s really exciting. - The L Magazine