The JV Club with Janet Varney

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! As part of the #MaxFunDrive, you can join the community for as little as $5 a month to ensure that The JV Club with Janet Varney continues. Plus, you'll learn all sorts of great gifts, including special bonus episodes of this podcast and many more. For more information and to sign up, go to Maximumfun.org/joinIt’s the final week of #MaxFunDrive, and we’re celebrating with the one and only Rabia Chaudry!! As millions of folks know, Rabia brought the case of Adnan Syed to Sarah Koenig, leading to the Serial podcast. In the years since, Rabia has essentially become JV’s hero, and having her on The JV Club is truly a dream come true. So order up some New York-style pizza, show some love to a tree, and support The JV Club as a Maximum Fun Member!

Let’s kickoff #MaxFunDrive with a no-brainer crossover with the marvelous Moujan Zolfaghari (Mission to Zyxx)! JV and Moujan are back in the podcastin’ saddle after a data-corrupted attempt in 2021. They’re yakking about cats and dogs! About X Files! About Portugal! It’s all waiting for you in this glorious episode!This episode is part of the annual #MaxFunDrive, a celebration of our beloved MaxFun Members. To find out how you can directly support The JV Club with contributions starting at $5 a month (and earn great gifts in the process!) go to Maximumfun.org/join

We’re throwing extracurricular activities into hyperdrive for this chat with the super cool Ali Griffin Vingiano (Apple TV’s The Morning Show), who celebrates the gorgeous hot mess of a teenage bedroom with JV, as the two trade stories about how they littered their walls with their dreams and crushes. Plus! Evviva for Ali's Italy-heavy M.A.S.H.!Music from this show's promo provided by Incompetech.

This week brings you the multifaceted gem that is rapper/singer/writer Dessa, who by the way also happens to host the great podcast Deeply Human! From seasick-stage-surfing to teenage-mood-surfing to creative-outlet-surfing, Dessa brings frank introspection, wisdom and humor to this convo, just as she does in her work… and manages to get some herstorical tidbits out of JV in the process!

Get that cold pizza out of the fridge and keep your hands off Milton’s stapler for this podtacular evidence of the awesomeness of Kelly Landry (@kellylandrylive), with whom JV worked on one of her fave cartoons through 2020 - quarantine-style! Hear about Kelly’s teen-in-rural-Maine adventures between JV and KL telling each other how delightful they are. That’s friendship, baby!

This just in: Bridget Todd is wonderful! Revel in this uplifting chat including academia vs. “real life” joys and experiences, the good in lifting each other up, and the sublime coolness of Downtown Julie Brown! Check out Bridget’s There Are No Girls on the Internet while you’re at it!

This week JV welcomes the extremely cool Rebekah Sebastian, who, in an episode recorded before JV left town, preempted the latest legislative convo about time zones with her very own M.A.S.H. game! She also digs into the dichotomies and attractions of high school, criminology, and Shame & Spirituality!

The JV Club celebrated its 10th anniversary aboard the JoCo Cruise ship last week, with very special guests Aimee Mann and Shalewa Sharpe! Featuring music by the delightful Jim Boggia. Hear Jim’s fantastic cover of “Back Before We Were Brittle” and another M.A.S.H.-related gem; learn about Shalewa’s love of a certain off-brand Mtv local channel, and Aimee’s impressive work as a sizemologist. Happy Birthday, JV Club!

The podcast’s first listener-generated interview! You asked (most) of the questions, and Jen Kirkman was up for the task. Find out what she and Janet have to say about Judy Blume, making out in basements, ironic greeting cards and more in Episode 10 of The JV Club.

One of the most perfectly-suited guests for The JV Club maybe ever! JV welcomes writer and performer Laura Leigh Abby, whose podcast "Seventeen" is a conversation with her teenage self, with diary entries from her teenage years read by Leia Immanuel. Listen in to this episode for a fantastic peek at the kinds of stuff she explores in her own show, a killer M.A.S.H. game, and some love aimed at The Boss.