Andy Cowan

Andy Cowan (born Andrew Glenn Cowan) is an American writer and script consultant for television and other media. He is the creator and host of the therapy/comedy podcast, ''The Neurotic Vaccine'', launched in 2022 from Benztown + McVay Media Podcast Networks. From 2010–2011, he co-hosted his radio comedy therapy talk show, ''Up & Down Guys'', on KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles.

In 2019 an ''Up & Down Guys'' podcast pilot was produced for Westwood One. He has appeared on several television shows, hosted the hour-long talk show pilot, ''Another Talk Show! with Andy Cowan'', featuring Jason Alexander and Sheila Raye Charles, and was guest commentator on KTTV's ''Good Day L.A.'' He has written humor columns for the ''Los Angeles Times'' newspaper and magazine, '' Salon'', special material for ''The New Yorker'', and several songs, one of which won international song contest nods. He is a voiceover artist, and sings in jazz clubs throughout Los Angeles.

Biography

Cowan received a master's degree in broadcasting from Boston University and began his broadcasting career in radio and TV news in Pennsylvania. Featured in the November 2018 edition of '' American University Magazine'', it was there he received his bachelor of arts degree in psychology.

Career

After gaining media experience in Pennsylvania radio and TV stations, Cowan moved to Los Angeles, writing scripts for several comedy television shows. He gained greater exposure with ''The Merv Griffin Show'' during the 1980s, where he wrote, assisted in producing segments, and appeared on-air. He pre-interviewed hundreds of political, literary and entertainment figures, including Jerry Seinfeld and Orson Welles eight times up to his final TV appearance, deemed one of ''TV Guide'' magazine's 60 greatest talk show moments. For the cable TV channel Showtime, he produced, wrote and hosted the 1990 short ''6 Minutes'', a spoof of the popular '' 60 Minutes''. That segment won a CableACE Award in 1991.

In 1996 ''Variety'' named him one of "50 Creatives to Watch." At the 2009 Southeast New England Film, Music & Arts Festival, Cowan received the Best Comedy Award for the short film, ''Knocked Down,'' which he wrote and appears in. He was writing consultant on ''Prego,'' best comedy short film at the 2015 Manhattan Film Festival. Cowan has performed in comedy clubs throughout the country. His voice has been used on audiobooks for the '' Star Wars'' audiobook series, as narrator on the Audible Inc. audiobook, ''Tales from th
Oklahoma Sooners Sidelines
', and in TV show voiceovers, including as narrator on ''Hollywood's Best Film Directors''. He has written for '' MyFM'' in Los Angeles and wrote for the ''Jack FM'' network from 2007 to 2010. He has written 300 panels for the award-winning worldwide syndicated newspaper comic strip ''Bizarro (comic strip), Bizarro'' in collaboration with Dan Piraro, one of which was featured on NBC's ''Meet the Press'', over 40 panels for the syndicated newspaper comic strip ''Rhymes with Orange'' in collaboration with ''Hilary B. Price'', multiple panels for ''Harry Blisss syndicated comic panel, ''Bliss'', a panel and special material for ''The New Yorker'', and several panels for the British current affairs magazine, ''Prospect (magazine), Prospect'', ''Reader's Digest'' ''Humor in Uniform'' panels, and ''Air Mail'', a digital weekly newsletter launched in 2019 by former ''Vanity Fair (magazine), Vanity Fair'' editor-in-chief ''Graydon Carter'' and former ''The New York Times'' reporter ''Alessandra Stanley''.

Cowan's songwriting work includes ... ''Hitchin' on the Highway of Life'' (music, lyrics, vocals by Andy Cowan, guitar arrangement by Marty Rifkin, award-winning session musician for Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and Jewel Kilcher, Jewel) recipient of five international songwriting nods and featured in ''Knocked Down'' ... And ''20th Century Man'' (music, lyrics, vocals) the theme to ''Another Talk Show! with Andy Cowan'' and ''Our Time is Up with Andy Cowan'' (host, writer, producer).

Cowan's television writing work includes "The Opposite", one of the top ten ''Seinfeld'' episodes.

In 2016, author/columnist, CNN anchor and SiriusXM radio host, Michael Smerconish, devoted a Sunday column in ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' to Cowan's takes on Donald Trump's opposite approach to running for president, and interviewed Cowan on his SiriusXM show about Trump possibly becoming Cowan's epitaph, for which Cowan, as reported in ''TV Guide'' ''TV Insider'', apologized.

In 2017, Cowan received his first Marquis Who's Who, Marquis ''Who's Who in America''.

His memoir, ''Banging My Head Against the Wall: A Comedy Writer's Guide to Seeing Stars'', with a foreword by Jay Leno, was released on June 28, 2018. Media interviews included KCAL-TV CBS Channel 9; Los Angeles; KTLA-TV Channel 5, Los Angeles; KABC Radio, Los Angeles; WGN Radio, Chicago; The Michael Smerconish Program, SiriusXM; Coast to Coast AM with George Noory; The Michael Harrison Interview and The Adam Carolla Show (podcast), The Adam Carolla Show on PodcastOne; The Jim Bohannon Show; and First Light on Westwood One. ''Banging My Head Against the Wall: A Comedy Writer's Guide to Seeing Stars'' was acquired in 2019 by The National Comedy Center in Jamestown, New York.

Credits

Partial credits include:
*''Cheers'' (3 episodes plus an additional story, 1985–1987) – (writer)
*''Throb'' (1 episode, 1986) – (writer)
*''Take Five'' aka ''The George Segal'' Show, (6 episodes, 1987) – (writer, story editor)
*''The Pat Sajak Show'' (1989-1990) – (writer, performer)
*''Into the Night with Rick Dees, Into the Night'' (1990–1991) – (writer)
*''Seinfeld'' (23 episodes, 1994–1995) – (writer, program consultant)
*''Double Rush'' (12 episodes, 1994) – (writer, story editor)
*''3rd Rock from the Sun'' (16 episodes, 1995–96) – (writer, executive story consultant)
*''The Merv Griffin Show'' 1981–86) – writer, segment producer, talent coordinator, performer)
*''6 Minutes'' (Showtime, 1990 short segment) – (producer, writer, host)
*''My Talk Show'' (1990, 1991) – (writer)
*''The Best Damn Sports Show Period'' (3 episodes, 2002) – (announcer)
*''Only Human'' (1990) (CBS pilot, co-writer)
*''Barely Fitz'' (1998) (CBS pilot, writer)
*''Howie'' (2000) (Fox pilot, writer)
*''Knocked Down'' (2008 short film) – (writer, actor, vocalist)
*''Ellen DeGeneres'' - (writer for 2001 Emmy hosting)
*''Phonees'' (2011 webisode series) – (writer, actor)
*''Up & Down Guys'' (2010–11 radio show, KPFK-FM, Los Angeles) – (creator, writer, co-host)
*''Another Talk Show! with Andy Cowan'' (2011 pilot) – (executive producer, writer, host)
*''Our Time is Up with Andy Cowan'' (2015 pilot) – (creator, writer, host)
*''Wannabes'' (2016 pilot) – (Co-creator, writer, actor)
*''Donald Trump is George as "The Opposite"'', The Michael Smerconish Program interview, SiriusXM, March 2016
*''Is That Normal? with Andy Cowan'' (2019 comedy docuseries pilot) – (co-creator, executive producer, lead)
*''Die Job'' (2019 dark comedy feature) – (writer)
*''The Neurotic Vaccine'' (2022 comedy/therapy podcast) - (creator, writer, producer, editor, co-host, Benztown + McVay Media Podcast Networks)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowan, Andy
American radio personalities
American television personalities
Male television personalities
American television writers
Boston University College of Communication alumni
Living people
Place of birth missing (living people)
Year of birth missing (living people)