With A Podcast And A New Book, Technology Helps Danny Pellegrino Make Holiday Cheer Accessible To Every Person

I’ve noted on several occasions for this column that the confluence of mental health, accessibility, and technology is an important marker. As I’ve said innumerable times, the effects of poor mental health can be as disabling in their own right as any physical condition. That Olympian gold medalist diver Greg Louganis uses the Aura Health app helps him more easily cope with the stressors of everyday life. Especially during the holiday season, mental health can be especially fragile for disabled people. Maybe someone can’t socialize with family or friends due to their condition(s). Maybe someone else isn’t close to their family in a figurative and/or literal sense. The holiday blues are a real thing.

Danny Pellegrino is trying to make the holidays better for everyone.

The Los Angeles-based comedian, actor and podcaster had his second book, The Jolliest Bunch: Unhinged Holiday Stories, come out in late October. The book, described as a “collection of tragically hilarious holiday mishaps,” tells anecdotes of Christmastime that is equal parts merriment and mayhem. In an interview with me conducted earlier this year, Pellegrino, who’s also host of the Everything Iconic podcast, explained the impetus for The Jolliest Bunch can be traced back to the success of his first book. That title, How Do I Unremember This?, was very well-received and motivated Pellegrino to work on a followup.

“I really wanted it [the new book] to be a collection of holiday stories because I love the holiday season,” Pellegrino said of how he envisioned creating The Jolliest Bunch. “I thought there was a lot of humor to be mined from the end of the year holidays, so it all snowballed in ways I would have never been able to imagine when I was a young kid growing up in Northeast Ohio. I’m honored and thrilled it’s led me to opportunities like being able to write this holiday collection of stories.”

Pellegrino’s primary goal with The Jolliest Bunch is to reach “anyone who’s looking for a laugh.” He told me the book should prove especially resonant to anyone who grew up in the ‘90s like he did, adding he uses the book as a forum from which to tell stories about his Midwestern upbringing. At a high level, Pellegrino told me with so many things going on in the world which are “so heavy and heartbreaking,” his hope is The Jolliest Bunch gives people—of all of walks of life—a break from reality.

Pellegrino too recognizes the holidays are not happy for everyone.

“The holidays can be really tough. Everyone’s thinking about the past and people they’ve lost. And so I understand how difficult the end of the year can be for so many people,” he said. “I wanted this book, my podcast, or anything else that I put out there to be a little bit of an escape for people when they need it. I know I need it. I look towards certain podcasts or books or movies to help me escape my everyday life. I really hope it helps people puts a smile on their face or maybe makes their heart ‘grow a couple sizes’ in the words of the Grinch.”

When asked about how technology plays a role in content creation, Pellegrino shared a sentiment not dissimilar to how technology has empowered the disability community. He said technology has played a central role in enabling him to “connect with so many people.” He started his podcast from his apartment with himself and a microphone, unsure if anyone would listen to what he has to say—especially since he wasn’t attached to an established network or production company. Social media has been essential, as it allows Pellegrino to engage with listeners and fans and get their feedback. Many, he said, have shared similar stories of holiday hilarity after hearing his show and reading his books. Pellegrino’s shows and books remain independently produced.

“It’s thanks to tech and social media that I’m able to spread the word about these projects that I feel very passionately about,” Pellegrino said. “[It] helps the audience to share them. I’m so grateful to technology.”

Pellegrino’s gratitude towards technology has echoes of accessibility and of the disability community in many ways. Not only are social media platforms there for him to interact with fans and the like, the marvels of modern technology allow him to be heard and be published. This is not at all unlike how technology has empowered the disability community to be more sociable through social media, never mind the types of assistive technologies available now that help disabled people enjoy the internet like anyone else. What’s more, it’s also true there are disabled people who know of Pellegrino and his endeavors. Disabled people are just like anyone else: we like humor and podcasts and want to enjoy the holidays. Because of technology, Pellegrino makes that possible—that isn’t an insignificant notion. In many ways, it’s the very essence of access. Maybe having access to Pellegrino’s book (and his podcast) causes a big shift in the betterment of one’s mental state. Again, not at all insignificant.

Pellegrino couldn’t have been more effusive: tech helped change his life.

“I’m getting to do things now I always dreamed about since I was little kid. It’s because of the people who are sharing and telling me they like my podcast or my books,” he said. “It overwhelms me with emotion to think people are telling a friend or calling up a parent or sibling and saying, ‘You should check this guy out.’ That means the world to me.”

Looking towards the future, Pellegrino told me he hopes to do even more as the world enters a new year. He has a bunch of new projects in the proverbial pipeline. Beyond that, Pellegrino said he planned to keep writing because he “loves it” and hopes to produce more anthologies in the future. One of his ideas is a children’s book.

“I have a lot of ideas I would love to do one day so hopefully people will pick up The Jolliest Bunch and then I’ll get to keep living out my dreams in this way,” Pellegrino said of his future plans. “I’m so grateful to everyone who picks up this book or shares this book or any of my work, It really does mean the world to me, and I’m incredibly lucky.”