Comic Paula Poundstone chats about her new book, Twitter before Santa Rosa show

A lot of stand-up comics like to work the audience, but for veteran comedian Paula Poundstone, it's practically the point of the show.

“The joy of a lot of my shows is the people I get to talk to,” said the 56-year-old comic, who will give her first-ever performance at Santa Rosa's Luther Burbank Center for the Arts next week.

Poundstone chatted by phone earlier this week from her home in Santa Monica about her new book and CD, her long run on National Public Radio's weekly series “Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me,” her debut as a cartoon character voice in Pixar's “Inside Out,” and how she really feels about Twitter.

Q: How long have been on “Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me?”

A: About 15 years. About once a month, they go to a different city and do the show from there with a live audience. The rest of the time we're recording in Chicago, in the basement of a bank. For me, it's just another date that I do.

Q: What is most memorable to you about your tenure on the show?

A: Well, I don't know if you know this, but I do hold the record for losses on that show. “Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me” is a weekly news quiz show based on the week's news. I study the news, and I still lose. I sincerely believe that if I just used the answers “Syria,” “Iraq” and “Lemurs down his pants” in random order, I would be correct 50 percent of the time.

Q: What can you tell us about your new live comedy CD, which came out in June?

A: It's called “North by Northwest.” It's a two-CD set, one recorded in Bayfield, Wisconsin, and one recorded in Portland, Ore. Because of improved technology over the years, one of really fun things about my CDs is that the people listening can feel like they really could have been in the audience. I include a lot audience interaction, and you can hear the people in the theater, which makes it a lot more fun.

Q: Any inside info on your new book?

A: I have a book that's coming out next May called “The Totally Unscientific Study of the Search for Human Happiness.” The publisher always says if the title is too long, then it gets cut off. When they ship the most recent book, the title on the tag will say, “The Totally Un,” which is fine with me. Maybe I should have called it that in the first place.

Q: Was your work as the voice of Forgetter Paula on “Inside Out” the first time you've done a movie voice?

A: It was, and it was so much fun. I would make a career out of spit-polishing “Inside Out” director Pete Docter's shoes if he'd let me. He's just brilliant, and Pixar is the gold standard of animation. Just to be a part of a Pixar film was really exciting to me. At the cast party, Pixar chief creative officer John Lasseter said one of the joys of being in a Pixar film is they get watched differently than other movies. He said, “Kids will remember you forever.”

Q: You started out as a young stand-up comic in 1979. What keeps you going after nearly four decades?

A: My favorite part of the night is talking to the audience members. I start the evening in the time-honored way with, “What do you do for a living?” and from this, little biographies of audience members emerge.

Q: Do you find yourself going off in a completely new direction because of what audience members say?

A: Yes, and that's the really good news. There are times when somebody says something, and I actually have a piece of material rattling somewhere in my head on that topic. So I'll toss that in. But I would say that 95 percent of the time, it's unique just to that night and won't be repeated another time.

Q: Is there anything else you're doing that we haven't covered?

A: I always like to tell people that I'm on goofy, stupid Twitter (@paulapoundstone), although frankly, I have mixed feelings about telling people that. I do believe firmly that computers, social networking, addictive gaming and the odd dopamine hit we get from checking screen devices are a huge part of our downfall. We're losing our attention spans and our ability to think. I really want my brain to work as long as possible. So I take drum lessons and tap dance lessons and by God, I don't Google.

Q: Isn't live stand-up comedy the opposite of internet addiction?

A: It certainly is a mental workout. By the time I'm done for the night, I feel like I could be taken out on a handcart. It's also really invigorating. Sometimes before I go out I think, “My God, I have nothing to say.” Then there's some sort of electric charge from being with a group of people who have come out to laugh for the night.

You can reach staff writer Dan Taylor at 521-5243 or dan.taylor@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @danarts.