It’s no surprise that Dan Cummins is a fan of the occult: On more than one occasion he’s raised his career from the dead. Dan’s own website describes his early comedy efforts as producing “minimal tour earnings” with “almost nonexistent” ticket sales. But Cummins clawed his way up to performing on The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson and The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien, not to mention advancing to the semifinals of two separate stints on Last Comic Standing. Successful today as both a podcaster and a touring comic, Dan joined HUSTLER from his Idaho compound for a chat about his enthusiasm for psychedelics of every kind, getting kicked in the balls (literally) at his first job after college, and being one of the rare comics whose heckler attacked him not only with words but with the jagged edge of a broken beer bottle.
“HE BROKE HIS BOTTLE ON THE BAR AND WAS CHARGING THE STAGE. HE WAS GOING TO TRY TO MURDER ME.”
HUSTLER: Thanks for your time, Dan.
DAN CUMMINS: Thank you! Like a lot of young men, I was a big HUSTLER fan growing up, and I think this is cool as hell.
Given that fact, what were you doing in 2016 working for Playboy?
Hahaha. It was just one of many random auditions I went on, and I didn’t think I would get the job initially. I think they went through eight or nine possible people. You’d host the show for like a week to see how you vibed with the cohost, Andrea Lowell. I think what they liked about me is that I’m willing to talk about anything; nothing is taboo to me. Also, I wasn’t super skeevy with the girls, so I could talk about sexual things with them or compliment them but not creep them out. I did it for two years. It had been a SiriusXM show, but when I did it, it was just a video show for their TV channel. I don’t think many people watched in the States, but I would get messages from overseas, South America, other countries.
