Psychic Comedy, Witch Dolls, and the Fabulous Karen Rontowski
In this historic (and long overdue) episode, Jeff and Chris finally break their accidental two-year streak of hosting a glorified sausage fest by welcoming their first-ever female guest—and not just any guest, but psychic stand-up comic Karen Rontowski, who kicks the door open like she’s been booked since 1987 and you guys just lost the paperwork.
What starts as a standard Nice Pull stroll through Gen X nostalgia—complete with Star Wars vs. Star Trek debates and the emotional trauma of turning 60—quickly spirals into something far weirder. Karen arrives armed with a haunted witch doll named “Emerald” (because of course she does), casually drops that it’s worth $400 now, and then proceeds to tell stories that make The Exorcist feel like a Hallmark movie.
From possessed roommates getting roped (literally) into the air, to demonologists hanging out at wolf sanctuaries (as one does), to the revelation that ventriloquists might need separate hotel rooms for their dolls (hard pass), this episode lives in that magical space where comedy and “should I sage my house tonight?” collide.
Karen breaks down how she accidentally created a booming career blending tarot readings with stand-up—basically turning “what’s your sign?” into a full-blown business model—while Jeff leans all the way into UFOs, ghosts, and the kind of stories that make Chris reconsider every life decision that led him to hit “record.”
Somewhere in the chaos, there’s a strangely profound takeaway: maybe psychics, comedians, stock traders, and nurses are all just tapping into different versions of the same weird human intuition… or maybe we’re all just one haunted doll away from losing it completely.
Either way, this episode delivers:
- Nostalgia ✔️
- Existential dread ✔️
- Demon-adjacent rope incidents ❌ (we hope)
- And one unforgettable guest who proves that reading tarot cards on stage might actually be the most normal thing she does.
By the end, Chris is questioning reality, Jeff is ready to book a tarot reading, and Karen is off to her next sold-out show like she didn’t just casually ruin everyone’s sleep schedule.
Bottom line:
Episode 79 is what happens when Nice Pull! opens the liquor cabinet and accidentally lets the supernatural in—and honestly, it’s about damn time.
Chris and I were genuinely fired up to have Karen Rontowski join us on Nice Pull! And for me, Jeff, it was a full-circle moment. I first met Karen back in the ’90s at the The Comedy Store La Jolla, and watching her career take off from there has been nothing short of incredible. Beyond being a seasoned stand-up with over three decades in the game, Karen has carved out a one-of-a-kind niche with her “psychic stand-up” shows, blending sharp comedy with live tarot readings in a way that’s as hilarious as it is fascinating. She’s appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman and Comedy Central Presents, and her Dry Bar Comedy special has racked up millions of views. Karen also hosts the hit podcast Paranormal Karen, where she dives headfirst into UFOs, aliens, Bigfoot, and all things unexplained—basically checking every box in my personal obsession playbook. Smart, funny, and completely original, Karen brings a perspective to comedy that you don’t see coming, and once you do, you’re hooked.
