Nobody Can Pronounce Mike Birbiglia’s Name, Which Is Said Exactly How Its Spelled

As another wave of Covid takes over Hollywood, many celebs have been canceling or rescheduling shows and appearances. Jimmy Kimmel, on the other hand, went a different route for his show: asking one of the guests to host for him. In this case, his guest was comedian Mike Birbiglia, whose name is pronounced exactly how it’s spelled if you sound it out, though you would think it was full of some silent letters based on the way some TV anchors butchered it.

The host poked fun at the pronunciations, which included names like Berbillya, Birgbiglia, Bigaberly, which Birbiglia says, “rolls off the tongue.”

The temporary host chronicled his trip to California by joking that a new Southwest Airlines promotion includes free hosting duties with every flight. “I am your substitute teacher for the night,” the comedian joked before showing the clips of his name being mispronounced by various news anchors. “If you don’t know me, I’m just one of those guys who you sorta recognize but probably don’t.” He then showed a series of texts from Kimmel asking him to host.

The comedian, whose TV credits include Girls, Broad City, and Orange Is The New Black, says he is in town for the Netflix comedy festival. He was able to step in and interview one of the most iconic comedians, Mike Meyers, and Birbiglia described himself as a “superfan.” Check out the monologue above.