Daily Inspiration: Meet Mike Hadge

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Hadge.

Hi Mike, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I came to LA, like many, as a writer from NYC with big Hollywood dreams of working in big Hollywood TV comedy, a genre that would surely last forever! I’d written for Letterman’s monologue, a bunch of cable shows, countless sketch showcases, and even done a good amount of songwriting for Off-Broadway in NYC by the time I made it to LA. Thus, I naturally figured they’d satellite beam a GPS location to me as I drove across the country that led directly into a writer’s room! Then that LITERALLY happened and today, I am the President of TV. So ceases my story!

I kid, I sigh and kid.

Nothing’s promised in the industry and as we’ve seen again and again and again and again (and again), it can change on a dime. It’s also of course all about who you know out here, but more than that, it’s about who THEY know. (And does anyone REALLY know each other out here?) Anyway, it was immediately apparent that I needed to start over, which I’ve done several times over the entirety of my LA life, my ego dying a thousand deaths along the way. But that’s been a net positive. I’m at a point now where I’ve taken my career a bit more into my own hands by starting a small business, which I operate as I continue to develop and write screen and stage scripts. Think I’m done begging people for eight-month writers assistant jobs though. We call that growth.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I can’t confidently say there’s been a road. It’s felt more like a vast parking lot with occasional spaces opening up but then whoops, that part of the parking lot is getting torn up suddenly, sorry bud!

My jobs in Los Angeles, California have included, but are in no way limited to: Royalties Analyst for Universal Music Group, Assistant Editor for Howard Stern’s official website, Production Assistant for Tosh.0 (2 weeks), Script Coordinator for Funny or Die, Office Temp at TBS/WB/HBO Max, Usher at the Cinevita, Meme Writer for The Daily Dot and Show Assistant at Fox Animation. In between, there have been long stretches of absolute employment desert, which usually involved Lyft driving or UberEatsing. Honestly, it took me ten years of being out here to even get another full-time job in straight-up, old fashioned television! (The show has since been unceremoniously canceled.)

Through it all, I’ve had various scripts place really well in a contests and festivals, most successfully my theme park satire musical DoofyLand, which I continue to develop on both coasts. I even had real life Broadway people sing the show’s songs in a showcase last year at 54 Below. Fancy stuff!

This might sound like I’ve gone sour on LA and the industry. Somehow nope. Actually, the rockiness of the road has just reinforced what I actually value out here: human creativity, the endless trove of Hollywood history, people gathering in person to laugh together at a shared piece of entertainment and the animation industry. (Proud member of the Local 839 over here.) The more digital and cold entertainment gets and ESPECIALLY after the 2025 LA went through, the more I appreciate the folks in the trenches, often thanklessly doing it for the love of the game.

LA also gave me a the universe’s best wife and partner, which is much appreciated.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My favorite thing is just to write comedy in any form. That said, I specialize, very specifically, in comedic songwriting and musical theater. This has taken on many forms, from small jingles to full-fledged two-act musicals. That aspect all kind of sprouted from an early effort to just get any material up in front of people back in NYC. I had a friend (still do!) who landed a regular show with his twin brother at a popular downtown cabaret. I attended their first show and while they were hilarious, all their songs were parody versions of existing show tunes, which is fine but pretty limiting for anyone not named Yankovic. At the time, I had written some songs for my standup act, The Mike Hadge Trio (which was just me har har) and a couple very rudimentary musicals in college. Still, I had an idea for a song for them specifically about their dynamic, I pitched it and they did it in their next show. It went quite well. Show after that, I pitched another song idea. Again, went well. Next show, three songs. Next show, five songs. Soon, I was their head songwriter and started pushing myself to write more elaborate musical material, basically learning on the fly how to compose music. It was a blast. The collaboration eventually led to the show receiving an Off-Broadway run in NYC with the Araca Group, who do like, everything that wins Tonys.

Since, I’ve been commissioned for some Off-Broadway work and have an on-demand songwriting service for gifts, podcasts and small businesses. Meanwhile, I write original musicals and try to get them in front of people any way I can. Did I think fifteen years ago that the most audience tested material would be musical? Not a chance. But these days, I think I’m as good as anyone at matching a catchy tune with unhinged lyrics. My most viral song is called “Santa’s Penis.” It’s a seasonal classic to some.

But, very recently, I’ve waded into completely different waters. Specifically, the waters of stuff. A thing about me: I love stuff.

Specifically, I’ve always wanted to start a shop/cafe that sold vintage cartoon merch, 60s and 70s records, and even high-end classic animation art. Welp, this year I started Toons, Tunes & Trash, an online (only at the moment) shop specializing in those exact things. I’m going to be honest, it’s been a blast. My happy place is flea markets and various thrift-adjacent environments anyway, so just for my mental health, it’s been a good time. I just sold a DVD set of all of Goofy’s shorts and a vintage Muppets ornament as we speak.

As a side effect, I’ve accidentally become sort of an animation history authority on Threads. People tag me with questions about like, Droopy cartoon bluray availability. It’s wild. My goal is to grow TTT this year to an extent where it’s more of a full time thing. If nothing else, I’d like to THINK I wouldn’t replace myself with AI. (You never know though.)

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Depends on the day. There are times when I feel like the world’s most spectacular, delusional failure, wondering what’s kept me from the success that others in my field have had seemingly come easy. Then there are others where I look around at my loved ones, my home, my dog and everything I’ve gotten to do in life and think wait, shut up nerd, you won.

Also, name brand toothpaste (with whitening)!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mikehadge.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hadgetunes and www.instagram.com/toonstunesandtrash
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-hadge/
• Threads: www.threads.com/@hadgetunes
• Other: https://www.ebay.com/usr/toonstunesandtrash

Image Credits
54 Below Photo Credit: Justin McCallum
Toons Tunes and Trash logo: Greg Pray