Some friendships fade with time. Others somehow evolve into cult movies, cover bands, craft beer collaborations and one unforgettable summer night at the beach.
That was the scene Wednesday evening at Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where Middle Aged Dad Jam Band kicked off its East Coast summer tour with a full evening of music, laughs and memories honoring the 25th anniversary of “Wet Hot American Summer.”
It was a gorgeous summer afternoon in a packed beach town, and Dogfish Head was humming long before the music started. The Rehoboth brewpub has always had a great energy, along with enough food, cocktails and beer to keep just about anyone happy. By late afternoon, the line was already stretching well past the front door.
Before the band took the stage, Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione welcomed David Wain, Ken Marino and Craig Wedren for an intimate tasting and conversation surrounding the debut of Middle Aged Dad Beer. The gathering gave those in attendance a chance to hear how friendships stretching back nearly four decades ultimately led to a custom beer, a concert and a celebration of one of the most beloved cult comedies of its generation.
A Collaboration Years in the Making
For Calagione, the evening was far more personal than simply welcoming another touring act to the Rehoboth brewpub.
The roots of the night go back nearly four decades. David Wain and Craig Wedren grew up together in Cleveland before becoming roommates at NYU, where Ken Marino and Sam Calagione became part of the same extended circle. Long before Dogfish Head became a major name in craft beer, and before the others built careers in comedy, film, television and music, they were simply friends making things together.
More than 35 years later, they are still doing it. Wednesday’s concert, beer release and anniversary celebration did not feel like something assembled by a marketing team. It felt like another idea that grew naturally out of the friendships behind it.
That history gave Wednesday’s celebration an authenticity that could never have been manufactured in a marketing meeting. They were longtime friends who found another excuse to get together, create something and invite everyone else along for the ride.
When asked what they attributed their ability to remain friends for so many years to, David Wain jokingly pointed to separate bedrooms as one of the secrets to their success.
Ken Marino offered a more sincere explanation, saying that when you meet someone you genuinely connect with, enjoy spending time with and consistently have fun around, you do not want to let that relationship go. He also stressed the importance of making the effort to reach out and stay in touch.
Wain then capped the moment with a playful nod to “When Harry Met Sally…,” adding that when you meet someone you want to spend the rest of your life with, you want the rest of your life to begin as soon as possible.
From Garage Jam Sessions to a National Tour
If you’re not already in the know, Middle Aged Dad Jam Band is, hands down, one of the coolest things to be born out of the pandemic. The journey began when David Wain, Ken Marino and a group of friends started getting together to play music in Wain’s garage. What started as a way to blow off steam quickly found an audience after videos of the band tearing through classic rock, soul and pop favorites began making the rounds online.
Fans responded. The videos racked up millions of views, the band began selling out shows and the project eventually produced two releases, including June’s “Volume II: Won’t Stop ’til We Get Tired.”
The band’s videos have also featured an incredible mix of actors, comedians, singers and musicians, including “Weird Al” Yankovic, Neil Giraldo, Thomas Lennon, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, James Marsden, Will Forte, Uzo Aduba, Joe Lo Truglio, Jackie Tohn and Grammy Award winner Tia Carrere. That ever-growing roster keeps the clips fresh and adds to the fun of seeing who might wander into the garage next.
And don’t just take our word for it. Head over to the MADJB YouTube channel or David Wain’s official website and sample the goods for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.
Today, the band has evolved into a legitimate touring act while somehow maintaining the same loose, spontaneous spirit that made those original videos so much fun to watch. When they hit the stage, they pull out all the stops. Marino is a charismatic frontman, Wain anchors the band behind the drums, and Wedren brings the musical depth you would expect from someone whose career stretches from Shudder to Think to film and television scoring.
The joke may have opened the door, but Middle Aged Dad Jam Band is not a novelty act. These guys can play, and the fun they are having quickly becomes the fun everyone in the room is having. The result feels less like a standard concert and more like being invited into the garage with a group of lifelong friends as they tear through the songs they love.
When asked whether their musical partnership differs from the way they work together in filmmaking, David Wain said the process is not all that different. In both worlds, they figure things out together, usually with a little good-natured ribbing along the way.
Ken Marino agreed, explaining that whether they are making a movie, working on a script or putting together a live show, the creative partnership remains the same. They push each other forward, challenge one another and, most importantly, genuinely enjoy working together.
Wain pointed to their new film, “Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass,” released in theaters on July 10, 2026, as a recent example. That prompted Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione to reveal that a group text was already discussing the possibility of setting a sequel in Dogfish Head, Maine. Marino, Wain and Joe Lo Truglio were all part of the conversation, he said, before joking that he hoped he had not broken any NDAs.
Marino laughed that the idea was now officially out in the world and predicted that someone would soon be ready to write them a check. Wain quickly fired back, “I don’t write a check that my mouth can’t cash,” earning an approving laugh from Marino.
With that said, it’s time to break out the ice coldies…
Introducing Middle Aged Dad Beer!
The evening also marked the official debut of Middle Aged Dad Beer, a collaboration that carries the band’s personality right onto the can.
In fact, the story carries on to the can itself, where a mock transcript offers a glimpse at the beer’s “original discussion”:
Sam C.: Ken and David, what kind of beer do you guys want?
Ken M.: As hard rockers of a certain age, we’re looking for something light enough to keep us jammin’ all night, so our go-to is [REDACTED] Beer.
David: But that was cancelled back in ’78 after the whole [REDACTED] scandal. So, how about something new with a fig, lime and spruce vibe?
Bryan S.: Gentlemen, we shall make it so.
The transcript fits the project perfectly. The humor is dry, the backstory is ridiculous and the beer never takes itself too seriously.
Inside the can is a fruited wheat ale brewed with figs, lime peel and spruce tips. It was brewed in Rehoboth and canned just one day before the show, making it about as fresh as a debut beer gets.
The beer pours much darker than you might expect, with an amber hue reminiscent of apple cider or something better suited for a crisp fall afternoon. That color comes courtesy of the figs, but appearances can be deceiving. Middle Aged Dad Beer is surprisingly light and crisp, finishing clean rather than sweet, which only adds to its crushability on a hot summer night at the beach. Of course, “crushable” is a tasting note, not a personal challenge. Please drink responsibly!
The packaging carries the middle-aged humor even further. A limited number of four-packs came with 2.5 reading glasses affixed to the cans with duct tape, using a time-honored method passed down from our forefathers because, for some of us, the beer list is getting increasingly more difficult to read.
There are a few more fun little Easter eggs hidden throughout the packaging that anyone of a certain age will appreciate, but we won’t spoil all the fun.
Celebrating Twenty-Five Years at Camp Firewood
This year’s tour also celebrates the 25th anniversary of “Wet Hot American Summer,” the wonderfully absurd comedy directed by David Wain and written by Wain and Michael Showalter. When the film debuted in 2001, almost nobody could have predicted what would happen next.
Its theatrical run was brief, but the movie found a second life through DVD, cable, streaming and word of mouth. New audiences continued discovering Camp Firewood year after year, transforming what was once a little-seen comedy into one of the defining cult films of its era. Netflix eventually expanded that universe with “Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp” and “Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later,” proving there was still plenty of life left at Camp Firewood.
In many ways, the film feels even more popular today than it did during its original release, an incredibly rare accomplishment for any comedy.
Looking back at who they were creatively 25 years ago, David Wain said his first instinct was that they do not feel all that different despite their massive successes.
“We are basically the same people who have just gotten older and learned a lot along the way, got married and had kids,” he explained. “In some ways, it feels like a zillion years ago, but in others, it feels like only yesterday.”
For Ken Marino, “Wet Hot American Summer” arrived at a very different point in his life. He did not yet have a family, and when Wain and Michael Showalter invited him to join the project, it became the first movie the group made together.
The production itself was a unique experience. The cast stayed at the camp throughout the four or five weeks of filming, sleeping in bunks in the infirmary. Marino recalled arriving before most of the others and spending part of that first day with Amy Poehler and A.D. Miles before Paul Rudd and the rest of the cast began showing up.
“There were so many people on set that I ended up forming lifelong relationships with,” Marino said. “We all recognized this was going to be a special shoot. We didn’t know if anyone would ever see the movie, but it didn’t matter because we were having so much fun.”
They knew they would always love the film, he added, and that the memories of making it would stay with them regardless of what happened after filming ended.
“It was a long time ago, but like David said, in some ways it feels like it was only a week ago,” Marino continued.
Maybe that is part of why “Wet Hot American Summer” has lasted. It never felt built to chase what was popular. People simply kept finding it, sharing it and returning to Camp Firewood.
He also sees a direct connection between the way they approached “Wet Hot American Summer” and how they continue to work today. With their latest film, “Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass,” they brought much of that same passion, mentality and grit to the process.
“I don’t think that ever really goes away, or it certainly hasn’t for us,” Marino said. “I don’t want to speak for David, but I certainly sense this in him, that we both want to continue creating, whether it’s music, comedy or films. Even though we’re both getting up there, I feel like we’re in our prime, whether or not that’s true or not!” he added with a laugh.
Craig Wedren on Lasting Friendships, Creative Magic and The Return of Shudder to Think
When Craig Wedren began working on “Wet Hot American Summer,” he was at a transitional point in his life. Shudder to Think, the band he had fronted for more than a decade, had recently broken up, while his longtime friends were preparing to make their first movie.
Wedren had previously created music for “The State” alongside composer Theodore Shapiro. The two reunited for “Wet Hot American Summer” and spent months immersed in footage from Camp Firewood.
“He and I collaborated and just laughed our asses off for a few months one summer,” Wedren recalled. “Every day we would get new footage and think, ‘Oh my God, this is literally the funniest, freshest thing.’”
Because they had known the people involved for years, Wedren was already well aware of what they could do. As the movie came together, however, he became convinced that the rest of the world was finally about to catch up.
“We really felt like, ‘Finally, the world is going to know. The world is going to see,’” he said.
Instead, “Wet Hot American Summer” became what Wedren described as “a stunning bomb.” Over the next 25 years, the film gradually found its audience, with its wildly eclectic music becoming an essential part of its identity.
Looking back, Wedren sees that period as one of several times when the right opportunity seemed to appear almost on its own. “At the beginning of doing something new that’s the right choice, magic kind of falls into your lap, or it can,” he explained. “It did in my case.”
It happened with Shudder to Think, with his college friends in “The State” and again when he moved into film and television scoring. At first, he assumed those moments would keep coming. Then he found out how much work it took to keep them going.
“Then the real work starts,” he said. “Then you’re like, ‘Oh, shit. This is what they were talking about. This is really hard.’”
Those flashes of creative magic have continued throughout Wedren’s career. He and Anna Waronker created “No Return,” the theme song for “Yellowjackets,” crafting it to sound like a lost piece of ’90s alternative rock. The song was so convincing that some viewers initially believed it was an older track they had somehow missed.
That approach reaches back to the fictional music Wedren created for projects such as “Velvet Goldmine” and “Wet Hot American Summer.”
“It needs to be a joke, but if you’re not listening closely, you have to think, ‘How have I never heard this song? This is an awesome song,’” he said. “Only once you listen to it a few times are you like, ‘This is a parody.’”
“The Lights Are Back On”
That renewed energy now extends to Shudder to Think, which is finishing its first album of original material in roughly 30 years. New music and live shows are on the horizon. “It fucking rips,” he said. “I’m so excited about it.”
Clint Walsh, who performs alongside Wedren in the Middle Aged Dad Jam Band, is also playing with Shudder to Think. According to Wedren, the renewed chemistry became clear almost immediately.
“We got into a room together and said, ‘Let’s keep it on the down-low until we know it’s right,’” he recalled. “Within 10 minutes, we were like, ‘Okay, it’s right. Let’s do this.’”
For Wedren, it feels as though an important part of his creative life has been reawakened. “The lights are just back on,” he said. “We’re going to keep making music as long as we have music to make and bodies.” Personally, I can’t wait to see where the next leg of the journey takes him!
Not Your Average Night At The Beach
Throughout the night, the band mixed songs with clips, stories and memories from the film’s unlikely journey from box office disappointment to cult favorite. The live performance was high-energy and a vibe in all the right ways, with the band tearing through classics like “Big Shot,” “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo,” “Conjunction Junction,” “Love Shack,” “New York State of Mind,” “Domino” and “Born to Run,” along with a medley of fan-favorite tracks from “Wet Hot American Summer.” Simply put, the band was electric. Anyone already familiar with their work can rest assured that the live show takes everything they do and fittingly turns it up to 11. Even Sam got in on the action, joining the band onstage dressed as a Camp Firewood counselor.
The old stories were part of the fun, but the night was just as much about what those friendships are still producing now. Sam Calagione, David Wain, Ken Marino and Craig Wedren have all gone in different creative directions over the years. On Wednesday, those worlds came together at a brewpub in Rehoboth Beach for the simple reason that they still enjoy making things with one another.
Nothing about it felt overly planned or manufactured. It felt like a long-running joke between friends that they have graciously allowed the rest of us in on, one that kept growing until it became a beer, a tour and a packed night at the beach. We would expect nothing less from this crew.
By the final song, Middle Aged Dad Jam Band had kicked off another tour, Dogfish Head had introduced a beer that could only have come from this band of brothers, and Camp Firewood had once again found a way to bring everyone back together. It was amazing to get a brief glimpse into their world that has brought us so much joy and laughter.
Programming note: For anyone who missed “Wet Hot American Summer” on the big screen the first time around, the cult classic returns to theaters beginning August 14.
Not bad for a bunch of middle-aged dads on a Wednesday night! Cheers, boys! Keep the good stuff coming!
Middle Aged Dad Jam Band East Coast Tour
July 23 – Stephen Talkhouse, Amagansett, NY
July 24 – Irving Plaza, New York City
Special guests: Janeane Garofalo, Michael Ian Black, Zak Orth, A.D. Miles, Nadia Quinn and Amy Miles
July 25 – United Theater, Westerly, RI
July 26 – Waterville Opera House, Waterville, ME
Jason Price founded the mighty Icon Vs. Icon more than a decade ago. Along the way, he’s assembled an amazing group of like-minded individuals to spread the word on some of the most unique people and projects on the pop culture landscape.
