Meet Julie Golden | Creator & Host, The Big D – A Live Matchmaking Comedy Show for Divorced Singles

We had the good fortune of connecting with Julie Golden and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Julie, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Honestly, I didn’t set out to start a business—I set out to create a space I wish had existed when I got divorced.
As a stand-up comic, reality TV producer, and someone who compulsively talks to strangers trying to make them laugh and lift their spirits (an ex-boyfriend used to mockingly say I love to “spread sunshine all over the place…” – guilty as charged – sue me?), I’ve always been drawn to connection and storytelling. I had just agreed to do a dating show for 20-somethings when it hit me: what about doing this for people like me? Divorced, parenting, figuring out love again on the back half of life. There was nothing out there that felt honest and fun for adults redefining relationships on their own terms. Something that laughed with us not at us (not a punching down “roast battle” fan).

At the same time, Hollywood was basically on fire (pre-LA fires – metaphorically speaking, business model streaming dumpster fire). It felt like the universe had handed me one very long snow day to actually create what I wanted to see in the world. So I built it.

I launched The Big D, a comedy matchmaking show for divorced (and divorce-curious) singles, and immediately it clicked. Show night feels like hosting a smart, respectfully rambunctious dinner party with the most interesting people I’ve met that month. After the first one sold out—and hearing the emotional (and hilarious) reactions from the crowd—I realized this wasn’t a side project. This was a real, scalable business with heart.

Now we’re growing fast: Kathy Griffin was a recent bachelorette, Mary Lynn Rajskub is next, and we’re expanding to Chicago and Dallas this summer (Chicago July 3rd at Zanies Rosemont, Dallas July 17th at MicDrop Comedy Plano).

Starting this business wasn’t about chasing a trend—it was about creating something that didn’t exist-but clearly should have existed. Now I get to blend everything I’m passionate about—comedy, connection, and chaos management—into something that actually brings people together, and lifts them up.
My “talking to strangers sunshine spreading compulsion” found a hilarious heart-filled home.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m a former fancy film executive turned screenwriter turned reality TV producer turned stand-up comic with a side of occasional true crime podcaster (who knew murder could be funny?) —which is either a natural evolution or a very creative midlife crisis – or all of the above.

I’ve spent my career telling stories from every angle: greenlighting them, gatekeeping them (sorry! I never liked that role), writing them, producing them, and now performing them. Comedy was the final piece I didn’t know I needed—it sharpened everything. And when I combined it with my love of matchmaking and my obsession with human behavior, The Big D was born.

But more than that—I am the product I’m selling. When I interview potential bachelors or bachelorettes, or talk someone down from their pre-show nerves, I always remind them: I’m one of you. I’m a single, divorced mom figuring it out in real time alongside you. There’s a shared path, a shared loss, and a shared hope that binds us. That’s the core of the show—and what makes it more than just a comedy event. It’s a real community, built one laugh (and awkward flirt) at a time.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This one’s easy—because my best friend from high school in Chicago and I technically have a standing annual trip out here. I say “technically” because we’ve only done it once. But when we did? We Thelma and Louise’d ourselves straight into the desert, no plan, beyond bricks of cheese booze, stories, and laughter – so much laughter! There’s a special kind of magic in reconnecting with someone who knew you when you had big hair, frosted lipstick, ate grocery store sushi, and absolutely crushed Led Zeppelin air guitar duets together (still not bad at it tbh).

If you’re looking for your perfect bff girlie weekend getaway I cannot recommend this one enough. Make Desert Hot Springs your basecamp (we stayed at Miracle Manor Inn, a perfect little hideaway with natural hot spring healing waters, mid-century vibes, and no pressure to be anyone but yourselves – not sure of current management tho – so research before you go – other cute spots there too though – it’s the hill and the waters that matter – and the bff). For dinner, venture out to Joshua Tree for an early feast at La Copine (aptly located on Old Woman Springs Road), then get back to your magical healing spot and soak under the stars with cocktails and cheese plates. Next day get massages, talk for hours—eat more cheese, and plan your tiny house commune for later years. Or m aybe not so later?

Also, what NOT TO DO ON THIS TRIP: leave your wallet on top of the car at Trader Joe’s like it’s a trust exercise with the universe, lose said wallet somewhere on the 101, drive an electric car into Joshua Tree, only to run out of charge and get “lovingly” roasted by locals for our city-slicker optimism.

Still—10/10. No notes. Would do it all again tomorrow.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to thank Hollywood… for completely falling apart and handing me the blank canvas I didn’t know I needed to reinvent myself.

I’d be lost without my community of comics—especially the tight-knit crew who root for each other in a business built on comparison. It’s hard to cheer someone on when they say they’re building a career in comedy, but somehow, we keep each other afloat on the daily.

Even my close friends who aren’t comics—who frankly should’ve told me to STOP IMMEDIATELY, THIS IS PUTTING THE “M” IN MIDLIFE CRISIS—kept saying “you’ve got something here.” They saw something in me I couldn’t always see in myself, especially when I was broke, exhausted, and overwhelmed by the chaos I had fully, willingly created (producing a monthly comedy dating show is… a lot).

My parents have always been a wild and wonderful support system—maybe too supportive. They convinced me I could do anything, which is a beautiful sentiment, but a dangerous one to give an artist.

I also want to thank one of my first bosses in Hollywood, Jane Sindell, who came to the very first Big D, became one of my biggest champions, and now—I kid you not—I’m her unofficial dating coach.

Autumn Brown, founder of the brilliant social club KIS, not only believed in the show enough to be our first sponsor, but has been quietly making everything behind the scenes run smoother ever since.

And finally—Allison Goldberg, creator of Love Isn’t Blind, a wildly clever hugely successful dating show where the men aren’t allowed to speak (can I get an Amen?). Allison did the rarest thing in this industry: she shared what she’s learned—openly, generously, and without a hint of competition. Her generosity, insight, and kindness have been invaluable on this strange, joyful journey. Also she is the only one who gets it when it’s Friday night before a show and I’ve lost a bachelor – crisis hotline central – she can walk me off a ledge!

Thank you. Every single one of you is part of this weird, wonderful ride. Also this feels like an Oscar acceptance speech.

Website: https://www.thebigddatingshow.com

Instagram: @juliegoldengirl

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julie.dubensky

Image Credits
@shotsbyzackarch (show photos)
@mattmisiscostudios (photos green bg)
@renatashayk (photos with white bg)