PodTech, the venture-funded podcasting network that has a knack of signing big names to keep itself as conversation fodder, writes in to tell us it has just started distributing a new project called National Banana from Jerry Zucker, the producer/director from such memorable flicks as Airplane!, Ghost, and the Naked Gun series.

National Banana will be a comedy channel. It is also venture-funded, by US Venture Partners, which coincidentally also backs PodTech.

The site’s initial videos — three at this count — are a portrayal of what Nancy Pelosi was really doing at the State of the Union, an imagined Al Quada soap opera (embedded above), and a gag about what happens when Girls actually Go Wild. Each of them has precisely one joke, but they’re all under six minutes. Also, just a warning, they tend towards the inappropriate.

PodTech, which has until now mostly focused on technology-oriented podcasts, is providing for the show a player and added distribution under its new Digital Entertainment banner. However, despite his old-media pedigree, Zucker seems to have figured this internet stuff out pretty well on his own, as he’s been releasing semi-autobiographical animated shorts sans PodTech player on his It’s JerryTime website since 2005. Update: I was wrong about this. Apparently this is a different Jerry Zucker. Ah well. Watch It’s JerryTime if you haven’t.

Elsewhere, Sequoia Capital has been crowing about its investment in Funny or Die, the web comedy aggregator that has Will Ferrell on board (see our coverage). Sequoia partner Mark Kvamme says the site won 4.4 million page views in its first week based on $17,000 in investment, according to VC Ratings. JibJab is another web comedy shop with venture capital investment, from Polaris Ventures.