Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard - Jimmy Kimmel Returns

Episode Date: September 18, 2023

Jimmy Kimmel (Strike Force Five) is a talk show host and podcaster. Jimmy returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss how much the attic hasn’t changed in five years, what it’s like working with his... competition on a podcast, and how much of a temper he doesn’t have. Jimmy and Dax talk about the state of trout fly fishing, what they think being retired from show business means, and how much they appreciate a good standup. Jimmy explains that he doesn’t accept comparisons to other talk show hosts, what he would ask Trump in an interview, and how long the text messages from his dad are.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome, welcome, welcome to Armchair Expert. I'm Dan Rather, and I'm joined by Diane Sawyer. One day. One day. Only. What a powerhouse. I know. Learning a lot about Diane Sawyer by proxy from reading the Mike Nichols book.
Starting point is 00:00:17 I know. Does she have a biography or an autobiography? Because then you could cross-reference. I would love that. I'm now very interested in her. Yeah. What a beast. What a beast.
Starting point is 00:00:28 She's not our guest. Sorry. But close. Same world. Yeah. Jimmy Kimmel. Old friend Jimmy Kimmel. Nice boy.
Starting point is 00:00:38 The person I want fatherly validation from. Sure. I love him so much. It's been five and a half years since he was here i can't believe it's crazy i feel like i've probably done his show like 13 times in that five years but somehow he's only had to do this one twice but it was so fun to have him here and we got to talk a lot about his new podcast which is called strike force five great fucking name who are the five on the strike force well we got steven colbert we got jimmy phelan we got which is called Strike Force 5. Great fucking name. Who are the five on the Strike Force?
Starting point is 00:01:08 Well, we got Stephen Colbert. We got Jimmy Fallon. We got Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and John Oliver. It's a party. That's a group right there. What a group. Good luck in that group. You better fucking have a sharp sword if you want to enter that.
Starting point is 00:01:21 Oh, God. Right? No thanks. Well, I think he has the sharpest of all swords, Jimmy Kimmel. My idol, my hero. Please enjoy. Trip Planner by Expedia. You were made to have strong opinions about sand.
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Starting point is 00:02:36 or he's definitely shitting upstairs right now. Yeah, because that's going to be a nightmare for a female to come in and like, oh, this is it. I know. It's going to get fixed. We have to get better about offering the other bathroom as a just in case. Okay, in the pool house? Because remember when Jenna Ortega came on,
Starting point is 00:02:56 she said she thought she had to poop on her way here. The whole ride here, she's like, I thought I was going to shit my pants. And I was like, well, do you want to go in and shit? And she's like, no, I can't do that here. She's like, it's gone. It went away. It's gone.
Starting point is 00:03:09 Sucked back in. I absorbed it. Yeah. It made me like her immediately. I agree. It tells you you're going to be dealing with somebody who's not pulling any punches. Yeah, they're going to be honest and tell you what they're really struggling with. To a point, of course.
Starting point is 00:03:20 There is a point at which it becomes a little bit. You think it's too much? Sometimes, yeah. We don't have that line. Well, I wonder, though, if in a group of girls, like certainly when a group of guys, it's getting fouler and fouler. And at some point, you're like, I'm out on that. That got a little too gross, you know, even among dudes. I wonder if her women pushing it like that or someone finally steps over the line.
Starting point is 00:03:45 Verbally? Yeah, like you're talking like, oh, my, I'm going to shit my pants. Yeah or someone finally steps over the line. Verbally? Yeah, like you're talking like, oh, my, I'm going to shit my pants. Yeah. Yeah, I played with mine. What? You know, like someone throws. It might be me. If I think there's no one, it's probably me.
Starting point is 00:03:55 That's a good point. Because I hang out with you too much. If you haven't recognized the fish at the table. Yeah, that's right. My wife does not like any real discussion of any of that. Oh, she doesn't. She doesn't. No, at least from her. Have you drilled down into it?
Starting point is 00:04:08 Like if you said, do you think I'm going to not be attracted to you? I've gone even farther. I'd say, do you think that I believe this story that you never move your bowels? You are the only human on the planet. In fact, the last two women I've dated in a row are the only two women in the world who do not move. Wow, lucky you. Yeah, isn't that great? It's just self-cleaning.
Starting point is 00:04:31 Maybe something about being with you really tightens things up. Like you're perpetually on vacation. For someone like that, I'd be the last person you want to meet, right? But opposites attract. That's right. How long have you guys been together?
Starting point is 00:04:45 Molly and I have been together. Well, we just had our 10-year anniversary this summer. Of marriage. Of marriage. But you were dating for a couple years before that. Okay, so 12-plus years. She hasn't gone once. It's incredible.
Starting point is 00:04:57 Is that the longest relationship you've had? No. How long were you married? Oh, my mother. I thought you meant... No. Well, I was technically married for 15 years the first time, but we were married but trying to get unmarried for the last two years of that.
Starting point is 00:05:10 I guess you're coming up on a tie in your record. Yeah, I'm going to tie. She'll be thrilled to hear that. What an honor. You're almost tied. Man, host the party. Yeah, we should have it here. I do want to point something out because I have to say
Starting point is 00:05:25 I'm a little bit surprised. I've been to your house from time to time. Usually it's nighttime when we come over here. I got an email from you the first time I was on the show, which was like five and a half years ago. You were the third episode. So yeah, yeah. Over five and a half years. And the email said, this is a construction zone. And I got the identical email five and a half years later. I mean, it wasn't word for word identical, but you're working on the same project. Well, you know, they say the journey's more fun than the destination. Why finish? Like, this is so fun. There's strange dudes at my house all the time.
Starting point is 00:05:58 Often I go to take my kids to school and there's three work trucks behind me and then I blow my gasket. Oh, you would love this story. I have all my timers plugged into something for the Christmas lights last year and I got some chargers for my vehicles and everything. And I go out and I notice it's all unplugged. Construction guys have unplugged all my stuff and then they're running a line over to the thing. And I really lose my cool. It's early in the morning. I'm screaming. Three hours later, I owe those guys an apology. So I go up there and I'm like, guys, I'm so, so sorry. I was feeling very rushed. It's not your fault.
Starting point is 00:06:29 I make this long apology. And the funniest thing was I noticed on their face, they're so much more uncomfortable with this than they were the yelling. They were all like, just start yelling again. Dude, this is so uncomfortable. You being vulnerable and apologizing and owning your shit. That barn you built, that's beautiful. How long did that take?
Starting point is 00:06:46 Not this long. Okay. We're at five and a half years. Also, this attic, it was in a state of disrepair, and it seemed to be, you were finishing the attic. It seems to be less finished now than it was five plus years ago. That's exactly right. There are things hanging out. I mean, this place is a mess.
Starting point is 00:07:03 It's a junkyard, yeah. It's awful. As you can see, we've added so many knickknacks around that we hope all those distract you. You've added chairs that look like somebody put them out on the curb. I think you have good aesthetics, and I want you to be very honest about what this chair looks like to you. It looks comfortable is what it looks. It's also the single biggest chair that Lily Tomlin was not sitting in that I've ever seen. I'm so glad you noticed that because when
Starting point is 00:07:30 it arrived, I bought it off the website, lazyboy.com. And I'm like, oh, I love that print. And I couldn't sit in there anymore because my back was sweating too much against the leather. So I'm like, I need fabric. And then it arrived. I'm like, this is a big and tall. My feet don't touch the ground. This is like a six, eight, 400 pound guy chair. Yeah. this is a big and tall my feet don't touch the ground there's like a six eight four hundred pound guy chair yeah this is a tlc reality show chair yes maybe even a shark tank chair as well like 16 of americans can't fit in a lazy boy this is a huge underserved market i'll give you two million dollars and i want 89 of the company i get so stressed when they want that percentage of the company yeah yeah i know it's like uh these people have been working you're just gonna write a check and take almost the whole thing you pig it should be called pig tank it should be oh my lord
Starting point is 00:08:16 so i listened to strike force five this morning our new podcast your new podcast podcast game now yeah temporarily well that's gonna be a bigger conversation i want to have with you regardless first and foremost about strike force five i feel like it says something really nice about our current culture that the five of you get along and have like come together we wouldn't be able to imagine this scenario between leno and letterman even going back to when I was on the radio and you'd go into a market and you would instantly hate everyone you competed against. You didn't even know these people.
Starting point is 00:08:52 You hated them. You thought they were terrible. If something bad happened, you would cheer. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You pray one of them get arrested the night before. You know what happened is the first one was kind of a mess. And when I say the first one, I mean the strike. And there were a few of us who were around back then who remembered that.
Starting point is 00:09:12 There were like two factions of hosts. There was like a West Coast and an East Coast. And only Jon Stewart was communicating with both of us. So anyway, Steve and Colbert thought it would be smart if we had a weekly Zoom to talk about how we're handling things, etc. And it became like the highlight of my week. And it would sometimes go on for hours. As the strike went on longer and longer, we thought, hmm, maybe we should do something with this and make some money on it and give it to our staff. Yes.
Starting point is 00:09:43 That's very nice. And that's been successful. It has. People seem excited about it. Yeah, it's wonderful. And I had heard about it before it was a podcast because I had been, as was talked about on the first episode, I had been on Seth's Family Trips podcast.
Starting point is 00:09:56 Right. And when I was hanging with him, because we were in Martha's Vineyard, he was telling me that he does a weekly Zoom with you guys. And I thought, this is really lovely and so different from anything in the past. It's fun. At first, it was like, how are you going to handle this? And then there became no reason for it at all. There was no business discussed. I first was thinking, I wonder if we could put
Starting point is 00:10:17 this on TV. Then that didn't seem, yeah, we didn't want to break the strike, obviously. It's a little confusing, though, what breaking the strike is. Would you agree? I have a pretty good sense of it. You can't promote stuff that's on TV or can't promote a movie. Okay, so the coming out makes total. So I should say, just because people are hysterical lunatics who love to stab you as much as they possibly can, we're not promoting anything. We're just friends chatting here.
Starting point is 00:10:46 That's right. In fact, don't watch any of my shows. That's what we urge people. But you can listen to your podcast. Yes, that's in a different category. I guess the confusing part for me is, well, there's many confusing parts, but one is I totally get not promoting a new movie.
Starting point is 00:11:00 That makes sense. You got to punish these. But like, I'll be talking to someone who's like, we're going to pretend. I don't know. We're going to pretend Friends didn't happen. Frozen? Are we promoting Frozen to acknowledge that Adina was in Frozen? Is that a violation?
Starting point is 00:11:12 What's your stance on that? I think if it's not in the release window, I think you're probably okay. That's kind of what I feel like the spirit of it should be. And then I was also saying like, are we pretending that we're not streaming every night? Like, am I supposed to come in here and pretend I haven't seen every doc on Netflix in the last eight weeks? If you didn't make them, I think you're okay. I know, but ironically, I am kind of promoting the streamer, which is, you know what I'm saying? Yeah.
Starting point is 00:11:33 It gets a little confusing. Yeah. Maybe by the time this is released, it will all be settled. Oh, wouldn't that be lovely? That would be nice. Had you heard the rumor I had two weeks ago, like from high up, it's done. They're going to announce it right after Labor Day. I did, but I didn't believe it. You didn't.
Starting point is 00:11:47 And I never do because I don't think anyone actually knows what's going on. And when I say that, I don't think even the people negotiating know because they only know their half of it. So how would anybody know? But it's funny because Guillermo,
Starting point is 00:12:03 my sidekick on that show, you shouldn't watch. Yes. Well, you can't watch it right now, right? Or are there reruns? There are reruns, yeah. Yeah, check those out. One time on the road?
Starting point is 00:12:14 Same time that they always are? Guillermo got an inside tip from a friend that the strike was going to end on Tuesday of this week. And then it didn't end on Tuesday of this week. And of course, we all went to Guillermo. Guillermo, what's your buddy saying? He's like, I guess he was wrong. But wouldn't that be great if Guillermo was the only one who knew?
Starting point is 00:12:36 That would be great. And almost plausible, because you can imagine the person going like, I can tell this guy, who's he know? You could underestimate Guillermo. Almost plausible, but not in any way plausible. Still wouldn't happen. It was someone who worked for Disney, he said. I said, was it Goofy?
Starting point is 00:12:56 Was it Cinderella, maybe? Was it Mickey? You wouldn't have said it. You wouldn't have broke the ranks, would you? Wait, I have a question because we talked about your faux pas outside. How's your temper? I don't have much of a temper. Every once in a while, if I feel I've really been wronged, I will get upset.
Starting point is 00:13:17 I shouldn't say I don't have a temper. I do, but I don't indulge it. I just get mad and then I internalize it. I just stash it away. Take it out on your body in some weird way. Eat something naughty. Consume some things. The maddest
Starting point is 00:13:34 I've been this month, though, I went to the doctor and I'm in the parking lot. You know, these doctor's parking lots are $2.50 every 15 minutes. It's insane. You talk about healthcare, that's where they're really killing you is the parking. So there's the gate and the machine,
Starting point is 00:13:51 and the machine's not working. You know, I try to swipe my credit card and do the thing where you press it up against the thing which I can never do. The tap, yeah, it's hard. It's not working, and I call them, and they go, oh, let me take your card, and I'll go to the booth and swipe it. So the guy takes my card. He doesn't come back for like nine minutes. Now there's a line behind
Starting point is 00:14:09 me. And now there are two women behind me who take pity on me, think I don't have money. And I said, I appreciate it. It's the machine that's not working. And then they had to go back to their car and I'm sitting there waiting for the guy. And as I'm waiting, two more revolutions of 15 minutes go through. So now my charge is $5 more than it was when I got to the gate. And now I'm mad because now it's the principal thing. And finally, the guy comes out and lets me through. And I say, hey, you know, this is not the amount. This is $12 now.
Starting point is 00:14:47 I was supposed to pay $7, whatever it was. And he goes, oh, let me go get the manager. He starts running off my credit card again. I'm like, no, no, no, come back. I got to be honest. You got exactly what you deserved in that moment. Yeah, probably. On a karmic level, yes.
Starting point is 00:15:03 And it had been $5 more. Turns out my manager said no. And of course, now you can't get out. Then I would have assumed my cousin Sal was in the building somewhere. Yeah, yeah. And somebody you would drive through the gate, I also would imagine. I have done that. I did that at the hospital once.
Starting point is 00:15:18 I was so sick. I went into the emergency room, and I realized I was not going to be seen for hours. I got out, and you couldn't pay. You needed a token. This was at St. John's in Burbank. And I was like, you know what? I'm driving through this gate, and I just snapped the damn thing off. Wow. No ramifications. Good. Oh, my God.
Starting point is 00:15:37 None whatsoever. I have done it once, but I didn't have the pleasure of making the decision to do it, and then probably what you felt afterwards. It was an accident? Yeah, it was at Warner Brothers. I was in a truck that was too big. The little lever was below the hood. I couldn't really see it. And so I'm talking with the guy at the guard shack and we're getting along great. And then he hands me my pass and I'm like, have a good one, boss. And I just punch it. I just drove right through the fucking gate. You know, they have a collection of those because it happens all the time i was relieved to find out that this was like a daily occurrence they also at the gas station people drive off
Starting point is 00:16:09 every single day which is why they now have the breakaway ones they have the breakaway ones but they will charge you like 150 dollars oh they do i think so yeah okay back to not believing guillermo's source or even bigger than that that no one actually knows i think this is where you and i share a very similar disposition which is why i kind of was shocked when you believed a lot of this jfk conspiracy stuff oh because i thought you and i process things the same way which is like no one keeps any secrets everyone's a blabbermouth there's no real secrets right you're talking about that thing we talked about that that guy told me that I was supposed to never tell anybody. Yeah. Well, it confirmed all of your
Starting point is 00:16:50 JFK theories. Somebody killed him, right? So is it even a conspiracy at that point or just a poorly unsolved murder? Well, you don't think it was Lee Harvey Oswald. Honestly, I just think it's a great story. It is. And it seems just as believable to me as Lee Harvey Oswald. I'm not a great student of the JFK assassination. In the same way, like, I know every bit of minutiae about the OJ trial because I lived through it and I was watching it. But it sounded pretty good, right? Yeah, yeah.
Starting point is 00:17:20 Wait, can we say what it is? No, I can't. I can't say what it is. Oh, Dax. I promise. It's easy to summarize. I broke the promise. Someone had access to classified information, read the classified information, said everything you thought was true is true, virtually.
Starting point is 00:17:35 Right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. It wasn't anything new. Yeah, and it wasn't Guillermo's informant. It may have been. This was a legitimate. It may have been one of Guillermo's guys. He's got a lot of people on the inside.
Starting point is 00:17:44 We don't know. Okay, now back to the podcast, Strike Force 5. I'm listening to it and I'm like, this is great. I'm enjoying this so much. I have to say there's a salacious curiosity I have when I listen to it. I would compare it to watching The Departed. Do you remember that movie? Yeah, I didn't see it because Matt Damon's in it, but yeah.
Starting point is 00:18:01 But you're aware of who's in it. Yeah. It's every single biggest movie star on the planet. You got fucking Jack Nicholson in there and Leonardo DiCaprio and your sworn enemy, Matt Damon and Mark Wahlberg. And this is like, bring them all here and let's point a camera at these guys
Starting point is 00:18:17 and let's see who your eye goes to. That was my kind of perverse interest in that movie. Like, okay, if these two are in a scene together and it's a two shot, like who am I drawing? It was almost like a battle royale. Or like Ocean's Eleven. my kind of perverse interest in that movie like okay if these two are in a scene together and it's a two-shot like who am i drawing it was almost like a battle royale like oceans 11 oceans 11 matt damon so you also probably haven't seen it we are the world we are the world exactly who's gonna hit that right note and kind of blow everyone else who's lionel who's michael yes who's bruce who's ray charles my on Departed was Nicholson is unbeatable.
Starting point is 00:18:46 If you put Nicholson in a two-shot with a fucking chimpanzee on fire, you'll probably be watching Jack's face to see how he reacts to it. Right. I mean, he's just so charismatic. So in some weird, perverse way, I'm kind of excited to hear all of you guys, who in theory are competitors, I guess, and you have a similar job. But listening to who's going to land where, who takes the lead, that's all very fun for an audience member.
Starting point is 00:19:08 It is, and I think you might have a different conclusion at the end of each episode of the show. Fun. I like that. What we decided, because we are broadcasters, we know how this works, is that it was going to be a big mess if there wasn't a host, right? There has to be a host. And so we decided each one of us will take each episode and kind of follow it all the way through.
Starting point is 00:19:29 So we'll prepare the episode. We'll host the episode. That person will edit the episode. And then you hand it off. And then you hand it off, right. Okay, so you were obviously the first host. I was the first host. Seth was the second host.
Starting point is 00:19:42 Stephen was the third host. I could have it wrong. We've taped five of them so far, and now it's back to me for the second host. Stephen was the third host. I could have it wrong. We've taped five of them so far and now it's back to me for the next one. And I'm breaking the spirit of it because what I already said was really cool about it is that everyone's getting along and I think it's very encouraging. But anyways, the point is I was having like a really fun time listening to all this until I got to this part where you go like, oh yeah, you know what I fucking hate is when people come to my fishing lodge and they don't
Starting point is 00:20:05 fish right it irks me that's right and i of course immediately was like fuck i've been there four times now but we've talked about this i told you about it that you're mad that i'm mad i shouldn't have said mad well irked is a dark word no but your explanation to me which i remember very well was good enough that you're off the list. And here's what it was. Listen, there are some people who don't fish because their six-year-old daughter is a vegetarian and doesn't want them to go fish. Okay. Okay. So that's irksome. Yes. You explained it to me in the best possible way. I don't know if you remember, but you said, I've seen what has happened to you and I've seen what has happened to our mutual, but you said, I've seen what has happened to you,
Starting point is 00:20:45 and I've seen what has happened to our mutual friend, Tom, and I've seen what has happened to, et cetera. And I know that this is going to happen to me also, where I become obsessed with fly fishing, and I want to wait a few years until I do that. I don't think that's the bandwidth currently. To me, that's like, okay, that makes sense. And I'll go further. Maybe I didn't say it out loud to you, but I have said it on here.
Starting point is 00:21:08 I think maybe when Jake was on or something, why I don't fish. It's even deeper than that, which is also two dudes I idolize. Tom Hanson and you, I idolize both of you. And I think, well, fuck, if these two heroes are minors, I'm of course going to get obsessed. There's also some weird, I admire both of you, and the fact that you do
Starting point is 00:21:26 it makes me believe even more I would get obsessed with it. It's like you're saving your virginity. You're waiting for marriage. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I could commit to you publicly that the first time I go fishing, I would like to go with you. Well, that I would actually be furious if you do fly fishing with someone.
Starting point is 00:21:41 That's okay. You guys have known each other longer, but I really love taking people fly fishing with someone. Tommy could go fly fishing. That's okay. You guys have known each other longer. But I really love taking people fly fishing for the first time. You do. But I don't want to also put like a ton of pressure on you because there are people that I love who I have a huge amount in common with. My cousin Sal, for instance. If you look in the back of the boat, he'll be watching the game on his phone. Okay.
Starting point is 00:22:01 So he's not fishing. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He just doesn't like it. It's just not his thing. We talked about this on one of the fact checks and Dax gave an explanation, but we were waiting for you
Starting point is 00:22:10 to come to give the actual explanation of what is the psychology behind why you like it. I would love to explain that. Good, because Monica, I think rightly was like, I don't get it.
Starting point is 00:22:20 Right, like, oh, this seems boring. Well, first of all, you haven't done it, right? I haven't. So that's probably the main reason why you don't get it. Yeah. But in the particular way that we are fly fishing on the Snake River, you're on a slow-moving boat with two other people.
Starting point is 00:22:36 You are mostly quiet, but also having conversations. You're getting direction from your guide. And you're watching a fly on the water. This fly is the size of the head of a Q-tip. You're so focused on that fly on the water under this canopy of nature that is quite beautiful. The only thing I can really compare it to that everyone understands is when you become hypnotized on the freeway. When you're driving and your brain just goes on its own. I have more ideas when I'm fly fishing than anything.
Starting point is 00:23:10 Oh, interesting. It's like the proverbial shower for musicians or driving. Yeah, it's just like that. The day goes by like that. And sometimes you haven't looked around for hours. Like you will look up and go, oh, wow, it's beautiful here. Oh, there's moose. Which is
Starting point is 00:23:25 pretty crazy because most of the time that's what you'd be focused on. It's just that particular point of focus. When you do that, it frees the rest of your brain. And for me, it's euphoric. Yeah, it is. It's euphoric. That's the perfect word to describe it. Okay. Then that's a little different than what my guess was. Here was my guess, because my very favorite thing is going to the track on the motorcycle, simply because it is the only moment in my whole life where I actually can't focus on another thing, or I
Starting point is 00:23:54 will crash. It's like that cut and dry. I can't like wander to, do I have enough money for the rest of my life? Going into a turn at 130. It's almost like this crap, right? That makes me laugh laugh because I know that's a real fall. Of course, every 12 minutes. So for me, it's forced presence, which is kind of hard for me because my mind's always all over the place. My guess was like, yeah, you're trying to hit this
Starting point is 00:24:18 certain spot, but everything's moving. It's not bobber fishing. I was trying to explain. It's not like you just throw it out there and then you wait for a little signal. It's like you're actively, constantly trying to get it somewhere. And you're casting, you're hitting targets. And then there's that moment of drama when that fly that you've been looking at sometimes for 40 minutes straight, a big trout comes up from under the water and attacks it. And then if you're not paying attention, you're not going to die, but you're going to wish you because you're going to be the same if you lost it. You just take your eye off or you're watching the other guy. And if you don't focus, you'll miss that fish because you have to set the hook.
Starting point is 00:24:55 It also sounds like nature's video game. Yeah, that is what it is. Sure. Yeah, there's that just like element of surprise and achievement. And also it rings some, I think, caveman bells. I could catch fish if I needed to in a pinch. I could feed my tribe. You can survive.
Starting point is 00:25:14 I'm safe somehow. And then we release the fish right into the... Although there is a fish up there that you're encouraged to keep. The rainbow trout is considered to be an invasive trout. It's very controversial and gets people very fired up, but they're trying to protect the cutthroat trout from being displaced because rainbow trout and cutthroat will breed together. They become cut bows, whereas brown trout will not breed with the other trout. And so the browns, even though
Starting point is 00:25:43 they're not supposed to be there, they're okay. That's going to be the clip we pull out. The browns, even though they're not supposed to be there. It's interesting. It'd be better if the browns weren't here, but they're here, but luckily you can ignore them.
Starting point is 00:25:58 In this world, everybody's thumbs up on the browns. It's the rainbows. Everyone loves the browns. Oh, the rainbows. It's the LGBTQ plus fish. Okay, that makes sense. They're taking it on the chin even down there. Yeah. It'sbows. It's the LGBTQ plus fish. Okay, that makes sense. They're taking it on the chin even down there. Yeah. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:26:07 It's tough. It's Idaho, you know? That's true. They need to get those fish over to the LA River. Yeah. But it's fun. I love it. And I love knowing just little quirks and the things that get people going.
Starting point is 00:26:18 And do you see a time limit? Probably not, right? Because we have people like Tom Hanson. Well, there are very old men fishing. So that's another great thing about it. Yeah. And do you- And women. Are you ever doing it and have that slight fear in the back of your head like, God, I hope I don't ever stop liking this?
Starting point is 00:26:33 No, I don't think I will ever stop liking it. You feel very confident. Yeah, I feel pretty confident. It's funny because I got my dad into it. I said, usually the father will take the son fishing for his first time, but we're from Brooklyn. Well, that'll be this usually the father will take the son fishing for his first time. But, you know, we're from Brooklyn. Well, that would be this. The father will take the son. Yes. I did that with Bateman. I took him out. Yeah. Well, everyone that returns loves it. Not everyone. Throw someone under the bus. Adam Carolla doesn't like it. He doesn't hate it. But either you love it or you
Starting point is 00:27:05 secretly don't really like it. It's kind of one of those things. Right. You're not half in on it. A couple of my friends were just not into it. I guess my other concern is, it's not like you guys go fishing for an hour. No, no. It's the whole day. It's the whole day. Yeah. That's part of what's great about it because you get to have a conversation with, first of all, one of your friends or family members for a whole day. And then there's a guide. You get to know a complete stranger in detail. Well, it would be like driving in an Uber up to Portland. Yeah, right. You'd really know that person. And be real chatty with the driver. Yeah, yeah. I know fishing is interesting, certainly to me, but you keep
Starting point is 00:27:42 going. I got to find something. I got to tell you something about my wife and you. Oh, okay. Great. Great. I really look forward to that. I have one last question about the fishing though, but now I've completely lost it. Oh, you took Billy for the first time this year, right? Yeah. I took him out on the boat for the first time. Oh, he didn't fish. Yeah. He fished. We'd fished in the pond, but it was his first time fishing in the boat. And he liked it, right? You sent a picture of him holding the fish.
Starting point is 00:28:07 You know, it's funny. It's a long time, I'd imagine, at that age. My son Billy is a real character. He sits on my lap, and I hold the rod, and then we catch fish, right? And we caught a bunch of big fish, and then he kind of had enough. We get back to the lodge, and everyone's like, oh, Billy. They're looking at the pictures. Great job, great job, great job.
Starting point is 00:28:26 And Billy sits there nodding. And afterwards he says to my wife, I didn't catch any of those fish. Dad caught them all. Oh, good. I just put my hand on the rock. Well, good. He's got integrity. He's six years old. I was like, you gotta play along with the game like your sister does. Come on
Starting point is 00:28:41 now. So my wife, I mean, you are probably her number one favorite i don't know if you're aware of this no but i'm in life and also the podcast as well oh wow and i think the podcast has really fueled it because obviously you don't spend a tremendous amount of time together or if you do just keep that quiet right one, right. One night, Molly is going on and on and on about how evolved and vulnerable you are. Oh, gosh. Of course, these are also veiled insults. Of course.
Starting point is 00:29:14 Of course. Negging, negging. She's going on about how funny and all this stuff to the point where, and I rarely do this, I start to get a little jealous. Yes, okay. This is the best day of Dax's life. I said, well, did you hear the nice things Dax said about me? Like now looking to basically get her approval based on the approval of somebody.
Starting point is 00:29:44 The guy you're in love with is in love with me. Exactly. That's where all roads lead to me. You're already with the guy. I'm embarrassed to say I actually said this and I wrote it down because I didn't want to forget it. And I said honestly I was getting jealous.
Starting point is 00:29:58 Listening and she said don't be jealous. Just be more like Dax. Oh, no. Yeah. Oh, Molly, let's do it. Let's get the fuck out of here. Let's just take all this and get out. She has no idea what she's just done. Kristen and Jimmy will be happy together.
Starting point is 00:30:20 That's a great callback. I think we would be very compatible. I think we could switch a room. It's a bad deal for Kristen, let's be honest. No, no, no. You know what she says? She says, hey, Jimmy's so even keeled. And have you ever noticed he's so kind and generous and nice?
Starting point is 00:30:36 No, she's in love with him as well. Well, you know, that's what you say about like a grandparent. No, no. As you're leaving the convalescent home. So even keeled. All the other seniors are throwing their food all around, not Jimmy. Not Jimmy.
Starting point is 00:30:49 I will tell you another thing. I was starting to defend myself by attacking you when she was talking about how involved you were. And I said, Dax is involved. Dax is sitting in his house wearing military fatigues waiting to kill his robbers. Dax is not involved. She goes, you'd be right in there with him i was like yeah
Starting point is 00:31:07 no yeah i was in underwear and running shoes i went to sleep and i also have my gloves on i ride motorcycles with the kevlar knuckles well you have to have those i don't want to hurt my hands as i'm pummeling these guys to death in the doggy door. But you remember the punchline of the story is that for people who don't remember you, the house was robbed three times. We came back from vacation. I'm like, everything's got to look the same. Park the car in the back.
Starting point is 00:31:34 I want them to think we're gone again. Hopefully they're coming back. You guys sleep in the front room with the door locked. I'm sleeping in our bedroom where the dog door is. Sleep in the underwear, the running shoes, and the gloves. Hear a noise at 3.30 in the morning. Leap out of bed. Run through the bathroom to get to the gloves, hear a noise at 3.30 in the morning, leap out of bed, run through the bathroom to get to the doggy door,
Starting point is 00:31:48 hit my shoulder on the side of the door, the hardest I've ever hurt myself. It spun me around. I continued going, and I got to the doggy door, and I was about to pass out, and my shoulder hurt so bad, and there was nobody there. And I thought, oh, in my mind,
Starting point is 00:32:02 the way I was going to be at attention was so wrong. Oh, yeah, it's like a Liam Neeson movie. My fantasy versus what happened. there and i thought oh my mind the way i was going to be at attention was so wrong oh yeah it's like a liam neeson movie fantasy versus what happened it's like i ran like a cartoon straight into the wall trying to defend the house but you kind of just confirmed one of my fears which is i gotta imagine there's a ton of husbands that just fucking hate my guts i would hate you're. You're like Oprah, you know, in a lot of ways. I remember when Oprah was at her zenith in the 90s and I'd come home from work and my now ex-wife would be yelling at me
Starting point is 00:32:33 about something she saw about men on Oprah. And I was like, I don't know who this woman is, but she is causing me a lot of problems. Yes. This brilliant dude in Michigan made a video that made its way to me. And it's just him in his front yard. And he goes, I want to know who this Dax guy is. My wife's always talking, this Dax guy drives a fucking Pacifica. My wife thinks this guy's so cool.
Starting point is 00:32:55 He's just going crazy because I drive a Pacifica. I'm kind of delighted it's happening to you. Yeah. Yeah, it is happening to me. It really has. It's interesting. It's never really happened to me before. Stay tuned for is happening to me. It really has. It's interesting. It's never really happened to me before. Stay tuned for more Armchair Expert if you dare. Sasha hated sand, the way it stuck to
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Starting point is 00:34:06 The all-new Hyundai Kona. We made it more wah. Hey, I just got us a new Coca-Cola Spice. Nice. What's it taste like? It's like barefoot water skiing while dolphins click with glee. Whoa, let me try. Nah, it's like gliding on a gondola through waving waters as a mermaid sings.
Starting point is 00:34:31 Nah, it's like Coca-Cola with a refreshing burst of raspberry and spiced flavors. Yeah. Try new Coca-Cola Spiced today. spiced today. Okay, so one thing I think I want to explore with you, and you said it on the first episode of Strike Force 5, you had really been wanting to retire. Yeah, I did want to retire. You were like certain, right? When I talked to you, it was going to take a miracle to get you. I was very certain. When was this? This was about two years ago, a year and a half ago. The first time, yeah, you told me was in Idaho two summers ago. I thought that was it.
Starting point is 00:35:10 All right, I've had enough. And I know this sounds ridiculously trivial, but you start looking around your office and you go, do I really want to clean all this out? Oh, am I really gonna now go through these closets and box off? And that's step one on the I might stay journey. And then you start looking around at the people and go, boy, these people are really not going to be happy if I retire. And especially when I don't have to. And then ABC was particularly aggressive and enthusiastic, which I'd not really experienced before. I liked the new people that came in there. And I thought, well, I haven't really even had a
Starting point is 00:35:54 chance to work with these people. And when it was all said and done, there I was signed up. And there were a lot of people in my life were like, I knew you weren't going to go. And you're like, really? I didn't. I thought I was going to thought i was gonna go i believed you but i had i believed me too well exactly so i believed you in the same way i believe myself which is i make declarations like this all the time i was very relieved that we had jake johnson on the other day you must have had him on oh i know you had him yeah he had shaved his head the last episode oh yeah right yeah he looked insane with a shaved head we were just bonding over the fact, like these declarations, like I'm done acting.
Starting point is 00:36:27 You know, why do I have to say that out loud? Why do I have to declare that? I can't just go like, well, just leave it at today. Today, you don't want to. Usually what happens is you get forced to answer the question. Like somebody will ask you in an interview, every interview, people are like, it's going to be 20 years. I started to feel like people wanted me to leave.
Starting point is 00:36:44 Right, it's like time. You got to dance around the question because you don't want everybody at work especially they phrase it like how much longer are you gonna do this yeah i was like you think you're gonna stick around well don't you think yours is a little and we all do this but a little ego where you are worried people are thinking why is he't he done any acting? I haven't seen him do any acting in a long time. So you have to be ahead of it. And I've decided I'm not doing that anymore. I'm in charge of this. I'm in charge.
Starting point is 00:37:12 I'm in control. That's always a part of your life, right? Do you remember when Larry King had Jerry Seinfeld on at the end of the Seinfeld show? And he was like, Seinfeld's being canceled after, you know. And he was like, how do you? And Jerry lost his mind. Oh, he did. You know, in a funny way. But he was like, oh, you know, and Jerry lost his mind. Oh, he did.
Starting point is 00:37:25 You know, in a funny way, but he's like, you can't call it canceled. That one person thought that the show had been canceled was so inflammatory. And what a beautiful example, because this is the person with the most successful show of all time. Even that person isn't inoculated from that. No one is questioning what his status was at NBC, except for one very old man who's still hosting a talk show. Who used the wrong word unintentionally.
Starting point is 00:37:53 Maybe not, but I don't know. That is comforting, though. It is. I think that's what I always like when Stern has legends on, and you get to hear, say, Dave, the whole time was fearful. That's so comforting. I know it is. Billy Crystal once told me, oh, I get so nervous before doing something. And I was like, oh, the whole time was fearful. That's so comforting. I know it is. Billy Crystal once told
Starting point is 00:38:05 me, oh, I get so nervous before doing something. And I was like, oh, it was comforting. Also, I went, oh no, it's going to be like this always. Right. Right. But I actually think it helps you go, okay, this is how everyone feels. And now I can get over it because there's no merit to it. It's like human nature. It was one of just those little things someone said to me that really helped me in a weird way. Oh, also, this has had to have happened to you. I won't say the person's name, but someone I absolutely worshiped growing up and was a comedian that I thought, well, if I had what they had, I would be so happy. And then when I came to meet them and they were very, very unhappy, I wanted to say, like, you've just given me the biggest gift imaginable. I can see that that's not going to make me happy.
Starting point is 00:38:50 I'm sure that made them even happier. I didn't say that to them, but I remember thinking, I'm actually grateful I now can see. It's funny because it's a lesson that is needle pointed on the wall of like many houses, you know, whatever. And you don't really buy it until you see it. Yeah, well, you can know things intellectually and you can know them emotionally and you can maybe know them both ways. I've heard a lot of sayings
Starting point is 00:39:13 and I could explain a lot of sayings, especially from AA. But until the one moment you were like, oh, right, one day at a time is very profound. It's like as an American, you think we have it better and we are in a better spot and happier than everyone, every place else.
Starting point is 00:39:29 And then you go to a second or third world country and you go, why do these people seem so much happier than we are? Yeah. They seem to be having a lot more fun. Who's winning? Well, for me, that was moving to LA, living in a one bedroom apartment above another one bedroom apartment where six, seven people lived. And initially I was like, oh my God, where are they sleeping? I'm so concerned about them. But I lived above them for 10 years. The amount of
Starting point is 00:39:52 laughing that was happening all day long. I'm sitting up there by myself in my apartment lonely. I'm like, oh, I guess they're fucking winning. They're having the best day of their life every day. There are little lessons that we're taught and we don't learn. Or you just learn the same lesson over and over again every six months. That also happens to me. Same epiphanies. Yeah, it's almost like I need a special file
Starting point is 00:40:13 where I write the important things down that I review on a regular basis, but it's all fleeting always. Wait, what are yours? Molly will love to hear it. It'll be so vulnerable of you. There's this song by James Taylor called The Secret of Life or Secret O Life, for whatever reason he gave it like a funny title.
Starting point is 00:40:32 That's not a funny song. It actually is the secret of life. And it's very simple. It's the secret of life is enjoying the passage of time. And it's a great song, but the lyrics are very powerful. And it's something that you can't just flip a switch and enjoy the passage of time, but it makes you remember that at certain times in your life. Well, on the podcast, you kind of alluded to another reason why you wanted to work again,
Starting point is 00:41:01 which is you had an abundance of time off, which also happens, right? When you're working a ton, you want time off. Then when you have time off, you're like, I'm built to work again, which is you had an abundance of time off, which also happens, right? When you're working at time, you want time off. Then when you have time off, you're like, I'm built to work. Yeah, I got the summers off, which none of the other hosts have. You said it makes it that much more enjoyable knowing everyone else doesn't have the summer. Of course, of course. I get something for being the one doing this the longest. That's right. You earned it. That was a big thing for me. If ABC hadn't said, what if we give you the summer off? I wouldn't still be doing this.
Starting point is 00:41:29 Right. Because it takes everything. There are many jobs that are harder. I would never compare it to like a manual labor job or even some of the jobs I've had in the past. But it requires all of you. Yeah, for sure. Kristen did it once. She guest hosted when I was working for her.
Starting point is 00:41:47 And it was so full on. We did both leave. And she's like, I don't know how he can do this every day. This is insane. The next day and the next day. Yes, it never ends. And you see something or you notice something. You're like, oh, good.
Starting point is 00:41:59 I have a nugget that I can fill four minutes with. Yes. Those little things. Great. I'm going to ask you some advice, which is I did the math. And so we'll just say you've been on for 20 years. At the time this was printed, 2,694 episodes. If you average two interviews an episode, you've done 5,388 interviews.
Starting point is 00:42:21 Now we've done about 700 and it feels preposterously too much. And then I look at this number, I'm like, oh my God, it's like fucking 10X. So you've obviously been through every cycle that I could be experiencing. You've also done it in a much shorter period of time
Starting point is 00:42:35 and your interviews are much lengthier. So they're pretty close, I think. Well, probably the thing I'm guessing or I pray you've had the experience of is it just happened to me. Beautiful guest on, beautiful interview. And I come out and I go, these are so boring now. I'm guessing or I pray you've had the experience of is it just happened to me. Beautiful guest on, beautiful interview. And I come out and I go, these are so boring now. I'm so boring.
Starting point is 00:42:50 I'm out of everything. I cannot get anything exciting out of everyone. What is this? What am I doing to make this good or better? Do you have these cycles? Not based on any data. Nothing happened that would make me start thinking this. But I just have these waves.
Starting point is 00:43:02 I do. would make me start thinking this, but I just have these waves. I do. I try to be aware of patterns that I fall into and then try to make an effort to vary from them. The best thing you could do, which is also the worst thing you could do, is listen to yourself because you learn so much if you go back and listen, but it's so painful. You do get to a point where you're good enough at it that you don't have to do that. You can still be pretty good. But if you listen to yourself, you will learn. And that's the best tip I think anyone could ever give as far as interviewing or broadcasting goes. Yeah, I was reading this Rolling Stone interview with you from maybe March or something. And you were saying how grateful you were that the first three years of the show were total chaos. No one knew what
Starting point is 00:43:43 they were doing. And you say even in the interview, you guys didn't truly figure out how to make this show until year 12 or 13. I believe that. It's not a joke. It's so encouraging. Yeah, it is. What do you think were the last bits? I think for me, what I realized over the course of the show is,
Starting point is 00:44:00 it's almost like golf in some ways. And I'm not a golfer, but I recognize the elements that with golf, when you're a novice and you play a round and you hit two good shots that round, you're like, oh, those two good shots I hit were great. You focus on those things. And then as you get better, you start to focus more on the things that you've done wrong.
Starting point is 00:44:23 I think it's almost like a coping mechanism in some ways. And then as you get even better, consistency becomes what's most important and not the highlights. And that's what you value. And that's what you admire in others is the consistency. So at the beginning, we had no good shows, but we'd have one show that I consider to be pretty good. And usually because one wildly funny thing happened.
Starting point is 00:44:44 And then we got to the point a few years later, like, okay, I feel like we're having two good shows a week. And then you want to just get to the point where your average number is an eight, you know? Yes. Yeah. Instead of a 10 and a three, a 10 and a three. Yeah. So that's the way I look at it. It's like, can you be consistently good? Because I did radio for a long time. What I noticed that the listeners appreciated more than anything, because I did sports casts at 6 a.m., 6.30, 7, 7.30, 8 and 8.30 every morning on KROQ radio here in LA. And what the listeners appreciated was not that I was funny once, that thing you said, whatever, it's like that I was funny nine out of ten mornings they
Starting point is 00:45:25 heard me during their commute that's what i think registers with people when they realize i've been listening this person for three years and this person is good at this yeah because i think any kind of performance whatsoever elicits some anxiety in the listener or the viewer you're aware of the stakes somehow in the back of your mind. Especially if you like the person. Yes. But it's like you go see stand-up and there's four people. For me, the anxiety is almost too much.
Starting point is 00:45:53 Same here. But then someone steps on stage, they exude just confidence, and you go, oh, I'm safe. And their pace is calm and whatever the whole thing is. It's almost like McDonald's. You know what you're going to get, and that's why you keep going. And you go like, oh, this person never makes me feel very nervous that they're collapsing in front of me.
Starting point is 00:46:10 I never thought of it that way, but it's all about how it makes you feel, I guess. And an open mic night, that sort of thing is an absolute nightmare for me because you're rooting for each person, and it doesn't go well for almost any of them. But then you go see Dave Chappelle or Bill Burr or a guy like Chris DiStefano or whatever. You're like, they're good at this. Have you watched this stand-up special that just came out? With Shane Gillis's?
Starting point is 00:46:35 Yes. I haven't seen it yet, but I heard it's great. Okay, I can't wait for you to watch it so we can talk about it. Oh, you saw it? Yeah, Chris and I watched it two nights ago. I've heard it's on a very high level. It's on a very high level and it is the most dangerous set you can imagine someone doing in 2023. And just for that alone, it's like watching Nitro Circus.
Starting point is 00:46:52 But of course, we're not promoting Netflix. No, no, no. You should definitely cut that. Well, I guess that's cable. You cut the cord. But definitely cancel your Netflix and every other thing. Download, cancel, you'll be fine. One of my points was like, I grew up in Detroit. A lot of UAW strikes. I've witnessed a ton of them. They still drove their Chevys to
Starting point is 00:47:09 the plant to pick it. They didn't stop like driving their Chevy when it broke. They still took it to the dealer. Well, that's a matter of transportation. If I don't watch my entertainment, my one and a half hours without kids each night, I'll die. No, but the truth is if everyone stopped watching the streamers for a month, which is obviously never going to happen, but if that happened immediately, they would figure it out. I had this thought.
Starting point is 00:47:33 This is crazy. I'm sure it's low percentage, but it did cross my mind just yesterday. I was driving around. I was like, humans just by nature, they fatigue of things. I think even like the polarization, I don't think there'll ever be a leader
Starting point is 00:47:44 that unites us all. I just think slowly people have become fucking fatigued with the fighting left and right. Yes. That's my only hope for it. It's just too exhausting. You get bored of it. All these movements we have,
Starting point is 00:47:55 they have a beginning, they have an end. It's conceivable that we stop making all this entertainment. It's a long enough break for people to stop watching TV and they go like, oh fuck, we've been watching TV for eight years all day, every day. They might go outside and remember like, oh, it's really nice. Like, this is very precarious, I think. We've all watched more TV than any generation by a factor of five.
Starting point is 00:48:18 Oh, yeah, absolutely. It used to be when you're a kid, TV was like, oh, you can't put your kids in front of the TV. You know, it's bad now. It's like TV is books. It's life. Yeah. And YouTube is now the thing we don't want, the kids watching and the video games.
Starting point is 00:48:33 Yeah. I really do have that distinction, and I'll catch Delta watching YouTube. No YouTube. I do, too. I mean, mostly because I'm afraid it's going to bring them down a rabbit hole. I don't like the pacing of the videos. I notice that when my kids watch YouTube, their behavior is worse. Yes.
Starting point is 00:48:50 When's the last time you have your kids watch movies that you watch when you're a kid? The credits are insane. The opening credits go on forever. Yes. And you're like, oh, I don't know if I'm going to make it through this. I know. Never mind them. They're gone.
Starting point is 00:49:03 Even classics like chitty chitty bang bang you're watching 17 minutes of fucking titles it was like they were trying to fill space yes they're trying to make them like we're not making our two hour and 18 minute runtime we gotta add more people to the crew give them each their own title card it's so different started with cutting out the tv theme songs and now it's like you see that little Pixar lamp. They drop you in the middle of the second act. Yeah. And then the cuts are coming hot and fast. Well, we had someone on, he's big on TikTok, and he was talking about how quickly you have to get people's attention on that and how you do it.
Starting point is 00:49:37 You can have a really close-up of someone's face so that they will stop and watch. That's how fast people want to get through. You have to have something major and quick. These TikTokers know too much about our brains. They do. Okay, I got some rapid fire questions for you. In the 5,388 interviews, and again, that's my own estimation. I think I've done well over 3,000 shows.
Starting point is 00:49:58 Oh, you have? Okay. Yeah. I'm not surprised that the numbers run. Nearly everything I read on the internet once Once the guest is here, it's not true. Have you had the experience where it's like the person that's been booked, you're certain you dislike, and then they're on your show and you kind of fall in love with them? Or at least 180 on them?
Starting point is 00:50:15 Or you understand them better, for sure. I have had that. I've had that with comedians that I feel are hacky comedians. And then you sit down with them and you go, oh, this is a person who's a pro, who knows how to make the audience laugh. And it might not be my particular taste, but I can't say this is not funny because these people are laughing.
Starting point is 00:50:36 And they were laughing at me earlier in the monologue. I'm going to say these people are idiots? Yeah, exactly. So first of all, I have that pretty often. There's like guests I don't think I want. And thus far, 100% of the time, I end up loving them. Right, exactly. So first of all, I have that pretty often. There's like guests I don't think I want. And thus far, 100% of the time, I end up loving them. Right, yeah. Like it took anyone long enough.
Starting point is 00:50:51 I'm like, yeah, yeah, everyone's fucking doing the best they can. I've also had people who, especially men, I didn't think much of them physically. And then you see them in person, it's like, oh my God, this is a handsome guy. Sure, sure, sure. Now I understand. Yeah. Or how about Momoa dancing in front of you? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I understand. Yeah. Or how about Momoa dancing in front of you
Starting point is 00:51:06 in your loincloth? You're like, how can you not get sucked up into that? Yeah. We haven't had that much commotion on our show
Starting point is 00:51:12 in many years than when he did that. It's cool when someone has that kind of power. It's good to just witness. Just that raw magnetism. Magnetistic magnetism.
Starting point is 00:51:24 Yeah. A lot of people feel it. It's really interesting when you go, oh, I get it. You know who I got it from? George Bush. Oh, tell me. I never had much nice to say about George Bush. But boy, is that a charismatic guy.
Starting point is 00:51:39 Really? And you just go like, oh, now I understand this. It's like, it's really remarkable. Well, you probably go like, he, now I understand this. It's like, it's really remarkable. Well, you probably go like, he didn't fall into that. Yeah. Because you go, oh, his dad was president. His name basically got him the gig. And then you go, oh, no, it didn't.
Starting point is 00:51:57 It's his way. But that's also weird because that didn't translate when he would do speeches and stuff. It didn't at all. And that's part of why I was surprised by it. But you sit and have a chat with him and it is different. My story, and it's very unpopular to say anything positive about George Bush, but here I'm going to go as well. When Kristen and I went to Africa and we stayed at this incredible hotel, Sengita, George Bush had just been there within six months and totally unsolicited. Mind you, Bill Gates had been there. A bunch of people have been to this place.
Starting point is 00:52:25 I've been there. I proposed to Molly there. At Singita? Yes. Which one? In South Africa? Yeah, in South Africa. We were at one in Tanzania.
Starting point is 00:52:32 There's like three of them on the Grimadi Reserve. But yeah, beautiful, incredible hotel. Every single person that worked there over the course of the 10 days we were there just couldn't help but tell me how much they loved George Bush. He had been there. He stayed up with all of them at the campfire every night. He was friendly, resoundingly loved. And to me, I go, oh, that says something.
Starting point is 00:52:49 I'm not going to ignore that. Well, he also did a lot for Africa. I mean, one of the good things that he did, and of course, did a lot of things that I don't agree with at all. You didn't want to go into Iraq again? He did a lot to fight HIV in Africa, more than probably any single human being. Oh, of course, I say that like I know. Any other human being.
Starting point is 00:53:11 I know what Bono said. Bono said that. I'm taking this from Bono. So if you disagree, take it up with him. Have you ever pulled the plug in the middle of an interview? I've not pulled the plug. I once was interviewing Bruce Willis, who seemed very unhappy to be there. And I just said to him in the middle of the interview,
Starting point is 00:53:32 something like, is everything okay? And he snapped right out of it and was great after that. These actors, they get pulled in by their publicist. They don't necessarily want to do this. They probably know who the fuck I was. He's just like, what am I doing here? I should be on Letterman right now. You know, it was interesting, though, just being honest and bringing it up in the middle of the interview changed the tone of the interview significantly. And then afterwards, he was very friendly. And we talked and I think we exchanged phone numbers.
Starting point is 00:54:00 Wow, that's interesting. That was interesting. Yeah. It's very weird. I had almost the identical experience with him. Really? Yeah. Working in Austin doing Idiocracy 19 years ago. He's there doing a movie, staying at the same hotel. I'm hanging out with an actor who's in the movie with him. We joined him for, I don't know, tea in the lobby and he won't look at me. I can't get anything going with him. I'm trying to, of course, win him over. He's Bruce Willis.
Starting point is 00:54:25 Right. And then he said something about somebody, like a famous person. It was pretty disparaging. And I looked at him when he finished, and I go, you know, in the future, you might want to ask if anyone at the table is best friends with that person.
Starting point is 00:54:37 And he had this little mini panic look on his face. And he goes, I had no idea. And I go, it's okay. I don't know that person at all. And then he started laughing in a way that was so wonderful. Yeah. Some people just want a minute of honesty. I guess when you're a person like Bruce Willis, everybody approaches him in a similar way. Like I have to be quiet and listen to everything he says and he probably gets tired of it. Well, just bore. Yes. There's no jousting really.
Starting point is 00:55:03 Yeah. Who wants that? No. You want to mix it up a little bit. You must experience that. No, I don't think so. There's a big difference between being a movie star, especially a movie star on the level of Bruce Willis, and being a talk show host that everybody feels like they know. Yeah, but I think you're wrong. I don't know.
Starting point is 00:55:21 I don't know. I think you're wrong. I don't know about that. I guess I'd be the last person to know the answer to that question. I think it's the best that you don't. And you're wrong. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know about that. I guess I'd be the last person to know the answer to that question. And you're very humble. Well, I think it's best you don't recognize what it is, but I think you underestimate the elegance associated with late night. I mean, just think how you thought of Johnny Carson. Are you trying to tell me Bruce Willis somehow has more status than Johnny Carson? No, but I would say, and I'm not just being humble, that you can't compare me to Johnny Carson and to David but I would say, and I'm not just being humble, that you can't
Starting point is 00:55:45 compare me to Johnny Carson and to David Letterman. These people have just a tremendous amount of mystique and their popularity and their viewership and what they pioneered. What they did are things we're just repeating. You've just walked me perfectly into a trap I've set for you. Oh, okay. Go ahead. My assumption was yes. When we think of David Letterman, I mean, he's not even here. Your interview with him was maybe the best interview I've ever heard with him. I told you, maybe. I fucking cried when I read that response. I mean, if you're going to hit a home run, that's the game seven. Might've been the best moment of my life. Getting the text is the best moment, not the interview. Yes, truly, truly.
Starting point is 00:56:26 Getting the validation. I was very confused after the interview. We both know that Dave can't hear it. I'm sure you've had the opportunity to tell him. Yes. I mean, the man literally changed the direction of your life. Yes. You're a kid watching it obsessively and drawing pictures of him in school.
Starting point is 00:56:41 Your life was singularly focused at becoming him. Not becoming him, but just wanting to absorb every bit of him. Idolizing. Yeah. And just bask in the rays of his genius. That's how I feel with your enemy. Yeah, but there's a sexual component there, isn't there? Well, sure.
Starting point is 00:56:57 Yeah, of course. You'd hook up with Letterman if he was a dying wish. He wanted to. Yeah, a dying wish. if he was a dying wish? He wanted to. Dying wish. When I see people try to tell Dave how important he is to them,
Starting point is 00:57:10 I can also see that he can't internalize that. And maybe no human can. And my hunch is, and I regret not asking him this, is I bet he doesn't think he ever became Carson. I think he's been very clear about that, but I disagree. Nothing against Shia LaBeouf. He's great, but David Letterman was playing a different sport. That happened to be my favorite sport that he was playing. So Dave, I think, built on what
Starting point is 00:57:38 Johnny was doing and put a pin in a lot of what Johnny was doing in a way that I think changed American humor more than any comedian of my lifetime. I say it's in concert with Bill Murray. Dave's approach was adopted by all of us. None of us can act like Bill Murray. I mean, Bill Murray is genuinely a living art installation. Yeah, yeah. He's a Picasso human. I mean, like, if you decided, like, I'm going to be more like Bill Murray, you'd be art installation. Yeah, yeah. He's a Picasso human.
Starting point is 00:58:05 I mean, if you decided I'm going to be more like Bill Murray, you'd be in jail. Yeah. For sure. Yeah, you'd be arrested immediately. The only person I know who's like Bill Murray is my cousin, Sal. Oh, really? They have very similar inclinations to do seemingly unantisocial things
Starting point is 00:58:24 in situations where you do not expect them at all. But Dave, I think, permeated the culture as far as what his humor was. And a lot of people just kind of adopted it, myself included. I think the fact that they were the only ones on made a big difference. I never thought of hosting a late night talk show
Starting point is 00:58:41 largely because there were no other late night talk shows. Right. When there was someone who came after them, of hosting a late night talk show largely because there were no other late night talk shows. When there was someone who came after them, it was a humiliating defeat. And they had been getting groomed for probably eight years in the 1230 time slot. Well, I'm talking about guys like Chevy Chase. The only late night talk shows were on NBC. That was it. There were only two shows of note on. Occasionally you'd have Alan Thicke or Rick Dees or somebody try to make a run or Pat Sajak or whatever, but it never ended. Well, and until Letterman, there was only one 1130 show, right?
Starting point is 00:59:14 Letterman going to CBS created a second. There was Tom Snyder, but it was a very different type of show. I used to watch it sometimes. I didn't know what I was watching. Yeah, yeah. It's very confusing, but I found his face mesmerizing. Oh, he was great. Yeah, yeah. It's like the mouth clacked in a very unique way. He's like the kind of guy that can't be on television anymore. Right, of course. Even though he was fantastic. Like we don't have room for that man anymore. No, no, no. Okay, Robbie, when did you start watching Kimmel? I started watching every night in high school. You were my letterman. Like it shaped a lot of my comedy. So sorry you didn't start watching Kimmel? I started watching every night in high school. You were my Letterman. Like it shaped a lot of my comedy. So sorry you didn't have a better life.
Starting point is 00:59:48 No, see, you'll never be able to take it, but it's real. No, when I talk to Rob about you, now look, I love you and we're best friends. I still hold Letterman in the same place you hold Letterman. But we're contemporaries in age so what is interesting and real and legitimate is like rob's love for you is the same as ours for dave rob did you draw pictures of me in high school he has a show him the tattoo rob come on i hope his old back was your face when this show came together rosenbaum called me and told me dax wants to do a show he's gonna have all these big guests signed he's gonna have kristin and kutcher and kimmel and that's Dex wants to do a show. He's going to have all these big guests signed. He's going to have Kristen and Kutcher and Kimmel. And that's why I wanted to do the show.
Starting point is 01:00:28 Not because it was a KKK thing. Well, he was a member of the Klu Klux Klan, but. But was that you were going to be a guest. That's very kind. I appreciate that. I don't take it lightly. But you can't take it, right? It's not that I can't take it. This is what I want to explore. I can take that and I appreciate it and I validate it. If you're putting me in a situation where you're comparing me to David Letterman or Johnny Carson, I'm just going to reject it. And I'm not rejecting it for the same reason Dave's rejecting the Johnny Carson comparison. I'm rejecting it because it's just invalid. Well, times are different. I'm proposing something.
Starting point is 01:01:00 This is what I'm proposing, is that it's just generational. It is, but it's not in this case. You feel very valid in the point you're making, right? I mean, you feel like you're on terra firma. But come on. No, but listen. I'm never giving in on this. No, I get it.
Starting point is 01:01:16 I think when you're in high school, that's when things mean the most to you. You are a dry sponge waiting to be filled up, whether it's music or whatever it is. You're trying to define yourself and you're looking around. And then if you see that someone you think has the same spirit as you, but you haven't figured out how to express it, it's just like a roadmap. It's so important. For me, Dave represented a lot of things. He felt punk rock to me. He felt like an outcast, but was still handsome and people liked him. It felt like, oh yeah, I can be handsome and people liked him. It felt like, oh yeah, I can be different yet be in the mainstream. There was something so encouraging
Starting point is 01:01:49 about it. It was like he snuck in somehow. Yes, there was a big mix up. He looks like them, but he's really like us. That's right. He's a little alien or something. It's hard to explain. I think it's okay that you can't feel it. I actually think it's a testament to you being humble and kind, which you are, but this is very actually think it's a testament to you being humble and kind, which you are. But it's very hard for a lot of people to believe. But a lot of younger generation, they don't know Letterman. No, I understand. And they know you. They watch the clips all the time. Everything you're thinking that Letterman did, and I remember too, and the pencils in the ceiling and bringing people from the stable onto the show and all these
Starting point is 01:02:24 revolutionary things he did. The fucking Matt Damon videos, those hadn't been done. That's just as important and relevant to anyone. Well, the Monica, for sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, I'm fucking Matt Damon became your mantra. My theme song. She committed her whole life to that.
Starting point is 01:02:37 Speaking of that moment, I know this is behind the curtain, and you probably don't want to- Accept this. Well, no, he doesn't want to say he was supporting his enemy we talked about this on the show i saw this in real life i was at the air premiere you were at the air premiere you wing manned me which was so kind and lovely and nice and i left and i was like what did i just do because i was kind of looking at him and i was with my friend molly and she was like you gotta go say something to him and I was like absolutely not I won't and I was like oh my god Jimmy's here and I just ran straight over
Starting point is 01:03:13 to you as if we were best friends which we aren't well but you are yes yet now we are when Molly and I run off together yeah exactly but halfway through me talking to you and you were being so nice and kind i was like i'm so rude everyone here wants to talk to jimmy and i just ran up as if i'm entitled to this conversation no it's not rude because first of all i got to talk to somebody and secondly you were one of the few people i knew there. So you always like to grab on to somebody that you know. And then about halfway through the conversation, I went, oh, right. I was like, oh, wait a minute. I just realized something.
Starting point is 01:03:53 Something very important. And then Matt was in like a roped off circle or whatever. And I was like, Matt! Matt! I had to scream at him like 11 times. That's so awful. And then he's like, what the what? And I was like, what?
Starting point is 01:04:06 And of course he recognized you and remembered you. So there you go. But it was very nice of you and you're extremely generous. And I wanted to say thank you for that. Well, my pleasure. Stay tuned for more Armchair Expert. If you dare. A fresh voice can speak to you If you dare.
Starting point is 01:04:33 A fresh voice can speak to you and open your ears and your mind to new views and new perspectives. The call of the wild, a crescendo of culture. Listen as a chorus of fresh voices moves you, taking you to greater heights, add your voice to the mix and let fresh answer back with perfect harmony in pure Michigan. Keep it fresh at Michigan.org. Order up for Damien. Hey, how did your doctor's appointment go, by the way? Did you ask about Rebelsis?
Starting point is 01:05:02 Actually, I'm seeing my doctor later today. Did you say Rebelsis? My dad's been talking about Rebelsis. Rebelsis? Really? Yeah, he says it's a pill that's... Well, I'll definitely be asking my doctor if Rebelsis is right for me. Rebelsis. Ask your doctor or visit Rebelsis.ca.
Starting point is 01:05:23 Order up for Rebelsis. This episode Order up for Rebelsys. This episode is brought to you by Secret. Secret deodorant gives you 72 hours of clinically proven odor protection free of aluminum, parabens, dyes, talc, and baking soda. It's made with pH-balancing minerals and crafted with skin-conditioning oils. So whether you're going for a run or just running late, do what life throws your way and smell like you didn't. Find Secret at your nearest Walmart or Shoppers Drug Mart today. Do you know what I'm saying, though, that you want it for Dave, that you want Dave to be able to internalize it?
Starting point is 01:06:08 Do you feel that same frustration I do? I want him to know he's a god. Yeah, I do. But I think if you tell him enough times, it'll get him. And I feel like I've beaten him into submission. Well, that's what our job is here for you. It's an intervention, really. I really do.
Starting point is 01:06:24 I feel like I finally beat him into submission where he goes, okay, this person is fragile. And obviously, I mean a lot to him. And he's kind enough. If I don't take this. And he's kind enough. He knows how devastating it would be. I went into that show the first time I did it. I went into that show the first time I did it. I went into that show so
Starting point is 01:06:46 scared, first of all, because I wanted Dave to think I was funny, but also because that's how I judge celebrities by whether Dave seemed to like them or not. And I had this thought that if Dave thinks I'm a dick, then I am a dick. It's identity. You trust his judgment. I was waiting to be branded. How about that moment, because I know you had it, when you know Dave so well, and you see a certain look on his face mid-interview, and you go, oh my God, he likes me? Did you have that moment?
Starting point is 01:07:16 My soul left my body. They actually, yesterday, posted an old video on the Letterman YouTube channel. For me, that's where I will disappear. I think it was maybe my second or third appearance on the show. And, you know, I'm just a kid talking about my family. I come out. Dave had just been bitten on the face by a dog during Stupid Pet Tricks.
Starting point is 01:07:37 He was bleeding. Oh, boy. Oh, boy. He continues with the show. He really, like, didn't slow down for a second. I come out, and this had just happened. Now he's got to host the rest of the show. He really didn't slow down for a second. I come out and this had just happened. Now he's got to host the rest of the show. And I came out and I said, I'm going to tell you right
Starting point is 01:07:50 now, I won't rest until that animal is destroyed. Destroyed. Which is a weird way to start a segment. I love that. Oh my God. Oh, we have to give Jimmy another thank you because we just haven't seen you in so long. What? You had me on your show.
Starting point is 01:08:06 Oh yeah, that's right. That was fun. It's like when people went on Letterman and it was a huge, it's a life changing. No, it's nothing like that. It is like that. You must hear it. Monica, on my show, your feet touched the ground
Starting point is 01:08:17 when you sat in the chair. On this show. They sure don't. Yeah. But you were so nice. You're just the best. Well, it was fun having you on. Okay. I don't know if I've ever brought this up, but the best. Wow. It was fun having you on. Okay.
Starting point is 01:08:25 I don't know if I've ever brought this up, but I was so excited when I was reading about you today. The notion that you were at ASU, I guess, in what year, like 89? I was there from 86 through 89. Bingo. So you must have eaten at Flaky Jake's across the street. Of course. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:08:43 Boy, I haven't heard those words in a long time. It comes up. Jimmy, is there ever- Greasy Tony's at Flaky Jake's across the street. Of course, yeah. Boy, I haven't heard those words in a long time. It comes up. Jimmy, is there ever- Greasy Tony's, Flaky Jake's, the Chuck Box. These are my spots. Harry Mary's. Flaky Jake's, what a spot, huh? Yeah, how do you know Flaky Jake's?
Starting point is 01:08:57 So I had a stepdad. One of my stepdads was an engineer at General Motors. And in the wintertime, they would go to the GM Proving Grounds in Mesa. And so he'd be there for the whole winter. My mom would be with his kids at home and all of us, but we would go out there for a week or two every year. And all we cared about was we want to go to Flaky Jake's every single day that we're there. Cause I had never seen a condiment bar like that. Yeah. That was before Fuddruckers. Yeah. I think it was early Fuddruckers. I think Fuddruckers ripped off Flaky Jakes. I think so.
Starting point is 01:09:25 It may even be the same company because they were so similar. Also, good names too. Yeah. Fuddruckers. But Fuddruckers stood the test of time and Flaky Jakes is no more. Should we try to find out if that brand exists in a bankruptcy court somewhere? It'd be fun, yeah.
Starting point is 01:09:42 Flaky Jakes. It's a great nickname for one of our friends, too. We got to figure out which Jake to tap or... Of course. He'll have to get rid of some of his other great nicknames. But if he ever ran against Trump, he'd be called Flaky Jake. Yeah, right. That brings me to another question, because you must think about this.
Starting point is 01:09:58 Would you interview Trump on the show? Now, yes, I would. I've thought about it a lot. I bet. I just have so many things I'd like to say to him and ask him. I want to interview him too. And I think people would be really mad if I did. But I want to hear what you think you could get.
Starting point is 01:10:12 But you said you didn't want him to be interviewed anymore. You didn't want people to like get that wrapped up. I don't want CNN to be showing a bunch of stuff of him and get him elected again. Yeah. But then why do we get to do it? I don't know. I have a problem with the just not talking as a solution. And I also think that tradition is important.
Starting point is 01:10:32 And I think when somebody is a real possibility that they're going to be the president of the United States, that they get interviewed, you know, whether it be CNN or whatever. I mean, for the same reason, I think Fox News, if they were a real news organization, would be devoting more time to the other side. But I just feel like the only way to communicate is to communicate, you know? Yeah, for sure. Doesn't mean I would be nice to them. I certainly wouldn't. And we wouldn't joke around like we did before we knew what was to come. But in your mind, when you think of that interview,
Starting point is 01:11:05 what is it you think that you could accomplish? Because I have a whole fantasy about. I think maybe the first thing I'd start with was one of the things you talked about was bringing in only the best people. Let's go through a list of all the best people you brought in who now say you are a criminal and are unfit to be president. We can do a speed round. I'll go through the names.
Starting point is 01:11:25 Let's start with Bill Barr, your former attorney general. Now let's go to Mike Pence. Just go through. Because to me, that alone is a disqualifier. If you had a boss who hired 30 people out of Flaky Jake's and then fired them all or they quit and they all were, in his opinion, crazy, okay, then what kind of a decision maker are you?
Starting point is 01:11:46 He doesn't seem to have any relationships that have lasted more than six or seven years. It's crazy. My arrogant fantasy. So yours is going to be a blast session. It's going to be combative. I would love to see that. I would too. It'd be very entertaining.
Starting point is 01:11:58 I hope it happens. I have a more of an arrogant, lofty thought, which is I don't think I want to spend any time debating him about anything. I don't want him on the defensive or in that attack mode that he's so great at being a bully. I need to answer the question, is he in on the joke or not? On which joke? The one he's playing on a country? Just the whole thing. There's so many moments where I was like, is he in on it? Does he just know that his fuel is angering the left? And does he mean any of it? Trying to figure out what he means and what he doesn't is a great curiosity of mine. I think he's like a gorilla pushing buttons. And sometimes he learns
Starting point is 01:12:35 that if he pushes a certain button, he gets a reaction that he likes and he goes right back to that button. I agree. But how much of his opinions do you think are sincere opinions? Are you even curious about that? None of them. You've already decided. I don't know. I think that he's a spinner.
Starting point is 01:12:50 That's his mindset is to spin. He would do it, well, before he's president, like his hotel is the most popular hotel in the world. His this, his water,
Starting point is 01:12:58 his purest drinking water. Meanwhile, they're just putting a sticker with his name on it under some whatever Rite Aid water. And I don't think he means anything that he says. I think everything is spin.
Starting point is 01:13:11 Yeah. I agree. I have some delusional fantasy I could somehow, or at least attempt to meet the real person. That probably would never happen. But that is why I would want to do it. I wonder if I can have a single real moment with this dude. I think the real person would be very disappointed. I think you just meet a horny, lonely egomaniac who was not treated very well by his parents.
Starting point is 01:13:33 Well, interestingly enough, we just had this great guest, Gabor Mate. He's like an addiction specialist. Specialist and a physician. He's much older and he's written a couple of beautiful books. And he has a chapter in his new book paralleling Trump and Hillary. He's like older and he's written a couple of beautiful books. And he has a chapter in his new book, Paralleling Trump and Hillary. He's like, a lot of people would say those two people are the opposite. But if you look really closely, both had the exact same home circumstances where vulnerability was not an option. You had to hide any fear, hide any pain, all these great examples. And he said, the result of which is you have Hillary that's so afraid to be vulnerable that she has pneumonia, can't tell anyone and collapses, almost dies from this inability to be vulnerable. And when you position it that way, it's kind of a compelling
Starting point is 01:14:16 observation. It's hard to say though, because we really don't know Hillary and we don't like Trump. That's why it's hard. Yeah. But one of them seems to be trying to improve the world. Yeah. And the other one tries to improve his standing in the world. And he doesn't even care about the people who've been most loyal to him. He has no concern for any of those people. So I'm of that same opinion as you are, but I also can recognize and believe they're sincere in that the other side thinks the same thing about Hillary, right?
Starting point is 01:14:46 Well, the other side thinks Hillary Clinton is sucking the blood of babies. Adrenochrome. In a pizza parlor in Washington, D.C., which is like, if you wrote it in a book, you'd go, well, this is ridiculous. And it seems to be their go-to now if they can't figure out something to pin on somebody like pedophile. My God, do you know what I just learned? You maybe already know this. Whatever this movie was that just came out that's got the Christian right. It's a child trafficking story.
Starting point is 01:15:12 Yeah, I saw a preview for it. Caviezel's in it. Just for starters, Caviezel was a guest speaker at a QAnon rally. Like, that's the lead of it. It's produced by a guy. And it's led to all this mobilization about cracking down on child trafficking. The producer of the film was arrested. No.
Starting point is 01:15:30 Yep. Well, of course, he's going to say the government is out to get him. I got to add the word alleged. But yes, of course. How is that? I've not heard that. Some asshole made what they call the Epstein flight list, and they put on a bunch of names, including mine and Stephen Colbert's. Oh, you guys.
Starting point is 01:15:48 Yeah. Somebody just wrote a thing and now all these fucking imbeciles and maniacs think I was on Epstein's Island. Oh my God. Brave Island. How was it? Yeah, what was it like?
Starting point is 01:16:01 How were the amenities? Well, I mean, it's a beautiful. You can't say anything bad about the property. You know, I'm actually even fearful to joke about it because they're so crazy. And threatening. I don't think I was even famous. There's no way about Jeffrey Epstein until he was in the news. Right.
Starting point is 01:16:16 I mean, it's bananas. Also, people didn't know. You could have been on his plane. I wasn't. Let's be very clear that Jimmy Kimmel is not on the plane. But I think Bill Gates was on his plane before. Right. I'm sure they had a relationship.
Starting point is 01:16:30 But that to me, like I've hung out. Someone was just sentenced yesterday who I've hung out with. I don't know what everyone's up to. You really don't know people. Half the time you don't know the people you're married to. Well, what I will say is that regardless of what some asshole, and I'd love to know where it came from. Like who was the person that said, oh, I have an idea.
Starting point is 01:16:47 I'll put a bunch of people who Trump doesn't like. And by the way, Trump's dancing with Pepsi. Literally, I know. There are pictures of them hanging out. There's a video of them grooving with playmates. And yet somehow I get put on this list and all these dangerous nut jobs react to it. It's frightening. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:17:04 Okay, last thing, Yacht Rock. Yeah. So you made me a beautiful playlist. I did. It's such a good playlist. You've pulled in some things that don't have necessarily the DNA of it, but it does. I don't think of that as a Yacht Rock mix. That's my Dax mix is what it's called. Okay. Right. Yacht Rock is a very limited genre. Sadly, yes. Too limited. They put weird songs like key largo by birdie higgins in there it's like and this doesn't it's got to be a little jazzy well and they'll also put a little embarrassing 80s tvs theme songs that is not yacht rock except for maybe the greatest american hero theme that's a very good one yeah believe it or not oh yeah
Starting point is 01:17:40 i guess mash isn't in there but that's a nice song and so is taxi that tax is great those are instrumentals who's the taxi theme song the taxi theme song i did know this me too rob can look it up bob james i didn't know that angela or angela wait angela james or angela either angela or by bob james oh that's the name of the song i was just mulling over do you have a theory on why we like that music so much? Because I have one. I won't bore you with me making one up, but let me hear yours. That music was put on when my mom or dad was in a good mood.
Starting point is 01:18:15 Oh. My dad never flew off the handle in a drunken rage and then put Kenny Loggins on. That would have been psychopathic. It's like my mom was vacuuming with Fleetwood Mac, and then he was listening to Kenny Loggins in the afternoon when the first beers were starting. Yeah. It's just interwoven perfectly with when my parents were in a very happy mood.
Starting point is 01:18:34 I think there's something to that, for sure, yeah. My parents only had like seven albums, and in a weird way, once I hit high school, I started to dictate what they listened to. Okay. But I love Michael McDonald. I love Al Jarreau and George Benson. We love Al Jarreau.
Starting point is 01:18:51 To me, that was the one where I was like, okay, we're in the same team here. A lot of people like McDonald's and Doobie Brothers, but if you're into Al Jarreau. Al Jarreau is the dividing line between me and my wife. She is just like, what is this that you are listening to? I made Kristen go with me to Disney Music Hall to see Al Jarreau about 10 years ago. Have you ever seen him live? Yes, I have. And I had him on the show, too.
Starting point is 01:19:16 Oh, you did? He was like a little Muppet, like a little Kermit the Frog out there. He was so tiny. He's got a little Joe Cocker going, too, physically. But then he starts scatting. It's everything you want it to be. It is. Yeah. Wait, just because you brought up parents, I was thinking back to our last interview. You're close with your parents? I am, yes. My parents are great parents. My mother was a great mother. My father and I really didn't talk until I was 20
Starting point is 01:19:41 something, I think. Right. He was very busy with work. But we're very close now, and he keeps me updated with 7,000-word texts about his knee. You know, that kind of thing. How's his knee? Pretty bad. You know what? That's too long a question. I would love for you to read that right now.
Starting point is 01:20:00 You know what? Yeah, let's see what that sounds like. Hold on a second, because I will also just show you the length. There's no shortage on detail. Okay, so. He's like writing an instructional manual for something. No, you guys had a great time. Probably happy to be home with the kids. We had a great time with them.
Starting point is 01:20:15 Next year, we'd like to take them to SeaWorld. Then hit Legoland on the way back. Billy reminded me we have to stay over since rides first day and big water park there second day. Smiley face. I heard you guys are going to san jose monday so am i helping carson move in his grandson into apartment carson julian came last night from arizona with the acadia full of stuff mom and i loaded the buick with carson stuff from room and other things he can use for apartment we had in storage they are driving today this is my nephew and his girlfriend to San Luis Obispo and renting U-Haul and loading stuff from his rental house.
Starting point is 01:20:50 I leave 6 a.m. tomorrow, meet them in San Luis Obispo, and finish loading up if they haven't, then driving up to San Jose and start unload. We'll finish Tuesday a.m., and then I drive back home. Love, Dad. Oh, love, Dad. Took three sips of water and 16 steps drive back home. Love, Dad. Love, Dad. Took three sips of water and 16 steps to the bathroom. Oh, my God.
Starting point is 01:21:08 The make of every car. I love that. Everything's like, that sounds like a letter from the 80s because he wants to go to SeaWorld, which I don't think people went to anymore. He's driving a Buick. I mean, if he stopped at Chuck E. Cheese, that would be like the trifecta.
Starting point is 01:21:23 Oh, Dad. Gotta love Dad. Give him my number. at Chuck E. Cheese, that would be like the trifecta. Oh, dads. Gotta love dads. Give him my number. I think I would love to receive these. You would, to a point? Yeah. It'd be funny for a while, and then I'd regret it.
Starting point is 01:21:35 But then I'd come back. I wonder if I searched MRI how many times my dad comes up. Let's have a look. Let's see. MRI. I had hairline fracture of bone above right big toe right before friend's family lodge trip. Got cortisone shot in it. That helped pain that weekend. But it did put a lot of pressure on it.
Starting point is 01:21:53 Six days standing up fishing and banged it a few times in rough water. Went to orthodontist today and fracture widened. Have MRI Tuesday and another shot before leaving Wednesday for New York. How do I respond to this? He needs to write a book. He has the work ethic. It takes a while to write a text that long. He's got the time.
Starting point is 01:22:15 Well, the last thing I want to do is just thank you in person. I think I have in the past, but the fact that you and Kristen and Ashton did our show and launched this and really were such a huge part of making all this happen. Thanks for asking me back. I hope it's not another five years. No. I told Molly I was doing the show.
Starting point is 01:22:30 She goes, you are? Like she was mad that she wasn't on the show. By the way, I do want to have her on the show. Yeah, we should have Molly on. I was like, yeah, I am. And she goes, but he already had you on. Well, if she's a fan of the show. She knows we've had Sedaris like five times.
Starting point is 01:22:43 That's fair. She's owed a spot on that couch, and she will get one. Well, Molly, this might be the only episode she skips, but if she's listening, I love you. I'll meet you at 2 a.m. behind where you put the trash cans. Wearing gloves, socks, and underwear. I'll be ready for anyone who comes at us, maybe, as long as it's before I fall asleep. That was fun. Congratulations on the show.
Starting point is 01:23:08 It's excellent, and I'm glad you guys started doing it. It's hard to do a podcast. I didn't realize how much stuff goes into it until we decided to do this limited run. I've said this to you in the past. Afterwards, I'm like, that sounds so silly coming from me like he would want a podcast. But the fact that you did radio for so long, it's so fun, isn't it? Just the microphone and the headphones. It is.
Starting point is 01:23:29 Don't you miss it? You know, I obsess and I just don't have enough hours in the day to think about both shows. Yeah, it's just too much. Yeah, that's a lot. But it's easy when you have four guys that are funny. I was thinking of it way more when you were saying you were going to retire. Right. Because then I was like, well, that's the perfect amount of work. You could go and do it twice a week. Yeah. I did radio forever. How did you meet the purpose of retiring? I have
Starting point is 01:23:53 a lot of respect for it. And I would not do it if I didn't feel I had an idea that was different, because I don't think I could do this better than you do it. You do such a great job. I go, because I don't think I could do this better than you do it. You do such a great job. I go, okay, well, that's covered. But if I thought of some angle, something different that suited me, I would consider it. And then this happened, and it seemed like the perfect deal. I guess, though, you've gotten to live out your Letterman fantasy
Starting point is 01:24:18 to some degree, for sure. Now I should live out my Dax fantasy? No, your Howard fantasy, which I know you were already on radio. So tell me you didn't do that. My Howard fantasy is rooted in reality. And I know that Howard, when he's working, he is just obsessed with it. And that's just how I am. You don't think you could do it casually?
Starting point is 01:24:37 Yeah. Everything you watch on TV, you're making notes. I can see you having a stable of people that you're fucking with and instigating endless drama, which is the thing that I like most about this show. I think I've learned not to make any long-term decisions anymore. Take a day by day. In the meantime, this one's fun to do. I got a few friends who have some very funny podcasts. Yours and the Smartless guys.
Starting point is 01:24:59 I feel like I get enough. Okay. Well, everyone should listen to Strike Force 5. It's for a great cause. You're helping keep the people that work on all these shows you love from having to move out of their houses or beg for food. So it's a very cool endeavor. Matt and Ben. tried to... They tried. They wanted to pay our staff. And it actually got kind of like aggressive. They weren't taking no for an answer. Have you not allowed that to happen?
Starting point is 01:25:32 For them, no, I did not allow it to happen. You didn't allow it to happen? Wait, really? I felt it was my responsibility, not theirs. On that topic, last thing, sorry. It just crossed my mind. How much would it kill you for me to pay for dinner if we were out
Starting point is 01:25:45 it wouldn't bother me because i know you have money but one of my terrible nightmares is somebody sitting at a dinner like i have a friend who's a math teacher who's sitting there going oh shit am i gonna have to pay for this because i've been that guy yeah you were gonna go on vacation but instead you fucking picked up this dinner yeah it, exactly. It changes your life. Yeah. My fucking mom, she was visiting last week and she's like, I want to take everyone to Houston's. And I'm like, yeah, well, let's go to Houston's. And we get there. And then I like slide the credit card.
Starting point is 01:26:14 She's like, did you pay? I'm like, yes, I paid. Sometimes you just have to let people do it though. I'm on that side too. Yeah. You don't want to emasculate like your father or something. I'm okay with letting people do it if they're insistent, but I don't want anyone to think when I make them go to a restaurant and I sit there and order the whole left side of
Starting point is 01:26:36 the menu that they're going to get stuck with the check. I want to try this Wagyu. Bring the platter. I'm going to get a couple bites. Can we have the steak as an appetizer? Right, right. Yeah. Wagyu. Bring the platter. I'm going to get a couple bites. Can we have the steak as an appetizer? Right. Yeah. Yeah, it gets complicated though, because you also don't want them to have an expectation.
Starting point is 01:26:52 Or maybe you do. Maybe you don't care. If somebody really wants to pay, they can easily figure it out by hitting the guy the week before. If they're going out with you, they need to be the week before, I think. That's true. That's true. That's the most generous person I know. All right, Jimmy, I adore you.
Starting point is 01:27:08 I love you. Thanks for coming. Love you, too. And I'm going to be on your show as soon as you're back. They just asked me, and I said, absolutely. Good. Hopefully, we're coming back. Yeah, yeah.
Starting point is 01:27:15 We will. Fingers crossed. And I'll be there. This is all over soon. Yeah. All right. Be well. See you soon.
Starting point is 01:27:20 Thanks. Stay tuned for the fact check so you can hear all the facts that were wrong. How did you do? I did good. You did? Yeah. You didn't drink yesterday? No. Good job. Thanks. Good job not that you shouldn't drink. You had the goal of not drinking and you achieved it, so that's the good job. I did have goal yeah and i did didn't lessen the enjoyment of your night it was hard at first when other people were pouring glasses of wine i don't even know if it was because of that i wanted it while i was cooking that was hard yeah it's just the
Starting point is 01:27:59 environment uh-huh like the girls Social. We always do that. We always drink wine. It's always nice. But it was fine. I heard it was very fun. And I heard the meal was delicious through the grapevine. I was happy with it. It was a salmon. Uh-huh. How's the place smell? I think fine. The test will be when I go in today. I'm going to go smell it. Yeah, go give it a whirl. Yeah, I'm going to see what's happening there. today. I'm going to go smell it. I'm going to see what's happening there. And I'm going to
Starting point is 01:28:27 check every corner too. Not fish, but there is something over here. That's what's going to be. Nope, we have something. No, it's not fish. Did you drop a caramel here? I'd love that. I'd love to know all the
Starting point is 01:28:43 nooks and crannies. The hidden sniffs. Yeah. And then I made a cucumber salad. How was that? Cucumber smash salad. Great. These are both Alice and Romans. Did you get cucumbers from our garden? Because we have far too many cucumbers. I did not, but that would have been smart. We're drowning in cucumbers. Yeah, you have a good garden going right now. I almost said swimming in cucumbers, but truly we're drowning in cucumbers. Yeah, you have a good garden going right now. I almost said swimming in cucumbers, but truly we're drowning in them. We're not swimming. They have the upper hand, the cukes. Well, maybe you could make the salad and use some up.
Starting point is 01:29:12 They're very good. And I also made some potatoes. It was yummy. It was fine. Yeah, I like girls' nights. Tell me about girl summer. Girl summer. What is girl?
Starting point is 01:29:24 No, Girl Dinner. Oh, Girl Dinner. Yeah. We do a whole thing on Synced about Girl Dinner. Oh, you do? Just give me the Reader's Digest of what it is. There's a couple terms I've heard recently, and that's one of them. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:29:35 I think it started on TikTok. They show an egg and then some pieces of bell pepper. And it's just a weird mix of food that they're calling girl dinner. Okay. Which is like when girls just like kind of grab things out of the fridge and just stand and eat their dinner. Okay. That could also be called stoner dinner maybe. True.
Starting point is 01:29:57 Although I think this would be more. It's not like chips. Okay. It's not macaroni and cheese and a hot dog. It could be. It could be like a small bite of mac and cheese, like the leftover off somebody's plate. And I also, I poked holes in this because I didn't understand. I was like, girls don't eat as much.
Starting point is 01:30:17 I guess it's more girls just want to have fun. Well, they do want to have fun. Yeah, yeah. They kind of eat scraps or if they don't have anyone to make anything for. I think that was a piece that was a piece I pushed back pretty hard on,
Starting point is 01:30:32 as you can imagine. Sure, because you're making yourself like Michelin star dinners every night. Yeah, not every night, but enough nights. And then I said, you do that and you do it for yourself
Starting point is 01:30:42 and then you will throw stuff away. And just that's okay. That's what happens. That's what happens. But it's the cost benefit of you feeling like you deserve a full meal versus like a half of an egg and then a quarter of an avocado. No, we're better than that. This is a duck, duck, goose. Okay.
Starting point is 01:31:02 Because I took the girls to their first baseball game a couple nights ago since we last spoke. Right. Dodgers. And my sales pitch, because they've never been to a baseball game and we've never watched one on television. So the notion of like, hey, let's put some effort into this thing. Yeah. Also, I think it was like parent night at school, which I didn't even find out until after I got the tickets. So Delta was kind of like, she wanted to go to that.
Starting point is 01:31:23 And so there's no real appeal about the game. Now, my agency has the best seats at the baseball stadium. They have tickets in the dugout club. Holy smokes, is this the greatest place on earth? It reminds me so much of going to Duff's with my Papa Bob. You walk down these stairs and there are multiple buffet bars. Yeah. I feel like, did you go with someone recently? I feel like we talked about it. Okay, Nate. Okay.
Starting point is 01:31:49 Nate and I went. So I was telling the girls like, A, you're going to love baseball, but you don't know you're going to love it yet. But the food is going to knock your socks off. You'll be getting very little traction with the food because they're like, is there macaroni and cheese and pizza? I'm like, I don't know that there'll be that. I'm like, but there is a soft serve ice cream machine in there. And they were like, okay. Big sell. Yes, that got them interested enough.
Starting point is 01:32:09 We got there. Immediately, they like it, right? Going to Dodger Stadium, it's an institution. It's timeless. You walk in, everyone's happy. There's lights everywhere. It's gorgeous. Get downstairs.
Starting point is 01:32:21 They took a look at those bars. They were so excited. And they made their plates. and they chowed down and then they made multiple desserts. Then we go out and sit and watch baseball and there's multiple home runs. There's incredible double plays where they're like, whoa. Cause when someone,
Starting point is 01:32:39 I don't want, I'm not crazy into baseball, right? Yeah. But I look on your face. I don't, it doesn't seem like you are either. I love baseball games, but yes, agreed.
Starting point is 01:32:47 I don't follow it. Right. You think of conventionally the home run being the exciting thing. I would argue the double play. Okay. When someone, the shortstop dove, no way he's going to get this. He's sliding. Boom.
Starting point is 01:33:00 He catches it from his side. He turns, nails second. And then that guy nails first. The girls, we were all going bananas. And then also when there's home runs, they're doing light show. Linky was screaming, clapping. It was so fun.
Starting point is 01:33:17 That's awesome. What else did I want to tell you? Oh, Neil came up. My brother? Of course, Neil Padman. Why? Because of Mookie Beats beats your brother's code name which is based on mookie bets who now plays for the dodgers his is jukey bets isn't it a nod though
Starting point is 01:33:35 it is i think which i found out much later via another friend of mine i never knew but i think it's it has to be connected to mook. Mookie Betts. Yes. Okay. And he's Juki Beats? I think. Fuck. I hope there's a connection because I made a big meal out of it. And if I'm wrong. There is.
Starting point is 01:33:53 But yeah. Well, he's on our team now. And he's sensational. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Well, that's exciting. What I also love about these baseball games is they have the nicest asses and legs in those baseball pants.
Starting point is 01:34:08 Not everyone, but some of the guys that step up to that plate, they are filling them out. They're like taut. They do have good butts. Even there's a few white guys with really nice haunches. Okay, great. We just don't see that very often. Well. You know, it's not one of our selling points for the most part.
Starting point is 01:34:26 depends. There are some exceptions. Weekly has tons of ass and knows how to use it as well. Well, poops a lot. Well,
Starting point is 01:34:34 that's fun. I love a baseball game. It was a kind of a big treat because it was a school night and the game doesn't start until seven. We go up to bed
Starting point is 01:34:43 at 730. Right. Clearly, we're not going to make that. so fun. Did you stay for the whole game? No, can't do that. They would have gone to bed at 11 o'clock. We want to be honest. I'm too frugal in that. I probably, if I, if my agency didn't have these WME, didn't have these tickets. I've been there for 21 years. I had a break where I was at CAA for seven years and then came back. They've always had those seats. And I got invited one time by an agent and i would have never gone and just bought tickets in the dugout club on my own because i don't know how fun it is and i wouldn't spend the money so the fact that i've gotten to do it so much i'm just so grateful for spend the money
Starting point is 01:35:21 because now you know it's fun i would now now. Now I would. Yes. Absolutely. It's one of the only venues here that is close to us. We live close by. Yes. Which is nice. Yes. Most of the things we have to go downtown or have to go to Santa Monica or Englewood. Is that where SoFi is?
Starting point is 01:35:43 Yeah. Yeah. I like to go to Englewood though Is that where SoFi is? Yeah. Yeah. I like to go to Englewood, though. So annoying. I mean, like, getting in and out of that concert is awful. I'm wondering if you took one of the lines there, the Metro lines, if it would be easy. Because, yeah, it's not very easy to get there.
Starting point is 01:36:01 But I do wonder if you took the lines, I think, to go directly there. I don't know. We can take it to the Chargers-Bears game. Yeah, Wobby and Wob and I, we're going to go if they can get us tickets. Okay, so this is for Kimmel. Jim's Kimmel's. And he talked for a second about the JFK conspiracy.
Starting point is 01:36:22 Which we've done a whole episode on, on Armchair and Dangerous. We did, but he knew some stuff that we couldn't say what he knew or what he had heard. But then since we recorded that episode, something came out of the New York Times. I don't know if you saw this, but Paul Landis, one of the Secret Service agents, he was only a few feet away from Kennedy when he was shot. He's telling his story in full for the first time. And it says his account differs from the official version. But if he was right next to Kennedy and all of it's filmed, what could he know that we don't know?
Starting point is 01:36:59 We're seeing the same thing he saw. We have to read the thing. Oh, are you going to read it? Yeah, I can. Like Taylor's. I can read it. Telling a story in full for the first time in at least one key respect. His account differs from the official version in a way that may change the understanding of what happened in Dealey Plaza.
Starting point is 01:37:20 All these words are just popping into my head right now. Like book exchange, grassy knoll. All these like little words that are cemented into that event. Oh, right. You know? Yeah. He says he has never subscribed to the conspiracy theories and stresses that he is not promoting one now. He's 88.
Starting point is 01:37:40 He said all he wants is to tell what he saw and what he did. He'll leave it to everyone else to draw conclusions. When it comes down to its copper jacketed 6.5 millimeter projectile, the Warren Commission decided that one of the bullets fired that day struck the president from behind, exited from the front of his throat and continued on to hit Mr. Conley, somehow managing to injure his back, chest, wrist and thigh. It seemed incredible that one single bullet could do all that, so skeptics called it the magic bullet theory. Investigators came to that conclusion partly because the bullet was found on the stretcher believed to have held Mr. Connolly at Parkland Memorial Hospital, so they assumed it had exited his body during efforts to save his life. But Mr. Landis, who was never
Starting point is 01:38:23 interviewed by the Warren Commission, said that is not what happened. In fact, he said he was the one who found the bullet, and he found it not in the hospital near Mr. Connolly, but in the presidential limousine, lodged in the back of the seat where Kennedy was sitting. Oh, wow. When he spotted the bullet after the motorcade arrived at the hospital, he said he grabbed it to thwart souvenir hunters.
Starting point is 01:38:44 Then, for reasons that still seem fuzzy even to him, he said he entered the hospital and placed it next to Kennedy on the president's stretcher, assuming it could somehow help doctors figure out what happened. That makes sense. Also, you imagine all the remains of him and the clothing, all that's going to be cataloged. Yeah. Yeah, that's where I would put it. I might even put it in the dead president's hand. Cozy. At some point, he now guesses the stretchers must have been pushed together and the bullet was shaken from one to another. There was nobody there to secure the scene, and that was a big,
Starting point is 01:39:15 big bother to me, Mr. Landis said. All the agents that were there were focused on the president. A crowd was gathering. This was all going on so quickly, and I was just afraid that it was a piece of evidence that I realized right away, very important, and I didn't want it to disappear or get lost. So it was, Paul, you've got a decision, and I grabbed it. Mr. Landis theorizes that the bullet struck Kennedy in the back, but for some reason was undercharged and did not penetrate deeply, therefore popping back out before the president's body was removed from the limousine. back out before the president's body was removed from the limousine. That last part sounds very hard to imagine.
Starting point is 01:39:50 That it would come back out. With my understanding of physics. It basically bounced off of his back and then embedded itself in the seat. And then also Landis having a theory on it. Yeah. It's not a doctor. It's not a projectile expert. Mr. Landis has been reluctant to speculate on the larger implications.
Starting point is 01:40:06 He always believed that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman. But now at this point, I'm beginning to doubt myself. He said, now I begin to wonder that is as far as he's willing to go. Interesting. Yeah. I think what's, well,
Starting point is 01:40:20 I'm gonna flush this out before I propose it. Well, just right from the gut, it just always reminds me of our kind of asymmetric. Retelling? No, like he died. Right. What a tragedy. What a fucking tragedy. Seems like it was Lee Harvey Oswald.
Starting point is 01:40:38 If it wasn't him, what does that do to the situation that's really heartbreaking? I mean, I know people will go like, well, you got to find out if it's a foreign entity and blah blah blah you got to really know who it was so you can hold them accountable but i just think it's so unacceptable that a president we all loved or i wasn't alive but people loved could be taken out it's so scary it makes us think that well and that's the the premise of dan Carlin's whole thing about conspiracy theories. It scares us too much that one lone wolf can change history. Yeah. So what's more comforting is that there's a syndicate and a bunch of smart people and a big complex thing.
Starting point is 01:41:17 And it takes that to fuck up history. But really, some dipshit can fuck up history. Yeah, for sure. Two dipshits fucked up the last 100 years of history by killing Archduke Ferdinand. Changed the whole world. Gave rise to Hitler. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:41:33 And that's very unsettling. Yeah. You could go rogue and ripple. I wouldn't rule it out. If someone said one of your friends went rogue, you'd be on my list. Really? Sure.
Starting point is 01:41:44 You're powerful. You're intelligent. You're capable. You think I'd go rogue? I don't think your friends went rogue. You'd be on my list. Really? Sure. You're powerful. You're intelligent. You're capable. You think I'd go rogue? I don't think you'd go rogue. But if one of my friends went rogue. What does it mean to go rogue? We have to define it.
Starting point is 01:41:53 Like went on a killing spree? Well, just decided I fundamentally disagree with this to a level that I'm willing to give my life for it. Oh, my God. Conviction. Caring deeply about something. Sure. Could definitely be me. I have to imagine I'd be high on your list. Yeah, for sure. Definitely. That feels more noble. For me, the idea of going rogue is like going crazy a little bit or- I mean rogue in the sense that there is a system in place to
Starting point is 01:42:21 challenge the power. And if you had determined that system was never going to challenge the power that was ultimately going to destroy X amount of people. Yeah. If you decided to work outside of that established system, that'd be going rogue. Right. That's true. That is true. That's kind of the definition, I think, of going rogue.
Starting point is 01:42:38 I could see that about me, but I have a weird duality that I'm also like, I'm pretty compliant with authority and I don't really have issues when people tell me'm also like, I'm pretty compliant with authority. And I don't really have issues when people tell me to do something. I just kind of do it. Yeah. Well, if you went rogue, it'd probably be on some really sturdy foundation. Now, I could go rogue over something that would just trigger me probably, you know. Right.
Starting point is 01:42:59 Or I could go rogue over. The rogue. The rogue. The rogue. The rogue. That should be your label The Rogue The Rogue Yeah
Starting point is 01:43:08 That'd be cool Let's spell it R-O-W Yeah and then G-U-E Dash G-U-E The Rogue Keep it in my back pocket Great song Recommend it to everyone
Starting point is 01:43:20 Michigan band Wolfpack Oh Put it in my pocket In my pocket In my back pocket Put it in my pocket in my pocket in my back pocket put it in my pocket i feel like you sing that sometimes you love it oh yeah yeah that's nice okay he talked about that there's a fish when he goes fishing that some some people are
Starting point is 01:43:39 encouraged to to kill to kill yeah and that is the rainbow trout. And it reminded me again, New York Times, this is New York Times heavy. Just two days ago, there was a thing about the dwindling. Oh, I saw one about the dwindling brown trout in the LA Times since we talked to James. Oh my God. No, there's a bug in New York that they are telling everyone to kill if they see it. Oh. Which is so weird to see it in the New York Times. It's called the spotted lanternfly. Oh. Flies are hard to kill.
Starting point is 01:44:13 Yeah. Apparently, it's really invasive. My second stepdad taught me how to kill a fly. Okay. Teach us. And it works, but it's still hard. What is it? Like, you'll never swat with your hand at a fly and get it. Right.
Starting point is 01:44:26 What you have to do is cup your hands, spread them apart, cup them. Okay. And then get down where the fly's on a surface and then slowly move at it with both hands. Because they can't see. Well, no, because it has eyes on all around its head. And since the threat's coming in all direction, they don't know which way to fly and they get kind of paralyzed and then you can go bam at the last minute. Oh my God.
Starting point is 01:44:48 Yeah, my second step, that was really, really smart. Right. Yeah. But also- Among other things. Yeah, yeah. Ooh, that's weird. It sounds-
Starting point is 01:44:59 Psychopathic. Yeah. Even though, I mean, it's- If you aim to kill, you gotta know how to do it. Wow. Either don't be in the killing got to know how to do it. Wow. Either don't be in the killing business or know how to do it. I'm not really in the killing business with flies, but not because I am against killing them. I just don't really know how.
Starting point is 01:45:15 This isn't, I'm not doing this to be patronizing. Sincerely. Do you think people in PETA don't want you to kill flies? Probably. Probably? Yeah, I do. Mosquitoes? Do they draw the line at anything? I don't want you to kill flies? Probably. Probably? Yeah, I do. Mosquitoes? Do they draw the line at anything?
Starting point is 01:45:28 I don't think so. What about invasive species that kill other species? Well, what about this in the New York Times saying the lanternfly? Are they going to say that's bad? What if they protest? They might. They might. They invaded Pennsylvania first, and now they're taking up residency in New York.
Starting point is 01:45:45 Oh, wow. Yeah. Remember we were supposed to have killer bees? Yeah. I kind of never really. No, it didn't. I was like, whatever happened to that? Yeah.
Starting point is 01:45:53 But it says this critter can be very devastating to our ecosystem and agriculture here in the U.S. There was a great, you know, I'm not going to try to say what it was, but it was a very, This American Life or Radiolab, one of these really well done audio shows that was talking about, they have the technology with CRISPR to take mosquitoes, alter their DNA, and then send them back into the hive. And it'll basically make all of the mosquitoes neutered so they can never reproduce. Interesting. and it'll basically make all of the mosquitoes neutered so they can never reproduce. And there's all these really big ethical debates. And there's a lot of environmentalists that say that the mosquito doesn't really serve any purpose in the food chain, that it wouldn't cause any kind of collapse
Starting point is 01:46:36 and it causes so much destruction to other animals and humans and blah, blah, blah. And there was kind of a raging debate about whether ethically they could annihilate the mosquito if they had the technology, which it seems they do. Wow. So they don't provide anything in the food chain? Look, they probably made a point and a counterpoint.
Starting point is 01:46:55 The point I, of course, clung to was that they serve no poor. Look, I grew up in Michigan fucking swarmed by mosquitoes. They ruin your summer. You got dots all over your body. Okay, I'm going to read this. It's from the Smithsonian. Oh. By the way, this is obviously ding, ding, ding. I have, again, my body's covered in mosquito bites. Oh.
Starting point is 01:47:12 I have so many right now. So many. In the woods a lot? No, they are. I know they are. They're in my yard. I hate it. Yeah. I bought some zappers. Do they work?
Starting point is 01:47:22 I don't know. I don't know. I haven't plugged most of them in, so that's hard to know. Okay, well, then they probably don't work. And I'm really bad at, I can't not scratch. Yeah. And now I have all these scabs. Ooh. Okay, this one's Smithsonian. Okay, trusted brand.
Starting point is 01:47:37 We're trusted. While they can seem pointless and purely irritating to us humans, mosquitoes do play a substantial role in the ecosystem. Mosquitoes form an important source of biomass in the food chain, serving as food for fish as larvae and for birds, bats, and frogs as adult flies. And some species are important pollinators. Out of more than 3,500 mosquito species, only around 400 can transmit diseases like malaria and West Nile virus.
Starting point is 01:48:04 And most don't feed on humans at all. This was in Brazil, I think it was proposed. Somewhere in South America is where they were proposing this, where there's still a significant amount of malaria deaths. Yeah, I also don't even. I'm sorry. None of those things felt that real. Well, I just, if, you know, a little baby.
Starting point is 01:48:25 Birds can eat worms and stuff. They don't need to eat mosquitoes. There are a lot of insects. I'm sure they're competing. Yeah. I don't know. We'll get some hate mail. Someone loves mosquitoes.
Starting point is 01:48:34 Some mosquito expert. I mean, I'm sure, yeah, someone who's like devoted their life to it. But a regular person on earth, I wonder if anyone is like fine with mosquitoes. Right. Ambivalent. I guess though there is such a range in bites. Some people don't ever get bit. That's true.
Starting point is 01:48:53 That is very true. It has to do with your breathing. If your like breathing tempo is slow, that you don't get bit. That's what you've heard? No, I've heard it's the blood. I've heard it's how hot you are. Well, take that as a feather in your cap because you've been chewed to bits.
Starting point is 01:49:12 They want to suck your beauty out and make you all scabby. Adrenochrome. Oh, my God. They're the original QAnon. Yeah. They're the original liberals. No, they're the original liberals. Oh, yeah, you're right.
Starting point is 01:49:24 Only liberals are. Oh, they're the original liberals. Oh, yeah, you're right. Only liberals are. Oh, I made a statement, and I actually have the article to prove it now. Well, I was saying that movie Sound of Freedom that was driven exclusively by the right and Christians. Yeah, we didn't say the name of it. And so the name of the movie of the movie was yes and it's jim caviezel who was again a keynote speaker at a q anon rally right it's really relevant and then now the christ guy passion of the christ guy and now all these people are mobilized and of course the funder of the fucking thing is fabian marto one oh this is less i'm glad i'm i guess this is
Starting point is 01:50:03 ethical to read this one of thousands of patrons of the crowdfunding anti-child trafficking film, Sound of Freedom, was arrested and charged with accessory to kidnapping according to a Missouri court filing. The Class A felony carries a penalty of 10 to 30 years in prison. Since removed, Facebook posts appear to show the same person revealing their pride in funding the film. Marta's name appears in the movie credits among the investors who help bring Sound of Freedom to theaters. Sound of
Starting point is 01:50:30 Freedom dramatizes the story of anti-child sex trafficking organization Operation Underground Railroad and its founder Tim Ballard who was played in the movie by Jim Caviezel. There's also a conspiracy that like theaters weren't playing it they'd like say that the air conditioning was broken and if you tried to go see it well that's funny i read an opposite thing which is many churches were encouraging people to buy multiple tickets so it would stay in theaters the box office oh it's you it was yeah yeah yeah absolutely for an independent movie four months ago beginning of summer and i know when it was it was when we were talking this all kind of started i know why i'm on this tip when we interviewed wendy mogul
Starting point is 01:51:11 oh we said this whole child trafficking thing is insanely overblown and not something people should be terrified about yeah they're we worry about lightning if you're going to be worried right and a lot of people in the comments of Wendy's episode were like, no, child abduction is, and is all fueled by this movie, Sound of Freedom. $210 million box office. Yeah. It's incredible. Yeah. I'm not watching that.
Starting point is 01:51:38 Okay. I don't want to watch that. Okay. Flaky, Jakes, and Fuddruckers. Oh, this is great. I don't want to watch that. Okay. Flaky Jakes and Fuddruckers. Oh, this is great. This is from the LA Times. We have some good sources today.
Starting point is 01:51:52 Let's see. With hamburger chains such as McDonald's and Burger King engaged in practically thermonuclear warfare, lesser fast food conflagrations are easily overlooked. But the upscale burger battle between Fuddruckers and Flaky Jakes is war nonetheless, and Northridge is the bloody battleground. Northridge? Yeah. There was a Flaky Jakes in Northridge? I guess. All Mike the Drive.
Starting point is 01:52:17 Uh-oh. This was written in 1985. Wow. That sounds, yeah. That's kind of amazing. Yeah. Well, that's when I, lookimmy was saying he was in college there in 86 or something that's when i was i was going in 84 or 5 as a kid but we we wondered if they were the same and they're not no we wondered if they ripped off flaky j well we did but then also
Starting point is 01:52:40 was like i wouldn't be surprised if it was actually the same company. If it just converted. It's not. Wow. This looks so new. The article? To be from 1985. Yeah, 38 years old, that article. It's really weird to see 1985 as an article, Tom. I know.
Starting point is 01:53:02 Well, you were two years out from being born. But this must have been in the actual paper that they've now converted. It's so weird because it's like both are company-owned. Flaky Jake's opened last August. Last August before I was born. Right. Oh, my God. Two years before you were born in August. This is nuts.
Starting point is 01:53:19 Also, even to think about LA in 1985. It's fun. The Valley. The Olympics were, what, 88 or something like that? 84, 88? Wow. 80s. Ooh.
Starting point is 01:53:28 Fuddruckers and Flaky Jakes are no longer suing each other. Neither will discuss the 1983 out-of-court settlement, but their competition remains undiminished. As far as I'm concerned, they're copycats. Fuddruckers founder Philip Romano said, oh, Fuddruckers is accusing. Oh, he's accusing Flaky Jake. Okay. By the way,
Starting point is 01:53:45 it's a hamburger place with a big bar of toppings. I mean. Even you two said that there's so. Because I'm loyal to Flaky Jakes. But I love both.
Starting point is 01:53:55 I hope that I made that clear. I love Fudruckers and Budfuckers, which was from Idiocracy. That was the funniest way to show a passage of time. The chain, do you remember this?
Starting point is 01:54:08 Yeah, yeah. I know it's so funny. It starts as Fuddruckers and becomes butt fuckers by the time we're in the future. Okay. Fuddruckers has contended all along that Flaky Jakes copied its formula and even made a federal case of its allegation in U.S. District Court in Seattle, where it charged Flaky Jakes with infringement of trade dress, a kind of commercial plagiarism it charged Flaky Jakes with infringement of trade dress, a kind of commercial plagiarism. And Flaky Jakes promptly countersued, alleging San Antonio-based Fuddruckers was acting in restraint of trade. Huh. Wow.
Starting point is 01:54:34 The Burger Wars of 85. There's nothing going on, so there was Burger Wars. I know. What a simpler time. And if you didn't read it in the newspaper on the day it came out, you could never find it again. Never. You would never know about it. And now the future.
Starting point is 01:54:51 Now you can. Okay. We talked about Trump water for a second. Sure. Yeah. Jimmy said something about Trump water. Yeah. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:54:59 Trump ice was distributed by Mountain Spring Waters of America. So Mountain Springs. You've seen Mountain Springs. Yeah, they're in a green glass bottle. They're in something. Brand was discontinued in 2010, but Trump Natural Spring Water is still listed as exclusively available at Trump-branded hotels, restaurants, and golf clubs. A water the likes of which you've never drank. I wish I could do a Trump. It's crossed my mind to spend a minute to try to figure it out.
Starting point is 01:55:26 To get it. Because this comedian does the best Trump impersonation I've ever seen in my life. I can't believe how fucking good it is. Oh my God, is he good? I cannot remember that comedian's name. Shane Gillis. Shane Gillis. He also comes up on this episode.
Starting point is 01:55:41 Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, one fact. You said that Kimmel was the third guest. He was our fourth guest. Okay, Kutcher. Kristen, Ashton, and Joy were our first three guests. Okay, okay. And then Kimmel.
Starting point is 01:55:57 But we released those at once, those three. Yes, so he's like our first new one, second. Right, but fourth. But first new one second right but fourth but fourth but second but fourth okay I think that
Starting point is 01:56:12 you think that wraps it up I have a weird connection from so when I came out to LA in 2012 before I lived here I went to see Jimmy Kimmel
Starting point is 01:56:23 you went and saw him live we went and saw him live? Went and saw him live. Wait in line. We got like front row for it. The guest was Kerry Washington. Wow. That's an Easter egg. Hold on a second.
Starting point is 01:56:34 I'm so egomaniacal. I got so excited. You had a grin on your face where I thought you were going to say I was the guest. Oh, wow. Well, Kerry was. And we recorded with her the next say I was the guest. Oh, wow. Well, Carrie was and we recorded with her
Starting point is 01:56:46 the next interview. Right. Yeah. Oh, Sim. Simmy moment. That's crazy. The next day. The next interview we did.
Starting point is 01:56:54 Wow. That's Easter egg and a spoiler. But we'll keep it because it's worth the Sim moment. Absolutely. And who wouldn't be excited
Starting point is 01:57:02 that Carrie Washington was coming? It's a great episode too. Yeah. Simmy Sim. Simmy sim sim well i love you love you take care

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