Breaking Bread with Tom Papa - Episode 325 - Ryan Hamilton

Episode Date: May 19, 2026

This week we welcome the esteemed Ryan Hamilton to the table! He and Tom talk about working with Jerry Seinfeld, touring, and of course, the time Ryan got hit by a bus. Enjoy! Our thanks to: IQ Bar! Text PAPA to 64000 to get 20% off all IQBAR products, plus FREE shipping. Message and data rates may apply. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Visit BetMGM Casino and check out the newest exclusive. The Price is Right Fortune Pick. BetMGM and GameSense remind you to play responsibly. 19 plus to wager. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. If you have questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you, please contact connects Ontario at 1-866-531-2,600 to speak to an advisor,

free of charge. BetMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with Eye Gaming Ontario. And for our listeners who don't know, Ryan was hit by a bus. So I had this gig. I was so excited because I was working again. It was like in Hawaii. Wow. This is amazing.

And then I land at LAX and I was going to spend one night at LAX on my way to see my family in Idaho. Right. I get an alert on my phone at LAX as I'm walking through the airport that says you've been exposed to COVID when your phone would tell you like you have a text message and a disease. Just so you know. And I take a test and it's positive. And that time it's 10 days. So I'm 10 days in the hotel. And my first day out was January 1, which was I was walking to get a rental car.

And that's when this happened to me. It's breaking bread. The worst corporate audience for me, maybe you have the same thing, is when it's very successful older white men. Oh, yeah, that's definitely, no question. They're all, they all think, thank you, they all think we're ballers, we're the shit. Yes. You're not the shit.

Yes. Like they're at their conference. They're making millions of dollars. And you get up there and you're like, my apartment's funny. And they're like, I don't give a shit. I want to talk to Don over there and make another million dollars. I got to make a deal. Yeah.

So when I'm in those situations, and this was one of those on Monday, I turn into Paula Poundstone. Oh, yeah. I'm going to talk to them. Yes. And I'm going to make it about them. And then they're like, yeah, it should be about us. Right. They're making fun of Harry, but he's got no hair.

Yeah, yeah. And it's, it changes everything. And it's like, why do I have to think, like, I've got to do my act? Right. At a corporate thing. No, it's survival. Yes. So just get up there and wing it and talk to them and they'd love it.

And you sneak another joke in and see if it goes. If it doesn't, go back to that guy. Right. Yes. And they think it's a magic trick. They do. And it's just about get me out of here. I always open with those ones.

I've never been in front of a group of people who needed comedy less. I don't know why I'm here, but you guys don't, this is not for you. That's great. You don't have the kind of problems that you need to laugh about. Like, this is not for you. Right, exactly. I need people in the basement of a comedy club who desperately need a laugh. Yes.

Because nothing else in their life is working out. Yes. And these people are like, I just got off my boat. Yes. I have this. What are you complaining about? Because I'll talk a lot about in my act now about, you know, the stress of the times. We all need to find a way to relief. We need relief. We knew whatever is to, and they look at

you like, relief from what? Yes. What stress in the world are you talking about? Yes, yes, exactly. Right? I've been saying, I think they come once in a while, they sit in the back, and then for like a year and a half, they wandered around and go, I went to comedy and it was interesting, you know, Because it kind of makes you less of a participant more of an observer just sitting back there going, look at these people having fun. Yeah. Maybe I'll buy this place. You know, like, then I'll understand.

Yeah. Yeah. It's an interesting dynamic. Yeah. But those corporates really bring it out. It's like it's its own skill unto itself. Yeah. And sometimes I think I did one recently.

and it was complete chaos. The room was complete chaos. It was a fundraiser, and they were drinking and partying in the back of the room. And I'm doing comedy in front of the 50 people up front that are listening. Wow. And it's just, you know, dissonance. You're just like, we're trying to keep focus while you're being distracted by people who don't care that there's a show. Yes.

And I remember getting back to my room and I'm like, I think this is, I think the reason you get paid a lot on these is because not many human beings could stand up there and take it. This is a great topic, yes. Because it's true. It's like a lost art a little bit. Yeah. The comedian that you can drop in anywhere. Right.

And they can pull it off. They can figure it out. Yeah. They've been there before. Yeah. Yeah. It's one of these. Yes.

That's what you're thinking. All right. It's one of these. Yes, yes. I should be, a normal human being would say, well, this isn't working. I'm going home. I don't care if I get paid. This is ridiculous.

But we put a smile on. Yes. Keep doing the jokes. Yes. And you connect with a couple people that are paying attention and laughing. Right. And that's the gig inside this. Inside this crazy world.

Yeah, I had this one that really taught me everything. It was like, there was supposed to be someone to introduce me. I was supposed to go on after dinner, all the things. And all the things didn't happen. Voice of God introduction, 2,000 people in tuxedoes who just got served. Just starting to eat. Clang, clang, clang, clang. And they go, okay, you're not.

I go, no. And they go, sorry. And this is supposed to happen. They go, we know. It's not happening. So I was so angry. but the only saving grace I had was that it was only 30 minutes. And so in my head, I did this experiment going,

I can shout alone in the dark for 30 minutes. If it's 40, I don't know, but 30, I can do that. That's right. So I just thought, I'm going to keep it this level for 30 minutes and see what happens. And I'm not going to say the thing like, this isn't going well, what's wrong with you, who did this to me. I'm not calling that out. No.

And I remember just focusing on one person who was like kind of paying attention. go, this is my lifeline for timing. Yep. And let's just survive and like smile and up here. I'm so angry when I get off because I felt like it was the worst. I just angry. And I just go up to the room and they're texting me going, come on down. We want to talk to you. So I go back down there and they go, you're the best we've ever had. We've been doing this gig for years and no one ever does it. And I got like two other big gigs out of that.

Yeah. And it was a real lesson for me in that, like, if you acknowledge to them that it's going bad, then they start to go, it's going bad. Yeah. But if you don't acknowledge to them, they think it's, this is great. Because they don't know. They don't know. They don't know what a normal set with you in a theater is like. Yes.

Which is this explosive. Yes. People are laughing. And it's this energy. They don't know that. They think this awkward ballroom is what comedy is. Yes. Just shoving their face and looking at you.

And all they need, all the people who brought you in and took you around the hotel and put you in the ballroom and did all the thing. All they need is for the CEO to go, that was good. Yes, that's the whole thing. And if they say it, then it was good. It was good. And Ryan and I do this thing where when we're at these corporate gigs, we take a picture of the green room. and send it to each other because it's the most lonely thing. It's another like meeting room with a round table in the middle and your water and some fruit.

It's always the room's so big. The room's gigantic. It always reminds me of 2001 Space Odyssey when he's at the end just eating alone in the thing. And I know there's a handful of people, you, Jerry. Gaffigan. Yeah. Where I could, Kathleen. Yeah.

And I could take a picture of that. Yes. Not put any words on it. Yeah. Send it to any of you. And you know exactly what's exactly where I am. I do. And what the headspace is.

Yes. There's one of those silver platter things where they take the thing off and there's your chicken dinner and you got a huge table. You're all by yourself. Massive table. Yeah. They put a mirror in one corner because you have a mirror in your writer or something like that. Yeah, it's a little alini thing for your last looks.

Yes. I used to take a wide shot of that with my jacket hanging on the chair and I would hashtag it on Instagram, Ryan Hamilton Entourage. And that was like I had a series. Yeah. I think it would be a great coffee table book or something. We should do that. Because there's no reason for your tour manager to be there.

Right. Because there's nothing to do. Yes. It's nothing to do. No. And so it's just you. Jerry's will go. Jerry's agent will go.

Yeah. He's a superstar. So it's almost like slash security. They need somebody, some people around you to go to kind of be the buffer. Right. Because Jerry's not going to be stuck in the conversation when you're at that table and they sit down. Yes. And they're like, just want to chat.

Yeah. Because this is a break from them. Right. To be in the ballroom talking to everybody. Right, right. Jerry needs a guy to go, no. You're not sitting down. Yes.

And this is where the stage is and come here. And yes. I had a funny one where they, the hotel room was kind of right down the room, down the hall from the ballroom. So they just said, do you want to stay in there? That'll be your green room. Right. And I was like, yeah. great. I'll just stay in my room. Yeah. Like a little hamster. You'll open the door and I'll run out.

Right. And get some pellets and then be done. Right. And I get a knock on the door and it's three people from room service bringing everything into the room that is in my rider. A big coffee urn. A fruit platter for like 12 people. Plates, like a stack of plates. I'm sitting in my, I'm like the end of my queen-sized bed looking at them as they're loading it all in. I'm like, what am I going to do with, I'm leaving. As soon as this sets over, I'm in the car. They just load it up. Here's 12 beers. I don't need 12 beers. It's crazy. And the alternative is they always want to talk you into, well, you can just eat with us. Don't you want to eat? Oh, yeah. Just sit down and eat with us. Yeah, sit in the ballroom. Right. At the table. Yes. Eat with us. And then we'll announce you and you just

go right upon stage. And you just rise. up like you're the hero of the... No, I'm not sitting out there. Yeah, no. I need to be alone and nervous. Yeah, right. I got to get anxious by myself. Yeah.

Yeah. It's so funny. Yeah. Yeah, they're interesting. But they're kind of, I've learned, I've done so many now that I learned not to get as anxious. They used to all make me very anxious because there's so many unknowns. But then I realized it's always gone fine.

So it's like just stop worrying about it until you get there and then deal with whatever's in front of you in that moment. Yeah. And then it's like a puzzle. And then you go, okay, this is kind of fun now. Yeah. Let me figure out the solution to this one. Right. It's different than a little different.

Yeah. And here's what I got to do here. Here's what I got to do here. Okay. Now I'm outside in the dark. There's no spotlight. The wind is kicked up. Right.

They're trying to beat the storm. Yeah. And everybody out there is getting ready for the Hula contest. Yeah. Go. Changing my set list a little bit. Right. Exactly.

The funny part about Jerry in those situations is you can send him the picture of it and he'll think it's funny. You know, you're going to do those. Yeah. But nothing makes him happier than after the set going. Oof. I burned an hour of material in 25 minutes. I could just feel his heart just swell. Oh, I know. Yes.

The joy of knowing. I think in comedian, I think he mentioned it, something about, I'm paraphrasing, I think it was in comedian, where you walk back to your room and you feel like your suit is now twice the size that you're just a little kid inside this giant. What happened?

You just shrunk, your whole personality has been shrunk to, size. That's right. When we're on the road to, we go, what are you doing next week? And I go, and I'll go, well, I got a weird one. And then he just, that's all he needs. He's like, what? Give me, give me every detail. That was so funny. I was talking before we started, I was telling, we were talking about how I went, um, my opening act, Andy Fiori is a big fish head. Yes. And, uh, and, uh, and he invited me to go see fish at the spear. And, and, uh, and he invited me to go see fish at the sphere and I always wanted to see the sphere and I was like I don't know if I'm going to do it but then UTA got me good tickets and I'm like all right I'm going to do it and then Andy was walking around

doing whatever he's always Mr. Activity on the road and he ran into you and Jerry because you were playing Caesars. Yeah so crazy and Andy ran into you guys yeah and I was like oh no because the idea of telling Jerry that I flew to Vegas without a gig just to go to a show. We talked about that. Right? He goes, where's he working?

I go, he's not working. He's like, he's not working. I knew it. I knew it. And I knew I was busted. Yeah, yes. You can't tell Jerry you're going anywhere just to do something for fun.

Right. Right? There has to be a gig attached. Yes. Yes. Yeah, we definitely talked about that in the car. It was like, I guess I'm going to text Tom, but when is this show? I'm like, he's not working.

Like, he was like, what? Confused. Yeah. And the funny part, which he didn't know, was I was there literally the week before in the same hotel working. Oh, wow. I had a gig at the palazzo. Oh, wow. And I did the gig.

And then it was all done and you leave town. And you're like, all right, I'll see you in six months. Right. And then I got on a plane next week. Right. I just flew in with Cynthia to go see it. Oh my gosh. And which is fine.

Yeah. I was like, I want to see the sphere. It's one night. Right. It's cool to be with Andy. All of it's fine. Yeah. Until Jerry hears about it.

What are you doing? Going to a concert? And then he texted me because you guys were going to dinner. He always said it was a great dinner after the thing at Caesar's. Yeah. to me like, well, you're not going to stay for the whole thing. I imagine you're not going to sit for fish for four hours. Meet us for dinner. Yes. The show starts at eight, meet us at 830. Yeah. You get the vibe of it, you know. Yeah, you get it. And get out. Yeah, that was so wild.

I could not believe I ran into India. I was like, what are the odds of this? This was crazy. That was really fun. That really is the, uh, the blessing of working with Jerry though, right? Yes. Yes. It's the, I mean, he's great, it's great, all that stuff is great. But the real thing about being his friend and is you get to see and think and talk and dissect comedy from every single angle. Like, no, like you'll, you can open for people or work with your friends or whatever and you'll be like, you know, you'll talk about this much of comedy. comedy. Yes. The gig, the set, the thing. His is the life. Yes. It's the whole life. Yes. It's learning how to do every

single aspect. He's thought about every single, the ride from the airport to the gig, the sitting backstage, going over notes, when is time to shut it down, all of the minutia, what you're going to do after the gig, what you're going to do on the way home, what are you going to do before the next game? It's all the whole life is completely analyzed. Yes. And if you weren't in his orbit, you would never even think about. Yes, it's true. And it's elevated my life in a lot of ways because it's made me figure out the balance better.

Right. It's made me enjoy the road a lot more. It's made me enjoy the process of creating a lot more. And it's all kind of enmeshed together. And when you realize, like, you do this. like you take care of yourself so you can work. Right. You know?

And then you got this schedule that kind of in a great way releases your mind. So you're free to, you're not worrying about like, what is the schedule for Saturday? When are we going to eat? When are we going to do? It's done. Are we going to go to a museum? Yeah. No.

No. We're not going to a museum. We're going to a movie and that'll be fun. It gives us something to talk about. But we're also just free to like be creative at that whole time. And that's kind of what it is. Yeah. It's amazing.

It's really great. And it is the complete constant reminder of how lucky you are that you figured out a way. Yes. To be a comedian. Yes. Right. That's it. Right.

That you crack the code and now, as a grown up, get to be a comedian. Right. That's it. Yes. And holy cow. better realize how lucky you are. Oh, man. And think it and shout it every day. Yes. Right? That's the truth. That's what he, yes. That is the biggest lesson. Yes, I think you're right. I think you're right. That's it. It's just kind of always understanding that like I remember early on it would

it would always crack me up when we would go to dinner after we do the beacon and do the pizza after dinner. And the first thing you do is you go to the racket, you know, because it is like, What a life. We're so lucky that we figured out how to do this. The comedy mafia. Yes. And it's so great from his perspective because when he started, it wasn't any, there wasn't a roadmap. Right. So we have a roadmap that didn't exist. Yeah.

So I think that's part of the reason why he has this perspective of gratitude and everything. Yeah. And it's not, there's not that many of his peers that are still going. George Wallace is still doing it. Lennon's still doing it. Right. But it's kind of that thing of the sole survivors. Yes. That's a big lesson I've taken from it too is it's not about the peak.

It's about the long game. Right. That's what this is. Right. That's the thing. It's like how long can you figure out how to keep this life going? Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

When I was sitting last night, as of the recording of this, we're doing, it's in the middle of Netflix is a joke festival. Yeah. And that's for listeners. I know you know that. And I was doing the radio show last night with Fortune, you know, at the afterparty thing. We're sitting on the couch. It's me of Fortune and I and Eric Andre is our guest host for the week.

And Gaffigan came in. and Rosebud Baker and Jerry D. And we're all just sitting there and everybody's so funny. And I'm like, what a dream this is. Like you have some of the funniest people in the world just taking shots and making each other laugh. I'm like, how crazy that you get to sit with these people.

This is such a special thing. It never gets old. Yeah. And they're all so different. Yes. and all just so funny in their own way. Yes. It really is like a lucky thing to be around these nutbags.

That's one of my favorite things. Yes. That's one of my favorite things about this little world that we have is that everybody's so different. And yet our comedy thing is the umbrella. It kind of trumps everything. Right. You know, people coming from Idaho, they're always like, how do you live in New York and fit in and hanging out in these nightclubs with all these people? Like, how do you do?

And it's like, you don't understand. Like, we have so much in common that it's not a, it's not something we think about. Cynthia always says that always laughs. I think she thinks it's like your master stroke is when you would talk about if you can't make it here. Oh, yeah. You can make it here. You can make it anywhere. Like the New York, like the, that actually New Yorkers couldn't survive anywhere else.

They couldn't make them from a town of a thousand people. And they couldn't make it there. What happened? He wandered off looking for gluten-free cupcakes. And three days later, we found a body. Turns out he couldn't make it here. But the arrogance, like, if you're in New York, you're like, no, we, this is, how are you going to make it, Mr. Idaho?

Right. This is pretty easy. Yeah. So your new special coming out on Netflix. Yeah, I'm very excited. Yes. Yes. So, yeah, we worked a long time on this. I mean, it's really interesting for me special because so much of it is from one chunk of material. It's called This Just Hit Me is the name. And it's about- That's great. I didn't know that was the title. Actually, that's Jerry's credit.

Oh, yeah? Yeah. This just hit me? I was going to try to call it My Big Break. And Jerry goes, you know, he loves titles. He loves noodling with Tice. He goes, what do you? you thinking about title. I go, I was pretty proud of it. I go, my break, because it's a line in the special. He goes, that's good. This fast. What about this just hit me? And I go, oh, that's funny. And then I put it in front of a couple of audiences, both of them. And they just die at this just hit me. And I like the idea that it's kind of, it's about the accident, but it's also about writing and about, you know, this just struck me. Yeah. And so. Yeah. That's great. That's a great title. Yeah. Man. So wait a minute. Give me

the timing from the last special till now. It's been a long time. Yeah. I think it's been seven or eight years. Seven or eight? I think so. Wow. Man, that went fast. I think that came out in 2018. I can't believe it. I mean. Right. Well, they're a huge personal event and a huge Yeah. I was ready to go kind of right before COVID. I was getting close and COVID happened and then I just came back and then the accident happened and then that stuck six months on there. And then I started developing all this material. And then I, it was eventually. Wow.

This is, wow. You know, if you were to say to me, all right, thank you for that special. People loved it. It's doing great. You're touring. We would like you to hand in the next one in seven years. I would panic that my career must. I'll never make it.

The whole world will forget about me by that time. I guess I'll just move to Florida. But I mean, it couldn't be more ludicrous of a thought because your career's going great. People know you and everyone's going to be anticipating this special. It's interesting. I feel like I've pushed it about as far as you can push it. I mean, I have to put something out eventually.

just because you got us, I think the only reason is because, not because of the material necessarily, you just have to remind people that you're there. That you're there, yeah. You have to put something out every once in a while so they remember you. And so I think that's. Yeah. Man, so that the accident, and for our listeners who don't know, yeah, Ryan was hit by a bus. Yeah.

He was hit by a bus. Do you know this story? Yeah. Yeah. He was hit by a bus. in January 1st of 2022, January 1. January 1 of 2022. Yeah. Man, because I was texting you because I was trying to get you to come to Christmas.

Yeah. So I had flown back, I had one of these weird corporate gigs in Hawaii, which was one of my first gigs back. Oh, that's right. It was like at the end of COVID. The end of COVID. It was during the Omicron variant. remember this when everybody kind of went back.

It was December, Christmas time. Everyone started getting COVID all over again. Everyone was freaked out. Like, oh, no, another variation is coming into play. So I had this gig. I was so excited because I was working again. It was like in Hawaii. Wow.

This is amazing. And then I land at LAX and I was going to spend one night at LAX on my way to see my family in Idaho. Right. I get an alert on my phone at LAX as I'm walking through the airport that says you've been exposed to COVID when your phone would tell you, like you have a text message and a disease, just so, you know. And so, so this is a bit that didn't make it in the special kind of this little story.

But I would, as I said, I walked to the hotel, but I always walked to this hotel at LAX because it turns out I didn't like shuttle buses before this happened. So, and I take a test and it's positive. And that time, it's 10 days. So I'm 10 days in the hotel. And my first day out was January 1, which was I was walking to get a rental car. And that's when this happened to me. But let's go back. Yes.

Because you told me when you landed. Yeah. And you got tested. Uh-huh. And you told me you had COVID. Yeah. And you can't fly home to Idaho. Yes.

And I was like, get on the plane. put on a mask and get out of there. What do you mean? You're going to stay in an airport. It's the holidays. I'm probably texting this under a Christmas tree with a fire blazing. And I'm like, no. I wanted you to come to Christmas.

I know. And then you're like, I got this. And I was like, just get out. Just go. Just get on the plane and go. You really were. And then January 1st, you're finally free. Yeah.

Because he's such a good person. this is the problem. This literally was the lesson was I was yelling to my wife. I'm like, he's an idiot. He's got to get out of there. And she's like, he cares about other people.

They told him he has a disease and he can't spread it. The way you're talking, Tom, this is why it's spreading around the globe because people don't care about each other. I'm like, but he's got, he's so close to Idaho. He's so close. You were even like, come to my house.

And I'm like, I'm not coming to your house. I was like, we have a guest room. We're not scared. Just do it. And she's like, no, he's a good person. You're not going to talk him out of it. He cares about people. And then it was like at night.

You went to return the rental car early or something. Well, I couldn't get a flight. Flights were so crazy and everything was so crazy. Oh, that's right. You weren't going to fly. So I was going to drive. Right. I was going to drive.

And I had a little trip planned. I was going to stop at Zion. on the way and I was so excited. It was like I got through everything. I watched the ball drop. I ate an entire pizza by myself, New Year's Eve to celebrate. I'm done. And the place was open 24 hours. And I thought, you know, this is also kind of COVID thinking. I was like, I just want to get this over with. I want to go when people aren't there. Yeah, it's not a bad call. Yeah, I'm up. It's like one in the morning. I'm just up. It's a 10 minute walk. Well, I'll go get the car. I'm just going to go pick it up right now. I'll be ready to go first thing. So I'm just walking.

I'm so happy and I hit the light at this intersection. I hit the button. I watched the light turn and I start walking. And this guy coming out of a hotel and his shuttle bus ran a light just on his route going over and over and over again. Right. And I was in the second lane of four lanes. Actually, yesterday coming home or just landing at LAX, I posted this, but I was in the Uber and I look up from my phone and I'm like, Like, this is the spot.

The spot, exact spot. And I posted, I took a pose, and I took a pose. It was like, that's exactly where it happened. I'd been there once since the accident because I wanted to go. But this was like the first time where it was like, oh, this is just random. Like, just showed up here. We're just waiting at a light. And there we are.

So, yeah. It's where the hotels meet the airport. It's like that, like that section. It's like, it's on off street. I can't, it's like, I can't remember the name of this. street, but it's... Like between hotels? It's near the airport. You can see the airport tram, and it kind of follows it. I think it's

96th Street or something. I posted a photo of it. Yeah. Down that lane. Yeah. I mean, it's not on the airport property. Right, right, right. It's a hotel near the airport. And you don't see it coming, you just get hit. I don't see or hear anything. I just felt an impact. And, yeah. And I I stood up immediately, which I say in the special really freaked people out. People did not like me standing up. He hit by a bus and he's up. The robots are here. So, yeah, that was it.

And I couldn't breathe. I didn't know what was going on. I was holding my hand. This is also a little story that I just added at the last minute to the special, but I was holding my hand in front of my face, but I couldn't see it, but I know it was there. Oh. But I can't see it. And so in my head, I'm thinking, I hit my head.

Something's wrong with my vision because I know my hands right there. Right. And then I realized that my hand was behind my back. And. Oh, your brain thought, because it was holding it. Your brain was saying hold it out here. This is the action. But there's no.

But it was back here. And that's when I started to really like just. panic. Yeah, that's when I realized, oh, something's really, really wrong. Yeah. Wow. At this point, what's the driver doing? He was on the street, um, on the phone. And I thought he had called 911. But I was listening and he realized he was on the phone with his boss to find out what to do. I said in the special. I said, what the company policy is when you hit another human being in the crosswalk with the life. So then I pull out my phone and I'm trying to dial 911 and I can't figure it out.

And then I... And there's nobody around to help you because it's the middle of the night. Yeah, nobody really knows what's going on. I was wearing a jacket so I don't think you could tell how messed up I was. I had this jacket on and I was standing. You're not bleeding. Your head's okay. Yeah.

Nothing, you can see nothing wrong. Yeah. I mean, my jacket has a huge tear in it. But you can't, if you don't know, like, you wouldn't really know what's going on. I have to admit, the showbiz part of me when we got the down, when we got the report, which was a couple days after. I mean, it was, I don't know how I found out. Oh, I think I met from Doug. I think it was from Doug.

Oh, yeah, that's right. From our Egypt. Yes, that's right. I remember. And it was, yeah, and it was kind of like, what's up with, what's up with Ryan? Yeah. Oh, yeah, I know. What do you know?

What do you know? Wait, what? Because he didn't want to, like, just tell people, you know. Because we, yeah, we didn't announce it for a while because I was just going to try to keep my shows. I had all these shows. And I was like, I can do it. But when I found out my first, my thing was, the show biz part was his face is fine. Yeah. I just didn't want your face smushed. Yeah, that's a good point.

And then have to. I mean, all the doctors said, we just can't believe there's no head drama. Like this accident always has had. trauma. Yeah. So I guess in that way, I was very lucky. That's great. Yeah.

Well, I don't want to burn too much of your jokes and stuff because I've watched you develop it over the two decades since then. It's been a long time. But it's such great material. Oh, thank you. It's really so good. Thank you. It's so funny.

It's crazy. I feel like you've even moved on from what you recorded. Yeah. I feel like you have a lot of. of stuff since what you probably put down. Yeah, I'm working on it. I'm trying to get there. I mean, yeah, we recorded more than I needed, so I took some of it out of the special. Oh, that's good. And yeah, I've got new stuff. Yeah, you know, you know how it is. You're just like, what's next? Let's go. I know. And you don't know. Sometimes it falls into your lap really quickly. Sometimes it takes a while.

Right. Yeah, right. That's fine. But I know, like, you were working on that stuff for such a long time. and now I'm seeing other stuff that... Yeah. Yeah, it was really, really solid. Oh, thanks. Yeah. But you were so nice. You were so great.

I mean, you came to visit me a couple of times after I was stuck in L.A. And there was only a handful of people that I was talking to. And it was really nice to have you there. And it was such a respite for me to have comedy friends come by. Yeah. Well, you broke every one of your ribs. I broke 10 on one. out of 12 on one side.

It's all your ribs. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I broke. I fell off a paddleboard and bruised one of my ribs. I said it was broken. Yeah.

And I couldn't sleep for a month because I only sleep on the side. And I was like, I know, you can't. It's so uncomfortable. The idea that you had to try and sleep. Oh, that was the worst part. Like a horse. Sleep. Because I visited you.

You were in a hotel. Yeah. Which was nice. It was right at Santa Monica. We're looking at the cliffs. Yeah. It was a nice spot. Your mom was there. Yeah. My mom can you take care of me? And we went for a walk around the block and it was like one of your first walks. Yes. I was like, I could walk, but it was tentative. Yeah. And I would like, you know, curbs were weird. Like everything was weird.

Yeah. But you came to visit me. And that was really great. Yeah, because I couldn't leave L.A. for like six weeks. I couldn't travel. Six weeks. Something like that, I think. Six weeks after getting hit by a bus. Yeah. If, I mean, look, this is a shitty thing to say. But if you had flown with COVID.

But you wouldn't have the special, you wouldn't have all this great material. So maybe it was good. But if you didn't want to go that route, if you had just gotten on the plane and lied about your COVID. This episode is brought to you by IQ Bar, our exclusive snack hydration. and coffee sponsor. IQ bar, protein bars, IQ mix, hydration mixes, and IQ Joe mushroom coffees are the delicious low sugar, brain and body fuel you need to win your day. IQ bars, plant protein bars are the smarter snack choice with plenty of plant protein, tons of fiber, and no added sugar. And yes, they are in the bottom of my backpack everywhere I go. When I'm traveling on the road,

and I'm always in between things or I'm on a flight and they bring out that weird looking food or they throw me in a car and they told me it was going to be 20 minutes and now it's going to be an hour. When I know there's an IQ bar in there, I know I am safe and will be satisfied. IQ mix is a zero-sugar drink mix that hydrates with electrolytes improves mood and boosts clarity. I keep those are these little packets. You get some nice little water, throw a little ice in, stir it up, hydrated. IQ Joe is a mushroom coffee designed for mental clarity and packed with 200 milligrams of natural caffeine.

Plus, it comes in four different flavors that will totally transform your morning routine. Plenty of flavor combinations to choose from across all IQ bar products, from mint chocolate chip protein bars, blueberry blueberry pomegranate hydration mixes, to vanilla spice coffee and even limited edition and seasonal flavors too. They do taste great. My wife, who is not into protein bars and stuff, orders them on her own because we finally found one that she likes the flavor of. And right now, IQ Bar is offering our special podcast listeners 20% off all IQ Bar products,

including the ultimate sampler pack plus free shipping. To get your 20% off, text Papa, PAPA to 64,000. Text PAPA to 64,000. That's Papa to 64,000. Messages and data rates apply C terms for details. Thank you. IQ Bar. Also, also, also, anyone who hasn't joined our Patreon, join our Patreon.

It's a great place to get extra bonus content, a great way to support us here at the podcast. We need one more person. We need one more person. We can't afford them. And we need you to pay for it. It's a great place and it's a great way to round out the community. So go to patreon.com and look up our podcast and join us. It's a fun way to be a part of the community.

And you guys are the best. We'd like to thank the good people at Lisa. Lisa is awesome because they offer sustainable products that are comfortable, cool, and breathable. They come in a variety of models to make a positive change in any home. Each mattress is designed with specific preference and sleep positions in mind. Maya is looking forward to better uninterrupted, uninterrupted deep sleep. We all are. Go to Lisa.com for 30% off select mattresses.

Plus, get an extra $50 off with the promo code Papa, P-A-P-A, exclusive for my listeners. That's Lisa. L-E-E-E-E-S-A-com. promo code Papa, P-A-P-A, for 30% off select mattresses plus an extra $50 off. Support our show and let them know we sent you at checkout. So go to Lisa, L-E-E-E-S-A-D-com, promo code Papa. We'd like to thank the good people at Quince Cookware for sponsoring today's program. Everything feels better in the kitchen when you love,

what you're using. Quince has beautiful cookware, glassware, and tableware that are incredibly well made. Look great on the table and make cooking and hosting feel easy without the luxury markup. Quince's stainless steel and ceramic nonstick cookware heats evenly and cleans easily. That's very true. I have it. The ceramic nonstick is my their Japanese Damascus knives are sharp and well-balanced and their dinnerware and flatware are timeless, adorable, and easy to mix into any table setting. And they even carry fine wine. Ooh! From Napa Valley vineyards to Dom Parignon, so you can pull everything together in one place. The best part is everything at Quince is priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. And they

have more than cookware. Quince has really become a destination for elevated essentials across your home. Fashion, bedding, and more. If you want to have something in your kitchen that makes you feel good, it literally cooks well, feels good in the hand, and actually is easy to use and easy to clean, it's a great thing to fold in. Get some Quince cookware. You will be more than happy. Elevate your kitchen this summer. Go to quince.com slash Papa P-A-P-A for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash Papa for free shipping and 365-day returns.

Quince.com slash Papa. This whole experience has made me really think about things like, like that. Like, you know, like everybody said you're so lucky and it was so hard for me to, because, you know, I didn't have head trauma or like, I was alive and whatever. But it was like, you can't really think about it that way because you don't feel lucky, right? It's like, your life's been rocked. Yeah. But with time, you start to realize, well, there's a lot of things I learned about, like, you never know what's going to, maybe I'd flown home. Who knows? Yeah. You just can't understand. But I've, I've learned.

so much. And now I've taken my body so much more seriously. I think that I'm stronger in a lot of ways physically than I was even before my accident. Oh yeah? Because the physical therapy just forced this new habit in me that I just wanted to keep going. Right. Yeah. So now you're doing push-ups and things? I do, yeah, I have a trainer three days a week that like pushes me and like we figure out how to work around stuff. That seems annoying. It's great. Really? Oh, you know, it's not, it's like it's funny because I have all these weird things and we're always like, my left is always catching up. But, you know, he's always like, something's wrong.

I go, let's just keep going. Let's just catch up. Old lefty. He's at it again. Yeah, yeah. But I don't think it's just the... What do you do? Where do you meet him?

At the gym. What gym? At the Equinox. Oh, that's nice. Yeah, it's nice. Equinox is a nice gym. Yeah, it's a nice gym. and you know we have our little routine how close to the apartment it's like a 15-minute walk

okay there's a closer one but I like this one better that's good yeah there were bathrooms smell nice yeah they have nice amenities it's funny that I'm there because I wrote a joke in the first special about trying to cancel from there and how impossible it is but now I'm a member again right yeah I that's the only time I belong to Jim was when I was in New York yeah and it was in equinox downtown. But you're always in shape. You're always out there running on the road. I run on the road a little bit. Yeah. And yeah, and Peloton. Oh, Peloton's good. Yeah. When I'm home. Yeah. Yeah. But I think it's more mental. I think it's more like that. Yeah. I mean, I know people really tune into this podcast for weightlifting tips. I turned it into

that. But yes. By the way, I baked you this bread. Oh my gosh. And when I saw you last night, I said, I have to go home because I have to bake your bread. I know, I felt guilty, but I'm so grateful. It's so beautiful. Yeah, it's a pretty good one. This is sourdough? Mm-hmm. Yeah, it looks gorgeous.

Yeah. And you can bring it to you, are you in a hotel or an Airbnb? A hotel. I'm a hotel. That's good. I'll figure it out. I will get that. Maybe pick up some cheese.

Yes. And eat it with that. Okay. Just like a raccoon. It's so easy to eat this. I'm very excited. But I did like the gym at that point. And they also had, um, uh,

cans of barbassol. Do they still have that? Yes, you can shave, and they got like, you know, all the stuff that you need. Because I was trying to these fancy shaving creams, and then I was like, barbersaw is fine. And now that's all I use. It's cheap. It's like, $2 a can.

That's how you got into it. Yeah. I was like, what do we do in here? Why do I need some fancy keels? Yeah. Thick paste. You know what I do now? This is so old school, but I use the brush.

What? Yeah, I use the brush. I lather it up and it's great because you never run out of the stuff and it feels good. I like it. It's kind of a fun little ritual. You use the brush and you go all over. Yeah, that is cool. Yeah.

Do you have to clean the brush? You just rinse it off. And then put it next to the container. What's in the container? The container has, it's like shaving, shaving. Shaving soap. Yeah. So it's a hard thing and it's just like a hard, yeah, looks like a piece of it.

And you lather it up? You lather it up and it gets all foamy and then you put it on your face like you're, you know, about to rob a bank in 1840 or something. Then you get on your giant bicycle with the big wheel and go to the gym. You get on that belt machine. While you're reading paper and drinking coffee. So really, so you go to a gym three times a thing. I try to. I try to go on the road if I miss.

once. Yeah, it's just good. I think, I think you're right. It's like the mental. It's like that's, you realize, you notice it. I sleep better. I know. That was during COVID, was, you know, everyone just needed to lock into a routine. You either just never got out of your sweatpants. Right. Just tried to endure it. Right. Eating ice cream and drinking the most expensive alcohol you could get. Right, right. or the getting on that stupid bike and just going for 45 minutes, it was like, all right, I'm not going to be crazy. Yeah.

It's just every time I think, I don't want to do it. And then I just think in my head, I've never not done it and just changed my whole perspective and felt better, right, immediately after. It's like a guaranteed boost. Yeah. Guaranteed. Well, they say everything in antidepressants is mimicking what secretes in your body after you exercise. Right, right.

Yeah But the personal trainer So he's like right next to you Yeah You know He's saying things like Push it Yeah

Sometimes You can do it Yeah he goes Sometimes he goes Fight I like that I like that I go yeah

I'm gonna fight You know I'm kicking And I'm huffing and puffing And I'm like Ah I'm fighting How long is a session with him

An hour But then I usually Have like 10 minutes It's on my own by the time we're done. I have to, he's like, I got to go, but do this and this. Right. Yeah.

And so you're paying for the gym and the trainer. Yeah, it's not cheap. It's a little bit of an investment. But I do think it's some of the best money I spend. It's good money to spend if you can spend money on something like that because it just, I don't know. There's so many times I wouldn't go if it wasn't set up like that. And what's your, where are you at with drinking now? Because you didn't drink forever.

Yeah. And then you started dabbling. a little bit. And you were like, I said in the special after the accident, I never drank in my life ever. And then after the accident, things changed slightly. But, you know, I was dabbling. I had a lot of anxiety. So I tried marijuana briefly. Oh, yeah. And it kind of broke the seal a little bit. And I don't know. I tried it. And it wasn't really for me either of them. I can't. It doesn't, I don't know. I just, If I'm faced with it, I'm like, I know that this is going to make me feel bad in the morning. Yeah, whenever we have had a drink together, I can feel like you're like just getting through it.

Yeah, yeah. It's very, I probably haven't had a drink in a year or now or something. Oh, yeah? I mean, I probably had, you've probably been present for like half the times I've drank in my life. Really? I'm glad I could contribute. Come on, Ryan. You can do it.

Just one. Fine, Tom. All my fans will be going. What? But I talk about it a little bit. You do. Yeah. Yeah.

Is it, you mean you're Mormon fans? Yes, those and others, but those especially, I think. Yeah. Yeah. It's such a strange thing, though, because when I tour in Utah, a little less in Idaho, which I want to go back to Idaho Falls, actually. It's been a beat. It's a great place.

It's great. That's right. I grew up. It's so funny that you tour there. I love it. Yeah, it's such a great venue. Yeah. They have that great theater. Yeah. And now they have a small arena, which I did. Oh, yeah? It's so fun. But the theater's great, too. I think that theater's beautiful. Yeah, it's great. Yeah. And when I would play like the club or the, more of the club, I guess, because then you could really talk to the people and see the people more. And it was in Idaho? In Utah.

Oh, yeah. In Salt Lake City. Wise guys. Yeah, and it was either Mormons or reform Mormons. Equally is delightful. Yes. But it was people who were left in drinking a little bit or people who just don't. There's such great comedy audiences there. They're so good. They're really good.

Like everybody always asked me, what's it going to be like? I go, don't worry, you're love it. They're just like fantastic. Yeah. They're so happy to be there. They're so happy you came. And people love to. touring there. It's some, some comedian's biggest markets. Yeah, I think for me it is. Yeah, I think for

Brian, Brian, too. Yeah, Brian. I know Nate is really big there, you know. I always feel like when I go there, like, I do well, but not like to that level. And I feel like, how do I get them to know I'm one of the good guys? No, you must do great. Where do you, you do, you do great there. Yeah, but I feel like I could do better. Yeah? Yeah. Just because there's only a handful of us that, you know, they can walk into the theater and know that they're in a safe space for what they want

to tolerate. Right. And it'll be really funny and won't, you know. Relax. Yeah. I feel like there's a portion of them that are still the jury's out. Yeah. You know what I mean?

It's like I haven't been, I need to like, when next time you perform there, I need to walk out on stage and you just, I don't even tell jokes, you just present me as a proof, certified. It's like when you go into a stranger's house and the dog is going crazy and the owner just has to stand next to you and you and be like, he's fine. And then the audience is. Yeah, then you're okay. Yeah. Yeah. I want to shoot a special there sometime. I've never shot anything. Oh, no? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's such a great town. Would you do it in Salt Lake or in Idaho? I don't know. I think Salt Lake maybe just because it's like a little bit bigger market. And there's a great, there's this venue of bravenile hall that is just fantastic.

Yeah. It's like the acoustically amazing. Yeah. But maybe someday. Yeah, that would be good. Yeah. Now, do you feel like you have to have like another tragedy in your life before you do another special? Are you just going to wait?

Yeah, I'm just waiting to get hit by a train or something like that to see, you know, to get really get inspired. That's what it takes for me to get inspired? Yeah. It's writing. What are I going to talk about now? Yeah. I got real riders block. I just need to get.

I need to fall off a cliff or something. Yeah. For all your jokes about New York, you've lived there now for a long time. Yeah. Do you feel like you love it and you'll stay? Or do you feel like you always seem to be, for a while it seemed like,

yeah, maybe I'll just start poking out a little. Maybe I'll split my time kind of a thing. But now I feel like you've kind of gone back into, Now I'm staying in the city. Yeah, that's an astute observation. I don't know. I feel like my whole life I've kind of been like one foot in different worlds and I never, and I just kind of get comfortable like that.

Yeah. I like it there. I think I don't know where else to go is kind of how I feel about New York. I do love it and I don't know where else I would go. So it's like, you know, we talk about this. Once you go to New York, you're like, where else do you go from here? Right. Yeah.

I mean, lots of places are great, but it's just so different. I don't know. I mean, I have this joke now that's about, I don't know if it'll ever be my default setting. So it's like I always get a little anxious coming back. Once I'm there, I'm okay, but it's like getting into double Dutch. I can feel it coming. It's like, I'm going to New York. I'm going to New York.

I'm in New York. This is a two bedroom. Are you out of your mind? You know, like, so that's kind of how my life is. It's like, I'm there. I love it. But there's a part deep in my head that's like, why is it so loud? You know, like I grew up with quiet, quiet, quiet.

And in Idaho, they probably don't have as many ticks. No, yeah. They don't have the Lyme disease thing. Yeah, I know. That is a problem out there. That's a really scary. I know. That's the thing that makes me hesitant about doing stuff like that.

We do have it in Idaho, but the ticks. aren't, they don't give you Lyme disease out there. Yeah, they can't crack this. I know. You see that new one? It's called like Angelus or something. Where you get, it's a form of Lyme disease that makes you allergic to red meat. Oh no. And you only find out when you eat red meat. Really? And can be lethal. Wow. Yeah, I know. And it's supposed to be really bad this year, apparently. Lime disease? No, season out east. It's supposed to be like a bad deer for it, apparently. When is anything good in nature anymore ever? Ever. You can't even be like, oh, I know. Here come summer. Well, it shouldn't be this hot now. Oh, right. Oh, boy. Yeah. I know. It's like you need nature, but I don't know. But it's,

yeah. But we've ruined it. We've ruined it and they have to remind you about it. Yeah. Every time you go out there. I want to go on a big hike, like an overnight hike where you carry every... I've never done that. I'll do that. Yeah? I used to do it all the time. Really? Backcountry?

Really? All the time. Where? Yosemite. Really? And Teton's... Really? Denver.

Montana. Is this like college days or what? College. Really? And a little after. Probably five years after. And my buddy and I, Mike, we just got it in our heads. We wanted to go do it.

And we left school for spring break. And we went to Yosemite was the first one. Wow. And there's a, I don't know where the photo album is. Wow. We had no, we had no gear, no money. Wow. I had a semblance of a backpack.

Wow. And there was this picture of Mike in front of me. He had a green duffel, Army duffel bag. Wow. That was his backpack. Wow. And we went to the little shop to get food for, because, we're going to go into the backcountry.

We're going to stay out there for like five nights. Yeah. And he's carrying a grocery bag, a brown grocery bag with our meat and whatever we got in there. And we're like hiking. And people are coming back and know what they're doing. They're looking at this with this duffel bag and his thing. Like we just got off the, got on leave from the army. Yeah.

But it was the first trip and we went up to Tualami, which is like this big lake up there. And we just pitched a tent. And we were like, we're the only. one's on this lake. Wow. And it was fantastic. So that started this whole journey where we would just go to backcountry Alaska. We did Alaska. Really? Wow. When was the last time you did something like that? Okay. Now, this is where the story gets sad, like all nature stories. It was probably, you know, like five, six years after college. And then, you know, we had a family and all that stuff. and I was like, you know, he's tour as a comedian.

You're not going to tell your family, now I'm leaving again to go in the woods by myself for fun. Yeah, yeah, you can't. You don't do that. Yeah. So I haven't done it since then. Okay. And now that my kids are grown and leaving, I was like, oh, now I'm going to get back into it.

Wow. Not realizing this doesn't kill it, but I did not anticipate that my body would be 25, years older than when I stopped. And now, like, I walk through the supermarket. And I'm like, that knee feels weird. Yeah. You know what I mean? I'm in pretty good shape. We'll be able to do it. Yeah. But it's not like, it's going to be an adjustment. Well, that's how I've been thinking, too. I got all these injuries. But I want to train to get where it's like, I can do this, where I can carry like a 30 pound pack or whatever for. You could do it today. Yeah. Is the real of it. Right. You know, I wasn't in great shape at college. I was like, I was an athlete my whole life and then just stopped. Yeah. And just,

you know, got high and ate pizza with my friends. Right. And that's when we went out and did it. Right. It's, you're walking. Yeah. It's can, you know, it could be arduous. It depends where you're going and that kind of thing. But, and, you know, but you just have this big, everything's on your back. Yeah. And you're just walking and just stopping and walking and pitching and hanging out and you're in the night. And it's fantastic. Yes. We should do it. That would be great. I would love to do it. I mean, I think it would be great.

This would be a great... I've been thinking about it for like a year. And go out west where there's no ticks. Yeah, we'll go out west, we'll find a spot. Yeah. There's so many great hikes. I mean, amazing spots. Really great.

Yeah. We really, really should do this. This would be fantastic. I agree. I think this would be really great. All right, now let me ask you this question. And this may be an edit, it may not. What if my wife came with us?

That's fine. Yeah? Yeah. It's not a... No, it's okay. Guys thing? No, it's okay. I'm not saying that I'm not going to lead with it.

But when I say I'm going in the woods with Ryan and where are you going, we're getting to this new phase where she's going on her first girl trip. My whole life is a guy's trip, but there might be she might want to come. And if she wants to come, I want her to come. It's great. Don't edit that part out. If she wants to come, I'd be. grateful. I'll make that louder.

No, I think that'd be great. I always have fun hanging out with you and Cynthia together. It'd be great. And when you're in nature, it's like, nothing else matters. It's just, it's kind of like, I could be with strangers almost. I mean, I would love to go with you guys. But it's like you're with people because you kind of need people. Yeah.

But it's also nice to have them there. Yeah. You feel safe and you're with people that you care about. And but you get to have all this kind of, uh, self-examination time too on your own. It's amazing. The best. I haven't ever, I've done it on horses.

Like when I was a kid, we would go out in the backcountry on horses for this trip. But I've never done like a hiking thing. Yeah. And I really think it would be great. Yeah. It really is great. Let's do it. All right.

Let's do it. Yeah. We'll do a place with no ticks. Yeah. Very few bears. Right. Mostly level. There's going to be some nature we're going to mostly level.

No. Around a reservoir. Yeah. inclines. If we want to go to the hotel weekend. Yeah, right. Maybe we should just do some loops around an indoor track. I've had close encounters with bears, with moose, with, yeah. I've run into moose quite a bit, like hiking and cross-country skiing and... Right. Those are mean. Yeah, moose can get... I came around this turn and there was this baby moose just there on the trail. Yeah. And it was like the cutest thing with these big eyes and just looking.

Oh my gosh. I think, oh, this is cute. And then you hear, oh, that's when it's most dangerous. And you're like, oh, shit, the mom, I should not be messing around with this baby moose. Yeah, that's for near the bears and moose and most animals are going to attack you. I think that's the dangerous time. Yeah. Between them and their child.

Yeah. Yeah. Oh, this will be good. And you know what's exciting about it? As soon as we decide like we're down, we're going to start researching and doing it. Yes. There's a whole world. Now we get to go to the Bass Pro shop.

Oh, I know. And you get to get all the stuff. The gear. There's so much great gear, little stoves. I can imagine what the improvements have been. I can barely fill this pack on my back. How did they do this? How did they do it, right?

We had pots. Yeah. It's going to be all so different. The food, they have this great food. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, you make a little soup. Yeah, you bring your own little burner.

Yeah. Oh, it's so fun. This is great. This is so great. Now, one last thing. Okay. Don't tell Jerry. How are we going to get away with not telling Jerry?

You're doing what? He's going to know. Is there a gig at the lodge? The name of your special? This just hit me. This just hit me. Yeah. Fantastic.

And it's going to come out. June 23rd. June 23rd. It's a good time. I hope so. Going into 4th. July weekend. Everyone's with their families. I hope so. That's a good time. I think that's going to be good. Yeah, I'm very excited. And we'll let all the people know. This might come out before,

but we'll definitely beat the drums we get closer. I appreciate it. Fantastic. So glad you have a new one coming out. Thank you. Thank you. I'm excited. And be careful out there. And when I tell you, get on a plane, just do it. You're right. I'm going to start listening to you. Be less kind to others. to save yourself All right, we got it, kids