The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast - Boys Trip with Ben, Wells, and Dean

Episode Date: February 4, 2022

The boys are on a road trip together to the AT & T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. After playing a day of golf, Ben, Wells, and Dean sat around the fire pit and want to share a Bachelor story that you may not know. For the first time together, they are revealing how they got on the show and how their "journeys" began.Each of their lives were changed forever and they are giving you the intimate details. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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I mean absolutely beautiful specimens of men. Dean Ungler and Wells Adams. Hello. Hi. Yeah. Oh, this is going to be a fun day. We are currently sitting in Wells' hometown for the AT&T celebrity pro am. Is that what they would call it?

The AT&T pro em, yeah. Yeah. It used to be called the clam bake. Tell us the history. Okay, so a pro. a pro am is when you have professional golfers play with celebrities happens a bunch but the biggest one is the one that happens here at pebble beach and it originally was started by bing crosbie in like the 30s bin crosbie was like a famous old actor and he was a member at cyprus and would come up here from los angeles and he wanted to do a big golf tournament with all his famous friends and the professionals. And so he coined this tournament, Bing Crosby's Clambake and then turned into the biggest

like get in Hollywood. If you got invited to play in Bing Crosby's thing, it was a big deal. Who's Bing Crosby? He's a famous old actor, singer, dancer, heartthrob. He's like you. but from like the 30s and can sing. Okay, but why? And so he was like, he was a big deal.

Like, why would anyone care to play with Bing Crosby? You know, like, why did this then become the pro am? Because, like, who the heck cares about playing with one guy anyways? No, he would invite all his famous friends. Oh. So, like, the Who's Who of Hollywood would come up to play. Yes, it's probably similar to, you know, last week, and I've talked about the podcast a lot, but, you know, Wells and I played in Orlando. know. And the reason that you would travel so far to go play in it is because for a couple reasons. One, it's a good time. Two, you want to see how you compare to your friends. It's

kind of like, you get some competition going. And then the party's a big deal. Like, this is supposed to be a big. So was there actually, like, is there a clam bake? Is that a thing? No, that's a big joke is that he never actually had a dinner where they baked clams. But, so the original one was Pebble Beach and Cyprus and Spyglass. Cyprus is like a famous private golf course. They no longer use Cyprus in the AT&T Pro-Am. They now use MPCC, which is where we are right now. Anyways, it was such a big deal that Hollywood elites all wanted to be in this tournament

that they would do crazy things. They'd find out where Bing Crosby's house was. He was a great golfer. Yeah. He won the club championship at Lakeside. He was a member over at Lakeside up in Los Angeles. he's a scratch golfer people would get skywriters

and write over his house I want to be invited to the Klambe it was a huge huge thing so much so that a month before of the tournament he would go down to Mexico and not tell anyone his address because he didn't want to be bothered

because everyone was trying to get in the tournament so in the 30s though I mean how would they get that's a long drive for a car in the 1930s from L.A. to No, I mean, it's still like a six-hour drive. Do they have highways in the 30s? Yeah.

Was there like, was there traffic laws in the 30s? Yeah, but we're not like crazy here. Like the first car was like, what, 1907? Like the first production car, the Model T? Yeah. I would say, yeah, late 1800s, early 1900s. So like we're still early on here, man. That's a long trip.

That's a big deal. Yeah. But anyways, it was, listen, and he did it for years. Like he did the Klamake for long. time. Yeah. And then now it's the AT&T. It got corporate and everything. Like Kevin Koster's here, Andy Garcia's here.

Condoleezza Rice. Darius Rucker, Bill Murray. Jim Canales. Oh, wait. We're talking celebrities. It's still a big thing. It's hard to get into. I grew up here and I used to work it as a child and I would love to play it one day and not

that celebrity. I got to do some more television shows. If you're the casting director for the celebrities and you're listening, Wells Adams would I love to join. Oh, his name is Steve Johns. Yeah. Steve, if you're listening, I would love to play. So in bed.

Yeah. Let's not just take. I, come on. If Steve's really listening, I want my name to be thrown into the ring as well, please. So we've been able to play some golf this week. We've been on to hang out together at a great dinner last night. Amy Sugarman's brother took us to his golf course, the preserve. Today we played the golf course that Wells Adams worked at growing up as a child, Carmel Valley Ranch.

I was a range boy and a bag boy. there and I probably played that golf course 10,000 times and Ben beat me today. Yeah, I got lucky, but... Shot 76, man. That's pretty good. Listen. Four birdies. I can't be upset losing to a guy who shot six over.

No, no, no. Or five over. Five over. Six over, six over. Sounds better. You know what was interesting about today, too? We played with two of your high school buddies. One of them is Alex.

And Alex told me something on the range that he was a part of, part of the very first radio show you ever did. Is that true? Did I get that right? Yeah. So he went to a high school called Robert Louis Stevenson, which is in Pebble Beach, and it's a very nice school. And they had a radio program there.

And I didn't go to high school, but I was friends with Alex. And he was doing a show, and I asked if I could be come do it. And my first, like, radio entertainment industry con was convincing a school that I didn't go to to allow me to have my own radio show at their school. And that's how I started in radio and that's why I went to school for it

because I was like, this is awesome. So I ended up going to college for broadcast journalism and doing radio in college and that's how it started was because Alex Brandt had a show. Yeah, we got to play with him the day. Yeah.

Speaking of shows, Dean, your show, is Jared still co-hosting it right now or is he taking time off? Yeah, if you're still listening to this episode of almost famous. Go ahead and cut it short and flip over to help I suck at dating because I'll tell you what. It's going to be worth your time. Yeah, Jared just had a baby a couple days ago. That's great.

He's still co-hosting with us. Caitlin actually co-hosted the last episode with us. And we were a couple drinks deep. And I'm sure she kept like nudging me. She was like, shut up. Like stop, stop. Every time she said stop, I was like, I'm just going to go even more into what I'm doing right now. Why? Oh, just because I was being ridiculous, as I always am. But yeah, check. Check it out. Help I suck of dating. Thanks, Ben. Appreciate the plug. Are you enjoyed doing it? Yeah. I mean, you know, it's probably the highlight of my week every single week when I log into my Zoom call and get to see Danielle and Amy. Well, they used to be there, not there so much anymore. But I don't even get the premise anymore. You're basically married. Yeah. And Jared's married with a kid. Yeah. So no one sucks at dating anymore.

Oh, well, if you listen to the last episode, I'll tell you what. There's very clear that sense of me sucking out of dating. there's a lot of moments where Caitlin was like she was like writing things out on the notepad she was like stop talking about this and I was like okay I'm so sorry but I'm not gonna just I don't know but yeah it's uh it's uh you know it's a good show I don't know I don't really want to I don't know what else to say about it I mean so like sell us like why should we if we if you guys don't suck at dating why should we listen to yeah well you know just because you're in a relationship or you have a baby doesn't mean you don't suck at dating I'm sure we all can attest to that like I'm sure there are things where

Jess or Sarah wants more or like better from you in like in certain arenas. You know what I mean? So I think the idea of once you're taken, you can just get lazy is, you know, that's kind of everyone's ultimate downfall. So that's what we do. We talk about how important it is to keep the romance alive, how to always put your partner first. And even though we struggle with it most of the time, we, we always, you know, try to circle back to the life lesson that we're all trying to teach that we're living for our significant other a lot of times

I head home I mean you brought up a good point because I head home tomorrow back to Denver I've been gone for eight days at this point we had a puppy we got a puppy

two days before I left and so then I've been gone for eight days leaving Jessica at home with this puppy and I'm starting to feel really bad about it she's never made me feel bad about it

but I just feel like I'm failing and falling very short as a husband well I'll tell you what your first mistake is only to start feeling bad now because you should have started feeling bad eight days ago. Well, why? Because your new wife and you just got an eight-week-old puppy and you take off for two weeks to go golf with your friends?

This was not... Don't get me wrong. I would do the exact same thing. And I commend you for doing it. But I'm just saying is, like, for the fact that Jess hasn't laid into more about it is very impressive on her part. She's an incredible wife. Yeah.

You know, but part of getting this dog was also. knowing these trips would play them yeah so this was all pre-discussed yeah but at this point it's time i need to get back home yeah the you know i'll tell you what too to like as well as alluded to earlier to shoot a 76 on your last round of golf on this trip that you know very what way to close out strong you know on the back nine and it have one par i had shot even seven boge's and two yeah it's pretty great um it was it's pretty intense day well it has been fun hanging out with you guys I think today what we need to do because life has moved on for all of us

Wells came up with this idea but I think we need to share our stories on how you actually got onto the show obviously Wells and Dean have gone on to do great things post show Oh so successful post show yeah I'm killing it Let's start

Let's start with Dean I feel like Amy has something to do with Dean's venture into the bachelor's. I have a side sort of I'm going to share about Dean and Amy once he shares his story. But here's the deal about my story is I already know how my story starts and end. So I'd rather hear like well as or you go first. Well, yeah, of course you know your story. Yeah, but I mean.

I like to see Dean's version of the story and then I'll tell you all the true version of the story. Yeah. That's a good. Yeah, that's always fun with Dean. Yeah, the Patreon version. Start it out. I'll share my story. Everyone take a seat, settle in, get your dream.

drink ready. Wells has a friend here that I wouldn't let in the house until he tested negative for COVID. He's negative. So can you text your friend? Yeah. Nice. Poor Jim. Jim's welcome back. All right. My story goes back to when I was just a wee little boy, right bold age of six years old. And I was playing basketball out in my front yard. And I looked at my dad and I said, Dad, one day, I want to go on the bachelor. I don't know. I had just broken up with my girlfriend, maybe like four or five months prior and I hated my job. I was a tech recruiter and it was miserable

and I'm an adventure seeker at heart and so my buddy called me and he goes hey Dean I'm going to do something for you and I just want you to follow through with it no matter what it is and I was like Mike okay dude I love you no matter what it is tell me what I got to do and he goes my friend's girlfriend works for this woman named Amy Sugarman

and she's best friends with a bachelor executive producer and I was like okay um and he goes all right she's going to call you and she calls me and you know when you just meet somebody and you like don't fully realize how crazy they are and like you're like you're still new to getting to know them and so you like are fully present and you're like super uh you know into the conversation and amy and i talked on the phone for maybe like an hour maybe not that long it was a long time we had a long conversation i would say like 30 to 45 minutes which is long for me because i hate phone calls and then amy was like well you're great I love you so much.

I'm going to pass you on to my friend Bennett, who is one of the executive producers. And then I guess Bennett passed my information. You went right to the top. Yeah. Well, there was three EPs. It was Alon. It was Bennett and it was Nicole. No, no.

So that is. And you talk to one of the three EPs. Yeah. And I mean, honestly, I'm sure Amy probably gets a lot of people being like, hey, like, nominate my friend for the show. So Amy took the time out of her day to, like, go through the right avenues to get it done, which, I mean, kudos to Amy for doing that. But I'm sure you probably get a lot of people like asking you about that all the time.

And then Benin obviously didn't call me. Megan Firesoon, who is now probably an executive producer on the show called me. Or she's up there. She's not yet. She will be at some point if she sticks with it. She's too good of a cast producer to be an executive producer. Do you want to hear an interesting tidbit though? Yeah, please.

Okay. So far the story is totally accurate. Okay. Completely true. Hannah Winkleman called me about you. I called you. Who's Hannah Winkleman? She's our friends.

She worked for me. That isn't not a real person. Hannah Winkleman is a real person. She's totally a real person and she's an awesome person. So when did you come over? So first I talked on the phone. Oh, yeah, yeah, I got it. I remember now.

So first I talked on the phone with you. Then I hung up with you and I called Bennett. And I was like, Bennett, you've got to meet this kid. Super charismatic. But did you see what he looked like? Yeah, I had pictures. Hannah sent me a bunch of pictures, including a shirtless picture, which I didn't even request. So I called Bennett and Bennett's like, look.

I don't do the casting. Yeah. And I don't really like to, like, mess with what they're doing. I can't do it. So then I called you back. Yeah. And we talked for another hour. We talked.

We were talking together. So then I called Bennett back. And I go, trust me, trust me, call this guy. Have your guys call this guy. I will, I am not. I go, it is a real loss if you guys do not call this guy. And then they called you. Because it did take me, I had to do some profit.

You really had to work for it. great well hey thanks for making thanks for working for it thanks for changing your life you're so well yeah thank you for uh for everything you've done for me uh it's funny the shirtless photo right you're right yeah you were right yeah you were right yeah you're right i know and don't tell everybody that i know that works on that show i brought i am the person and it gives you kind of power over them later on too because you're like i was right before i'm probably going to be right again later on uh the shirtless picture thing is pretty funny too because maybe like two weeks prior like not even that much earlier one of my best friends

who has been in the industry he like works at an agency now he works for Amazon he's doing really well but back then he was like Dean you should like be a male model like you should go model and I was like Tommy dude I am not like up to that caliber of looking like I'm not a male model like it's just as simple as that and he goes I would disagree with that no one of my buddy says you're the best looking man he's ever seen it just blows my mind and you actively make yourself

less attractive it's not wrong you grow like terrible mustaches you don't shower. You have like a weird sideburn thing going on that's like six long hairs. Okay, what else do you guys hate about the way of the look?

And you're still better looking than I. Yeah, okay. Well, anyways, back to my story. If you cave a shit, I mean, you're Brad Pitt. Yeah, okay, well, appreciate that. Anyway, so he's like, dude, you have to try to be a model.

And I was like, okay, Tommy, like, whatever, dude, let's try it. And so he's like, I set up a meeting with this, the head of modeling for Wilhelmina. And I was, like, looking through the Wilhelmina website. And they're like, most insanely beautiful men I've ever seen my entire life and I was like whatever I'll go to dinner

with this guy anyways and so we go to dinner and he like tells me his whole life story and it was the weirdest dinner of all time super nice guy but like he was like unloading a lot of emotional baggage onto me and then he was like you're great we love your look I could see you doing all these things I need you to get some photos and so I was like well I'd have no money so what do I do and he's like just go to like Nordstrom and like try a bunch of stuff on in the changing room and take pictures of yourself and so I like brought one of my best friends Josh into the changing room with with me in Nordstrom, took like a bunch of photos and like a suit blazer and like shirtless. Yeah, golf Josh. Yeah. Golf Josh. Yeah. Yeah. And this is like six years ago too. And it's so funny

because in all the photos, you can like see the tags on the shirts and stuff like that. And so that's why Amy has eventually sent one of those photos. And then anyways, then Bennett tells Megan to get in touch with me and Megan calls me. And Megan and I talk for like three hours on the phone. She can definitely talk. And it was the same thing with Amy, you know, like you, yeah, I don't know. it's just like one of those things where you just like unload everything and like you just get you just talk for hours and then so eventually she was like you're great you're great and this was like maybe a week before we left for filming this is like February 3rd and we left her filming like February 10th oh really you guys filmed them February? We were early February. I think you were very like a last minute I was. I was the last edition and I remember too because I did like two in person interviews at NZK or whatever the studio was in uh did you not go to the hotel and do all those things no screw you man yeah yeah did that didn't you oh I did that Yeah, I didn't do any of that. She was like, coming to the studio tomorrow, we'll sign some paperwork. That's so good looking, Dina.

Oh, my God. I have to go through, like, three days of being locked in a hotel room and doing interviews. They just look at Dean twice and say, you know what, just come to the house. Yeah, skip the process. To show up on the day. No, and it was funny, too, because I was never really a fan of the show. I knew the format and how the system works and stuff, but I remember when I was in the production, and I met, like, Louie and Todd and, like, all of the cast producers.

all this stuff like there was like there was like 20 of them and it was me and like the next day they're like yeah we want you to come but in that interview or like the meeting or whatever they were like so like tell us about yourself and I was like well I know how the show works like if you guys end up coming to meet my family at hometowns it's going to be the weirdest episode you guys will ever have and fully expecting like never to even make it that far you know what I mean and they were like oh tell us more why and I explained why as we all saw play out on TV if you guys watch that episode or not. And it was just like, I feel like they were like already like interested because Amy pitched me really well. And then I was like, my family was really weird. And they were like,

wow, this guy's the whole package for us. Perfect. Yeah. And then so I left. And then I left like a week later. And I packed to be gone. I packed a tiny little duffel bag. This is one of my favorite parts. I want everybody to listen to this because you've told me this before. Well, I hope I'm going to tell the story that I told you. I packed a little tiny duffel bag. I was expecting to be gone for four days I brought maybe like three t-shirts a pair of jeans and one suit and I like I like called one of my best girlfriends at the time I was like Natalie like I watched the show and these guys are all wearing like nice blazers and pea coats and like these cool bombers and like expensive jeans and I don't know in any of those things and she goes oh yeah but like maybe just go buy a couple things and like

you know it's your style so you're going to make it work and I it's funny like looking back on it now because I still don't dress like that but it was just like I had no idea how to prepare and I didn't know what to do and then sure enough I was on a show for two and a half months instead of the two days that I was on it but and so did you ever get more clothes now I've got a couple more no no when you're on the show oh yeah so my friend Mike who I alluded to earlier I wore the same suit every rose ceremony and then the final one I got to see him like during my hometown or something and he brought me an extra suit so the suit that I was wearing when I got dumped after hometowns was his suit that he let me borrow it's an unlucky suit but I looked very good in

It was a little small on me, but I just feel I felt, I felt hot in it. Yeah. You know what I mean? And the other suit was nice because it was like a dark blue and I had like a couple ties so I could like change the look up of it enough. And I like had friends on the show that would like let me borrow their clothes. But, you know, I think there's something to be said about that specifically is a lot of people go into it with the super high expectations and they think they're going to be a knockout

hit and everyone's going to love them. And just like a little bit of humility goes a long way. You know, like just have like a little bit of humility and be like, I, I, I might get kicked off on day one or day five. People don't really go into it thinking that anymore, you know? They're thinking they want to be like an overnight celebrity. And that's my big issue with it now. So that's my Genesis story as to how I got on The Bachelorette.

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Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Oh, oh. Now I want to hear one of your guys is. Your story's interesting. Yeah. Well, I'm sure they're all interesting. No, I really had never.

I had always heard that Amy got you on the show. That's how I had heard the story. And now hearing all of that, it was, you really did, you skipped a lot of steps. Yeah. I talked to Amy. on February 3rd and I was in a car up to the mansion on February like 12th. Oh, holy God. So I was talking to them in November.

Yeah. And that's what I've heard. That's even early too, I think, for a lot of the guys. Yeah. I got my first phone call six months before filming started. In between that time, I had blown out my knee and had surgery before, like, from the first phone call to when I went on the show. You just blow it.

How many, how many days you got, dude? Yeah. I've blown it out three times. Really? Yeah. Stop being athletic. Just play golf now. I think that means the opposite.

When your knees are dislocated from your body, you're anti-athletic. It is, your story is interesting. I still remember, Amy and I went out to lunch one day in Brentwood and we're in a car and she got a phone call from you. Oh. And I was like, who was that? And she said, this guy just got off the show. Oh, nice. And he's going to be a star.

He's going to be a huge deal. I like him a lot. I was for a very short amount of time. You're starring all right. Yes, that's all I care about. And then I started paying attention to you. And then we got to meet later on and obviously become friends. And I have enjoyed a ton of members with you.

But I still remember that very first time she was like, this guy's going to be a star. Yeah. Well, it's funny to like a sidebar from that. I have told this story to you. And I probably told it on a podcast once or twice as well. But there was a time when after filming was over, before this season had aired, and right before I went to Bachelor in Paradise, which was like maybe a four-week gap, I was in Colorado visiting my friend, and we went to this wine store in the Lower Highlands,

and they saw you, and I guess I saw you too, but I didn't know who you were. You were just some good-looking guy. I didn't know you were super famous. And we left the store, and both my two friends, they were like, do you know who that was? Do you know who that was? And I go, no. And they go, that was Ben Higgins. He was the Bachelor.

And I was like, you guys should have told me in the store. I was just on the show. I would have loved to introduce myself to it. Yeah, yeah. And we ran into each other a couple of random times in Denver. A couple times you didn't say hi to me. Yeah, when you were getting your Aseyebo outside. I was getting Asaible outside and Dean just ignored me outside.

You guys have to understand. That's true. That's exactly. You have to understand. I don't know what it was about your look that day, but you look like you, you were wearing like a monster energy hat. And I was like, just like, goatee. And I was like, that guy rides dirt bikes Or like he just drove his monster truck to the breakfast place

I was on a walk I started out of basketball jersegon Swin trunks could go to the pool And I had a I had like a big old Like a hat off You could go to the bathroom Look at yourself in the mirror And you'd be like who the hell is that?

I think I had white socks with like sandals on that You looked good but you looked so unlike yourself So Dean was so like hurt by the fact of my look Even though he knew me That he just goes I'm not going to even talk to him I'll give him the, hey, what's going on. Oh, that was funny, yes. Yeah, that was funny.

This is a guy who's curly has a mustache, goatee. Yeah, yeah. Well, I'll tell you, Ben, like, literally, you looked like Mike Metzger. Do you know who that is? He used to be, like, a professional dirt bike rider. And I still, like, but, like, 30 years older, you look like him. And I just, I'm so sorry, I didn't recognize you. I promise I would have said, hi, had I known you.

I'm sick of talking about myself. I'm getting uncomfortable now. I want to hear your guys' stories together. Well, let's kick it off. You know, me to go? Yeah, yeah, people. heard mine so i'll make mine short too okay so i think i've told the story a bunch of times but i'm happy to do it again because it was my idea so uh i was a radio host before the show

and i used to do a bit where i would go on auditions for commercials in nashville and i would intentionally be bad at them the whole bit was is that i would have my co-hosts which was always an intern and we'd run lines on air for the commercial and so it was like a china paper plate commercial or it was like a meow mix commercial or something and we would go over the lines and we'd like all right the line is meow mix meow mix we deliver and whatever and then i'd be like very serious about it and then this is before instagram and facebook really and uh snapchat and TikTok and I'd make YouTube videos

of me going to these auditions and I would intentionally be bad at them because I wasn't really trying to get the gig. I was trying to get the bit. So I would be bad at them and and the next day I'd come back and I would be inconsolable because

I didn't get the Meow Mix commercial. Okay? But it was a good bit. It was a funny bit. Sometimes I would get it though. actually. I got the Chinat paper plate commercial. Even trying to be bad. You got it? Yeah. And so... So then do you carry the bid on into the actual commercial itself or do you like then start

taking it seriously? So one of them was for like the Tennessee lottery and it was the whole concept was is that you're like bouncing a basketball and you're looking around and thousands of fans are screaming your name and then you run to go do a layup. And I think how it was written was like someone from the Grizzlies comes and swats it away or something like that. And the whole thing was you miss 100% of the shots you don't take. Play the lottery. You could win a million dollars.

So I went to this audition straight up like Will Ferrell, like headband, socks up to my knees, short shorts, like old conversees. and I was like 1960s me and I was like doing the whole thing and they didn't hire me which is fine and then if you go find you can go find this commercial

they stole the look that I the entire thing was just like 1960s like a guy really yeah anyways so I used to do this a lot because it was a good bit and like I was very happy with like my career and I thought it was

fun and funny and my brother Brett of whom I love Yes Amy's trying to marry him He's married I'm not trying

But I do love Well's brother is like He's the best Ten out of ten He's the best And he also was like The good looking one in our family No yours good looking

No Brett was Brett was a model And now he's old Now he's older But he's still a very handsome Very ten out of ten Anyway so he lives in Brentwood In Los Angeles

and he got approached by a casting director and the casting director came up to him Brett is also a guy that like is friends with everybody I mean you guys know you guys know him but like for everyone up there my brother is a guy that knows everybody and everyone loves there's never been a bad word said about my brother and he's a person that never loses a friend

so this was 2007 2008 he was at Q's in Brentwood yes he loves Q's And also, by the way, he's the mayor of Q's. I've, first of all, Q's. He's there? Yes, and it's a goddamn black hole. If I go in there, I get absolutely tanked because I don't pay for anything.

And the bartender's way double poor me because Brett's the mayor of Q's. So he's in Q's watching his Kansas basketball, I'm sure. And a Cassinger comes out and is like, I don't know who the hell you are. But you are the most gregarious person. I've ever met everyone loves you everyone's talking to you who the hell are you and are you single and he was like my name's brett i am not single i just started dating a girl but like we just started dating like last week or whatnot who are you and they started casting him for the show they offered him to go on the show he went through everything and at the you know it takes months

to get through the for most people for most people not for not for dean But for most people, it takes a long time. And so for my brother, by the time they were like, okay, we're going to go start filming in March, he was like, I'm now very serious with this woman, who now is his wife and they're having a child together. Yeah, it's painful. It's painful for Amy. Yeah, it sucks. But back to the part of my brother, everyone loves my brother and my brother has never lost a friend. Seven years go by, okay?

I get dumped by the girl I'm dating in Nashville I'm doing this like weird morning show on this strange radio station and I'm kind of like I'm in a weird spot and my brother goes hey man do you want to go audition for the bachelor I'm still friends with this casting director

and to me I'm like why the fuck are you still friends with this person like that was seven years ago and you're married Like, this is so weird. And he's like, hey, man, listen, I don't lose friends. Like, you never know what's going to happen. He's like, I'll send an email. So he sends an email to Melissa Chappius, who is a big casting director for the show and says, hey, this is my brother would like to go on the show. So, Melissa is like, great.

We'll be in Nashville in November. We'll set it up. now remember I used to do this bit where I would go on auditions and I would try to kind of ruin it okay so I am in my mind with my the producers of the radio show I'm like I'm gonna go do this bachelor thing and I'm gonna bomb it and it's be really really funny so they call me up and they say hey listen we need you at this hotel at this certain time and I was like well I have a afternoon drive show. At the time I was doing three different radio shows for three different formats. And I was like, I have a hard out, which is like the duchiest thing to

tell somebody that you have unless you're Tom Cruise. But I was like, I got a hard out, so I need to leave early and they're like, okay, fine, you'll be the first person in. So I had done my morning show, I go to my audition

for The Bachelor, and I'm wearing like my normal clothes. I remember I was wearing all jeans. I was wearing a jean jacket, jean jeans, a t-shirt with like a bunch of buttons or whatever. And I remember walking into this hotel in downtown Nashville and everyone was wearing suits because like that's what you wear when you get out of the limo.

And I remember looking around being like, well, fuck. This is off to a blues. Yeah. So I have to go first because I have a heart out like a doucher. So I go first. and I was like listen I got 15 minutes or whatever and I sit there and they put a little camera up I Ben did this Dean didn't do this because he lives in fantasy casting world but they have a little

camera and they basically interview you for a couple minutes and I had 15 minutes and I remember 45 minutes went by and they're like so you're a radio DJ like do your bit so I had I had done my morning show that day so I did every bit I had done that day it He was right after, I don't know if anyone remembers this, but Justin Bieber had peed into a bucket at a restaurant for some reason. And he had like gone into the restaurant kitchen and peed into a bucket. Do you remember this? Yeah.

I remember that, yeah. And so the whole bit was like, that bucket seen some shit. But like, God damn it, that's a good day for that. You know, it was just like, you know, you could tell your kids like, Justin Bieber peed on me. today was a good day like that was the bit so I was like doing this like weird Justin Bieber bit for these people

and I remember like 45 minutes in I was like they think I'm funny I was trying to bomb this entire thing because I just wanted the bit from my radio show and I remember they go so this was in November they go what are you doing in March and I said

ladies I don't know what I'm doing tomorrow let alone I'm doing March so I don't know what you're saying they're like well we need you for March and April this is going to be a thing. And so I knew that day that I was probably going to get booked for the show. And then there's like the whole story of like flying out to L.A. at the Sheridan in Los Angeles where they like poke and prod you and they do weird stuff. And which Dean didn't have to do, which annoys me because they did like a whole background check on me. I'll be honest. It sounds fun.

I'm amazing. So they did a whole background check on me. I remember there was a private eye. They were like, you didn't pay a ticket in 1997. And I'm like, now I'm hearing this, I'm like, Dean has never paid a ticket. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like, they didn't give a shit about anything. Okay, for the record, I did have to go to the private eye. I went to the private eyes house. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

No, she lived in like Long Beach or something. And I went there, she ran my social. And I did have, I mean, I've got a lot of misdemeanors on my record, like invading arrest and underage drinking and like all these ridiculous things I got before I was 20 years old. So I had to experience all the things. I just went at a different pace than everyone else. Yeah, but so what do you need to do to not be on the shit? You have a laundry list of misdemeanors and they're like, yeah, that works.

Well, there are no more, how do you not? I think as long as you have no felonies, that's really what it was. And the thing, I think I was really worried that I had an active warrant out for my arrest. Yeah. And another thing, too, was, do you still have an active warrant out? I sure hope not. The other thing, I don't want me to steal your story time. but this is all coming back to me in a rush.

So I remember one of the things was I needed to have an updated driver's license because my driver's license was from Colorado and expired and I was living in Los Angeles and I went to the DMV to get a California driver's license. And they were like, you have like four speeding tickets. You never paid five parking tickets. So I had to literally pay the DMB like $1,100, which was basically like my monthly salary at the time to even get a California license just in order to go on the show. And like sure enough, obviously, fiscally it returned itself to me.

me, but there was a, there was a lot of fear in my head where I was like, I'm paying $1,100 to go on a television show, and like, it could be the worst decision on my entire life. Yeah, so I'm sorry, but I did have to go to the private eye for the record. Okay, good. You need to take SDD tests and all that stuff. Oh, yeah, absolutely. You have to take the crazy person test? And all, you know, and funny enough, the only test that I, the only test that I passed was the STD test. You didn't, you didn't pass the, every other test I failed. Oh, I mean, sure, I guess the mental test, but, like, I had, you know, the background checks and all the other stuff. Interesting.

Yeah. Hello, Puzzlers. Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings' appearance on The Puzzler with A.J. Jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land? Jeopardy Truthers who say that you were given all the answers believe in... I guess they would be conspiracy theorists. That's right. Are there Jeopardy Truthers?

Are there people who say that it was rigged? Yeah, ever since I was first on, people are like, they gave you the answers, right? And then there's the other ones which are like, they gave you the answers and you still blew it. Don't miss Jeopardy legend Ken Jennings on our special game show week of the Puzzler podcast. The puzzler is the best place to get your daily word puzzle fix.

Listen on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Have you ever wished for a change but weren't sure how to make it? Maybe you felt stuck in a job, a place, or even a relationship. I'm Emily Tish Sussman, and on she pivots, I dive into the inspiring pivots of women who have taken big leaps in their lives and careers. I'm Gretchen Whitmer, Jody Sweeten, Monica Patton, Elaine Welteroff. I'm Jessica Voss. And that's when I was like, I got to go.

I don't know how, but that kicked off the pivot of how to make the transition. Learn how to get comfortable pivoting because your life is going to be full of them. Every episode gets real about the why behind these changes and gives you the inspiration and maybe the push to make your next pivot. Listen to these women and more on She Pivots, now on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast, The U.S. Open is here, and on my podcast, Good Game with Sarah Spain, I'm breaking down the players from rising stars to legends chasing history, the predictions, well, we see a

first-time winner, and the pressure. Billy Jean King says pressure is a privilege, you know. Plus, the stories and events off the court, and of course the honey deuses, the signature cocktail of the U.S. Open. The U.S. Open has gotten to be a very fancy, wonderfully experiential sporting events. I mean, listen, the whole aim is to be accessible and inclusive for all tennis fans, whether you play tennis or not. Tennis is full of compelling stories of late. Have you heard about Icon Venus Williams' recent wildcard bids?

Or the young Canadian, Victoria Mboko, making a name for herself. How about Naomi Osaka getting back to form? To hear this and more, listen to Good Game with Sarah Spain, an Iheart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of I Heart Women's Sports. Culture eats strategy for breakfast. I would love for you to share your breakdown on pivoting.

We feel sometimes like we're leaving a part of us behind when we enter a new space, but we're just building. On a recent episode of Culture Raises Us, I was joined by Volisha Butterfield, Media Founder, Political Strategist, and Tech Powerhouse for a powerful conversation on storytelling, impact, and the intersections of culture and leadership. I am a free black woman who worked really hard to be able to say that. I'd love for you to break down why it was so important for you to do C. You can't win as something you didn't create. From the Obama White House to Google to the Grammys, Melicia's journey is a masterclass in shifting culture and using your voice to spark change. A very fake, capital-driven environment and society will have a lot of people tell half-truths.

I'm telling you, I'm on the energy committee. Like, if the energy is not right, we're not doing it, whatever that it is. Listen to Culture raises us on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. We are telling our scientists today, we have disdain for your expertise. And then you have China as an exception saying, actually, we're going to invest a trillion dollars in new science. Yeah, you heard that right. While the U.S. is cutting billions from science and public health, China is making historic investments. That means here in the U.S., fewer breakthroughs, slower medical advances, and a serious risk of falling behind globally.

I don't think anything about that is efficient. I think that it is actually profoundly inefficient. And she would know. Chelsea Clinton is using her expertise in public health to break down what these cuts really mean. And why protecting science isn't just smart policy. It's a necessity. This week on Dope Labs, we're putting it all under the microscope with Chelsea Clinton, diving into what's at stake for science, medicine and our future. Listen to Dope Labs on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Oh, oh.

So, anyways, that was basically my story. And then it was, I had to wait for six months and, or whatever it was. What is that like? Because, like, so, okay, so you, like go through it and they're like, we want you on the show and then you just don't hear from them for a second? I didn't know. Megan Firestone was also. the person that was talking to me every week or whatever and I think she was making sure that

like I was being a good boy but what I did that I think a lot of people don't do and if this is like a cautionary tale for people that want to go on the show what I did was I called every X that I had which was only a couple and I said I'm going on this show I'm going to have to talk about like my past yeah and if you don't think that if you don't want me to do this then I won't do this because I have respect for like for you and how this is to make you feel and everything and and testament to all my exes they're all like you're a fucking idiot and uh you have my blessing go on this show and so then I didn't feel bad because I was like I was going to be honest about yeah you know whatever happened with all my exes and I just didn't want like

an ex coming on the show being like and you did another thing yeah you did this you know so I And every time I watch a show, there's always like, we haven't done them on this past season, but there's always like an angry ex, like comes, you know? And I didn't want that. That's smart. I think that's a great cautionary tale, too, is if you're going to go on the show,

kind of cover your own, cover your own bases, I guess. I, uh, my ex, my most recent ex that I had just broken up with, I cheated on her and I was, I still am very ashamed and, upset with myself for doing that.

But at the time, I, like, was, I was in a place where I was, like, kind of denying it to like to myself and everyone else and a lot of people like news outlets were reaching out to her and they were like hey do you want to make a comment on your ex-boyfriend being on a television show and she's the same she's like one of the nicest people in the entire world so she always like refused to comment but i could imagine a situation where like maybe my ex-girlfriend wasn't as kind as that one and they would like they would love to like drag your name through the mud so yeah it's a good cautionary tale for sure did you mean if this is a bit wells yeah for you not

to get the gigs. And then like every once in while you get the gig. And you got the Bachelorette gig. Why did you say yes? Like you weren't expecting to go in and get it. But then all of a sudden you're like, oh, well, maybe now I'll do it. Well, kind of going back to what Dean was saying about like, there's something about like, I'm

only going to last four days. I'm going to pack for four days of whatever. I kind of went into all those things. Like, I'm not really trying to do this, but if I do great, every day's a blessing type of thing. For me, once they said that we want you to be on the show, then I was like, great.

And at the time, I had been in some, like, long relationship that hadn't worked. And the way that I rationalized the whole thing was, well, normal dating hasn't worked for me. I'm still alone. At the time, I was 33. I was kind of older than a lot of people. people. I was like, maybe this is how it happens. Like, then I became open to it. And so I was able to sell myself on it. When you were on the show, did you still think you was part of your bit? Like, while you were like in the mansion filming, where you still like, this is going to be

great for my radio show? No, but I remember being nervous that everyone was thinking, was going to think that I was using this to like get clout in radio, which I don't think I really was. I think in my mind, I was like, this will always be a funny antidote I'd be able to tell at dinner parties and maybe sometimes on the radio. But for the most part, like, I didn't think that was going to like make me the next Ryan Seacrest, you know. But I was nervous that people were going to think I was doing that. But I also realized pretty early on that Joshua didn't like me. And then it was, let's just see how long we can hold on to this thing. Why didn't she like you?

I think because I was kind of her buddy. Okay. If I'm, you know, like, I don't think she was attracted to me sexually. I think she was attracted to me like, I think my, I had a good personality, still do. Yeah, she's going to say that. I'm pretty fantastic. Yeah, I'm pretty great. I think she thought I was funny.

So she was like, I think we'll keep him around because he's like good, he's like good vibes. But I'm never going to, I'm never going to fuck this kid. Yeah, this is not my man Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think I knew that, and I think I was like, great, where are we going next? Yeah. We go into Argentina. Big sis is taking me in Argentina.

Let's go! Because you never kissed her, right? I did at the end. Okay. We never saw it on TV? Yeah, we saw it on TV. Okay. Did she break up with you right after kissing?

Yes. Really? Absolutely, yes. So you guys made out, and then she said, hey, this isn't going to work? Yes. Oh. Do you think she knew that she was going to say that? that before she kissed you and she just wanted to like

send you on your way with maybe a smile I guess. It was at the end like you know there was only seven guys left or whatever at that time and I think she was trying to whittle it down and like I just here's the thing I would do

so many things differently if I could go back but I actually wouldn't do anything differently because everything worked out exactly the way it was supposed to and I ended up doing very well for myself but um in my mind like i never got to i was never on a one-on-one until the day i got dumped okay so it's only on group dates and i fucking killed group dates i was i i thought i did great every single

one i got the first rose in the first group date the second one uh was like a football one that i had the most touchdowns of anybody but even though he lost exactly what jojo was looking for who's going to score the most touchdowns for me well you know who got the freaking rose Jordan Rogers because he threw all of them but I caught all of them but I was like I'm doing so good but I don't have any alone time with you so any time that I had alone time with her I was like

so I don't even know what your middle name is like who are you like what's your book I was like trying to like figure things out and then watching it back Robbie like the second day being like I'm in love with you nah I'm making out and be like that's crazy that's much weirder than like what I was doing. Even though I was the weird

guy, like, didn't make out there, but I was just like trying to understand what her middle name was. So I went through the show normally, and I should not have done that, and like, looking back, I see that now. You would have been more aggressive?

Hell yeah. Like, I'm not a wuss, like, when it comes to chicks, and I can make out with chicks. Oh, cool, man. There was a part of me that was, like, so, like, how many brothers you have you know like things that you ask on first days you just had like nine consistent first day yes and I remember I remember the last day I got dumped I got finally up the one-on-one and she shamed me for not making out with her the date card said Bessime Bessime

Muchacha which just kissed me kiss me you little borgia and so and so we I got I was hanging out with her and I was like I was like you know it's fun mine, like, what you're doing, I get it. Like, also, you didn't write this day card, but whatever. But I was like, I've done the math. Do you know how long we've hung out? And she was like, how long? I said, 27 minutes.

This entire time, 27 minutes, okay? Which, if I had made out with you in 25 minutes, I might get canceled. You know? I might get me-toed real quick. That's like picking up your first day and, like, making out of there before you even get to the restaurant. You're not wrong.

No, I know I'm not wrong. You're not, so have you seen Jojo or Jordan since? No, like, it's so funny, though, because we were such buddies on the show. So after the show, like, she would text me. And I remember we were at IHeart, and IHeart Fest in Vegas. And she was like, just so you know, you're the only person other than Jordan that I follow from our show, from my show. and you're the only person that I talk to because I think you're cool

and I think we're like we're friends and I was like that's cool you didn't need to fucking dump me in Argentina but like that's fine and then like weird things would come out of the people that made it further than I did and I mean

we only go into but things happen for other people like guys that made it further than Wells did didn't end up coming out of this whole thing I'm scared and I would say I would say I would send screenshots to her, and I would say, just so you know, he made it further than I had done. And I talked to every one of my exes, and they all said, I was great. I was a good cop.

So anyways, but I got nothing of my love for Jojo. We were not meant for each other, and I think that's why we both are happy, because, like, I don't care. Like, really, I mean, it's not how much to say that. Yeah. I don't care. Like, I'm happy for her. I really do like Jordan. He was a good guy.

We were friends on the show. We still are friends. And so that's my story. Yeah. Isn't it a weird, too, to, I mean, we have these moments now as we sit around and, like, have drinks, you know, play golf and talk. And I'd say, like, maybe 5% of total conversation is ever about anything about the show when we're hanging out, like, very little. But just how. That's a bit of a lot.

Yeah, last night we talked about it was about it a little bit, but like if we're hanging out, like in Orlando together, I don't think we probably brought up to show once. No. I don't think there was one time. I don't think if Dean comes to my house in Denver and visits, the show ever gets brought up. Yeah, that's because we're legitimate friends though. Yeah. But what I'm saying is how much now, my point to this whole intro was how much now it has enhanced your life. Like you did just say like you're wearing a modern family jacket right now.

Like, Jackie Yovon has modern family. You met your fiancé because of the show. Your career hasn't fully changed, but it's been enhanced. I would say, you know, Dean, Cailin's out here with us. Yeah. Yeah. Kailen is, you know, she's all I need in life. I don't need a great career like Wells.

I don't need a... You have a podcast on the same network I do. I don't need a fancy car like Ben, you know. I got Kaila. 2016. I got Kela. That's what we're going for. Well, I mean, if you really think about it, yeah.

So the show led Wells to Sarah and the show led, obviously, me to Kaylin more so than either you guys, but the show also led Jess to you in a lot of ways where, like, she probably would never have responded to you had she not been on the show. And so, like, in a lot of ways, we do have the show to thank for the success we've had romantically. Yeah, I mean, it's such a big, you know, pivot point in all of our lives. Yeah. And it's like, it is something I look at with a lot of gratitude. It's not always been ideal, but a lot of gratitude.

Have you ever wished for a change but weren't sure how to make it? Maybe you felt stuck in a job, a place, or even a relationship. I'm Emily Tish Sussman, and on she pivots, I dive into the inspiring pivots of women who have taken big leaps in their lives and careers. I'm Gretchen Whitmer. Jody Sweeten. Monica Patton. Elaine Welter-A. I'm Jessica Voss.

And that's when I was like, I got to go. I don't know how, but that kicked off the pivot of how to make the transition. Learn how to get comfortable pivoting because your life is going to be full of them. Every episode gets real about the why behind these changes and gives you the inspiration and maybe the push to make your next pivot. Listen to these women and more on She Pivots, now on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hello, Puzzlers. Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings' appearance on The Puzzler with A.J. Jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land?

Jeopardy truthers who say that you were given all the answers believe in... I guess they would be conspiracy theorists. That's right. Are there Jeopardy Truthers? Are there people who say that it was rigged? Yeah, ever since I was first on, people are like, they gave you the answers, right? And then there's the other ones which are like, they gave you the answers and you still blew it. Don't miss Jeopardy legend Ken Jennings on our special game show week of The Puzzler podcast. The Puzzler is the best place to get your daily word puzzle fix. Listen on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

The U.S. Open is here, and on my podcast, Good Game with Sarah Spain, I'm breaking down the players from Rising Stars, to legends chasing history, the predictions, well, we see a first-time winner, and the pressure. Billy Jean King says pressure is a privilege, you know. Plus, the stories and events off the court and, of course, the honey deuses, the signature cocktail of the U.S. Open. The U.S. Open has gotten to be a very fancy, wonderfully experiential sporting event. I mean, listen, the whole aim is to be accessible and inclusive for all tennis fans, whether you play tennis or not. Tennis is full of compelling stories of late.

Have you heard about Icon Venus Williams' recent wildcard bids? Or the young Canadian, Victoria Mboko, making a name for herself? How about Naomi Osaka getting back to form? To hear this and more, listen to Good Game with Sarah Spain, an Iheart women's sports production in partnership with deep blue sports and entertainment on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Culture eats strategy for breakfast.

I would love for you to share your breakdown on pivoting. We feel sometimes like we're leaving a part of us behind when we enter a new space, but we're just building. On a recent episode of Culture Raises Us, I was joined by Valicia Butterfield, Media Founder, Political Strategist, and Tech Powerhouse for a powerful conversation on storytelling, impact, and the intersections of culture and leadership. I am a free black woman who worked really hard to be able to say that. I'd love for you to break down. Why was so important for you to do C. You can't win as something you didn't create. From the Obama White House to Google to the Grammys,

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Hi, I'm Kurt Brown-Oller. And I am Scotty Landis, and we host Bananas, the Weird News Podcasts with wonderful guests like Whitney Cummings. And tackle the truly tough questions. Why is cool mom an insult, but mom is fine? No. I always say, Kurt's a fun dad. Fun dad and cool mom.

That's cool for me. We also dig into important life stuff, like why our last names would make the worst hyphen ever. My last name is Cummings. I have sympathy for nobody. Yeah, mine's brown-olar, but with an H, so it looks like brown-holer. Okay, that's, okay, yours might be worse. We can never get married. Yeah. Listen to this episode with Whitney Cummings and check out new episodes of bananas every Tuesday on the exactly right network.

Listen to bananas on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Well, okay, so I think it's your turn, even though this episode's gone a good 30 minutes past how long it was supposed to. Yeah, I can do mine quick because a lot of people listening has heard it, but I was dating girl, just to give her to be a reminder, I was dating somebody in college. I thought I was going to marry, and she, her and I are friends now. So I want to preface this was saying we were friends and our friends, but she was a freshman in college. I was a senior in college. I was ready to marry her my senior of college. You were that guy.

I was that guy. Yeah. And I was, so she was in Bloomington, Indiana. After I graduated, I went back to Warsaw. And I would drive down to Bloomington about every weekend. And at some point, like, I think for her, and it's totally fair, you know, her graduate, like, alumni boyfriend seems to have nothing better to do than come and visit his. sorority girlfriend who's trying to have a good time in college and like, you know, want to take her on dates and like want to do like weekend trips. And I think she's just trying to have a

good time. Yeah. In college. And so we started to like, Matthew McConaughey and day some with you. Yeah. Yeah. And so. All right. All right. All right. So I went down on a trip. I still remember us to Bloomington. And she's like, what are your dreams and what are your plans? And I said, I'm going to, you know, I think we got a good thing going. Like, I'll be in Warsaw. I can drive down and see you. And she says, no, like, then you're never going to leave Warsaw, my hometown. I was like, well, there's not a huge reason to.

There's a great job there for me. Like, my parents are there. My family is there. And she goes, I just think when you do that, you're losing your it factor. And I was like, oh. And we kind of like, I kind of love this woman. Yeah. She's pretty good.

She's really great. And so a month later, it's summer, and I wanted her to stay in Indiana because I'm a jerk. And she wanted to go take an internship in Austin, Texas. And it was kind of my last hurrah at trying to keep her a part of my life. And so I'll drive you to Austin, Texas. I'll take the road trip with your car down there. But let's break it up. Let's do a trip to New Orleans and then go to Austin from there.

And so we drive down to New Orleans. And we go out to our first night. we have a great night. Second night, we go to this really fancy dinner. I still remember I was, I had no money to my name, and it was like a $150 dinner, and I thought I was, you know, I got thought I was a big deal, and I also was so scared to have money. And at dinner that night, we go and we walk home, and we're going to stop and get a cocktail

afterwards. We walk into this bar, and there's like a five-minute wait, so we sit down on the side of the bar, and she just looks at me, goes, I think it's time for us to be done. And I said, what? and there was no sign of this pointing to this but she goes I think it's time for us to be done

and so that was before you got into the bar we were like sitting waiting and like the waiting well I didn't have my hurricane yet yeah I mean the hurricane then dump me

well this is the best part of the story so I don't have a flight home and I don't have any money to pay for a flight of New Orleans so I have to drive to Austin and spend a week with her family that she's living at so we drive nine hours

in a car, she puts her hair, uh, headphones in. And I drive her like the nine hours to Austin, Texas. And we don't say a word to each other the whole way. We get to her aunt and uncle's house in Austin. And I would wake up before she woke up every day and leave the house and come back home at like 11 o'clock at night. Like I just find stuff to do for a week until my flight could take off because I didn't want to tell my parents I was embarrassed to, and I didn't want to tell them to give me a new flight. And I had my money to buy a new flight. So I just waited out, finally flew back to Indiana. I got back to Indiana and my buddy and I were going to, based on this, when she said,

you've lost your head factor. I said, I'm moving. So we decided to move to Peru, South America. And we lived in South America and I ended up getting homesick and missing her and thinking I can get her back. So I came back home early. I got back home. And my boss at my job was like a part-time job convinced me. to leave town, went to Denver, a year after moving to Denver, I was so sad. And I told

that whole first part of the story because I was so sad. I still missed her. I didn't have any friends. I hated my job. And one of the ladies at my work said, then you're, I remember this day. She goes, you're really sad. And you need to shake life up a bit. I'm going to sign you up for, will you go with me to an audition for the Bachelorette? And I said, no. And she said, can I sign you up online? I said yeah you can sign me up and that's when the whole thing started so she signed me up a week later they called um two weeks after that I'd blow out my knee and um that's when then I kept having conversations with him but I wouldn't tell him I was hurt because I thought the show was going to be starting soon and I was going to you know tough it out and then I didn't

hear from them for like three months like they just disappeared the show disappeared from my life and so I went ahead and got surgery and then right the day I got surgery um my mom had came out to take care of me and helped me, nurse me back to help, my phone rang and it was in L.A. And she called and she, the L.A. called and they said, hey, can Ben be out here in a week? And so a week after my surgery, I came out to L.A. And did the whole thing you were talking about. You know, you walk into a room. There's like 25 people there.

There's a bunch of random girls that are like, I don't know, size you up to see if you're interesting the date or not. There's a room full of a bunch of producers. And I'm on crutches. And I really think the crutches were the thing. that like sold me or why I stood out to them was I was on crutches but I had long hair back then my hair was down to here really yeah and when I left there they pointed to his shoulder yeah um they asked me to cut it like when I left there like hey this isn't the best look for you

like can I see a picture of you with yeah I'll find that picture um it's it's a great picture um I have them on my fun in fact my buddy still make fun of me for to this day uh so anyways one on the show um and as i left i had a similar feeling to you because as i left for the show i had three friends over the night before i got uh dressed and went on the show and they were picking out some clothes from me and my one buddy goes um you know there's a lot of like studs on that show and i was like yeah and he's like i bet you're like you could be there like a couple weeks and like he meant that as a compliment to me like there's a lot of studs on this show and you might make it a couple weeks. Yeah. And so I went on the show fully predicting to be home fairly quickly because all

my friends seemed to think that I was going to be coming home very quickly. In fact, my family and like, and like my family and friends had a consensus where it's like, don't quit your job been. Just take two weeks off. Yeah. Like take your vacation time. Now you'll be back and then nobody will have to know. Right. Um, it'll be like a fun little thing. It'll be like a fun little like story you tell. That was kind of my feeling. And what people don't always remember about my season was there was two bachelorette's yeah um so there was brit and there was katelyn and we had to vote well that took two nights but my intro to them i was so nervous and i was so overwhelmed and confused that i couldn't get any words out so i blanked blacked out

but like worse than like blank and black out like i couldn't talk like i couldn't figure out how to talk so i was so nervous and so i said thanks for having me and i walked inside like i couldn't even get anything going and so and then once all of our entrances were done um we all went to the hotel because it was a two-day film it was two-night filming and so that was my only interaction i was like i laid that all night that i remember being like you're an idiot you're going home like your friends are going to make fun of you like you have totally just like embarrass yourself in front of like everybody and you're gone well it didn't work out that way i ended up sticking around for bed did you vote for kately i did i wasn't fully i mean i knew like two from talking to two

minutes of them right yeah like you don't and you blacked out so you remember probably talking um but i remember that night i was so like up in the air i'm like i don't know who to vote for yeah when the producer's like who you vote for i's like i don't know like i barely remember both their names right now um and when i went on to this show i found out the night before we started filming who the bachelors were going to be so i had no premeditative like thought on any of this and um one of the the producers like you'll just get along with katelyn really well i think and so i I was like, I'll vote for Kailan then. She seems cool.

They poisoned the well. They were leading you that one. Yeah. Same thing happened to us. Everyone thought that Kayla Quinn was going to be the Bachelorette. And they announced that it was Jojo two nights before we got out of limos. And they came in with iPhones, I remember, and filmed our reaction to watching, like, Jimmy Kim. Yeah, yeah.

You mentioned something about this, too. I remember before I left for the show, I didn't tell any of my friends either. I, like, told my brothers, and I told, like, two of my best friends, maybe, like, maybe. And then we had this huge barbecue, like, the night before I left for the show, and it was, like, for, like, someone's birthday party. But my two buddies that I told, they were like, oh, like, this is you're going away barbecue. And there was, like, 40 people there, like, my 40 closest friends, whatever it was. And no one knew. And then, sure enough, the next day, we go to the hotel, and then we do, like, for the first time they'd ever done it.

They did like the live television thing. Oh, yeah. So it's like I was gone all of a sudden. And like two days later, I was on live TV telling this woman that I want to go black and never go back. And all my friends were like, they were like, why did he never tell us? He was going on The Bachelorette. Also, why did you agree to say that on television? It's because Alon.

You know, he's so smart and he can just, he finds ways in. I didn't know what I was going to say. And he like, I think I told you this story before. I was like in the dressing room by myself with Megan Firestone and we were like going over what I was going to say like how hard is it just to be like hey I'm Dean I'm so excited to be here can't wait to get to know you better all right see you later so simple but like in the moment I was like I can't even make words right now

you know what I mean and so right before I go out there Alon who's like one of the former executive producers he comes in he goes Dean I know you're you're really struggling on what you should tell this woman today but I think I think I think I got something good for you and I go along that's great I'm struggling Like, what is it? And he goes, actually, never mind. You're going to be too scared to say it.

And then he leaves. And then I'm like, wow, that must have been great. But, like, I'm so curious what it is. And so I, like, keep, like, taking shots of tequila to get, like, ready for it, nervous live studio audience. First time ever doing anything like that, really. And as we're, like, lining up behind the curtain to, like, walk out and introduce ourselves. Alon walks by me again. And I, like, I, like, tap him on my shoulder.

I'm like, Alon, tell me what you think I should say. And he goes, all right, I want you to say. I want to go black and never go back. And I was like, that is the dumbest thing. And like the dumbest thing I could possibly say. And I thought about it for a couple more seconds. And I was like, I'm going to fucking do it. And the worst part about it too is, well, that's bad.

It's bad to say that. Don't get me wrong. But what I disliked the most about my delivery was I literally just said that and then left. I didn't, I wasn't like, oh, by the way, my name's Dean. You look beautiful. You didn't even tell your name. I didn't even, I don't even think I told her my name. I walked out there.

I stood right in front of her for two seconds, and I looked her up and down, and I said, I'm ready to go black and never go back. And I exited stage right. And they were also like, they were like, whatever you do, exit stage left. So I also fucked up the exit. And then I saw her like three days later. And I was like, I can't believe what I did two days ago. I'm so sorry.

And thankfully, obviously, she had a great sense of humor about it. What did she say to you back? I don't even remember. I'll be honest. She was like, all right, let's get it. Let's get going then or something like. that. I don't know. Oh, Deaners. Well, it is an interesting ride. Thank you both for sitting down and sharing this time with us. It is fun to hear this because I haven't heard either of yours.

It's been a great episode of the Almost Famous podcast right here at the AT&T celebrity AT&T Pelham Beach Pro Am. Yeah, AT&T, Pelham Beach Pro Am. And Steve, if you're still listening to this, you got three, well, you got two really good golfers. Steve, a shot of 76 today. I just want to Well, you know, Wells. Shout 77, Steve, man. I lost, so. But hey, thanks guys for joining us. With that, I've been Ben.

I've been Ashley. Oh, dear. And that's the almost famous podcast. Bing, bong, boom, bum. Follow the Ben and Ashley I, almost famous podcasts on IHartRadio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. Hi, my name is Enya Umanzor. And I'm Drew Phil. And we run a podcast called Emergency Intercom.

If you're a crime junkie and you love crimes, we're not the podcast for you. But if you have unmedicated ADHD... Oh my God, perfect. And want to hear people with mental illness, psychobabble. Yes, yes. Then Emergency Intercom is the podcast for you. Open your free IHeartRadio app. Search Emergency Intercom and listen now.

Why are TSA rules so confusing? You got a hood of your take it all! I'm Mani. I'm Noah. This is Devin. And we're best friends and journalists with a new podcast called No Such Thing, where we get to the bottom of questions like that. Why are you screaming?

I can't expect what to do. Now, if the rule was the same, go off on me. I deserve it. You know, lock him up. Listen to No Such Thing on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. No Such Thing. I'm Dr. Joy Hardin Bradford.

host of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast. I know how overwhelming it can feel if flying makes you anxious. In session 418 of the Therapy for Black Girls podcast, Dr. Angela Neal-Barnett and I discuss flight anxiety. What is not a norm is to allow it to prevent you from doing the things that you want to do, the things that you were meant to do. Listen to Therapy for Black Girls on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Every case that is a cold case that has DNA right now in a backlog will be identified in our lifetime. On the new podcast, America's Crime Lab, every case has a story to tell, and the DNA holds the truth.

He never thought he was going to get caught, and I just looked at my computer screen. I was just like, ah, gotcha. This technology's already solving so many cases. Listen to America's Crime Lab on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? Answer, a new podcast called Wisecrack, where a comedian finds himself at the center of a chilling true crime story.

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