The Downside with Gianmarco Soresi - #244 Gay Hotels for Straight Men with Matt Bernstein

Starting point is 00:00:00 First of all, I'm glad those those fucking double joining people have health risks. They were the first in elementary school to brag about their double jointedness. You know what I mean? You're jealous of them there. The freaks in school going, look, you do this with your son always so proud, like you know what I mean? Like you ever met a double jointed person who didn't talk about it? You know, I'm glad that they're dying off. I just think that article should be two separate articles. I know it's unrelated.

Starting point is 00:00:29 We studied the brain. I don't know if we were recording when we started it, but the worry. No, I think so. Can you turn down my headphones slightly? But we sort of started, but we can also cut this out if this is where we sit down. Oh yeah, sorry. How are you? Yeah, you.

Starting point is 00:00:47 Yeah, but it's fine. They can hear it in the echo. It's like a natural start. It makes them feel like they're here. Yeah. Is there anything you don't want us to talk about? Oh, yeah, we can. Sure. Yeah, we'll pivot. Great. That sounds good. I appreciate being here.

Starting point is 00:01:05 Yes, please. The cameras are on. They're very high def. That's why I have a shitty camera, so you can't see my forehead. That's smart. Yeah, we did get more high def. You can see how tired I am every weekend.

Starting point is 00:01:16 You can see me getting deeper and deeper. You can see that I came from Springfield, Missouri. Is that where you were? That's where I was. For how many days? Yeah, I was there how many days? Yeah. I was there for, for three days. And it was, it was a real mix of, um, uh, more than a normal now. Now most shows are like fans and this was like, I didn't have a lot of fans in Springfield, Missouri. So it was

Starting point is 00:01:37 a mix of like my, my, uh, more left leaning fans and then people who live in Springfield, Missouri. So there was way more. And it's good. It's good to try to do the jokes in the space where people in Missouri, pot and shrooms legal. Oh, abortion is not, which is a wild combination. I thought, I thought drugs would ultimately make people more like I, it's hard to be like, Oh, what if everything's alive, but it begins at conception. They don't seem to go together. So it was a, it was a weird place to be little pockets of, of, I always want to use the word liberal, but that's not the right word. A little pockets of like.

Starting point is 00:02:27 How big is Springfield? Because it's not one of the bigger. It's not the like one of the. Are you OK? Did you lose your seltzer? Oh, God, please go get it. It's it's a 500 square mile. I don't fucking know. I know. But I mean, like, it doesn't feel like it's that big of a city. Is it a big big city, though? I'm not big, but like, yeah, like what compare it to another. It's hard to know. I'm in my little bubble there. It's not huge for sure. But I, I, I, uh, I thought it was interesting. They had,

Starting point is 00:02:54 so they had like little pockets where you go, Oh, like, I feel like you notice more if like a store has like a rainbow flag because you're like, Oh, in Springfield, Missouri, this is like, you need an indicator. You need an indicator of like, Hey, this is, this is a cooler space. Did you try the dogs? Yeah. They're amazing. It's astounding. Yeah. By the way, I should say this is coming out after the election, which was a huge mistake on our part. It's like if we started recording, it's like there's a meteor that could hit Earth in two weeks

Starting point is 00:03:32 and this episode's coming out after that. Yeah. So we might be dead. Who knows? So everything could age poorly or very well. If there's one thing that we know, no matter who wins, we'll still be sending money to Israel. And that's just- Okay, so we can really talk about everything.

Starting point is 00:03:46 Yes, exactly. That's kind of, yeah, that's kind of the like, barometer for, on a podcast, I feel. We're here, I'm here with my colleague Russell Daniels. Hi, John Marker. And we're here with, do you like the word influencer? Do you hate it? What do you like?

Starting point is 00:04:02 I mean, I do hate it, but I've been called worse, you know, before noon today. So that's why I did not Russell. I, uh, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for, for,. That's like John, John Marco, John Marco, anything you want really. John Marco. I getting warm. Not John Carlo. Not John Carlo. Please do God. Well, Matt, we'll, we'll, we'll get to you in a second. But John Carl is a worse name than John Marco. I will say as your friend. And I'm not saying that because of, of what you add that as your friend. Well, cause I didn't want to feel biased. You know what I mean? If you said as your friend. No, no, no.

Starting point is 00:04:46 I'm saying like if I didn't know a Gianmarco, I think Gianmarco is a more interesting name to me than Giancarlo. Because there's more Giancarlos. Giancarlo Esposito though. That's a nice, nice name. Can I say something? You can say it. So we walked in, I walked in just now, and I asked if you lived here.

Starting point is 00:05:06 And he said, no, my girlfriend needs to live here. And I didn't know you were heterosexual. Oh, yeah. Are you still going to be on the show? I will, no, because I was kind of wondering, maybe. This changes everything. Well, it does. You fully leave.

Starting point is 00:05:26 No, it's just cool. It's getting me out of my bubble to talk, you know, to a heterosexual. Sure. Well, do you have any questions for us? Well, I have a lot, but probably for another time. Sure. We'll answer anything. But yes, both of you. We occupy an interesting space where it feels where it feels very gay.

Starting point is 00:05:47 Yeah. The podcast. Yeah. And the Twitter, which is how we met. Yes. But listen, I bring up the girlfriend a lot in the Twitter. Really? I don't know.

Starting point is 00:05:58 I'm just a poor observer then. No, no. You're not the first in that couch to be surprised by my heterosexuality. Truly. Well, no, but we could turn this, you know, I just made an episode of my podcast, a bit fruity about Jubilee, you know, Jubilee. By the way, a bit fruity was the original name for this podcast. And then we saw you had yours and we went a different direction. I did. I listened to the Jubilee one. Oh, you listen to it. I listened to it because I thought it was a really good, I wanted to bring it up today too. Oh my direction. I did. I listened to the Jubilee one. Oh, you listened to it? I listened to it because I thought it was a really good.

Starting point is 00:06:26 I wanted to bring it up today, too. Oh, my God. I am happy. I was thinking, like, you told me to come with things that I'm annoyed, like topics of things that I'm annoyed about. And I'm ready to talk about Jubilee if you want. Well, good. Good. Well, let me let me just let me just before we get

Starting point is 00:06:39 level get to this intro music, we had a chaotic beginning. But I'm sure even no matter who wins the election, Jubilee is still going to be thriving. They're ready to survive. Jubilee is about to catapult post-election because it's going to be like, yeah, it's going to be like lesbians that are happy that Trump won versus heterosexual Arab men who are sad that Kamala lost or something. It's like they're just going to like continue. That's what it is. Jubilee, I think we talked about behind the video. It's a lot of, it's videos where they kind of pit people

Starting point is 00:07:07 with opposing views. Oh yes, okay. But what your podcast pointed out is that it kind of creates a fake argument almost. It really pulls people specifically to kind of do a both sides-ism and makes it seem like there are these two extremes and we're gonna find the middle in're going to we're going to find the middle in here. Number one, they never find the middle.

Starting point is 00:07:29 No, the one side is usually like kind of a normal kind human being. The other like the most extremists like a Nazi. Yeah, it was literally not like a PR train Nazi, like a Nazi who knows how to get a good line. Yeah, but but yeah, it's to your point. It's also just like a lot of times the conflicts that they create aren't conflicts. Like they just put I think a third or fourth or fifth video, I'm not sure, on fat people versus skinny people. And it's just like, are these two groups like ideologically in conflict with one another? Just so you know, that was also the original title for this podcast.

Starting point is 00:08:03 Fat versus skinny. But anyway, no, the reason that I brought that up was because we could turn this into one of those. That was also the original title for this podcast. Fat vs Skinny. But anyway, the reason that I brought that up was because we could turn this into one of those. It's like, define the secret twink in the room or like, you know, who's the secret heterosexual. Well, let me ask about the Jubilee. We'll just jump right into it because I thought, I certainly get that thrill of, I mentioned it to you, but there was one that went very viral

Starting point is 00:08:32 and it was like this 19 year old, 20 year old, a liberal kid, very smart. I mean, just facts, like in a way that I could not possibly engage in a debate. I'd look like a fool. And it was him versus, you know, people who supported Trump. And, you know, he made good points, but ultimately no one, there's no winners here. It's all just chaos.

Starting point is 00:08:57 But there is a part of me that does, there's a moment where I'm like, yeah, you showed them, you showed that, but their minds aren't swayed. No. No, of course. I mean, you might have little moments of, I don't know, a dopamine boost by watching the guy that you've already

Starting point is 00:09:13 gone in agreeing with make a good point against the other guy. Yeah. And that's thrilling for 4 and 1 2 seconds. But I repeat this. Everywhere I go, the only winner in those videos is Jubilee because they cashed the AdSense check. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:09:27 Do you think- Everyone, no matter how many good points your guy made, everyone leaves those videos angrier, more divided, more confused. It's like, I don't know, I just feel like I have to take Xanax and go to sleep every time I watch a Jubilee video. Do you think that debate can sway people or do you think that that version of debate inherently aside from the fact that these sides are kind of ill conceived? Sure. Do you think

Starting point is 00:09:54 that that form of debate can ever sway anybody or do you think it's a it's a it's a ruse? I don't think that type. I think debate, first of all, debate I think is healthy. But there's a difference between like debate, like what we do maybe at the table with our family or between friends or like in like behind closed doors and like debate as like a monetizable content genre. Yeah. Because one of them like, you know, when you debate with someone privately, at least, you know, more often than not, you're trying to understand the other person. You're trying to maybe find a middle ground or maybe just hear each other out or, you know, squash the beef or whatever it is.

Starting point is 00:10:35 And I really do think there's learning opportunity there. Like, you know, on Israel, right? Like, I come from a conservative Jewish background. My family is very actually divided. Like, it's less me versus all of the elder generations of my family than I expected. But it is certainly divided and we've debated this at length. And I do want to know where my grandmother comes from.

Starting point is 00:11:00 You know, we're separated by 60 years and like, her perspective is interesting to me and I want to know about it partially also so that I can argue my points better and more effectively, right? That's different than like us turning on a bunch of softbox lights, getting on our microphones, getting our ad reads ready and being like, how can we inflame this conversation as much as possible so that we can get basically like angry viewers to like come in and comment and get a boosted in the YouTube. Like there's just different things and Jubilee in my opinion,

Starting point is 00:11:32 at least for a very very long time has not been in the business of finding any sort of middle ground of enriching the viewer, of enriching the participants. I just don't believe in what it states its mission is. Yeah, I completely agree with the cynical view of Jubilee. I think sometimes I think about these generations who watch YouTube and get their views or their morality or their beliefs from YouTube. Because I'm 10 years older than you,

Starting point is 00:12:02 he's 30 years older than you. And YouTube wasn't a big part of my life. You're making me feel so young. Yeah. The cameras are high def. Everyone already could tell. But YouTube wasn't a big part of my life in that era. But my little brother, yes.

Starting point is 00:12:22 And sometimes I go, especially, let's just say theoretically Trump won this election and they go that there were a lot of young, estranged, or lonely or sad, depressed, straight white guys. I go, fuck, how do you engage some of these guys without, sometimes my little brother, he needs that pop. He needs something a little bit spicy. And I go, who knows? Maybe you watch enough. Maybe you watch like a queer person who's fucking has a fucking wicked tongue and you go,

Starting point is 00:12:59 that's bad ass. And ultimately, that's what shifts you. Yeah, okay. I've felt this exact conundrum so many times in my own work because, okay, we have to talk about Andrew Tate for a second. You know Andrew Tate, yeah? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Andrew Tate was, Andrew Tate and I had a little bit, I don't know if I would call it a beef.

Starting point is 00:13:24 It was mostly a one-sided beef of mine in his direction. But then he ended up contacting me and then they got... It was a whole thing in 2022 because he was really popping off. It was like the height of his before he was banned from every social media platform. And I kind of like was one of many creators at the time who was like social media tech companies should be taking the lead here and like banning him from different platforms. Which ultimately was successful and his popularity has dwindled. He's still on Twitter. I think he was banned, maybe banned from Twitter before Yulan brought him back or maybe he was

Starting point is 00:14:11 never banned, but he was like huge on Instagram and all these other platforms and he was banned from YouTube. But so do you edit this? We can add something. No, no, no. Just like for... Because I'm like, I need to think. Oh, but the thing that, you know, I watched so much of his content during that whole like circus of my involvement with him. And you know, I was getting posted on like the shade room type pages of like this little twink.

Starting point is 00:14:44 It's like, it's calling for the destruction of Andrew Tate. And the thing that I felt then, which I think you're identifying, is that he's so good at reaching the like, emotional pit that so many young boys have. And like, in a way that I can't, right? Like, I'm very political. I'm very out there. I think I'm like very opinionated and I think I reach different people's like emotional political sides but not that group of

Starting point is 00:15:12 like angry middle schoolers. That shrimp also reaches. And so like I do think they need men that they can identify with, right? Yeah's not gonna be me. But that's part of the reason like I like Hasan. Hasan Piker. I've watched his streams. Twitch in general, not for me. I cannot watch someone talk for nine hours on end. Like about anything. And I don't like video games and I don't care.

Starting point is 00:15:40 But I was watching it and I was like, oh, Hasan is like angry and he's like cursing and he's like really fired up in a way that's like really masculine and like doesn't do it for me at all. But he's kind of harnessing this kind of Andrew Tate almost nothing in common ideologically. But the tone of it is like aggressive masculine, like, yeah, we can get angry and like work out. And he works out and he's like, he's like big and like hot. But I'm like, oh, like this is actually, this isn't good.

Starting point is 00:16:14 Hassan, his content is not good for me, but it's good for a lot of these kids that he's like leveraging their, this like emotional void of like weird anger and, you know, existential masculinity crisis to like become leftists. For sure. And I think that was long winded. No, no, I think it's I think especially with like, especially when it comes to like leftist comedy or just content in general, it can have that teeth thick because I think the teeth is what I mean, we talk about my influences,

Starting point is 00:16:45 it's South Park. And it's like that's when I was at the age where like that were like I needed something that felt a little bit biting and offensive. That's just what I appeal that just appeals. And that's why Trump appeals to a lot of a lot of people. You were just a quote something he said, like at a rally where it's like the Sunnys Democrats will hold it up as look at this inappropriate thing. And you're like, that's kind of funny what he said. Why are you highlighting this? Why are you highlighting? I was saying the thing about like,

Starting point is 00:17:11 yeah, do I think it's strange for the, I know if we don't know who won. Do I think it's strange that the guy is talking about Arnold Palmer's penis? Yeah, it's a little strange. Do I think compared to how homophobic that party is, that you're like, hey, can we all admit that we're talking about being impressed

Starting point is 00:17:27 by the girth of this dick? Yeah, I agree all these things. I agree all these things. But to wave that around as like, can you believe? I'm like, that's not swaying anyone who doesn't like him already. And me, who doesn't like him, I go, that's pretty funny.

Starting point is 00:17:46 He told the story that you'd say, I would be at a dinner party and I'd say to my friends, I'd say, Arnold Palmer. Get that fat pig to the polls or something like that. He was talking about someone's grandpa or something. Oh yeah, yeah, he was like, get your fat pig husband off the couch. I was like, what?

Starting point is 00:18:01 But they waved that around, I'm like, let that go. Listen, we also remember, we don't know, so we can't talk to, uh, to, like, yeah, we don't know. Maybe it worked. Maybe they did wave it around and we're wrong. And I mean, he is so funny. Like he, oh my God, someone tweeted this recently. I forget who, but the other day I saw they were like, you know, I wish Donald Trump wasn't so evil because he's the closest thing we've gotten to like a flamboyant gay male president I know he's just like he's things. He's like a things like he does, you know, we talked about this He did this he saw someone and did the

Starting point is 00:18:36 Like the like, you know flipping off the person. Yeah funny, you know, yeah his his react Do you remember his reaction when Ruth Bader Ginsburg died? No, yo, you know, yeah his his react you remember his reaction when Ruth Bader Ginsburg died No, yo, you know that video the video it comes off the plane and he pretends like he didn't hear it already Is that that's what I know. I think he actually hadn't heard It was his legitimate he got off the plane and a reporter was waiting for him and they were like Ruth Bader Ginsburg Just died and he goes Wow just died and he goes wow wow you know what I'm really I'm honestly sad to hear that he's so funny like he's so funny and by the way his his mentor guy Ray Cohn was was gay yeah Roy Cohn oh my god oh. Ray Cohn. Ray Cohn. Very unsuccessful brother. Roy Cohn. Yeah, it's just like, Oh yeah. He was, yeah. He was a little guy in show business. Can I say

Starting point is 00:19:33 fag on YouTube? Oh, well we won't. When you said it last episode, you can't, I can say whatever I want on your podcast. This is the downside. Oh yeah. One, two, three. Downside. You're listening to The Downside. With John Marcos Sarese. Welcome to The Downside. If you're a fan of the show, join the Patreon, patreon.com slash downside. Two bonus episodes every month.

Starting point is 00:20:03 I promise we won't just talk Trump since who knows where we're at as a country right now. I want to I want to learn all about your life. One thing I just didn't want to bring up. I did. I had a first acting job in a very long time. Oh yeah. And I don't think I can say the show but it was it was a multi camp. So there was a live studio audience and it was first multicam I'd ever done and it was way harder or different than I thought. People always go, oh, there's an audience. So it's like theater.

Starting point is 00:20:33 It's not like theater. There's a weird, like every joke has a punchline in a way where you then in character have to react to every single, like normally in a scene, if someone says something funny, you'd just say something back normal and the person would laughing. But in this, because the audience is laughing, you have a beat of essentially silence.

Starting point is 00:20:54 It'd be like if every time we told a joke, there was a beat of silence in this room. You've seen them when they've taken people online, take out the laugh tracks from sitcoms. Oh, it's so funny. Cause it's like so, it doesn't, sometimes you're like, it doesn't even make sense. Like without the laughs there, it's gibberish. It's like, they're not even talking to each other. You know what I mean? Like it's like really,

Starting point is 00:21:14 really upsetting to watch it. It's like, yeah. And so I had to do so many, cause I wasn't the funny one in the scene. You know, I'm just a side character and the person, the lead would say the line and I had to do like 20 times just like, and I wish I could do that. That would have been better. But, but it was like, I'm, I struggle with a fake laugh. I get in my head and suddenly it becomes, Oh, my laugh was real though, to be clear. Can you do a fake laugh? Yeah. What do you mean? Okay. How big though? Oh, let's let's do a little crank. Let's do let's do a little cute little joke.

Starting point is 00:21:49 All right. Medium. And then just like a big punch line. Well, that was terrible. Oh, my God. That's what I wanted. OK, but those are really impressive to me. Even the little ones. Yeah, that's really impressive. I get so it truly it's what I wanted. Okay, but those are really impressive to me. Even the little ones. Yeah, that's really impressive. I get so it truly it's like laughing is scarier than like

Starting point is 00:22:09 crying or something for you. I can't do either. I get in my head. You'd be more in your head about laughing or crying. I mean crying, you're either doing it or you're not. If I were to fake cry, it'd be very in my head too. I'm struggling. I'm in my head. I don't know what I'm doing acting anymore. Yeah. But I realized more because I used to act and I became comedian is that like, I thought it was always like the technique I was struggling with or working on. And it really is more like a kind of deeper, like is my brain just too ADD? Is it too looking at itself in a way that might just be who I am? You know? Yeah. I can't, I can't fake cry or real cry.

Starting point is 00:22:46 I've been on Lexapro for six years. It's not happening anymore. No real cries? No real cries. You haven't cried at all in the last six years? Four years ago, my grandpa died. I cried. Okay.

Starting point is 00:22:57 That is really it. It's so... Do you guys take antidepressants? No. No, I once was gonna try Alexa Pro. I'm on Adderall right now and that's very new. And when I'm on Adderall, I feel like I could cry at any second but in tears of joy.

Starting point is 00:23:12 It's a- Oh, you love it. Oh, I don't do it- This episode is sponsored by- Please, if I get free Adderall, my God. Luckily, I don't easily get addicted to things because I'm so paranoid. I'm so paranoid, like they said,

Starting point is 00:23:26 don't have coffee on the Adderall. And I'm just like, I would never, I won't have a Diet Coke until eight hours after. But this Adderall, baby, it feels good. It's what I thought cocaine would have been like, where I'm just like, I feel like good, I feel charged, I feel ready to go. Oh, okay, go ahead.

Starting point is 00:23:44 Would you do it one episode with me? No. I don't need to do it. Let me tell you what the person who prescribed it, do you ever lose focus? You can have Adderall. That's the whole thing, and then I paid $400, and they said all the Adderall you want.

Starting point is 00:23:56 Yeah. So you're on Lexapro. I'm on Lexapro. Yeah, I have the opposite issue. I just constantly need to dial down. Before the Lexapro. Were you crying everywhere? Everywhere literally everywhere. Oh my gosh crying in public in New York First of all something that I think everyone who lives in New York should do

Starting point is 00:24:13 Crying on the subway crying on the perimeter of the fountain in Washington Square Park multiple times I cried everywhere crying in the staircase of my dorm. I was in college at the time. It was rough time But I cried we love that last time. It was a rough time, but we love Lex Brown. Last time of the election, 2016, the next day, I cried. I went in the street. I was at a rehearsal for something. You went. You like laid down in the middle of the street.

Starting point is 00:24:34 You dramatically went into the street. This is hardest for me. Here's a straight white guy to perform his sadness about this. I used to, when I was really trying to figure out acting, I would go into restaurants. I would like just try to sit at a coffee shop and just try to like connect to something. And I remember once a woman came over and she gave me a free dessert. She said, Hey, it looks like you're having a tough time. And I was like, yes, Dana Day Lewis. I'm going to start crying more in diners. Do you miss crying?

Starting point is 00:25:03 Yeah. Do you miss cry? I feel like my body, I will sometimes feel like I have to cry. Nothing's making like, like, but I physically need to have that reaction. It's like an orgasm of sadness in a way. It is. It's an orgasm of a number of emotions. And it's a human need. Absolutely.

Starting point is 00:25:20 I do miss it for sure. But like, I don't miss it enough to stop taking this drug. Yeah. Was a bad place. Was Lexapro the first one you tried and you're just like... No, no. I was put on Prozac first, which I don't in hindsight know why my psychiatrist chose to do that because the SSRI girlies know this, but Prozac is the one that like the side effects can be a little more like intense if it doesn't work for you and it does work for tons of people. So, uh, you know

Starting point is 00:25:49 Every every psych med is so different for everybody that there's there's really no one size but I was put on Prozac first and it made you know, everything worse and Yeah, I called her up one day and I was like doc. I Know these take a while to work. but like, I really want to kill myself. And she was like, okay, new med. And I started taking Lexapro. And for a month it was like nothing. And then afterwards I started waking up in the morning and I was like, I don't want to kill myself. There's really, I'm trying to make this funny. There's no way to talk about this in a short-ordered way.

Starting point is 00:26:19 That's good though. Cause I feel like sometimes people struggle for a long time to like figure out the right balance. Yeah. I think I was lucky that it took me two months to figure it out. But like, you know, that was six years ago and I've basically just taken the same dose since and it, you know, can you, is there anything you can't do? Can you drink? Sure. Sure.

Starting point is 00:26:39 Sure. You're not supposed to. Yeah. I mean, but that's why this, this would frustrate me about like with, with the Adderall where, where she said like, don't, don't work out after you take that or all like, or don't have coffee after the Adderall. And I'm like, I want to know, can I have a cup? Can I have a small cup? Oh, work out cause your heart could race too much. Yeah. That's what they say. But with

Starting point is 00:27:02 the coffee, I'm like, could I have a small cup? But they go, they go no, because they don't want, they don't want you to get anywhere near, you know. And I'm like, could you just tell me the common sense version? Because if you don't, you are forcing me to go Google, is it okay to have one coffee after Adderall? And then seek out the answer that I want. And it probably is fine.

Starting point is 00:27:26 You ever do anything with where you drink or with NyQuil, you had a couple of drinks that night, you take the NyQuil. I don't really mess around with NyQuil in general. We're talking about various pharmaceutical, prescription pharmaceuticals. You're like, yeah, I don't like any of the drowsy stuff. I don't really, I don't like that. No. Let me tell you, Ambien, I told my girlfriend, I told my girlfriend. He's not using Nyquil, he's not taking Ambien.

Starting point is 00:27:53 Oh, the feeling of Ambien, I told, but she doesn't like if I tell her like if I ever die or if I ever, it'll be asleep, it'll be because I was trying to go to sleep so hard. It feels good. That's dark. I've been, I told I, I told you I've, I've been trying, I'm still on a quest to find an edible THC that doesn't put me to sleep. They all, they all do. They

Starting point is 00:28:15 all do. And I go to different places and I say, you know, so Tiva, like I get one of the ones that is more energy. I can't do it. It puts me to sleep. And it's a bummer because I do have like 10, 15 minutes where I'm like, oh, I feel high and good and relaxed. And then immediately lights out. You see, I'm the opposite with that too. I tried smoking weed. I tried edibles. I tried everything. I wanted to be cool. Like this started in high school. I tried a million times with my friends. Just like any form of THC makes me just strung out every single time. Really? Yeah.

Starting point is 00:28:49 I'm like, how do I sound? Do I sound okay? I don't think I'm having fun. Is this how I'm supposed to feel? Is my mother gonna know? Like, so I just- I don't like watching things. I don't follow, I don't comprehend,

Starting point is 00:29:00 and I don't remember. Like I don't have a good time watching things. They can just make me laugh. Sure. It makes me. I like music. I like listening to music though. Is that, is your, is your mom, is that, is that a thing that pop? Is my mom going to know? Like, do you get nervous about like your mom would be disappointed in you?

Starting point is 00:29:18 Well, I mean, this was not that she would be just a little, not that she would be disappointed in me, but this was in high school. So it was like, I was going home at some point in the evening and it was more of just like, can she tell? I mean, I don't know. My parents went to school in Rhode Island in the eighties. They did everything. I don't think she would...

Starting point is 00:29:42 There was one time it was like in high school. I think I got drunk with some friends. It was in New York, we were visiting my grandparents and I thought I was like playing it off, right? I had like one chocolate martini and I thought I was, I was drunk but I thought I was playing it off. And there's this picture that we took and in my head, I was just like, in this picture I'm like,

Starting point is 00:29:59 Oh my God. Well, no, that- With my grandparents and they probably didn't know, they were so innocent and sweet, they probably thought I was tired, but I was wasted. The things that I thought I was getting away with as a kid, I was probably so full of shit and everyone could tell. Yeah, that's real though.

Starting point is 00:30:14 I mean, every time I'm fucked up, I take a million selfies like, oh my God, in the club bathroom. I'm like, I have never, I look like a goddess right now. Oh, yeah. And then I look in the morning and I'm like, Matthew, just hold delete 300 photos. Is the lighting good at those those club? I feel like I have not been to many clubs, but I feel like the ones I've been to the lights. It's so dark. God forbid you have to take a shit. It's a fucking you don't know what's going on.

Starting point is 00:30:38 You don't take a shit at the club. The last club I was at was was when going, I'm going to the club specifically. I'm like, when we did that off Broadway show together, I think that's probably the last club I've been taught. What was that club called? Um, well, there was two locations. The last one was Copacabana, Copacabana, which we did. We did interactive theater show there. The other one was on 42nd street. I forget though. Yeah. It was attached to a gay hotel, a gay hotel. What did you have to go through the back? Wasn't it a gay hotel? Am I making that up? I don't know what that means. There was a hotel, the hotel that we did. There was also a drag show there. Remember like when we did

Starting point is 00:31:25 Bachelorette comes off as gay on Twitter, but in real life it's a straight hotel. Okay. People are welcome. I went to a gay hotel one, like I went to an actual gay hotel once. I swear. I think this was a gay hotel. Can you Google gay hotel? New York 42nd street, 42nd street. Yeah. I don't know I it's not by 10th Avenue. Remember? You know what I'm talking about. I remember a hotel. I just don't remember this. Maybe it's not gay. Maybe they just had that gay show after us. I thought it was a gay hotel though. Oh, NYC is that okay out NYC is that where I think it's a gay friendly hotel. Oh, NYC. Is that okay? Out NYC. Is that where I think to revive? It's a gay friendly hotel. Okay. Sorry. So for Russell, for Russell, anywhere that gays are

Starting point is 00:32:14 allowed, it's a gay, it's a gay restaurant. Put that on your thing in New York City. Most hotels are gay friendly here. That's like how people joke online. Like, Oh, are you going out to the gay club or the normal club? Oh yeah, sure. Well, I remember there was a hotel in Seattle and they have a sign there says, Oh, we accept all religions, sexualities, races and creeds. And I was like, what are the rules for the other hotels here? Yeah. I mean, what does it mean for a hotel in New York City to be gay friendly. That's that's what I'm saying. Presupposing that all the other hotels are like anti gay. You're saying it's a gay hotel. Yeah. I stayed at a proper gay hotel in Miami once.

Starting point is 00:32:53 And what made that gay? It was like literally advertised like as a gay hotel, like gay flags everywhere. Like, I mean, it was in South Beach. It just I get sure. And it was like a boutique hotel. It wasn't like 47 stories. Like you realistically, you can't fill a mega hotel with only gay people. What would a gay hotel room have if it was specifically for gay people

Starting point is 00:33:17 that a non-gay hotel room wouldn't have? What would be special about the room? I mean, realistically, John Markle, like a shower douche. Yeah. Oh yeah. That's what I thought? I mean, realistically, John Markle, like a shower douche. Yeah. Oh yeah. That's what I thought. I mean, I don't think this had that,

Starting point is 00:33:29 but if I were constructing a gay hotel, that would probably, but like everyone was gay. I remember I was like, I don't know. I like went to the hotel gym one afternoon when I, it was there for a work trip and I had some time. And like, you could just like work out in the gym hotel, like shirtless and there was a certain amount of sexual tinkering that was happening in the in the gym in the gay hotel gym.

Starting point is 00:33:55 Yeah. You always want to work out. I always want to take off my shirt. I hate when you go to the gay hotel, but you know, I can't, you know, I can't promise what will happen next but this is this is well first of all I get so mad because you can't take off your shirt and through the window what's on the other side a pool a pool so if we're covering up nipple I'm seeing nipples yeah I'm seeing nipples from the room who's nipple oh well let me take it off on the treadmill you're calling out the double standard sure oh I have listened I've talked about it before but I'll bring it up again. SoulCycle, spin classes, do not let you take off your shirt. And I think, I think it is,

Starting point is 00:34:34 I hope I'm using this word right. I think it's misandrist. I think it's misandrist because, because I have, I have more sweat glands. I produce a lot of sweat. And listen, there is not, they don't sell shirts. I tried, I bought one of these shirts and I said, you know what, I'm gonna go with a shirt that was cut off here. Crop top. Crop top.

Starting point is 00:34:56 The way that my hairy Italianess, it doesn't look good. It doesn't look good. It's just, it's too much on the stomach from here. And so then what I do now, I fucking I get a band, I tie it up here, I have to I have to deal with I every time I struggle, I feel the gender norms is struggling in my head, because I'm like, I'm doing a crop top in the middle of the soul cycle. Yeah. And it doesn't look good, because I'm doing it with like a Nike jersey. Sure.

Starting point is 00:35:22 And and I think you should be allowed to take off your shirt. And I think the fact that you can't take off your shirt, it's like, to me, I go, well, why not? What's the stop from going that to go, well, why are people allowed to show their shoulders? Why are the belly buttons out? Why not take off your shirt? This is kind of the gendered issue of our time.

Starting point is 00:35:41 I agree. Yeah. I think, though, it's kind of, I think, I mean, we. I mean, now I really feel like I'm on a straight man's podcast. Can we just, wait, can we just spend the rest of the time talking about how hard it is to be men? Jubilee it with me. You Jubilee it with me.

Starting point is 00:35:53 Do you disagree? Jubilee with me. Jubilee with me. I mean, I don't disagree, but I also like, I don't know. Have you gone to Barry's? And you can take over a shit at Barry's. You can, that's why I do. But Barry's, you know, speaking of gay,

Starting point is 00:36:10 like Barry's is a gay workout class. Is it still though? I feel like it used to be more and now it's like less. First of all, I don't do any of this more than like once or twice a month because I do not need to spend $40 to work out for an hour. Yeah, I stopped doing Barry's, but I did it for a long time. But I mean, I don't think you're wrong. I think you should be able to.

Starting point is 00:36:31 But I also think I think that if you should be able to take off your shirt, then I think that women should also be able to take off their shirts during spin class. Of course. I don't know. Yeah, I think the rules should be applied evenly. I'm just joking because I really do feel like I'm on a heterosexual men's podcast now that we're talking about why it's hard to be a man. Okay, but back to my, what I'll say is that I do think there's something about

Starting point is 00:36:53 where you point out that like the gay hotel, I could take off the shirt, I could do the thing that I wanna do. I think what's, what Ken sometimes that we've found is that there's certain things, at least for, I mean, again, I'm talking specifically about the shirt. That heterosexual contingent. We gotta get a straight man hotel that we've found is that there's certain things, at least for, I mean, again, I'm talking specifically about the shirt. That heterosexual contingent.

Starting point is 00:37:06 We gotta get a straight man hotel that we can just go to and take our shirts off, you know? Yeah, that doesn't sound homoerotic at all. Can I go to the straight man hotel too? Sounds fun. I think it's just one of those things where I go, I would go like, oh, I'd be more comfortable in that space. I'm sure at the gay hotel, I'd go like, this hotel is really nice.

Starting point is 00:37:24 I love it here. Yeah. Do you, so you, um, We need to create men's only hotel gyms that aren't for gay men. Gay hotels for straight men. Gay hotels for straight men where they can just take their shirts off. Yeah. I think that would be fun.

Starting point is 00:37:43 How often are you going to SoulCycle? I go to SoulCycle probably like once a week and on the road I go to other studios and so spin in general, spin feels like it's more of a, more women are in spin class in general. And I think that's why, but I think I do have a sense of envy where I'm like,

Starting point is 00:38:05 you have a clothing, you have clothing lines that really allow you to be comfortable in this very just sweaty thing. And I don't have necessarily the access or the maybe comfortability, but also the access. Under Armour's not making dude crop tops that look good on my form.

Starting point is 00:38:28 Sports bras, are you looking for the word sports bra? I guess I could. Yeah. I could, but I think. Well, that's what women have. Sure. Sports bras. Then make it a dude sports bra.

Starting point is 00:38:38 Make a dude sports bra, I guess. In fairness, I do think those, like there are so many, if you walk around like Hell's Kitchen or Chelsea There are so many of those like boutique II gay indie brand stores that they do make like extraordinarily slutty men's clothes That are all so marked up because their market is so small. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, but I mean, I guess I could do it Broaden your horizons. Yeah, you know it really I Really like I bought this I bought it was a crop top, not a sports bra, and my girlfriend ended up, she likes it and she uses it, but I bought it for myself. And I put it on and I looked in that mirror and I said, I just, I'm not, I'm not there yet.

Starting point is 00:39:16 You could take this to Shark Tank though, you know, like, gay, gay, gay, gay men, like Fire Island, gay men's sports workout clothes for straight men. I've already been to Fire Island. I could be like, guys, I went. What did you do? I went to the pool party. My friend, Jay Jordan, invited me and I went and it was a lovely time. My girlfriend went with me and it was very funny introducing her to people just to see the kind of the light leave their eyes. But we got there, I bought a Speedo, thank God, because if I was wearing...

Starting point is 00:39:53 You bought a Speedo when you got there? When I got there. Or ahead of time? Yeah, right there at the pier where they have a gym there, which I thought was so funny. So funny. This, like a last minute, like, okay, let's get a little bit more in. But I knew that I was in a space that felt like, oh, I'm comfortable here is they had the, uh, you get the food and they had all kind of a little bit junky food, but then they had the pine boys omelet and it was like egg whites with spinach and chicken. And

Starting point is 00:40:21 I was like, that's what I want. You're also Jewish. Is you think that's what I want. You're also Jewish. You think that's it? Well, I think that being Jewish and being gay are somehow like spiritually similar. Tell me why. I can't. What is it about?

Starting point is 00:40:37 I don't know. They're just the same. Yeah. And I'm both. Sure. But you're one and I don't know, maybe that's why I thought you were gay. Sure. All Jews. If you think every Jews gay, just to all your Jewish.

Starting point is 00:40:51 You want to get out of here? Go to the gay hotel. The gay hotel. It's a gay Jew hotel. Um, there is a Jewish hotel near there too. Yotel, right? That's Jewish. That's Jewish.

Starting point is 00:41:03 That's Jewish hotel. Am I making that up too? Okay. Yeah, there's Yotel, right? That's Jewish. That's Jewish. That's Jewish Hotel. Am I making that up too? OK. Yeah, there's Yotel, but that's not a Jewish Hotel. Wait, how could it be a Jewish Hotel? Do you get a mizuzo on every hotel room door? Maybe I'm just.

Starting point is 00:41:16 I know that. Oh, it's kosher. Yeah. Oh, kosher or Jewish observant friendly. Guys, there's a block where they got every hotel you can imagine. Do they do they have a lesbian hotel? Oh, good thinking the lesbian hotel. That sounds like lesbian hotel, New York City.

Starting point is 00:41:37 So I just like that every time a hotel is like we're kosher friendly. You're like, so you're a Jew. Oh, listen, I'm just saying in New York City, these things are assumed friendly in any hotel. So when you put it on that this is a specific thing, I think it goes into the category of that is Jewish hotel. But what I think is funny is that when there's nothing listed, you assume, oh, that's a straight white male hotel. That's an anti-semitic straight white male hotel. Yeah, that's your straight white male. That's an anti-semitic straight white male hotel. Yeah. That's your assumption from the beginning. Yeah. Anti-semitism running rampant at the Marriott.

Starting point is 00:42:13 No, I thought Fire Island was so magical and I want to bring Russell. I want to get a house for just two days, just a weekend. I know I'm just, how does it work with the houses? But you're not gay either. I want to get I want to get a house for just two days, just a weekend. I know. How does it work with the house? But you're not gay either. No, but we heard Jude Law was there with his whole family. We heard that's why we want to go back out. I heard rumors that there are multiple heterosexuals at once. No, it always looks beautiful.

Starting point is 00:42:37 And I'm always like the houses, they look incredible. And I'm wondering how people get them like they must be so expensive. Yeah, extraordinarily like. But how do people? And it's also like, the insurance is insane because they're all also on the brink of being like washed away. Yeah. So it was magical.

Starting point is 00:42:52 The bamboo everywhere. And you walk on the boardwalk and, and it's just, it's so, it's just part, it's just pool parties and you just float around and, and oh, there's this pool party. Let's go there. Walk. It was so nice. Yeah. People leave their houses open. You just float around from pool party to pool party, getting increasingly drunk and dehydrated.

Starting point is 00:43:09 Wow. And it's, I feel like I never see we were meant to live. I never see people do ketamine. And I finally got to see some people just do it right. I've never seen it. What happens? I think it's they get happy and excited. OK.

Starting point is 00:43:22 Have you done ketamine? No, I get scared. Okay. I've done trips and acid now. I'll do it eventually. How do you take it? You snored it, right? I snored it. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:43:31 I get scared of the pen mill thing and all that. I know. Someone would absolutely have to do a line before me. So with ketamine, oh God. Tell me. I hate when I start talking about drugs because then, you know, you sound like the one in the room who's like the total drug fiend, which is fine, which is fine. I don't do drugs often, but when I do, looking straight into the camera, um, ketamine is

Starting point is 00:43:54 preferred. I like it when I'm out. Um, do I have to give like drug disclaimers? Like, you know, be safe. There's no, no, no. Well, actually I will bring up something after this, but yeah. Okay. But it's so it's not like Coke, even though it looks similar, but Coke is like, you know,

Starting point is 00:44:13 traditionally, right? You'd like do a line. I mean, it's, it's much, much, much smaller quantity. You do like this, this, this, this, this much, you know, good to know. I was about to do it for like, and it fits. Okay. So I tell people, I've never talked about drugs on my own stuff, but I guess this is being an adult 20 something year old in New York City. I always tell people it feels like being drunk, but like swirlier. It's, it's, um, it's a downer. So, or like a, not a downer, like it makes you sad, like a.

Starting point is 00:44:46 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Depressant, depressant. Yeah. And so I say that it feels like being drunk, but just like a little more disorienting. Like, did you guys, did you dare when you were a kid? Oh yeah. I didn't do dare.

Starting point is 00:44:56 I still know the song. What's the song? What is the song? It goes, D, I won't do drugs. A, won't have an attitude. R, I will respect myself. E I will educate you now. Wait, that was really, I had no idea that not only could you not do drugs,

Starting point is 00:45:14 you weren't allowed to have an attitude about it. You have to be boring. And I'm going to educate. I'm going to be a little bitch. Just like educate everyone about it. I would have been like, don't do drugs and like, you can be an asshole because you're already sacrificing a lot. Yeah, right. I had no idea that that added a song. Dare was just like Christianity. Who sang it? I mean, was it like, was there an animal like like an animal who taught? We had a police officer who came and talked to us.

Starting point is 00:45:38 You know, he was like the school safety. Was he into singing it? Was it clear that it was like a theater kid who accidentally? No, I don't. I don't remember him singing it, but I feel like he probably played it on something. But, you know, we all had to learn it. We all had to perform it. We had to like do a performance of it, you know? Yeah. Yeah. Hopefully better than what you just said. That was a little. Yeah. I'm sure there was like, I'm sure there was like, you know, yeah, moves with it. Something to dance, the hot to go dance, but for like, don't do drugs and be a kind person. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:46:05 No, I bring up Dare, though, because they describe to you in Dare how being drunk will feel. And it's so overblown. What did they say? Because they're like, you know, you do the drunk goggles, but also it's like, they're like, I mean, it's standard elementary school health class stuff. But like, you're going to be slurring your words and like, you won't be able to walk in a straight direction,

Starting point is 00:46:26 which that can be true of alcohol in like really high quantities. Yeah. It's not like you go out with your friends and have a couple drinks. Like you feel tipsy, you feel good, but rarely when you drink, unless you have a ton, are you actually going to be like out of control. Ketamine, it kind of takes you there much quicker. Sure.

Starting point is 00:46:46 But in a way that like, especially if you're dancing at a club, can feel really nice. See, I can't. I struggle dancing. I struggle like dancing for like I'll do, I'll do choreo. Yeah. I'll do a hip hop class. You struggle dancing like for fun.

Starting point is 00:47:00 Just like just for fun. I got to be, I got to be fucked up. I got to be pretty fucked up to like let loose. I just again, I gotta be fucked up. I gotta be pretty fucked up to like let loose. I just, again, I'm a mess of human pain. And, and so I always want to do the drug. They'll make me just fuck in groove. Cause you can dance. You can dance. I get, I get self-conscious. Yeah. No. And when I dance, I feel like it's very... If you thought I was gay before, see me on the wedding room dance floor. See me at the dance floor. When you see me dance, it's just like...

Starting point is 00:47:33 And maybe it's Jewish. I mean, maybe it's Jewish. Maybe that's why they have to... I mean, we're just watching you like... You and Donald Trump with the limp wrists. I do think there's this something about the Jewish thing, because my girlfriend brings it up. She grew up in a very Jewish community that there is a flamboyance.

Starting point is 00:47:51 And I don't know if it's I don't know if it's just like a I mean, I don't I don't even know how to define flamboyance other than it's a little ostentatious or it's a little bendy. You let your shoulders move. What's flamboyant? I mean, is that what you say that you see with other Jewish guys? Yeah, I mean, I didn't even mean that in like a super serious, analytical way, but I do see what you're saying. I mean, my dad is like Jewish, grew up in Queens, you know, like real New Yorker, but he's also like how I think of Jewish men. He's like, he's still like a soft man. Sure.

Starting point is 00:48:25 He's like an emotionally in touch. Um, and, and that's probably less the case when you get into like the more like Orthodox circles, like where they have like really rigid gender hierarchies. Maybe, but there's still like an avoidance of, I feel like it's like an avoidance of like getting hurt, maybe an avoidance of like, you know, hurting. I feel like nails would increase just because you wouldn't wanna break a nail. So you'd be operating in a way with a bit more grace, with a bit more not just grabbing something like this.

Starting point is 00:48:53 And that would create, I think so. Yeah, I don't know. I feel like Jewish men, they tend to be like kind of squeaky, mousy. But like, but I say all of this like in the most positive way possible. Yeah. And they're not, I don't know.

Starting point is 00:49:12 I feel like American, like Christian men, there's so much tied up in like American masculinity and like what it like being a child of God and like, I'm going to drive a pickup truck. Like Jewish, we don't have that culturally. Sure. And like American Judaism. Yeah. Does any of that make sense? No, totally. truck like Jewish. We don't have that culturally. Sure. And like American Judaism. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:49:25 Does any of that make sense? No, totally. I mean, I certainly don't. I don't have any of that. No, I don't know a single Jewish man who like has a like, let's crack open a beer and like shoot guns and like, this is not a thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, it is a thing for a lot of Christian people. How would you sum up Jews?

Starting point is 00:49:43 You're not Jewish. No. Yeah. But I'm not anything like I Jews? You're not Jewish. No. But I'm not anything, like I didn't grow up with religion. Sure, but like ethnically either. No, no, I grew up upstate. Very white, just white. You don't love Jewish?

Starting point is 00:49:53 Yeah. Boring white. Yeah, every hotel. Every hotel. Regular hotel. Are you Jewish on the editing? Yeah. Yeah, that's what I got.

Starting point is 00:50:03 No, I didn't know. You didn't know? I don't think I have like a a Juhdar like that. Sure. No, I got Juh. I see you. Now what was it? Was it the squeaky mousy thing? This is the hair. The hair? Sure. Yeah, yeah. You have some nice curls. Do you have curly hair? I do when I let it grow, but I don't let it grow much lately. I don't know. It's just with the nails and with the makeup, it's just, I can't manage hair.

Starting point is 00:50:34 I draw the line somewhere. Is it hard? Is it harder to do makeup with the nails? I mean, it's not easier to do anything with the nails, but when you have that, like I've had like these long nails for five years and you get used to it. Like I don't think that they're there. The only, it's makeup, it's no different.

Starting point is 00:50:52 The only thing that is hard is like putting on false lashes because you really have to, I know I'm not speaking your language right now. I'm aware. Contacts to theater? I don't wear anything on my eyes. Cause I feel like that would be hard. But people with long nails wear contacts.

Starting point is 00:51:06 I think you just figure it out. You can do everything except fingering someone. That's what I was going to bring up. Yeah, bring it up. Do you ever, is there ever so in the moment you just, you rip it off and. No, I'm never, I'm never that. You rip off your nail? I think it would be hot if it was just like.

Starting point is 00:51:25 Just like a wild, rugged display of masculinity. A real mix of masculinity and femininity. I want to top you so badly right now that I'm going to chew off my own fingernails to finger you. You're like, no, that would be crazy. That's something that I'd only do for someone I marry. And even then, it's like, I mean, nails are expensive, Sean Marco.

Starting point is 00:51:43 Sure. Like, I can't. If I'm doing that, then the person I'm having sex with will need to pay for the repair. Yeah. Because they don't, they don't rip off easily like that either. Like it's not, you can't just like... It would be hurt, wouldn't it? If you hold it off.

Starting point is 00:51:56 Like probably my nail underneath would come off too. That's how like tightly... Oh my God. Really? I didn't realize that. Yeah. People, people who don't get nails done don't really know the physics of it. But yeah, you really can't just rip it off.

Starting point is 00:52:10 If you're in a fight, even if you really wanted to fuck someone, that's... sorry. You're imagining those Halloween costumes when you're kids and they put fake nails on and it's that easily... Yeah, the press-ons. You can just... no. You can rip it off and sex and you're like, I can't fuck. I really kill the mood. Yeah. Uh, do you, first of all, how do you put these on yourself? No, I have someone. How much is, how much is, uh, how much was that? Oh,

Starting point is 00:52:41 wow. It's just my secrets. Um, usually I pay like $200 for nails and how long does that last? Oh, wow. These are my secrets. Usually I pay like $200 for nails. And how long does that last? Three weeks. And then at three weeks, is it they start, one breaks off or you go? So usually, I mean, they're on really, really firmly so they won't pop off though. I have had some accidents, which I can tell you about. I had one recently, but usually it's just they start growing out from the bottom. So you'll see the little growth.

Starting point is 00:53:06 Oh, I see. So you need to change it even if it's still like firmly on there. Because also, right, this is another thing like mechanically, if it starts growing out and you're like it's halfway up your real nail bed, there's like a great chance that it can bend and like really split your nail. And does that make sense? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And that's happened to me when I've let them grow out too long.

Starting point is 00:53:28 And then it's like I drop a weight at the gym. Oh, no. Yeah. Do you know, that's a very gay reaction. Because I broke my pinky once bowling and they had to take off the nails. So I know that's. Oh, what about like, okay, we've all seen those people that have like the long, long nails, like record. Yeah. Okay. Like what kind of, how are they doing that?

Starting point is 00:53:52 I have no idea. I mean, the world with a ponytail, like, like, what do you do if your hair's a thousand feet long? But like the world record lady, the world record lady with the longest nails, like hers are a natural even. Like they like, she, that's like impossible for most people because they will break by the time way before they get this long. So she's genetically blessed.

Starting point is 00:54:15 But yeah, at a certain point, your life revolves around, you know, like you have to be monetizing it somehow for your life to revolve around your nails being that long. That's like asking someone slightly taller than you. Like, what happens when you make eye contact with a giraffe? monetizing it somehow for your life to revolve around your nails being that long. That's like asking someone slightly. I know. Like what happens when you make eye contact with a giraffe? They don't know. Yeah, I can't speak for everybody. Let me just say about makeup.

Starting point is 00:54:37 I honestly, the only reason I never I didn't even do it in college. It was required and I got out of it. It's because I can't I don't have the coordination to do it. I went through a goth phase where I tried to put do it in college. It was required and I got out of it. It's because I can't, I don't have the coordination to do it. I went through a goth phase where I tried to put on black nail polish. I mean, it was horrifying how bad I am at anything that requires like staying in the lines. I-

Starting point is 00:54:57 Painting your nails is hard. It's hard. I had a roommate once, an actor, and I came out one morning and he had an audition and he had so much makeup on like, but you know, straight guy who was going, I think wanting to hide that he was a little, he'd aged a bit and was trying to look younger. And, and he, he, he, I wish I'd taken a photo because he then, he asked me, he's like, can you notice? He asked me if I could notice he's wearing makeup and it was like a clown sitting before me.

Starting point is 00:55:33 What do you say? You're like, yeah, yeah, the craziest thing I've ever, like, it's not crazy if you want to do that, but he was definitely like, what are you saying? Trying to, trying to be younger and not like a choice. Yeah. Not like a, I'm kidding. I'm not, I'm actor trying to be younger and not like a choice. I'm kidding. I'm not trying to catch you in a homophobia. No, no, no. But it was very funny. That's what you feel with a lot of these Republican guys that you go like you go, there's clearly a lack of experience here with doing what you want to do. Okay. Can we talk about the Republican men and what they do to their faces on TV?

Starting point is 00:56:08 I want to know. Because this is, I mean, first of all, TV, I mean, you know, this is actors, like when you go on TV or on stage, any kind of production really in front of an audience, you're wearing makeup regardless of your gender. You're putting on stage makeup, TV makeup, whatever. Every single, you know, Fox News anchor, Newsmax anchor, OAN, all of these men are wearing oftentimes a lot of makeup. You know, I don't think that's true for every Republican politician, barring Matt Gaetz, who is wearing a wild amount of makeup. It's crazy Botox.

Starting point is 00:56:46 And like, but so the reason I bring it up though, is because Kamala Harris just did her Fox interview. And Brett Baer, who was the interviewer, you know, he did this whole long segment about gender affirming care, da da da. He looks crazy. He looks crazy. He's had it like his the Botox. It's like the arch of his eyebrow is almost touching his hairline. Yes. He has had multiple rhinoplasties very, very clearly. Um, uh, you know, his

Starting point is 00:57:21 nose looks, did you ever watch botched? Yes. I've heard of his, his nose looks, did you ever watch botched? Yes. I've heard of it. His nose looks like when the contestants for botched would come in and their nose was like on the brink of collapse because it was so small. His nose looks like that. And his lip filler is migrating outside of the lines. And to be clear, if a woman did this,

Starting point is 00:57:40 who was not like, you know, an evil news broadcaster, I would be like, work. I love plastic surgery. I love when people get plastic surgery. I love too much plastic surgery. You love too much plastic surgery? On other people. I don't, I don't, it's not for me, but like I love when people push the limits of like what you can look like. Sure. I do. I love it. Whether it's with makeup or prosthetics or plastic surgery. So is it tough when you look at Laura Loomer? Do you feel this like, I like you?

Starting point is 00:58:07 Because I'm like, you could be a camp queen. Like, you know, but you're evil. Yes, I love, like there was, do you remember like the Fox Lady, the Cat Lady? This like really famous socialite Jocelyn something, Jocelyn like Wildstein or? Sounds familiar. Could you pull that up? The cat lady.

Starting point is 00:58:26 There's a cat lady. These are icons. And even like, you know, in varying phases, like Madonna, you know, people are always obsessed with what work she's got done or hasn't gotten done and especially as she ages. And I just think like to toy with people's idea of what you can look like, of what you should look like as you age, as you're young. You know, people make a big deal out of like Kylie Jenner being so young, getting so much plastic surgery, like very legitimate reasons to not like Kylie Jenner, but that is certainly not one of them in my opinion.

Starting point is 00:58:57 Sure, sure. Love plastic surgery. My, so, you know, that's not the issue. My issue is just that these people are like, obviously devoting their careers in public personas to evil legislation. But what I don't understand, and this is where like I get frustrated

Starting point is 00:59:11 with Democrats and liberals where I'm like, then why do we allow Republicans to, we're so body positive, quote unquote, that like a Democrat candidate would never point that out. In an interview, if you have an interviewer talking about a gender affirming care, it's like, that's that moment that I'm like, we need someone to go look at this shit.

Starting point is 00:59:36 We need Joan Rivers to fucking just burst out there and roast the person because especially I feel like, sometimes especially this very specific kind of straight white guy when someone insults their appearance like for real it has not happened to them and they fucking come bust yeah they come bust yeah yeah I mean and to be clear like I mean I don't think there's like inherent value I actually think that it's quite the opposite and like criticizing the appearance of people you disagree with politically, because I think then you get into a dangerous territory. But you can't stop it. But when Laura Lumer does something crazy, you can't you can't help but go, well, it's a it's a kind of fucked up human thing.

Starting point is 01:00:20 It is a human thing. But I mean, it's you know, you don't want to flirt too much. You don't want to associate their evilness with looking crazy. Because there are people who I politically admire who look crazy. Sure. They're entertainers that look crazy that you love. Yeah, I don't think you want to. I mean, it's easy to make fun of Laura Loomer's appearance. Plastic surgery, though, feels a little bit more fair game because I go, you... Like it's same with like Trump makeup or like, or when JD Vance like the eyeliner seems really strong. Part of it's like, well, you made this decision and you can make fun of someone for a...

Starting point is 01:00:59 I think it's more fair game to make fun of someone for a decision they made than, oh, you're ugly. Yeah, that's her. This queen. Like that is a queen. That's a diva. Yeah. I'm obsessed with her. I'm obsessed with her. Um, and so tell me what whenever else are you suggesting this for the first time? I've seen it before, but I don't know anything about her. Let me tell you my impulse. I'm not saying this is correct. I see that I go, oh no.

Starting point is 01:01:33 Oh no. Is that what you wanted? Or did you like someone who with a, and again, this is judgy. Sure. I'm saying it up front. If someone is experiencing body dysmorphia and you see them doing something to themselves that you might perceive as harming them. Let's let's do a politically fair one. Let's say someone was wasn't eating and it looked like they

Starting point is 01:01:55 were about on death store. I wouldn't necessarily go like, Oh, Queen, my thin queen. Wait, but if they're I mean, but but she's not on death door by getting plastic surgery. How did Joan Rivers die? Okay, but- That's very specific. That's, I mean, that's, yeah, that's- Sure. There's not like a systemic, like-

Starting point is 01:02:14 Sure. Death toll from plastic surgery, that's not really- Sure, sometimes you wonder when it gets further and further away, you wonder, again, it's not my business. I would never do- No, sure, but I think also something that you're identifying though is like concern trolling. Please tell me about it.

Starting point is 01:02:29 When people like mask their disdain and judgment for someone, oh my God. Ah, I'm being, we're jubileeing it out a little bit. Go for it. But like, I think a lot of times, whether it's like someone online, you know, having it, whatever, having a very severe eating disorder is very different from opting to get plastic surgery.

Starting point is 01:02:46 One is a health issue, the other generally isn't. But I think a lot of times we have judgment for other people, whether they're really thin or really fat, or get a lot of plastic surgery or whatever. Like we're just judging them from a place of disgust. But then we mask it and like, I'm really concerned about her. Oh, 100%. That makes sense. How much have you done that online? Where you're like, I'm really concerned about her. Oh, 100%. How much do you see that? How much have you done that online where you're like, you know, and well, that's all that's that's for me.

Starting point is 01:03:11 That's that's like all the stuff about when it comes to kids and and trans rights. Totally. I go, I go. You don't care about kids. Stop saying like that's that's ultimately like the thrust of my like you don't actually you can't even conceive of a kid in an Oklahoma. Like what are you talking about? Well, and these people are disgusted by trans people.

Starting point is 01:03:34 They're disgusted by queer people. They are disgusted like like a really like bodily disgust over like blurring of of of sort of traditional gender roles because that's what they've devoted their life to. And when you see someone like changing their gender or existing visually in a way that is confusing gender-wise, it's like shaking the foundation of what they've devoted like their life to and of like what does it mean for me to be a man? what does it mean for me to be a man? What does it mean for me to for me to be a woman?

Starting point is 01:04:07 I know what that means to me, but this person is telling me that maybe like my masculinity is is actually not fact. Yes, and it's so deeply unsettling and revolting and So you think it's about the person's that person's internal conception of their own gender? I think the person's, that person's internal conception of their own gender? I think homophobia and transphobia are really complicated. There can also, of course, be stirred up by media panics and politicians who want to, you know, accrue votes. But I think like the visceral disgust that some people have towards especially visually queer people, is

Starting point is 01:04:45 from a place of like their worldview being shaken. Yeah, I do think that. And I think that sometimes that like, I was just on Twitter the other day talking about this, but there's this like, there's the Westboro Baptist Church homophobia, where it's like, you're a faggot, fags are going to hell. And then there's like this way more popular, currently like Anita Bryant style homophobia, which is like, I want to protect the children. And it means the same thing. And it comes from the same place. I am disgusted by faggots, but I am going to,

Starting point is 01:05:16 and it's concerned Charlie, I'm going to express that as like, hmm, but is the science sound on children getting puberty blockers? And, you know, but what about the irreversible effects? It's like, no, you guys hate trans people and you do not want them to exist in public life. Yeah. But you can't go on TV on C-SPAN and say that. Yeah. So you have to be like, they're they're mutilating the children in all of this, you know, scary language.

Starting point is 01:05:42 But that's why I whenever I hear especially like, you know, drag queens reading books at the library and being like, the kids are being exposed to this, this, that or the other, I think I always, I always want like the, the progressive side to be more, more aggressive in the sense of like, what do you think this cheerleader is at this football game? Yeah. Like I want to, I want to go like, Like I wanna go to the football game and go like,

Starting point is 01:06:06 okay, all you guys, all you guys who, by the way, if that cheerleader wasn't exactly to proportion, you would criticize her, you are all here watching this person flip and the legs and the crotch and they do a dance where they spread their legs in the air. And like, sometimes it's like, these people don't seem to wanna be accepting or warm. And I just, I have that urge. And like, I would, that's sometimes it's like, I, these people don't seem to want

Starting point is 01:06:26 to be accepting or warm. And I just, I have that urge of being like, look at what you're doing. Look at this. Yeah. Look at this. Yeah. This is just as sexual. What are you talking about? I mean, talk about going to church and like, from the time that you're six months old, learning about like being washed in the blood of Christ or whatever. Like it's like such violent imagery. I mean, like being nailed to a cross. I mean, Nailed to the cross. Nailed to the cross.

Starting point is 01:06:49 Growing up, like watching football games. To your point, the cheerleaders and also like watching like grown men give each other concussions. Like all of this is- Disney movies, you'll see old Disney movies is like the princesses are all these, they've big tits. They have a fat ass. And I'm like, do you think that's not part of,

Starting point is 01:07:03 that's part of like your, it's the heteronormative thing of that's fine, it's not sexual, so this is okay for the kid to see this, but if it's two guys, I just don't know. It feels like the battle's not, it feels like, I know it's so foolish, it's so naive to be like, oh, but I did think I thought that the world was getting, especially when it came to

Starting point is 01:07:28 matters of being gay and gay rights, that it was arcing a certain direction and it feels like it is not anymore. Yeah. And I'm kind of, it's shocking. And I'm like, oh, it didn't. I have this thing of it feels like nothing worked. Nothing stuck. It was just a bunch of people who were angry about't, I have this thing of, it feels like nothing worked, nothing stuck. It was just a bunch of people who were angry about it, who have now made a coalition, possibly big enough, depending on who won, to run the country. Yeah, I mean, I wouldn't say, I wouldn't go all the way there.

Starting point is 01:07:57 I think, you know, write the famous quote, the arc of history is long, but it bends towards progress. And I don't believe in it. I don't believe in that. You don't think that there's any. I think there's sometimes this, but I think I think very well something could happen and we go back to fascism and that doesn't mean that. And I quote, it's erased from all the different thing than how the like minds of people of like of masses of people that feel I want. It's how I want for sure.

Starting point is 01:08:23 I understand what you're saying. And I certainly think that we are on the brink. I mean, regardless, frankly, regardless of who won the election, I think we are absolutely on the brink of fascism if we are not like fully, we should be fully vigilant about that all the time. But I also think it's true. I mean, like, even right now that we're in the in the thick of this moral panic, right about about trans kids and drag queens. Like, the way the average American feels about queer people is different than it was 50 years ago. Sure.

Starting point is 01:08:51 And I think especially when it comes to these panics about like, should the kids be allowed to be read stories? Like, I really think the average American doesn't give a shit. I do think it's like a small minority that is very loud. Whereas, you know, gay marriage is such a, is an issue that is unfortunately pretty like unrepresentative of like where we're at now in the culture.

Starting point is 01:09:17 Like, you know, it doesn't address like the wellbeing of trans people, of trans kids, all that stuff that we've really moved on from gay marriage in a lot of ways. Is it surreal at all to see like, I feel like as the culture, as the general populace becomes more comfortable with homosexuality, that ultimately part of the result is like, there's more gay Republicans and there's more like, I guess in my earlier years, it felt like, you know, there was more of a tie between these,

Starting point is 01:09:46 between like queer or queer friendly and being liberal or Democrat. And then part of, part of, part of accepted society is the spreading out and the like, you're gonna have, you know, you'll have the Milo Yiannopoulos of the world. Who's straight now, I guess, but you know what I mean. Milo Yiannopoulos, yeah, he's straight now.

Starting point is 01:10:04 And then ultimately like, it still isn't at a level where, you know, they're candidates. There aren't that many gay Republican candidates, but there will be. Um, I mean, okay, wait, I want to say that the reason I brought up gay marriage is just because like the percentage of Americans who approve of gay marriage has gone up so much in the last couple of decades. Now it's kind of stagnated, which is bad. But, yeah, I've made multiple episodes of my podcast doing like, being like psychoanalytical about gay Republicans. I think, yeah, that's another issue that is hugely complicated.

Starting point is 01:10:40 But, again, you asked me about in the email before I came here, like bring topics of things you're tired of. Well, sorry, this has got to stop. Can you play this? This has got to stop. This has got to stop. Do you have a This has got to stop? Gay Republicans.

Starting point is 01:10:55 Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Do you want me to just go? Yeah, please. Yeah. I mean.

Starting point is 01:11:05 OK, can I prompt you and then you? You know, sorry. Whenever there is a big Republican convention, sometimes they'll go, oh, Grindr reported the highest usage in this in this part of the county. And I think and it's like the concept being there's so many guys here who are gay, who are not open. And it's touted as like some kind of victory.

Starting point is 01:11:29 And in fact, I think it's just a sad state of affairs. Yeah, I think if I mean, I guess there are a large number of closeted gay Republicans. I think that's just an indictment of like, homophobia still being too present in red states. I also like that story about Grindr being like, you know, the servers collapsing in Minnesota, or I think that's where the RNC was. That was not a real story.

Starting point is 01:11:52 Sure. People had a laugh and I think that's a net positive, fine. But I mean, I divide gay Republicans right now into two categories in my head. One are people who are just like, or queer, I should say, because we have Caitlyn Jenner. Sure. Blair White, trans Republicans.

Starting point is 01:12:11 But there are the ones who are just queer and Republicans in their private life. And then there are people who make public figures, who make themselves public figures around being the token minority Republican. And I think about those two groups differently because I think right when we get to this topic of queer Republicans, we think a lot about the people who get put up on like the RNC to talk about, I'm gay and I can hear to tell you that the Republican Party is not homophobic. I'm proof. I'm here speaking at the RNC or like, I'm here on Fox News or like whatever. Like that's what Caitlyn Jenner's whole thing, right? She's like, you know,

Starting point is 01:12:50 all you guys are whining about Republicans, but really it's the liberals who have a problem with like, they tokenize themselves and they make a lot of money off of it. What about people who are not trying to monetize being this token, right? And I psychoanalyze them differently and I think that they are both equally bad. Well, the tokens I think, my cynically, I just go, well, they found a place that they can succeed and there's all these positive reinforcements

Starting point is 01:13:19 and they get to speak at the RNC and they feel power. But that other side, where they're not necessarily tokenize themselves, what do you think? Are they are they are they blind to the fact that a large faction of the group they now associate with does not approve of them? I think that they do a lot of mental gymnastics to compartmentalize that fact. I think they will say, well, it's not the majority of them. And, you know, something that they say a lot is,

Starting point is 01:13:51 well, they wouldn't be homophobic if we as a community stopped acting like you, Matt. You know, if we stopped with the nails, if we stopped with the shouting from the rooftops about being gay, if we stopped shoving it down everybody's throat, they would accept us if we were just normal like me. And that is not true. It is absolutely not true because, I mean, again,

Starting point is 01:14:15 like Blair White is a really popular trans woman YouTuber who that is her whole thing. It's like she's gorgeous, She passes as a cis woman. She is rich. She lives in Texas, even though for most of her career she lived in L.A. peculiarly. It's like you're talking about how how shitty liberals are your whole career. And you like choose to live in L.A. The case where Fox hosts who live in New York.

Starting point is 01:14:39 Yeah, exactly. Exactly. But it's you know, her whole shtick is like, well, the trans activists and the non-binary pronoun people are crazy. Like maybe if you just acted like me and behaved a little more like how women are supposed to behave, everyone would treat you like a normal person. That's not true. They want to take your hormones away just the same. They are, you know, as far as gay men go, like there's the cultural disgust towards the sex that gay men have with each other. And that is true. If they are, you know, me or Peter teal, same, if anything, without the nails, they could finger more. Yeah. You landed the

Starting point is 01:15:21 plane there. Is it all just to make a buck or is it? Is it just? Is there real like some I mean, I guess it's it can't be it's Can't have a blanket statement for any of it because I think that's why it's so you're like it is like a combination of To make a buck and self-hating you mean for like the influencers just for like the kind of place They're coming from to from to try and be that voice for that specific thing, what seems to go against who they are as a human being. Yeah. Again, I mean, I think I'm sure they conservative queer influencers and broadcasters buy into

Starting point is 01:15:59 the ideology and they're continuously rewarded for it monetarily and in fame. So I think it's kind of easier to understand where they're coming from when money is involved. Yeah. I think the more interesting segment is these people who are just like living their lives as non-public figures and are just like queer conservatives. But the thing is like, what do conservatives and like the Republican Party offer Americans? They offer them anger. They offer them scapegoats.

Starting point is 01:16:29 They offer them this sense of return. And there are some queer people who those things appeal to. And they are able to incorrectly compartmentalize their own identities to... Like, queer people also want to scapegoat sometimes. You know, like, queer people can also be racist. Queer people can also hate poor people. Like, there's just a segment of queer people who those things appeal to. That would just be like, you know, the It Gets Better campaign,

Starting point is 01:17:03 but it's just like, queer people could be racist. Queer people can also hate poor people. Okay. Okay. Well, no, but this is exactly that. There's a congressman named Richie Torres, who is a congressman from New York, and he is black and gay and blocked me on Twitter. And separate identity markers. But he, are you Googling Richie Torres?

Starting point is 01:17:29 It's with an S I think. But you know, he's, he is, he's entirely bought by APAC. And he is just on all over social media. His whole thing is Israel now because I would imagine APAC is one of, if not his biggest donor. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And he's talked about, in certain circles, as like a trailblazer. And I'm like, yes, he, like he, there was this trailblazer,

Starting point is 01:17:54 um, uh, kind of like art show that was put up in Fire Island, and he was put up as a trailblazer alongside these other people, like... Oh, my God! Like, legitimate trailblazer. And it's like, yes, you are trailblazing in the sense that you can be a queer person of color and still be bought out by the Israeli pack. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Brilliant. Like you can be queer and a person of color and you can be so many marginalized groups and a horrible person. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:18:21 That is a quality. Representing a foreign country. Somehow. It's crazy. Um, do you have this? Got to say real quick, this got up this week. Um, I'm in, I've been in, you probably know this. I've been in a long feud with my, um, eye doctor and it's continuing. And first of all, his office sends way too many texts, you know, they do the happy birthday thing. They do like birthday, they do passive aggressive doctor texts about it's been too long since I got my eye but we miss you. Um, yes. So escalated this week because they're, they send that, but they're still spelling my name wrong in the text. And that is like,

Starting point is 01:18:58 you're the doctor. You have my paper. Is my name spelled wrong in your paperwork? Like what about their way to test your vision? Yeah, that was really quick But I told you this it all started years ago. He he of all he's a very attractive man and he and the like the community loves him and I think I feel like I see through him I feel like he's resting on how attractive he is and his offices run terribly. Nothing. They'll be like, your contacts are going to be in a week,

Starting point is 01:19:29 you know, here for three weeks and they don't know. And it's, it's a horribly run office, but I have to go. It's, it's my, my neighborhood. And, um, uh, and with one of the first times I ever went in, he did the examine. He goes, now, uh, people tell you, you have a lazy eye, right? That's what he said to me. That's a doctor. And I said, I like not often like do you know, school bullies used to, but like, thanks, man. Like it was like, been so long since someone had like commented on my lazy. What a weird way to play. And I was like, I was like, okay, man, cool. Like, yeah, I made it 30 years without knowing anyway. So we're, he just, I don't know.

Starting point is 01:20:05 I got to get a new one, but I don't really want to like do the work to do it. Yeah. I just love that way of phrasing things as a doctor. Like people, people are grossed out by this. Yeah. That'll be $400. He also makes me, he makes me feel like, you know, I have weird doctor things. I get like so panic. So you like look at my chart and he goes, oh, I see on your chart, you have high blood pressure and you take medication for it. And I was like, yeah. And he goes, you know, the eyes tell you a lot about the heart. Whatever. And then I was like, I was like, I was like, same or like, what are you seeing? Like, am I going to die? Like, you know what I mean? Like you just like that kind of shit. But you're gonna have a heart attack. Anyways, my, this has got to stop is the culture of always telling people to smile for a photo. I saw, I went, I was at my mom's house.

Starting point is 01:20:59 I looked at old books of when I was a kid and it was this moment where I was like, was my childhood good? And I'm like, no, no, don't fall for that. Don't fall for that. Someone yelled at you to smile before all these pictures. And so you don't have an accurate representation of what your childhood was like. If I could see a picture of me looking

Starting point is 01:21:18 how I actually felt on that beach trip, I'd be like, well, thank God that's done. But instead I'm looking, I'm like, oh God, I miss being a boy. Yeah, gay people don't really do that. We have, like, I don't know, well, thank God that's done. But instead I'm looking, I'm like, oh God, I miss being a boy. Yeah, gay people don't really do that. We have, like, I don't know, there's like... Another thing that I have in common with the gay community. There's a community understanding that sometimes you have to serve instead of smile.

Starting point is 01:21:36 It's like a little... If I had kids, I would tell them, I'd say, serve on three. I'm going to start... Serve on three. Yeah, when I have kids, I won't make them smile, but I will make them, I'm going to serve on three. I'm going to start. Serve on three. I would make, yeah, when I have kids, I won't make them smile, but I will make them serve. I'm going to start just being however I really

Starting point is 01:21:50 feel in that moment in a photo. Frown. You know what I mean? Like, it could be anything. It could be bored. It could be interested. You know, anything. Those are the only two emotions you got in the pan.

Starting point is 01:22:01 Bored or interested. Horny. As a group, we are done with gay Republican eye doctor smiling in photos. There you go. Our final segment. You better count your blessing. You better count your blessing. I'll go first.

Starting point is 01:22:22 I did my show, Theater Adult at Joe's Pub with Hannah Solo as the guest. So many people to thank who put that together. But I want to give a special thanks to a singer named Awkward Marina. She made a TikTok that went viral about Charlie XCX, but if it was like a musical, like an old hokey, like 50s, 60s musical. And I posted a video, her girlfriend reached out, said, oh my God, I'm a fan of yours. And I said, she lives in New York, have her on the show. And she just like, it was clear that this was cool to her. And she posted like a picture from the green room

Starting point is 01:22:59 at Joe's Pub. And you know, I take it for granted. You know, I flew in from Springfield, I'm tired, I'm worried the shows and I like watched her video like, like looking how the couch had Joe's pub lettering and looking at all the pictures and it really, it was like, I got to feel like, oh yeah, this is cool. And how wonderful. And it felt really nice and she did great. So fine awkward Marina and thank you for doing the show. Yeah, you got a blessing. Yes.

Starting point is 01:23:27 My blessing this week is one of my favorite bands is the cure and they're putting out new music. They haven't put out new music in 16 years. So it's and I wasn't a fan then, you know what I mean? So you're like, I'm getting to like do the album rollout and it's like so good. The songs are so good. So far. It's really depressing and it's perfect for fall. And, um, uh, I'm just really excited. It's a, it feels, it's a good feeling.

Starting point is 01:23:53 You know, when you're in the band, it's like putting out stuff and it just has happened forever. Yeah. I mean, I've only heard two. Oh, well, I've heard some of the live stuff cause I, but, um, I haven't heard all of it yet, but it's okay. It's not bad. That's great. That's fantastic. Yeah. Um, do you have a blessing for us? I do. This is kind of like earnest. Um, but I guess that's the point. I, it was, it was my birthday last week. Um, and I feel like my, you know, mid October birthday happened to like bookend just like a wild year for me. Personally, professionally, all this stuff. But I, you know, my job is talking about politics online

Starting point is 01:24:31 in sometimes funny ways, sometimes earnest ways, through storytelling, pop culture, celebrity news, whatever. And I, you know, I've been doing it for like five years. And for a while, it was mostly just kind of like liberal stuff. I didn't like form like huge political identity of my own beyond that. And in the last couple of years, I've like really, you know, people say as you get older that you like go from the left to the middle, and I find the opposite to be true for me.

Starting point is 01:25:03 And I want to reflect that in my work. I want to talk about like real things and sometimes you know things that it's hard to like to tack on a target sponsorship to or whatever. And I you know with this Israel stuff like I was nervous that talking about it I would I didn't know what a job would look like if I spoke my mind on it really because as creators, I'm not an actor. I don't aspire to that. I just want to be online. That's the medium that I love.

Starting point is 01:25:42 We rely on sponsorships and agents and all of that stuff. And I'm like, okay, well, what if I don't have those if I really talk about all this stuff, honestly? Yeah. And like one year later, God, like things are not getting better in the world. But I'm at a place in my job where I found out a way to talk about it and like, say, sustained in my work through like Patreon and my podcast and various things. But I was just reflecting on the past year upon my birthday and I was like, wow, like, I'm really happy that I found a way to make this work and like, yeah, stay true to myself and my beliefs. And it doesn't look the same. And I don't have the target

Starting point is 01:26:20 sponsorship and that's completely fine. Yeah. Yeah. I'm really grateful for that. Great. We do want to thank our sponsor, APAC. We appreciate all the funds. We love the fun. Not as much as real, but the funds. Next week on the pod, Richie Torres. Matt Bernstein, what do you want to plug? Oh my gosh, listen to my podcast. If you liked listening to me, I mean, don't if you didn't. But my podcast is called A Bit Fruity. We do sort of these like research intensive dives on conservative media and, you know, internet trends.

Starting point is 01:26:57 It's pretty gay. It's a little gayer than this podcast, but not by a lot. The Jubilee episode was really, it was a really good episode because as someone who like is entertained by it, but like, I mean, it probably ruined Jubilee for me, like clip, even the clips now I'll be like, yeah, that's the point. I want people to turn Jubilee. Yeah. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:27:17 Yeah. Yeah. Uh, so check that out. We'll have all the links to everything. Russell, what do you want to plug? This is coming out. Coming out. Oh my God.

Starting point is 01:27:24 I wrote it down, but it's disappeared. Thanks to everything. Russell, what do you want to plug? This is coming out. Coming out. Oh my God. I wrote it down, but it's disappeared. So if this is before November 16th, I don't know if it is come see Uncle Function, New York Comedy Fest. We will be at UCB. It's November 18th. Okay. Well, you missed it.

Starting point is 01:27:38 And nothing to plug. Right. Okay. Follow me on Instagram at Russell J Daniels. Yeah, I think at this we may have some downside tour dates that we will have announced. We'll see. I will be in Washington DC this weekend and it usually sells out. So get those tickets now.

Starting point is 01:27:57 And again, even if you watch this, please subscribe on Spotify. It helps us get our ad sponsors. Enjoy the page on Spotify. It helps us get our ad sponsors. Enjoy the page on patreon.com slash downside. Um, fuck, I got so wrapped up. I didn't think of a good closing joke. I'll tell you what was funny though is Russell has to hop onto this zoom meeting right now. And as you were telling like your emotional blessing, I could see Russell's finger just hover over that laptop, struggling to decide when it was okay to open it. This is The Downside. ["Downside Theme Song"]

Starting point is 01:28:32 You're listening to The Downside. The Downside. With John Marcos Serezi.

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