This Past Weekend - #691 - Johnny Hamcheck

Starting point is 00:00:00 Unlock unlimited free grocery delivery with PC Express Pass. Shop online and get the same low No Frills prices delivered. Get your first year of PC Express Pass for just $2.50 a month. Learn more at no frills.ca. I want to let you guys know that my new special I'm Doing Fine is out now on Netflix. And thank you all for the support. He's got those six-inch chains and those seven and a half foot egg rolls. He's a prankster.

Starting point is 00:00:31 He's a content creator. This guy's one of a kind. And he's revealing himself for the first time. Today, I'm fortunate to sit down with Johnny Hamcheck. Am I acting right? That's a good question. That's a good question. Dude, you got to tell me, man.

Starting point is 00:01:08 This I don't do podcast, bro, but I'm comfortable, but, you know. dude one thing I would ask my friends all the time I'd be like dude do I seem all right yeah like I never had any idea if I seem all right or not like my best friend Scott I remember one time telling I'm like dude tell me who I am you know most of my life has just been oh 100% I don't know who I am I look at myself from an outside body all the time and wonder what the hell is who do you think you are who are you it's a good question I don't think any of us know I mean Maybe that's true. Dude, life is weird, bro.

Starting point is 00:01:46 Like, everyone's is weird, though. You know, we're all down here trying to figure it out. It's a messed up game, you know? Yeah, and a lot of, some of us are kind of being a little bit perverts, too. There's a lot of pecker checkers out there, bro. I mean, I told you. Dude, who runs this shit? Dude, I don't know, but.

Starting point is 00:02:04 It's something else, man. Johnny Hamcheck, one of the premier pranksters, I would say, right now probably. Maybe in the world, dude. That's, I feel like, you know, you came on my radar just like probably as a lot of people just like through social media, just seeing your pranks. And today's the first day that you're kind of showing, showing yourself. This is it. This is the reveal that I've been holding off on doing for five years, you know.

Starting point is 00:02:32 It's been a game of cat and mouse with the internet. And to be honest, it feels great. It just feels good to let them have it. This is it. This is it. And I'm, you know, it feels good. It's like I had something in my stomach I needed to throw up for so long, man. And I can't explain how happy I am about doing this reveal, actually. And saying what's up to all the people and thanking them for all the love. And it's been a fun journey, but it's time to move on to the next stage of my life, you know. And I don't know what that's going to be, but I'm done hiding from the public, you know. It caused so much stress, dude. Does it really? Oh, yeah. Just acting funny about, oh, you can't take a picture. You can't send it to your friends.

Starting point is 00:03:16 And it was only for the fans. I only did it for the fans because they love. Then a lot of them are going to be upset, you know. That you're revealing yourself. Yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah. Because you have millions and millions of views on your pranks, but you've never shown who you are.

Starting point is 00:03:32 No. In the very early days, in my first TikToks, I did. I had TikToks with myself. I did this alibi prank, and I'd go to Walmart and say, hey, will you do a video with me? And I showed myself early on. And then when I saw that the people on the internet were saying, I love that he doesn't show himself.

Starting point is 00:03:52 And then I jumped on board and just made it POV with never showing myself. And it's been like a really, it's been a fun game. It's been, I mean, fun for them. Because everybody comes up with their own image of what they think I look like, you know. Let me ask you, did you know what? I looked like. Didn't have a clue. No way.

Starting point is 00:04:11 Yeah, didn't have a clue, man. And I was curious, and it is this thing. It's like, yeah, it adds to a level of mystery you don't even know. As the viewer, you just don't even think about it. You're like, oh, this is this voice. But yeah, I don't know who it is. And I think I'm probably an average viewer. I don't go back and, you know, I didn't go back and research the first one if there was

Starting point is 00:04:28 a reveal. I just always assumed that there wasn't. What's some of the stress that we don't see about hiding your identity? The fans are always zooming in on reflections, you know, when I shoot videos when somebody has glasses on, and they think I don't know, but I know exactly what I'm giving them. I like to give them little glimpses, you know, and it's, like I said, it's gotten annoying for me to try to keep playing that game. But I did it for the fans' sake.

Starting point is 00:05:03 I didn't really do it for myself. I was tired of this game years ago, you know, but... Not of the pranking, but of the hiding. The Lord, the hiding. Yeah, the hiding. I mean, pranking, I mean, I'm a little burnout on the pranking. I'm not going to lie. I mean, I'm 50 years old.

Starting point is 00:05:19 You can't street prank and just, it's like, come on, man. It's time to do something different, you know, and I don't care what it is. But anyway, I'm talking too much. No, well, we want to hear you talk. And I do want to show people at home and just so some people, may be hearing your voice and they may not be exactly familiar. But Trevin, let's play one of, just play 20 seconds of Johnny Hamchag. Hey, sorry I'm late, buddy.

Starting point is 00:05:46 What? I said, sorry, I'm late. Oh, you're good. Yeah, did they tell you I was coming? Who are you? I'm Johnny, Project Manager. I know. Okay, yeah, Balboni told me to bring those chains to you guys.

Starting point is 00:05:58 What the hell do you do here? I flag. I know, you're doing a good job, too. Well, thank you. Yeah. They told me about you. I'm off today, but did my girl bring the Chick-fil-A by? The Chick-fil-A?

Starting point is 00:06:10 No, I don't believe so. She was supposed to bring some chicken sandwiches for everybody this morning for breakfast. Okay. Yeah. Dude, you must be, so many of years that I watched, or once you pulling up on construction sites, you must be known at every construction site now. Yes. Yes, just in North Carolina the other day, a young kid, jumped out of the bobcat.

Starting point is 00:06:34 I saw his eyes instantly. I see them before they see me. They'd have a voice recognition. It's the craziest thing. It's like a blind guy that has super senses with his ears. Because they don't know what I look like, they match the voice up. I'll be walking in Vegas. I'll be in Beverly Hills.

Starting point is 00:06:55 I can't, if I talk and people walk by me, they'll start. Getting curious. Yeah. And when I tell them, no, I'm not, Johnny. They're like, yeah, you are. Yeah, you are. That's a funny thing, man. So I found that interesting about humans.

Starting point is 00:07:10 Is it hard to find out like a construction site to work these days? Or like are you moving area to area? What do you, what's that like? No, it's all about the individual. I'll pick out a guy that looks like he might not watch social media. It's all about the goofy characters for me. Everything is about what they give me. It's like it's not me most of the time, obviously.

Starting point is 00:07:30 It's just these people. But when I leave Ohio, I feel free because Ohio nine times out of 10, I don't even, I walk up insecure because I know they're going to bust me. So I'm like, I'm ready for them to catch me. Those videos do really well because my fans love seeing people recognizing me. So in Columbus, it's still cool to do those, but I don't mess with even any pranks really in Columbus is getting old. But I can still find tons of construction sites. and I've gotten lazy over the last few years

Starting point is 00:08:03 where I pull up in the car. I used to walk, you know, all I got to do is get out, put a vest on and, you know. So you used to look more of the part. Yeah, in the early days, though, I walked up in shorts, no hat. Now I, dude, I pull up with the construction,

Starting point is 00:08:20 the hard hat on in my car, which is the funniest thing because it's like the stupidest thing ever. But when I first started prank and I had a very nice car, I had a good job. Would you have like a Chevelle or some of Dodge Neon? Dude, I had a $100,000 Lexus when I first started doing these pranks.

Starting point is 00:08:42 And it was a big black. So they bought it. And then I went broke and went kind of homeless. And then I was driving around these $500 cars. So it was really a funny transition. But did the Lexus help the pranks? Yeah, yeah, because they're like, oh, this is definitely a boss. Oh, this is Balboni.

Starting point is 00:08:58 Yeah, this is definitely the boss. He runs stuff. He's, you know, and, but it still worked in a fucking G6 that I ended up to, a friend gave me a G6, man, with a duct tape holding up the panel. There was a bungee cord holding up the panels. But when I put that hat on, man, it was the funniest thing pulling up. Like somebody's going to drive around with a hard hat on in the car. So originally you would get out and walk up was that, did that create a different energy? Yeah, that's a whole different one.

Starting point is 00:09:29 It takes more energy, basically, yeah. So you got lazy, not you just kind of pulled it up in your web? Yeah, because the window ones, when they come to the window, it's like they're on TV. It's perfect. So those work too, but I used to just walk, man, miles, dude. Like if Columbus, Ohio, I would walk from one end of town. I mean, I was putting 25,000 steps a day before I went to work. On your limbs, you're putting those miles on your own.

Starting point is 00:09:53 On my feet. Yeah, I'm my dogs, man. And that was when I had a job. I'd go into work at one. I'd make six, in the early days, man, it was like six videos a day. I mean, I can make them all day long if I want. I mean, it's, but it gets old and, you know, got to do something different. I don't think it gets old for us, but it probably starts to turn into a lot more of a job than it does, like something that's entertaining for you.

Starting point is 00:10:19 I call it feeding the fish, feeding the internet and feeling that pressure to keep giving them something. and they get so upset when I don't post for a while. And it's like, yeah, it's an addiction. And, you know, you know that I have addictive tendencies. And I hate the addiction to feeding the fans, these videos. And then if I don't have a viral video or something, man, I get, like, I get withdrawal. I get sick, you know. You start to feel bad about yourself even?

Starting point is 00:10:48 It's literally a dopamine addiction. Like, when I, if I don't have a fresh killer video that's going viral, then I feel I start to get sick. After a couple weeks, I get sick, man. And I have like this, I got to go get some. I got to go get a video. And they don't make like a Suboxone for pranksters. No.

Starting point is 00:11:08 If they did, I would take it right now. I'd get off the pranks right away. Go to rehab. Yeah, get on that methadone, homie. Oh, my gosh. Suboxone, speaking to that, I mean, we'll talk about that later. But that is the hardest drug to ever get off of. I had to kick that in February 25, and it's the worst.

Starting point is 00:11:29 I mean, it was harder than getting off the hard fentanyl. It was harder than getting off fentanyl. Yeah, before you go down that, right, I know that because we've talked a little bit about addiction, right? We're both in recovery. Yeah. So amen. Amen, bro. Amen, good job.

Starting point is 00:11:43 Amen, good job. I'm very happy for you and anybody that's actually taking that path because. The toughest knuckles in the world, bro. You need them in that game because it's an internal battle. bro. Nobody's going to do it for you. You know, it's the biggest war of a human's life, man. Amen.

Starting point is 00:12:02 Yeah, yeah. Amen, bro. Yeah, so. Let's start from the beginning in your life, bro, because you've had some, I mean, you were a used car sales when you were in a band, you dealt with heroin addiction. You've been to prison, dude. You've got, I'm prison, but the county jail for like six months. So I've been to jail many times, but I have never gotten a number is what they say.

Starting point is 00:12:23 Oh, shit. No way. Yeah. Oh, because you get... They said prison was way better than the county jail I was in. It's called the Workhouse in Columbus, Ohio. It's the worst place that... You didn't like it?

Starting point is 00:12:37 Does it even have stars on, like, Google Review or whatever? Would you like it? 50 gangbangers and not just... Just every type of criminal, and there's one bathroom behind the brick wall, you know, that everyone gets to use. And everyone's fighting every day. I mean, I fall a couple times. They're picking up people on mattresses while they're sleeping and launching them across the room, the weaker people.

Starting point is 00:13:01 It was so, but I found, I mean, dude, you find God when you're in those places. Like, I was part of this Bible study, and we got up every morning and read the Bible. And like, but man, when you don't know when you're getting out and if you've never had your freedom taken away, you need to, to appreciate life. I always say that. Sometimes I get so comfortable out here, I'm like, man, I need to go to. lock myself up just to remember that feeling of getting out, man. Wow, of just the gratitude of being free. Bro, yeah. A free-ish. Freedom is something that we all take for granted, man. It's, geez. Do you ever, did you ever celebrate like a holiday in prison? Sorry, in jail?

Starting point is 00:13:43 No, but I just celebrated my, last year down in Florida, I was in long-term treatment. I was down there for two months. And I celebrated my 49th birthday down there. But when the whole rehab facility found out who I was, it really helped, man. I had all these fans in rehab with me, and they were just going crazy. And it was like, I was happy to make it fun for them. You know? If somebody's ham checking into rehab, dude? In long-term treatment, where we're all just trying to get by for two months, you know. Oh, yeah. That was the last time I was on hard drugs. I got clean in February 25, thank God.

Starting point is 00:14:28 But now, what was your question about jail? I forget. Oh, holidays in jail. I mean, no, but my ex-wife was, had our, you know, I was in there and she had a little baby, you know. She had my son and it was stressful. Dude, that's a deep way to her. I was just a crazy way to. refer to your son as she had a little baby, but I do?

Starting point is 00:14:54 My son, he's the man, dude. He's awesome. But that's awesome, dude. How did you get into pranking? You're from Ohio. Yeah. So I was always a class, I mean, I always remember that first time that everyone was quiet in the library and I farted, you know?

Starting point is 00:15:09 Like, you just never forget the humor and the laughter that comes with that. So I remember getting addicted to being the class clown. And in seventh grade, me and my friends would prank these Chinese restaurants, you know. My buddy's parents were doctors, so we'd go in its basement. They had the fancy phones in the 80s, the big speak, the ones you could use speakerphone. It was, I mean, so we would prank this Chinese restaurant all the time, man. What would y'all do? Well, I would call and ask them if their fortune cookies were true, you know.

Starting point is 00:15:44 and we would order all these egg rolls to so many egg rolls but I said are your fortune cookies true because this one says I'm going to eat a big turd and blow up like that's not even funny but my buddy reminded me of that the other day but we called them every day and then so the owner got so mad what do you get mad about well apparently we they were getting all these orders ready and we never, we were little kids. We never came and picked them up. Oh, so you guys would make orders for, for Eddie? Yeah, we ordered seven and a half inch egg rolls for Eddie.

Starting point is 00:16:22 And it was not cool because they're working their butts off. And we're just little kids laughing on the phone. And, but the craziest stuff happened. This, this guy that ran the restaurant, I'll never forget one time. He said, you come down to my restaurant. I'll blow your fucking head off. Yeah. And, uh, he said that to.

Starting point is 00:16:43 me and three of my friends. And then he said, you'll get yours in the mail. And we got subpoenaed in the mail in seventh grade. You got subpoenaed by the Chinese in seventh grade? The restaurant. Yeah, yeah. So we had to go to court. I went, me and two friends and his parents took us to court. And we sat at a big table and got lectured. And they told us how many thousands of hours we cost them in business. And my buddy's dad's car got towed while we were in there, too. You must have been pissed. It was so pissed, dude. It was so funny.

Starting point is 00:17:18 I'll never forget that shit. What other stuff would y'all say to them over the phone? Because it just to... I mean, all I remember is making them mad, ordering egg rolls, you know. I don't remember really... Because egg rolls are good. I don't see... But I guess, and you're not going to pick them up,

Starting point is 00:17:35 so you have no plan to pick up the egg rolls you're ordering? No. And I think I was probably just practicing my impression of a... Chinese person or something. I'm from Bobby's Chinese, dude. He doesn't give a fuck even. Even if you ask him, he fucking denies it. He's a poohy.

Starting point is 00:17:51 That's crazy. He's a good guy, but he's also a fucking, he's one of those people that, like, denies where he's from or whatever. You know, he, he, I mean... Where is he from? China. Is he? Okay.

Starting point is 00:18:02 Yeah, but he denies it. He's just like, he's kind of like, he's like, he's like DJ Calid or whatever. Because he's from Palestine. He just doesn't talk about it. Oh, okay. But Bobby does. has something against his own culture or whatever.

Starting point is 00:18:17 Bring up a picture of him. He used to dance too back in his home country or whatever. Oh yeah, I've seen him. He's a funny guy. Is he out in L.A.? I don't know where he lives. He probably denies wherever he lives.

Starting point is 00:18:33 I don't think he won't even tell you where he fucking lives. It's just the kind of guy he is. But he's dealt with a lot of shit. That's the shit that makes me glad I don't have hair. Sometimes I feel like the people with hair have to figure out how to look cool, you know? And I'm like, you know, I don't have to worry about that shit. Oh, yeah.

Starting point is 00:18:52 He looks like he's been sniffing fireworks right there. But he's good. He's definitely a good guy. So you guys would call over there and do you remember any of the other, like, things you would say that the fortune said? No, I don't actually. My buddy just reminded me of that. It stuck in his memory for that long. And he just told me.

Starting point is 00:19:12 My fortune says that I'm going to eat a giant turd and blow up, you know. And he just thought that was so funny. I don't really think it's that funny, but he'll never forget me saying that. But I just remember the guy saying, I'll blow your effing head off, you know. Like that's crazy to say that on the phone. But back then you can trace calls, you know. But not from their country, dude. They've been in so many wars and stuff.

Starting point is 00:19:39 And a lot of their family have been victims of stuff. stuff like that. So I think... Fuck it. Yeah. I'm gonna blow his head all. You just like... They look at a lot of people, especially, bro.

Starting point is 00:19:54 I think you have to think that Chinese restaurants look at anybody who calls as the enemy, dude. Yeah. Because they must get... 80% of their calls must be people just fucking with them. Back then, we'd pulled up in the yellow page, the phone books, man. You can call it the yellow page. It's okay. I know what you're talking about.

Starting point is 00:20:13 Do you? I don't think you're old enough to remember that shit, man. But we used to just pick names out. Oh, I think, oh, I thought you meant it as like a racial book or whatever. Oh. But yeah, I see what you're saying, dude. Oh, the big-ass phone books that we would do prank calls with the rotary dial and shit. But I was holding a big-ass VHS camera on my shoulder at a young age making, we hung this banana like 20, 20 stories down.

Starting point is 00:20:40 and I tied a kite string to a banana, and there was this heavyset guy tanning with all this oil on. And I dangled, and we had the camera, and we dangled the banana all the way down onto his belly. From 20 stories? Oh, well, I mean, it was up, and it was in Panama City. It was very high up, but it was impressive, yeah.

Starting point is 00:21:03 I've lost so many of those good tapes. God. I hate losing that stuff. And y'all slowly moved it all the way down? Oh, yeah, yeah, it was awesome. Oh, that's beautiful. Yeah. And it just, did you touch him or just get as close as possible?

Starting point is 00:21:14 I think I dangled it. I don't remember it landing on his belly, but he was like laid out like a frog, man. I'll never forget that. He was all greased up and he looked like a frog from up there. And it was so impressive that we got it right in front of his face, though. Fuck, yeah. Yeah. Fruit face and they call that.

Starting point is 00:21:34 If you can, dude, you, I mean, the problem is there's not like a, there's not like Olympics for the fucking awesome shit like that. You know, there's an Olympics if you can jump over something. But if you can dangle a piece of fruit or produce or something, about 20 stories down and get it two centimeters away from a guy's mouth. I probably have the world record, you know, without even knowing it. Yeah. I bet you have a few of them, dude.

Starting point is 00:22:01 Yeah, that's true. What was it like growing up where you grew up? Like, what was your home life? Like, like, were your parents? Like, were you, like, this is retort? Did you come from? Like, was your dad a clown or whatever? Like, or what's going on?

Starting point is 00:22:13 He was basically a clown. I mean, he, so I was born in New York City because my dad was in the Coast Guard. So I'm proud to have been born in New York and I lived there for three years. And then we moved to Ohio. So I grew up and, you know, my dad's, my dad's dad was, my grandpa was a preacher, you know, at a small little Bible church. and it was just but my dad was wild

Starting point is 00:22:42 he played guitar he didn't drink or smoke my dad never has done any drugs or anything man it's like so strange that somebody can go through life without doing anything like that not having a drink or anything I'd take a rip off of something dude

Starting point is 00:22:57 I know I mean how do you handle life like but he was before we went to the pool every day we had to like read zig zig zig listen to Zig Zig Ziglar audiobooks on how to be successful, you know, and then memorize the Bible. What was Zig Zig Zigler? Bring that up? Bring up an audio book, just a link of it on YouTube if you can.

Starting point is 00:23:19 I'm Zig Ziglar, and I'm in a studio sharing with you a couple of thoughts before we go to the live audience. To begin with, this program is literally for everyone, whether you're a mechanic or a physician, whether you're a college professor or a kindergarten student. The information is something that you will benefit from. So, okay, and this one's called developing the qualities of success. So Zig Ziglar was like a motivational speaker? Yeah, it was about sales and being motivational speaker. Got it.

Starting point is 00:23:54 So you guys would listen to that? Yeah, and memorize the Bible. You know, we had to memorize certain books of the Bible, do like pull-ups, push-ups. and it was just like this whole routine before we could go to the pool. But my dad, I was kind of, I was embarrassed of him when I was young. I mean, he would wear this, he'd put this rubber old man mask on and drive down the road. And I'm a little kid in the back seat and he's scaring people on the highway, you know. Dude, and my dad was actually an old man driving up.

Starting point is 00:24:24 Really? Yeah. So that's fucking. Had the white hair in the back of this rubber mask. Dude. Oh, yeah, dude. My dad used to give away. He had like he got this deal

Starting point is 00:24:34 like stock and vending machines or something But he quit like the first time He got too much of the deliveries They delivered all the chocolates And the chocolates and the mints or whatever So he left all this shit in the back of his car And the windows were always cracked

Starting point is 00:24:48 Because they wouldn't go all the way up So the rain would get in And it got hot in there So bro But then for years We'd have to sit on top of all these boxes Of fucking melted chocolate and bullshit You'd get out of there

Starting point is 00:24:58 You have chocolate and pretzels stuck to you Are you serious? Oh bro It was horrible They had mushrooms growing out of the bottom of his car and shit. Like it was just a, it was a fucking produce section of a vehicle. It was chocolate salad, bro. It was his whole car was a piece of shit.

Starting point is 00:25:15 And so every time we'd get out, we'd like, not only would be so ashamed of ourselves, but we would just be covered and like nouged and fucking bullshit and shame. But go on. Oh, dude. That's funny. My dad ended up doing the gumball machines eventually in life. Did he? Yeah, he was taking gumball machines to,

Starting point is 00:25:32 but like but did y'all have a sack of gum in the fridge because my my old roommate did gum and he had uh at night he'd have to come home and put a sack of like bro he had like 11 hundred gum balls in a in a garbage bag he'd have to keep him in a fridge at night but bro we would be getting high and shit and we'd be getting high and shit and we would eat like him oh we'd eat 11 gums bro and he'd eat well bro he would lose his mind bro he'd have to fucking go for a run he couldn't even handle it and we fucking we would like it about it and our faces would be all like blue and pink on the edges, bro. Like we had a damn gender reveal going on in our throat, bro. We've just been smacking on his fucking, uh, on his product, bro. Oh my gosh, that's hilarious. Anyway, go on, bro. No, no. But I, you know, looking back, I was like, why, you know, my dad played guitar on the porch,

Starting point is 00:26:21 you know, and sang his songs to everybody in the neighborhood. And he wrote him? Yeah, yeah. He's a great musician. He plays all these, like, awesome folk. songs that are his, you know. And, uh, and he was a good athlete. He'd be running his miles and shit when I was getting on the bus, you know, but like when you, when you're younger, you're kind of embarrassed to everything your parents do, you know what I mean? But looking back and he, you know,

Starting point is 00:26:47 he taught us to, he'd build stilts, you know, and we were walking around the neighborhood on like these giant stilts, you know, and riding unicycles, just doing all the weird shit. What do you mean, riding unit? Like, like, was you trying to like be seen by people or was he, trying actually to do unique stuff. Yeah, I think it was just that he'd like to do unique stuff, you know. He'd build a boat in the backyard, you know, and we'd sleep out on the flat boat out on the water and stuff. And, like, I mean, it was cool.

Starting point is 00:27:16 I think it's cool now, but when I was younger, I was embarrassed, you know. Oh, dude. Getting embarrassed to your parents? Bro, my mom got a sheepskin jacket or whatever from New Jersey. And she was all excited about it. She saved up for like two years for it, bro. I don't even know how she got a hold of it. She got like a good deal on it or whatever.

Starting point is 00:27:36 But it had real, you know, like the curly stuff that comes off of a sheep or whatever. What is that called? That real wirey shit. Woo? Yeah, yeah, yeah. That was it, bro. She had that real wool. And she had it, bro, and she had this bitch, bro.

Starting point is 00:27:52 She looked like a care bear that somebody, like, had never blowdried or whatever. It was insane, dude. And she would wear it everywhere. And she'd be like, I have on my New Jersey jacket. And, dude, we couldn't even, bro. Like that? When it was all seed of wool around the neck, the whole thing. The whole thing was the wool.

Starting point is 00:28:14 When was this? I don't even know. I quit keeping track of time once I hated the world. Dude. You feel me? Yeah, 100%. Bro. Good idea, bro.

Starting point is 00:28:24 It was so embarrassing, dude. And I would like, oh, I was always so embarrassing. when I was a kid. You know, we held hands and prayed at every restaurant in public. And I was, you know, I was always ashamed of that, you know, because the waitress always comes up when you're praying. Yeah, the waitress, I'm sure, comes up and goes, hey, aren't you the guy who said that you're going to eat a huge turd

Starting point is 00:28:46 and fucking blow your head off? I'm sure if it was embarrassed. We didn't always eat at Chinese restaurants. My parents took us to Pizza Hut sometimes, bro. Dude, Pizza Hut had Pac-Man and shit. And the mini balls. How great was it? Pizza Hut was the best.

Starting point is 00:29:03 I still missed some Pizza Hut, but they don't, it doesn't taste like it used to. It's not the same, I think, like CBS or Paramount owns it now. Somebody does. But I remember, bro. They made it big time. Dude, they would have funeral parties at the one in our town, bro. Really?

Starting point is 00:29:19 Yeah. Damn. And so, like, we'd be over and they'd be like, can you guys quiet down? We're doing like a funeral service and we're like, bro, this is all it. This is pizza. But you remember the red cups? Oh, dude. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:29:33 So good. Oh, the prop that came out of them. Oh, but it just like, yeah, dude, I just, and I would sit there fuming, so angry that these people had died or whatever. I couldn't even remember what was going on. But shit like that just fucking pickled my fucking dick. You know, I was just, something was wrong with me, though. But anyway. There's a party place.

Starting point is 00:29:53 Pizza Hut was a party place. Yeah, it was a party place, dude. And we had this little place called BJ's Pizza. And they would never tell you what the BJ stood for, but you knew. You already know. Right. And the middle of the pizza was always wet, bro. Oh, see, that's how Pizza Hut is now, man.

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Starting point is 00:32:46 At shopify.com slash Theo. That's shopify.com slash Theo. So your dad was a unique character and you guys would pray at these restaurants? Well, yeah, I mean, we were raised going to church every Sunday, you know, and I was just saying that, you know, and now, I mean, I'll bow my head and pray. And I'm not ashamed of it. It's just funny how, you know, when you're younger, you know, not many people at the restaurant are holding hands and praying before Pizza Hut, you know. Yeah. So it was just, that was just something. It reminds me, bro, my mom would make us pray. We would pray for clean clothes for everybody in the world. Seriously?

Starting point is 00:33:29 Yeah. That's a good prayer, though, you know? It's pretty good. I just wrap it up. I pray for everyone going through a hard time. Everyone's suffering, you know? Oh, so you just do the whole, you just in and out. I mean, no, no, not that quick, but that's one of my main focuses during a prayer because it covers so much.

Starting point is 00:33:49 I'm like, I pray for all the people out there that are suffering today. Yeah. Because everyone's going through something, man. Oh, for sure. Yeah. It's freaking. It just seems, is that a little. generic sometimes? I'm like,

Starting point is 00:34:00 well, yeah, I mean. Sorry, dude, I'm putting on the prayer spot or whatever. You're fine. I don't care, but I know that we're supposed to ask for I mean, who knows what we're supposed to do? But I mean, I do isolate certain prayers. Although I feel like God knows what he's supposed to do, you know? It's like... It is kind of weird, bro. If you know what you're supposed to do, right? Say if you're Willy Wonka, right? And you want

Starting point is 00:34:24 people to come by in the morning to your factory and knock on the door and be like, don't forget to make candy today or whatever. You know what I'm saying? It's kind of crazy. It's annoying when people tell you what you already know you're going to do. You need to do. I mean, you deal with it. I deal with it.

Starting point is 00:34:41 Or like if you're ironing a shirt and somebody's like, hey, man, iron that shirt. Yeah. Like, no shit. I'm getting around to it, okay? I was just about to iron it, you know? Yeah, like, what if God's like, dude, I'm already doing this? I mean, I love people, but man, they're annoying. I mean, I'm annoying myself, but I'm just saying that dealing with the people are made out of just shit and fucking static.

Starting point is 00:35:05 A lot of fucking bullshit. Yeah, dude. And then there's always some gay dude trying to fuck, just trying to fucking come on your back or whatever. Do we used to have a gay dude in our town and he would fucking, bro, he would he would, he would J.O. in his hands and he would just fucking hum it off a building, dude. Are you serious? Yeah. That's crazy. For no reason.

Starting point is 00:35:25 What? For no reason at all. This true story? Yeah. What do you mean, Ham Chet? Dude, I was locked up in D.C. on a U.S. Marshals warrant because anything you do in D.C. is a federal crime. So, dude, but there's this one little dude, we're like in a pod in the U.S. Marshal's office, and there's like 30 of us in these bars. Yeah.

Starting point is 00:35:49 And one dude can't stop whacking off, you know. And everybody kick him, you know, and be like, Star Gets. And then all of a sudden everything was cool And then you turn around He's in the back corner I mean people can't help it You know certain people I mean he obviously had some issues

Starting point is 00:36:07 But yeah but I think I mean it's better than him committing a crime Or a murder or what was he in for do you know Probably doing that on the streets I'm guessing but I don't know I didn't talk to him man I probably I probably helped stop him from From doing that

Starting point is 00:36:21 I'll tell you this bro If I'm jerking off near you Kick me I'm going to bro 100% You're not coming on my back, bro. Hey, bro. No, bro.

Starting point is 00:36:30 Dude, one of the best things I ever heard somebody say, don't come on my back and tell me it's raining. Don't steal my boxers and help me look for it either. That's what they do in jail. They take your shit

Starting point is 00:36:41 and then help you look for it, search parties. Is it a fun game or it's actually just theft? No, it's just a quote. I always like to say that, you know, you steal your boxers and help you look for it. Oh, dude, we were on spring break,

Starting point is 00:36:56 bro we all were doing pills and everything and we all we had three three guys also like sharing a room whatever we all stole each other's pills at the same time and then helped each other fucking look for me yeah and i was like dude no way somebody fucking stole your pills and somebody had stole uh kiles dude and we all had each other's pills bunch of shady motherfuckers man that is messed up um how do how do you hide the camera whenever you're out there how do you keep it concealed or do you not? Actually, I'm just very creative. And that's a question I've never answered before,

Starting point is 00:37:32 just like showing myself. So it's a, I, um, the craziest thing, it's not about the camera. It's, I put them in a, uh, hip,

Starting point is 00:37:42 in some sort of weird hypnosis with the confusion and the stupidity. That once I start engaging, they, I can, I hold the phone right in their face sometimes, the camera. But in the early days, it was the backpack.

Starting point is 00:37:56 I would act like I'm a college student and just like keep it right here. And then I'd be in a store and I'd hold eight things and just have it. But it was all about the confusion and getting their eye contact. And they believe me that I'm not. There's no way this guy's filming me with that phone right there in my face. And dude, now my phone has six cameras and it's orange, you know. And it still works, though. But yeah, that's something that everybody has wanted.

Starting point is 00:38:26 to know. I call it the ham cam, you know. Yeah. It's a because it's not about, it's not about the phone actually, you know. It's just a weird thing. I mean, is it a strategy that you use that was part of your plan when you approach people? Like, I'm going to create this sort of confusion out of the gate, or did it just kind of evolve into that? Yeah, I just always used to mess with people and like act like I knew them. That was one thing I did at a very young age. Back when I was 1920 on Ohio State campus, would roam the streets at night, you know, tripping on mushrooms and just talking to the street, the night people, you know. God's warriors, they call them.

Starting point is 00:39:05 Oh, yeah. And they have the funniest stories and stuff, too. But I prefer attorneys and doctors. I'd like to prank more sophisticated people now. I don't mess with in the early days. I was messing with the sign holders, but it was the scammer ones, though. I wasn't messing with the ones that really needed it. I was just kind of busting the scammer, the scammer sign flyers.

Starting point is 00:39:34 They call them, I'm flying a sign. I'm just out here flying a sign. Yeah, dude, the night people, bro. Oh, yeah, bro. There's something about being out at night. Dude, one night we'd been eating some mushrooms or something. We parked down here at the gas station just to see who was alive, right? and there's a dude

Starting point is 00:39:57 fucked up there's one guy unconscious who was trying to get out of his car and had just given up right so he's just like leaned up against like asleep in his own car with the door open one foot out of it and then there's another dude

Starting point is 00:40:11 he's like my car's broken can you help me I was like I don't know enough about vehicles you know and he goes well there's just like some engine trouble or whatever and he's looking in the back of his car in the trunk, right? He's looking for the engine and whatever.

Starting point is 00:40:26 So I was like, oh, fuck. Nobody can help this guy, right? Then there's another dude over on the side. He's dressed like Indiana Jones, right, for some reason. And he's like, oh, I'll help you, dude. And this dude, I see him walk over. He has a fucking machete hanging off the edge of his pants, like a real Indiana Jones guy. And I was like, oh, these are.

Starting point is 00:40:47 Dude, they're warriors, man. They're warriors. These are the night people. These are the people that God makes. as side quests, you know? 100%. These are the after-hour heroes of Christ, brother. Dude, the outfits on those people sometimes.

Starting point is 00:41:01 They have some weird alternative weapon and, like, usually have some glittery pink tank top on. Oh, yeah. They're ready to pump on somebody. I was out in L.A. recently and saw some really interesting outfits on some characters. Oh, they have guys out there. They'll smoke their own cock or whatever, you know. They don't even care.

Starting point is 00:41:22 They'll fucking put a lighter to their own nuts. People don't care anymore. So take me out of high school. So you grew up, you have this wild family. You and your friends are cranking. They were that wild. It was just, I just grew up in a Christian family, you know. But if you're all are unicycling, bro.

Starting point is 00:41:36 Yeah, you're right. We were the strange people in the neighborhood. I could do gainers off the high dives. And, you know, we had a lot of very special skills that, you know, most of my friends can't. I'm still proud of that. Can you ride a unicycle? one wheel anyway I like to

Starting point is 00:41:54 I like to throw that around still I probably can't I mean Is it hard? Yeah it's pretty hard What's the trick to it? Like just practicing every day Like it's I'd still fall off like five times before I was

Starting point is 00:42:08 Actually taking off and getting momentum Yeah And just pedaling Because the guy on I know it's like it's always this Like fucking just go one way Oh they go back and forth Do you imagine the high ones like gosh Like you know

Starting point is 00:42:20 when they're like seven feet in the air, if you fall, man. Damn. So what's like your first kind of occupation that you head into, like out of college? So I went to college for a year at Liberty University. So I just wanted to get out of Ohio. And I, believe it or not, I saw an infomercial saying, come to Liberty University. And I called this number and they gave me all this free money to go to school there.

Starting point is 00:42:43 And it's a Christian college in Virginia. But I went there for a year. I thought I was going to walk. I thought I could play football there. I thought I could walk on in football. Did you try? No, I went to one practice and saw they were like NFL size athletes. Because when I heard like one double A or division, I was way out of my league, you know.

Starting point is 00:43:04 So I just started partying. My roommate was in a band and I fell in love with music. We started just smoking weed and recording music, man, like just recording anything. And I've always liked to record and listen back. But it started with smoking weed in college, and I fell in love with, you know, my buddy was just packing bars. And I got to watch the excitement of somebody being in a band. And so I came back. I went to school for a year.

Starting point is 00:43:33 I was like, hell no. I remember I just barely did enough. It wasn't worth my time. I was like C student. I ended up partying more at the Christian college than I had in high school, you know. Oh, yeah. I mean, they party hard at this school. Do they?

Starting point is 00:43:49 Yeah, yeah, I mean. We all doing LSD and Coke and shit? Bro. Or smoking crypto? For Christ or whatever? I put acid in my buddy. I look back on what I did to my old roommate. He had never tripped before, dude.

Starting point is 00:44:03 And I think it's the most fucked up thing I've ever done is put acid in my buddy's beer and then asking later how he's feeling it to party, dude. That's just not cool at all. Now he works for the government. And he's like, and he won't even take my call. He texts me all the time, but dude, he's so paranoid to talk to me. We were tight. We're still tight, but he just will never take my call for some reason.

Starting point is 00:44:28 And I think I understand. Oh, dude, yeah, bro. People are some on with that. How could I do that to somebody? I got older and I was like, what the fuck was I thinking, man? That's like kind of the ultimate prank. I feel bad about it. I want to make it clear that it's not okay.

Starting point is 00:44:43 And, you know, it happened, though. You know, I just think it's crazy that I thought it was okay at the time. Oh, dude, no, yeah. Well, yeah, a comedian did that to somebody, and the guy developed like a severe, like, he, like, takes his shirt off all the time now or whatever. Something happened to him. So it's fucking, that kind of shit can,

Starting point is 00:45:00 something can happen to him. And your guy joined the fucking CIA or whatever? He's basically very 007, can't tell me what he does, always flying in helicopters with the government, all the politicians. He's still tripping. He's getting awards.

Starting point is 00:45:14 Yeah, but it helped him. I think that this one, this time, it helped him raise. raised the bar, he's really kicking ass now. Oh, praise God. That's how God works sometimes, dude. And I'll say this. Also, they had a thing Vigip,

Starting point is 00:45:25 and a lot of girls would put a hit LSD in their vaginas back in the day. That was a big thing in our town. And one girl, like... They put it in their vagina? Yeah, in their cooters or whatever. People call them different stuff, but people would do that,

Starting point is 00:45:38 but they'd call it Vajippin. That was a big thing. Bring that up, Vigipin. See if people that took off or not. Because that was a cool thing in our community. Uh, taking LSC vaginally is often referred to or misspelled in online spaces as Vigipin. It's biologically possible, but carries significant health risks. Makes sense.

Starting point is 00:46:01 To try shrooms up there instead, it's more natural. That's a good point. Yeah. Dude, yeah, if they made like a psilocybin-based IUD or whatever. Yeah. That shit would be popping, bro. This girl told me recently there's groups of people that try to collect us. many STDs as they can.

Starting point is 00:46:20 Really? Is that nuts? They're called frat. I mean, that's how sick the world has become. They're like, they go home and celebrate if they add another one to their, I mean, it's just a sick world that we live in. It's like baseball cards for your vagina or whatever. Oh, my God.

Starting point is 00:46:34 So take me back in, bro. You're dosing your roommate or whatever. He's in the CIA. What else happened? Well, like I said, I wasn't college caliber football. So I called my buddies and they were working at the car lot in Columbus, Ohio at this Toyota store. And they're like, man, we're selling cars, man, making $3 and $400 a car, you know. Oh, shit.

Starting point is 00:46:59 And I was like, man, if these guys can do it, I can do that shit. And I went right back. I was 19 years old and started, that was a big job. I mean, I was making a lot of money for, and I was living on campus, you know. And, you know, making five to seven grand a month when you're 19. years old, there's a lot of money. I went right to the pawn shop and bought drums, keyboard. I bought everybody down on campus at Ohio State campus. I was just living with all my buddies who were going there now. And I remember that first check I got, I went and bought all the

Starting point is 00:47:33 instruments that we needed, and we started a band on the Ohio State campus. But I was selling cars, and I was pretty good at it right away, you know. So that was the first big job I had. What made you good at being a car salesman? I think it was my work ethic from football and then my addiction probably. Because once I started getting, once I'd sell my first car and the manager's like, on the calculator, yep, you made $400. You know how much that was to a 19-year-old broke college student. So I was like, but work ethic because playing football was like, I think it taught me a lot,

Starting point is 00:48:13 sports, you know. So nobody, I grinded pretty hard on the car lot. I would just, you work a lot in that business, but were you a good clothes or like what was your thing? Like, no, God gave me this weird gift with my voice. It's the no pressure. I don't care if you buy, but customers always wanted to buy from me because I didn't care if they bought, but it was like I sound stone when I talk or whatever, I sound laid back and they like that. It does some, it's something I can't teach. It's just a weird God-given gift, 100%, you know, because I always did good in sales.

Starting point is 00:48:56 I became a closer years later. I was a manager and stuff like that. They'd send you in the freaking auto-eckersly, huh? Oh, yeah. Yeah, that was weird, but that was fun. It was easy. It's the same shit. Just be it talk to them, ask them,

Starting point is 00:49:13 how they're doing, where they're from, and, you know, just how's everything else been going? What were you selling trucks, vans? Toyotas, actually. Yeah. In the early days, I was selling used cars, you know, at a Toyota store. But Toyotas, you know, that was what I always liked to sell. Hell, yeah. And what was like your most successful year, do you think, selling them?

Starting point is 00:49:39 well 2016 I was I hit 40 cars a month a couple times which was pretty and I was winning a lot of awards like top salesmen in the city

Starting point is 00:49:53 and they'd give us some envelopes full of like five grand every month and shit and I'd give my wife a thousand and then keep four grand dude just I was I was bad bro that's freaking love man it's called mama don't know money you know

Starting point is 00:50:09 I was like, babe, I got second place in the city. Here's a thousand. Go ahead and buy yourself something nice. But I had four grand to go play cart poker with. And is that what you were doing with your money? Like what were you doing with your money? Yes. Did you notice your addiction start then?

Starting point is 00:50:25 Yeah. I mean, I destroyed myself financially like many times over. Chasing the big score in poker. I mean, I played in the World Series of poker. I mean, I have some success. You know, I've got, but I literally, once I got behind in life, you know, like, owe in the IRS a bunch of money and just building up all kinds of debt, I was playing for millions of dollars out in Vegas. And I would put whatever I needed to into these tournaments to play. So, yeah, I mean, 100%.

Starting point is 00:50:59 Addiction destroyed my marriage because I was gambling all the time. I mean, I always made it to my kids games and stuff, but looking back, I. I was 13 years completely sober off drugs and alcohol. But the gambling was the biggest monster, man. And it wasn't until recently I quit gambling. And it's like the most freeing feeling ever, dude. Because it controlled my life for years, bro. It was bad.

Starting point is 00:51:26 How did it start? Dude, these little fairs when I was a little kid had the wheel and the dice that rolled down. They were letting little kids. It was called the West Jefferson Ox Roast, man. I'm giving my little hometown. shout out, but I'd like to file a lawsuit against them starting. I mean, they started, they had the, there was a game called Big Six and then Chuck a luck, man.

Starting point is 00:51:51 And then Chuck a luck? Chuck a luck. The fireman would run this charity game, but little kid, we were betting dollars. And we're little, I mean, same year I prank the Chinese restaurants, man, I was like in seventh grade when I started gambling at these little local fairs, you know. You know how the churches will have them and stuff. Do the churches have them a lot, especially, bro, I would go over, my buddy and I would drive over there, my buddy Lance, we used to drive over to, I think it was Virginia, dude. And his mom, I think, lived over there.

Starting point is 00:52:25 And I couldn't, he would go into the strip club or whatever. I wasn't old enough. But he'd come out and tell me what the tits looked like and everything, and I'd sit out in the van. And so he'd be in there having some drinks. where he had a fake ID and looking at the tits, whatever he'd come out and describe them to me or whatever, wake me up. Because I wouldn't stay awake the whole time waiting

Starting point is 00:52:45 like a fucking pervert or whatever. I'd fucking get a little rest or whatever. Yeah. And then, but we would go to these little church fairs where you could actually gamble and win money at them. That's what I'm talking about. You pull it up Chuck Luck.

Starting point is 00:52:59 I learned to scam at a young age with that game Chuckaluck. The dice would bounce around, okay? You had to put your money on a color. The dice had yellow, red, all the colors. But it would roll down this thing, this big dice and bounce around. And the guys running it, the firemen were just looking out at the people. And I would wait till we saw the, we see the dice laying on yellow. And I'd slide the dollar on yellow.

Starting point is 00:53:27 And it's all about the celebration. You know, I started, yeah, just like acting like you won and you did it. And, you know, you sell it right there that you sell the hustle. So they believed you won even if you hadn't? Yeah, yeah. They didn't see that you saw the dice bounce on yellow and then you slide your hand and raise them at the same time. You slide the dollar and celebrate it.

Starting point is 00:53:49 Wow. Dude, but I do it and, I mean, I beat. So there's a game in Vegas that it's never mind. But it's a game I still, I mean, I'm not proud of that, but if you can beat Vegas, it's okay. Yeah, not that I've really beat it, but there is one game I can, I use the fake celebration method, you know?

Starting point is 00:54:10 If you celebrate loud enough, they're just like, eh, pay the man, he won. He wouldn't be celebrating if, you know, if he didn't. But so it's, so gambling even affected your, like it affected, though,

Starting point is 00:54:21 it started to get bad? Yeah, I mean, yeah, I was, I was like taking, I was going out to Vegas all the time. The wife was awesome. She,

Starting point is 00:54:32 she would support all my bad decisions, you know, because she was a sweet, she's amazing. And, and, uh, and this is while you were a car salesman. Yeah, yeah. I was, I was always successful in business, you know, always made a lot of money and, uh, because of the car business, you know, but I, I always hate, I've been an artist. I hated selling, I don't like talking to people into buying stuff, you know,

Starting point is 00:54:54 but it's the way that I paid the bills and for years. But yeah, I made so much that I was very bad with my money and chasing, poker. I just had this dream to win a World Series of poker bracelet. Like my whole life, I was like trying to win that, you know. So, but I got in debt with, you know, the IRS because every year they take half my checks and then they still want 20 grand at the end of the year, you know, and I didn't save up 20 grand, you know. Anyway, I was, yeah, but addiction, gambling addiction is one of my worst. I'll be, I have no problem admitting it.

Starting point is 00:55:34 It destroyed a lot of things in my life. You know, I've kind of screwed up financially over and over again, you know. And there was always gambling that got you, like, put that help put you in those tough spots? Yeah, I mean, I'd quit doing drugs and alcohol, but I would never want to let everything go. I was like, man, no way I'm letting cards go. Because poker is a sport. It's on ESPN, you know? It's not fucking, it's not gambling.

Starting point is 00:56:02 Of course, dude. Yeah. Some guys wear cleats when they play it, dude. Dude, I did see a guy. Actually, Balboni plays poker, actually. You might not know that. But he wears cleats. Yeah, he wears cleats at the table.

Starting point is 00:56:19 What's the most that you ever lost, do you feel like? And the most you ever won? I won 17,000 at one tournament, second place in a tournament. the last day I gambled down in Seminole, Hard Rock, Florida, I lost like seven grand in one day, but it wasn't that. It was just I couldn't stop myself from going back to the ATM, and I had won all week, but I busted out of this big tournament that was with $300,000 was like on the line,

Starting point is 00:56:56 and I had all the chips in this tournament and just got super unlucky. God had been telling me to quit gambling forever. He's like, man, I gave you skills with art, with comedy. You have all these other talents, and you're going to chase this dead-end road because all the top poker players go broke eventually. It's not a good career path, you know? Anyway, yeah.

Starting point is 00:57:27 So addiction, gambling addiction was bad. And what about at that moment that was, you're like, I got to get clean from this. Well, it had been going on for years. I knew that I needed to stop. And then I had all these things happening with Johnny Hamcheck. You know, I'm like, you got millions of fans that love you and you're doing good at this. You don't lose.

Starting point is 00:57:50 It's not luck. You know, you can go out and make videos every day. But I just kept trying to score, hit a big lick, you know. just hit a big one and try to get a million. And because I was always, I'm still dealing with the IRS, man. Yeah. You owe them? Oh, dude.

Starting point is 00:58:11 You have no idea. I'm going to get one of those special agents, you know, that comes to your house with the briefcase. Like, Will Smith was in a movie. Like, I go downtown to the office and they're like, you can't, we can't help you here. And the guy comes around the cubicle looking. Did you say he owes over $100,000? You know, like, oh, like the big, like he's like like, like they, like the big boss. He's like, he can't do anything for him.

Starting point is 00:58:37 You know that, right? And I'm like, man, because I'm trying to make things right. You know, I'm like, look, I'm here trying to settle this shit, you know. Bro, it was just, I didn't pay, I didn't pay attention to IRS for seven years one time because I was so angry that they take half my check. Yeah. And then want 20 more at the end of the year. I'm like, man, they can come to the house and get it. Yeah, come pull up.

Starting point is 00:59:00 That's the only, and they eventually did, you know. They eventually get a car. Oh, it's the biggest scam, dude. It is, dude. It's the biggest fucking scam. And then the money's not even used here in our country, dude. Yeah. What do they do with it?

Starting point is 00:59:15 I mean. They're not fixing freeways. We know, dude, but we can't really talk about it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They're buying missiles for child care centers, dude. It's just, you know, they're busy. You got to get missiles at child care centers, though. Oh, our government's so busy.

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Starting point is 01:02:42 Acorns'L-L-C-R-E-C-R-E-C-E-E-C-E-O. So let's get back into pranking. How did Johnny Hamcheck start? One time, I was in the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center for six months. I graduated class of 2002 there. Oh, nice. What branch were you? Oh, Army, sorry, go ahead.

Starting point is 01:03:02 Salvation Army. And that's why I always ask people, do I get credit for this? I mean, I was in the Salvation Army, so I want my discounts, you know. But anyway. Yeah, dude. You were on the front lines. I was answering phones in the donation center when I was living there. This was during some hard times, you know.

Starting point is 01:03:19 So I, somebody said, I want to talk to your manager and I came up with, I said, hold on, they were mad at me and wanted to speak to my manager. So I put the manager on the phone and I just came up with the name Johnny Hamcheck. So that's when I came up with the name, particularly the name. But the pranking started. I was down in North Carolina working at a car dealership in Greensboro. and I was the top salesman, so I had an office. And there was three rookie salesmen that had started that week,

Starting point is 01:03:58 and I just had this idea. I was going to tell them they had to do all this crazy shit. And I told him I was the trainer, so I brought him in my office. And I told, I told this young kid who just started, he was like a pastor, real nerdy kid named Ryan. And he, I said, man, you're going to have to hold, you know, sometimes you're going to have to get swung on by these customers. And I just told him he'd have to hold hands with customers

Starting point is 01:04:28 and tell him that he loves them to sell a car. And I told him all this crazy stuff. He was going to have to take advantage of 90-year-old ladies and stuff. I was like, are you ready for this? And he was ready to quit after that little interview. So I started making videos, and they rotted on YouTube for years. I did a few of those where I told him. hold these rookie car salesmen, they were going to have to do this crazy shit, you know.

Starting point is 01:04:54 And those videos were still some of my favorite videos. And they... Are they out there right now? Yeah. I don't know. It's called a rookie car salesman. They're the best car salesman prank. That is, that's the very first one that...

Starting point is 01:05:11 And this is you right here talking to a potential, like a trainee. He had just started. And I just brought him into my office because I had an office. I was just a salesman. but told him i was they wanted the bosses wanted me to train you guys and this is the stuff i want to go over and i scared him to death with some of this crazy shit that i tell him all right sometimes people will question how sturdy is your car i don't want to buy a car that's not sturdy you know and you got to let them know you got to get behind the car and you got to start rocking it

Starting point is 01:05:39 from the front then you got to go around to the back you're pretty strong guy you work out work out a little bit but i'm still pretty strong you know you're seeing pretty strong Probably wrestled a little bit. Actually, no, I was a musician and did acting and... Probably gotten a fight or something, right? Actually, no, we're pretty peaceful guy too. Oh, come on, man. Two minutes, brother.

Starting point is 01:05:57 I know. Well, you gotta get behind the car and you gotta push it until it starts rocking back and forth, and you gotta get it in a little rhythm, and then you gotta get on the other side and rock it. And sometimes you gotta get the customer and start rocking it with you, okay? Yeah.

Starting point is 01:06:09 No big deal there. You may have to defend yourself. Sometimes, sometimes customers. Yes. Do you know any martial arts at all? I did take martial arts when I was younger. So I would feel pretty confident. You might get swung on.

Starting point is 01:06:26 Wow. It's intense, okay? This is, wow, keep playing. Oh yeah, I've knocked a customer out before on the lot. Really? Right in front of the manager. Back up 10 seconds play it again. Wow.

Starting point is 01:06:41 It's intense, okay. Is that what happened to you? Oh yeah I've knocked a customer out before on the lot right in front of the manager Guess what the manager did walk inside he high-fived me because I was swung on okay? I was swung on and Ryan you got to be ready to defend yourself just in case something like that happens Yeah, so you might want to pick up a couple classes of judo Yeah, maybe a little yoga on the side why do you guys swing at you? I mean what was the story? Can you give a little background? Well not right now I want to just go over hit a couple more points with you okay but I took him it wasn't it wasn't hard

Starting point is 01:07:19 I'll tell you that much I did a roundhouse kick on him I used to do karate nice well uh what style just basic black belt okay um now how you feel this is a tough one for everybody but how do you feel about taking advantage of the elderly he he will not do that and that's where he drew the line. He's like, no. And I was like, yeah, it's all about dedication, Ryan. And dude, he was ready to quit after this interview, dude. He's a manager now in the car. Let's go, Ryan. Ryan or Brian? Ryan. And he was a preacher, too. Like, he was already a preacher. So I told him he'd have to price gouge 90-year-old ladies. And he said, I won't price gouge 90-year-old ladies. You understand what I'm saying, right? And I go, nah, it's all about dedication, Ryan. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:08:13 Oh, man. So I did him, and then I did this young black kid, dude. And he was like, it's a dog-eat-dog world, man. And that's the funniest. So I did, and then I did this little Latino kid. He's like, I told him we were going to have to go to a geriatric conventions because the elderly are easier to sell cars to. And we went to hospitals where people just got in accidents

Starting point is 01:08:38 because they will sign papers easily. I told him. He's like, are we going to miss work? But dude, when Rob, he's my friend now, he said, it's a dog-eat-dog world. It's like, so I got three versions of those. And I was so proud of them. And they rotted on YouTube. So I gave up for eight years, bro.

Starting point is 01:08:59 I didn't make a video for eight years. I said, if this shit don't do it. Yeah, there's Rob. I said, if this shit doesn't work, I give up on trying to be funny on the internet. Then TikTok comes around. And my buddy said, dude, you should try your stuff on TikTok. And it was instant traction. So what was the first TikTok that like the first one that popped off like the for all the wrong reasons. Okay. I'm selling cars at this car dealership and these customers are speaking in their own language. And I always just told people how I felt. And I was like, you mind speaking English? I'm right here. Okay. He's like, we are speaking in our language. And I said, yeah, but I'm right here. They just, the internet went crazy about this racist car salesman. And they. And they. And they.

Starting point is 01:09:45 They hated me. This TikTok went so, and it was at a different dealership. I was a manager at this time, and some big influencer with millions of followers got on the page at this Toyota store where I worked and said, this is 2021 and said, you have a racist car salesman there. The video was done it years ago at another dealership. And then this one in Vegas. Who was the influencer that did it? I never remember a name. It was just some girl that had millions of followers got on the Facebook page of my dealership

Starting point is 01:10:21 and tried to get me fired for that. So I pulled it down, but I had seen the excitement. But it was negative, though, right? It was a negative, yeah, it was all negative. But it still felt exciting? Well, like, tell me about that. I hated arguing with people that I'm not, I'm the farthest thing from racist, you know. So I wanted to argue with them, but the whole, they didn't know me yet.

Starting point is 01:10:43 The Internet didn't know me. They didn't know who I was. They just saw this video where I'm telling some customers to speak English, you know, because they were whispering and their language right in front of me, and I'm the car seat of them sitting right in front of them. And so, I mean, I shouldn't have said it or whatever. Well, I don't know. I mean, some of it could be a level of like if you feel like you're being excluded or something.

Starting point is 01:11:04 I think, you know, and I don't think it even matters, really. But it wasn't positive, but it still felt exciting? I guess I just saw that platform. I was, I don't know, you're right. I don't know if it, I don't know how. Like I'm just curious this, so you know what I'm saying? Like, well, it was still funny to the, to people that weren't offended. Oh, okay.

Starting point is 01:11:23 You know, it was a funny video and people still think it's hilarious. But another one I, in Vegas, I walk up on these guys cutting bichlocks off stealing. And my whole idea with Hamcheck was he's this idiot that just goes up to people in weird situations. And I was like, hey guys. And they're like, they're like cutting this bachshund. Mike Lockoff, two dudes stealing bikes in Vegas. I'm like, hey, guys, what are you up to? And they're like, get that moll phone camera out of my face, bitch.

Starting point is 01:11:52 And so that video went viral for all the wrong reasons also. Yeah. Because I walked up on some thieves stealing a bike. And it was, so it didn't, I didn't get to use my humor till the Juice for Milk video, one that most people know, it's the Home Depot one where that, um, it's literally still my number one video. My favorite, my favorite video. It's still my favorite. It's your favorite one? Yeah. And it's because I finally got to use my humor in something that wasn't hateful online. Got it. Let's see it. We've been trying to get a hold of you, but the machine down at the office is

Starting point is 01:12:30 broken right now. Wrong guy. Or Justin? Yeah. Yeah. Hey. Dude. Who do you want to? I wonder what happened to you, man. Bro, it's been rough, man. I ain't seen you forever. Yeah. And you don't know this guy. Oh, excuse us, sir. The drywall deal in Newark. Dude. Yeah. You still need that gun, or?

Starting point is 01:12:50 Well, you know what? I didn't know what happened, man. I figured Brian would contact me. Brian's always got my number. Well, dude, that guy kept fucking with me. Oh. And I got a, I had to put him out. So I got a big lawsuit going on right now.

Starting point is 01:13:05 Oh, was that your property? I hit him with a hammer. You know, I got, I got pissed off. No shit. Yeah, I hit him upside to head with a hammer. He was out for three and a half hours, man. Oh, fuck. But he deserved it, you know?

Starting point is 01:13:17 Yeah, he just saw on you, fucking riding you and shit. He kept riding me, dude. That's fucking crazy, dude. This guy's a legend. I'm a little worried about what's going to happen. You ever done time? I did a little bit of time. I did too, yeah.

Starting point is 01:13:30 Yeah. I did it before. I'm not looking forward to going back. This shit. The fucking food sucks. You know? But, dude. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:13:40 But, yeah. But. But. Oh, dude, yeah, me too. We called Gladiator tanks, you know. Juice for milk. Yeah, dude. Juice for milk, man.

Starting point is 01:13:53 Sorry. Because you trade shit in there. Oh, because you trade shit in there? Yeah, that's where that whole juice for milk came from, and we both were familiar with the workhouse in Columbus, Ohio. So it's a horrible place to be. It was what I was telling you about earlier. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:14:07 But everyone's trading trays, and, you know, and I lost a lot of shit in, I lost a lot of poker. It was spades. I lost like... In jail? Yeah, I was gambling in jail. I was losing my tray every day.

Starting point is 01:14:19 I wouldn't eat for two days sometimes because I lost to these guys that were probably cheating. Yeah. You know? But that guy is a legend, dude. And later, I say, he said, man, I've been saying that all for six months and I want to hit somebody in the head with a hammer, you know. And that guy was so great. And as he walked away that night, I'll never forget. I was like, man, get that guy's contact, you know, and I've never been able to find him again, you know.

Starting point is 01:14:48 Wow. Like, I see a lot of these people many times after, but that was my favorite prank because it was funny. It wasn't negative, you know. Yeah. Yeah, it's still one of my top favorites. Do some of them get kind of uncomfortable? Like, have you been in some uncomfortable situations? Oh, yeah.

Starting point is 01:15:07 Yeah. I, uh, one time I was surrounded by 20 gang members in Columbus, Ohio, and they made me, they wanted to kill me. One dude kept coming up behind me with a knife and my buddy was like yelling for me to watch out. And I kept turning around the last second. So I apparently videotaped this gang, gangster that was out on parole and he couldn't be on camera. So these girls were like, hey, you can't record us. And I was, I smarted off to them.

Starting point is 01:15:35 And then I was like, boom. It was 10 girls and 10 dudes. The girls were, they were like, they looked like ninja turtles, man. They had white tank tops on, and they were ready to kill me. Like fucking Jabalawakis or something, huh? Something like that.

Starting point is 01:15:52 Yeah, man. They were ready to kill me, and I got lucky and got out of that situation. That was the first time I learned about double deleting on my phone. I didn't know that you had to delete it twice to make it go away. They made you do it?

Starting point is 01:16:04 Yeah, right in front of them. And one dude kept me from getting killed by the others. That was an intense situation. Was that my two buddies that were with me? We can all fight. We love fighting. But 20 of them. And three times the dude came up behind me trying to stab me, bro.

Starting point is 01:16:23 And I just turned around at the last minute. And my buddies were tripping on acid, dude. They could not, I could not believe that they were going through this tripping. Why did they want to do acid if y'all were getting attacked or whatever? We met up that night. they didn't take it as soon as they started getting attacked. Oh, they didn't know. No, they were tripping already.

Starting point is 01:16:42 And then we were walking down the street. And I just made this video and caught these people. So I wasn't tripping, but they were, and I could not believe it, that they went through that while tripping. Because we were all able to handle ourselves, but it was a bad situation. But I'll never forget turning around and almost seeing myself. get stabbed like three times.

Starting point is 01:17:07 That wasn't even a prank. I was just making a street video, which I do sometimes. I'll just record like, you know, just visuals and I'll throw music to it. But, yeah. And there's a lot of pranks.

Starting point is 01:17:20 I'll catch couples cheating and they'll tell me in my DMs to please take it down, you know? And it's like, yeah, there's a lot of interesting things over the years, you know. What's another of your favorite stories from pranking? Favorite stories

Starting point is 01:17:40 is probably I lived in this high-rise building downtown Columbus when I got ended up getting divorced in 2003 and that was kind of where Johnny Hamcheck became really popular. It was like

Starting point is 01:17:55 late 22, 23, but I had this neighbor who's worked at the prosecutor's office. He was an attorney or something and I was, I went live on Tick talk that night and it was like one in the morning and I was playing my own music and he comes over and he pounds on the door and I was like I think I hear something I was like live in front of all people and I you weren't a disguise no no no no when I do live I just show POV still

Starting point is 01:18:25 at that time but it was my neighbor and he became he comes over he's like I can't sleep I can't sleep and I was like I was like what do you mean he's like debate The bass is pounding through the walls, you know. And I was like, it's not me. And he's like, it's like 1.30 in the morning. It had to be me. Kevin. Oh, there he is.

Starting point is 01:18:49 So I took him a great fruit to make peace. And the smile that he has when I, he says, I'll buy you these headphones. And I was like, I was like, would you? Because there's a pair at Radio Shack I've really been wanting. And Radio Shack doesn't even exist. but he's like, how much are they? And I was like, $500. You want to play that?

Starting point is 01:19:11 Let's just play it, yeah. Yes. Look, if you like for the TV, if you need headphones for it, I'll buy it. How much are you? I don't want you to have to do that, but there's a really, I mean, there's a, it's a really nice pair at the Radio Shack that I've been trying to get in. They're like, I think it's like 500 bucks. Five hundred.

Starting point is 01:19:32 The Radio Shack brand. I brought this as a piece off for you know, Kevin. I just don't want to have any trouble, man. You guys are really nice. But we're just, I realize your sketches could be different during the summer. I know that. But it's just been brutal last three months. And what type of music are you playing?

Starting point is 01:19:54 I make beats, and I've been doing, I mean, I was in a rock band for years. And then, but I got into making beats in 2006. And were you using two at the time? It depends. My life has been in and out of rehab, like forever. Because a lot of times people that are making beats are using. Yeah. No, but my best stuff came when I was fresh out of rehab, man.

Starting point is 01:20:21 I had all this energy. Oh, yeah. Oh, that rehab fire, bro. Dude, I'm telling you, man. There's nothing like it. I mean, so grateful. Yeah, sometimes you'll go to do 30 days in rehab just to get that seven hours of feeling like you can make anything happen.

Starting point is 01:20:35 You do. Like, it's a shame, but you feel, it's called a pink cloud is what they call it. And it's real because this pastime, when I just quit smoking weed and drinking a few months ago, almost three months. And, I mean, I was on a pink cloud for a while. And then, like, life just hits you. And, like, every day is not as glorious as it was. But somebody spray paints f*** it or whatever on your Ford Taurus and then shit starts

Starting point is 01:21:02 getting shaky. Yeah. Yeah. Story of my life. You still drive that, Tours? It got repossessed. Damn. Not by the police.

Starting point is 01:21:13 I had a neighbor that was like a seance or whatever. But she put like a spell on her fucking spell on it. And dude, it worked, bro. She put a spell on that bitch, dude, or a hex or whatever it's called, like an unpositive spell. And, bro, that bitch shut down, bro. And it would shut down. I think she probably had like a replica of it at home

Starting point is 01:21:35 and she would put a pin in it or whatever. Like she had one of those, what's it called? Voodoo dolls. Like a voodoo car doll. Yeah. That's a great idea. She had a voodoo car, dude. And every time she'd put a pin in that bitch, it would shut down, bro.

Starting point is 01:21:49 Dude, that reminds me of my dad, bro, when we were kids, the hood on his car weighed, I think, almost 17,000 million pounds, right? So we'd open that thing up and he would just get in there, and the engine would be everything would be spinning. He had, like, fan. Hand belts hooked to the everything, the radio, everything, dude. And he would get under them to spray WD40 under the whole thing like this, bro. To spray and keep it going, bro.

Starting point is 01:22:15 Dude. Did you guys have nice cars when you're young? No, no, no, no. My mom had to dodge neon. I'd go sleep in it at night. It was so nice. Pull it up. It was purple, semi-purple.

Starting point is 01:22:29 Dodge neon? Yeah, remember them? Oh, hell yeah. They were nice. I sold tons of those, man. Yeah, I pull that bottom left one right there. Oh my gosh. I got that bitch, I'd go sit in and put the seat down and I'd sleep in that bitch at night.

Starting point is 01:22:43 It was nicer than being in our house. Are you serious? In our apartment, yeah. Damn. That bitch was so nice. And it had like multicolored fabric on the seats or whatever. It was nice. Yeah, I remember those.

Starting point is 01:22:52 I mean, I sold cars since 94, 95. So I haven't heard the neon. I haven't heard the Dodge Neon forever, man. They got discontinued. I think they were flammable. I don't know if that's true, but they were pretty semi-flammable. They were catching on fire for a while.

Starting point is 01:23:06 Yeah. And people were like, that's for God or whatever. And I was like, I don't think that is nothing to do with God or whatever. God's lighting them up. Yeah. He should burn a lot of other cars, too. My dad brought home an Eagle premiere, man.

Starting point is 01:23:21 Really? And he bought it without my mom, and I know how that is. When a man goes and buys a car without the wife, that's... Crazy story is, I broke the end. tenant off right that night, man. He was so pissed. I was just bling, you know, and it was one of those.

Starting point is 01:23:38 He beat my ass after that. I'll never forget, but it had power windows. I'll never forget the first car with power windows. You know, we thought we were doing something, man. Oh, my dream in life was to have a sunroof. Yeah, it's so funny, dude. Thousands on the stupidest things. Like, many vans with sunroofs, like people are just,

Starting point is 01:23:58 you're so cool driving down the road. and with the $5,000 extra. What's the biggest racket in auto sales? What's like one of the biggest rackets? Oh, man. It's the warranties on the back in the finance office 100%. You don't need them on a lot of cars. And then a lot of them that they sell, I mean, they don't really cover it when something happens.

Starting point is 01:24:28 So it's a big thing in the car business. That's where you make all your money at, though. On the warranty? Yeah, on the warranty? Yeah. And what about that rubberized? And they used to rubberize the bottom or whatever? Yeah, the, what was it called?

Starting point is 01:24:42 A clear coat. Yeah, they had a Z-Bard and shit, right? What? Yeah. They called it Z-Bard or under, yeah, undercoding. I don't know. That was, I think that was more in the 80s and shit, to be honest. I think they started putting that shit on everything.

Starting point is 01:24:57 A clear-code. your fucking cousin in that bitch for $30, bro. Yeah. They light the hood on fire and shit. I used to do that. The Asians, bro, would do that when I was in college. They'd light the hood on fire and drive real fast. Really?

Starting point is 01:25:12 Yeah. No way. Yeah. That sounds awesome, especially if you're tripping. It was like a crispy rice rocket or whatever it was called. Really? Yeah, pretty cool, pretty cool shit. Dude, that reminds me of when I was in D.C.,

Starting point is 01:25:25 you ever seen the show The Wire? Oh yeah, that Baltimore show or whatever? Yeah, yeah. It was about the dope game in Maryland, I think. And I was doing good in Washington, D.C. for a while. And then when I relapsed, man, I was going into the most dangerous ghettos in the country. This is back when DC, it was 2002, but I have a dope dealer in my car, and here comes this cop cruising slow. And the dope dealer would be like, put your seat back.

Starting point is 01:25:56 So we both put our seats all the way back. Like there's no seats in the car. Just close our eyes. Like, while the cop went real slow. So he's just looking at a car like, no seats in that one. Everything looks normal here. And it worked, but they were used to it. They're like, put your seat back.

Starting point is 01:26:16 So both seats are all the way back. You don't see any of the headrests. No headrests at all. And I just thought that was the craziest shit, man. I love that shit, dude. God. No, that was nuts because it was. just like the show of the wire. I'd walk up in sandals, dude, and, you know, I'm a mark just

Starting point is 01:26:33 waiting to get killed. And were you pranking or were you scoring dope? No, no. This was, I was just trying to buy dope, man. What were you on at that time? Where were you using? So I was a heroin addict, and then I was trying to find heroin, and I couldn't find heroin. And I was like, give me the next best thing. And I started smoking crack in D.C. Man. Crypto? Crypto crack. Yeah. It's just crypto. I started smoking crypto in DC. And yeah, man. You did.

Starting point is 01:27:00 And it was one night you were trying to buy heroin. You couldn't find it. Yeah. And you settled for some crack? Yeah. I always wanted to smoke crack, man. What is it like? Well, I could never do it without heroin.

Starting point is 01:27:12 It's an explosive buzz. I hate speed buzzes really myself. I like to be relaxed, you know. And yoids, yeah. Yeah, yeah. That's why I liked opiates, you know. That's why I like dope. and but when you combine the two, it's just an explosive buzz.

Starting point is 01:27:30 I used to dial 911 on my phone, man, and have it ready thinking that if I start dying, I can still hit the button, you know, like I swear. I mean, because I used alone, you know, in the garage, you know. I mean, my wife would go to work. I'd be off, dude. I mean, addiction took me some really low places, but we don't have to get into that.

Starting point is 01:27:52 I mean, I don't care. I'm cool to talking about it. at all, but, uh, were you ever using and also in between times when you were filming? Like, were both things happening in your life at the same time? Like, you ever get so high you thought you were filming somebody? It's like you get fucking confused that you, you don't even know who's being pranked or what's going on? I was, um, I, I relapsed and after 13 years sober, I had a surgery and ended up taking painkillers again. And this was while I was hamcheck, you know? This was while in 2003, and

Starting point is 01:28:25 kind of the prime of ham check i uh i started getting strung out again you know and i was i was out there pranking um on high on you know on pills that were laced with fentanyl and shit you know and uh we ever doze off during a prank or whatever i don't remember specifically but dude i did doze off i hit my head on the counter like so many times that shit was so stupid what counter what are you talking about so i'd have my plate I'd have my plate up in the cabinet. That shit was so powerful that just a grant, like I'd buy $50 worth of that stuff.

Starting point is 01:29:05 Of what, a fentanyl? A fentanyl. Yeah, and it would be white powder. And I would, just the tiniest little speck would get me high for all day, you know, because I had been clean for 13 years, you know. And, uh,

Starting point is 01:29:20 but you, you end up falling, falling, falling over. So I'd have the cabinet door open and then you just like you start, you just fall. And I'd hit my head on the sharp part of the cabinet. And I'd wear a tobogging to work, you know, like and pull it down. Like a snow hat? Yeah, even in the summer. Because you had fucking. Yeah, because I had a gashed. Because you had bent and all head from the cabinets. And it always gave me hiccups too. And my girlfriend, my girlfriend would always bust me out because I had

Starting point is 01:29:54 hiccups, but a lot of videos. Oh, you mean Fentina'll give you hiccups? Yeah, for some reason it gives you hiccups, and it was funny. So there's some videos where I got hiccups. I'm like, oh, man, I remember those days. But yeah, I did a lot of pranks while high, but I tell you what, when I went from no drugs or alcohol to smoking weed again, because the first step for me going down the bad road was I started, allowed myself to smoke weed again.

Starting point is 01:30:22 And I was laughing at my vision. I was like, oh my gosh, this is, now I realize, you know, all these stoners are laughing at my videos. It is kind of funny to watch them high, you know, but I couldn't make them high because you're, I'm paranoid, you know? I'm like, see the camera. I'm like, I'm killing all these pranks halfway through the prank because I was like thinking that they saw the camera and I just would hesitate. I couldn't make good videos.

Starting point is 01:30:49 Like everything went downhill when I started smoking weed and drinking again because the best stuff that Hamchek did was during my 13 years of sobriety. Like, and I'm way sharper now. You can think on your feet a little bit better, you know? Yeah. Yeah, it's your God-given abilities, man, to be able to, those are really your best ones. Yeah. All that, all the drugs did was give you bigger, like, even bigger balls and I already had to

Starting point is 01:31:17 just infiltrate some crazy scenarios because I was numb, you know, like. But one time I. I prank this guy in Columbus, and he harassed my brother in North Carolina, like, started all these death threats. Like, that was a crazy story because my brother called me in the morning. And I did these pranks where I'd asked people with how long it's been, like, at what point in their life did everything go downhill and they became homeless here in Columbus? I've seen those, yeah. But I never go out, I never actually talk to homeless people. I go after, I talk to people that are obviously not homeless, you know,

Starting point is 01:32:00 this guy, he's this real short dude with this girl who ended up being like some playboy, only fans model, and he like sets himself up for the interview and shows off his watch. And he's like, makes this stance and he's ready. And I hit him with the homeless thing. And he's like, he's like, me. But they got so offended that they looked up my name and then they found my brother's name, who I followed, my older brother, and they started harassing him, like, threatening my brother. And that was when ham checking leaked into my personal life.

Starting point is 01:32:41 And I was like, I mean, it's still very touchy, you know. I don't like embarrassing people. And I know that sometimes I put people's family on the Internet and shit. It's not always cracked up to be. Yeah, that seems like the tough part. Are there any videos that were really great pranks, but you decided not to put them up because it was just too much? Well, there's one in particular where I'm asking this guy, my normal prank, it's like in the middle of the night, it's like one or two in the morning in Columbus, Ohio. And I asked people for small favors, you know, and I asked him to help me get some Jordans down off a power line, you know.

Starting point is 01:33:18 And he says, he says no, but I'll give you a blowjob, you know. He's like, I got nothing but a mouth, buddy. That's what he said? Yeah, yeah, he said it. He literally. The old bird feeder. He offered, he offered to give me a blow job like four times in one video. Oh, yeah.

Starting point is 01:33:37 And it was a really funny video, and it was going, it went viral. And then I got emails saying, hey, man, take this off the internet. you know, I'm going to sue you. And I never pay attention to those. I get those a lot, you know. But I do have a heart, and I started looking at the guy's social media. And I, like, saw pictures of him and his mom. And I was like, man, this poor lady has to know that there are sons out there in the middle of the night asking people if he can blow them, you know,

Starting point is 01:34:07 which is just a strange thing to do to ask a stranger, you know. Yeah, yeah, I think it is. I mean, well, I think some people they call it, like, I think in the gay culture or whatever, it's the thing they call it bird feeding or whatever, because my buddy's brother's gay, and he's been gay for a pretty good amount of time, I think. It seems like anyway. And he, for Halloween, him and his buddies always get dressed up like bird feeders. They turn themselves into like, they'll get like kind of like a wood thing put on their head with their face.

Starting point is 01:34:40 And it's like got a little thing where the bird can lay. It's like, you know, they make themselves bird feeder. They look like birdhouses. Because the bird always has their mouth open? Oh, bird houses, bro. They look like bird houses, yeah. So your bird can land in there. Oh, wow.

Starting point is 01:34:52 So that's how they do it. So I think it's part of that culture is being out at night looking for those night birds or whatever. Maybe I don't know. But damn, dude. Yeah, that's so the guy was offering you a couple blow jobs out there at night? Yeah. And the video was very entertaining, but I felt a little bit bad. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:35:12 And then, so I would take it, I would take it down. And then I'd get, things would get slow on the channel. And I would, I would say, well, we call it, the video was called B.J. Balboni, you know. Yeah, yeah. Of course. And things would get slow on the Hamcheck channel. And I'd be, I'd be like, man, I need some action. I need to grow these followers, man.

Starting point is 01:35:34 I need, I need the viral video. So I, in my head, I was like, release BJ Balboni. And every time I'd play it, it would go viral. And then he would email me again and say, hey, man, I just started this new job. And everyone's coming up to me saying that they saw me on the internet. It is, I mean. People see themselves a lot on the internet.

Starting point is 01:35:56 Yeah. On TV. Yeah, I mean, because some of it's kind of exploitive. Do you feel like that? I mean, do you feel like, what does that feel like? I look at myself like more of a journalist sometimes because, I catch a lot of things happening, you know, that I just happen to run into. But I do.

Starting point is 01:36:17 I don't always like it. It's definitely not that easy to do because I have a really soft heart and I don't like hurting people's feelings. So I try to avoid that. It's hard to walk the line of funny without. That's why the construction pranks are so popular. and they're very harmless. Most of the construction bosses love it,

Starting point is 01:36:42 and they're waiting to get pranked by Hamcheck with the chains, you know? I've had a lot of those. With the six-inch chains, or the six-foot chains? It started with six-and-a-half-inch cables in the early days, and then it evolved to chains, you know, and, yeah, it's now six-and-a-half-foot chains. Has there been videos that you didn't put out, that you're just like, oh, this is something's too wrong with this,

Starting point is 01:37:06 or this is... Yeah, I have... I have a whole bunch of them. I was in this one night, I got this hotel. It was late at night, and I was at the casino gambling all night. And so I just booked this hotel in the worst part of town. I didn't mean to. $50 hotel or something, bro.

Starting point is 01:37:26 So I hear this baby. It's the biggest cockroach hotel ever, man. This is a video I want to play one day. I'll save these videos for, like, certain times. But for your wedding or whatever. Yeah, at the wedding. I'll probably play this one because there's a baby crying all night. I heard this baby screaming.

Starting point is 01:37:45 And I finally looked out the door like in the morning. And it was this little black baby that looked just like buckwheat, you know? And he was locked outside of this hotel room, man, all night long. You think he forgot his keys or whatever. Those keys never work, you know. That's probably the situation. Dude, how many times you get up to your hotel and those damn keys don't work and you got all your shit, dude? I get so pissed.

Starting point is 01:38:17 Bro. And this. And he was just out there all night. His mom left. His mom left him. And so the video is crazy because this crackhead lady comes into my room and I'm doing all this prank on her. She's telling me all about the mom that leaves her kid all the time. And it was, it was the saddest situation.

Starting point is 01:38:37 I ended up having to yell at the hotel lady because she wouldn't, she wouldn't call the police, you know, and the mom came back and I gave her a hard time, you know. I got it all on video, but I recently got pulled over and arrested for smoking a joint in Pennsylvania. This was like last year, I just got, I'm off, I'm still on probation in Pennsylvania, but I prank the cops while I was doing my sobriety test. Yeah. Yeah. Did they know it was you? No. And I've been waiting to release that footage, but I know everyone's going to get the body cam footage once they see and once I say this right now. But it's still funny as hell because they're telling me to hold my foot up like three and a half.

Starting point is 01:39:19 I'm like, can I hold it six and a half in? I was like, there's Officer Balboni still work here. And I literally got my phone back from them. I got arrested, but I got all this funny footage of fucking with them while I'm doing my sobriety test. They're like, how much weeds in the car? I'm like, 2.83 grams. I just bought it at the dispensary. I knew exactly how much I had in the car, you know.

Starting point is 01:39:42 But it was funny that I was sneaky enough to get all this footage of them while they were making me do all the impossible tests, by the way, that nobody is going to be able to pass. Yeah, some of it's like admit your grandfather is a f*** or whatever, and you're like, what? Dude, how did that become a question? Yeah, dude, we don't even know. Dude, I'm not...

Starting point is 01:40:03 We don't even know for sure. that's it's like yeah some of the shit is crazy bro it's impossible it's like yeah name seven black guys you're brave enough to tickle or whatever and you're like how can you even do that some of the it's like impossible dude it is you know name six friends of yours your mom would smash if you fucking left her home for the weekend you know he'd be like what who are they roger mike yeah damien oh yeah of course um have you faced any lawsuits have you face any actual lawsuits? Fake, just fake ones, you know, like people send emails, but I ignore them and they go away,

Starting point is 01:40:46 you know, just like the bills, you know? I mean, I have, yeah, people, I always look and consider, okay, so this pastor, this is a funny one, this pastor flips me off, man, it's called the jaywalking pastor. I didn't know he was a pastor until his whole congress. congregation begged me to take it off the internet. He made a public apology for this video. Wow. And I was like, no, if that's the worst thing you get caught doing in life was flipping me off. So he gets real mad. I said, I saw you jaywalk and you just tried it three times. And this bus almost hits him. And he has Starbucks and he's on the phone. And I'm like, you're jaywalking, man. I saw you do it.

Starting point is 01:41:28 And he's like, he gave me the most angry. bird ever and it was it's it's it goes viral every time i post it you know and the angry bird of christ or whatever basically but i just couldn't believe how that's not a big deal bro if if you if if that's the worst thing that they put on the internet of me is flipping somebody off i'm like hell yeah you know angry jaywalking past or throwback let me see it it was a good one because of the congregation begged me to take it off, but I don't take off ones like this. Sir, you're jaywalking. I just saw you.

Starting point is 01:42:23 You did it three times. Oh, sir! How dare you? Come over here right now. I want to have a word with you, buddy. Does he come back over? No. But I always like to talk to people.

Starting point is 01:42:43 about what they've said or done. Then I get on a bus and make another little clip. I said, did you see what happened that guy? But I will follow a lady that flipped me off two hours away to her job and just ask her why she's so miserable. Like, I am the crazy guy that will have a conversation about your craziness. You know, I just love to make people explain themselves, you know? Yeah, is that what it is?

Starting point is 01:43:12 what is it about the pranking? Like, what is it that you get out of it? What is it that you're trying, like, you just said, like, I want people to explain themselves, right? Like, yeah, I'm just, I'm curious about what that is, because it's, it's hard sometimes to joke with people. It's hard to keep a straight face. It's hard to keep an energy of a prank, right? It's really tough. Yeah, to answer your question, I just like watching humans in action. Like, that's my biggest thing is just watching the crazy things that humans do, you know. So I like, I like watching their reactions. As far as calling people out on stuff, like, I'm going to ask the lady that sat me right next to this loud table when there's 80, you know, I, but I will just ask people, I don't

Starting point is 01:44:06 want to punish them or anything, but I want them to realize that it was stupid what they just did, you know, and I want to ask, like, why they did it? Why are you so miserable, you know, and somebody's cussing you out in traffic or something, you know, I just like to pull up, this guy had a gun pointed at me, okay? I thought it was his phone. There's a road rage situation, and he was cussing me out, flipping me off, so I got my camera out, and I started filming the early part of him cussing me out, cussing me out, and then I followed him, he pulls into this parking lot, I'm thinking I'm going to be recorded. I know the guy's going to get his phone out. So I put, I put this hat on and shades and I put the six and a half foot chains around my

Starting point is 01:44:51 neck and I walk up to his car. And I'm recording. And I'm like, I'm like, dude, I'm like, you think, I said, why don't you say that to me now, you know? I was like, what, what were you saying back there? You know, and I walk up closer and I think he's holding his phone, but he has a gun pointed right up at the window. I never touch people or invade their space, but man, that was a crazy situation. So I just, I was just calling him out. He pulled into a parking lot and I just walked up to his window. Everything's making a video, you know, like, and that's, that's, that's ridiculous too. I'm recording too much, man. I got to, I got to take a break. If you're going that far where you're pushing things to the edge,

Starting point is 01:45:36 like that somebody's actually pointing a gun at you? Yeah. And you're still right there? Did you keep talking? I said, are you, you're actually pointing. Yeah, the video is pretty funny because I was like, you're pointing a gun at me on this beautiful day. I was like, get out of the car and give me a hug, buddy. I was like, you need a hug.

Starting point is 01:45:52 So I kept going, although I was high for like two days realizing that I almost got shot in the face. If I was an idiot that touched people, I don't ever do that. Right. I mean, I'm not like ever going to invade somebody. somebody I don't ever do that but that's wild to think that like a few years ago if you have said hey will you keep pranking somebody if they pointed if they have a gun out you probably would have said no yeah yeah here you are at that space I knew it would make the video better so I kept talking to him but I wasn't afraid but later on I realized

Starting point is 01:46:27 that if I was dumb enough to have touched that guy or gotten closer here he is you don't know no you know no I didn't I didn't. I knew what I was doing. You got a gun? You're threatening me with a gun right now? I'm not threatening you with anything. You're holding a gun, sir. You're the one that followed me. I asked you if you wanted to hug. I don't need a hug. You have a gun right now.

Starting point is 01:46:52 I don't need a hug. Just move on. Buddy, let me give you a hug. People like, people are so disconnected now. Dude, the world's a mess right now, bro. But do you think you're helping it here? Or do you think people are doing without you fucking? No. But he did deserve, all I did was, I was behind, I was just riding his bumper and the guy went crazy at the beginning saying, fuck you, you know, just effing me, flipping me off for, for barely

Starting point is 01:47:24 getting close to his car. I didn't even touch his car. Oh, yeah. I mean, in your car, it would be a lot. But it was because I was distracted looking at my phone and almost hit him and he saw, like, you know, you almost hit somebody over and over again. Dude, I'm telling you, man, I'm going to take a break from all this stuff, you know. It's been a long journey, and it's exciting to say that I'm going to do something different now, you know?

Starting point is 01:47:54 What's the toughest part of the country to prank in? New York is tough, man. They've seen it all, and they're not having my shit. I've still gotten some videos there. The first Balboni Ben video was in Central Park. New York is tough, though. I get spit out pretty. So it's always a challenge in places like that.

Starting point is 01:48:16 L.A. is kind of like that, but I do pretty well. It's these towns in the middle of nowhere that guys got cows and horses. And, you know, you want to find some small towns in the middle of nowhere. That's where I find the best stuff, you know. Well, you feel like people have patience here. They have time. Yeah, yeah. People got time for you, you know.

Starting point is 01:48:37 It's the thing that makes small towns. great too. Yeah. It's that people have time for you. They're chill. They're laid back and they'll give everyone the time of day. You're right. They'll listen to some stupidity shit, you know.

Starting point is 01:48:49 Are there some places you cannot prank because there are laws against it? Well, apparently, have you ever heard of the one party consent, two party consent? Yeah. How stupid is a rule one party consent? So one person in the conversation has the consent to, praying. A one-party consent law means that you can legally record a conversation such as a phone call or in-person talk as long as at least one person involved in the conversation gives permission. If you are part of the conversation, you can record it without telling the other person.

Starting point is 01:49:25 You gave yourself consent, basically. So as long as you could be doing it, they don't know, it's okay. Right? Yeah. But out in California, like, um, apparently. It's a two-party state, I think. You generally must be a participant in the conversation to record it under one-party rules. So I couldn't record two other people having a conversation secretly.

Starting point is 01:49:50 Secret, yeah, here it says. Secretly recording a conversation that you are not a part of is usually illegal. If you're calling someone in a different state, the strictest law applies. If you call someone in an all-party, which is two-party consent state, from a one-party state,

Starting point is 01:50:06 you typically need permission from all-party. I will say I'm banned from all the urology places in Columbus. I pranked my doctor about the ball-dropping surgery, and it brings up a good topic because I was unsure if I was able to record these real doctor's appointments, but apparently you are, you know. So this bigwigs called me and asked me to take down these doctor's appointment videos that were some of the funniest shit ever. So these were, this was my regular doctor that I went to, urologists, you know.

Starting point is 01:50:47 And, you know, being on testosterone as I got older, you know, the doctor told me, you know, you've done hard drugs your whole life, you know, you need to be on testosterone. Yeah, your bags cooked or whatever. Well, yeah. And I was concerned about my balls getting smaller, you know. And so I was sitting there. I just had the idea that I'm going to ask them to lower my balls for me, you know, during my actual doctor's visit. So it was my real doctor.

Starting point is 01:51:16 People think, man, you're crazy. You go and set up doctor's appointments to make pranks. And I was like, no, I just prank while I'm at my doctor. So I prank this doctor so many times. The very last one, this is the compilation. I think, is this, the very last one, he said, there's one that shows them all, because I pranked him over and over again, but at the last one, he goes, can you put your phone down for a second? And he says, are you the one that put me on TikTok? But it was after, and I got banned from a lot of.

Starting point is 01:51:52 Urology clinics? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Type shit. Once again, I want to talk to him about seeing if he can get my balls to hang. lower because I've been asking him for months and I want my balls to hang lower, you know, because I don't feel like they hang low like they used to. And all my buddies balls hang like way lower than mine. Okay.

Starting point is 01:52:12 What brings in today? Well, I mean, I've been talking to you for a while about this. And I don't know what I got to do to get you to help me with it, but I really want my balls to hang lower like they used to. You know my, you know, my, you know? Remember, there's gotta be a way you can drop him down a little bit, right? Okay, okay. Because my buddies, their balls hanged a lot lower than mine, and...

Starting point is 01:52:41 And this is an Asian doctor. There's something that you can give me, I'm pretty sure. I had never seen him until the last... Can you feel your balls? Barely. Let's take a look. Is there any way I could get my balls lowered? It's heard that people are doing that now.

Starting point is 01:53:03 I don't know. I've not heard that surgery. Some of my buddy's balls hang a lot lower than mine, you know, and I just want to make sure that, you know, we're all on the same. This is my general practice. Some people have larger scrotums, the longer scrotums, and so it allows for the balls, the testicles to come down further. And then some people don't have as low or don't have as kind of loose of as scrot. How much do that I got, yeah. So, and everybody's different, and there's no right way or wrong way.

Starting point is 01:53:34 Hey, hey. Hey, how are you? Oh my gosh, geez. You're tired? A little bit. Nice fresh blend you got there. I'm still trying to get my balls lowered, you know? Like I'm trying to get them dropped a couple inches, you know?

Starting point is 01:53:53 Like we were talking about last time? Okay. Remember? Yeah. You said you might be able to lower them a little bit. Let's take a look. Okay. Here's the thing.

Starting point is 01:54:06 Maybe I can get on a smooth dowel. because some of my buddy's balls are a little bit smoother than my, I have a lot of wrinkles. Let me take a little. Okay, but remember I talked to you about the lower in my balls a little bit? Can you put the phone down? Yeah. Are you the one that put me on TikTok? Wow.

Starting point is 01:54:34 What did he say? Was he hurt by it? Yeah, oh yeah. He said, are you the one that put me on TikTok? And I denied it, of course. and got through the appointment, but they called me up to, like, CEO, and I got a letter in the mail saying,

Starting point is 01:54:49 I can't go to any of the Ohio Health or whatever. But the funniest part about the first one, when I quit recording, he says, the first thing I want to tell you is stop looking at your buddy's balls. And I was like, man, if I would have got that, I just didn't get that, but I tell the story. It was the funniest shit ever. And did you have to show them your balls, actually, sometimes too?

Starting point is 01:55:09 Yeah, but it's part of the deal. I mean, I show my, balls to the doctor, you know. Yeah, I don't care. And I never got an extra appointment for a video. Yeah. I just went to my appointments. Natural appointments.

Starting point is 01:55:21 Yeah, and then kept making videos at the appointment. And then it's balling out, dude. In the United States, recording laws are divided into two-party consent states where every participant must consent to being recorded and a one-party consent state where only one participant needs to agree. In these states, you generally need the consent of every person involved in a private conversation or phone call to record it legally. California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland,

Starting point is 01:55:46 Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington. Those are two parties? Oh, shit. I'm breaking some laws out there. Yeah. One party consent states Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado. Tennessee is on there. Idaho, Hawaii, Indiana, Georgia, D.C., Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi.

Starting point is 01:56:10 be well. Ohio's got to be down there. Yep. There it is. There it is. The Dakota and there's others too. All the rest of them we didn't name in the two party. Huh.

Starting point is 01:56:19 I just find it funny one party. I mean, come on. One person of the two and it's the one recording. Yeah. Giving yourself consent. It's stupid. Yeah.

Starting point is 01:56:30 How do you figure that out for yourself? Because it is kind of like, I mean, if something really hurts somebody's feelings, would you do you feel okay leaving it up? Like, yeah, what is your, I guess, What do you feel about it? I'm just doing it Wild West style, man. I mean, I'm waiting for trouble, and I know that it's coming, you know?

Starting point is 01:56:48 I'm just used to, I mean. Like, what do you mean it's coming or whatever? Well, if somebody's upset, I consider, I take it into consideration, you know. Like, I prank this transgender therapist in Columbus, Ohio. I told her that her dogs weren't picking up the poop. And she went crazy on me and yelled at me and then made all these TikTok videos about me. But she never once asked me to take it down. If she would have asked me to take it down, I would have.

Starting point is 01:57:25 I didn't want to embarrass her or whatever. She's like, that was a very controversial video. I quit looking at the Internet for a while because I had a whole group of people sending me death threats and stuff like that. You know. Is there something about the stress of it about that, like that you like that? Like that's what I'm wondering. It's interesting because, dude, that sounds horrifying to me. Like somebody's like, man, I hate that you just, this is messed up.

Starting point is 01:57:51 Like, you're taking, or I don't like the way you're making me look. You know, I'm saying like, like, I don't know, even for myself, like one time I saw somebody made a video, I was just walking by. Like, I was walking by a place, I'd eat and that or something. And somebody made a video of me just walking by, right? And they're like, oh, I just saw Theo Vaughn walk by. Looks like he's having the worst day ever, man. Hope he's okay, right?

Starting point is 01:58:12 That's what it said. And dude, that had been like two hours earlier in my day. I saw that on TikTok. And I was having the best day. Yeah. And it was like, fuck, dude. But like people are like, man, hope he's okay. Then people are like, man, hope he's not overdosing or something.

Starting point is 01:58:26 First of all, I wouldn't be walking by with both of my shoes on or whatever and a hat if I was overdosing probably. But it was just like all this shit. And I'm like, what the fuck, dude? I'm having a nice day. And just because some asshole wants to fucking put me like. that it makes me like it didn't really it didn't really bother me it was just like the inner inch it was intriguing to me like it made me like a little bit like okay well people can kind of film you whenever which i didn't really love but it's like um i don't know it was just like fuck i'm having a good

Starting point is 01:58:54 day and then i see this and i'm like fuck i don't like it theo i'll be honest i mean that's why i'm kind I wish I had something else to fall back on because, like I said, you can't just keep doing this shit. I'm lucky I've gotten away with it and survived five years of doing this, but I really feel bad for people. I want everyone to not ever be, like, I use, people don't see what I do off the camera. I'll stop these people and tell them I was joking. I do not let somebody go away feeling like I just called them homeless because of what they wear. I just, I'm not the one that's going to show you when I give them money. You know, I hate when people post giving money away.

Starting point is 01:59:35 It just makes me sick, actually. Yeah, that kind of stuff is very bizarre. This need to like be, I mean, I don't know. It's a need to be seen, right? But it's being seen doing something positive. I certainly understand the need to be seen because, because, I mean, that's what I do. I want to be seen.

Starting point is 01:59:51 When I was doing those stand-up shows, I would ask the audience as soon as I went out there, Okay, how many of you literally have no idea what you were coming to see tonight? And every freaking hand went up and I'm like, you guys, all you had to do is search a little bit harder and there's a million viral videos of people exposing me. Somebody did that to me. They posted me rapping at one of my shows. I saw, I just found this two days ago. So you do stand up? I was doing it.

Starting point is 02:00:22 I was doing it, you know? I was like, but do these stand-up places? They want you on the stage at 7.30 and they kick my fans out at 9 and shit. And I was like, I wanted to hang out with everybody. I was talking to every single person. I didn't like, I need like a three-hour venue. I was having fun, but then, you know, I wasn't, I'm not a stand-up comedian, but I was doing music.

Starting point is 02:00:45 I was showing unseen videos that nobody's going to see on the internet. And then I was doing questions and answers. My fans loved it, but you always get the one asshole that's going to make negative comments. and stuff. Why'd you quit doing that? Well, I... Or did you quit? I kind of...

Starting point is 02:01:03 It wasn't worth the money, to be honest, man. And the exposure. Like, I was like, you know, sometimes I'd get like, 1,500 or 2 grand, and I got this crew I'm taken care of and I'm traveling all over. And it was a great show with 100, 200 people there. And the bar was trying to give me 1,500, $2,500 bucks. And I was just like, it wasn't worth it. Also, like, when people want to kill me, I'm telling you.

Starting point is 02:01:27 where to find me, you know? Like, so I was going to keep the lure going a little bit longer. Oh, so you're almost on the run sometimes in a way? Not really. I mean, but in a way, I don't like telling somebody where to find me when I do get death threats, you know, it's like, I'll be here at 7.30 on stage. So you bring your gun. I prank these Chicago police officers and I, and they loved me.

Starting point is 02:01:53 The captain messaged me and thanked me for showing me. and light on his officers and I was like, you guys can all come to my shows for free, you know? I want them, I want them in the audience, you know, whenever I can have some backup. But, dude. One video you did that was one of my favorites is that, like, because some of them are like positive. I mean, it's all lighthearted, I feel like, I guess, but I mean, I guess I'm not the, or the ones that I've seen have all been, like, pretty just lighthearted kind of. it's just like it feels like good fun.

Starting point is 02:02:27 The one where you brought the eggs to McDonald's. Yeah. I just took that off recently because she said her manager saw it. No, uh, dude. That was one of my favorite videos, dude. He pulled up at McDonald's. Tell me what, yeah, just tell us what happened. Yeah, so I was at a rest stop traveling, doing pushups in the parking lot of McDonald's.

Starting point is 02:02:48 I had these eggs that I had taken from my Airbnb and they were getting old. and it just, you know, it just came to me. I'm going to walk through the drive-through line and ask her if she'll make these eggs for me. That was enough for the video. I didn't expect her to actually make them for me and all that. Yeah. And that video went crazy viral.

Starting point is 02:03:08 She was loving all the attention. I sent her a couple hundred dollars. And then like just recently, she's like, hey, this is random. But my manager saw that. I need you to take all the videos. down. And I was just like, oh, and I did it. I took them down, but I'll put them back up when it's time to release the egg video again.

Starting point is 02:03:33 It's almost like when things get slow, I'll be whipping out those eggs again. Trust me. Because it's like there is no harm in that. And if McDonald's is your main goal in life, because I was like, hey, if you get fired, I'll give you a job doing something else, you know. but and the manager loved it. I already told her manager. So it's some bullshit.

Starting point is 02:03:55 I thought it was really cool. But yeah, who knows what people are. I mean, like, I thought it was super cool. But I pranked an addict. Here it is right here. Oh, wow, that's still on the internet. Wow. Did it okay to play?

Starting point is 02:04:05 Oh, yeah. It says, brought my own eggs to the Mick D's drive-thru in Florida. Oh, my gosh. I'm so sorry. You're okay. You're just scared me. Would you mind doing me a small favor? Yeah.

Starting point is 02:04:16 Well, I was wondering if you could make me a couple of eggmen muffins with brought my own eggs and I mean I don't have any way to fry them I was going to use iron but I was just going to see if you could grow them on the grill I don't even need the buns I just just see the eggs cooked yeah okay I'm serious you're so sweet I we closed in just a couple minutes I thought you were just open and then we closed for an hour we do our deposit and we come back and opening it just if you can just make six of them scrambled and you can just throw the rest the way. Nice Tacoma. You're loving that, aren't you?

Starting point is 02:04:54 Standing in line. I'm a big Toyota fan myself. You better not get in trouble for this. Uh-uh. That's so nice to you. I can't give you the whole hundred, but take, give me 70 back, please.

Starting point is 02:05:10 Okay. The internet killed me over that $100 bill. You should have given her the $100. I did inside and then I gave her more later. it just Well, you can't make everybody happy I didn't even have an extra I didn't have it like that

Starting point is 02:05:25 I've never gotten ahead in life because of these videos Like people were talking You're making these obviously for the IRS Dude So that's obviously Everything is going directly deposited to them Oh man dude

Starting point is 02:05:38 That is probably the nicest girl right there That's the sweetest girl It was a good one man I love that idea that it got through It was funny One thing that you've done that I like to do over the years too is I like to pick up hitchhikers, right?

Starting point is 02:05:52 That's something that I've always really enjoyed you know, just because it's a total trying to think of what it is about it. Like let me really think about it's there's something about like a weird thing of like fate or like just a Rochambeau with the universe. It's a gamble.

Starting point is 02:06:11 There's something about it. And there was one I had I picked up a guy, I think I was in Maui or something. I'd be able to find that. Is that even still out there? I don't even know if it's still out there. But, oh, here we go. Chilling, oh, shit, boy.

Starting point is 02:06:27 One of my favorite outdoor animals right here. Oh, shit. What's up, player? How you doing? Chilling, bro. Theo, man, what's your name? Josiah. How often do you hitch, bro?

Starting point is 02:06:40 I've been doing it every day for five years. Gang, really? Yeah, oh, yeah. That's awesome, bro. See you. That's fucking Maui. shit that's dope dude I used to love picking a pitch like in the States but they don't really let you do it anymore you can barely even meet anymore have you ever been

Starting point is 02:06:54 picked up by any weirdos? Only a couple really and it wasn't like anything like rapey or like you know what I mean like weird stuff like that it was more like I'm an alien this is where I'm from oh really any killers or murderers there is but I've never been picked up by one there is and release baby that's a wrap I let him go bro I don't kill, bro. That's awesome, man. I didn't know you did that. Oh, I've always loved it, dude.

Starting point is 02:07:21 I'll tell you, this is actually a good story. I forgot about her. I shouldn't tell you it's a good story because who the fuck knows if it is, people will decide. But I picked up a dude one time, and I just asked him about hitching and what it was like for him

Starting point is 02:07:35 and who he was getting picked up by and he said, well, one of the craziest times he ever hits to ride, he got into a guy's car and the guy just starts flooring it. He said the guy was on the run from the police, right? So next thing you know, he's getting, they're getting chased by the police for like 40 minutes.

Starting point is 02:07:51 You know, and the interstate does a hitchhiker. No way. He's running from the law with the guy. Yeah, he's running for the law with the guy. And he asks the guy, he goes, why'd you even pick me up? He goes, because I know this isn't going to end well, and I don't want to die alone. That's what he told the guy. Whoa.

Starting point is 02:08:07 And they fucking ended up skirting off the interstate into a cornfield. And the police got the guys or whatever, but that was. And the police pull up on him. I'm like, what don't get out of the fucking fee? He's like, I'm a hitchhiker. So the dude driving actually ran for the hitchhiker? Ran from the police. Yeah, with the hitchhiker in the passage seat.

Starting point is 02:08:27 That's pretty dope, actually. Yeah, you're just going gangster on it, man. And you're going heaven alone sounds. It does sound scary. I know that's why it's put together the way it is because you have to do it by yourself, whatever. But it does sound kind of scary. What? Going heaven alone or dying alone.

Starting point is 02:08:44 Oh, yeah, yeah. So bringing somebody along. like, you might as well do it. I look you get it, bro. Yeah, I see what you're saying. What's one of the wildest hitchers you picked up? Bro, so I had to tell the first time, I hadn't slept in seven days. I was kicking, I was going through withdrawal.

Starting point is 02:09:02 And sometimes. Withdrawal or use? Because both of those. When you're coming off of heroin or fentanyl, you get really sick and you don't sleep. And sometimes I'll just hit the road because being on the road is a buzz of its own. It keeps me occupied. If I get some coffee and just drive, I can get hours out of the way that I would just be tormenting at home in a room. So I pick this guy up and I always say, you're not, if you won't kill me, if I don't kill you, right, before they get in.

Starting point is 02:09:33 I always get a verbal disclaimer. I get an agreement from them that they won't kill me and I won't kill them because I'm just as dangerous as they are. They just don't know it, you know. Yeah, it's like the Hitchhiker's Creed or whatever. Yeah, yeah, that's what I do. And this guy was cool for a while. His name was James, and I took him all, like several states away. He did a dealership prank with me and everything.

Starting point is 02:09:57 I made him, he walked into a car dealership and I did a prank with him. But he ended up saying some freak stuff. And I was like, dude, all right, man, rides over, bro. Like some sex stuff or whatever? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like he was trying to sniff you out or whatever. Yep, just trying to make a gay comment or something, you know. and I had to kick him out, dude.

Starting point is 02:10:17 And as I was leaving, he was walking, he was dragging that suitcase on the next exit ramp. And I said, you could have just not said anything weird, James. I mean, it's like, because if you get weird, you got to go, bro. Yeah, it gets just, it's tough. It's also tough to ride around with the guy for a few days.

Starting point is 02:10:35 Oh, yeah. And not flirt a little. Yeah, I mean. That's got to be hard. I let him drive my car and I slept for the first time in days, dude. He hadn't driven in seven years. I hadn't slept in seven days, dude.

Starting point is 02:10:47 And he was like loving being behind the wheel. That was when I had the nice Lexus. This is a $500 Subaru. I'm driving right here. Dude, that's cool, bro. God. But this is where I make him put the glasses on. It's a great adventure.

Starting point is 02:11:02 It is. You get stories and you're helping somebody too. This guy had been walking for four days and nobody picked him up, bro. Really? Oh. How's it going? All right. How you doing?

Starting point is 02:11:14 Good. Tired more out. Yeah, well, before you get in, there's a couple things we need to go over. Okay. You ain't going to kill me, are you? No, sir. And I won't kill you, all right? A deal.

Starting point is 02:11:27 Is that a deal? That's a deal. You promise? I promise. I'm just trying to get home. I ain't trying to. Hop in, you got to put them glasses on so I can keep an eye on you, though. No weapons?

Starting point is 02:11:40 No weapons? No, sir. All right, man. I'm trusting you, bro. You're more real. There's nothing here with my personal stuff. Grab them glasses there in the door. Oh, this are nice.

Starting point is 02:11:52 If you don't mind, just put them on so I can keep an eye on you. I've been out here walking four days. Today's, the fourth day, I've been out. It's easy to see him like that. That's great. That's fun, dude. This is fucking, that's awesome, dude. Me and my buddy Caleb picked a hitchhiker up the other day, man.

Starting point is 02:12:11 Drover was just a lady carrying a bunch of stuff. We're like, dude, we can't. not drive past a woman carrying all that. Oh, no, no. So we drove her for a little bit. You do have to analyze every hitchhiker, though. Like, you're like, mm. She was chatty, though.

Starting point is 02:12:22 Do I really feel like risk in my life today or not? Yeah. Dude, I drove a guy one time to get a bunch of gasoline or something. Back to a family. He didn't even say thank you. Dude. And that still makes me mad. That's crazy.

Starting point is 02:12:35 He didn't fucking say thank you, dude. He gave you a Russian reach around. Dude. That's the least he could do. Yeah, he could have done anything for it. He could have even just said even, just something like thank you. Yeah, dude.

Starting point is 02:12:47 But to answer your question, yeah, it's not always fun. Like putting people, you know, the videos. Yeah, there's a lot of negativity to it, believe it or not. Even though mine are the nicest ones you see on the internet. Everyone's harassing people and making them really angry. Well, do you think it comes from, like, I'm just curious. And I'm not trying to put you on the spot or anything either. Do you feel like I am?

Starting point is 02:13:08 I am on the spot, and I like it. It's okay. It's okay. Yeah, it's fine. Do you think that it's about like Webo? whoever's filming becomes the the decider of what's okay. You know what I'm saying?

Starting point is 02:13:19 I'm wondering what like the psychology of it is. And you would probably know more than anybody because you've had like what is the attraction to it overall? Do you think have you been able to think about any of that? The attraction of it is just capturing humans in action. Okay. Whether it's bad or good.

Starting point is 02:13:37 Okay. This dope fiend comes up to my car, but she was, she still looked, decent. But I saw her coming a mile away. And by the end of the conversation, she makes up this crazy story about crying and everything about somebody at McDonald's. And in the end, I'm like, you sure you don't just need this money for dope? And she's like, okay. And it was beautiful because it was real. I saw that one. Okay, so you saw that. And that one bothers me. And the

Starting point is 02:14:09 recent repost of it, I cut out so much stuff that would make her look worse. I just like to show that I'm from the streets and I saw that shit a mile away. But I know that I can be recorded too in those moments. I'm prepared for the worst because of what I do. Like I know that one day, and that's why I'm like, it's kind of nice to control this reveal because people try to catch me and try to put me on blast

Starting point is 02:14:36 and try to capture me getting upset all the time. And I mean, it's, it can have to. happened to me when I'm using dope. I could go buy it from a prankster and you know I used to make up stories on the street too. I was the best. Oh dude I made it $40 every 10 steps I took when I was on the street because I still were you living on the street at some point? I kind of but I would like stay in a dope dealer's garage or stay at some friends I was never the guy freezing on the concrete right which really hurts me to see. I always had enough people in my corner or just the dope man himself let me stay in the garage.

Starting point is 02:15:22 Yeah. Well, you're charismatic guy. I mean, if you can figure out people and you can navigate people, you can always survive. You're a survivor. And I was a salesman already. So I would, when I walk up to people and I would be like, hey, you might help me out? You know, I didn't look like the typical addict begging for change on the street. So they would be like, I got a 10.

Starting point is 02:15:42 I got a five. I don't know, but they're like, I'll buy you some food. And I was like, okay, that'll free up money for the dope. You know, like I was a good, I was a good panhandler, but I was getting fives and tens and 20s. And you were using it at that time? Yeah. And my dumb ass would take the first 20 I got and walk all the way to the dope house.

Starting point is 02:16:03 Instead of saving up like 300, just going a little further down the street, as soon as you get enough to get the bag. I would walk miles back to the dope house. It was the funniest shit ever, dude. I was the stupidest addict ever. I still am. I'm an idiot, bro. Yeah, dude.

Starting point is 02:16:23 Addiction's crazy, man. How did it affect your ability to parent and stuff over the years? Like, how was that? Did it get pretty bad for you in that space? Are you always able to show up in those spaces? Well, thank God. And are you a parent? Yeah, my son, he's a sophomore to Ohio State, man.

Starting point is 02:16:39 Nice, dude. And he's a good kid. my my my ex-wife was my high school sweetheart and I always knew she'd be the best mom and she's we've raised an amazing kid and he doesn't have so far so good he doesn't drink or do drugs he's the he's the one that drives his friends around and he's he loves God and you know God first and stuff man so I'm so happy about that that's a blessing yeah but he was a baby like one or you know, one or two or just the years where I had to put him to sleep and like sleep. And then as soon as he fell asleep, I'd go and drive around and get high.

Starting point is 02:17:20 Like, he doesn't remember those days. I got clean in 2010 and stayed clean until 2023. But the gambling kept me from being present. There was always this monster in my head saying, when can you go to Vegas again? When can you, when's the next poker tournament? Yeah. And so I look back on that and I'm like, man, even though I never miss the sports games and all that shit, the gambling still kept me from spending, being present and being the person I like to think I am today as far as like, like I told you, I don't have to tell my mom, I got to go just to go somewhere. Yeah.

Starting point is 02:18:01 You know, like I can hang out and watch Law & Order with my mom for freaking days and just chill with her, you know, and not. man it's just such a blessing that I was uh I got a got clean again you know it's hard to get back in it's easier to stay here than get back here right that's that's the most that's the truest statement I've ever heard man I was thinking about that today I was at a meeting today I was thinking about that I'm like God dude I remember just like and it's not long ago I say I remember like you but you know it's like I got like 77 days or something right now what yeah mine's July 25th is it I'm August 1st you By the way, that was the day I stopped gambling.

Starting point is 02:18:39 I walked out of that casino. So my gambling clean date is August 1st. Let's go. That's awesome. No shit. But yeah, we just the organizing of things to party, to have a good, to sit. And it's okay. It's okay.

Starting point is 02:18:54 It's no judgment against anybody or anything. But for me, it just, I couldn't work anymore. And I'm just praying I'm able to keep it away. But also, dude, somebody said the other day, I was in a meeting. I said, I had to admit to myself that I loved doing it. those things. A lot of times I'd be like, I don't love, I loved having a good, I loved it. That's the thing I didn't want to admit, you know, because then I can't really operate from a place that's the true honesty. I fucking loved it. I didn't like the stress, all the other stuff

Starting point is 02:19:24 that I don't even think about that's going on. Yeah, dude, I loved numbing myself from reality, bro. I mean, it killed stress, it killed everything. And then I like to feel adventurous. on it. People always said, oh, you have a hole in your soul and that's what you're trying to feel. I'm like, no, I just like to get high and take a walk in the woods and trip on some mushrooms and look at shapes changing. But I'm learning now that it's way more than that. But I didn't like to be handcuffed. I had to get high before I did anything. Even if it was just weed or alcohol, it was like I didn't want to start my day until I got to. high and being able to break those chains man and then the gambling thing too just I feel I feel like

Starting point is 02:20:14 I don't have handcuffs on him anymore and it's the best feeling dude I'm so happy for you for that I'm happy for anybody yeah yeah just to get some space to take a breath um Johnny Hamcheck what's next do you have a plan for what's next bro well I'm actually working on a movie it's been in the works for a while but they're getting pretty serious about it they said they're going to start following me around with cameras for documentary here in a couple months

Starting point is 02:20:45 but I really don't know and I don't care so just being clean I can handle anything coming my way that's why I always during my sobriety as long as I stayed the number one priority for me is sticking to my you know, getting, staying clean, man. So I don't know what's next, really.

Starting point is 02:21:07 I mean, the pranks now are just organic. When I see something and I feel like making videos, but I'm not going to slave to the social media. I really want to take a break, actually. I'm really wanting to put the phone down for a couple months, and I'll probably do it after this podcast, actually. How bad this slaving get to be out finding videos? Would you find yourself with like a crazy amount of time,

Starting point is 02:21:31 hunting the perfect video? No, it's pretty easy, but the best ones come when you don't try. When you go out and say, I'm going to go find videos, it never works. It's when I'm taking a shit at a restaurant and I see a fanny pack hanging there, and I know the guy's coming back for the fanny pack. And I, in my head, I already knew I was going to start a tug-of-war video with this guy. So I get my phone ready, and everything works when you don't try. It's literally once I quit trying to squeeze onto things and accomplish things.

Starting point is 02:22:03 So I have no goals in life, dude. I mean, I'm 50 years old, bro, and just being healthy and being around my family and just being a good person as all that matters. I want to do something positive with this platform. That's all I want to do is do something positive with it, bro. Like, that's the least I can do. I've had the most fun ever because of Johnny Hamcheck. But I want to give back. I want to do something with it positive, man.

Starting point is 02:22:30 I don't know exactly what, but it's going to happen, you know, hopefully. Well, if anybody can figure something out, it's you, man. It seems like you've lived a million lives, man. I think someone we didn't even really get to talk about. But, yeah, I can imagine that. Like, I can imagine it's been a, it just, it sounds like it's been quite a journey, man. And yeah, dude, thanks for pulling up today. Thanks for just spending some time together, dude.

Starting point is 02:22:56 It's so funny, too, dude. The biggest prank of all is that you say you have two ponytails in the back. I don't have one even, man. You don't have any hair. Yeah, one video recently, the guy said, oh, you went completely the opposite direction, huh? And it is one of the funniest things, and that's why I was happy to actually show. And everyone's going to say bald bony on the internet, and I love that one. One of my fans said bald bony, and I love it, and it's funny, and it's great.

Starting point is 02:23:25 I just don't give a shit, man. It's all love and all fun and just, you know, I'm probably going to take some videos down off the internet now. Oh, no, did I make you feel bad about it? No, dude, I'm just fucking. Dude, I'm totally fucking with you. I don't know what's right or wrong. Dude, I'm just thinking out loud.

Starting point is 02:23:43 I'm messing with you like you mess with me, dude, like that fucking first conversation we had. I don't know, like, I just couldn't keep up with you, dude. You're a genius and congrats on everything. It's an honor to be here, bro. I can't tell you enough how happy I am to actually just reveal, reveal who I am a little bit, you know. Oh, who runs this shit show, dude. It's a fucking, yeah. Dude, nobody knows what the hell is going on in this business, bro.

Starting point is 02:24:09 Nobody knows, bro. And that's life, dude. It is like, yeah, dude, that is a truth, bro. Nobody knows what's going on in this business, dude. That is the truth. That's the thing that boggles my mind. You're telling me somebody created all this shit. We could talk forever about.

Starting point is 02:24:24 life, bro. But we could do it another time. Yeah, dude. Anytime you want to, I'm down. But yeah, dude, I'm glad you're out there busting people's balbonies, dude. And it's fucking been an absolute blast to watch, bro.

Starting point is 02:24:36 Johnny Hamcheck, bro. Love, bro. Thank you, brother. One love. Now, I'm just floating on the breeze, and I feel I'm falling like these leaves I must be. Cornerstone.

Starting point is 02:24:50 It's that ground. I'll share this piece of mind I found. unlock unlimited free grocery delivery with PC Express Pass. Shop online and get the same low No Frills prices delivered. Get your first year of PC Express Pass for just $2.50 a month. Learn more at nofrills.ca.

This Past Weekend - #691 - Johnny Hamcheck

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