Threedom - Check It Out: Jacob Reed and Me

Episode Date: March 22, 2026

Hey, PPs! Lauren here! Jacob Reed is a buddy of mine from UCB. I'm loving his new podcast and I think you will enjoy it, too! Never fear, Threedom will return soon!  Jacob Reed and Me  is an investigative comedy that blends the heart of Heavyweight with the goose chase of Mystery Show. In each episode, host Jacob Reed (Jimmy Kimmel Live, Funny or Die) tracks down someone who shares his name. And, to answer the big questions about his own life, Jacob finds common ground in wildly different places. https://pod.link/1811872527 What begins as a simple search, quickly unravels into bizarre, unexpected adventures, as Reed uses unconventional methods to track down his namesakes. Among the 751 Jacob Reeds he's discovered, Season 1 introduces the audience to a porn star, a teacher, a jazz drummer, an Italian impresario, a teenage crooner, and a waitress at a greasy spoon who wants absolutely nothing to do with us. Each encounter opens a window into a strange corner of the world, blending personal discovery with wild, unpredictable storytelling, as moving as it is hilarious.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's morning in New York. Oh, God. Hey, everybody. I'm Mandy Patinkin. And I'm Catherine Grady. And we have a new podcast. It's called Don't Listen to Us. Many of you've asked for our advice.

Tell me, what is wrong with you people? Don't listen to us. Our Take It or Leave a Advice show, every Wednesday, out now. A Lemonada Media Original. Hey, Jalen, how can I help you? Hey, Jalen. Jacob Reed, and I got an email that said there is a package being held for me at the front desk. Were you expecting a package?

No. And you're not in apartment 604? I'm not a resident. Were you a previous resident? I've actually never even lived in Seattle. I lived in Southern California. Weird. There's someone with your same name, Jacob Reed. My name is Jacob Reed. It's a pretty common name, and this kind of thing happens to me all the time. I've gotten other Jacob Reed's phone calls, cable bills, plane tickets, requests to review an anaconda purchase.

Hi, my name's Jacob Reed. I'm calling to cancel an appointment that I have with Dr. Cotter tomorrow at 11 a.m. Last week, I called to cancel a doctor's appointment, and the receptionist insisted that Jacob Reed had just left their office. Did you just hear? No, I'm at home. Oh. A normal person would brush off these coincidences, and that's how I found out I'm not. not a normal person, because I started keeping track, logging every Jacob breed I came across

in a spreadsheet. For years, it sat on the back burner, a secret half-baked hobby. And while those Jacob breeds sat frozen in time on a spreadsheet, my life moved forward. As an artist and freelancer, I'd always moved around a lot, but after a decade of random jobs, my career was finally taking off. I got married, we bought a house, we were expecting a baby, and I was working on my first big TV directing job for Jimmy Kim alive. And for the first time in my adult life, I felt like I had a clear idea of what the next few years would look like. It seemed like anything was possible.

Then, my entire life changed. Flights grounded, cities under lockdown and a dent in the economy. Within a few months, I became a dad, the pandemic hit, and the entertainment industry shut down indefinitely. Each night after we got our baby to sleep, I'd leave my wife on the couch, sneak out to our dusty old garage, open up my laptop, and live vicariously through the hundreds of Jacob Reeds on my spreadsheet. I quit piano lessons in high school.

Jacob Reed 248 teaches them in Ohio. I used to code friends' websites. Jacob Reed 113 runs NASA's website. My wife makes fun of my doomsday earthquake kit. It's nothing compared to Jacob Reed number 14s. He's a survivalist. For almost every life choice I made, I found another Jacob Reed who went a different direction.

It was like this spreadsheet was a portal to hundreds of alternate lives. And the more Jacob Reeds I found, the more I became obsessed. I had this overwhelming feeling that if I could somehow make contact with all of them, learning about their lives would help me figure out what to do with mine. So, I started looking. I'm trying to find someone named Jacob Reed. Oh shit, we're literally going off the road.

And do you just want, like, their number to reach out to them? Okay, first of all, I implore you to stop talking about this. The average take from a bank robbery like that is $3,000. I don't know this person. Welcome to Jacob Reed and me. And me. Jacob Reed and me. And me. And me. A docu-series. A mystery show. A rabbit hole. A mundane multiverse. An investigative comedy. It answers life's biggest questions.

Life's biggest questions exclusively by tracking down people. Tracking down people. Name Jacob Reed. Jacob Reed. Hosted by me, Jacob Reed. As long as I can remember, I've wanted to be an artist. I studied art and film, but then graduated into the 2008 recession. and immediately had to use my art to make a living. Pretty much all my 20s, I took any job

that was remotely connected to creativity as long as it paid. I did design jobs for randos on Craigslist, flyers for experimental blackbox shows that nobody came to, catalog designs for a fraternity wholesaler. I wrote slogans for novelty t-shirts that never got made. If it paid, I would do it while I slowly worked my way up in the entertainment industry. So when the pandemic,

hit, and I needed to pay my mortgage and support my new baby, I started scouring the internet for freelance graphic design jobs, just like I'd done in my 20s. It wasn't glamorous, but it was sort of creative, right? And either way, it was necessary. To see if I had any old portfolios online, I could dust off, I googled Jacob Reed and artist. I wasn't even on the first page of results. You know what it was? A painting called Sea Breeze 2 by Jacob Reed. Okay, let me break this down. Sea Breeze 2 is an oil painting with reproductions sold all over the internet. The painting shows a tropical view from a cabana, billowing fabric opens onto a white sand beach, turquoise blue water, and palm trees. Even though this is a podcast and you can't see the art I'm

describing, trust me, you kind of already seen it. It's one of a of those tacky hotel art pieces you'd find in a home decor store between a canvas print of the Brooklyn Bridge and a piece of wood with some cheesy font that declares, it's wine o'clock somewhere. And sure, I realize I sound like a total art snob saying that. But other people are clearly into this painting, because when I look up reviews, Seabreeze too is selling like hotcakes. I love this picture. My home decor is a beast theme, so this picture fits right out. This painting gives a sense of that tropical vacation. feeling? Great print. Wanted to fill my wild space and feel warm tropical breezes.

I would buy this product again and again. Gives a relaxing feeling to the room. It is breathtaking, beautiful colors, and it feels like you are actually there. Clearly it's popular, but is it art with a capital A? I mean, I don't think so, but who am I to judge? I can't even remember the last time I made something that wasn't for a company. Even directing for late night, my job was to make a for a show that filled a slot on a schedule of a network that is just one of many income streams for a global conglomerate whose only goal is making money. Is that the life of an artist? It's not that TV can't be art.

A lot of it is. Lately, I've been re-watching the HBO show White Lotus. It's beautifully made, totally entertaining, and it presents a scathing commentary on society. That's the kind of art I dreamt about making when I was in school. So how did I get so far off track? As I'm reading these reviews of Sea Breeze 2, my first thought is what happened to Seabreeze 1? Is there a Seabrease 1? But my second thought is, who's the Jacob Reed who painted this?

Is painting hotel art his day job? Has he cracked the code of wall art? I mean, it's kind of crappy, but he seems like he's making money on it. Maybe whatever his real art or passion is, every couple years, he just cranks out some beach landscapes, puts him online and has a passive income while he works his more avant-garde gallery pieces. Whoever Jacob Reed is, he's selling his art. And I'm not.

I had to know who this guy was. And could he teach me how to be financially stable as an artist? Pretty much everyone's online, but when I look this guy up, I can't find anything. No website, no socials, just his name attached to hundreds of sites that sell Seabreeze too by Jacob Reed. AllPoster. Amazon.com. To Canada.

Greathouse. With no public information, the only way I could think of finding Jacob Reed the artist was to contact every site that sold his art. So I put my baby down for an app, and I got to work. Some companies were so small, I only got an answering machine. Please leave your message after the tone.

Hi, I'm trying to get some information about a piece of art you guys sell. But the bigger the company, the more they seem to be set up to never let you talk to a person at all. You've called outside of normal business hours. We apologize. All of our agents are currently busy. We are currently experiencing high call. Please remain on the line.

The next available team member. Please wait for the next available agent. Some of the automated systems wouldn't talk to me unless I had an account. We don't recognize the phone number for what you're calling. But some of them did recognize me, and that was worse. Thanks for verifying your account. Are you calling about your order that includes your lacrosse blalls? Just uncanny.

You can take your time and talk to me, just like you would with a person. So, tell me, why are you calling today? I am trying to find the artist who painted a piece called Sea Breeze 2 by Jacob Reed, but coincidentally, my... Sorry, I did not understand if you said something or pressed a key. When I did get through to a real person, we reenacted Abbott and Costello. Oh, you're Jacob Reed. Okay, so you didn't paint this. Uh, may I have your name, sir? Yeah, my name is also Jacob Reed.

Also Jacob Reed? Yeah, yeah. One moment, please. I don't know any history of this. And they were ultimately unable or unwilling to help. I'm not sure if that's information more allowed to get out. We actually don't have a direct contact with any of the artist. We do not provide that information. We don't even have that information in the first place.

That is used for internal purposes only. Actually, that's not true. One prison did help. Thank you for patiently holding underline. I have seen here the Jacob Brits is a writer, director, and also a performer from San Diego. But it turned out they had just Googled me. He was written and directed for Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and Funny or Die, and Above Average. That one is me.

Oh, are you the one who paint it out? Oh, no, it's... I reached nearly the end of my list before finding someone who could give me the slightest bit of information. Hi, thanks for calling Waifer. My name's Kylie. Can I get your first and last name? Yeah, hey, Kylie. My name's Jacob Reed. Perfect. Jacob, do you have an order number? I don't have an order number. This is kind of a weird inquiry.

I told Kylie about C-Breeze 2, about Jacob Reed, how I'm Jacob Reed, the whole thing. And do you just want, like, their number to reach out to them? Yeah, really any information at all. Do you have a skew number for the piece? Kylie gave me a website with a contact form, which I filled out. And after the number of dead ends I'd hit, filling out a form on the internet actually felt like I was making progress. I had a little time left in the day's nap with one more company on my list, and it was a big one. Thank you for calling Walmart.com. And their automated system was the most automated system of them all.

It took a five-digit number for information on becoming a supplier or an ethics issue. According to the CDC, some people have different opinions. Sorry, I did not understand your response. Please try again. It took some time, but I was able to arrange a callback from a real person. And almost an hour later. Walmart customer care. If now is a good time to talk, press one. Thank you. An agent will be with you shortly.

Those mother fuckers. They called me to put me back on hold. While I wait, I read the painting's product page on Walmart. This fine art poster print would make the perfect addition to your home or office. Captures all of the vivid colors and details of the original. Is ready for hanging or framing a great. addition to your wall decor. I wonder what Jacob Reed thinks about being a great addition to someone's wall decor.

What if his true style was completely different? But for whatever reason, he did these two Seabreeze landscapes, and they took off. I'm totally projecting, of course, because of what happened to me with Japanese soda. Product name, mango creamy soda, parentheses, carbonated drink. I got a job at BuzzFeed, during the early days of their video department. I was there for the try guys, the pee tape, the blue dress, gold dress.

I saw it all. And as part of my training, I made a taste test video where Americans tried Japanese soda. We cranked it out so fast, nobody realized it was shot slightly out of focus until it was already online. Peering down the bottle at what color this is, I'm like a little suspect of it.

Ooh. But BuzzFeed was my day job. In the evenings and weekends for a year, I worked with a bunch of talented friends filmmakers and animators, on a pilot for a web series. It was everything I wanted to do as an artist. We called in every favor. There was stop motion, guest appearances from big comedians.

I was certain this would be the thing that launched my career. By sheer coincidence, the pilot and the BuzzFeed video were released the same week. The artistic labor of love I thought would launch my career slowly accumulated a couple thousand views. Meanwhile, the formulaic out-of-focused BuzzFeed video went viral, hitting 2 million views overnight. I would definitely buy this at the store because it's so tiny. I was baffled and frustrated. I wondered if Jacob Reed felt the same way about Sea Breeze, too. Was this his Americans try Japanese soda?

I'm way down this daydream when I realize I've been on hold for much longer than two minutes. Hello? There's no hold music anymore. Hello? I'm literally just holding my phone to my ear. Let's try calling them again. Thank you for calling Walmart. Your estimated way time is 10 minutes.

Ugh. Ugh. I was starting to wonder whether this wild goose chase was worth it. This was time I could and should be looking for paid work to feed my growing fans. family. And anytime I wasn't looking for work or spending with my family, I should be making my own art. Maybe it was time to give up on looking for Jacob Reed. Maybe it was time to give up on looking for any Jacob Reeds and focus on this Jacob Reed. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

I decided to stop. Then I got an email that changed everything. Ever fire up a session and realize your drum sounds are about as inspiring as a soggy salad? Well, if you're a producer, beatmaker, or just a tone freak chasing the warm, buttery soul of dead drums, Jake Reed, the drummer, has your one-way ticket to Groove Town. Say hello to Super Dead Drums, Volume 4, packed with deeper tones, longer decay, and more vibe than a shag-carpeted basement in 1974. Sure, you could keep layering wheat loops from that sample pack graveyard, or you could grab the real-deal vintage drums obsessively recorded by Jake Reed. We're talking 1,400 plus loops, 500 plus fills, one shots with up to 8 velocities, classic Gretsch tombs, hammered bronze snares, black beauties, and even that old Zildjian ride from the Bob Dylan biopic. Is it clear that I don't know anything about drums?

But don't worry, Jake Reed the drummer does. So head to jakereadmusic.com and snag super dead drums, volume four bundle. Listeners can use the discount code J.R was here to get $10 off any bundle over $55. That means this funky little bundle just got funkier. Go to jQuerymusic.com, enter J.R. was here at checkout, and grab the Super Dead Drums Volume 4 bundle. I don't know about you, but I like keeping my money where I can see it. Unfortunately, big wireless carriers seem to like keeping it too.

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Quince makes everyday essentials with quality that lasts. Their lightweight cashmere sweater, short sleeve, Mongolian cashmere polos, linen shorts, and 100% Pima cotton teas are all designed to mix and match afrilessly. Everything is thoughtfully made, so your wardrobe actually works season after season without overcomplicating it. Now, I recently got the neoprene travel bag. I love it so much. I just used it on a trip. I got the blue color.

It's really pretty. It's sort of a cerulean. It's gorgeous. It had a lot of pockets. It's very easy to put on top of my suitcase with that strap in the back. And I love it. I also recently got from Quince a sort of wool trench that's very thin for the L.A. weather, but looks really chic.

I just wore it to a family event, to many compliments. And you know what? I also love that Quince works directly with top factories and cuts out the middlemen. So you're not paying for brand markup or fancy retail stores. So right now, go to quince.com slash freedom for free shipping and 365 days returns. That's a full year to build your wardrobe and love it. And you will. Now available in Canada, too.

Don't keep settling for clothes that don't last. Go to QI-N-C-E.com slash freedom for free shipping and 365-day returns. Quince.com slash freedom. After wasting a week, I had decided to stop looking for Jacob Read the Artist. That's when I got an email from Todd. Remember the woman I talked to at Wayfair? She gave me a website with a forum. I filled it out.

The company on the other side of that form was Stupel Industries Limited Incorporated. And the guy who opened my email was Todd Stupel. Hi, Jacob. Thanks for the email. I just spoke to the artist and they said they are not interested. Just kidding. I see you are the artist. Feel free to call myself.

Oh, boy. Hey, Todd, this is. is Jacob. Is this still a good time to talk? Well, yes. I'm in the middle of royalties, so I just took my head away from a million numbers. But fine, let's start. Cool. I explained that I wasn't the Jacob Reed, merely a Jacob Reed. And Todd explained his family business, which for almost half a century has imported and exported stuff. First, it was costume jewelry. Providence Rhode Island was actually the costume jewelry capital of the world. It's 50, 60 years ago.

After that, it was home goods, then art products, then wall decor. Stupel Industries Limited Incorporated goes where the market goes. If we spoke again in 20 years, who knows it becomes lamps and drapes, whatever it is, I'll be ready. Even though I had a million questions about living in the costume jewelry capital of the world, I had to cut to the chase with Todd. Could he put me in touch with Jacob Reed? We have a million pieces of art. Like, I don't know this person.

But when I tell him about all the dead ends I've hit, he offers to help. Tomorrow, I will follow up on a handful of things on your behalf. Todd followed up a few days later with the name of the licensing house where he purchased the rights to sell Seabries 2. I emailed them and got no response. In the meantime, he also set me up with a very important person, the woman who picked Seabrease 2 for Stupel Industries Limited Incorporated to sell. My name is Suzanne Staley, and I am an art director. I got my PhD and art history at Brown University. I left academia and started at TJX the very next day.

TJX is the parent company for TJ Max Marshall's Home Goods, a bunch of stores. I became a buyer, traveled the world, did lots of trend work. I studied an awful lot of art history. Basically, Suzanne's job is to follow trends and put together collections of art for them to sell online. It's kind of like the way a fashion retailer puts together a spring collection, but with wall art. Every one of these images was made by a real person. It's a real artist, someone who may have gone to art school or self-taught. And I think so often when we look at products and stores, the person who is behind it has gotten lost.

It just looks like, oh, it's a mug. It's a notebook. It's a pillow. But in this case where it's art. being sold. It was a real artist and real artist's hand that went into producing the art. Suzanne couldn't remember the specifics about when and why she picked Sea Breeze too, but since all I knew about Jacob Reed the artist came from this painting, I asked her to explain the inspiration for acquiring the piece, what she was hoping people would see when they looked at it. In these images, you see a beach,

you see palm trees, sun, and an inviting porch to sit on. They evoke a love. daydream. And right now, a lovely daydream is something that I think we could all use. Our vantage point is standing just outside the frame with our heat on the deck. We can imagine walking right into this idyllic getaway, sitting by the ocean, feeling the sun and sea breeze, which is evident in long, free-flowing, billowing drakes, frequently used as a romantic icon. The conjured-up place is an unreal paradise we so desperately want to believe in. A place to escape all the nuisances and stresses of everyday life.

As Suzanne describes this piece, I get it. I mean, I even feel relaxed. I'm there on the beach, dipping my toes in the surf. I imagine all these different people who have bought this painting, put it in their homes. All the positive reviews, the business trips to some airport hotel where the only view that's not of a highway is the wall art above the bed. I get what this painting means to people. Suddenly I feel like a huge asshole.

It might not be my vibe, but something can be art as long as it speaks to people. From cheesy beach paintings to Japanese soda. I started thinking about Jacob Reed differently. More of a fun uncle, Jimmy Buffett listening, beach-loving, beach painting, boomer. With a Hawaiian shirt and a teaky drink, enjoying what he unironically and obliviously calls the Aloha lifestyle.

The beach brings him joy, and his beach paintings are his way of spreading that joy to people around the world. Of course, only Jacob Reed knows the truth. So I asked Suzanne if she'd ever talk to him. I have not. He is represented by a art licensing house. And if it's an art licensing house, then I wouldn't be talking directly. to the artist.

I made a mental note to follow up with Todd's licensing company one more time. There's also the possibility that the art may have been produced quite a while ago. We don't know how old he is. We don't know if he's, you know, still producing art, right? Wow, yeah, that just blew my mind a little bit. Who knows when with this show? And because we're not doing art history, I don't need to know who made it. I just need to know who to pay.

So, could be, I don't know, dead or alive. Don't know. With all the questions I had about Jacob Reed, one of the most basic assumptions I made is that he was still alive. Maybe the reason I can't find anything about him online is because he's not. Maybe I'm chasing a ghost. It had been a few days since my last email to Todd's licensing company. And in our email thread,

besides my full name appearing in my signature, It appears multiple times. Hi, I'm Jacob Reed. I'm looking for other Jacob Reeds. You have a piece by someone named Jacob Reed. Hope to talk soon, signed Jacob Reed. And so far, they've only addressed me as Jason. So I'm not getting my hopes up.

But I sent one last email. And finally I got a hold of Kim. Kim tells me about their business, which used to be called Top Art. Their Italian office closed, but they do what Todd does just on a massive scale. Hotel, bank, hospitals, Z gallery. Macy's, any of the retail stores. A piece like this Sea Breeze One or Sea Breeze Two, do you have any estimation on, like, how many of them have been made?

Like, how many of them exist in the world? I would say probably thousands. Okay. I believe that this is one of our more popular ones from back in the day. I would say probably over 20 years. Oh, wow. This piece... Wait, in Italy?

Italy? After all this time, Sea Bree's... Jacob Reed is in Italy? I was desperate to get some more information from Kim. The person would be involved in the company on the European side, is that someone whose name you guys would be able to give me? No. What she lacked in specifics, Kim really made up for an encouragement.

Like, if I wanted to try to track down... I just don't think it would be possible. I mean, it's a big world. Well, that's all the encouragement I needed. Before you guys were called top art? Yeah. Was that also what it was called in Italy? Yeah.

Motivated by the idea of meeting an Italian Jacob Reed, I set off to find top art in Italy. But when I Google top art and Italy, I get, you know, the top art of Italy. Michelangelo's David, Botticelli's Venus, Leonardo da Vinci, Giata, Caravaggio, the Trevi Founding, The Last Supper, The Creation of Adam, the Sistine Chapel,

the Mona frickin Lisa. It's not a needle on. in the haystack, it's a needle in the Renaissance. If only they had a more unique name, like Top Art Industries Limited Incorporated. Actually, remember those random graphic design jobs I had to do right out of college? Okay, go with me on this. One of those jobs was for legendary comedian and advertiser Stan Freeberg. His company was called Freeburg LTD.

Through which I learned that in the UK they have LTDs instead of LLC. and I knew from my other searching that Top Art's full name was Top Art LLC. So, I looked up what the Italian version of an LLC is and found out it's an SRL. Societa Responsibilata. I'm probably pronouncing that wrong. And thanks to a fact from a random job that laid dormant in my brain for two decades, I searched Top Art SRL. And that got me a shipping manifest. Yep, there's a website where you can purchase PDFs of shipping manifests. Point of origin, Milano, foreign port of lading, Genoa, U.S. port of unlady.

The document shows 270 kilograms, roughly 600 pounds of art transported from Italy to the United States. It's shipped to Top Art LLC from Top Art SRL. And it also has an address in Milan, which leads me to this guy. Hopefully I can be helpful. It's already so helpful that you speak English because I don't speak Italian. That's okay. That's okay. After the break, I find out what happened to Jacob Reed the artist. Putting up holiday lights is a huge pain.

It's time-consuming, dangerous, and it's never turns out quite like you pictured. But if you're a homeowner or business in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Jacob Reed and the team at North Star Lighting Co are there to make your holidays hassle-free and your property look incredible. North Star is a full-service Christmas Light installation company. They handle everything, installation, and takedown. They even offer permanent lighting options for year-round curb appeal, safety, and security. I mean, you could go all Clark Griswold up on a ladder by yourself or go with a bargain

installer, but why settle when you can go for a licensed insured pro who guarantees He's their work. All you got to do is email get lit at Northstarlightingco.com to schedule your free consultation. Northstar is trusted across Dallas-Fort Worth for their professional service, free consultations, and ladder-free installs that keep you safe and stress-free. Book early to get the best install dates and rates because pricing starts as low as $6 per linear foot. Spots fill up fast, especially before the holidays. So don't wait, that's northstarlightingco.com.

Northstar Lighting Co. Jacob Reed will bring the lights. You bring the cheer. Only 18 states require sex ed to be medically accurate. And relationship classes, let's fix that. I'm Shan, an A-Sex certified sex educator with a master's in psych. And on my podcast, Lovers by Shan, we make learning about love as mind-blowing as making it. Celebrities and fascinating people share an intimate story.

Then we uncover the lesson for all of us. Watch Lovers by Shan from Lemonada Media on YouTube or listen, wherever you like your podcast. Whether you're getting married, having a bar or bat mitzvah, or meeting someone with your same name for the first time, that's a moment worth capturing. But you can't just trust any Tom, Dick, or Harry, with your photos and video. You've got to trust a Jacob Reed.

Jacob Reed and the team at Ambition Film Company are a full-service photo and video production team based in Vero Beach, Florida. They offer videography, photography, drone stuff, and editing services. They've got an eye for detail and a passion for storytelling. Sure, you could hire a high, hobbyist who treats your event like just another gig, or a huge film crew you can't afford. Or you can go with an affordable team that works closely with you, values your vision, and

ensures you're thrilled with the final product. From pre-shoot planning to final edits, Jacob Reed and his team handle everything in house with the latest gear, a commitment to quality, and a vibe that only a Jacob Reed can deliver. They've covered everything from real estate tours to weddings and worked with major names like the MLB. Plus, this company is run by a second generation Jacob Reed, whose dad is also Jacob Reed. Their availability goes quick, especially for weddings and seasonal shoots,

so don't wait until it's too late. That's ambitionfilm company.com or at ambition film company on Instagram. And hey, tell them Jacob Reed sent you. It'll confuse them, but then they'll get it. After weeks of searching, I'd followed the breadcrumbs to this man. I didn't use any translation. I just wrote it in English, so don't worry. That's Mauro Torre. He's in his mid-50s with kind eyes and thick, wavy hair. He kind of looks like an Italian Kevin Klein. Malro was the unnamed partner Top Art had in Europe.

I was born in Milan, Italy, and I still live here in Milan, and I always been publishers since 35 years ago. This was my business family. I'm doing this with a lot of love and passion. Mauro's father and uncle started top art in 1974 as a small publishing company. When I finished the university, I joined them and I started to go around the world. And I saw a lot of new art that was not available in Italy at the time. In 1990, I met my business partner and we opened up a company, California, Top Art U.S.

He didn't paint, but he had an eye for what would sell. And there were two ways art would come into Mauro's collection. Either he'd find a piece and license it, or he'd sense a demand within the market and commission a team of freelance artists to supply paintings that met that demand. We were creating some art for the market. Like a small studio where artists were working,

we gave them some instruction, the elements, the feeling, the atmosphere, and the artist was just working and producing. How many artists were creating the art? Many different. Sometimes you have one artist that was very eclectic and could paint anything. Other time, you know, we had specific artists painting some specific images. So there's one specific artist I want to ask you about.

And I'm going to send you a link in the Zoom chat. Okay. And the artist's name is Jacob Reed, which is my name. And I was wondering if you knew anything about that. artist or that piece. Okay. Marrow's eyes narrow as he focuses on the image. I can see the...

He seems to be deep in concentration, searching his memory. Ah, okay. Then it hits him. This has been created. Yes. This has been created from one artist. and also the name of the artist has been created. You mean that the name of the artist is not actually Jacob Reed?

That's a fake name? Yes. Yes, correct. I was shocked. I didn't know what to ask next. After weeks of searching, I had found Jacob Reed the artist. It just never occurred to me that he wasn't real.

Why would you use a fake name? Because this was the way we were doing things. They provide the art and we do the rest. You know, we create the title. We create the name of the artist. We do the marketing. So everything about this painting, the subject, the style, the title,

even the artist's name are all part of what Morrow considered the marketing. At the time, there was not internet, we were creating history around the artist and the title and the name of the artist. It's part of this information.

Why did you, of all the names you could pick, if you're going to make up a name, why not an Italian name? Or why Jacob Reed? Because sometimes for this kind of pictures, landscape, marine, An American name would work better for an international market. We would use an Italian name for something more related to Italy.

Of all the American names, why Jacob instead of Matt or Steve? To be honest, we were just trying to get names, first name and last name, with a nice and important sound when you put them together, right? This blew my mind. time the question I was struggling with was, am I Jacob Reed, an artist? And here's someone who could have picked any name in the world to represent a piece of art. And he chose mine. So to you, the name Jacob Reed sounds important. Yeah, at the time, yes. Not anymore? No, of course, yes. Obviously, the name has to be attractive, a nice name. It has to be a short name,

easy to remember. You don't create a name that already exists. So maybe we take Jimmy Carter and George Bush, and then we do Jimmy Bush and the reverse. So when did you find out about the Jacob Reed images? I found out about them maybe a month ago. Okay. Do you remember the artist who painted it?

That's an old piece, to be honest. I don't have evidence anymore. I don't have access files and stuff like that. Yeah, what kind of weirdo keeps a spreadsheet? So who was Jacob Reed the artist? Well, like the stereotype of a pure artist I'd put on a pedestal, he didn't exist. He was the complete opposite. A literal marketing tool invented to move merchandise.

But since I still had questions, I decided to see if the man behind the curtain had answers. It seems like everything about this type of painting, you know, it's a business, right? Like it's art, but it's also... It's decoration. You know, for the decorative work. So you decorate a wall. It can be anywhere. It can be in the bedroom, in the living room, in the main cave, you know, because an empty wall is not nice.

So one thing that I'm interested in talking to you about is when I create art, I think a lot about. is this going to sell or is this something that I'm excited about? And it's hard for me to do both, right? Like it feels sometimes like it's either the commerce side or the art side. It's the commerce side, obviously. It has to sell. So when you create art, like when you create a show, you know, he has to sell, you know.

We have an expression in Italy. With the poetry, you don't eat. With the poetry, you don't eat. The poetry, it's beautiful, but then you need to make it commercial to sell it. Like, what was the singer? Not Peter Gabriel, the other guy with Genesis. What was the name? Oh, Phil Collins.

Phil Collins. You know, at the beginning, he was creating a lot of rock songs, Genesis, but then started to become more commercial, sweet, melodies. I'm sure I started to make more money. And then he said, you know what? Maybe I do five or six songs, you know, very sweet. And the rest, a little bit more rocky. But, you know, that's the business. That's the business. It's brutal, but that's the reality, right? That's definitely the reality.

A short time after talking to Mauro, I found an article about how White Lotus was created. Facing pandemic-related production delays on several of its shows, HBO had an urgent need to fill its lineup with new programming. They called up Mike White, a past collaborator with a reputation for writing quickly, and asked if he could come up with a COVID-friendly show set in a single location to film as soon as possible. So as artistic and wonderful as I think it is,

White Lotus was created to solve a supply chain problem. Sometimes we make art, sometimes we make wall art. Often we don't get to pick. The line between art and commerce is blurry and unpredictable and sometimes incredibly frustrating. So why do we do it? Because an empty wall is not nice. When I set out to find Jacob Reed the artist, I was looking to find a balance between making art and making a living.

Since then, the entertainment industry has not bounced back. It's become unrecognizable. Nearly everyone I know is out of work or has switched career. careers. The friends who are working, even the ones on hit shows, are barely making ends meet. Corporate greed, mergers, and tax loopholes have made shelving projects more profitable than releasing them. And despite all this, I found opportunities with a podcast, the one you're listening to. We had interests from major networks, investors, executive producers whose names you've definitely heard of. Then the podcast bubble bursts and all of it went away.

At the same time, my personal stakes are higher than ever. How old are you? Two and how old are you? Five. And how old am I? 49. 49? Yeah, not yet. No, 49.

Not yet. Yeah. I have two kids now. I have bills to pay. I still think about the difference between art and commerce, but it feels like a frivolous distinction. These days, I'd happily sell out if it meant I knew where my next check was coming from. The opportunities simply do not exist.

So here I am. I've got this podcast with little chance of making money. But more than any other artistic venture over the last few years, I keep coming back to it. Why? Why am I doing this? Because as Mauro said, a blank wall isn't nice.

And no matter how easy or hard it is, whether there's any money in it, something in me is compelled to keep filling the walls. And maybe that, more than anything else, is what it means to be Jacob Reed the artist. Coming up on this season of Jacob Reed and me. I'm trying to find someone named Jacob Reed. On our GPS, it's just the arrow signal in the middle of a blank page.

Based on my level of porn, I could say he's not a star. You're the other Jake Reed. I am. Yes. This is our Embombie Room. All you are doing is digging your own grave. Well, my name is also Jacob Reed, but it's not the same one. Hey guys. Okay, so I've been working on this show for years, slowly accumulating a motley crew of incredible storytellers, producers, and crafts people.

The people who make shows like Chef's Table, This American Life, 99% Invisible, and one of my favorite shows of last year, Broomgate. We're doing this without corporate money against the odds just because we want to make something that's great. And we can't do it without your support. We'll be releasing new episodes every Wednesday and you can listen anywhere you listen to podcasts. But if you don't want to wait, you can become a founding member of Jacob Reed and me on our Patreon right now and get access to early episodes plus a whole lot more. You'll also be supporting the kind of independent stories and storytellers that you want to exist in this world. and you'll join a community of supporters like my new Italian friend who eventually visited California.

Would it be okay if we got a picture together? Yeah, please. Yeah, yeah, we need to. You know. Thank you. Thank you. I'll take care of this. Are you sure?

Yeah, of course. Because I'm the struggling artist? Yeah, thank you. No problem. Hopefully it's going to be a success for you and I hope he's going to sell. Yes, that's the hope. Thanks for listening and see you next time.

Jacob Reed of Me is a production of same name LLC in association with All Trades Co, End of the Road Films, and Kelly and Kelly. Our executive producers are Danny O'Malley, Alex Revest, Adam Paul Smith, Chris Kelly, Lauren Berkovich, and me, Jacob Reed. The show is written by Margot Leitman, Danny O'Malley, and myself. Our theme song was composed by Daniel Walter, with additional music by Daniel Walter and Pottington Bear. Our interns are Simone Endress, Sophia Landman, and Sophie Pasqua.

Special thanks to our friends and family, as well as Chris Barubei, Laura Beirich, Nate Clark, C.E. Downs, Jesse Einstein, Erin David Harris, Mike Leffingwell, Jenna Levin, Matt Mazzani, Jack Penrique, Kristen Myers, Jesse Overman, Barry Rothbart, Kate Smirziak, Heather Sundell, and Scott Ullfelder. If you like the show, please tell a friend, entertainment journalist, celebrity, or multimillionaire. If you'd like to reach out, you can get in touch with us by emailing hello at jacobridamme.com or by calling our same name hotline at 194 same name. Our team of investigative storytellers is standing by. We'll be back next week with a new episode, but if you're listening in the public feed, that new episode is already waiting for you on our Patreon, which you can find at jacobritamme.com. This is the number one podcast for kids and families in the world and the newest addition to the Lemonada Media Network. We take stories written by

real kids and turn them into sketch comedy and songs, featuring professional actors, famous guests, and original music. So get ready to light up your kids' imaginations with a show that you'll also enjoy. The Story Pirates podcast, new season coming November 6th.