WTF with Marc Maron Podcast - Episode 1241 - Danny Trejo

Episode Date: July 5, 2021

There are Hollywood tough guys and then there's Danny Trejo. No need to front when you've lived a life of crime, drugs, and prison as explicitly as Danny has. But as his new memoir highlights, Danny went from being a criminal and a drug addict to a ubiquitous actor and an inspirational force in his community. Danny and Marc talk about family secrets, toxic masculinity, Charles Manson, and tacos. And Danny's son Gilbert joins in to explain how their personal struggles became intertwined. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and weekly bonus material! https://plus.acast.com/s/wtf-with-marc-maron-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Alright, let's do this. How are you, what the fuckers what the fuck buddies what the fuck nicks what's happening it's me mark maron how are you how's everything are you okay is everything working out all right i'm broadcasting from uh los poblanos los poblanos is in new mexico albuquerque the historic inn and organic farm just down the street from where I grew up that's where I stay all the time it's almost like I'm staying in my old house and it's almost like I'm staying in literally in the house I grew up in I knew the family that owned this place when they lived here I've talked to you about that before but that's where I'm at I came out here as you

can tell I'm a little short of breath even the The altitude's a bit much. Just went on a hike with my brother, his girlfriend Julia, my old buddy Dave Kleinfeld. Went up to the top of the Sandia Mountains here. The peak. Took a hike around there. Tried to breathe in the altitude. It's weird when you get it in your mind, you know. It's all about the mind, isn't it?

Before I ramble, I'm excited to tell you that danny trejo is on the show today uh danny trejo is everywhere danny tre everyone knows who danny trejo is he's he's he's he was in heat spy kids machete the muppet movies he was uh he's got taco places he's got donut places he was in sons of anarchy you know his face he's machete come on man he was on my show marin that was a that was a an interesting day all around but he's got a book out and uh it's it's pretty crazy it's really a book about recovery. Like, I could see it as a recommended recovery book. If you are trying to get off drugs or alcohol or you are in the secret society, it's a great read. But outside of that, that doesn't really reveal itself totally until later in the book.

But outside of that, the story about the time he spent in prison from when he was a young kid, you know, not I mean, he did time when he was in his teens and then on through all that insanity, the way prison works, then getting out of prison, the coincidences that led to his being in movies in the big way that he is. and then onward into afterwards and sort of maintaining sobriety and doing the work and changing your life. It's all in the book, and it's kind of a stunning book. The book is, the last book I read, I think, about the complexities and nuances of existing in prison on a social level, a political level, and a survival level was probably straight life uh the art pepper autobiography that he wrote with his wife laurie pepper which is a devastating uh account it's a he's he was a sax player and the book is a about 400 pages and it's probably about uh 375 pages about heroin in prison and uh about 25 pages about sacks and the the the big theme of the book the the ultimate message of the book i think the art pepper book at the end is uh don't

be a rat like uh chet baker don't be a rat chet baker was a rat that you know that's what you learn you also learn exactly how prison works and not unlike danny trejo's book you know ratting again not a good thing but uh but you do get a sense of what it's like to be in prison to live in prison and what lessons can be learned in prison what what what of those lessons can uh can help you in real life it's sort of a basically a prison-based self-help book in a way but the whole story is there and it's uh it's wild to talk to danny uh it's intimidating at first you would think it'd be scary intimidating and i've worked with the guy and there was he's the nicest guy in the world seriously a sweetheart and a and a big- man, but he's intensely scary looking and he's an intense guy

and you know his story. And I worked with him for a week or at least three days on a shoot, one-on-one. And I know him kind of, but I was still scared to talk to him. And he came with his son. His son, Gilbert is a film director, kind of an up and coming director. And he came with him, Gilbert drove him over and Gilbert factored so heavily in the book like he told gilbert's story along with his own story after long after he'd gotten sober his son was uh struggling with his own addiction and was sort of a an interesting topic for me as somebody who wrote a memoir to you know what respect or how much do you let the person that you're talking about? No. And what right do you have? What,

what is your story and what isn't? And it was interesting. And I brought Gilbert in towards the end of the talk to sort of include him in it, but he was bad, man. They were both, you know,

bad dope fiends. So I hope you guys had a safe fourth. I hope no one lost any hands or any fingers and you reflected on what you needed to reflect on for whatever your sense of America is. I'm in New Mexico, as you know. I'm here to see my father. My brother Craig came out, and we've been hanging out, doing the eating, doing the hanging around, spending time with the old man.

He's still cognizant and functioning fairly well. Memory's still in place, if you jar it a bit. The deep memory's there. I don't know how this ailment works, but it seems that the stuff this morning or yesterday or what he's trying to say right now is a little difficult. But the older stuff, he seems to be fairly able to tap back into those memories

from when we were kids from when he was younger weird bits and pieces i i don't know how it progresses i'm i'm trying to get up to speed uh i'm glad that we're spending time with him i'm glad i'm spending time with my family and with my brother uh you know for a guy like myself uh you know who had a lot of anger throughout all of my life towards my parents and towards the idea of how I was parented or, you know, just in terms of family in general, somehow or another, I don't know, over the last year or so, maybe over the pandemic, maybe over my own experience of grief and loss, I've definitely, something has shifted in my heart and in my mind around whatever my problems were. Maybe I finally have gotten better. Maybe I'm starting to slip. Maybe I don't remember the bad things

as much. And maybe I've found enough definition on my own to be grounded in who I am than to worry about what happened with my parents. I've just been able to compartmentalize it and forgive them, which I feel like I did a long time ago. But it is what it is. But I don't know. I'm able to approach both of them with a lot more empathy. Maybe it's because they're old and getting feeble. And that creates a vulnerability that maybe I didn't sense before. Maybe it wasn't there before. I don't know. It's sad that it has to take that.

But life is weird. But for those of you who are concerned, he's doing okay. I'm doing okay. And I'm glad I came out here. So, look, this book, Trejo, My Life of Crime Redemption in Hollywood, comes out tomorrow, July 6th. It's a great read. I blew through it in a day. And it is a great recovery book.

It is an empowering book about the possibilities and reality of being able to change your life and change how you live your life from the darkest of dark trenches of drug use and jail. Don't expect me to talk about how he got started in movies. It didn't come up. It's in the book. This is me talking to Danny Trejo. It's winter and you can get anything you need delivered with Uber Eats. Well, almost, almost anything.

And you can get anything you need delivered with Uber Eats. Well, almost, almost anything. So, no, you can't get snowballs on Uber Eats. But meatballs, mozzarella balls, and arancini balls? Yes, we deliver those. Moose? No. But moose head? Yes. Because that's alcohol, and we deliver that too.

Along with your favorite restaurant food, groceries, and other everyday essentials. Order Uber Eats now. For alcohol, you must be legal drinking age. Please enjoy responsibly. Product availability varies by region. See app for details. Be honest. When was the last time you thought about your current business insurance policy? If your existing business insurance policy is renewing on autopilot each year

without checking out Zensurance, you're probably spending more than you need. That's why you need to switch to low-cost coverage from Zensurance before your policy renews this year. Zensurance does all the heavy lifting to find a policy, covering only what you need, and policies start at only $19 per month. So if your policy is renewing soon, go to Zensurance and fill out a quote. Zensurance, mind your business. Hey-ho. Good to see you, man. Thank you. You look well.

Been doing it. I never stopped working, so I was really blessed. Yeah, yeah, man. I didn't know if you remember me. Are you kidding? I was your sponsor. I know. It was actually, no, it was the other way around.

That was the weird thing, man. Oh, that's right. You were my sponsor. Right. It drove you nuts a little bit that day. I tell a funny story about that day because your allergies were bothering you. Yeah. And like they were terrible. And you were like, you know, your eyes were all watery and you couldn't, you had a headache and you were all stuffed up.

And there were so many lines. Remember, we had to put the lines all over the car. And at one point, you were like, so many lines, man. And I said, yeah, I know, boy. And he's like, I haven't had this many lines in the last five movies I did. That's true. And then he looked at me and he said they hire me for my face they do most of the time hey i played i played mean guy chicano guy bad guy tattooed guy i know

i know but it was a great role and it was so funny because when we were acting it i knew like it was a weird place because you had to be the guy that couldn't get sober. Yeah. And you were like, I'm not this guy. It was fun, though. It was. It was a good day. I just remember shooting in Highland Park, and it was like walking around Highland Park with Jesus. Yeah. There were families coming to their windows like, Machete!

God, that was funny. Yeah, man. But that must happen everywhere you go. Yeah. Yeah, it's gotten pretty crazy.. Yeah, man. But that must happen everywhere you go. Yeah. Yeah, it's gotten pretty. Pretty crazy? Pretty crazy, yeah. So I ended up like really, you know, reading, you know, almost like I'm literally down to the last 10 pages or so, like down to chapter 35 to Danny Trejo Day.

I'm glad I got through the Gilbert, your son is here with you and he looks good. Yeah, I mean, I guess the thing on my mind right away is that I've written a memoir and there were people I put in it because it was my story who got offended after. Yeah. Now, when you were writing this, so much about Gilbert's life, about your daughter danielle's wife about your wife's lives uh did you ask them first no it's a surprise have they read it yet i don't think so oh boy most of them don't like me anyway so don't like me anyways. But Gilbert does. My son is awesome.

He read it. Oh, he read it? He knows it. He's cool. Yeah. Well, that's the most important part, that Danielle's cool with it. Those are the most important ones. The rest, Maeve read it too?

Yeah. She's the one that really helped me with it because at first we wrote it, and her exact words were, wow, you sound like an upper middle class white guy. Wow. I said, what? She says, Dan, you missed a lot of what made you. Really? Because she was one of the only people I ever confided in about my mom, about my dad.

We were together a long time, and we had two kids. So she knew the whole story. Yeah. And she knew my mom yeah i remember when i took her over to meet my mom after i had a uh uh danielle i mean gilbert yeah she says i never want to go back there again i said why that's the coldest woman i've ever met dan what are you talking about talking about? Really? She's just quiet now. You know, and I remember

Maeve way back then saying, you know, she's got some ugly secrets. Oh, yeah. And I said, yeah, she's full of shit. Really? But she felt that her, you know, I grew up with that vibe, so after she read the book, she said, you know i grew up with that vibe so so after she read the book she said you know

what you this doesn't say who you are wow this doesn't say how you got here right this doesn't say why you've had five four wives four divorces three children with women you weren't married to you know you why don't you trust women yeah and i says well yeah that's all my mom's story no it isn't yeah that's yours and so after we did it's funny after i did it yeah whoa it was kind of like a a purge it's kind of like a because we're only as sick as our secrets okay yeah yeah i know that yeah and and and it's kind of like in aa we have this saying uh oh man i got 22 oh awesome okay we have this saying uh are you sick and tired of being sick and tired yeah okay well there's a place in your alcoholism

that you can actually become comfortable with being sick and tired of being sick and tired. Where this is your way of life. You surrender to that. That. And my way of life was when I walked in that house, it was like walking into a refrigerator. With your mom who wasn't your birth mom. No, that was my stepmom. Right.

And your dad. My dad actually married her to take care of me so basically i didn't know it but she was an indentured servant right yeah yeah yeah everything she did was out of out of duty you know yeah yeah she didn't like kids right i love my pops. So initially what you had was just sort of the straight, the jail stories. Yeah. And then the sober stories and then the life. Yeah. But she, Maeve, who was your, what, your third wife.

Yeah. Me and Maeve never got married. Oh, you never got married? We had two kids. I should have married her. Yeah. But she's the one that said, look, man, you know, there's this whole other part of you that's not in here. Yeah.

So you had to go back and tell those stories. Yeah. So all the stuff about your Uncle Gilbert was there. Yeah. But not the stuff about your mother. No. My Uncle Gilbert, there's a part in there where Gilbert actually saved me from. Killing your mother.

Yeah. Yeah. I was. And you were sober yeah i mean like very sober yeah i was and i i just lost my dad yeah and i was kind of trying to be the son you know yeah and help her out it got heavy you know because because she still had her demons and still living that life you know and so well let's go back because, you know, I think it's just the relationship with your Uncle Gilbert is really the defining thing, right?

Yeah. And where did you grow up? Explain to me that part of the world. Well, I started growing up in, my family lived on Temple Street. That's where my dad met my mom. Yeah. My mom was from Maravilla in East L.A. Her husband was in the Army.

And so, you know, during the Zoot Suit era and my mom, dad were both, they ran into each other in a bar. Yeah. And they got together, you know. While her husband was off at war. Yeah. My dad actually went to jail then because they used to have big buffets and bars. Yeah. And you just would make your sandwich

while you were drinking, right? And this was downtown L.A. Yeah, 30s? Yeah, and some guy got smart with my mom, and my dad ended up stabbing him. And they left. Everybody left. We took the whole family.

He took that family to Texas. Ran off. With my aunt. Because he was on the lam. Yeah. He killed the guy? No, he just stabbed him. Yeah.

And I said that so nonchalantly. I'm sorry. It's where you come from. But anyway, so they were looking for him. And my grandmother said, you have to go back. You can't just. And so he promised her that if she got him an attorney, he would never get in trouble again. got him an attorney, he would never get in trouble again.

I think that's one of the reasons why he had so much anger towards me, because I promised every other week I wouldn't get in trouble. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know? Right. So he came back, then went to jail for two years, and when he came out, I was already born. Yeah. I was going to be three years old, I think, And my dad took me from my mom and threatened everybody.

Really? I stayed with my dad in Burbank. We lived in Burbank. And that's when he married the woman that became your stepmom. And they had more kids? No. It was just you? Yeah, just me.

Because it's weird. In the story you tell in the book, your real mom is only there once. Yeah. Because you really didn't have a relationship with her. Well, I actually met her and my sister, Diane, who I'm really close to. I'm closer to her than anybody. And when I got arrested in 1965, it came out in the LA Times, came out in the papers. Yeah.

And that's how they found me. My mom came up to the county. I met my mom and sister in the papers. Yeah. And that's how they found me. My mom came up to the county. I met my mom and sister in the county jail. They ended up coming. It was amazing. My mom was gorgeous, beautiful woman. And it's funny. It was like, I hate to say this because I sound like a sissy, but we looked alike.

Yeah, sure. You know, and I'm looking at her and I'm praying to God I don't look like her in the showers back there. Because someone's going to try to kiss me. And I mean, it was like, and my sister even said, guy, you guys look so much. Yeah. But we wrote all the time during prison. Oh, yes. I wrote to her more than I wrote to my stepmom and my dad.

Oh, so that did carry on for a while. Yeah. Yeah. And then when I got out of prison, I went to my stepmom and my dad. Oh, so that did carry on for a while. Yeah, yeah. And then when I got out of prison, I went to meet her. It was just different. It was completely different because, you know, I mean, I grew up with this other lady, and I called her mom for years, so it was funny calling someone else mom. But you felt it?

But, you know, I knew that, wait a minute, you know, this is, you know, and I had known that my dad threatened her life if she tried to see me. Wow. You know, because everybody told me, no, she left you, you know. Well, that's a whole, like, you know, that's a story, like, it's just that, you know, these kind of like, these extreme forms of masculinity. Yeah. You know, that, you know, you're pretty sort of... It's a real toxic masculinity. That's the biggest problem that I think one of the Latino communities has is the men have this toxic masculinity thing that doesn't, you know.

You know what? I embarrass my kids. I don't care if they're with their friends or not. I hug them and I kiss them and I tell them I love them. Yeah. But that's new. Right? That's new for you.

Oh, yeah. But, you know, it's funny because there'll be a bunch of his friends. I'll grab my son. I'll kiss him and I'll go, I love you, son. And all his friends will go, oh. And I'll give them a look. They'll tell me, right? But you just recently learned about the term toxic masculinity.

Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. Donald Logue gave me that term. Yeah. I mean, it's been in the culture, but it's sort of like when you- You know, gangbanging. Gangbanging is all about toxic masculinity. Yeah.

You know, then the kids don't even know it. Yeah. They don't even know it. They're fighting battles that started in 1941 and don't even know why. Why are you guys fighting them guys from across the street? Do you know? I don't even know. But literally, it's toxic masculinity.

This is what we're supposed to do. We're warriors. We're Chicanos. No. Chicanos take care of their family. Chicanos pay taxes. Chicanos have good jobs. Chicanos do things. You know what I mean? Make

history. That's what Chicanos do. What was the first... There's a moment where you talk about how you learned to act. With your Uncle Gilbert. Standing in front of a mirror with you ever seen a an army 44 you're this big yeah they're too damn heavy to be a gun yeah so he had me in front of a mirror like holding it when

you were 12 yeah yeah yeah you're give me the money give me the money and oh my god I think I was nine and your voice is hey so hi you sound like a little bitch

you know I got four guys yelling at you and finally it's like they gave me a sawed off shotgun and that made it

very simple you don't even say nothing just look at it yeah and so but it's funny and I hate to say this Right. You don't even say nothing. Just look at it. Yeah. And so, but it's funny, and I hate to say this, because, you know, you're holding a pistol, you feel, you know, strong. When you hold a sawed-off shotgun, there's a completely different feeling that runs through you. Yeah.

It's like, this is a bazooka. Yeah. You know, there's a completely different feeling. Good feeling? I won't kill you, I'll kill all of you, you know. Yeah. It's a good feeling at the time. Right.

You know, so one of the things that directors have told me, they say, how do you go from that character of a maniac to immediately playing with your kids or telling your kids you love them? And I say, you know what? Because I don't like that character. That character's real to me. Other people are acting it. You've been that guy. I played that character that went

thrown up. Because that's an evil, ugly person. But it's part of you. Yeah, it's there. You know what? It's so funny. I can count the times that guy's come out. Yeah.

I remember – Since you got sober, you mean? Yeah. Yeah. We were – my kid, Danny boy, was running up and down the hallway in the departments that we lived in Venice. And one of the guys, one of the tenants grabbed him, right? Hey, stop running! Yeah.

And shook him, right? Right. And he came running in the house. I could see his arm was red. And he said, that man's grabbing me. You know, he's crying. I can remember actually kicking in that man's door and going in and grabbing him. Yeah.

And him saying, my God, you're a monster. Yeah. You're a monster. him saying, my God, you're a monster. You're a monster. Because when that demon comes out, it's like your whole structure, your face changes. It's not like, oh, you look angry. Right.

Yeah, it's blind rage. Yeah, yeah. And you're just like. You know what? It's funny. And I've seen that. I can remember when my dad grabbed me and was frothing at the mouth and just like his whole demeanor changed. Just snapped.

Yeah. Man. And also, the drug started with your uncle as well, right? Oh, yeah. My uncle, the first- Holding the guns and the dope. The first drug deal that I've ever gone I was really funny

I was in a I think what was it a 1942 Chevy yeah 1942 Chevy yeah

and the radio didn't work it was a 42 Chevy or a 36 I don't know but but the

the clock didn't work. Yeah. My uncle had a bowl of weed, you know, and he says, okay, count the songs. So we stole my grandpa's car. I didn't know we stole the car. Yeah. My grandfather was asleep.

We took the car. Yeah. And we're driving. Okay, there's one song. There's two songs. Yeah. There's three songs yeah there's three songs that's like nine minutes

yeah Gilbert would pull in front of a house and the guy'd come out give me three so he'd roll three joints give him three joints

the guy would pay and then we'd take off right go to someone else and he was kind of like a grub hub or something yeah

we'd help but he was delivering yeah and how many songs? We got 12 songs, you know, so we knew exactly how many, and then we'd take the car back. Oh, so you wouldn't be out too long? No, yeah, so my grandfather wouldn't know we took the car. Right, yeah, yeah, yeah.

You know, and that was like my first. How old were you? Eight. Eight? Yeah, with Gilbert, yeah. So this guy, because your dad was raging, did he like you? You know what? I think because of what happened with my mom.

Yeah. In the back. It's like if somebody tells you, hey, I saw your wife at a club last night. Not my wife, man. I was at home. Oh, you mean, okay. And then, hey, did you? No, I was at home. Oh, you mean, okay, so. You know, and then, hey, did you?

No, I wasn't there. Yeah, yeah. But it's at the back of your mind. Right. And I think for the rest of our lives, that was at the back of my dad's mind. Before he found out about your uncle. Yeah, right, right, you see. He knew something was up. Yeah.

Because I told him. How old were you? I was seven. You were seven years old, and your father's sister's husband came over. And you didn't know what was going on. No. I thought they were going to give me a present because they closed the curtains. They closed the curtains and made you go outside.

Yeah. Yeah. And about three weeks later, a month later, my mom got back from Mexico. She'd gone on a trip to Mexico and came back. And I had told him. Yeah. And then in the middle of the night, I woke up with my dad grabbing me by the throat and lifting me up. Yeah.

Why did you lie? Why did you lie? Yeah. And my mom screaming, tell him the truth. You lied. Yeah. Shit. I said, I lied.

I'm sorry. Because in that moment, because when you talk about it, you knew someone was going to get hurt. Now, it was either going to be you or her. Yeah, exactly. Well, it was kind of like I knew I was going to die, you know, or. Yeah. was going to die, you know, or. Yeah.

Because, I mean, I don't know how to explain that. Yeah. I don't explain that rage. Yeah. I don't know how to. That he had. Yeah. Because I. You weren't looking at your dad.

No. Right. I was looking at an animal. Yeah. And barely, I'm sorry, I lied, I lied. Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry. Save yourself.

I lied, yeah. And then he threw me back down on the bed. And I could hear him fucking. You know what I mean? Yeah. But I think after that. It was always in there. I think he always, that's why he would never, me and my dad were never close.

Never got close. Yeah. You know, we always had that. always that's why he would never me and my dad were never close never got close yeah you know we always had that and then when he found out for real yeah it broke him it just fucking broke him but that was years later years years later so you think that i'd already been to the pen i came out came back oh yeah but you think at that at the moment that you you brought up that it stuck in him he knew you were telling the truth. Why did you have to lie? Well, I don't know if he knew.

I don't think he wanted to believe. Right, of course. Right, yeah. You know? Yeah. Because my dad was, I'm like my dad. Yeah. I don't know how much money I make.

Yeah. You know, all the wives I've had became very rich. Yeah. Okay? Because I just signed my tear, paid everything. So without a wife, it's like nothing gets paid. In fact, well, my last wife, I never paid taxes. She did.

I never paid rent. I just made money. So when we divorced, she ended up with eight houses yeah you got nothing and uh i ended up with my bank account and that was it you know and uh well that was a yeah kind of a the the sad part of the story was that uh you know that you were always hustling yeah yeah but when did you first go to jail? What was it for? God, throwing a rock at Darlene Sanchez. I didn't throw a rock.

Yeah. We were playing hit the bat. Yeah. And we hit the bat, you hit the ball, and then whoever, if you catch it, that means you're up. But you pick it up and you roll it towards the bat. Yeah. It hits the bat and jumps up.

Right. And then they have to catch it. Yeah. So I learned how to throw it and hit the bat and jumps up. Right. And then they have to catch it. Yeah. So I learned how to throw it and hit the bat and it would bounce back. Right. But the bat jumped up. Pow! Hit her in the eye. Cut her eye.

Yeah. So Darlene's mom and dad were mute. They couldn't speak. They spoke in sign. Yeah. And the kids all ran in. Danny hit Darlene with a bat. Danny hit Darllene with a bat daddy and darlene with a bat so ah they called the police and the minute i heard police i ran that's gilbert always said and uh and uh they came and when they got me they put me in the car and i i they were uh you know

like i guess teasing me you know you'll get the chair kid and she you know, like, I guess teasing me. You'll get the chair, kid. And she, you know, hope she don't die. You know, I ran home. Yeah. And nothing was ever done. They realized what had happened. Right. But that was my first introduction with the police, really. And, you know, once that fear of going to jail is gone, nothing will stop you.

But you think that because you talk about how it was just your legacy, that was your family, that everybody ended up in jail, everyone was criminals, everyone ended up on dope. When I got to Juvenile Hall, there were so many Mexicans in Juvenile Hall, I thought Mexicans were supposed to go there. It was literally, it was like crazy. Hey, what's up, guys? I hadn't seen for weeks.

That's where they were. Yeah. You know, and so there was this big camaraderie. Yeah. You know, and you make friends. But why'd you go in for the first time? Assault, ADW, assault with a deadly weapon. Oh, yeah?

What'd you do uh i was in james's restaurant and stabbed a couple of sailors with a broken bottle they attacked me so yeah oh right right yeah yeah yeah and uh and then you know just but yeah brutally we just just stuff yeah what we did and uh were you using then too yeah Yeah. I've always used, my uncle turned me on to grass when I was eight. Yeah. And then gave me a fixer heroin.

It was funny because I remember my sponsor said, Danny, everybody talks about abuse. I was never abused. Yeah. My sponsor said, you don't think giving marijuana to an 80-year-old is abuse?

No, I thought it was sharing. Or tying off a kid who's 12. And my dad, that anger, it was just, that's the way it was. It wasn't abuse. It was like, you fucked up, so you get fucked up. Do you frame it as abuse now? Now, definitely. I didn't know. It was like you fucked up, so you get fucked up. But do you frame it as abuse now? Now, definitely. I didn't know.

Definitely, man. You can't grab a kid's throat. Yeah. You know? I remember when my son, Gilbert, killed me. One time I caught him using in my house when he was on the run. Yeah. And I grabbed him.

And I turned into my father. And felt it. It was like I couldn't breathe. And I grabbed him and I turned into my father. And it was like I couldn't breathe. And I ran outside and I sat on the curb and I was sobbing. I said, fuck, get away from me. I was screaming, get away from me. I wanted my dad to get away from me. And I went back and I apologized to Gilbert. I'm so sorry, man.

I will never. I will never do that. I'll never. I swear to God, but you can't use it in this house. They'll put me in prison forever. He understood that. That he understood.

So it was an interesting story, the book, when you saw your uncle tie off, it was those old kind of like antique glass syringes. Yeah, my grandfather was a diabetic. Yeah. I got in trouble for using that with a squirt gun.

Yeah. Yeah. One time. Yeah. Big glass one. Yeah. With that one needle. Yeah.

And that was not a 26. It's huge. Right? Yeah. Yeah. And so, you know, and again, I had so much trust in this guy. And Gilbert, your uncle. Yeah.

I just said, give me some. Mm-hmm. I had so much trust in this guy. And Gilbert, your uncle. Yeah, I just said, give me some. And prior to that, when my grandfather was screaming at us and Gilbert was using, I didn't know he was shooting dope. But my grandfather was, and my grandfather was the same way. He became. Was your dad's dad? Yeah. Yeah. He became a monster.

And I was his favorite because our birthdays were both May 16th. Yeah. You know, I was, but he was screaming at us. Ah, you got, and this froth, and I can remember feeling like I was going to shit my pants. I knew he was going to hit me. Yeah. And I was squeezing like this. Waiting for it. Waiting for it. And I look over and I see my Uncle Gilbert. He squeezing like this. Waiting for it.

Waiting for it. And I look over and I see my Uncle Gilbert. He's doing this. Nodding out. He's nodding. And I'm like, oh, my God. And I'm waiting. I'm waiting.

He got so angry because Gilbert now is like this. Yeah. Full nod. He got so fucking. He let out this evil primal scream and went into his room and slammed the door. And I'm staring at Gilbert. And Gilbert went, did he hit us? I want to be like that.

I want to be like that for the rest of my life. Did he hit us? He is the coolest. We stared death in the face, and he went to sleep. Yeah. That's what heroin is. God. And so when I found him, when I seen him, and he told me, I threatened to snitch on him.

Yeah. Because I seen that syringe, and I got in trouble for it. Yeah. I said, give me some, Gilbert. Yeah. And he goes, no, no, you can't have none, Daniel. You can't. I remember saying, I can't do this to you. Yeah. I said, give me some, Gilbert. He goes, no, no, you can't have none, Daniel. You can't. I remember saying, I can't do this to you.

I said, give me some or I'll tell. Oh, wow. And I locked the door and he said, okay, hold this. And I was holding his tie and I'm like amazed. I hate shots. Who doesn't? And I watch him and I see the explosion of the blood. Boom.

I seen where he got all his stuff. He went from being frigid and, eh, to like, ah, you want to get loaded, to this unbelievable character who could stare death in the face and go to sleep. At peace or something. And I said, give me it, bang. And I didn't do well my first fix. I ended up out in the front yard soaking wet because they had to put me under the shower. Oh, you OD'd?

I did, yeah. I think I just went out. Yeah. And I just, but I loved it. You were 12. You loved it. Yeah. I just fell in love loved it. You were 12. You loved it. Yeah. I just fell in love.

And that began that relationship. And then you also, you know, were robbing and stealing. Yeah. And that was the whole other one. The whole thing was drinking, too. Yeah. You know, because you can't run around at 12. Me and Frankie, a guy named Frankie Mangaro, who's now passed away, were probably the youngest dope fiends running around the valley.

He was like a year older than me. God, he was so good. He was so good, he burned everybody, right? And I caught him one time because he had burned us. And he said, no, come on, I got a score right now. I'll give you half, I'll give you half. He says, here, just stay here with me. This is my car, here's the keys.

I swear to God. So he splits. I'm sitting on this guy's fender, right? All of a sudden, this big hillbilly comes out. The hell are you doing on my car, boy? What do you mean? It's Frankie. Jazz, on my car.

And I look at the keys. They're house keys. The son of a bitch. He got you. And later on, later on, 10 years later, I'm in the pen. Yeah. And who comes in is Frankie. I'm going to kill you. And he goes, no, no, wait.

I got a scoring. Fuck you. He remembered. Yeah, God, man. That's hilarious. But so you know what? Besides the alcohol. Yeah. P, God, man. That's hilarious. But so you know what? Besides the alcohol, pills, the drink, because it was tough to get heroin when you're 13, 14. So we were just on a mad binge to get it.

Yeah. But I like the way you talk about how the rush of robbing, the rush of doing the crime, you didn't know whether that was more exciting than the drugs or the drugs are more exciting. You know what? You don't know whether you're doing robberies to support your drug habit or drugs to support your robbery habit. Yeah. Because robbery, burglaries, extortion, everything, it all goes together.

Most of your crime in Los Angeles is drug related. But what was great about this book because i read the last book i read that you know talked this much about you know politics on the inside the way jail works was that art pepper's book uh straight time but he really goes into it not unlike you did you know how what it takes to survive in jail. Well, the biggest, the thing in jail, and it's like a lot of the racism in the United States comes from jail. Yeah. Okay, that's where it is.

Yeah. That's where people separate themselves. People have to separate themselves. Yeah. Do you understand? It's not a one. Into tribes? Oh, absolutely.

yeah it's not a it's not a want into tribes oh absolutely into let me tell you something in los angeles we have friends all different different when you know gangs and then you have gangs that are companies when you go to jail all of a sudden your gangs mexican this game you're together you're all together all right for protection for help for whatever now you mean you go with your people. Absolutely. You have to. Right. Do you understand?

You have to or you'll be a mark. And it's like now we got the North and the South. It's stupid. Those are Mexican gangs. The Mexican mafia, the Crips, Bloods, and Norteños. You know, so it's like. Yeah. It's just crazy.

But. But when you. When did you. How did you. How did you learn that stuff? Just by going in? Because you started in juvie, right? And then you did your first real stint where? Youth Authority.

Well, camp, actually. Journal camp. But now you've got to understand. I had a mentor. My Uncle Gilbert taught me everything about- How to survive in prison. Yeah. Somebody asked you, where are you from?

Just hit them. Just hit them. Because if they really cared where you were from, they wouldn't ask you. Yeah. You understand? Where you're from, you better say the right word or you get jumped. So you might as well get down first. Right.

So no- It was all about not showing any vulnerability at any turn. At all. And there was all these places it could happen. You've got to remember, there's two kinds of predator and there's prey. Now, all the celebrities, I love the celebrities that, yeah, well, I just did my own time. You're a damn liar because you paid somebody. Yeah.

All of them. All of them. Oh, you mean when they were in the inside? Absolutely. Absolutely. They just used their money to. And they'll you know i had a posse yeah well you took care of that posse or you wouldn't have a posse right you know that's just the way it is yeah or they would again they would have been yeah turned out a girl it's like i tell people i see people like really tough guys in Hollywood, right?

It's so weird. Every wannabe tough guy in Hollywood has asked me, hey, what would happen to me if I went to jail? You want to tell them you'd be a girl. Oh, no, you'd be all right because you got smarts. But you have to understand, you have to grow up in that environment to survive. And I know some of the toughest guys in the world that were, I've never seen a fair fight in jail. Everybody thinks, well, I can fight. Six inches of steel.

And that's it. Bang, bang, bang. It's easier to get away with a stabbing than it is a fist fight. Right. Because if I sock you, you're going to sock me back. And you can see, yeah. And then you can, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, and they shoot at you. If I come up behind you and stab you three times and walk away,

I'm gone before you drop. Right. And that's what happens. That's all the time. So when you went in there, you had friends in there, and you just sort of got to know how it worked, but you were also boxing. Yeah.

My uncle, Gilbert, again, he was golden gloves. I was his punching bag. He used to say I was his sparring partner, but basically I had to learn how to fight or get my head beat in. Right. He taught me really well, and everybody knew i could box yeah so the minute i would show up in an institution hey all right we got a chance and then they'd set me up a fight with with whoever yeah with their guy yeah and then you kick his ass and i did pretty good yeah i did i did pretty good fighting so when

good yeah i did i did pretty good fighting so when it's it just like the turn happened like you it seemed that you were sort of resigned to the fact that you were that you were destined to spend your life in jail and that somehow or another you were going to survive it in that you talk about the the sort of immediacy the now of sam quentin right now right it's interesting because that now which is like heightened by pure fucking violence, you know, that's what Buddhists are trying to find.

But the other kind of now, you want to be present. Yeah, right. But being present in a spiritual way is different than being present on the yard. Yes, yes.

I mean, the term, I got your back, that came from prison because when you're talking to somebody, you're watching their back because they're facing you. Yeah. So you, I got your back, that came from prison. Because when you're talking to somebody, you're watching their back. Because they're facing you, so I got your back. Yeah.

And they can see who's coming at you. Baggy clothes. You know, everybody wants to wear baggy clothes. Came from prison. Because if somebody didn't like you, okay, yeah, 30s, yeah, here. And they're 42s. And that's where that came from. So you learn how to fold them over and make them fit.

But there's also something that I'm starting to realize in show business and just in life in general that, you know, loyalty in prison means something. Yeah, absolutely. It doesn't mean something out here. No, no. It doesn't mean nothing. It does to me, but it doesn't. In general. In general, yeah.

It's sort of a fascinating thing to me, me again about the small town nature of it is that you being a celebrity but even before you were celebrity the guys who were in prison those guys that you know the the guy who were the guys who called the shots yeah shot callers the shot callers i mean they keep a check on everybody who runs through there and who they've given a pass yeah to live it seems like you're if you're of a certain neighborhood or you're a certain ilk you spend time on the inside you you're being allowed to live. Exactly. By a group of guys.

Well, you know what? It's like this. There's two groups of people. There's predators and there's prey. Now, if you've proved that you're a predator from juvenile hall to camp to youth authority to state prison, then you are accepted as a predator. You're not. And you're allowed to live. to state prison, then you were accepted as a predator.

You're not. And you're allowed to live. The only problem with that is that I might wake up and I'm a predator, but the guy down the tier says, well, I think you're prey. So now you have to do whatever it takes to make sure he knows you're top predator. So you're putting in that position. That means kill him. Yeah. And that's the position that you're in in prison that you don putting him in that position. That means kill him. Yeah. And that's the position that you're in in prison that you didn't ask for.

You don't ask for it. Well, some people ask for it. Because you talk about your nephew, Gilbert, your Uncle Gilbert's son was put in that position. Yeah. And you've got no choice if you want to continue living. Yeah, right. But it's also like that's prison, man. Right?

That's what happens. Right now. Right now now i'm so proud and my uncle gilbert i know in heaven he's like so fucking because my my my his son gilbert yeah i got out of prison me and mario castillo went to governor brown yeah the senators went to everybody yeah and uh and uh he did he went to prison when he was 17. He got out when he was 55. He's in the electrical union right now. He worked on the Rams stadium, go Rams, go Rams, and now he's working at the airport. It's funny because when you work at the airport, you have to have three, what do you call it,

people to vouch for you, right? Right, yeah. So when he got the three people, the feds grabbed him immediately. What do you mean? You got three ex-convicts here. You got Danny Trejo, Mario Castillo, and Sal Saldana. You got ex-felons, but the powers that be all knew us and knew what we did. Right.

So right now he's working at the airport. He's doing good? Doing great, man. That's great. Also, there's weird little tidbits in the book. He's been out of the pen three years. Yeah. And just bought a brand new Alexis.

Oh, that's good. Gorgeous. That's good. No, but he bought that one that does 170. Oh, really? In three seconds or some shit. Oh, you guys, you're just speed. You're just junkies, adrenaline junkies.

Not me. I'm going slow. Oh, you're going slow? Yeah. Well, that's good man i'm glad that there are some some happy endings or some happy turns of events i mean there's some great side stories in this about you and that guy dennis that way that people come back into your life and that you know once you made the turn that you had to that was the interesting thing too

in the book is that you know when you hit the wall because you're using on the inside right all you can yeah yeah everything i mean like the and all that hustle of like you know how you position yourself to get the shit and how you you know you run the racket for the big guys to collect on on debts and all that the survival thing in prison is fascinating to me because i hope i never have to learn that firsthand yeah you know i think i'm i think i'm through. Pay your taxes. That's the only reason you go to pay your taxes. I'm trying to pay mine right now. But what was it that finally, because you had situated yourself as somebody who was helping, the wardens brought you into, they let you stay on a certain block so you could be sort of a mentor or keep some of these kids in control.

So, you know, once you started to do esteemable acts, right? Yeah. Like that, what was it that made you get sober? Well, I was actually in the hole in Soledad. Yeah. In 1968, Cinco de Mayo. Yeah. Now, Cinco de Mayo yeah now Cinco de Mayo

to most Mexicans means 5th of May yeah and it's actually the the battle of Puebla some battle that they fought

they beat the French I think but up here Cinco de Mayo if you're a real Mexican it means you better have bail money ready

yeah okay because you're probably going Mexican, it means you better have bail money ready. Yeah. Okay, because you're probably going to jail. Drink all the tequila you can. Drink all the beer. Either you're going to beat up your wife or she's going to stab you or you're going to shoot a gun or fight your neighbor. Something's going to go wrong, Cinco de Mayo. Yeah.

We had an outside baseball team come in. Yeah. Cinco de Mayo. We had an outside baseball team come in. Cinco de Mayo. They could have picked any other Hollywood, any other holiday, but you've got 2,000 drunk Mexicans. And Cinco de Mayo and Ray Pacheco socked a free person. Henry kicked the coach. It was alleged I threw a rock and hit Lieutenant Giddens. This was like at this baseball game. You guys were all in the stands drunk on homemade on Pruno.

Loaded. Yeah. And your friend, what was his name, Ray? Ray, yeah. He was just, you couldn't stop it. You talked about that vibration that happens before shit was going to go down. Me and Ray had been friends since we were 13 years old. Yeah.

He was from White Fence, a gang in L.A., and I used to come visit my grandma, my mom's mom, my stepmom's mom in L.A., and we played ball in the street. You knew that guy. And so when we got to the joint, it was funny, but before it started, we knew. It was a, but he, before it started, we knew. It was like just a, it was a beautiful day. A cloudy day without clouds.

Yeah. If you can understand that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And everything's bam. And in the pin. And these are white kids, right? The kids on the team. Yeah, these are all.

It was a good, what was it? Like some sort of charity event? No, it was kind of just a sports game. They came in to play the convicts, okay? But it was kind of a, the third baseman was like kind of a big white dude. Yeah. Chewing gum. Yeah.

You're not allowed gum in the prison, you know? So anybody with respect wouldn't chew gum. Right. It's that simple. We're not allowed gum in the prison you know so anybody with respect wouldn't chew gum it's that simple we're not allowed you know and they tell him they're not allowed gum but he chose to chew gum and and Ray started I wish I had gum you know I wish I had gum

I kept edging Ray down this guy will kick your ass shut up so I went to the bathroom and when I went to the bathroom Ray ended up attacking this guy. And I came out and just all hell. Just boom. It's an explosion. Like a prison riot almost.

That's what it was. I mean, everybody. It's funny because when that thing happened with Trump and they were saying insurrection, insurrection. I was trying to say, What's an insurrection? They said, what's like a riot? I said, shit, I got a riot. Yeah, yeah. And I almost went to the gas chamber.

You know what I mean? Right. So that's what started over, gum. Yeah. Just wanted gum. Just wanted gum. Fucker. Fucker chewing gum.

I think right there. In the hole. In the hole. In the hole. They put you in the hole and you didn't know how you were going to be sentenced. And you were afraid that that was it. Well, you know, you lose the ability to be afraid. You have to have anger. You know, and fear is anger.

Right. You know, so you're kind of angry at everything and and i remember somebody had and shit somebody wrote god sucks in the hole now yeah now i you know i've been in the hole and nothing you know it's okay cool time to relax but i gotta kick these pills and this heroin shit so so every time you were in the hole you had to sweat it out yeah and uh and you said you you made you played movies in your head oh yeah yeah no that this was this was i did that before yeah this time i kind of like just remember saying god if you're there yeah me and ray and henry will be all right if you're not we're screwed

i remember that just like and then people always talked about potential. So in grammar school, he has a lot of potential, but he can't sit still. Oh, he has a lot of potential, but he won't shut up. He has a lot of potential, but he can't stop moving. A lot of potential, but he interrupts. My probation officers, God, Danny's got a lot of potential if he could just stop committing burglaries.

He's got a lot of potential if he could just stop committing burglaries. He's got a lot of potential. And I remember asking myself, what happened to all that potential? What happened to all that potential? I'm in prison. I was somewhat of a leader, but was that it? And I remember asking God that if we have to die, let me die with dignity. I didn't want to go screaming and yelling. To the chair or to whatever? To the gas chamber. This is all gas chamber. I said, let me die with dignity.

And I'll say your name every day, and I'll do whatever I can for my fellow inmate. And I remember saying inmate because I never thought I was getting out of prison. Yeah. And by the grace of God, it was a DA reject. Yeah. The district attorney rejected it. What the hell? No case here.

No case. Nobody's saying, he did it. Right. You know what I mean? There was no proof that anyone threw the rock or whatever. Mickey Mouse did it. His mother did it. Oh, they were looking for witnesses and the was no proof that anyone threw the rock or whatever. Mickey Mouse did it. His mother did it. Oh, they were looking for witnesses and the inmates?

No one was going to rat. No, you can't. You can't. Yeah, so. And that was a time when you didn't rat. Yeah. This was 1968. Yeah.

When there was still a little bit of honor. Yeah. And now it's like everybody wants to wait. I'll tell. They stand in line to tell. Yeah, they'll do it on Twitter. But so, you know, I came back out. Yeah.

And all of a sudden, I gave up the little heroin thing I had. And I said, I'll take the money. But, you know, I'm not going to deal. Oh, you weren't moving the dope anymore. No, I was just collecting a little of the money. And I was collecting money from the people I was protecting and stuff. No more drugs. But I stopped drinking and I stopped using.

And when I went to board 11 months later, August, I went to board in July. Yeah. And they said, we're giving you a 30-day rehab. Yeah. Rehab. That means you're out in in July. Yeah. And they said, we're giving you a 30-day rehab. Yeah. Rehab. That means you're out in 30 days. Yeah. I remember Mad Dog Madden.

That was his name, the parole agent. Yeah. The parole board member. He said, I'm going to give you a chance to try your wings, Danny. Yeah. You got a 10 top. You've done five. Bring us back a life sentence.

In other words, we know you're not going to make it. You got a 10 top. You've done five. Bring us back a life sentence. You know, like in other words, we know you're not going to make it. So he lets you out knowing that you'll probably be back. Yeah. But then I'd be back, and then I'd have a life sentence. He was defying you. Yeah, and I wouldn't. To do something good. They wouldn't have to bother with me anymore.

Right, right, right. So I came out, and I was like, what am I going to do? How do you go from burglarizing every house in your mom's neighborhood to being a nice guy? But you knew what AA was. Oh, yeah. No, I knew what AA was from 1959. Yeah. I stumbled into a meeting.

We thought it was a party. Yeah. You know, all these cars partying. I walked in carrying a case of beer, three bottles of wine, half pint of whiskey. I was already loaded on pills, and I had a.38 snub nose. And me and all my crew,

we all busted in thinking it was a party. And they asked me to stay. Yeah, they knew. Yeah. And I never, I've come back. 1969, when I come out of the pen, I went back to that meeting. You did? And I actually told them I'd been here before.

And a lady named Doris Coates remembered me. Really? Doris and her husband. Yeah. We remember you. Hi, sunshine. And I think, wow, I couldn't believe it. Yeah.

I like that whole thing about like how you, and you met Manson in prison briefly? Yeah, yeah. Manson wasn't nothing. I mean, I know the man. I know. I liked how you characterized him. He was like a crazy person. Skinny, crazy person.

And it's like what he did, he couldn't have done in East Los Angeles. He couldn't have done in Compton or Watts. He did it with a bunch of runaway girls. Right. Runaway little girls. He was a pimp. Exactly. Exactly.

Yeah. And he's good. He had good criminal lingo. I mean, he could play the dozens and do all that stuff. And it's impressive. But basically, they were going to- He's a con man. Yeah.

Yeah. Good con man. Yeah. Yeah, good con man. Yeah. I had talked to Quentin the other day. I love Quentin. I love Quentin. Did you watch Once Upon a Time in Hollywood? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

He killed those Manson kids. It's so funny because you know what? Listen, listen. What's funny, when I met Quentin, I was doing Desperado. Yeah. And I didn't know who he was. I just knew I was doing Desperado. Yeah. And I didn't know who he was. I just knew I was doing Desperado with Robert Rodriguez. Yeah.

And all of a sudden, this guy comes up and goes, hey, you're perfect. We're going to do this movie. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Yeah. And he's just, and I'm like, it's like, you know, I know I'm talking, this guy's like, what is this? And then when he went away, I, who's this? That's Quentin Tarantino.

Right, right. Oh, okay. Was he talking about Machete God yeah they were thinking they were thinking about that a long time they were thinking

that when we did Desperado the first one I did with Robert Rodriguez I thought it was great like I started to realize that this idea because being a sober guy

myself and being a selfish asshole myself and having a rage problem myself not to I mean rage is rage but the idea of service like you, you know, once you decided, once you said to God that I'm going to be this guy that's going to help, is that, you know, you had to learn how to do it.

I had to do it. Right. But, like, it wasn't necessarily that you wanted to do it. No. The first thing I can remember doing, I was standing out in front of my mom's yard on a Saturday. Yeah. No, Sunday.

It was a Sunday. Because I'd gone to meetings a Saturday night. Yeah. Stayed out until 4 o'clock in the morning with Frank and two girls. Yeah. And then came home, and I was standing in front of my mom's, and I had a double shot glass. But it had soda in it. Yeah. yeah with ice

because I didn't want anybody to know I wasn't drinking right because the macho thing guys would go by all right yeah and uh and then I seen this lady pulling out her trash yeah because uh uh trash day was Monday yeah and uh they they didn't have the big rolling green cans and stuff. They just had a big pan, that you would throw everything in, garbage, everything. And you'd drag it out. And I remember seeing her, and I went over to help. I remember what she said. She said, no me robate.

Don't rob me, Danny. And I said, shut up, vieja. And I grabbed her can, and I pulled it out. Then I went to the backyard and grabbed the other one. That lady never took her eyes off me. She knew I was going to break for the garage and steal her lawnmower or something. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I brought the can and I left.

And I walked out. And she just stood there staring at me. And that's what I did. Every Sunday, I would take out all the old people's trash. I'd just go take it out. And it was this decision you made. But I don't know what struck me about it was that when you knew, or that any of us know who are in the program, when our ego is getting too big, or we're acting dry, or we're acting

out, or we're doing things that we're going to have to make an amends for, that the only way to balance that is service. Yeah. Let me tell you something. going to have to make an amends for that the only way to balance that is service yeah let me tell you something when my in my garage i have a six-car garage not because i'm wealthy on a just like that's the way i bought the house had this beautiful and i got old cars i bought this garage yeah and we waxed the garage floor yeah shiny yeah jail cell used to be and every time i start thinking i'm all that, you understand?

You know when you're like that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. When you yell at somebody or, wait a minute, I get a roll of toilet paper. I go out to the garage. Yeah. I lay on that shiny floor. Yeah. And I put that toilet paper for my pillow.

Yeah. Because in the county jail, there's never any place to sit down or lay down. Yeah. So you get the toilet paper and you lay on that floor yeah and i just lay there yeah and it just it all comes back to focus it's yeah you know you know what this is yeah you get comfortable you asshole wow that's how you do it? Honest to God. It's kind of like my little remembrance or my little slap in the face. It's like, this is where you came from. Yeah.

And also, I didn't know the through line of the story. But, I mean, when you got out of prison, you dedicated your life to service on all levels. Yeah. Helping open rehabs, getting guys on methadone, off methadone, off heroin. It was your life. Yeah. Still doing it. Yeah.

I still work for Western Pacific Rehab. They're right here in Glendale. Yeah. Western Pacific Med Corp. Mark Hickman, that's my CEO. Yeah. And he knows what I do. Yeah.

And we go up to meet with Governor Newsom. We go up to meet. And it's like, because of the celebrity, I can get in. Yeah. You know, so. But it's still about service. Oh, that's all it is. Because that's what they say in the racket, you know.

They say you got to put your sobriety first. Absolutely. And that was always the thing. And you know what? What I love about the program is that it's not just service to the program. It's not just making coffee. No, that's fine. Yeah.

Make the coffee. But it's also being of service to the world. Yeah. You know, and that's why I love doing that. And it's just, I like in the book how you try to reconcile, or at least they're moving towards, you know, a deeper understanding of women, that, you know, you take real responsibility in the book. You know, you don't look like a good guy. I wasn't.

You know, like, even in the book, you know, you talk about all this great shit, but you're like, I was doing all this great shit, but I was a fucking animal. I can remember waking up going, oh, shit, I got to get home. And my wife saying, you are home. Oh, honey, I had the worst dream. You are not going to believe this. Oh, God.

Oh, man. You know what? Let me tell you. That's a good one. All four wives could have stabbed me, and they would have been right. I mean, it's just that I can't. I have to take responsibility for all that.

I had some great women. I had some great women. I had some great women. And it was like, I, you know, it was my, I'm not going to say my background. It was me. You know, I was a pig. But do you ever think of it in terms of, like, you know, outside of whatever the macho thing is? Because you really say in the book that, like, you didn't give a shit about their feelings. No. You were going to do what you were going to do, and either they were going to take it or they weren't. Because you really say in the book that you didn't give a shit about their feelings.

You were going to do what you were going to do, and either they were going to take it or they weren't. You know, before I got clean and sober, if you were on fire, I wouldn't piss on you. I didn't care. It didn't matter. I think going through juvenile hall and going through, you become somewhat of a sociopath. You have to. To survive. Yeah, to survive.

Right. But that sticks with you. Yeah. You know, and the one thing my uncle taught me was never be a bully. Don't fight down. And yet, I was a bully to the women I was with, but not to the men. Because culturally, you didn't look at them the same way. No. And you talk about how i looked at them the way my

dad looked at my stepmom as a as a indentured server right right just there to you know to and it's funny it's funny when i when i got with mave i had danny boy i had my oldest son with diane yeah and i got with her almost to take care of my son. Just like your dad did. I fell in love with her. I mean, she gave me two other beautiful kids. But yet still, I still, you know, I remember when I came back from doing blood in, blood out. Yeah.

And we're in the swimming pool. And I can remember, God, why can't I do this? Why can't I do this? Why can't I do this? Why am I waiting to escape? Be a good husband, a good father, family. Why am I waiting to escape? Why am I waiting till nightfall when I have to do something and be on the street?

I knew, you know, and it was like because she had gotten so close. To you. Yeah. And it's like, I knew that you almost know this lady can really hurt me. It's a threat. Yeah. And it wasn't even hurt. It was like, this lady could really break me.

Right. Like, you understand. I get it. I get it. My dad was this figure of a man. It was unreal. But look at you now. Like, you know, you've sort of moved through that.

Like, what do we, because I have same issues with this intimacy thing. Yeah, yeah. So what does that even mean, break you? What the hell do you think is going to happen? Okay, let me say this. Let me say this. that even mean break you what the hell do you think's gonna happen okay let me let me say this let me say this when i seen my dad still and then after he found out and after him and my mom split up yeah i went over there hey you okay dad yeah i'm all right i seen him as an old man yeah i even

i said dad come on you want me to bring over a couple of brothers yeah right you want a couple of blocks. Yeah, right. You want a couple of blocks? No, it's all right. And he, fuck, he didn't know what to do. And then when they got back together, he was still trying to be the man, but he was broken. He was just... And that's what you were afraid of. Yeah, that's what I've been afraid of all my life.

But you're not that guy. No, not now. I don't think you ever were, maybe. But I'm also, by myself right now i live with with two other guys my two assistants and i my my my life right now is awesome i think i think mave the mother of my children me and her get along great. Yeah. You know, I helped her pay for her house. Yeah. I got my house. Yeah.

And we're, like, cool. I gave my daughter my mom's house, and my daughter's moving back from Ohio. That's Gilbert's sister. Sister, yeah. Sister, and so she'll be back, so my whole family will be together, and that's just awesome.

Yeah. I just, the way you reckoned with it you know it's because did you oh i remember what i was going to ask you did you ever think like obviously when you you know when you get sober and you like because like the one thing i noticed in the book you there was never you never really respected neither did i i right when i got sober i grabbed onto a woman absolutely i married her yeah drained her of her life force. And she left me. Yeah, absolutely. I had the most beautiful. That's not in the book. I had this most beautifulest woman. Just gorgeous.

Yeah. And absolutely beautiful. And you were in your 20s. Huh? You were in your, what, your 25, 26? I was 27, I think. Just unbelievably gorgeous. She was a cartoonist.

Yeah. You know, she used to draw me little pictures of me. And with a heart. Oh, God, did I fuck that up. Yeah. You know, and I knew it. Yeah. You know, she used to draw me little pictures of me. And with a heart. Oh, God, did I fuck that up. Yeah. You know, and I knew it. Yeah. That's the problem.

It's like I knew it. And I haven't seen her since. She disappeared. And it's like. Still? Yeah. And I wish I could just say, you know what, I'm so sorry. You weren't able to find her for an amends no no i

guess sometimes it's not supposed to happen you know well my sponsor frank russo frank russo frank russo and i say that because he told me never to mention his name yeah but but he said the best amends you could make to laura is don't see her. Sometimes that's it. And it's like the God relationship, like you were saying about, it's an interesting way to put it that because of the need to survive, you become almost sociopathic. Yeah. And that compounded with being a drug addict, selfishness. I don't think I learned, because of your parents and because of my parents, though different, but their selfishness didn't enable us to understand empathy.

Yeah. So that's the one thing the program taught. That's the one thing – Caring for other people. Yeah, because even reading the book with the sober parts were helping the people out. If I go to a meeting, I hear the story. I get choked up all the time. But I do that in life anyways.

But I had to learn that by talking to other people. You know? Yeah. Yeah. And I guess some people don't have to learn that. I guess if you have one good parent, you might get it. Yeah. Well, you know what?

You got to remember. A lot of people don't reach the depth of rage. Yeah. A lot of people don't reach the depth of rage. A lot of people don't reach the depth of being a sociopath. I don't care about him, but I like him. Right. You know what I mean? Well, then those are the people where they're like, you don't know how to live. Well, you know what?

It's like road rage. I don't give people the finger on the road. Not because I don't have rage, but because I don't know what kind of rage he's got. Yeah. Well, that's a prison thought. You understand what I'm saying? Sure. So it's like, I'll respect you.

You don't want to flip someone off and be looking down a gun. I'll respect you as long as you respect me. Yeah. Okay, so now if you cut me off, I know you're not going, oh, that's Danny Trejo. Fuck him, yeah. Okay, that's when you know you've grown. Yeah. When he cuts you off and you can say, well, that guy must really be in a hurry.

When you haven't grown is that, motherfucker, I'll get him. That's, you know, and it's like, okay,

go ahead, you be in a hurry. I want to get there. And it's like, I don't know how, I think that there was a, where a lady gave the guy a finger

and the guy, bam, shot into her car. Killed her five-year-old. That lady's got to live with that the rest of her life. Yeah. I mean, it's like, so, dear God, please, people, don't. You got crazies out.

You got people like I used to be out there. Don't give them fingers. Don't give them fingers. Don't give them peace signs. Just look straight ahead. You know, a lot of times when that happens to me, what I realize it's not, you know, he's got to be somewhere. It's like, I've done that. Oh, yeah. Are you kidding? I ran people

off the road. I chased one guy all the way on the 405 from the Ventura Freeway, the 405, Wilshire to Wilshire and, God, that real busy intersection. Santa Monica? Westwood. Oh, Westwood. Wilshire and Westwood, right?

And he got stuck in traffic. And I jumped out of my car right behind him. And he had an El Camino. And I threw open his door. And this guy looked at me and says, I'm having a really bad day, man. And all of a sudden, I was like in the front of a courtroom. And the judge was saying, Mr. Trejo, you beat this man severely. Why? He gave me the finger.

But then wait. I looked. This guy's got a clean record i got assault with a deadly weapon i shall tip the murder yeah yeah and you go and that's why that's why you're gonna spend the rest of your life yeah i'm really sorry and i went back to my car oh good one thank god you know i mean so it's like it's there yeah no yeah and and like I think that you know the regulation of it which is you know service and a constant contact with the power greater than yourself that you you know lean on a lot I mean you really you make God responsible for a lot of your life and your concept of God is your own yeah but you credit God with all this and you credit and like and you read the signs.

I know that feeling, too. I don't do it as much as I used to. Like when the tumor, and you were feeling sorry for yourself, and then you go into the room, and there's a commercial for Children's Cancer Hospital, and you're like, okay. Oh, God. Like the constant check on the self-pity and the grandiosity. And you've got to remember that I had people. I got Mary Matickle, my secretary. This lady, we go to Cedars.

The doctors are talking about, I got three appointments, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I'm like, I've got to go to three different. I never would have made it. Do you understand? This lady picked me up, took me out. Just because you're stubborn. Because you're stubborn, you wouldn't have got it.

Well, it's not only that I'm stubborn, I get frustrated really easy. And I got to go to three different places. Yeah. And also your sense of death is different than regular people. But you don't want to die. No. You are afraid of death. Oh, of course. No.

But listen. But listen. Yeah. Then they find spots on my lungs. And it says, Danny, we wouldn't even bother with these spots if it wasn't for your history. But listen, then they find spots on my lungs. And he says, Danny, we wouldn't even bother with these spots if it wasn't for your history. I said, you mean they're not growing? Well, we don't know.

I said, well, let's see if they want to do a biopsy. And they're like, well, let's see if they grow. And while I'm talking to him, making sure that we're going to wait until they grow, Mary's making an appointment for me to come in and get them taken out. Right. You know what I mean? Right. Got people taking care of you.

So I go off and I'm thinking, okay, well, we'll just see what happens. And then she picks me up a week later and we go back and I'm back in the hospital taking him out. I mean, I beat brain surgery because of the people that- Oh, with the stroke. Yeah. Oh, man. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, all these stories, they're in the book and they're great. The story about how you got into show business is great, but I do love the story. People can read those stories or hear them, but the story about... I thought the stuff about Edward James Olmos, that first meeting when they

were doing that movie, to me, that's the real confluence. That's where the rubber meets the road in terms of who you are now, who you are then, and what loyalty and respect means, both going forward and backward. He's doing a movie about, what's the guy's name? Cheyenne. Yeah, the head of the Mexican mafia.

And you knew these cats your whole life from prison and from growing up with them. And he's doing this movie that ain't quite right in the story. And he wants you to be in it. Yeah. And you're like, you know, we got to check this through, man. Yeah. And he wouldn't have it. I got a call to show you how.

What's the movie called? American Me. Yeah. That was the movie. Right. And I got a call from a guy named Joe Morgan. Yeah. Who actually was the main guy then in the Mexican Mafia. Because they knew he was making the movie.

They knew. I met with him and his manager or whoever it was. Almost. Yeah. At Jerry's Deli. And it bothered you that he was dressed up in the cholo outfit. It did. It. Almost. Yeah. At Jerry's Deli. And it bothered you that he was dressed up in the cholo outfit.

It really did. Yeah. But see, I always thought, because a lot of, in Hollywood, people don't accept me as an actor.

They still accept me as an ex-con. You know, that's okay with me. The check cleared. He'll bring authenticity to the thing. Yeah,

but the check's cleared. Yeah, yeah. I don't care. Yeah. you know and uh and uh and and and it's it's not how do you say it i i love the people that respect me yeah you know sure the people that don't i don't yeah whatever okay so but but uh and and edward just called me because he's he read the book and he said danny i don't remember some of this i said well then if because he read the book. And he said, Danny, I don't remember some of this. I said, well then, because he's being interviewed a lot right now. And I said, well,

what do you, then say you don't remember it. But I thought... He's being interviewed because of this? I don't know if it's, I can't be because of this, but I think he's getting a lot of heat right now. And so I had a meeting with him and he said an FBI agent the first in the morning at Jerry's Deli.

That afternoon, my cousin Sal calls me and says, hey, Danny, do you know Joe Morgan? I go, yeah. He says, are you okay? I go, yeah, what are you talking about? He says he wants to call you. He wants to talk to you over at Eddie Bunker's at five o'clock today. Oh,

the Eddie Bunker story is great. That's in the book. We can't even get to him. And so, so he says, I says, all right, are you okay?

Because Joe Morgan don't call anybody unless he's saying, you know, you're dead. And, and, and I don't know.

I'm fine. I've known Joe long. So, so Eddie called, he called me at five. Yeah. And he's, hey, I'm fine. I've known Joe a long time. And he called me at five. Yeah. And he said, hey, I understand you had a meeting with Edward James. I had a meeting that morning. Yeah.

Joe's in prison. Yeah. Okay. That afternoon I get a call. And, yeah, yeah, yeah. He says, I hear you're up for that movie you know america me i said joe i'm up for both of them i'm up for blood in blood out too he said danny which one you're gonna do i said i'm gonna do blood in blood out oh yeah that's the cute one yeah i never forget what he

said it's a movie about gangsters killing oh that's the cute one. Yeah. But we didn't disrespect anybody. Right. And we told the truth. We were la onda. I've walked into clubs where Mexican mafia are. They're there. And I see them. When I walk in, they'll go, la onda.

And they'll stand. Yeah. Because it's a joke. They weren't disrespected in a sense. Right, right. And so Edward called me a couple days ago. Yeah. And said, you know, I don't remember.

Well, then say you don't remember. But all I said was the truth and you know it. Yeah, yeah. And the bottom line was he was manipulating the story for the movie's sake. And the disrespect was it wasn't the real story. And if the story points that he wanted to have in the movie were true, it would bring a disrespect to Cheyenne's memory. His family, his friends.

And so you were doing the right thing by the loyalty of the community, the neighborhood, and the system. And what Edward James said was, well, theatrically, you're not working with theatrical people. These are real people. Let me write a story about George Washington and say he was gay. Right. Okay?

Do you know what I mean? It's like, wait a minute. And they do that. That's a lie. Yeah. Yeah. You know? Yeah.

It was just like, to me, it was just like it was to me it was it was compelling because you know it's like it was ego it was ego but people who don't know the inside they don't realize like there are people letting you live and if you're gonna fuck with them edward ed in fact he won't admit it i saved his life i actually went to the people that wanted to kill him yeah you know what man we can't man? We can't do that. You can't do that. It's like this guy is an icon. He's a big member of the Chicano community, and he's done a lot for us.

You know? And so start some money out of him. I don't know if that happened. Yeah, yeah. Get a payday. Yeah, yeah. Get a payday. Well, I just thought that was great. But you did later say what you just said, that he did good things. I even told you when he was on the phone, I told Edward, you don't understand.

You and I could have done so much for this Latino community in film. Me and you together, we'd have killed him. But you have never, he's never kind of, he says he has, but it's strange, the first time he's ever called me was- Freaking out. Freaking out. But you also said that, he said that if you do the other movie, you can't do my movie. So he made two camps and it wasn't, it wasn't community thinking.

No. Yeah. Not at all. But, you know, that's that. And, you know, you made a lot of movies and Machete made you famous. It is the first, you know, Chicano superhero. And Robert Rodriguez and you were tight. And you redefined Chicanos in cinema.

And that movie, like when we, I said at the beginning, when we worked together, it was like you're walking down the street of Highland Park, and the whole family's coming to windows. Magente! You're waving like you're the president. It was great. I went, you know, it's funny. I started a record label, and I took my singers, Jasmine, Twixie, and Tara New.

We took them all to the Long Beach Civic Auditorium and to Pomona, where all the immigrant kids are, and put a show for them. And it was, like, so beautiful. Yeah. Some of the staff there said, these kids haven't smiled since. And now look at them. They're all jumping up and dancing. And you give them hope. Yeah. We welcomed them. We just said, we're haven't smiled since. And now look at them. They're all jumping up. And you give them hope. Yeah.

We welcomed them. We just said, we're all welcome. We love you. Yeah. And then the restaurant game is something you got into. Like, I didn't know how that happened. I had a hard time believing you were like, I'm going to open it. But someone approached you with the idea.

I did. Everything good that has happened to me has happened as a direct result of helping someone. I did a low-budget movie for a director named Craig Moss, who I adore, okay? Yeah, yeah. And this guy was trying to get me to do this movie. I had a chance to get $25,000 on this other one, right? Yeah. And I'm telling my agent, and Gloria says, Danny, I think this might be pretty good.

Yeah. I think this might do pretty good. Yeah. And I said, yeah, but, you know, it's all about the Benjamins over here. Well, you know how women do when they know you're screwing up? They go like, okay, well, okay, okay, fine. Do what you want to do. Okay, I'll do it.

I do this movie. Turns into a trilogy. I make four times the money. This is a badass movie? Yeah, badass, right. Yeah, yeah. And then I meet Craig Moss, but I also meet the producer,

a guy named Ash Shaw, who saw that I like good food. Yeah. You know, I'll eat good, I won't eat processed food. Yeah. Go to fast food. But,

and on a low budget movie, a lot of times they'll just buy you know 50 hamburgers you know and I'll say you know

give me a salad I'll get a salad and so Ash says Danny you eat really good I say come on I'm 74 years old

I better eat good yeah so I think I was 73 at the time and then and then he said why don't you open a restaurant

jokingly I said Trejo's Tacos yeah so two movies later he brings me a And then he said, why don't you open a restaurant? Jokingly, I said, Trails Tacos. So two movies later, he brings me a business plan. And I open it. If it doesn't have killing in the first couple of pages, I don't care. It's not exciting.

I give it to Gloria. So if it wasn't for her making me do this movie, she didn't make me, but she suggested it real strongly. Yeah. You know, kind of like, if you don't do it, I'll hate you for the rest of your life. But it's up to you. But it's up to you.

But so I do this film, and then I wouldn't have met this producer, and I wouldn't be in the restaurant business. And how are they going? They still good? Great. I'm going right there for lunch. What are you doing for lunch let's

go that's good i get to eat for free and and i and i think that the like you know the the towards the end of the book and the struggle that you have but then the struggle that danielle your daughter and and gilbert had you know like the gilbert story your son's story where you that horrible feeling of of you know having recovered yourself and being so big in the in the recovery you know uh uh community and then your your son can't kick the dope and he's out there on the street like it sounded like you know he was not gonna live you know what i i credit so does he i credit mario castillo for saving his life. The dude you met in Quentin? Quentin. That's a great story, too.

On Bloody and Blood Out. Yeah, yeah. And I tried to get him in the movie, but he couldn't get in the movie because the powers that be, Joe Morgan and the rest of them says no sureños can work on any movie. Because it was in Northern? It was the other? No, it was the Edward Almos deal that was going on. Oh, Because it was in Northern. It was not, it was the other. No, it was just, it was the Edward Almos deal that was going on. Oh, okay, okay, yeah. So he just threw a blanket on the whole thing.

Yeah, but he became a good friend to you. Yeah, my best friend. Yeah. My best friend. Still? He works for me. He's like my assistant, just takes care of everything.

I couldn't move without him. I think I met him when you did my show. He's been on it a while. Yes, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He was a big guy. And his son, well, it's so funny because he looks, if you look for, in the dictionary, Cholo Gangster,

he's got his picture. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And he's short, but he was pressing 425 in the pen. But I just thought, like, you know, man, like, you know, there's a part where you'd speak to the kids about, you know, when you were kind of worried about Gilbert and you were powerless and you got to, you know, that's the other program. That's the Al-Anon thing. There's only so much you can do, but it worked out. Cheese bus. Cheese bus Sandoval was my mentor as far as getting me to speak at different places. Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He was a member of the Mexican mafia. He got out. Chispas. Chispas Sandoval was my mentor as far as getting me to speak

at different places. He was a member of the Mexican Mafia. He got out. Went to Christ. But he took me to this high school, and I was going to speak, and I was so worried about Gilbert because I couldn't find him. And I told him, Chispas, I can't talk. I can't. Man, I can't.

My son's out there. He might be dead right now, and I'm going to tell these kids how to stay clean. And Jesus, maybe God wants these kids to hear it from a parent's view. Oh, man. And you did it. Kids were crying. They were like thinking about their mom and dad. Yeah, yeah.

And I told them about you don't know what it is to wake up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, knowing your kids, you know, in an alley somewhere. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow. And so, God, afterwards, me and Chief Bob went, and he said, you know what? That was the most unbelievable speech I've ever heard. Yeah. Helped out.

And, you know, by the grace of God, man, my son's clean. There was a little girl that had a recovery center and took him in right now. And it was up in Lake Arrowhead. So as we're taking him up there, you know, he passes through the cloud. Well, I guess all plans of escape are out he kept his sense of humor so yeah

but you know you talk early on too when he even though you're struggling he's very into films and then you made that movie with him yeah

he wrote the movie from a son from a son the most heaviest thing I've ever done but like he's like he drove you over here let's get him in here

for a minute he's awesome I kept trying to get him in here for a minute. He's awesome. I kept trying to get him in front of the camera, and secretly he learned everything behind the camera. Yeah. But he obviously loved movies. Oh, God, he loves them. Hold on.

Yeah, go ahead. When I first met him, when I first met him. Rodriguez? We were doing Machete. I was with Robert De Niro yeah and

I'm taking my kids to dinner with Robert De Niro and I tell him now come on guys don't be fucking around I'm just Robert De Niro

yeah so we're gonna be having a conversation so we sit down with Robert De Niro first thing Robert De Niro

asked is about some French auteur director somebody blah blah blah heiro asked is about some French auteur director. Somebody, you know, blah, blah, blah. He was saying that Rodriguez was an auteur. Yeah, and I just kind of looked at him, you know what I mean? And Gilbert

says, oh, well, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. The rest of the night literally was spent with Robert De Niro discussing film, projectors, sound with my son. I was so impressed with him. I've always been impressed with Robert De Niro.

But I'm listening to my son. I want to say, how you learn that shit? So, Gilbert, I was asking your dad here earlier in the episode. I'm like, how'd you feel about how, because it's a personal thing. He's telling your story, and it's heavy, man. Oh, yeah. And when you look at that, you can own that stuff now.

Yeah, totally. Yeah. Totally, yeah. And how'd you get out of that? I mean, you were in a pretty deep drug hole. Yeah, I mean, I was, you know, I mean, in a pretty deep drug hole. Yeah, I mean, I was, you know, I mean,

it's, for me, I've always kind of seen, like I was raised with sort of like AA and sort of like, you know, the idea of a light at the end of the tunnel, you know? Right. And this alternative, and that's kind of like, you know, I almost spent all this time running from it. Yeah. And.

Because that was a way to rebel against him? Yeah. It was like, it was like, I didn't have like a Christian God or a Catholic God or, you know, I had a God of my own understanding to like, nah, man, you know, like AA was like the religion of our house and not, not, not in, not in that it's like a religion, just it was the you know but you knew the score yeah i mean you know we got caught i got caught smoking we i didn't even get caught smoking weed my mom found a single seed in my yeah in my room when i was 11 years old yeah

yeah and uh and it was like you're going to an AA meeting, you know, and like sitting there and listening to, you know, so. But nothing will make you hate it more than that. I was like 11, you know, like sixth grade. And you can't understand the. But, you know, then once it gets deeper and deeper and deeper and you start to. I started to feel like, you know, I was the I wasn't this like, you know this potential that everyone said I had. And I wasn't this. And I was walking around and thinking, I had no shoes on.

And I was on Santa Monica near Normandy outside of this 98 cent store, like just past Western, trying to get like some water to use to make a shot big enough to just end it. I was like, I'm done. Yeah, I was like, I'm done. And this old Mexican man threw me out of his store and I was sitting on the curb and a friend of mine had sent someone to look for me. And they found me sitting there like on this curb, totally blacked out. I did it, and it didn't kill me.

No, I was just sitting there. You know what's crazy? You're a tray host. You didn't have to go down easy. The place that I was at was this 98-cent store, old Mexican man. Everything was covered in dust, and now I drive by it. a it's a zumba class it's painted bright green like wow man i i tried to kill myself in that zumba studio but um but no and then a friend of mine just kind of like dragged me around until i regained my sea legs or whatever it took like three days and then passed me off to my dad and them.

And he was actually a drug dealer of mine. And I was like, yeah, man, I'm done. And he was like, no, dude, you're getting sober. He was my dealer. That's when the dealer says that, you know. Yeah, he passed me off and then I got home and I was going to rehab the next day. And I was like, hey, man, I'm going to come meet up with you, like da-da-da-da-da. And he was like, no, dude.

You leave your house, you're going to die. And then I called the next dealer down the line, and he was like, no, man, he said he wouldn't give me anything anymore if I, you know. Were they afraid of him or they just worried about you? Well, they all got chased away. All these dudes are sober now. Oh, really? And they all, like, you know, in their AA pitch are like, yeah, I remember the first time Danny Trejo chased me away from his house. It was a sobering experience.

experience but um but no everyone the one you know the one dealer above everyone around was like i'm cutting off anyone that sells anything to gilbert tonight because he's got to go to rehab tomorrow and it saved your life seven years this month congratulations thank you thank you and and you know in the book he talks about you know the love for movies i talked to a friend of mine or i texted him who said you're a great upcoming filmmaker. And the story in the book about the film you wrote about that father and son. From a son. From a son. So that was – when did you write that and how did your experience shape that?

Was that something you needed to get out of you, the story you had to tell? Yeah. My best friend, his name was Daniel Gershon. He passed away right when I got sober. It was like two months after I got sober, he passed away. From dope? Yeah, and we'd had a lot of experiences together. And it was like he was in a room alone,

and the only thing missing from that room was me in my opinion you know and like and so you know i had like a lot of survivor's guilt about it and a lot of weird and and um and then i'd i'd kind of you know my dad when i got sober he was like you're better now. Come on. That's great. It's really weird because we never – this book is the first time he's ever been emotional without a camera on. Does that make sense? So when you read this, did you cry? I mean, I was there when he was writing it.

I was sitting in the car when he was like, so I'm going to talk about this. You know, we shared those. I'd never seen him cry before we filmed the movie. Yeah. Actually, because it was like, you know, like you have permission to cry. It's not about us. It's about this fake family. Well, I like that whole dynamic where, you know, at first he's like, you know, that's enough.

And you're like, I'm the director. Yeah. Yeah. I'm like, hey, where, you know, at first he's like, you know, that's enough. And you're like, I'm the director. Yeah. Yeah. I'm like, hey, man, you got to. Yeah. Even if you don't think so. Yeah. Act like I'm the director.

Don't fuck with me, man. Everyone else here doesn't think that it's okay to put me on time out. Yeah. But it's weird because 10 years ago he couldn't have done that and you couldn't have done it. Yeah. You know, just because of the dudes you've become. And so you saw that emotion come out of him. Yeah.

But it wasn't the stuff. It wasn't specifically your story, but it was a story that had enough of it. You know what? I asked him, how would you get this, Gilbert? He said, we lived it. Yeah, right. I mean, it's so many people's stories you know what i mean like we when i had about a year sober we we were eating at restaurant by my dad's house we always go to

and like he was like man you know gilbert's got a year sober he was like crazy excited and the waitress was like oh that's you know i just lost my son oh and like and then she'd mentioned you know the the the school he went to in utah when he was 15 it was the same one i went to she mentioned the rehab he went to when he tried to get sober the first time it was the same one i went to she met and it was like all the way down the line and they'd like found him in a in his car for he'd been there for three days the week before and we're sitting there like you know having pancakes because I got a year sober today

and like and that's like you know so I was I kind of I wrote the whole movie in a single day it just kind of like came out

because it felt like it needed to and the production was more what I was excited about it was like going out with my dad and figuring out you know how to be like open and honest about our feelings and you know I played the son so that the me that I had wanted to sort of kill could I could like watch him go away you know and yeah yeah yeah and like

we buried that dude and I don't ever have to be that dude again. That's amazing. And it sounds like he got sober just under the wire before all that fentanyl started. I mean, it's been insane. Yeah, the last seven years, basically. They're all dropping. Yeah, just nonstop. He's sober. It's a new epidemic. Yeah, 22 years I got.

22 years in August. Congratulations. Nine. I'm August 23rd. Yeah, what do you got, 22 years in August. Congratulations. I was what? Nine. I'm August 23rd. Yeah, what do you got, like 50? 52. Oh. Original.

Well, you know, it's just, I'll tell you, man, the book was great on a lot of levels. I'm glad you guys worked it out. I'm glad you're okay. Are you working on a new movie? Right now, I'm just, I've been doing a lot of music videos. Oh, is that how Allison knows you? Yeah, yeah, yeah. He just directed me and David Hasselhoff

in a Starcrawler video. Oh, that's going to be funny. Yeah, it's really exciting. They sent me one of the records. Yeah, I just... Your girlfriend, what's her name? Arrow. Arrow DeWild, yeah.

Yeah, and she's a great performer. It's a great band. Good rock band. Well, I'm so happy for you guys, man. What a journey for both of you and the book is great.

I'm looking forward to seeing more of your work and good to see you again, man. I'm good, man. Thank you. It's been great. Thanks, pal. It's been great.

Let's do it again. Okay, pal. Thanks, man. So you're my sponsor. Okay. I couldn't handle it. I felt uncomfortable great. Let's do it again. Okay, pal. Thanks, man. So you're my sponsor. Okay. I couldn't handle it. I felt uncomfortable with that, but we did it. It's a good episode.

That was a great episode. Yeah. It was funny. It was not a great day for you with those allergies. Oh, God. Yeah. I remember that. Yeah.

All right. Take it easy. God bless you. Danny Trejo, that's the dude and his son Gilbert, the director. What a treat. It really was. It was great to see the family together, to see them together, to see everybody sober. The book Trejo, My Life of Crime, Redemption in Hollywood comes out tomorrow, July 6th.

I don't have a guitar with me. I don't have anything with me. I don't have a harmonica with me. I don't have a guitar with me. I don't have anything with me. I don't have a harmonica with me. I don't want to play mouth trumpet. This altitude's rough, man. Can you hear the rasp in my voice? Is that what it is?

Or am I okay? Am I okay? Boomer lives! Monkey! Lafonda! Cat angels everywhere. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. We'll be right back. We deliver those. Moose? No. But moose head? Yes. Because that's alcohol, and we deliver that too.

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