December 20, 2025 • 18 mins
In 2025 we had so many amazing people stop by Elvis Duran and the Morning Show. Here's one of our favorites!
Ralph Macchio joins us to talk Karate Kid: Legends and the impact Karate Kid has had on culture.
OG Air Date May 30th, 2025.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to one of our favorite celebrity interviews from
twenty twenty five. Elvis Duran in the Morning Show Live
from the Mercedes Benz Interview Lounge.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Ralph Boccio right here, thank you to me? Back home?
Wait it is? Is it home?
Speaker 3 (00:17):
It sound of feels like it with you, guys.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
I know that that makes me feel good.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
New York is home.
Speaker 4 (00:21):
So today's the big day. Karate Kid Legends is out today.
But that doesn't make sense. I saw it out yesterday.
Uh huh, it came out. What does that mean if
it comes out to you? Why did it come out yesterday?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
This is I think there's this new normal is the
movie opens on the Friday, but you can go see
it on the Thursday. I don't get it. But it's
you know, and then you start you start reading, Oh,
so and so did x amount in previews so they
could call it that four day weekend. It's everything.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Oh it's an accounting money.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
That's kind of the bottom line. But I don't but
you know, the thirtieth is the release date. But you
know the popcorn bucket. No, but it looks cool.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
It looks cool, right, It looks the way you got
a karate chopping in order to get.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Your karate champ and you get to your popcorn, you
have to work a little bit.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
Yes, there's gonna be a lawsuit here. Jackie Chan what
a badass. He's amazing, still does his own stunts.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Everything does he does? He does everything. They say how long,
how long does it take you to training? Goes I
don't need to train anymore. I'm doing a Jackie Chan
sixty four years and I, on the other hand, need
to train and need to stretch and need to dive
into injury prevention. Before the cameras rolled. Ah, but but
(01:37):
my one of my favorite little moments. And I don't
wish ill on anyone, but I was pretty nervous stepping
onto the set with the you know, the master and
legendary Jackie Chan, who's broken like four hundred bones and
still is walking and has done his own stunts forever
is He did a move with with the wonderful Ben
Wong who plays the kid in the film, and he
(01:59):
pulled his shoulder out and he winced and made a
sound of pain, and I half of my brain was like, wow,
I feel bad, and the other half was like, yes,
thank you, Like I'm okay, Like you know, he feels
pain too. He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
I love this.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I did an interview the other day. I told everyone
how pleased I was it Jackie Chan felt pain. That's right,
he's one of us, but he really is. It's really incredible.
At his age seventy one, he's done everything. I mean,
he's fallen off buildings, crashed through window. He just you know,
he's a stuntman early part of his career before he
became Jackie Chan film star. And he's the first one
(02:39):
on this he's the youngest kid on the set.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
Wow, he's like he is.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
He's there early, he leaves late. He'll hang lights, he'll
set the microphone, he'll do whatever he wants. He's he's
happy in the environment and just loves making movies. And
I pride myself on that, but he takes it to
the next level. So between the two of us, it
was pretty damn fun.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Have you ever broken a bone on set?
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Not? So I'll leave. That's a Jackie Okay. I've gotten
like a splinter.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
From the chopping of the wood.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
Could Jackie Chan kick all of our asses in this room?
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I I think I think it's a pretty good shot.
It's good to know he'd know how to defend himself
right for sure, as as I'd like to believe I
would as well.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
How advanced are you in martial arts.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
That's gotten I've gotten my black belt took forty one years.
I mean maybe maybe if I, if I, if I
didn't stop training somewhere in the late nineties in the
mid early two thousands, would have gotten it earlier. No,
let's stunt this stunt guy on Cobra Kai. The stunt guy.
Let me put it this way. The fight coordinator, Don Lee,
(03:44):
who's trained in the very classic Ocanaw and Miyagias kind
of style of karate, was like, dude, you need your
black belt. You have that, you have all the skills,
You've done it, you know. And it was just it
was really cool. I wound up doing it testing for it,
you got the present did it was a whole ceremonial thing.
And then when I went up to Karate Kid Legends,
which was the next day, literally after wrapping Cobra Kai,
(04:08):
I was like, all right, Jackie Chan, I have a
black belt.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
I'm cool, nice, so you could kick all our asses too.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
It's just like a certificate.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
You know what I mean? You have to work area
or to me a favorite.
Speaker 4 (04:21):
This guy's scary, my proser, come kick his ass.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I have a question about the movie.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
So is it like a Marvel movie where you're supposed
to stay for the credits because there's like a scene
that tells us.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
Something very possibly you or very possibly not, but you
should stay.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
You should stick around. Okay, stick around.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
It's always good to stick around with anything that has
a universe as large as the Karate Kid cinematic universe. Okay, good, By.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
The way, just turning us on, Ralph Mancio was here.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Karate Kid Legends is out today, of course, with Ralph
and the legendary Jackie Chan.
Speaker 3 (04:57):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (04:57):
By the way, I was looking at the map coordinates
and Hollywood, your Hollywood stars right around the corner from mine.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
How about that? I got to do it, you know
one stop shopping next time out there?
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Do you ever check on it?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Because his head but water gun. I had a clean
you know. I saw someone posted the other day on Instagram.
Uh you know, their pictures say I mustn't tagged me.
So it came up in my thing and I was
swiping through all these different stars like Paul McCartney. It
was big name and all their stars were like glistening.
Mine had like tar. It was just it was just
(05:31):
you know, I mean, I just got it November. I mean,
let's get like a little buffer and clean that up now. Yeah,
I think I'm gonna go down next time in La
you know, sneak in. I'm sure Pat Marita is right
next to mine, is absolutely pristine.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
That's cool. He's right next to you.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Yeah, it's really cool. We make it easy for those
karate kid fans.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
My stars outside the door of the club called Avalon,
so they all wait in line. Yeah, and then you know,
we were happy helping our friend Wendy Williams get her
star when she was out there. Hers is right across
from the Hustler Club.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Oh so now you can't read too deep on Hollywood Boulevard.
You really can't because you don't have you don't have
much of a shot of being next to like the Plaza.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Right, Let's talk about raph Let's talk about Hollywood. Let's
talk about the film industry and making movies. Now compared
to way back in the day, it's a whole different
world now.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
It's completely different.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
It really is.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
You know, there's such studio and listen, there's always studio
fingerprints on everything. But now that opening weekend and I'm
you know, we're at it right now. For Karate Kid Legends,
it's about that opening. It's so that word of mouth
sleeper that kind of builds. Those are really rare. It's
it's about you know, grabbing that real estate before the
(06:46):
competition does, and keeping those kids from looking at their
phones or are grabbing their remotes. It's you know, so
it's it's challenging, and you and the editorial aspect of it.
You know, you feel like you're cutting films for the
TikTok you know.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Where you are.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, in part I mean, but also we were talking
about social media. Social media of course not a thing
back in that day when Karate Kid first came out.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Yeah, and Karate Kid in that time in nineteen eighty four,
you either you know, you you went to the beach
or you saw a movie. You know that was summer.
Right Now that there's so much content, there's so many
things that that that distract. But in fairness, you know,
with with Karate Kid Legends, since it's you know, topical
and it's now there is an element that that is
(07:33):
very entertaining for the next generation that still still ties
into all the themes from that original film and they
and the connective tissue of that franchise. And that's something
I've fought for throughout, you know, to make sure we
still try to land those those themes. Fish out of Water,
a kid overcoming obstacles, mentorship, single parenting, you know, dealing
(07:57):
with loss in the case of the original film, Daniel
Lusso's father, in the case of this film, Lee Fong's brother.
You know. So those relatable human themes are still in
this movie, albeit cut for the kids of today and
the families of today.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
So, speaking of kids overcoming struggles, when Karate Kid came out,
you were how.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Old twenty two when it came out, you're twenty two? Yeah, yeah,
I got the machio curve. Okay, I played sixteen for
thirty seven years on.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
That's incredible, Okay, but that's still that's still right around
the age where a lot of younger people, when they're
in the industry, they get this massive amount of fame.
And then after that it was my cousin Vinny, right.
Speaker 3 (08:38):
Yes, yes, And then you pause for a while yeah,
I paused longer than I expected.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
But how did you? Because I'm currently watching a show
called Hollywood Demons, and the last episode was about child
stars who find this massive fame and then when they paused,
they spiral out of control. What did you do to
keep yourself from that?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (08:55):
Today today, I don't know how they do it because
you can't escape. It's so everything's instant. Everyone with the
phone as a paparazzi, and you know, so you could
document anyone anytime. It's really scary, but it is what
it is for me. I mean, I think partly my sensibilities,
my upbringing. So I got to, you know, give props
(09:16):
to my parents, my girlfriend now wife at the time,
give give props to the New York Mets who were
playing well, and I wanted to get back home to
see some games, you know what I mean. So like
I always kept one foot in and one foot out.
I and of Hollywood, if you will. And there is
a downside to that when I if I was a
(09:37):
little bit more diligent in it, maybe that pause would
have not have lasted as long. But I think so
it wasn't by design, but that's kind of when we
started having kids, my wife and I and we raised
the family. And so I got to kind of be
at all of that and still be creative in my way,
keep it working, but not necessarily at that heightened level.
(10:00):
And but I also knew that I was planning this
big resurgence a couple of years later, that that was
always so It's I I got pretty lucky, But I
think I was just the seduction of all that. I
did feel that void I did have down, you know,
(10:20):
darker times where I just you know, it's just like
when I stayed away from Hollywood, just being there was
just so daunting, and you know, you you would drive
on the studio lot and the guy would wave, and
now you can get to the studio lot and they
want your name and they asked you to spell it
for them, and you you're waiting in line, and they
used to just go right through that. You know, that
plays someone an insecure of mind that that starts playing.
(10:43):
Or the billboards are way bigger when other people's movies
are on them. They just extend that twenty feet in
east direction.
Speaker 5 (10:52):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Well, knowing what you know now and having been through it,
would you let your kids get into.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
My daughter isn't it. But she's not a kid any anymore.
She's my kid, but she's an adult. Yeah. Do as
I say, not as I do does not work. But
she's super talented. She did some episodes in the Cobra
Kai series, she played uh, the Jennifer Beals role in
the national tour of flash Stance, uh, and did in
New Zealand. So she's she has a career. I wouldn't
(11:20):
advise it. It's it's a tough what's happened to me
is a like a bazillion to want. I mean you
think of you know, coming into the Outsiders at the Onset,
and then the Karate Kid exploding that way, and my
cousin Vinnie, and and then now the Cobra Kai the
last eight years of that, and then back on the
big screen with the movie that kind of launched it
(11:41):
all for me. There's not many examples of that.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
My cousin Vinnie.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Let's go back, let's go back.
Speaker 3 (11:46):
Yeah, so you did say that a little talk you're
having conversations about a reboot. Yeah, I think that is
kind of that was that came up. It's come up
a few times. Joe pettually had some ideas he in
the studios were talking about it, but it never came
to fruition. You know, you never say never. But but
he's really got to be right. And I worked with
(12:07):
Cobra kai As those those writers are such big Karate
Kid fans. They they cared so much to not let
go of the the origin and the source. And that's
that's why it It worked for six and you know
six seasons.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Well, by the way, I have a call that wants
to connect with you, and I'm gonna do that in
a second. But as you listen to this Ralph Montio speaking,
doesn't he sound a little like Joe Pesci.
Speaker 3 (12:31):
To you know what you're talking about?
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Has anyone ever said that to you ever?
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Not not too often, but I do. You know, I
like to do Joe impersonations. It's fun, you know, he's like,
he's like even just like when I first did my
cousin Vinny uh he was. He brought a bottle of wine.
It was a Shasanya Montrochet. He liked the French you know,
Burgundy white Burgundy's, which are Sharon and he and we
(13:02):
like have one glass and for dinner and then we
have another glass. He goes, I said, you know, I
just wine makes me tired, and I've I've since really
become a fan and wines of a hobby of mine,
tasting great wines, and he goes, he goes. It makes
you tired. It's a depressant, Dan, it's a stimulant, which
is basically you're gonna fall asleep and wake up at
(13:24):
two o'clock in the.
Speaker 4 (13:24):
Morning, you know, all right, Uh, Jennifer, Hi, Jennifer, are
you still there?
Speaker 5 (13:33):
Yes, I'm here. Hello, just over.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, but you're also on with Ralph Maccio.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Say hello, hey, Jennifer, how are you?
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Jennifer? Is it true Ralph number one crush in the
in the eighties.
Speaker 5 (13:48):
It's true. I mean I basically had Ralph Machio wallpaper
in my bedroom. It's true.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Did you hear your own line of I don't think.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
I don't think it was an actual wallpaper.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
I think.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Sixteen magazine tape taped together, but the Ralph Montrea wallpaper
would be And did you imagine me like like this
is the product I want to push.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Now in all the different poses a different movies.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
No, it was pretty crazy. I mean I remember like
me and my friend's going to the store we would
buy all those teen books, and you were the first
picture that we would pull out and just hang up
like I was. I just just love. I was convinced
we were going to be married. When basically, what.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Daniel, whatever did you make out with the poster?
Speaker 1 (14:30):
And come on?
Speaker 5 (14:31):
I did not? Good?
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Good, that's not that's not the whole broken way.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
It's not we don't.
Speaker 5 (14:39):
We don't go like that, hoboken.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
We don't. Daniel used to make out with posters? Oh
yes I did.
Speaker 4 (14:45):
I had my Greg Evagan from b J and the
Bear post.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
Okay, wound up with a little rip in his mouth
because how he kissed it all the time.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
You kissed it, I did.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Let's not go there.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
You went there?
Speaker 4 (15:03):
Well, Jennifer, do you remember when you first saw Ralph?
Of course, which film did you hear?
Speaker 5 (15:07):
I think I believe it was the Outside of Okay?
Speaker 2 (15:12):
What a great film.
Speaker 5 (15:13):
Like to this day, I still watch those movies as
an adult. I'm fifteen now. I still enjoy those films
so much. And I have to say about like those
movies tied to my teenius, Like I remember my mom,
she's passed away. She passed away in twenty twelve, and
we used to watch those movies together all the time,
Karate Kid the Outside, and there's just so many great
(15:33):
memories that tied to you and those films. And it's
not to say thank you for those movies, because they
were just great.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
Thank you man. That's so that never gets old to
hear that. And that's uh, those films, films, movie, a
cinema can do that. You know, storytelling. It touches people.
You remember, you remember experiencing something, especially when you lose
someone you you know, that movie comes on again, we
see it and we go back. That's that's nostalgia right there.
But those films bring up, you know, kind of positive
(16:02):
feelings and and certainly you know, the Karate Kid has
always been that because you know, you share that kind
of wish for film and aspirational kind of storytelling. So
that's what we're you know, we're planning to do with
the next generation as well. Thanks for sharing that.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Thank you, Jennifer.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
And not only you're welcome, and not only the quality
kid like you've been in so many great things, my cousin,
any one of the greatest comedies, I was exactly right.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
It's late for Dinner movie. If it's on you.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
I love my favorite, my favorite show, every One a
Coba fabulous show. Anybody who hasn't seen that show has
to watch. You are great in that show on our show.
I love it.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
That's awesome you are. You are my cheerleader and I
appreciate it and uh and uh yeah keep rocking it.
And it's so nice to vocally meet you. Wow, Okay, mom,
thanks you.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
There's a plan.
Speaker 5 (17:00):
You know.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
You know our show, this show has been on for
about thirty years. I'm doing mornings here in New York
and so people we have people come up and say
they grew up listening to us. Now they're grandkids, are sensus.
It's crazy, but you know, to be in this, I
guess this club of being around for a while, being
there to be a voice in people's lives or an
actor or a character in people's lives back in the day,
(17:24):
and they still go back to those days and the
feelings they had then because.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
Of you when they see you today. That's pretty cool.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
It's amazing. It's amazing. In a world not to get
too dark and deep that doesn't bring a lot of
joy on a daily basis, it's nice to be on
that side of it. You know, and that's that's like
people ask me about, you know, this Daniel LaRusso character
that has become a piece of pop culture and a
piece of people's childhoods Now, I have ten year old
(17:51):
kids that are running up to me like they're meeting
Santa Claus, know who mister Miyagi is and think he's cool.
It's kind of and they'll talk about watching the movie
the movies with their parents, are watching the Cobra Kai
series and this was an inspirational story from my brother
who had a difficult time in high school or whatever.
Now it's like, you know what, why not talk about
(18:12):
why not celebrate that? And now you know, with the
new movie, you have a whole new generation of kids
that'll back themselves into that entire franchise. And that's kind
of a good at my age, that feels like a
good thing to do.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
Karate Kid Legends is out today and we love it.
When you come visit us, Ralph, thank you for the
entire
You're listening to one of our favorite celebrity interviews from
twenty twenty five. Elvis Duran in the Morning Show Live
from the Mercedes Benz Interview Lounge.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Ralph Boccio right here, thank you to me? Back home?
Wait it is? Is it home?
Speaker 3 (00:17):
It sound of feels like it with you, guys.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
I know that that makes me feel good.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
New York is home.
Speaker 4 (00:21):
So today's the big day. Karate Kid Legends is out today.
But that doesn't make sense. I saw it out yesterday.
Uh huh, it came out. What does that mean if
it comes out to you? Why did it come out yesterday?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
This is I think there's this new normal is the
movie opens on the Friday, but you can go see
it on the Thursday. I don't get it. But it's
you know, and then you start you start reading, Oh,
so and so did x amount in previews so they
could call it that four day weekend. It's everything.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Oh it's an accounting money.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
That's kind of the bottom line. But I don't but
you know, the thirtieth is the release date. But you
know the popcorn bucket. No, but it looks cool.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
It looks cool, right, It looks the way you got
a karate chopping in order to get.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Your karate champ and you get to your popcorn, you
have to work a little bit.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
Yes, there's gonna be a lawsuit here. Jackie Chan what
a badass. He's amazing, still does his own stunts.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Everything does he does? He does everything. They say how long,
how long does it take you to training? Goes I
don't need to train anymore. I'm doing a Jackie Chan
sixty four years and I, on the other hand, need
to train and need to stretch and need to dive
into injury prevention. Before the cameras rolled. Ah, but but
(01:37):
my one of my favorite little moments. And I don't
wish ill on anyone, but I was pretty nervous stepping
onto the set with the you know, the master and
legendary Jackie Chan, who's broken like four hundred bones and
still is walking and has done his own stunts forever
is He did a move with with the wonderful Ben
Wong who plays the kid in the film, and he
(01:59):
pulled his shoulder out and he winced and made a
sound of pain, and I half of my brain was like, wow,
I feel bad, and the other half was like, yes,
thank you, Like I'm okay, Like you know, he feels
pain too. He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
I love this.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I did an interview the other day. I told everyone
how pleased I was it Jackie Chan felt pain. That's right,
he's one of us, but he really is. It's really incredible.
At his age seventy one, he's done everything. I mean,
he's fallen off buildings, crashed through window. He just you know,
he's a stuntman early part of his career before he
became Jackie Chan film star. And he's the first one
(02:39):
on this he's the youngest kid on the set.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
Wow, he's like he is.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
He's there early, he leaves late. He'll hang lights, he'll
set the microphone, he'll do whatever he wants. He's he's
happy in the environment and just loves making movies. And
I pride myself on that, but he takes it to
the next level. So between the two of us, it
was pretty damn fun.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Have you ever broken a bone on set?
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Not? So I'll leave. That's a Jackie Okay. I've gotten
like a splinter.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
From the chopping of the wood.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
Could Jackie Chan kick all of our asses in this room?
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I I think I think it's a pretty good shot.
It's good to know he'd know how to defend himself
right for sure, as as I'd like to believe I
would as well.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
How advanced are you in martial arts.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
That's gotten I've gotten my black belt took forty one years.
I mean maybe maybe if I, if I, if I
didn't stop training somewhere in the late nineties in the
mid early two thousands, would have gotten it earlier. No,
let's stunt this stunt guy on Cobra Kai. The stunt guy.
Let me put it this way. The fight coordinator, Don Lee,
(03:44):
who's trained in the very classic Ocanaw and Miyagias kind
of style of karate, was like, dude, you need your
black belt. You have that, you have all the skills,
You've done it, you know. And it was just it
was really cool. I wound up doing it testing for it,
you got the present did it was a whole ceremonial thing.
And then when I went up to Karate Kid Legends,
which was the next day, literally after wrapping Cobra Kai,
(04:08):
I was like, all right, Jackie Chan, I have a
black belt.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
I'm cool, nice, so you could kick all our asses too.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
It's just like a certificate.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
You know what I mean? You have to work area
or to me a favorite.
Speaker 4 (04:21):
This guy's scary, my proser, come kick his ass.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I have a question about the movie.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
So is it like a Marvel movie where you're supposed
to stay for the credits because there's like a scene
that tells us.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
Something very possibly you or very possibly not, but you
should stay.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
You should stick around. Okay, stick around.
Speaker 3 (04:40):
It's always good to stick around with anything that has
a universe as large as the Karate Kid cinematic universe. Okay, good, By.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
The way, just turning us on, Ralph Mancio was here.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Karate Kid Legends is out today, of course, with Ralph
and the legendary Jackie Chan.
Speaker 3 (04:57):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (04:57):
By the way, I was looking at the map coordinates
and Hollywood, your Hollywood stars right around the corner from mine.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
How about that? I got to do it, you know
one stop shopping next time out there?
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Do you ever check on it?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Because his head but water gun. I had a clean
you know. I saw someone posted the other day on Instagram.
Uh you know, their pictures say I mustn't tagged me.
So it came up in my thing and I was
swiping through all these different stars like Paul McCartney. It
was big name and all their stars were like glistening.
Mine had like tar. It was just it was just
(05:31):
you know, I mean, I just got it November. I mean,
let's get like a little buffer and clean that up now. Yeah,
I think I'm gonna go down next time in La
you know, sneak in. I'm sure Pat Marita is right
next to mine, is absolutely pristine.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
That's cool. He's right next to you.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Yeah, it's really cool. We make it easy for those
karate kid fans.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
My stars outside the door of the club called Avalon,
so they all wait in line. Yeah, and then you know,
we were happy helping our friend Wendy Williams get her
star when she was out there. Hers is right across
from the Hustler Club.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Oh so now you can't read too deep on Hollywood Boulevard.
You really can't because you don't have you don't have
much of a shot of being next to like the Plaza.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Right, Let's talk about raph Let's talk about Hollywood. Let's
talk about the film industry and making movies. Now compared
to way back in the day, it's a whole different
world now.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
It's completely different.
Speaker 2 (06:24):
It really is.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
You know, there's such studio and listen, there's always studio
fingerprints on everything. But now that opening weekend and I'm
you know, we're at it right now. For Karate Kid Legends,
it's about that opening. It's so that word of mouth
sleeper that kind of builds. Those are really rare. It's
it's about you know, grabbing that real estate before the
(06:46):
competition does, and keeping those kids from looking at their
phones or are grabbing their remotes. It's you know, so
it's it's challenging, and you and the editorial aspect of it.
You know, you feel like you're cutting films for the
TikTok you know.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Where you are.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, in part I mean, but also we were talking
about social media. Social media of course not a thing
back in that day when Karate Kid first came out.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Yeah, and Karate Kid in that time in nineteen eighty four,
you either you know, you you went to the beach
or you saw a movie. You know that was summer.
Right Now that there's so much content, there's so many
things that that that distract. But in fairness, you know,
with with Karate Kid Legends, since it's you know, topical
and it's now there is an element that that is
(07:33):
very entertaining for the next generation that still still ties
into all the themes from that original film and they
and the connective tissue of that franchise. And that's something
I've fought for throughout, you know, to make sure we
still try to land those those themes. Fish out of Water,
a kid overcoming obstacles, mentorship, single parenting, you know, dealing
(07:57):
with loss in the case of the original film, Daniel
Lusso's father, in the case of this film, Lee Fong's brother.
You know. So those relatable human themes are still in
this movie, albeit cut for the kids of today and
the families of today.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
So, speaking of kids overcoming struggles, when Karate Kid came out,
you were how.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Old twenty two when it came out, you're twenty two? Yeah, yeah,
I got the machio curve. Okay, I played sixteen for
thirty seven years on.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
That's incredible, Okay, but that's still that's still right around
the age where a lot of younger people, when they're
in the industry, they get this massive amount of fame.
And then after that it was my cousin Vinny, right.
Speaker 3 (08:38):
Yes, yes, And then you pause for a while yeah,
I paused longer than I expected.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
But how did you? Because I'm currently watching a show
called Hollywood Demons, and the last episode was about child
stars who find this massive fame and then when they paused,
they spiral out of control. What did you do to
keep yourself from that?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (08:55):
Today today, I don't know how they do it because
you can't escape. It's so everything's instant. Everyone with the
phone as a paparazzi, and you know, so you could
document anyone anytime. It's really scary, but it is what
it is for me. I mean, I think partly my sensibilities,
my upbringing. So I got to, you know, give props
(09:16):
to my parents, my girlfriend now wife at the time,
give give props to the New York Mets who were
playing well, and I wanted to get back home to
see some games, you know what I mean. So like
I always kept one foot in and one foot out.
I and of Hollywood, if you will. And there is
a downside to that when I if I was a
(09:37):
little bit more diligent in it, maybe that pause would
have not have lasted as long. But I think so
it wasn't by design, but that's kind of when we
started having kids, my wife and I and we raised
the family. And so I got to kind of be
at all of that and still be creative in my way,
keep it working, but not necessarily at that heightened level.
(10:00):
And but I also knew that I was planning this
big resurgence a couple of years later, that that was
always so It's I I got pretty lucky, But I
think I was just the seduction of all that. I
did feel that void I did have down, you know,
(10:20):
darker times where I just you know, it's just like
when I stayed away from Hollywood, just being there was
just so daunting, and you know, you you would drive
on the studio lot and the guy would wave, and
now you can get to the studio lot and they
want your name and they asked you to spell it
for them, and you you're waiting in line, and they
used to just go right through that. You know, that
plays someone an insecure of mind that that starts playing.
(10:43):
Or the billboards are way bigger when other people's movies
are on them. They just extend that twenty feet in
east direction.
Speaker 5 (10:52):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Well, knowing what you know now and having been through it,
would you let your kids get into.
Speaker 3 (10:57):
My daughter isn't it. But she's not a kid any anymore.
She's my kid, but she's an adult. Yeah. Do as
I say, not as I do does not work. But
she's super talented. She did some episodes in the Cobra
Kai series, she played uh, the Jennifer Beals role in
the national tour of flash Stance, uh, and did in
New Zealand. So she's she has a career. I wouldn't
(11:20):
advise it. It's it's a tough what's happened to me
is a like a bazillion to want. I mean you
think of you know, coming into the Outsiders at the Onset,
and then the Karate Kid exploding that way, and my
cousin Vinnie, and and then now the Cobra Kai the
last eight years of that, and then back on the
big screen with the movie that kind of launched it
(11:41):
all for me. There's not many examples of that.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
My cousin Vinnie.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Let's go back, let's go back.
Speaker 3 (11:46):
Yeah, so you did say that a little talk you're
having conversations about a reboot. Yeah, I think that is
kind of that was that came up. It's come up
a few times. Joe pettually had some ideas he in
the studios were talking about it, but it never came
to fruition. You know, you never say never. But but
he's really got to be right. And I worked with
(12:07):
Cobra kai As those those writers are such big Karate
Kid fans. They they cared so much to not let
go of the the origin and the source. And that's
that's why it It worked for six and you know
six seasons.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Well, by the way, I have a call that wants
to connect with you, and I'm gonna do that in
a second. But as you listen to this Ralph Montio speaking,
doesn't he sound a little like Joe Pesci.
Speaker 3 (12:31):
To you know what you're talking about?
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Has anyone ever said that to you ever?
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Not not too often, but I do. You know, I
like to do Joe impersonations. It's fun, you know, he's like,
he's like even just like when I first did my
cousin Vinny uh he was. He brought a bottle of wine.
It was a Shasanya Montrochet. He liked the French you know,
Burgundy white Burgundy's, which are Sharon and he and we
(13:02):
like have one glass and for dinner and then we
have another glass. He goes, I said, you know, I
just wine makes me tired, and I've I've since really
become a fan and wines of a hobby of mine,
tasting great wines, and he goes, he goes. It makes
you tired. It's a depressant, Dan, it's a stimulant, which
is basically you're gonna fall asleep and wake up at
(13:24):
two o'clock in the.
Speaker 4 (13:24):
Morning, you know, all right, Uh, Jennifer, Hi, Jennifer, are
you still there?
Speaker 5 (13:33):
Yes, I'm here. Hello, just over.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, but you're also on with Ralph Maccio.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Say hello, hey, Jennifer, how are you?
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Jennifer? Is it true Ralph number one crush in the
in the eighties.
Speaker 5 (13:48):
It's true. I mean I basically had Ralph Machio wallpaper
in my bedroom. It's true.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Did you hear your own line of I don't think.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
I don't think it was an actual wallpaper.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
I think.
Speaker 3 (14:00):
Sixteen magazine tape taped together, but the Ralph Montrea wallpaper
would be And did you imagine me like like this
is the product I want to push.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Now in all the different poses a different movies.
Speaker 5 (14:13):
No, it was pretty crazy. I mean I remember like
me and my friend's going to the store we would
buy all those teen books, and you were the first
picture that we would pull out and just hang up
like I was. I just just love. I was convinced
we were going to be married. When basically, what.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Daniel, whatever did you make out with the poster?
Speaker 1 (14:30):
And come on?
Speaker 5 (14:31):
I did not? Good?
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Good, that's not that's not the whole broken way.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
It's not we don't.
Speaker 5 (14:39):
We don't go like that, hoboken.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
We don't. Daniel used to make out with posters? Oh
yes I did.
Speaker 4 (14:45):
I had my Greg Evagan from b J and the
Bear post.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
Okay, wound up with a little rip in his mouth
because how he kissed it all the time.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
You kissed it, I did.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Let's not go there.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
You went there?
Speaker 4 (15:03):
Well, Jennifer, do you remember when you first saw Ralph?
Of course, which film did you hear?
Speaker 5 (15:07):
I think I believe it was the Outside of Okay?
Speaker 2 (15:12):
What a great film.
Speaker 5 (15:13):
Like to this day, I still watch those movies as
an adult. I'm fifteen now. I still enjoy those films
so much. And I have to say about like those
movies tied to my teenius, Like I remember my mom,
she's passed away. She passed away in twenty twelve, and
we used to watch those movies together all the time,
Karate Kid the Outside, and there's just so many great
(15:33):
memories that tied to you and those films. And it's
not to say thank you for those movies, because they
were just great.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
Thank you man. That's so that never gets old to
hear that. And that's uh, those films, films, movie, a
cinema can do that. You know, storytelling. It touches people.
You remember, you remember experiencing something, especially when you lose
someone you you know, that movie comes on again, we
see it and we go back. That's that's nostalgia right there.
But those films bring up, you know, kind of positive
(16:02):
feelings and and certainly you know, the Karate Kid has
always been that because you know, you share that kind
of wish for film and aspirational kind of storytelling. So
that's what we're you know, we're planning to do with
the next generation as well. Thanks for sharing that.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Thank you, Jennifer.
Speaker 5 (16:19):
And not only you're welcome, and not only the quality
kid like you've been in so many great things, my cousin,
any one of the greatest comedies, I was exactly right.
Speaker 3 (16:27):
It's late for Dinner movie. If it's on you.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
I love my favorite, my favorite show, every One a
Coba fabulous show. Anybody who hasn't seen that show has
to watch. You are great in that show on our show.
I love it.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
That's awesome you are. You are my cheerleader and I
appreciate it and uh and uh yeah keep rocking it.
And it's so nice to vocally meet you. Wow, Okay, mom,
thanks you.
Speaker 2 (16:59):
There's a plan.
Speaker 5 (17:00):
You know.
Speaker 4 (17:01):
You know our show, this show has been on for
about thirty years. I'm doing mornings here in New York
and so people we have people come up and say
they grew up listening to us. Now they're grandkids, are sensus.
It's crazy, but you know, to be in this, I
guess this club of being around for a while, being
there to be a voice in people's lives or an
actor or a character in people's lives back in the day,
(17:24):
and they still go back to those days and the
feelings they had then because.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
Of you when they see you today. That's pretty cool.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
It's amazing. It's amazing. In a world not to get
too dark and deep that doesn't bring a lot of
joy on a daily basis, it's nice to be on
that side of it. You know, and that's that's like
people ask me about, you know, this Daniel LaRusso character
that has become a piece of pop culture and a
piece of people's childhoods Now, I have ten year old
(17:51):
kids that are running up to me like they're meeting
Santa Claus, know who mister Miyagi is and think he's cool.
It's kind of and they'll talk about watching the movie
the movies with their parents, are watching the Cobra Kai
series and this was an inspirational story from my brother
who had a difficult time in high school or whatever.
Now it's like, you know what, why not talk about
(18:12):
why not celebrate that? And now you know, with the
new movie, you have a whole new generation of kids
that'll back themselves into that entire franchise. And that's kind
of a good at my age, that feels like a
good thing to do.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
Karate Kid Legends is out today and we love it.
When you come visit us, Ralph, thank you for the
entire
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