January 30, 2024 • 49 mins
Hollywood's favorite funnyman and his wife are on today's episode. Seth and Lauren Rogen are a breath of fresh air as they chat with Kevin about "being directed", marriage, and what it means to be an "artist." Lauren shares her personal reason for starting Hilarity For Charity, a national non-profit on a mission to care for families impacted by Alzheimer's disease today. They are joined by Amanda Quezada - Senior Manager of Communications at HFC - to discuss the organizations pillars, taking care of your brain and ways to get involved.
To learn more and get involved with Hilarity For Charity head to WeAreHFC.Org. To support more initiatives like this program, text 'BACON' to 707070 or head to SixDegrees.Org to learn more.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, this is exciting My guests today. Well, first off,
there's two of them, so it's double the fun. They
are naturally very funny people. They're also very kind and
warm people, and I really enjoyed chatting with them. It's
funny because, you know, I interviewed my wife a few
weeks back, and that was a really rare occasion for us.
(00:22):
But this couple that I talked to today, they seem
to love being interviewed and they do it really well,
even if they are from zooming from different places, probably
different parts of their house, but I don't know. But
my guests today are Seth Rogan and his wife, Lauren
Miller Rogan. So listen up, lean in. I'm glad you're here.
(00:51):
I am super excited today to have Lauren Miller Rogan
and Seth Rogan on the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
You guys are the first couple that we've had. You're
probably not going to be surprised to hear that. Uh.
And it's also a little bit coincidental because the second
podcast that I'm going to do today, I'm going to
interview my wife, which should be interesting, you know, I mean,
good good.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
Luck with that.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Yeah, maybe this is a good warm up. I don't
know what exactly, yeah, exactly, but I mean, listen, you know,
I don't think I have a feeling that you, the
two of you, don't often do the interviews together. Am
I right about that?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Not our first?
Speaker 1 (01:43):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:43):
First, we've Yeah, we've done a couple, We've done a
couple of ye. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
I mean I guess I guess your involvement with the
with the charity has made that, you know, kind of possible.
I know that for Kira and me, we try to
avoid it, like the plague and the Yeah. I mean,
the problem with it to me is, and I'm saying
this because I'm about to jump into this, is the
(02:08):
questions are just irritating. Do you How do you feel
about answering questions about your marriage? I guess that's what
I'm trying to say.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
I feel like because often the interviews that we do
together are focused on our charity. They generally are focused
on our charity, whereas you know, I guess in those
moments where we're doing things that are not focused on
our charity. Sure, the last about our marriage, and it's
just like you know, it depends on how you're.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Feeling and what you want to share.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
I think it's like we do share a chunk of
our personal life having this organization, but certainly there are
many things we do not want to talk about and
do not so you know, it's it's always like, you know,
I feel like it depends on the day, right, Like
I don't know, Seth, what do you think?
Speaker 5 (02:57):
Yeah, I feel like we haven't you know, I feel
like we both have I have a good sense of
one another's discretionary preferences. But yeah, you know, also like
we come from a place where, like when we first
started dating, I was on like Howard Stern every other year,
so like a lot of it came out. Probably that
a lot more came out than I would have preferred it.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Probably much earlier.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
On in retrospect.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
And never listen to how long?
Speaker 1 (03:23):
How long have you been married?
Speaker 4 (03:25):
We've been married for twelve years, but we've been together
for over eighteen.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
Now, amazing. Wow, And how did you how did you meet?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
We met?
Speaker 5 (03:37):
I was a writer on The Ali g Show in
two thousand and four, and I was twenty two. I
guess twenty four, yeah, twenty two, And my friend Will
Riser was a producer on the show, and he was
around our age.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
He was a year older basically, and he was dating
my friend Lawrence basically.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Yeah, and so so yeah, they kind of suggested that
we would like each other and we all went to
a party one night together and and that was it.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
So I mean, I gotta say it's it's probably I
don't know, not that often that when you hear those stories,
it's I always think, isn't that great that somebody had
had the understanding the friends could have the understanding of
two people to know that they would be you know,
it's kind of beautiful in a way to have friends
that would like kind of get get that. On the
(04:33):
other hand, it doesn't happen that often though.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
I know.
Speaker 5 (04:36):
I never set people up, but specifically I don't want
to deal with the fallout of it. We were pretty young,
so maybe they weren't understanding the full social ramifications of it.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
But yeah, I hate setting people up for that exact reason.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Hate it.
Speaker 4 (04:49):
Do it when it's when people are like, oh a
little bit. It's like, sure, well you're nice and you're nice,
you'll have a good time. But it's like, oh, it's
so much pressure.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I don't think I've ever tried to tell you the truth.
I can't think of a single time when I've ever
really tried to set set somebody up, But I wouldn't
be terrified. I fit.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
I don't either.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
And at this point, if I know you and your
single like, I will never set you up with someone like.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
If you if you've.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Made it this long, then I would never throw you
at the throw you into a relationship with someone I know.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Let me ask you something. We we we are both
you're both in the in the simpler in the same business, uh, directing, producing, acting,
all that kind of stuff. How how often do you
discuss the day to day ups and downs and ins
(05:38):
and outs of career and and work and business.
Speaker 4 (05:43):
I mean, I would say all all the time. Yeah,
it's you know, it's it's a it's a balance. As
you know, obviously our careers have been different. But I
would say the fact that we both do the same
thing is something that is really beneficial to our relationship
because we both really have an understanding of of you know,
how it feels for it to go well and how
(06:03):
it feels for it to not go well, and you know,
and and and literally I mean as as writers, and
certainly this is a tricky line to walk and it
doesn't always go well. But like you know, we can
share what we're working on and give feedback and have
conversations and be supportive of it. Again, doesn't always go well,
but so I think it's for us, it's you know,
(06:25):
it's great that we have that in common.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
Yeah, you know, you put the word that you use
just now, which is something that I really always hold
on to, is an understanding of what it is. So
you know, like if you go, if you have a
I mean, of course there's marriages where one person would
be you know, an actor or another would be a
(06:49):
you know, a dentist, and it could work out fine.
But but for people that are in the entertainment business,
the things that seem sometimes really kind of big and
hard seem kind of silly to the outside world. You know,
like if I'm giving an example, like if I if
I go, you know, hey, she's like, what what's wrong? Why?
(07:14):
You know what you seem like you're, well, you know,
I just read this review and you know this guy
my age, you know, just got you just got this
great review or just want to you know, an oscar
or whatever it is. I mean, to the outside world,
people go that is just stupid. I mean, why would
you let that even affect your day? And it's the
(07:34):
slightest bit, but there is a kind of empathy and
kind of understanding about what it is that we do
for a living. Not to mention just a shorthand of
you know, whatever terms you want to use, you know,
call times and back end things.
Speaker 5 (07:48):
Like exactly we talked about our back end mostly I
talk I talk about her back We Uh, well, no,
you're right. I think that's something that we're both very
at peace with that it and in tune with is
is one another?
Speaker 3 (08:08):
You know? Is that? Is that exactly what you're saying?
You get wrapped up.
Speaker 5 (08:11):
You know, our emotional stakes are different in this job.
Some would say, you know, the things that we get
worked up about are are inconsequential to others, but to us,
they're very meaningful. When you pour yourself into your work
and when you identify through your work, and when you're
an artist and you want people to see you through
your work, and when it's not received how you want, like, yeah,
(08:33):
I think I could see how.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
You know. We what's nice is we are both in
a position to.
Speaker 5 (08:39):
Truly understand like how how how how painful that can be,
you know, and we don't kind of belittle that at all,
as as my other friends do.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
To meet.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Well, I know I have friends that do the same thing.
For me, it is that just don't get it. And
men family members too that are kind of like, yeah, dude,
shut up.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
I've been with the I've been with filmmakers as we've
been as we've been like releasing movies that are breaking
literal like box office records, and and the filmmaker is
still just focused on the fact that, like the tomato
score is not what and yeah, and and and I
get and whenever I'm like, I get it.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Like I see, I feel the pain and it's and
it does. Yeah, yeah, that's painful.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Exactly. You used the word recently. I want to ask
you both about this that I have been uh I'm
coming to a new understanding of it. And the word
is artists. And I can tell you that when I
uh became an actor, I was super super focused on
just getting famous and getting wretch and getting girls. That
(09:55):
was one hundred had nothing to do.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
And you crush that man, so exactly.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
It was it had nothing to do with the with
the with art you know, it was like to me,
Bryan Brandt was an artist and what I was doing
was wearing makeup and you know, of saying somebody else's words.
But I think more recently I've started to think about
(10:25):
art and the impact that art can have on people,
uh individually, you know, in the ways that they feel
about life, and then and the ways that that that
culture responds to things and even uh you know, the
political change or awareness of of of issues or whatever.
(10:49):
And and I'm not just talking about making films or writing, directing,
you know, acting in films that have some kind of great,
big social point of view. But I mean I'm about
making horror movies or comedies. You know, you can impact
people with these And I'm starting to feel like, well,
that's really what art is, that's what it has been.
(11:11):
And I just wondered if if you've ever had any
kind of resistance to that concept, and whether you have
you know, a point of view about that.
Speaker 5 (11:20):
Yeah, well you went to art school or in so
I think you were conditioned from a very young age
to accept that, which is nice.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
Yeah, yeah, I was going to say that. I think
like for me, I was I was an art kid
in that like from a young age, I was happiest
with crayons and paper and a journal that I could
write everything into. And so and I went then to
a middle school that was focused on the arts and
was in the visual arts program. And high school I
(11:49):
went to an arts high school and was in the
visual arts program. And so expressing the feelings that I
had into whatever art it was that I was making
in those programs I think was ingringed in me that
I didn't give it a second thought, and that was like, Oh,
that's what I do because that's how I feel, and
I've learning, I've learned the skills and how to express
(12:12):
that through writing, drawing, painting, sculpting, et cetera, et cetera.
And so for me, I think I honestly never really
thought about that it was anything other than that. I
don't think of it as in this like at this point,
I absolutely think that storytelling and what we do is art,
but I don't put a sort of pretentious spin on
(12:34):
it in any way other than I feel that so
much of what we do is about connection and understanding,
and I'm just expressing what I'm feeling or what I'm
thinking or what i'm creating, so that someone else can
be like, yeah, I feel that way too, or I
thought that was funny, or you know, or I just
(12:56):
I see myself in that, and so I think that
that is, you know, and that is generally really what
what art is. It's a representation of someone's interpretation of
a moment for the viewer or the audience to have
a relationship to it. And I think that's like, that's
what we're always doing, is people maybe pretensions, but.
Speaker 5 (13:18):
Yeah, it's I just started to feel like how co
musicians get, like the worst musician gets to be called
an artist, Like it's true in a world where Kid
Rocks consider an artist, why can't I consider myself an artist?
Speaker 1 (13:32):
No, they definitely grabbed it. They grabbed it, they took
it before we did, so unfair right about that?
Speaker 5 (13:39):
I got Yeah, at what point, I was at the
Grabbys and just like, fuck it, I'm an artist too.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
I got a fan out a little bit. I can't talk,
obviously for obvious reasons about things that are specific, but
I just want to say that I'm such a great
admirer of your really singular kind of career in the
(14:09):
way that you came to it. But also besides the fact,
there's two things that I think are really interesting. One is,
in the nineteen eighties, they gave me a production deal
at a major studio and I had I lived in
New York, but I had an office on the lot,
(14:31):
and I had a development person and I had a
and I had a secretary. And we didn't do jack
shitt and I couldn't get I was like, this is cool,
I'm going to be a producer. And nothing, nothing got done.
It was so difficult. And you have completely embraced and
(14:58):
you know, just made this made this a part of
who you are is finding stuff for you to be,
in finding stuff for other people to be, in finding
things that you think have value. And I just I
really admire that because I think that so often as
artists take it, yes we are, we're just you know,
(15:24):
we don't get it well. Either we don't have the
skill to do that, or we don't get a chance
to do that. So I just want to say that
I admire that.
Speaker 3 (15:33):
Thank you. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (15:34):
I mean I was lucky to be like brought up
also in like a very specific environment, like surrounded by
people who like we're very geared towards like producing, and
I was like showing how to produce, and I was shown, oh,
you can like nurture someone in their idea and you
could understand the logistics of how things get brought to
(15:55):
life from like a financial standpoint and navigating the studio.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
And and if.
Speaker 5 (16:00):
You're a writer too, then it puts you in like
a really special position and the idea of being like
a writing producer, a producer who can actually fix the
problems in the material and help fix the problems and
enable people to fix the problems. You know, that I
get like I was brought up around people who did that,
(16:21):
and I saw, oh, like if that, if that's a
thing we can do, then there's not a lot of
people who are both you know, able to go into
a studio and you know, negotiate budgets and deals and
all that stuff, and if there's a writing issue, they
could actually sit down and help fix the problem, you know.
(16:42):
And and so it was yeah, I mean, but I
got I got real lucky in that I was kind
of like shown how to do that.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
You know, who were those people that you say brought
you up in that way.
Speaker 5 (16:52):
I mean it was Judd Apatow for sure. It was
one of those people. And he was brought up by
Gary Shandling.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
A lot of the the in a lot of ways.
Speaker 5 (16:59):
And Gary was around me when I was younger, and
he really like had that it was almost like a.
Speaker 3 (17:05):
Rick rubinesque like comedic figure.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
You know.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
It was someone who was like.
Speaker 5 (17:11):
Really was trying to inspire others to like create their
best work and and and spoke to them about how
to create their best work and and and physically could
could do it as well.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
You know, and and and.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
Also like would like have their own shows and their
own companies and and would enable other people. And Jim
Brooks was someone that was for sure, you know, judge
him up under him and he's so when I got
to be around when I was younger, and.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
He was almost was very he's very degenerous in that.
Speaker 5 (17:41):
Yeah, he's great, and he's kind of in a lot
of ways, Yeah, like one of the architects of really
being like a prolific writer, director, producer of of of
people's work in that way, you know, and and like
a writing producer in and of himself. So yeah, it
was I was very fortunate to kind of get to
(18:02):
be around these people at a young age and kind
of absorb.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
Or did you have that kind of mentorship, Yeah, a bit.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
I mean I went to film school and so you
know it was very intentional to you know, work, you know,
as a writer and producer. I came out of school
actually really being interested in producing, and I worked for
this producer named Steve Starkey who was Robertson Echisil's producer
in the sort of Polar Express and Beowulf Monster House
years and you know, learned an incredible amount working at
(18:35):
this company that was making big movies while simultaneously, Seth
and I had started dating at the time, so I
would I would leave work and then go to set
and sit on set and also get to observe jud
and SHAWNA. Robertson who was producing those movies at the time,
and so very much. Yeah, had amazing examples of people
(18:58):
who could juggle you know, the sort of creative side
of putting funny stories together, but also you know, shepherding
other people and being supportive of you know, people coming
up and being generous and teaching and listening and offering guidance.
And Yeah, it's incredible to be able to have that
(19:19):
and to be around people like that. Yeah, I was
very lucky and fun time for sure.
Speaker 1 (19:25):
I want to say to the people that are listening
to this podcast. I probably mentioned this before, but I
have zero regrets about my career and my I'm just
not somebody that looks back and goes, oh shit, I
wish I would have done this and done except for
the fact that I never got the concept of mentorship
(19:49):
because I was such a cocky little shit. I thought
there was nothing that anybody could teach me. Teachers. I
couldn't stand being in class because I was like, I
don't I got this. I got this even you know,
from my parents' older actors that I would meet now
probably just I'm sure I was absorbing things without but
(20:13):
I never really put myself in the situation of going
to somebody and saying, you know, can I ask your
advice on something? And I think that's I think that's
a really important thing for people to do, as as
young people er.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
I mean, I think having a balance though. I think
that like confidence though, is key, and knowing where you're
going is key, and so the fact that you had
the confidence to, you know, be like, I deserve to
be here, I know what I'm doing. I don't don't
I don't need to listen to you helped drive you
to where you where you were and are you know
I would say that my confidence, I didn't have that confidence.
(20:51):
I literally was like I need to learn because I
am not ready until I was ready. And so I
think that, you know, it's important to know I should
in some situations shut up and listen and in some
situations to say like I've experienced and I've learned and
I'm ready to go.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
Yeah, It's true.
Speaker 5 (21:11):
That's what's hard about movies especially, is like no one's right.
It's all just like who likes what more? And like
who who feels it speaks to their tastes more and
and and it is hard at times to yeah, navigate
what advice you should take and what what advice is
just kind.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Of I'm trying to be better like at this age,
at this late age, I'm actually trying to you know, especially,
I think part of it is my is my wife's influence,
because I mean really down to like even directors, do
I really want direction? Not really?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
No one getting direction?
Speaker 1 (21:50):
When I was at.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
I'm happy not to are you are you really?
Speaker 4 (21:56):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (21:56):
I've been on movies wherely like I real I'll be
like so I'd be like, it's been days since I've
even spoken to the director, and that is like.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
You're good with that? Yes, okay, I'm glad because I
don't know that I don't know that. I don't know
that I've I've really uh talked to other actors that
feel that way. So I'm glad that somebody else feeling glad.
I can. Yeah, he doesn't like being directed either, just
so you know.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
And I don't like directing the actors. I don't like
talking about it.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
I'm in general like time, I'd be like, if I
can avoid talking to them, I will just let them
do their thing, you know.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
And I love it, like I want to get in
there and be like, how you know, let's talk about
how we're going to do this, like like that's I think,
you know, one of the most fun parts of it.
And and honestly like if you take like of course,
like a technical directing class like in a school, like
so much of it is how do you communicate with
the actors? So like to be on set either as
an actor and the director doesn't talk to you, I'm like,
(22:51):
where's the director, but then also be the director and
like to get the sense that the actors like, I
got this. You're like, okay, I can take that, and
I'm not going to say anything, and I'm going to
let them go because I know they know what they're doing,
you know.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
The fatal man Stevens Fieldberg was like, I don't want
to talk to the actress ever about the scene ever.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Basically the greatest.
Speaker 2 (23:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (23:09):
And then but then when he did give you direction,
it was terrified because you're like, oh, no.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
That's the greatest, that's the greatest. Well here, yeah, it's
that thing between you Take one and take two. You
see him get out of the chair and start to
stroll over towards a second You're like, oh no, oh no, no,
can we just go again? We just go again. I
can sense what you want. Uh. The that's an interesting
(23:35):
you mentioned that moved. It's an interesting segment to my
other thing that I think is so fascinating. I've often
said that I would I would, Uh, I would love
to do more comedy, but I would I would much
rather have been a serious actor who then gets a
chance to do some comedy that have been well known
(23:58):
for being a comedy the actor, because I think that
the transition, I don't know how you feel about this
in the other direction is uh, is is tough. I
think that there's a there's something tied up with audiences
and what they want to feel from from you in
that moment, you know, as the truck backs up. I uh,
(24:21):
and you've been able to do that to uh, to
to kind of push past that seth in in such
a such a great way with with you know, really
truly amazing dramatic performances and all kinds of stretches, you know,
and uh into different you know, walking in different people's shoes.
And I wondered if that was a had a fight,
(24:44):
if there was a fight to do that, or if
it just kind of happened naturally.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Uh No, there really wasn't. I like it. It wasn't
something that I I.
Speaker 5 (24:52):
Always like love comedy and and and I was never
like someone who, like, uh, I thought comedy was really
always harder, you know, and I would look at you know,
I would do dramatic scenes.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
In comedies and they were always so much easier.
Speaker 5 (25:10):
Than the comedic scenes in the comedies, you know, And
so it wasn't I was always like relieved, though I
remember being like, oh, it's like it's like the scene
where like we break up, and even that was hard
because we would still trying to make it funny. But
like it, it to me was not something I ever
honestly cared that much about. And some of my good
(25:31):
friends were getting cast in dramatic films again, nominated for
Academy Awards, and I was very thrilled for them, and
I would look at them and do you like that
just isn't something I like need necessarily like it. But
there are filmmakers that I love working with, and I
like dramatic film, but I'm more I think Sarah Pauley
(25:52):
was the first one really who put me in like
a dramatic movie, in like a big role in take
This Waltz, and it was like it was interesting, Like
I remember thinking it was very weird that she wanted
me to do it and that she could have her
pick of so many more dramatic actors, but she, like
(26:13):
I thought that I would work in a specific way.
Speaker 4 (26:15):
And so.
Speaker 5 (26:17):
But yeah, I don't like, Yeah, it's not something I
like long for. You know, if I was only making
comedies forever, i'd be happy.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
It's just it's hard, you know, you know, that's.
Speaker 1 (26:29):
So fascinating I'm really that's very very interesting. Yeah, Lauren,
can you tell us about Hilarity for charity and and
and what your own personal connection to this is. I want,
I want to this is this is why you guys
are here today, and I want to segue into that.
Speaker 4 (26:48):
Yeah, So, unfortunately, Alzheimer's was kind of a part of
my life always my on my mom's side, my grandfather,
her dad was diagnosed when I was very young, before
I was born, and then after him, my grandmother, my
mom's mom, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's also, and then at
(27:09):
my college graduation, when I was twenty two and my
mom was fifty two, she started repeating herself and you know,
and it was one of those things that I just knew.
And by the time, just before her fifty fifth birthday,
she was diagnosed with I guess like an earlier on
set Alzheimer's, which you know, coincided with when Seth and
(27:31):
I started dating. We you know, met when we were
twenty three, and so this really obviously hugely colored a
huge part of my life during that time. And you know,
here I was across the country from my parents. They
were in Florida at the time, and you know, I
was trying to build my career and in this relationship
(27:54):
that was growing and sort of get my feet on
the ground here while this was happening back home, and
just as many people do who face a diagnosis of dementia,
we were really scared and didn't know where to turn.
And my mom really didn't want us to talk about
it for the first couple of years because she felt
a lot of stigma that stems from having dementia and
(28:14):
and I'm sure a lot of fear herself having seen
her parents go through it. But eventually her disease progressed
and Steth and I started talking about it and sharing
what I was going through and what my family was
going through. And eventually a friend was like, hey, let's
throw up a variety show since you know, we were
in the comedy area, and let's raise some money for
(28:35):
Alzheimer's research. And I was like, whoa, no, But then
he persisted and I said okay, and we did it.
And that was in twenty twelve, and through that really
realized that there weren't a lot of young people talking
about Alzheimer's at that point. There a lot of people
talking about it in general, really and other young people
(28:57):
were like, oh, hey, I'm also in my tw with
a parent with it or sometimes unfortunately younger than that,
And I was far from being alone and being young
and having a parent dealing with it, and that we
had this voice that we could use to give other
people a voice and show them how to use their
(29:17):
stories to create advocacy that was needed to explain this
disease and what it is like to be a caregiver
for this disease, but also to teach people how to
take care of their brains and how to stay healthy,
and also help caregivers who are going through it right
(29:37):
now and really make sure that they are getting the
support that they need to navigate the very difficult journey
that most people who are cared for someone Golzheimer's are
going through.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
Did you ever get a chance to talk to your
mother about it? Did she ever open up about it? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (29:55):
You know, we had conversations early on. There was one
sort of pivotal conversation early on. This is so funny
how I get to it. But I had read early
on in like a teen magazine that the best place
to have a comfortable conversations with your parents is in
the car because ultimately you'll always have to get out
of the car, so the conversation come to a natural end.
So remember one time I was home visiting and she
(30:17):
and I went to Target, and for whatever reason, I
brought it up on the way to Target. So in
the Target parking lot, we had this very specific conversation
that I'll always remember, which was when I asked her
if she was scared, in which she told me she
wasn't scared for herself, but she was scared for us
because she knew what we were going to go through
(30:37):
and that I was absolutely not to move home to
Florida to be with her, and I was not to
make my life that I had been, you know, building
towards take a left turn and stop what I was
doing to take care of her the class she wanted. Wow,
that's what she was was really selfless. She was giving
and caring and so you know, and I was lucky
(30:59):
to have Step there to support me. And you know,
like I always said, like I was a caregiver for
a caregiver because my dad was my mom's primary caregiver.
But you know, at a lot of ways, Step was
my caregiver. And I was extremely lucky to have him there.
Speaker 6 (31:21):
If you are inspired by today's episode, please join us
in supporting six degrees dot org by texting the word
Bacon to seven zero seven zero seven zero. Your gift
empowers us to continue to produce programs that highlight the
incredible work of everyday heroes, well also enabling us to
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Once again, text b a Con to seven zero seven
(31:46):
zero seven zero or visit six degrees dot org to
learn more.
Speaker 1 (31:53):
I think this is a good moment to bring on.
Amanda Caesauta, who who U is? The senior communications manager?
You are the SCM for hm HFC. Thank you so
much for joining us, Amanda, thank you. You know, there's
something that Lauren mentioned that I that I found really
(32:16):
interesting when I was reading about the Alzheimer's and some
of the research and some of the focus that you
guys are making, and that is in this idea of
a preventative lifestyle. This is something that I'd never really
even thought about brain health. I mean, can you dig
(32:39):
into that a little bit more for people?
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Yeah, it's definitely one of our main pillars I think
what separates us from a lot of other organizations in
the Alzheimer's space is some of the programs that we
offer and kind of the pillars that we're built on.
So the first obviously to care for families and caregivers
impacted by it, as Len mentioned, the second is to
activate the generation of Alzheimer's advocates, and then that third
(33:02):
pillar is to be a leader in the brain health space,
particularly brain health education. And I think something that people
would be surprised to learn is that research suggests that
four and ten cases of dementia may be preventable through
lifestyle changes. And part of this research is that twenty
to thirty years before the onset of symptoms of Alzheimer's
(33:23):
and dementia is when the disease actually starts and it
starts to build. So by the time you get a diagnosis,
you've been living with the disease for decades. And knowing
that information, we really strive to get education to younger
folks and to get young people caring about brain health
education so that when they are in their twenties and thirties,
they can be proactive and doing things that support that. Lauren,
(33:47):
and you might have to help me. We have our
five brain health habits that kind of drive all of
our brain health education. So physical exercise we write then, Yeah,
physical exercise is one of them. Emotional will be is another. Nutrition.
What you eat in put in your body very important.
The biggest one that Lauren talks lots about is sleep.
(34:09):
And then what is the fifth one that I'm missing?
Speaker 4 (34:11):
Learn mental fitness, mental things.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Yes, keeping your brain engaged. So an example of that
that we like to share is learning a new language,
like learning a new line, your brain learning. Yeah. The
more that you can learn new things and activate your
brain in that way, the stronger connections you can make. Yeah,
we're very big on brain health, and there is a
lot that people can do that they don't even realize
in their day to day that can help that effort.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Seth, tell me a little bit about the hilarity side
of this. Yeah, I'm curious about the idea of taking
something that is obviously you know, deep and painful and
as hard as as Alzheimer's and you know, at least
finding a way in through humor.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
A lot of it is because it's just what we do,
you know.
Speaker 5 (35:00):
And as we were putting together the show for the
first time, we are comedians. All of our friends are comedians,
you know. Will actually the guy who introduced us, would
put on comedy variety shows.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
It was kind of like an.
Speaker 5 (35:11):
Environment we came up with, was was we would always
be going to these kind of comedy variety shows all
the time.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
And so it at first was kind of just organically
all we had to offer.
Speaker 5 (35:24):
But over the years it has become a much more
kind of resonant, like beautiful, uh like approach to it.
That that that again, like looking back, is is lovely
and and the fact that we were able to infuse
such a sad thing with humor, and that we're able
to able to bring whiteness to such a dark subject
(35:46):
and able to you kind of you know, take people's
minds off things and with a spoonful of sugar, you know,
like kind of feed them information and tips and lifestyle
you know, habit suggestions that in a way that is
entertaining and maybe a little more lighthearted than this information
is generally conveyed with. Uh that that yeah, that was
(36:09):
never part of like the grand plan. It's kind of
just who we are and what we had to offer
and and and it all came together in that way.
But if anything. Yeah, Like, I think we've all been
amazed at how organically it does go together, and how
comedians especially are very charitable with their time and are
(36:31):
undaunted by speaking about or around incredibly unhappy, traumatic things.
That's what comedy is, right, And I remember, yeah, honestly,
I remember putting together one of the shows and texting
I think was John Mulaney being like, you're coming on
(36:52):
after something that's like brutal, and he was like, it's fine,
Like he's like people, He's like, people shift gears real fast.
It's totally not a problem, you know. And so yeah,
if anything, it kind of has it seems nice in
retrospect and like we have this grand plan to kind
of change the tone surrounding something so sad. But no,
(37:16):
it was just kind of who we were, and we
always we joke like if we were chefs, would be
called baking for charity, you know, but unfortunately we're not.
Speaker 1 (37:27):
Amanda, tell me about the other two pillars.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
Yeah, So the first, which is kind of the heart
and soul of our organization, is to care for families
impacted by Alzheimer's. By twenty fifty, it's estimated that thirteen
million Americans over the age of sixty five will have
the disease, and that is tripling the current amount of
cases that we have today. And I think another big
part of that is that with an increase in people
(37:52):
living with the disease, is the increase of people caring
for people living with the disease. And right now there's
already eleven million Americans who provide on paid care. So
what we do at HFC is try to be a
resource hub for folks wherever they are in the journey.
So whether you yourself have been newly diagnosed or you're
a caregiver who's been caring for someone for years with
(38:12):
the disease, we try to meet people where they are
through a variety of services. Probably the biggest and kind
of the core of our work is our respite grants,
and what those are is folks can apply and what
it is is it's either a short term grant where
we collaborate with a professional care organization and if you
(38:33):
are awarded the grant, then someone would come to your home,
a professional caregiver to help relieve you. So it's meant
to take the burden of caregiving off the caregiver just
for a little We also have extended grants, so that's
like more long term assistance that you'd have, but we
found that it's just much needed respite. Like caregivers are
very burnt out and it is such a taxing job
(38:54):
and responsibility, and to even have the time to go
to the grocery store or to have a night out
with friends can be monumental in giving them a little
bit more fuel so that they can continue caring for
the person that they love. Which in addition to the
care grants, we also have a lot of online opportunities.
Since caregivers are everywhere and very busy and we're a
(39:17):
national organization, we have workshops, We have our main event
every year, which is care Con, which is coming up
this February, actually on Valentine's Day this year, So shout
out to all the caregivers and those are all meant
to kind of speaking to what Seth said, one educate them,
so give them resources and maybe tips and chicks that
(39:37):
they might not have known about in caregiving, and to
give them a space to just be entertained and to
laugh and to find community with people who get it,
because it's a really isolating experience and not everyone understands
what it looks like to care for someone and when
you meet someone who does, it's a really special thing.
So that's one of them, caring for caregivers, and then
(40:00):
the other one that's pretty exciting, and I think we're
one of a few organizations doing it is activating the
next generation of Alzheimer's advocates. So we have a program
right now called the Youth Movement Against Alzheimer's and we
have high school and college chapters all across the country
of kids who, either through personal connection or maybe careers
(40:21):
that they want to get into, they have a passion
for Alzheimer's and dementia and they want to advocate on
behalf of the disease and people living with the disease.
And it's a big part of what we do is
making sure that those young people are equipped to put
that message out into the world to help educate their
peers on what they can do around brain health. It
(40:43):
kind of all funnels back into that idea of prevention
that if we can get people educated and inspired earlier,
we'll all be better off in the long run.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
AMaGA, let me ask you a question. Obviously you're very
committed to this, do you think it was in your
life personally that made you want to, you know, be
in this line of work. Yeah, I mean, you know,
be work in the in the cause based space. I'm
always fascinated when you know, being someone who that was
(41:17):
never an option that I considered as a young man.
I'm always fascinated with with people that really have have
chosen to to to make this their their work.
Speaker 2 (41:28):
Yeah. I think it was modeled for me by my
parents just in our lifestyle. They were really big on
helping others, So we've had countless friends and families stay
at our home throughout the years. And I think for
my sister and I, she's in the medical field, so
she does servanthood in her own way. We just thought
modeled for us. My mom especially was really big on
teaching us that if you have the means and the
(41:49):
ability you help others, that's what you do. And I
think I learned early on the gratification that you feel
and that you get from helping other people. And I
felt pretty convinced, I mean out of call it is
that if I didn't do work that was tied to
a purposeful mission, I wouldn't be fulfilled. And I wouldn't
be able to show up and really love what I do.
(42:09):
Hilarity for charity is the sweet spot of all the
things that I love. I get to be very creative here.
I get to help others, and it's a cause that
I have personal experience with, and I get to, you know,
help people who are in the same position as myself
and my family.
Speaker 1 (42:24):
M hm, that's that's that's great. I also have to
say that I'm so touched with the notion of Seth
becoming the caregiver for the caregiver you mentioned that, Lord,
and I just want to circle back to that because
I I, I mean, obviously there is a I'm gonna
(42:44):
call it trickle down, but there's a there's a there's
a ripple effect when somebody in somebody.
Speaker 5 (42:49):
I'd call it a black hole, right the exactly.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Yeah, it's it is, you know, that's that's that's part
of what marriages, that's part of what family is, you know.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
And yeah, it was really yeah, it was. It was
one of those things though, like it was so sad, and.
Speaker 3 (43:12):
You know, I remember suggesting Laura go to therapy.
Speaker 5 (43:14):
That was a big that was a defining moment, I
would say, and you know, uh forward, because I was
just literally unequipped to deal with how sad the situation was.
Like it wasn't like normal like hard day at work sad,
like my boss is an asshole sad. It was like
outside the scope of what I was equipped to understand
(43:38):
how to deal with effectively, you know. And and then
also it was one of those things where like money
just helped, and that's why we made these grants, where
like Lauren's father was just like getting worked to death,
and then we hired these people, and all of a sudden,
like everyone's lives was much better in like a tangible way.
Speaker 3 (44:02):
And so.
Speaker 5 (44:04):
Yeah, like this idea that you know, just there's a
very like immediate way to relieve the pressure of these
caregivers because also like caregiving is also you know, like
the caregiver dies before the person they are caring for,
often because of the toll it takes. And and and
that really seemed to be you know, what would was
(44:29):
what could have happened to Lauren's father and so and
and and then yeah, and then like the emotional effect
it had on Lauren obviously because both of her parents
were going through this terrible thing. So yeah, it does
create this kind of like black hole that you really
have to fight against the gravitational pull of you know.
Speaker 1 (44:47):
Yeah, well, I want to give you an opportunity, both
Lauren and Amanda to you know, say how people listening
to this can get involved, can help. This is our
call to action to you know, just see how what
people can do.
Speaker 2 (45:05):
Do you want to kiss? Sure?
Speaker 4 (45:07):
I mean, look, the first thing that can help is
by donating money. You know, we are able to fund
I think it's twenty seven percent or something of our
applications that we received for our restpen programs. I would
love to be able to fund more. However, it's not
only money where we need the help. The simplest thing
someone can do is share a story. If you're a caregiver,
(45:30):
telling your friends, telling your family, sharing your story on
social media. Making the reality of caring for someone with
dementia part of the conversation so that people understand what
it actually means to care for someone with dementia is
huge to push the conversation forward because part of the
reason that dementia Alzheimer's research was underfunded for so long
(45:52):
by the government was because no one talked about it.
In the last ten years, that's changed the reality of
the situation has forced the government to step up with
more funding in the areas of scientific research. So caregiving
is still unfortunately behind, and so sharing our stories about
the need for the support we need for caregivers, hopefully
(46:13):
we'll shift the conversation to give caregivers the support they need.
So I would say it's donations, it's advocacy, it's sharing
our information on social media with a friend who you
know needs it. It's sharing the fact that you know
we have a support group. We have support groups for
so many different types of people, and so so yeah, donating, sharing, Amanda,
(46:38):
what else.
Speaker 2 (46:39):
Yeah, obviously donating and sharing. I think another big thing
is learn how to care for your brain. I mean,
the crisis of care is going to impact everyone on
a big scale, the economy. We're not ready for the
amount of care that's going to need to be provided
in the coming years. And we can tackle that by
(47:00):
selling those lifestyle habits that can help towards preventions. So
check out we are HFC dot org. We've got lots
of resources about all the brain health habits that you
can do. We even have a lovely recording of seth
if you want to soothe yourself to sleep with the
voices that brogan you can.
Speaker 3 (47:19):
Definite Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:21):
I would encourage everyone check out our website, find out
the simple things that you can start changing to help
improve your brain health with those habits, and then if
there's any caregivers listening out here, know that we're here
to support you wherever you are on your journey. Please
connect with us either through the website or on social media.
We are at we are HFC across all social platforms,
(47:43):
and we also have our major event, our virtual event
care Con, coming up this February on Valentine's Day, so
please join us even if you're not a caregiver. I
think another aspect of this issue was that caregivers feel
isolated because people don't know how to support someone who's
caring for someone with all sign and we've got a
lot of tools to even help the non trigivers know
(48:03):
how to better love and support the people in their
lives who are doing the caregiving.
Speaker 1 (48:08):
That's awesome. I want to thank you guys so much, Seth, Lauren, Amanda,
thank you so much foranking here today. Thanks for having us.
It's really fun to to chat with you guys, and
I love the sport that you're doing and and you know,
keep up the good work. It's it's just fantastic stuff.
So thank you, thank.
Speaker 2 (48:27):
You, thank you, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (48:32):
Hey, everybody, thanks for listening to another episode of Six
Degrees with Kevin Bacon. To learn more about Hilarity for Charity.
I love that name and all the great works Seth,
Lauren and their team are up to head to their website.
We are h FC dot org. That's we are h
FC dot org. You can find all the links in
(48:55):
our show notes and hey, if you like what you need,
make sure that you subscribe to the show and tune
in to the rest of our episodes. You can find
six Degrees with Kevin Bacon on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, or
wherever you get your podcasts. I see you next time.
Hey, this is exciting My guests today. Well, first off,
there's two of them, so it's double the fun. They
are naturally very funny people. They're also very kind and
warm people, and I really enjoyed chatting with them. It's
funny because, you know, I interviewed my wife a few
weeks back, and that was a really rare occasion for us.
(00:22):
But this couple that I talked to today, they seem
to love being interviewed and they do it really well,
even if they are from zooming from different places, probably
different parts of their house, but I don't know. But
my guests today are Seth Rogan and his wife, Lauren
Miller Rogan. So listen up, lean in. I'm glad you're here.
(00:51):
I am super excited today to have Lauren Miller Rogan
and Seth Rogan on the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
You guys are the first couple that we've had. You're
probably not going to be surprised to hear that. Uh.
And it's also a little bit coincidental because the second
podcast that I'm going to do today, I'm going to
interview my wife, which should be interesting, you know, I mean,
good good.
Speaker 3 (01:22):
Luck with that.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Yeah, maybe this is a good warm up. I don't
know what exactly, yeah, exactly, but I mean, listen, you know,
I don't think I have a feeling that you, the
two of you, don't often do the interviews together. Am
I right about that?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
Not our first?
Speaker 1 (01:43):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:43):
First, we've Yeah, we've done a couple, We've done a
couple of ye. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
I mean I guess I guess your involvement with the
with the charity has made that, you know, kind of possible.
I know that for Kira and me, we try to
avoid it, like the plague and the Yeah. I mean,
the problem with it to me is, and I'm saying
this because I'm about to jump into this, is the
(02:08):
questions are just irritating. Do you How do you feel
about answering questions about your marriage? I guess that's what
I'm trying to say.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
I feel like because often the interviews that we do
together are focused on our charity. They generally are focused
on our charity, whereas you know, I guess in those
moments where we're doing things that are not focused on
our charity. Sure, the last about our marriage, and it's
just like you know, it depends on how you're.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Feeling and what you want to share.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
I think it's like we do share a chunk of
our personal life having this organization, but certainly there are
many things we do not want to talk about and
do not so you know, it's it's always like, you know,
I feel like it depends on the day, right, Like
I don't know, Seth, what do you think?
Speaker 5 (02:57):
Yeah, I feel like we haven't you know, I feel
like we both have I have a good sense of
one another's discretionary preferences. But yeah, you know, also like
we come from a place where, like when we first
started dating, I was on like Howard Stern every other year,
so like a lot of it came out. Probably that
a lot more came out than I would have preferred it.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Probably much earlier.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
On in retrospect.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
And never listen to how long?
Speaker 1 (03:23):
How long have you been married?
Speaker 4 (03:25):
We've been married for twelve years, but we've been together
for over eighteen.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
Now, amazing. Wow, And how did you how did you meet?
Speaker 3 (03:35):
We met?
Speaker 5 (03:37):
I was a writer on The Ali g Show in
two thousand and four, and I was twenty two. I
guess twenty four, yeah, twenty two, And my friend Will
Riser was a producer on the show, and he was
around our age.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
He was a year older basically, and he was dating
my friend Lawrence basically.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Yeah, and so so yeah, they kind of suggested that
we would like each other and we all went to
a party one night together and and that was it.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
So I mean, I gotta say it's it's probably I
don't know, not that often that when you hear those stories,
it's I always think, isn't that great that somebody had
had the understanding the friends could have the understanding of
two people to know that they would be you know,
it's kind of beautiful in a way to have friends
that would like kind of get get that. On the
(04:33):
other hand, it doesn't happen that often though.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
I know.
Speaker 5 (04:36):
I never set people up, but specifically I don't want
to deal with the fallout of it. We were pretty young,
so maybe they weren't understanding the full social ramifications of it.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
But yeah, I hate setting people up for that exact reason.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Hate it.
Speaker 4 (04:49):
Do it when it's when people are like, oh a
little bit. It's like, sure, well you're nice and you're nice,
you'll have a good time. But it's like, oh, it's
so much pressure.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I don't think I've ever tried to tell you the truth.
I can't think of a single time when I've ever
really tried to set set somebody up, But I wouldn't
be terrified. I fit.
Speaker 3 (05:04):
I don't either.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
And at this point, if I know you and your
single like, I will never set you up with someone like.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
If you if you've.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
Made it this long, then I would never throw you
at the throw you into a relationship with someone I know.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Let me ask you something. We we we are both
you're both in the in the simpler in the same business, uh, directing, producing, acting,
all that kind of stuff. How how often do you
discuss the day to day ups and downs and ins
(05:38):
and outs of career and and work and business.
Speaker 4 (05:43):
I mean, I would say all all the time. Yeah,
it's you know, it's it's a it's a balance. As
you know, obviously our careers have been different. But I
would say the fact that we both do the same
thing is something that is really beneficial to our relationship
because we both really have an understanding of of you know,
how it feels for it to go well and how
(06:03):
it feels for it to not go well, and you know,
and and and literally I mean as as writers, and
certainly this is a tricky line to walk and it
doesn't always go well. But like you know, we can
share what we're working on and give feedback and have
conversations and be supportive of it. Again, doesn't always go well,
but so I think it's for us, it's you know,
(06:25):
it's great that we have that in common.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
Yeah, you know, you put the word that you use
just now, which is something that I really always hold
on to, is an understanding of what it is. So
you know, like if you go, if you have a
I mean, of course there's marriages where one person would
be you know, an actor or another would be a
(06:49):
you know, a dentist, and it could work out fine.
But but for people that are in the entertainment business,
the things that seem sometimes really kind of big and
hard seem kind of silly to the outside world. You know,
like if I'm giving an example, like if I if
I go, you know, hey, she's like, what what's wrong? Why?
(07:14):
You know what you seem like you're, well, you know,
I just read this review and you know this guy
my age, you know, just got you just got this
great review or just want to you know, an oscar
or whatever it is. I mean, to the outside world,
people go that is just stupid. I mean, why would
you let that even affect your day? And it's the
(07:34):
slightest bit, but there is a kind of empathy and
kind of understanding about what it is that we do
for a living. Not to mention just a shorthand of
you know, whatever terms you want to use, you know,
call times and back end things.
Speaker 5 (07:48):
Like exactly we talked about our back end mostly I
talk I talk about her back We Uh, well, no,
you're right. I think that's something that we're both very
at peace with that it and in tune with is
is one another?
Speaker 3 (08:08):
You know? Is that? Is that exactly what you're saying?
You get wrapped up.
Speaker 5 (08:11):
You know, our emotional stakes are different in this job.
Some would say, you know, the things that we get
worked up about are are inconsequential to others, but to us,
they're very meaningful. When you pour yourself into your work
and when you identify through your work, and when you're
an artist and you want people to see you through
your work, and when it's not received how you want, like, yeah,
(08:33):
I think I could see how.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
You know. We what's nice is we are both in
a position to.
Speaker 5 (08:39):
Truly understand like how how how how painful that can be,
you know, and we don't kind of belittle that at all,
as as my other friends do.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
To meet.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Well, I know I have friends that do the same thing.
For me, it is that just don't get it. And
men family members too that are kind of like, yeah, dude,
shut up.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
I've been with the I've been with filmmakers as we've
been as we've been like releasing movies that are breaking
literal like box office records, and and the filmmaker is
still just focused on the fact that, like the tomato
score is not what and yeah, and and and I
get and whenever I'm like, I get it.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Like I see, I feel the pain and it's and
it does. Yeah, yeah, that's painful.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
Exactly. You used the word recently. I want to ask
you both about this that I have been uh I'm
coming to a new understanding of it. And the word
is artists. And I can tell you that when I
uh became an actor, I was super super focused on
just getting famous and getting wretch and getting girls. That
(09:55):
was one hundred had nothing to do.
Speaker 3 (09:58):
And you crush that man, so exactly.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
It was it had nothing to do with the with
the with art you know, it was like to me,
Bryan Brandt was an artist and what I was doing
was wearing makeup and you know, of saying somebody else's words.
But I think more recently I've started to think about
(10:25):
art and the impact that art can have on people,
uh individually, you know, in the ways that they feel
about life, and then and the ways that that that
culture responds to things and even uh you know, the
political change or awareness of of of issues or whatever.
(10:49):
And and I'm not just talking about making films or writing, directing,
you know, acting in films that have some kind of great,
big social point of view. But I mean I'm about
making horror movies or comedies. You know, you can impact
people with these And I'm starting to feel like, well,
that's really what art is, that's what it has been.
(11:11):
And I just wondered if if you've ever had any
kind of resistance to that concept, and whether you have
you know, a point of view about that.
Speaker 5 (11:20):
Yeah, well you went to art school or in so
I think you were conditioned from a very young age
to accept that, which is nice.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
Yeah, yeah, I was going to say that. I think
like for me, I was I was an art kid
in that like from a young age, I was happiest
with crayons and paper and a journal that I could
write everything into. And so and I went then to
a middle school that was focused on the arts and
was in the visual arts program. And high school I
(11:49):
went to an arts high school and was in the
visual arts program. And so expressing the feelings that I
had into whatever art it was that I was making
in those programs I think was ingringed in me that
I didn't give it a second thought, and that was like, Oh,
that's what I do because that's how I feel, and
I've learning, I've learned the skills and how to express
(12:12):
that through writing, drawing, painting, sculpting, et cetera, et cetera.
And so for me, I think I honestly never really
thought about that it was anything other than that. I
don't think of it as in this like at this point,
I absolutely think that storytelling and what we do is art,
but I don't put a sort of pretentious spin on
(12:34):
it in any way other than I feel that so
much of what we do is about connection and understanding,
and I'm just expressing what I'm feeling or what I'm
thinking or what i'm creating, so that someone else can
be like, yeah, I feel that way too, or I
thought that was funny, or you know, or I just
(12:56):
I see myself in that, and so I think that
that is, you know, and that is generally really what
what art is. It's a representation of someone's interpretation of
a moment for the viewer or the audience to have
a relationship to it. And I think that's like, that's
what we're always doing, is people maybe pretensions, but.
Speaker 5 (13:18):
Yeah, it's I just started to feel like how co
musicians get, like the worst musician gets to be called
an artist, Like it's true in a world where Kid
Rocks consider an artist, why can't I consider myself an artist?
Speaker 1 (13:32):
No, they definitely grabbed it. They grabbed it, they took
it before we did, so unfair right about that?
Speaker 5 (13:39):
I got Yeah, at what point, I was at the
Grabbys and just like, fuck it, I'm an artist too.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
I got a fan out a little bit. I can't talk,
obviously for obvious reasons about things that are specific, but
I just want to say that I'm such a great
admirer of your really singular kind of career in the
(14:09):
way that you came to it. But also besides the fact,
there's two things that I think are really interesting. One is,
in the nineteen eighties, they gave me a production deal
at a major studio and I had I lived in
New York, but I had an office on the lot,
(14:31):
and I had a development person and I had a
and I had a secretary. And we didn't do jack
shitt and I couldn't get I was like, this is cool,
I'm going to be a producer. And nothing, nothing got done.
It was so difficult. And you have completely embraced and
(14:58):
you know, just made this made this a part of
who you are is finding stuff for you to be,
in finding stuff for other people to be, in finding
things that you think have value. And I just I
really admire that because I think that so often as
artists take it, yes we are, we're just you know,
(15:24):
we don't get it well. Either we don't have the
skill to do that, or we don't get a chance
to do that. So I just want to say that
I admire that.
Speaker 3 (15:33):
Thank you. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (15:34):
I mean I was lucky to be like brought up
also in like a very specific environment, like surrounded by
people who like we're very geared towards like producing, and
I was like showing how to produce, and I was shown, oh,
you can like nurture someone in their idea and you
could understand the logistics of how things get brought to
(15:55):
life from like a financial standpoint and navigating the studio.
Speaker 3 (15:59):
And and if.
Speaker 5 (16:00):
You're a writer too, then it puts you in like
a really special position and the idea of being like
a writing producer, a producer who can actually fix the
problems in the material and help fix the problems and
enable people to fix the problems. You know, that I
get like I was brought up around people who did that,
(16:21):
and I saw, oh, like if that, if that's a
thing we can do, then there's not a lot of
people who are both you know, able to go into
a studio and you know, negotiate budgets and deals and
all that stuff, and if there's a writing issue, they
could actually sit down and help fix the problem, you know.
(16:42):
And and so it was yeah, I mean, but I
got I got real lucky in that I was kind
of like shown how to do that.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
You know, who were those people that you say brought
you up in that way.
Speaker 5 (16:52):
I mean it was Judd Apatow for sure. It was
one of those people. And he was brought up by
Gary Shandling.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
A lot of the the in a lot of ways.
Speaker 5 (16:59):
And Gary was around me when I was younger, and
he really like had that it was almost like a.
Speaker 3 (17:05):
Rick rubinesque like comedic figure.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
You know.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
It was someone who was like.
Speaker 5 (17:11):
Really was trying to inspire others to like create their
best work and and and spoke to them about how
to create their best work and and and physically could
could do it as well.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
You know, and and and.
Speaker 5 (17:25):
Also like would like have their own shows and their
own companies and and would enable other people. And Jim
Brooks was someone that was for sure, you know, judge
him up under him and he's so when I got
to be around when I was younger, and.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
He was almost was very he's very degenerous in that.
Speaker 5 (17:41):
Yeah, he's great, and he's kind of in a lot
of ways, Yeah, like one of the architects of really
being like a prolific writer, director, producer of of of
people's work in that way, you know, and and like
a writing producer in and of himself. So yeah, it
was I was very fortunate to kind of get to
(18:02):
be around these people at a young age and kind
of absorb.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
Or did you have that kind of mentorship, Yeah, a bit.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
I mean I went to film school and so you
know it was very intentional to you know, work, you know,
as a writer and producer. I came out of school
actually really being interested in producing, and I worked for
this producer named Steve Starkey who was Robertson Echisil's producer
in the sort of Polar Express and Beowulf Monster House
years and you know, learned an incredible amount working at
(18:35):
this company that was making big movies while simultaneously, Seth
and I had started dating at the time, so I
would I would leave work and then go to set
and sit on set and also get to observe jud
and SHAWNA. Robertson who was producing those movies at the time,
and so very much. Yeah, had amazing examples of people
(18:58):
who could juggle you know, the sort of creative side
of putting funny stories together, but also you know, shepherding
other people and being supportive of you know, people coming
up and being generous and teaching and listening and offering guidance.
And Yeah, it's incredible to be able to have that
(19:19):
and to be around people like that. Yeah, I was
very lucky and fun time for sure.
Speaker 1 (19:25):
I want to say to the people that are listening
to this podcast. I probably mentioned this before, but I
have zero regrets about my career and my I'm just
not somebody that looks back and goes, oh shit, I
wish I would have done this and done except for
the fact that I never got the concept of mentorship
(19:49):
because I was such a cocky little shit. I thought
there was nothing that anybody could teach me. Teachers. I
couldn't stand being in class because I was like, I
don't I got this. I got this even you know,
from my parents' older actors that I would meet now
probably just I'm sure I was absorbing things without but
(20:13):
I never really put myself in the situation of going
to somebody and saying, you know, can I ask your
advice on something? And I think that's I think that's
a really important thing for people to do, as as
young people er.
Speaker 4 (20:29):
I mean, I think having a balance though. I think
that like confidence though, is key, and knowing where you're
going is key, and so the fact that you had
the confidence to, you know, be like, I deserve to
be here, I know what I'm doing. I don't don't
I don't need to listen to you helped drive you
to where you where you were and are you know
I would say that my confidence, I didn't have that confidence.
(20:51):
I literally was like I need to learn because I
am not ready until I was ready. And so I
think that, you know, it's important to know I should
in some situations shut up and listen and in some
situations to say like I've experienced and I've learned and
I'm ready to go.
Speaker 3 (21:10):
Yeah, It's true.
Speaker 5 (21:11):
That's what's hard about movies especially, is like no one's right.
It's all just like who likes what more? And like
who who feels it speaks to their tastes more and
and and it is hard at times to yeah, navigate
what advice you should take and what what advice is
just kind.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Of I'm trying to be better like at this age,
at this late age, I'm actually trying to you know, especially,
I think part of it is my is my wife's influence,
because I mean really down to like even directors, do
I really want direction? Not really?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
No one getting direction?
Speaker 1 (21:50):
When I was at.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
I'm happy not to are you are you really?
Speaker 4 (21:56):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (21:56):
I've been on movies wherely like I real I'll be
like so I'd be like, it's been days since I've
even spoken to the director, and that is like.
Speaker 1 (22:03):
You're good with that? Yes, okay, I'm glad because I
don't know that I don't know that. I don't know
that I've I've really uh talked to other actors that
feel that way. So I'm glad that somebody else feeling glad.
I can. Yeah, he doesn't like being directed either, just
so you know.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
And I don't like directing the actors. I don't like
talking about it.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
I'm in general like time, I'd be like, if I
can avoid talking to them, I will just let them
do their thing, you know.
Speaker 4 (22:29):
And I love it, like I want to get in
there and be like, how you know, let's talk about
how we're going to do this, like like that's I think,
you know, one of the most fun parts of it.
And and honestly like if you take like of course,
like a technical directing class like in a school, like
so much of it is how do you communicate with
the actors? So like to be on set either as
an actor and the director doesn't talk to you, I'm like,
(22:51):
where's the director, but then also be the director and
like to get the sense that the actors like, I
got this. You're like, okay, I can take that, and
I'm not going to say anything, and I'm going to
let them go because I know they know what they're doing,
you know.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
The fatal man Stevens Fieldberg was like, I don't want
to talk to the actress ever about the scene ever.
Speaker 3 (23:08):
Basically the greatest.
Speaker 2 (23:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (23:09):
And then but then when he did give you direction,
it was terrified because you're like, oh, no.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
That's the greatest, that's the greatest. Well here, yeah, it's
that thing between you Take one and take two. You
see him get out of the chair and start to
stroll over towards a second You're like, oh no, oh no, no,
can we just go again? We just go again. I
can sense what you want. Uh. The that's an interesting
(23:35):
you mentioned that moved. It's an interesting segment to my
other thing that I think is so fascinating. I've often
said that I would I would, Uh, I would love
to do more comedy, but I would I would much
rather have been a serious actor who then gets a
chance to do some comedy that have been well known
(23:58):
for being a comedy the actor, because I think that
the transition, I don't know how you feel about this
in the other direction is uh, is is tough. I
think that there's a there's something tied up with audiences
and what they want to feel from from you in
that moment, you know, as the truck backs up. I uh,
(24:21):
and you've been able to do that to uh, to
to kind of push past that seth in in such
a such a great way with with you know, really
truly amazing dramatic performances and all kinds of stretches, you know,
and uh into different you know, walking in different people's shoes.
And I wondered if that was a had a fight,
(24:44):
if there was a fight to do that, or if
it just kind of happened naturally.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Uh No, there really wasn't. I like it. It wasn't
something that I I.
Speaker 5 (24:52):
Always like love comedy and and and I was never
like someone who, like, uh, I thought comedy was really
always harder, you know, and I would look at you know,
I would do dramatic scenes.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
In comedies and they were always so much easier.
Speaker 5 (25:10):
Than the comedic scenes in the comedies, you know, And
so it wasn't I was always like relieved, though I
remember being like, oh, it's like it's like the scene
where like we break up, and even that was hard
because we would still trying to make it funny. But
like it, it to me was not something I ever
honestly cared that much about. And some of my good
(25:31):
friends were getting cast in dramatic films again, nominated for
Academy Awards, and I was very thrilled for them, and
I would look at them and do you like that
just isn't something I like need necessarily like it. But
there are filmmakers that I love working with, and I
like dramatic film, but I'm more I think Sarah Pauley
(25:52):
was the first one really who put me in like
a dramatic movie, in like a big role in take
This Waltz, and it was like it was interesting, Like
I remember thinking it was very weird that she wanted
me to do it and that she could have her
pick of so many more dramatic actors, but she, like
(26:13):
I thought that I would work in a specific way.
Speaker 4 (26:15):
And so.
Speaker 5 (26:17):
But yeah, I don't like, Yeah, it's not something I
like long for. You know, if I was only making
comedies forever, i'd be happy.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
It's just it's hard, you know, you know, that's.
Speaker 1 (26:29):
So fascinating I'm really that's very very interesting. Yeah, Lauren,
can you tell us about Hilarity for charity and and
and what your own personal connection to this is. I want,
I want to this is this is why you guys
are here today, and I want to segue into that.
Speaker 4 (26:48):
Yeah, So, unfortunately, Alzheimer's was kind of a part of
my life always my on my mom's side, my grandfather,
her dad was diagnosed when I was very young, before
I was born, and then after him, my grandmother, my
mom's mom, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's also, and then at
(27:09):
my college graduation, when I was twenty two and my
mom was fifty two, she started repeating herself and you know,
and it was one of those things that I just knew.
And by the time, just before her fifty fifth birthday,
she was diagnosed with I guess like an earlier on
set Alzheimer's, which you know, coincided with when Seth and
(27:31):
I started dating. We you know, met when we were
twenty three, and so this really obviously hugely colored a
huge part of my life during that time. And you know,
here I was across the country from my parents. They
were in Florida at the time, and you know, I
was trying to build my career and in this relationship
(27:54):
that was growing and sort of get my feet on
the ground here while this was happening back home, and
just as many people do who face a diagnosis of dementia,
we were really scared and didn't know where to turn.
And my mom really didn't want us to talk about
it for the first couple of years because she felt
a lot of stigma that stems from having dementia and
(28:14):
and I'm sure a lot of fear herself having seen
her parents go through it. But eventually her disease progressed
and Steth and I started talking about it and sharing
what I was going through and what my family was
going through. And eventually a friend was like, hey, let's
throw up a variety show since you know, we were
in the comedy area, and let's raise some money for
(28:35):
Alzheimer's research. And I was like, whoa, no, But then
he persisted and I said okay, and we did it.
And that was in twenty twelve, and through that really
realized that there weren't a lot of young people talking
about Alzheimer's at that point. There a lot of people
talking about it in general, really and other young people
(28:57):
were like, oh, hey, I'm also in my tw with
a parent with it or sometimes unfortunately younger than that,
And I was far from being alone and being young
and having a parent dealing with it, and that we
had this voice that we could use to give other
people a voice and show them how to use their
(29:17):
stories to create advocacy that was needed to explain this
disease and what it is like to be a caregiver
for this disease, but also to teach people how to
take care of their brains and how to stay healthy,
and also help caregivers who are going through it right
(29:37):
now and really make sure that they are getting the
support that they need to navigate the very difficult journey
that most people who are cared for someone Golzheimer's are
going through.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
Did you ever get a chance to talk to your
mother about it? Did she ever open up about it? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (29:55):
You know, we had conversations early on. There was one
sort of pivotal conversation early on. This is so funny
how I get to it. But I had read early
on in like a teen magazine that the best place
to have a comfortable conversations with your parents is in
the car because ultimately you'll always have to get out
of the car, so the conversation come to a natural end.
So remember one time I was home visiting and she
(30:17):
and I went to Target, and for whatever reason, I
brought it up on the way to Target. So in
the Target parking lot, we had this very specific conversation
that I'll always remember, which was when I asked her
if she was scared, in which she told me she
wasn't scared for herself, but she was scared for us
because she knew what we were going to go through
(30:37):
and that I was absolutely not to move home to
Florida to be with her, and I was not to
make my life that I had been, you know, building
towards take a left turn and stop what I was
doing to take care of her the class she wanted. Wow,
that's what she was was really selfless. She was giving
and caring and so you know, and I was lucky
(30:59):
to have Step there to support me. And you know,
like I always said, like I was a caregiver for
a caregiver because my dad was my mom's primary caregiver.
But you know, at a lot of ways, Step was
my caregiver. And I was extremely lucky to have him there.
Speaker 6 (31:21):
If you are inspired by today's episode, please join us
in supporting six degrees dot org by texting the word
Bacon to seven zero seven zero seven zero. Your gift
empowers us to continue to produce programs that highlight the
incredible work of everyday heroes, well also enabling us to
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Once again, text b a Con to seven zero seven
(31:46):
zero seven zero or visit six degrees dot org to
learn more.
Speaker 1 (31:53):
I think this is a good moment to bring on.
Amanda Caesauta, who who U is? The senior communications manager?
You are the SCM for hm HFC. Thank you so
much for joining us, Amanda, thank you. You know, there's
something that Lauren mentioned that I that I found really
(32:16):
interesting when I was reading about the Alzheimer's and some
of the research and some of the focus that you
guys are making, and that is in this idea of
a preventative lifestyle. This is something that I'd never really
even thought about brain health. I mean, can you dig
(32:39):
into that a little bit more for people?
Speaker 2 (32:41):
Yeah, it's definitely one of our main pillars I think
what separates us from a lot of other organizations in
the Alzheimer's space is some of the programs that we
offer and kind of the pillars that we're built on.
So the first obviously to care for families and caregivers
impacted by it, as Len mentioned, the second is to
activate the generation of Alzheimer's advocates, and then that third
(33:02):
pillar is to be a leader in the brain health space,
particularly brain health education. And I think something that people
would be surprised to learn is that research suggests that
four and ten cases of dementia may be preventable through
lifestyle changes. And part of this research is that twenty
to thirty years before the onset of symptoms of Alzheimer's
(33:23):
and dementia is when the disease actually starts and it
starts to build. So by the time you get a diagnosis,
you've been living with the disease for decades. And knowing
that information, we really strive to get education to younger
folks and to get young people caring about brain health
education so that when they are in their twenties and thirties,
they can be proactive and doing things that support that. Lauren,
(33:47):
and you might have to help me. We have our
five brain health habits that kind of drive all of
our brain health education. So physical exercise we write then, Yeah,
physical exercise is one of them. Emotional will be is another. Nutrition.
What you eat in put in your body very important.
The biggest one that Lauren talks lots about is sleep.
(34:09):
And then what is the fifth one that I'm missing?
Speaker 4 (34:11):
Learn mental fitness, mental things.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Yes, keeping your brain engaged. So an example of that
that we like to share is learning a new language,
like learning a new line, your brain learning. Yeah. The
more that you can learn new things and activate your
brain in that way, the stronger connections you can make. Yeah,
we're very big on brain health, and there is a
lot that people can do that they don't even realize
in their day to day that can help that effort.
Speaker 1 (34:37):
Seth, tell me a little bit about the hilarity side
of this. Yeah, I'm curious about the idea of taking
something that is obviously you know, deep and painful and
as hard as as Alzheimer's and you know, at least
finding a way in through humor.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
A lot of it is because it's just what we do,
you know.
Speaker 5 (35:00):
And as we were putting together the show for the
first time, we are comedians. All of our friends are comedians,
you know. Will actually the guy who introduced us, would
put on comedy variety shows.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
It was kind of like an.
Speaker 5 (35:11):
Environment we came up with, was was we would always
be going to these kind of comedy variety shows all
the time.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
And so it at first was kind of just organically
all we had to offer.
Speaker 5 (35:24):
But over the years it has become a much more
kind of resonant, like beautiful, uh like approach to it.
That that that again, like looking back, is is lovely
and and the fact that we were able to infuse
such a sad thing with humor, and that we're able
to able to bring whiteness to such a dark subject
(35:46):
and able to you kind of you know, take people's
minds off things and with a spoonful of sugar, you know,
like kind of feed them information and tips and lifestyle
you know, habit suggestions that in a way that is
entertaining and maybe a little more lighthearted than this information
is generally conveyed with. Uh that that yeah, that was
(36:09):
never part of like the grand plan. It's kind of
just who we are and what we had to offer
and and and it all came together in that way.
But if anything. Yeah, Like, I think we've all been
amazed at how organically it does go together, and how
comedians especially are very charitable with their time and are
(36:31):
undaunted by speaking about or around incredibly unhappy, traumatic things.
That's what comedy is, right, And I remember, yeah, honestly,
I remember putting together one of the shows and texting
I think was John Mulaney being like, you're coming on
(36:52):
after something that's like brutal, and he was like, it's fine,
Like he's like people, He's like, people shift gears real fast.
It's totally not a problem, you know. And so yeah,
if anything, it kind of has it seems nice in
retrospect and like we have this grand plan to kind
of change the tone surrounding something so sad. But no,
(37:16):
it was just kind of who we were, and we
always we joke like if we were chefs, would be
called baking for charity, you know, but unfortunately we're not.
Speaker 1 (37:27):
Amanda, tell me about the other two pillars.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
Yeah, So the first, which is kind of the heart
and soul of our organization, is to care for families
impacted by Alzheimer's. By twenty fifty, it's estimated that thirteen
million Americans over the age of sixty five will have
the disease, and that is tripling the current amount of
cases that we have today. And I think another big
part of that is that with an increase in people
(37:52):
living with the disease, is the increase of people caring
for people living with the disease. And right now there's
already eleven million Americans who provide on paid care. So
what we do at HFC is try to be a
resource hub for folks wherever they are in the journey.
So whether you yourself have been newly diagnosed or you're
a caregiver who's been caring for someone for years with
(38:12):
the disease, we try to meet people where they are
through a variety of services. Probably the biggest and kind
of the core of our work is our respite grants,
and what those are is folks can apply and what
it is is it's either a short term grant where
we collaborate with a professional care organization and if you
(38:33):
are awarded the grant, then someone would come to your home,
a professional caregiver to help relieve you. So it's meant
to take the burden of caregiving off the caregiver just
for a little We also have extended grants, so that's
like more long term assistance that you'd have, but we
found that it's just much needed respite. Like caregivers are
very burnt out and it is such a taxing job
(38:54):
and responsibility, and to even have the time to go
to the grocery store or to have a night out
with friends can be monumental in giving them a little
bit more fuel so that they can continue caring for
the person that they love. Which in addition to the
care grants, we also have a lot of online opportunities.
Since caregivers are everywhere and very busy and we're a
(39:17):
national organization, we have workshops, We have our main event
every year, which is care Con, which is coming up
this February, actually on Valentine's Day this year, So shout
out to all the caregivers and those are all meant
to kind of speaking to what Seth said, one educate them,
so give them resources and maybe tips and chicks that
(39:37):
they might not have known about in caregiving, and to
give them a space to just be entertained and to
laugh and to find community with people who get it,
because it's a really isolating experience and not everyone understands
what it looks like to care for someone and when
you meet someone who does, it's a really special thing.
So that's one of them, caring for caregivers, and then
(40:00):
the other one that's pretty exciting, and I think we're
one of a few organizations doing it is activating the
next generation of Alzheimer's advocates. So we have a program
right now called the Youth Movement Against Alzheimer's and we
have high school and college chapters all across the country
of kids who, either through personal connection or maybe careers
(40:21):
that they want to get into, they have a passion
for Alzheimer's and dementia and they want to advocate on
behalf of the disease and people living with the disease.
And it's a big part of what we do is
making sure that those young people are equipped to put
that message out into the world to help educate their
peers on what they can do around brain health. It
(40:43):
kind of all funnels back into that idea of prevention
that if we can get people educated and inspired earlier,
we'll all be better off in the long run.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
AMaGA, let me ask you a question. Obviously you're very
committed to this, do you think it was in your
life personally that made you want to, you know, be
in this line of work. Yeah, I mean, you know,
be work in the in the cause based space. I'm
always fascinated when you know, being someone who that was
(41:17):
never an option that I considered as a young man.
I'm always fascinated with with people that really have have
chosen to to to make this their their work.
Speaker 2 (41:28):
Yeah. I think it was modeled for me by my
parents just in our lifestyle. They were really big on
helping others, So we've had countless friends and families stay
at our home throughout the years. And I think for
my sister and I, she's in the medical field, so
she does servanthood in her own way. We just thought
modeled for us. My mom especially was really big on
teaching us that if you have the means and the
(41:49):
ability you help others, that's what you do. And I
think I learned early on the gratification that you feel
and that you get from helping other people. And I
felt pretty convinced, I mean out of call it is
that if I didn't do work that was tied to
a purposeful mission, I wouldn't be fulfilled. And I wouldn't
be able to show up and really love what I do.
(42:09):
Hilarity for charity is the sweet spot of all the
things that I love. I get to be very creative here.
I get to help others, and it's a cause that
I have personal experience with, and I get to, you know,
help people who are in the same position as myself
and my family.
Speaker 1 (42:24):
M hm, that's that's that's great. I also have to
say that I'm so touched with the notion of Seth
becoming the caregiver for the caregiver you mentioned that, Lord,
and I just want to circle back to that because
I I, I mean, obviously there is a I'm gonna
(42:44):
call it trickle down, but there's a there's a there's
a ripple effect when somebody in somebody.
Speaker 5 (42:49):
I'd call it a black hole, right the exactly.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Yeah, it's it is, you know, that's that's that's part
of what marriages, that's part of what family is, you know.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
And yeah, it was really yeah, it was. It was
one of those things though, like it was so sad, and.
Speaker 3 (43:12):
You know, I remember suggesting Laura go to therapy.
Speaker 5 (43:14):
That was a big that was a defining moment, I
would say, and you know, uh forward, because I was
just literally unequipped to deal with how sad the situation was.
Like it wasn't like normal like hard day at work sad,
like my boss is an asshole sad. It was like
outside the scope of what I was equipped to understand
(43:38):
how to deal with effectively, you know. And and then
also it was one of those things where like money
just helped, and that's why we made these grants, where
like Lauren's father was just like getting worked to death,
and then we hired these people, and all of a sudden,
like everyone's lives was much better in like a tangible way.
Speaker 3 (44:02):
And so.
Speaker 5 (44:04):
Yeah, like this idea that you know, just there's a
very like immediate way to relieve the pressure of these
caregivers because also like caregiving is also you know, like
the caregiver dies before the person they are caring for,
often because of the toll it takes. And and and
that really seemed to be you know, what would was
(44:29):
what could have happened to Lauren's father and so and
and and then yeah, and then like the emotional effect
it had on Lauren obviously because both of her parents
were going through this terrible thing. So yeah, it does
create this kind of like black hole that you really
have to fight against the gravitational pull of you know.
Speaker 1 (44:47):
Yeah, well, I want to give you an opportunity, both
Lauren and Amanda to you know, say how people listening
to this can get involved, can help. This is our
call to action to you know, just see how what
people can do.
Speaker 2 (45:05):
Do you want to kiss? Sure?
Speaker 4 (45:07):
I mean, look, the first thing that can help is
by donating money. You know, we are able to fund
I think it's twenty seven percent or something of our
applications that we received for our restpen programs. I would
love to be able to fund more. However, it's not
only money where we need the help. The simplest thing
someone can do is share a story. If you're a caregiver,
(45:30):
telling your friends, telling your family, sharing your story on
social media. Making the reality of caring for someone with
dementia part of the conversation so that people understand what
it actually means to care for someone with dementia is
huge to push the conversation forward because part of the
reason that dementia Alzheimer's research was underfunded for so long
(45:52):
by the government was because no one talked about it.
In the last ten years, that's changed the reality of
the situation has forced the government to step up with
more funding in the areas of scientific research. So caregiving
is still unfortunately behind, and so sharing our stories about
the need for the support we need for caregivers, hopefully
(46:13):
we'll shift the conversation to give caregivers the support they need.
So I would say it's donations, it's advocacy, it's sharing
our information on social media with a friend who you
know needs it. It's sharing the fact that you know
we have a support group. We have support groups for
so many different types of people, and so so yeah, donating, sharing, Amanda,
(46:38):
what else.
Speaker 2 (46:39):
Yeah, obviously donating and sharing. I think another big thing
is learn how to care for your brain. I mean,
the crisis of care is going to impact everyone on
a big scale, the economy. We're not ready for the
amount of care that's going to need to be provided
in the coming years. And we can tackle that by
(47:00):
selling those lifestyle habits that can help towards preventions. So
check out we are HFC dot org. We've got lots
of resources about all the brain health habits that you
can do. We even have a lovely recording of seth
if you want to soothe yourself to sleep with the
voices that brogan you can.
Speaker 3 (47:19):
Definite Yeah.
Speaker 2 (47:21):
I would encourage everyone check out our website, find out
the simple things that you can start changing to help
improve your brain health with those habits, and then if
there's any caregivers listening out here, know that we're here
to support you wherever you are on your journey. Please
connect with us either through the website or on social media.
We are at we are HFC across all social platforms,
(47:43):
and we also have our major event, our virtual event
care Con, coming up this February on Valentine's Day, so
please join us even if you're not a caregiver. I
think another aspect of this issue was that caregivers feel
isolated because people don't know how to support someone who's
caring for someone with all sign and we've got a
lot of tools to even help the non trigivers know
(48:03):
how to better love and support the people in their
lives who are doing the caregiving.
Speaker 1 (48:08):
That's awesome. I want to thank you guys so much, Seth, Lauren, Amanda,
thank you so much foranking here today. Thanks for having us.
It's really fun to to chat with you guys, and
I love the sport that you're doing and and you know,
keep up the good work. It's it's just fantastic stuff.
So thank you, thank.
Speaker 2 (48:27):
You, thank you, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (48:32):
Hey, everybody, thanks for listening to another episode of Six
Degrees with Kevin Bacon. To learn more about Hilarity for Charity.
I love that name and all the great works Seth,
Lauren and their team are up to head to their website.
We are h FC dot org. That's we are h
FC dot org. You can find all the links in
(48:55):
our show notes and hey, if you like what you need,
make sure that you subscribe to the show and tune
in to the rest of our episodes. You can find
six Degrees with Kevin Bacon on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, or
wherever you get your podcasts. I see you next time.
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