October 23, 2025 • 44 mins
Comedian, writer, actor, podcaster, and fellow Overcompensating cast member Caleb Hearon joins Kyle in the studio to discuss how the women in Caleb’s family inspired his comedy, which life experiences inform his politics and activism, Caleb’s razor-sharp observation skills, and how he really feels about lists and Mr. Beast. The guys share their mutual gratitude and joy for getting to be entertainers, their approaches to social media, why learning to perform and seeing live entertainment is so important, Caleb’s HBO comedy special and upcoming projects, and play a riveting round of “Truth or Elaborate” that puts Kyle and Caleb’s acting chops to the test.
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Executive Producers: iHeart Media, Elvis Duran Podcast Network, and Full Picture Productions Executive Produced for Full Picture Productions by Desiree Gruber + Anne Walls Gordon
Produced by Ben Fingeret, Nora Faber, and Maia Mizrahi
Editing by Mikey Harmon and Nicholas Giuricich
Research by Kimberly Walls
Music by Yatta
Art by Danica Robinson
Additional GFX by Chris Olfers/The Southern Influence
Styling by Dot Bass
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
What are we even? What are we even doing? Welcome
to what are we even doing? I'm Kyle and you
know the drill. I've been talking to artists, actors, creators
of all type about their process or their creative process
(00:20):
and how they use social media. And today we have
a very special guest. I don't have a good friend,
but you're a friend. Were all together, old friend over compensating, Yeah,
co star because we are where the stars not many. Yeah,
I forget the perfect person, perfect opinions. Oh, Caleb, it's
so nice to have you with us.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Thank you very much. I'm so excited to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
I always start questions off by asking you you're a kid,
You're like having fun in the moment you realize, Hey,
this is something that I might want to do. Comedy
is something that I might want to there's a spark there.
I think, or talk to me about that moment if
you can remember or can recall what happened.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yeah, totally. I mean I truly. I think. I say
this all the time, and sometimes when I say it,
I think people think I'm like, you know, cwing at
like some kind of like performance of humility or something.
But I'm like the women in my family are like
my biggest comedic inspirations. They're so funny and they're so
much funnier than the men, and so I was always
just like trying to make them laugh at any given scenario,
Like every family event, I would gravitate to wherever the
women were because they were always talking about more interesting stuff,
(01:19):
and I was like, I want to make you laugh,
you know. And I remember when I was like eight,
maybe we had a babysitter who you know, we were
all poor, so our parents went in on like a
shared babysitter for a couple of the neighborhood kids, and
we all want to go to one house and get watched.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Idea.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
I got an idea.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
I understand that we had same experience.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, And we would go over there and she made
us these horrible meals, like I'm talking to Kyle. She
one night, I remember she this was the big one
she put she made. She cooked spaghetti noodles and put
thousand Island dressing on it. Okay, and she was like
dinner served, and I was like what. And she made
us sit at the table. I was like eight years old.
She made a sit at the table until we finished
all of the gruel, and I the next day was
like recounting to my mom and we were at some
(01:55):
family event. My aunt, my cousins were there, and my
mom was calling people over. She was laughing so hard
to hear the story of this thing that we were
forced to eat. And I was like, this feels good,
Like I felt like a like a monster or something
like I was like feeding off of it.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
Yeah, but I love that you took the material. Oh
I was thing that you went through and suffered through. Yeah,
I was this slop yeah yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
And then yeah, I just I but I still didn't think.
I thought I was gonna be a lawyer. I was like, oh,
that's just I might I want to be like a
because I said, all the women in my family are funny,
but they're also nurses and teachers. And you know your
mom's a nurse.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Yeah, And so I was like, oh, funny is not
a job. It's just like the way you are in
the world. Yes, And so I was like, I'll be
a lawyer who's fun it's funny. And then in college
I got so depressed trying to be a lawyer that
I was like, I need to do it.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
So much more fun but your other story about the
reminded me of something that my mom did. So my
mom was not a good cook, plus her heart. She
made a hot dog soup for Halloween. Bad night to
choose to make hot dog soup when you have to
go out for trick or treating, because she scalded the milk.
So I'm there as a connoiseur. I'm, you know, eight
(02:56):
or nine years old, and I said, I can't eat this?
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Can you tell me what? So? Hot dog soup? I've
now learned there's milk involved.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
There's milk involved, yeah, and then dogs and that's pretty
much it. Yeah, yeah, you got it.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
So you there's the milk, which is burnt, and then
the hot dogs, which are boiled in milk.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yeah, and that's the That's that's the meal right there.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Damn listen.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
I want to talk about your background a little bit.
So you're from rural Missouri. Yes, So population of the town,
what do you think? Well?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I grew up mostly in a town. We moved quite
a bit, okay, as poor people are wanting to do.
The town I grew up in was probably like six
thousand people, okay, pretty small, and then we moved to
a town of like eight hundred people. Oh, and then
we moved to a town of like twenty thousand people. Okay.
I basically lobbied my mom. We were in the small town.
Her best friend had a kid my exact age who
(03:43):
was my best friend, right, and they moved to this
eight hundred person town because she had started she had
gotten married to a guy who lived over there, and
so we had moved there to be involved with them,
to be like in, you know, go to the same
school and to share babysitting and stuff. And then like
I want to say, my eighth grade, like my eighth
grade year. I was like, Mom, we got to move
to a bigger school district. I'm never going to get
a scholarship going to the school. Like, we got to
(04:04):
get the hell out of here. I'm in eighth grade.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
And she was kind of, that's remarkable. You sort of
understand that you recognize that already, so you I just
looked around and was.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Like, this is not I think from a very young age,
I was like, I'm something else needs to occur here.
And so I was like, can we please move to
the town over where she actually already worked. She was
driving back and forth, ok and I was like, can
we move over there so I can go to that school.
It's a little bigger. I think my graduating class at
that school was like one hundred and twenty or something,
but it was a little bit bigger. They had organizations,
they had like more activities and more sports and stuff,
and so we moved over there and that's where I
(04:33):
I graduated from.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Yeah, but still small. Yeah. Yeah, so your friendship was
not important in eighth grade, You're like, no, I got I.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Was like these career Yeah, I was like, I need
to go to college. I can't.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
That's about the age when you begin to put it together.
I know. With my son, so Callum, we were he
was in school in New York until sixth grade, and
he just came and sort of said, you know, I
feel like a change something. And we were like, okay,
what do you think And he said, you know, because
he was born in La spent for a few years
in LA, we always go back. And he said, I
think maybe La. We're like, oh, let's se if we
can put it in motion. So we listened to him
(05:04):
and kind of, you know, try to make this move happen,
and it actually worked out for the best.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
That's so cool. If you have to take his lead
on that too.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
I just you know, you try to. You know, you
try with kids. You just you try to what's happening
between the lines there, And it wasn't just a fickle thing.
It was definitely there was something going on that he
needed to do. So you finished school and then you
decide to go to Missouri State, the Harvard of the Southwest.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Harvard of Southwestern area.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Everyone's saying, and see, I totally get it.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
Yeah, I went down there. It was like I wanted
to go. I had had big dreams. I was like,
I'm gonna go to school on the East Coast. I'm
gonna go to New York. I was like I'd seeing
gay people on TV. I was like, gay people go
to New York, right, And then.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Sort of you understood that that's kind of where you
wanted to go. From around eighth grade, ninth grade, or
I would.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Say, like high school, I started to feel like I
started really looking at colleges and being like where could
I get in? But I didn't have any concept of
like we just no one from around where I'm from
really talks about stuff like that or does that. I mean,
I know now looking, I've met people out in the
world that are like, oh, I'm from three times over
from you, and I went so it's like Harvard or whatever.
I never even concepted that as an idea, but I
thought maybe I could go to some school in New York.
(06:06):
And I got into a couple of weeks schools. But
then I got a really good scholarship in Missouri and
we couldn't afford for me to go do something crazy.
So my deal to myself was, I'll go to Missouri State,
I'll study politics, and then if I really want to
go be in New York or whatever, I'll get internships
in the summer that I'd be like my bargain. And
that's what I did.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
It's smart, it was good, it was real.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
ID I did it.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Yeah, No, you were in a perfect place. I did
similar things when I went to school at University of Washington,
just because that's what you do. Just so happened that
there was a training program there while I was there,
like a really good one that I.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
Was aware of, and I started.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
I started to go see their their work containing at
school University Washington, and I was like, what is this?
And it turns out it was a professional training program
training actress for repertory theater. And they took a class.
There was a class that each class was about twelve
or thirteen students. That was it. So I have to
audition very intense and so and they competed in this
at the end of the year was a League of
(06:57):
Professional Training program. So you had Juilliard a temple at
SMU Northwestern and U dubb was one of those. And
so basically all day you just learned the process of
being what it takes to become a repertory theater actress.
Week which you had acting classes, you had movement classes,
you had speech classes, stage combat, blah blah blah blah,
everything juggling. So I could go to the circus if
I needed to. And that was it. And it just
(07:18):
happened to be where I went to school, thank god,
because I would not have been prepared to like, I'm
going to be an actor. I'm going to go to
New York. I was like, that wasn't in the card.
So just it sort of came to me in a
strange way, which so so super lucky.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
I in college was so like, of course, all my
friends should have been a sign sooner. All my friends
were like the acting majors and the musical kids, and
they were coming back from there. You know, I'm like
studying like pre law, taking like persuasion classes. I'm like
busting my ass trying to write like twenty page research
papers freshman year. They're coming back being like movement class
was hell today, and I was like, you guys are clowns.
I was so pissed off. I was like, knock it off.
(07:52):
Like we had to pretend to be a slog for
an hour. I was like, I'm getting my ass beat
in the Poli side building. I just truly was like,
I was like, what are you talking about? Not college? Yeah?
It was like I was so mad. I was like,
you guys get to have fun all day, and it's
not fun. It's very serious.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Yeah yeah, yeah, we have to lay on the floor
and wiggle around.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
But it feels like all the work that you did
in this law run up you've used, I mean, you
use in your act, your political acumen, I mean everything
is you sort of have this side of you that's like,
I mean, the creative side, and you have this political
side together, and you're able to kind of dance between
the two of them because of that.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Yeah, at all the time part of it, Yeah, I
think about all the time. I mean I think about
politics constantly. I feel like it's it's funny I say
a lot. Like people sometimes when they find out I'm
from like very rural Missouri, They'll be like, oh, I'm
so surprised you turned out, you know, very leftists. And
I'm like, I'm surprised that people come from that situation
and don't because politics are all around you. Everyone's so
poor and being taken advantage of and lied to. But yeah,
I think about politics all the time. And I think
(08:47):
a big thing that you study when you're studying a
degree program like socio political communication is like it's just
understanding people. It's persuasion, and it's inthamiums. It's arguments and
what works for people and what doesn't and central root
processing and peripheral root processing and how people's brains decide
to do or be something and how you can engage
with them on that. It's very interesting stuff. But at
the end of the day, that's exactly what comedy is.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Do you feel like you have a voice for people
maybe from that community or if you speak on them
or or not.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
I mean, I don't think a lot of them would
want me to. I don't think they'd like that very much.
They're lost. Oh I don't know, Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You represent and and speak about that is like, you know,
this is this is my experience. Yeah, you know, people like,
oh wow, they maybe they didn't know, they don't understand
what that what that's really like.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
I feel like it's funny because I keep hearing that
we're all so divided, Like I just you know, this
is like the political message of the last couple years.
We're so divided. But I still live in Kansas City
and I hang out with people who have all kinds
of different ideas, and I'm like, yes, of course there's
a national division amongst some like really key issues. But
I think like part of the work that we'll have
to do if we want to come out of this
moment any better, is just understand like most people are actually,
(09:53):
in my opinion, pretty nice and pretty normal across the board,
like most regular people. More people don't vote than vote
for the crazy shit, And I think it's it's trying
to like mobilize those people and get them excited and
interested in the future of this like project of society
and democracy. But I think, like, I don't know if
I speak for anyone from Missouri, but one thing I'm
very passionate about is that I made a very conscious
(10:14):
decision in my early twenties that I wasn't I kind
of up until then. I was like, I'm gonna leave
here and forget about this place. And I just started
to feel very guilty because I was like, well, wait,
why did they get to have it. I'm also from here,
and people like me are also from here. And I
started to get really pissed off because I was like,
they don't get to like anti abortion, anti women, anti gay,
anti immigrant type people. They don't own Missouri at all.
And that actually wasn't most of the people that I
(10:35):
interacted with there. Maybe some people would say things like
that in passing, but mostly just because someone else said
it at work, Like I don't there weren't these like
strongly held convictions about politics. Yeah, yeah, where where I
grew up. So I don't know if I speak for them,
but I like them, whether we like it or not.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Yeah, find the interesting going back home. I know, growing
up in Eastern Washington, I couldn't wait to go away,
you know, and do my thing, and then I you know,
you go back and you visit, and it's in your blood.
There's just nothing thing you can do. So I go back.
I make a wine. I have a wine business there,
a wine company. I brought you some wine by the
way today, right, let's go. And it's just and I
love going back, and I love being with the people
(11:12):
in the community. And it's you know, it's farming, it's agricultural.
But I'm like, I can relate to this, and I
really enjoy it. And it's a really nice difference from
what I do in Los Angeles or New York in
my work, you know, and I really embrace it.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
It's really interesting because I had a similar thing growing
up of like I looked around at all these people
that have so much respect for still that are just
busting their ass, like my grandpa worked on the railroad
his whole life, and you know, people that are doing
such like demanding like physical labor jobs like working in
a mill or a factory or something. And I was
just looking around and going like, I respect these people
so much, but I don't have it. Yeah, I'm not
(11:44):
cut out for it.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I get it.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
So I got I'm either going to be so broke
or I'm going to have to go find something else
to do. And I just I think about that all
the time, Like I think about how many people have
to work so hard, and I just wonder what I
would have done if I hadn't ended up doing this,
probably that, but I wonder how I would have felt
about it.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
Yeah, yeah, I know, it's it's it's can be crushing.
I couldn't understand that the inside, what your brain does
in the situations like that. And I exactly the same thing,
because I have friends that are like that as well.
And I'm you know, but for the grace of God,
is how I kind of go, Okay, you know, I'm here,
I'm working. I got lucky out of school. I've had
a lot of success, you know what I mean, and
a lot of it has been just you know, hard work,
but also right place, right time, right connection, right people,
(12:26):
and it's you know, the machine is kept turning, you know,
kind of like that and so incredible. The older you get,
the more the older I get, the more gratitude I
have because I understand.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
What it could have been.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
You realize, geez, I nearly fell off the cliff, you
know what I mean here, just but a gust of
wind kind of kept me up, you know, so.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Very very grateful for that all the time when I
think about comedy. The best thing that ever happened to
me is I had so many jobs in my teens
and twenties. I started working when I was fifteen. I
worked in restaurants, and then I worked in offices in Chicago,
and I walked dogs, and I worked at heating and
air conditioning company. I worked at find I mean, I
did all kinds of things. And I learned more about
comedy having all these jobs that I had to have
to pay my bills than I did any comedy theater.
(13:05):
And I learned a lot at the comedy theaters. But
you're a great observer, I think, Yeah, No, I think
you are. I mean you watch we were talking. We
did we did this thing together. We talk about it.
I don't know, we talk about it. We shot this thing, okay, anyway,
it was a commercial.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Anyway, We did some work together on the thing in
New York, and we hadn't met, but I knew you overcompensating,
I knew of you. We didn't work together on overcompensating.
But I was like, I watched you work because it
was you know, you came in his role and it
was kind of thrown together. I felt a little bit
and I said, this guy's very smart. He really knows
(13:39):
how to use the camera and he's already editing. That's
what I said. I told you in my head because
I was watching you. Do you know we were doing
pickups and stuff, and I remember you repeating that the
energy that you did from them from the moment before
and actually going back and coming into it just as
an actors is this. You know, you watch somebody work
and you're like, they know what they're doing, they care,
(14:01):
actually care. Thank yous cared about what you're doing. And
I was like, ah, that's pretty cool and smart.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
Thank you, that's very very I just.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Kind of gleaned all that real quickly.
Speaker 2 (14:09):
Thank you, that's so nice. I was. I was equally
impressed genuinely watching you on set because it's this. It's
this thing that you know your people really respect you
and really really look up to you, and you could
have been you. I'm sure you know people that are
like this. I at least have met some of them,
but you could come to a thing like that and
be a.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
Total asshole and get away with it.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
You really could, because people really respect you, myself included.
And the grace and the kindness and the effort that
you gave to something like that. I was very inspired
by it because I was like, I feel that way too.
I was like, I think we're so I'm so grateful
to be here. This is a very lucky thing.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Yeah, and it was.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Yeah, I was taking cues from you as well.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
I do think that we have a kindred spirit that way.
Just in terms of your approach to the work. I
love it. Yeah, I don't care what it is I have.
I want to have fun. I want to work. I
want to create. I want to make something better than
what they have. Necessarily. I want to get their ideas
and create something special. Yeah, and that's always every day,
and I think what otherwise? Why do I mean?
Speaker 2 (15:03):
Also in part of that that gig that we did,
it was a one day thing for me, But I
when they were in between stuff, when they were like, oh,
we need another word for this, and you and I
are being like, okay, what about this that great idea?
But it was it's fun to me. That's the process
and the point I'm like, I'm here with a very
good actor, and the directors were awesome, and we've got
this great set and this whole crew of people that
are working really hard, Like we get to do the
(15:24):
fun part of being like what if what if it
was this word? Or what if what if Kyle like
held it like this, you know, and I that to
me is like the most fun of this. I'm like,
that's crazy that we get to do that for work.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Yeah, you know, I agree, And well you also, I
mean I think you said something about you have comedians,
you know, working in a comedy let you got to
let them, you got to let them run. Yeah, I
mean that's that's I feel exactly the same way. I
(15:55):
also want to congratulate you. You're on Rolling Stones five
most Influence. Now you can use your pillow. Yeah, so
how does it feel you're more influential than mister beast.
Speaker 2 (16:07):
That's really really funny. I don't think the list was
meant to be ranked. I think that was just to
happen to be numbers next to our names. I know,
I couldn't care. I mean it's so funny too, I
don't I've been reflecting because for anyone who doesn't know.
I was on a Rolling Stone list for mostly because
I have publicist, because I have an HBO special coming out.
Let's be very clear about that. There's like paid people
who were on this. Yeah, gosh, I don't know you.
(16:27):
I've been thinking about, like, mister Beast did this thing
where he like screenshotted my face and was like, the
Rolling Stones think this guy is more influential. I was like,
to be honest, he has a point. I laughed really
hard when I saw it. I was not offended in
the slightest. I was like, I don't give a fuck.
I'm not interested in like what list I'm on. But
I was like, and honestly, that guy's got like hundreds
of millions of followers. I was like, my special comes
out next month. Not bad, brother, let's let's run up
(16:49):
my name a little bit.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
Yeah. But I was like, your heat.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Yeah. He messaged. He was very nice. He messaged me
and he was like, I'm so sorry. I don't want
to give away too much of you know. I hope
he doesn't feel that I'm giving away too much of
our conversation. But he messaged me and I was like, dude,
I thought it was funny, no worries at all. He
was like, I deleted it and I apologize, and I
was like, yeah, I'm not been out of shape about it,
but I haven't minse gratitude for or not gratitude but
empathy for that guy, because he is a level of
(17:13):
famous that I struggle with the level of attention that
I have, which is a tiny, tiny, tiny percentage compared
to him, which I guess what's his point, but he
is like one of very few people in the history
of the world that have had to deal with that
level of public comment and scrutiny about him and whether
it's founded or not, whether we like that he's doing
the wells or the prosthetic legs or whatever. I really
(17:35):
know what he's up to all the time. But I
was just telling him when we chatted, I was like,
you know, I really wish you well. I hope you
have people to talk too, because he was kind of saying,
I don't know why I got so spun up about
the list thing there for a moment. That's not my
actual beliefs. That's why I deleted it. And I was like,
of course, you don't spun up about it. We work
in an industry that's all about who's the most relevant
and who has the most attention at any given time.
(17:56):
And if you're not really really careful and really grounded
and really healthy, it's easy it gets spun up about
something like that. Yeah, so I really feel for him.
I didn't think anything of it. I thought it was
quite funny. It's honestly only goes me. I did. When
he messaged me, I was like, Hey, no worries. My
specials out next month. If you want to share it,
that's what people watch my special you know.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
But yeah, well your response, yeah, it was very It
was very generous I think when you responded to him,
and kind of funny.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
That was funny.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Yeah, I laughed. Depending on what people say, it's like
I always just it's I responded in some way positive,
something positive. Yeah, just like or make it or make
a joke of it, or or make light of it.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
Or I'm thinking about the list and I'm like, it's
actually not a compliment to me to be called influential.
I'm not chasing influence. It's part of my job. I
want to be really good at comedy. I want to
make people laugh. I want to like hopefully do something
nice for like the people where I'm from. I try
to like do things in Kansas City to make it better.
I try to like help my friends and family when
I can. But, like I, influence is pretty low down
(18:51):
on the list of things I'm actively trying to chase
in my present minded day. Maybe it's somewhere in there.
There's certainly something wrong with me that I do this
for a little But I don't. I'm not like everybody
waiting up me. Where's my influence?
Speaker 1 (19:02):
You know? I don't think it's you know, I think
it's to bring joy to people. You seem like a
person that likes to bring joy to people, you know
what I mean, just whether yeah, humor or you're just
who you are. I feel similar. Actually, it's like I
like to have fun. I like to make people laugh,
light in their day, you know what I mean. Do
some work, hopefully the work is good. Makes you think,
you know. But it's like I don't care where I
(19:22):
am in the in the list of things, you know
what I mean. It's just because I am lucky you
get to do what I love.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
I want to be part of joy. I want to
It's not it's not like a selfless thing where I'm like,
I get on stage to make sure that nurses get
off their shift and have something to laugh about after.
You know, I want to be part of joy. It's
it's also self serving. I want to be I want
to make you laugh because it makes me feel good
to be involved in the joy of all of us laughing.
It's not like a magnanimous like you know, like gift
that I'm trying to bestow. It's like, no, I want
to be part of joy. I want to be like
(19:49):
in the equation of people having a good time. And
that's what I like about my job.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
Well you are you are super busy. You have a lot.
You have a lot. One I thought I was busy,
but you like put me to shame. No talk at
You know, there are are comedians I look back on
and for inspiration, and you must have some that you like, go, oh,
this person, that person the comedy of Like, like I
when I think of Tim Conway, he's like, he's just
a Harvey Korman together on Carobernet show. I'm just like,
(20:16):
I'm sorry, that's one of the best duos ever and
I can't stop laughing when I see him. Yeah, I
don't know who do you respond to. Do you have
any sort of favorites that you totally Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
It's funny you bring up Krobernet show. I just after
before my last tour, I just I watched a ton
of Carol Burnett show.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Great.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
My last tour was a bit of a variety show,
and I was just watching and I was really like,
I hadn't watched it in a long time, and I
had never watched it in a way where I was
like paying attention to be like, what was what were
they doing? She would do that that cast would do
like an eight minute long sketch in a single location
and then go from that into a ten minute long
tap dance routine, and go from that into five minutes
(20:51):
of her sitting and singing a song. The attention span
and like the dedication to a single bit, I was
so like enamored by it.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
Yeah, comedic influences, Like I said, mostly genuinely day to
day the women in my family, but from a comic standpoint,
different people throughout different times. Rosy O'Donnell Roseum bar back
in the day, like original Roseanne, back before everything, anybody,
Queen Latifa, Monique Monique' Queens of Comedy Set. If anybody
is a comedy fan and hasn't seen Moniques Queens of
(21:20):
Comedy Set, it is so spectacular and so loose, and
so I think when I first started, have you seen it?
Speaker 1 (21:27):
I haven't seen it. I got to see it.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
She opens it, Kyle, but she like turns, she comes
out of like a turning pyramid and walks down in
like this leather like brallette kind of look, and she's
real she's still real fat at the time, you know.
So she's like coming out real fat in the sex
of lotpit and she starts out by being like every
fat bitch in here should be standing up and applauding me,
Like she's just like giving it to the audience immediately.
And then the set is very loose, and it really
when I first started comedy, I was so like, oh man,
(21:51):
you're only a real comedian if you're very tight and
you you all the you know, which is funny because
I even growing up, my dad showed me like a
lot of Carlin, a lot of Richard Pryor. But yeah,
the way she just owned the stage and kept it
very conversational and very loose, it's very very good.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Yeah. Yeah, that's that's impressive. That's that's impressive.
Speaker 2 (22:07):
Oh, Like I like I like that. I like the
idea I was.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
I'm looking at you, I'm going, why don't you host
a variety show? I mean think about that. You could
be like Share you have your show? Are saying, that's
what I'm saying. People are saying, it's an art form
that we don't. I don't think it exists, right, I
mean the variety show, Yeah is it?
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Who's doing it?
Speaker 1 (22:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
I don't know who's like.
Speaker 1 (22:28):
That in that way, you know, like Sonny and share
a show or Carob Nut show or things that I
you know, I grew up watching and it was like
the different things and the skill set, the skills that
it requires, like you said, the singing, the dancing, comedy,
all of these things. I don't think. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
I don't know who's doing it. Yeah, I mean I
I love that kind of stuff. I love like and
I'm I yeah, I miss like big comedy movies too,
Like I'm missing John Candy films, you know, like like big,
like funny, just like, yeah, I don't know, I don't
know who's doing stuff like that. But my last tour
was very like that, and I had a ton of fun.
We did like pre tape sketches. We had musicians and
drag queens. I did a little bit of stand up.
(23:05):
We had an interview because it was technically my podcast.
Yeah yeah, yeah, but yeah, I like that stuff a lot.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Yeah, I completely agree. So tell me about socially how
do you use socially mean promotion stuff? Because on your
site you have also there's all sorts of places you
can go and see different kinds of things. When I
was like, I should have this, this is what I.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Need to do with like the link things. Yes, yeah, yeah,
ye yeah, yeah, I love that. It's really helpful for
you know, I feel like we have to do so
many things. Now you have to be you have a podcast,
and you have to stand up and you if you
want to be an actor, you good luck. And you
have to be directing and you have to be and
I get excited about that on most days. But yeah,
social media. I have a very complex relationship with it's
(23:45):
you know, I'm very grateful for it because I don't
think I would have a career without it. It's like
been very every moment in my career. Something from social
media has really like pushed things along. Even though I
didn't start on the Internet. I started doing live stuff
in Chicago, and that was kind of how I wanted
to do it.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
On stage, You're performing in front of the audience, yeah, which.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Is it's the best, and it's especially I would really
encourage people if there's somebody who, like, if they're a
young person, like a teenager or something that is wanting
to get into comedy and they're seeing the Internet as
the only route, I would say, totally do it. Do
the internet, but please develop a live skill because especially
with AI and all these things that are like kind
of destroying the fabric of some of like what we
love about entertainment. The one thing that can never be
(24:22):
taken from us is the ability to stand up in
front of a room full of people and make them
feel something.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
It is the hardest thing. Like when I think of
stand up, I think there is no genre that is
more difficult, more challenging than stand up. Like I think
of it, and I'm like, I mean, it's tough to
do a play, to be on stage, yeah, right, And
I've done two handers and three handers and that's tough.
But to carry a show by yourself.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
See, I'm so much more scared of a play I've
never done. I've never done a play in my life.
And the idea of like especially something like Shakespearean or
something super true to the text. To me at this point,
it would be so much harder because I'm so comfortable
on stage being like, if someone drops a cup, I'm
like ready to do five, you know what I mean. Like,
it's just like I'm up there, I'm changing things on
the five. The idea of being like every word of
this has to be correct, that scares me.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
It's kind of a cool it's it's yeah, I understand
what you mean, but it's there's a tension in it
that's kind of that's creative. At the same time, you
have a limit. You're limited, so you have to say, Okay,
I've got to create this world night after night after night,
and I've got to find something slightly for me. Every
night there's there's a slightly different thing that's going to happen,
and it's you know, it doesn't matter to anybody but yourself. Really,
(25:30):
the audience isn't going to know because it's a different audience.
But it's just like to keep it alive, and there's
something about it that I really love. Like when I
first when Twitter first started, right, you got a limit, right,
It's like you got to create in this amount of time.
These are the words, these are these are the characters
that you had, And I said, Okay, I got to
come up with something. It's kind of cool. Maybe a
little more unexpected, you know what I mean. But you
have to really work.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
It's like poetry.
Speaker 1 (25:51):
You got to like really figure it out. That's the
way I approached it because it became more creative and
more interesting to me. And that's kind of like doing
a play. I haven't done a play for so many
years because I like to film too. I like to
just let's try it again this way, you know, let's
do this because there's something so wonderfully creative and flowing
about just letting it roll.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Social for me, like it's it's their things about it,
I think are very cool.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
I think you feel a responsibility when you're posting or no.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Maybe I should, maybe I should start doing that. Oh
I mean I feel like, yeah, I do. I definitely
am aware that people like look to me for something
that they want me to I definitely had to deal
with a lot of my body stuff when I got
big on the internet. No pun intended, because so many
people started to message me about like, oh, your confidence
or your whatever, and I was like, oh, I do
(26:38):
feel that way, But I just had to be very
careful about the way I talked about my body because
a big part of my audience is like young people
who are queer or fat or you know whatever, They've
got these things about their body that they're thinking a
lot about. And I learned very quickly that part of
the reason they follow me is because they that I
just live my life happily and don't remark on that
so much, or don't remark at least negatively. Right, That
was a weird thing, but social I view it as
(26:59):
like it's become this thing that gives me the freedom
to behave how I want to behave. I don't have
to go and beg casting directors or writer's rooms to
hire me. That I've got this thing that makes money
and sells my tickets and keeps me around people and creating,
and then I get to just do the things I like.
I get to go do Benny's show for a couple
of days. I get to go, do you know any
movie that I'm excited about or whatever. It's kind of like,
(27:21):
I don't know, it's this like thing I can do
in the background. But you have such an interesting relationship
with social media to me, because I'm like, I think
a lot of people who use social media who have
the kind of career and legacy that you have use
it in a very cynical way that it's like, Okay,
my intern's making me, you know, but you really feel
so like engaged with it and actually paying attention, and
(27:43):
it's actually so delightful to watch. Well, of course they're
all here, and they're all actually holding weapons on me.
You better tell his socials good, he'll do it. Someone
has a bow and arrow, which I have. But you
do you enjoy it? I mean, you're so fun on you?
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Yeah, really do. I mean, first of all, I'm silly,
you know what I mean, And I'm embracing my silliness
as I get older. And I feel like the difference,
just generational difference between when I started, you know, and
I look back on who I you know, the people
that I admired and and sort of looked to for inspiration,
you know, Brando and Jimmy Dean and Montgomery Cliff and
all these actors. You know, it's like that generation and
(28:20):
then gave way to like Steve mcguan and some of
these other actors that were sort of more tough guy
and and these are I looked to these to these
actors and they were all like, oh, I can't be bothered. Yeah,
it's just yeah, pr I'm not going out for that. No,
they're not going to see me, you know, and they're
all just tucked away. And I was like, and I
was like, oh, so that's how you have to be.
So it was kind of a to the press. It
(28:41):
was sort of a a love hate you know, it's like, ah,
got do this. And then after a while I said, well,
I don't. I don't really feel that way. I actually
really enjoy engaging. I like going on smiling, talking to
people I like, and you know, I like, I don't
want to have to censor myself in any way, you
know what I mean, and be trying to be kind
of cool. I said, just be yourself God's sake, and
for me, social has allowed me to just be like,
(29:03):
you know what, we're letting it all hang out. And
the greatest thing about it is. This generation feels to
me like, yeah, we want that, we want we want
the authentic you. And I'm like, all right, you're happy
with that. I don't care my hair is crazy. I
don't care what it is what it is except me
for you know how you see me, And I'm like,
I think that is so freeing.
Speaker 2 (29:22):
You know, do you think that you spent any time
in your life like I think about this a lot,
like who's mysterious and who's not. I'm decidedly not. Everyone
knows everything about me and I have artist friends, especially
musician friends, who are mysterious and they have no one
knows anything about them. And I'm like God, and I
feel myself sometimes wanting to chase it. Did you ever
chase like mysterious?
Speaker 1 (29:40):
Yes? Tried, yeah, But the problem was I wasn't I
wasn't cool enough, and everyone just.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Forgot about me too.
Speaker 1 (29:47):
We didn't even know you were not there, We didn't
think I was.
Speaker 2 (29:49):
I was in the corner of being mysterious and I said,
we didn't see you, and they're like, okay.
Speaker 1 (29:55):
I'm like, I'm much more comfortable doing this, And honestly,
it was the way I was, you know before you
know any better when you're in junior high in high school,
I just was very silly and then you sort of
get like, Okay, I'm an actor, you know, so I
got serious and then all it goes goes away. Yeah,
And for me, that's been social has been that and
and you know, some of the TikTok stuff and the
Instagram stuff has been just fun and silly, and you know,
(30:18):
I enjoy it because it really suits you know, who
I am really at art, Yeah, which I love.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
I mean you seem genuinely to me interested and invested in,
like what is going on on there?
Speaker 1 (30:29):
And this is the journey of my podcast, Yeah, helping
me to understand to discuss what's happening, you know, what
that what's the creative what are the creative waves that
are coming into the shore right now, because they're different,
we're older, we're past now, we have our own sort
of thing. But what's the new stuff, you know, and
where and where is that? Where is that going? I'm
very curious about that.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
So I really hope it's going towards I'm you know,
I'm thirty, and I really hope that. I think my
fans are predominantly in their twenties and thirties. I would really, really,
really love for more people to just get out and
see something. The phones are there, like where the phones
are here all the time, we've got the option we
can always look on and see somebody doing something. There's
way too much to see on there. It's awesome, it's cool.
(31:08):
I would just love for people to go and see stuff.
Go see a movie in theaters, go see a play,
go see a stand up show, a concert, like really.
Speaker 1 (31:16):
Just go. Yeah. I feel like I agree with you
because I feel like the emotional experience that you will
have in that situation, whether it's a live show or
as you said, like it's a film in a large
theater where that's over you know, it's overwhelming, is a
different experience that is worthwhile. You certainly have an experience
here and watching TV at at home, but weah, that's fine.
(31:37):
But there's a sense of immersion that I think we
miss from this little screen that you get from a
live show where you completely lose yourself for a period
of time in what's happening, and I think that's really important, and.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Being in it with other people and are particularly strangers.
I think there's a lot of anti social behavior in
like there's so many rules now that people are trying
to like carry out on each other. That's like, I'm
not gonna go to the theater because I might hear
someone talking. It's like, of course you will. Yeah, that's fabulous,
you know what I mean. Like that's the point of
watching a movie with strangers. Yeah, they shouldn't talk through
the whole thing, you know, but also if they do,
it's a funny story, you know what I mean. I
(32:11):
just think like more being around strangers, being inconvenienced by
strangers connecting with other people. Because also if you do
hear someone talking through the whole movie, there's gonna be
like two other people in your world. They're like oh
you know yeah, and you're gonna be like thank you,
you know what I mean. Like that connection, I.
Speaker 1 (32:25):
Think something very cool, something real, is going to happen.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Well, maybe that's why you like New York so much,
because in New York, really you're engaged. Yeah, you're on
the street, you're engaged. Yeah, you know what I mean.
So it's supposed to Los Angeles. So anyway, Okay, I
want to hear quickly about well not quickly, little brother. Yeah,
and Trash Mountain. Yeah, can you talk about any of
those or is it too early?
Speaker 2 (32:45):
Don't I'm sure I can. And if they don't like it,
well they shouldn't have hired me. No little brother, Yeah,
so so fun. Matt Spicer, director is directing. They're still
making it. What Jared Paul and Andy mogule I always
get their names mixed up. I want to do their
last names different because they're writing. But they actually directed
a pilot I did for TBS years ago that didn't go.
And John Cena's in a Eric Andre Chris Moloniego wodam
(33:07):
Erry color. So funny. It's a great cast. Everyone's so
nice and it's a big dumb ensemble comedy that I
got to be a part of. And I got to
play a kind of psycho guy like a rally reality
TV producer. I think I can say but that was
really fun. I just finished that one. And Trash Mountain. Yeah,
Lily with Chowski producing, College Fara producing, depending on when
(33:31):
we get made. Chris Ray right now is set to direct.
Lily was in that role, but we lost a window,
you know how it goes. But yeah, it's a movie
I wrote immediately after my dad passed away unexpectedly. He
was a hoarder, and I had to go home and
deal with that in his passing at the same time.
So it's a laugh riot the movie. But yeah, it's
about my experience with my dad passing and me going
(33:51):
home for that. Okay, but comedy, like it's like the
way that my Yeah, it's like it's like an indie drama,
but it's it's very much rooted in, like my family's
whole deal of Like I'm telling you, my dad passed.
I got the news. I was with my family. I'd
happened to be in Missouri at the time. I wasn't
living there. I was in Kin City for a concert.
I was home within an hour, within an hour and
fifteen minutes. We were laughing, you know what I mean,
(34:11):
Like we're just dark comedy like people who laugh at
stuff like that. Yeah, and so it's kind of like that.
Speaker 1 (34:18):
Okay, so do you so I wonder because I want
to put the same thing for me. So both my
parents have gone, but when I get together with my brothers,
they're very much alive, and we laugh a lot about them.
And it's in a way it were keeping them around us,
keeping them alive by remembering the funny moments and enjoying
the funny moments that we had with them. Yeah, I
don't know if it's if it was like that or
(34:40):
if it was.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
It feels like totally it's like what my dad would
have wanted. And like also, there's just so many funny moments.
We had to go to the funeral home and there
was just the funeral director was so hilarious, like this
good old boy, like in the middle of nowhere Missouri,
and he was telling my grandma was a mass of course,
and he was telling us. We're all sitting in this tiny,
little like rural Missouri funeral home director's office. He's like, well,
(35:01):
you know, we're gonna cremate him. And they got this
new thing now where you can put their ashes into
a piece of art and hang it in your house.
And my grandma, my grandma just goes no, and we
all go what and she goes no art no, and
we were like, okay, girl, like it just things like
that where it's like that that guttural no and then
(35:21):
having to say no art was just like I know
what she meant. She thinks it's like disrespectful whatever, but
just a million things like that where you're like, this
could not have been. When someone dies, you have to
get like eight death certificates to prove that they're dead.
I'm like, there's a body, you know what I mean.
There's just so many things, so funny, so funny.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
And you were there observing because I think you're I'm
watching her, I'm paying hey, yeah, yeah, and you're like
making notes, making notes because I'm a similar way. I
watch and then I'm like, I remember that and I'll
use it for like that's a really good idea for
like something, Yeah, in the future.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
This is a great thing about being an artist, though,
Don't you think It's like when I have a good day,
it's awesome because I had a good day. When I
have a bad day, it's awesome because I got material. Yeah,
you know, it's like, this is great. My dad died.
That really sucks. But she was still alive. But we're
going to get something out.
Speaker 1 (36:03):
That's beautiful. Yeah, it keeps them alive.
Speaker 2 (36:05):
We'll see when we get it made. We're still you know,
we're doing the we're doing the dance between everybody's schedules
and the funding. But I imagine that we'll make it
in the next like half a year's I hope.
Speaker 1 (36:15):
So it sounds like I really understand and we'll learn
more about you and learn about the family and you're
where you come from, and I think that's that's wonderful. Yeah,
all right, So when we come back, we're gonna play
a little game. You have said, if you've got a
comedian on set and you don't let them improvise, you
are missing out. So we heard you, we heard you,
and we're going to honor you as calibrities. Calibrities. I'm
(36:39):
an actor. I'm an actor who prepares. Okay, we decided
to create a spin off of your truth and false segments.
So over it's so true. So we're going to play
truth or elaborate. Okay when we come back. We'll do
a little more explanation when we get back, so stay tuned. Okay,
(37:03):
So what we're gonna do. We're gonna switch off, giving
each other scenarios from each other's past. Right, So some
are true, some are not true. I will have fifteen
seconds to rant about the scenario to try to convince
each other, yeah, one of us that that is true. Yes,
And if it is true, then you get a little
thumbs up and if you don't believe it, thumbs down.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Okay, got it, that's good. You want to go. You
want to read one first? Oka read?
Speaker 1 (37:24):
Okay, Okay, I can't wait.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
I love the build up.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Your mother once took your PlayStation away from you, and
you told your school administrators you were unsafe at home.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
Oh yeah, well yeah, So basically I had a PlayStation
and my mom wanted to take it away for punishment.
Then I went to school and I said, well, I'm
being abused, you know, because she took my PlayStation and
that's not right and that's abuse.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
So yeah, that's all you got. Okay, I think that
I think that this is true.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
Really tried, Yeah, you got it. I really tried to
play it in either way. Okay, okay, are you ready
for yours?
Speaker 1 (38:06):
I'm ready? I'm ready.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
Okay. Actress Francis stern Hagen, who played your mother Bunny
and Sex and the City, was actually your aunt in
real life.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
It was a weird thing because we learned about.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
Would I get it ready? I gave it away, like,
let's go. I couldn't contain.
Speaker 1 (38:25):
They didn't tell me these, So that's that's that's a
real did.
Speaker 2 (38:27):
You research mine. Do you know these about me? Or
did you do research?
Speaker 1 (38:30):
I did know the first one, okay, okay, but only
because I did a deep I did a deep dive.
I say, okay, you got a perfect score on the
math section of your SAT.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
So people don't believe this, which is offensive, but I
did because I I really got had a math teacher
that actually really liked in high school, missus Limbaugh, and
she was actually so nice to me in math class,
even though I was kind of a problem. I was
always like yapping, but I actually really took to math
because of it.
Speaker 1 (38:56):
Ah.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
Yeah, so you very convincing. In fact, it's not true,
but come on, come on.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Yeah, I thought of when I was thinking of the name,
I love the miss that was so funny. That's convinced me.
He went with a name. I was like, whoa, I said, okay,
but I didn't think of rush Limba. Can you imagine
Russia a teacher looking like RUSSI female teacher looking like
rush Limbaugh.
Speaker 2 (39:22):
If they exist, they're somewhere near my school district. Okay,
you're ready, I'm ready. Okay, Okay. Over the past fifteen years,
you've become an expert in beer crafting and fermentation.
Speaker 1 (39:33):
Yes, I grew up in Yakima, Washington. I don't know
if you know, but Yakima is the hop capital of
the world, and there's all sorts of different beers that
come out of there. Hops are grown there. In fact,
when I was in high school, I worked in the
hop field. I harvested hops, which is a very strange
process where you have to ride like a ladder and
the hops grow up a chain. Do you know?
Speaker 2 (39:55):
I thought maybe because of the wine, and you did
so good?
Speaker 1 (40:00):
Was good? I tried to contutral because I know the
other one. I gave it away immediately.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
I worked hops in high school. I mean the hell yeah.
Speaker 1 (40:06):
But in fact it's a little bit of truth. I
didn't work hops, but I had friends that were hops,
and Moxi the hop capital, and I know exactly how
they grow and how you harvest them, and so yeah.
Speaker 2 (40:17):
Is Yakima are the hops capital of the world.
Speaker 1 (40:19):
Right real close. I think Mack's near Yakama, because I.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
Want you to know. That is what convinced me when
you said Yakima is the hops. You said that was
such a clarity and sincerity. I was like, that part's true.
So the rest of its tracking. That was the one
that got me. If you ever need to tell this
lie against.
Speaker 1 (40:33):
I'm going to go Yakama hop capital in the world,
whether it's true or not.
Speaker 2 (40:36):
Okay, all right, this is good. Okay.
Speaker 1 (40:39):
On the set of Overcompensating, you spilled your entire drink
on Mary Beth and the entire production was delayed six
hours until wardrobe could get a new outfit from Mary Beth.
And I know Marybeth.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
She's very picky. She is, and she wears these delicate
little sweaters and like little blouses and stuff in that show.
And she and I were enemies. You weren't there on
the day that I was.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Was not.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
She and I were enemies, and my big enemy scene
with her got cut. But basically I improvised the thing where
I was going to like pretend to throw a drink
at her, and I did actually throw my drink at Oh.
Speaker 1 (41:07):
Yeah, it was so well done.
Speaker 2 (41:09):
Thank you. Yes, it's not true, but we were enemies
and they did cut. I was so sad, Bennie, You're
on my shit list, brother. They I had such a
funny scene with Mary Beth.
Speaker 1 (41:19):
Why they cut it?
Speaker 2 (41:20):
They had, I'm sure for time because it was Charlie's episode.
They had so much going on, but it's got bumped by.
Speaker 1 (41:26):
Demanding come on, that's funny. We're friends, so it's okay.
But what I love about that is it's always good
to sprinkle in a little bit of truth.
Speaker 2 (41:33):
Yes, that's how you. Yeah, yeah, you sprinkling some truth.
You and me two liars, we know how to really lie. Okay,
you're ready, I'm ready. Okay. When you got the script
of the Blue Velvet from David Lynch, you showed it
to your mother, who begged you not to take the part.
Speaker 1 (41:47):
Well, actually I did. It was my second, my second
screenplay that I ever read. David gave it to me
while we were filming Dune, and at that time my
family was really involved, and I sent it to my
mom and I sent it to my dad as well.
My dad read it and he said, find no problem
my mom. But she didn't respond. So she her husband
actually reached out to me and said because my mom
was she had cancer at the time, and I said, well,
(42:07):
I don't want to do anything that's gonna make her upset.
And I showed it to her and she said, she said,
she didn't say she didn't mand it.
Speaker 2 (42:14):
But she said, I'd rather you not.
Speaker 1 (42:16):
I'd rather you're not. So was it true.
Speaker 2 (42:21):
Bringing up the cancer? Really cancer?
Speaker 1 (42:25):
I thought maybe I was going too far with that.
I said, I think I've got him on the hook.
The cancer is going to set the hook or he's
going to spit.
Speaker 2 (42:31):
It out bringing up the cancer and you spit it out.
Speaker 1 (42:36):
Well, yeah, I said, I did you Well, I I
got one.
Speaker 2 (42:40):
No, I got one.
Speaker 1 (42:42):
He got two. You got one, you got to, I
got I got to.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
I think well for having experienced it, Yeah, you're right.
Speaker 1 (42:51):
And you get to keep this sign it for me. Yes,
of course that's memorabilia. I'm gonna sell that for big
money that you're gonna you're gonna be I mean you
could retire on that. Okay. So anyway, that's that's all
the time that we have. I mean, we have more
time in the day, but that's all the time that
we have. Did we figure did we figure out? What
are we even doing? I guess we've made a good attempt.
Speaker 2 (43:12):
Yeah, Well I think we're having fun. Yes, and I
think we're hanging out making wine.
Speaker 1 (43:17):
Yes, et cetera. Yeah. Yeah, and there'll be wine for
you after the show.
Speaker 2 (43:20):
Thank you, Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (43:21):
Yeah, what a great pleasure. Really enjoyed it. Thanks a
big fan of yours, big fan of yours.
Speaker 2 (43:25):
Thank you, It's so mutual. Thank you. Everybody Apreciate you day.
Speaker 1 (43:30):
What Are We Even Doing is a production of iHeartMedia
and the Elvis Duran podcast Network, hosted by Me Kyle
McLachlin and created and produced by Full Picture Productions Yay
featuring music by Yata and artwork by Danica Robertson. For
more information about the podcast, please visit our Instagram and
(43:50):
TikTok at w a w ed with Kyle. Please rate, review,
and subscribe to What Are We Even Doing on Apple, Spotify, YouTube,
or anywhere you get your podcasts. Exclamation Pointgrasters
What are we even? What are we even doing? Welcome
to what are we even doing? I'm Kyle and you
know the drill. I've been talking to artists, actors, creators
of all type about their process or their creative process
(00:20):
and how they use social media. And today we have
a very special guest. I don't have a good friend,
but you're a friend. Were all together, old friend over compensating, Yeah,
co star because we are where the stars not many. Yeah,
I forget the perfect person, perfect opinions. Oh, Caleb, it's
so nice to have you with us.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Thank you very much. I'm so excited to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:40):
I always start questions off by asking you you're a kid,
You're like having fun in the moment you realize, Hey,
this is something that I might want to do. Comedy
is something that I might want to there's a spark there.
I think, or talk to me about that moment if
you can remember or can recall what happened.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Yeah, totally. I mean I truly. I think. I say
this all the time, and sometimes when I say it,
I think people think I'm like, you know, cwing at
like some kind of like performance of humility or something.
But I'm like the women in my family are like
my biggest comedic inspirations. They're so funny and they're so
much funnier than the men, and so I was always
just like trying to make them laugh at any given scenario,
Like every family event, I would gravitate to wherever the
women were because they were always talking about more interesting stuff,
(01:19):
and I was like, I want to make you laugh,
you know. And I remember when I was like eight,
maybe we had a babysitter who you know, we were
all poor, so our parents went in on like a
shared babysitter for a couple of the neighborhood kids, and
we all want to go to one house and get watched.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Idea.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
I got an idea.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
I understand that we had same experience.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, And we would go over there and she made
us these horrible meals, like I'm talking to Kyle. She
one night, I remember she this was the big one
she put she made. She cooked spaghetti noodles and put
thousand Island dressing on it. Okay, and she was like
dinner served, and I was like what. And she made
us sit at the table. I was like eight years old.
She made a sit at the table until we finished
all of the gruel, and I the next day was
like recounting to my mom and we were at some
(01:55):
family event. My aunt, my cousins were there, and my
mom was calling people over. She was laughing so hard
to hear the story of this thing that we were
forced to eat. And I was like, this feels good,
Like I felt like a like a monster or something
like I was like feeding off of it.
Speaker 1 (02:07):
Yeah, but I love that you took the material. Oh
I was thing that you went through and suffered through. Yeah,
I was this slop yeah yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
And then yeah, I just I but I still didn't think.
I thought I was gonna be a lawyer. I was like, oh,
that's just I might I want to be like a
because I said, all the women in my family are funny,
but they're also nurses and teachers. And you know your
mom's a nurse.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Yeah, And so I was like, oh, funny is not
a job. It's just like the way you are in
the world. Yes, And so I was like, I'll be
a lawyer who's fun it's funny. And then in college
I got so depressed trying to be a lawyer that
I was like, I need to do it.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
So much more fun but your other story about the
reminded me of something that my mom did. So my
mom was not a good cook, plus her heart. She
made a hot dog soup for Halloween. Bad night to
choose to make hot dog soup when you have to
go out for trick or treating, because she scalded the milk.
So I'm there as a connoiseur. I'm, you know, eight
(02:56):
or nine years old, and I said, I can't eat this?
Speaker 2 (02:58):
Can you tell me what? So? Hot dog soup? I've
now learned there's milk involved.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
There's milk involved, yeah, and then dogs and that's pretty
much it. Yeah, yeah, you got it.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
So you there's the milk, which is burnt, and then
the hot dogs, which are boiled in milk.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yeah, and that's the That's that's the meal right there.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Damn listen.
Speaker 1 (03:13):
I want to talk about your background a little bit.
So you're from rural Missouri. Yes, So population of the town,
what do you think? Well?
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I grew up mostly in a town. We moved quite
a bit, okay, as poor people are wanting to do.
The town I grew up in was probably like six
thousand people, okay, pretty small, and then we moved to
a town of like eight hundred people. Oh, and then
we moved to a town of like twenty thousand people. Okay.
I basically lobbied my mom. We were in the small town.
Her best friend had a kid my exact age who
(03:43):
was my best friend, right, and they moved to this
eight hundred person town because she had started she had
gotten married to a guy who lived over there, and
so we had moved there to be involved with them,
to be like in, you know, go to the same
school and to share babysitting and stuff. And then like
I want to say, my eighth grade, like my eighth
grade year. I was like, Mom, we got to move
to a bigger school district. I'm never going to get
a scholarship going to the school. Like, we got to
(04:04):
get the hell out of here. I'm in eighth grade.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
And she was kind of, that's remarkable. You sort of
understand that you recognize that already, so you I just
looked around and was.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Like, this is not I think from a very young age,
I was like, I'm something else needs to occur here.
And so I was like, can we please move to
the town over where she actually already worked. She was
driving back and forth, ok and I was like, can
we move over there so I can go to that school.
It's a little bigger. I think my graduating class at
that school was like one hundred and twenty or something,
but it was a little bit bigger. They had organizations,
they had like more activities and more sports and stuff,
and so we moved over there and that's where I
(04:33):
I graduated from.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Yeah, but still small. Yeah. Yeah, so your friendship was
not important in eighth grade, You're like, no, I got I.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Was like these career Yeah, I was like, I need
to go to college. I can't.
Speaker 1 (04:43):
That's about the age when you begin to put it together.
I know. With my son, so Callum, we were he
was in school in New York until sixth grade, and
he just came and sort of said, you know, I
feel like a change something. And we were like, okay,
what do you think And he said, you know, because
he was born in La spent for a few years
in LA, we always go back. And he said, I
think maybe La. We're like, oh, let's se if we
can put it in motion. So we listened to him
(05:04):
and kind of, you know, try to make this move happen,
and it actually worked out for the best.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
That's so cool. If you have to take his lead
on that too.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
I just you know, you try to. You know, you
try with kids. You just you try to what's happening
between the lines there, And it wasn't just a fickle thing.
It was definitely there was something going on that he
needed to do. So you finished school and then you
decide to go to Missouri State, the Harvard of the Southwest.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Harvard of Southwestern area.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Everyone's saying, and see, I totally get it.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
Yeah, I went down there. It was like I wanted
to go. I had had big dreams. I was like,
I'm gonna go to school on the East Coast. I'm
gonna go to New York. I was like I'd seeing
gay people on TV. I was like, gay people go
to New York, right, And then.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Sort of you understood that that's kind of where you
wanted to go. From around eighth grade, ninth grade, or
I would.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Say, like high school, I started to feel like I
started really looking at colleges and being like where could
I get in? But I didn't have any concept of
like we just no one from around where I'm from
really talks about stuff like that or does that. I mean,
I know now looking, I've met people out in the
world that are like, oh, I'm from three times over
from you, and I went so it's like Harvard or whatever.
I never even concepted that as an idea, but I
thought maybe I could go to some school in New York.
(06:06):
And I got into a couple of weeks schools. But
then I got a really good scholarship in Missouri and
we couldn't afford for me to go do something crazy.
So my deal to myself was, I'll go to Missouri State,
I'll study politics, and then if I really want to
go be in New York or whatever, I'll get internships
in the summer that I'd be like my bargain. And
that's what I did.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
It's smart, it was good, it was real.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
ID I did it.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
Yeah, No, you were in a perfect place. I did
similar things when I went to school at University of Washington,
just because that's what you do. Just so happened that
there was a training program there while I was there,
like a really good one that I.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
Was aware of, and I started.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
I started to go see their their work containing at
school University Washington, and I was like, what is this?
And it turns out it was a professional training program
training actress for repertory theater. And they took a class.
There was a class that each class was about twelve
or thirteen students. That was it. So I have to
audition very intense and so and they competed in this
at the end of the year was a League of
(06:57):
Professional Training program. So you had Juilliard a temple at
SMU Northwestern and U dubb was one of those. And
so basically all day you just learned the process of
being what it takes to become a repertory theater actress.
Week which you had acting classes, you had movement classes,
you had speech classes, stage combat, blah blah blah blah,
everything juggling. So I could go to the circus if
I needed to. And that was it. And it just
(07:18):
happened to be where I went to school, thank god,
because I would not have been prepared to like, I'm
going to be an actor. I'm going to go to
New York. I was like, that wasn't in the card.
So just it sort of came to me in a
strange way, which so so super lucky.
Speaker 2 (07:30):
I in college was so like, of course, all my
friends should have been a sign sooner. All my friends
were like the acting majors and the musical kids, and
they were coming back from there. You know, I'm like
studying like pre law, taking like persuasion classes. I'm like
busting my ass trying to write like twenty page research
papers freshman year. They're coming back being like movement class
was hell today, and I was like, you guys are clowns.
I was so pissed off. I was like, knock it off.
(07:52):
Like we had to pretend to be a slog for
an hour. I was like, I'm getting my ass beat
in the Poli side building. I just truly was like,
I was like, what are you talking about? Not college? Yeah?
It was like I was so mad. I was like,
you guys get to have fun all day, and it's
not fun. It's very serious.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Yeah yeah, yeah, we have to lay on the floor
and wiggle around.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
But it feels like all the work that you did
in this law run up you've used, I mean, you
use in your act, your political acumen, I mean everything
is you sort of have this side of you that's like,
I mean, the creative side, and you have this political
side together, and you're able to kind of dance between
the two of them because of that.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Yeah, at all the time part of it, Yeah, I
think about all the time. I mean I think about
politics constantly. I feel like it's it's funny I say
a lot. Like people sometimes when they find out I'm
from like very rural Missouri, They'll be like, oh, I'm
so surprised you turned out, you know, very leftists. And
I'm like, I'm surprised that people come from that situation
and don't because politics are all around you. Everyone's so
poor and being taken advantage of and lied to. But yeah,
I think about politics all the time. And I think
(08:47):
a big thing that you study when you're studying a
degree program like socio political communication is like it's just
understanding people. It's persuasion, and it's inthamiums. It's arguments and
what works for people and what doesn't and central root
processing and peripheral root processing and how people's brains decide
to do or be something and how you can engage
with them on that. It's very interesting stuff. But at
the end of the day, that's exactly what comedy is.
Speaker 1 (09:08):
Do you feel like you have a voice for people
maybe from that community or if you speak on them
or or not.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
I mean, I don't think a lot of them would
want me to. I don't think they'd like that very much.
They're lost. Oh I don't know, Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
You represent and and speak about that is like, you know,
this is this is my experience. Yeah, you know, people like,
oh wow, they maybe they didn't know, they don't understand
what that what that's really like.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
I feel like it's funny because I keep hearing that
we're all so divided, Like I just you know, this
is like the political message of the last couple years.
We're so divided. But I still live in Kansas City
and I hang out with people who have all kinds
of different ideas, and I'm like, yes, of course there's
a national division amongst some like really key issues. But
I think like part of the work that we'll have
to do if we want to come out of this
moment any better, is just understand like most people are actually,
(09:53):
in my opinion, pretty nice and pretty normal across the board,
like most regular people. More people don't vote than vote
for the crazy shit, And I think it's it's trying
to like mobilize those people and get them excited and
interested in the future of this like project of society
and democracy. But I think, like, I don't know if
I speak for anyone from Missouri, but one thing I'm
very passionate about is that I made a very conscious
(10:14):
decision in my early twenties that I wasn't I kind
of up until then. I was like, I'm gonna leave
here and forget about this place. And I just started
to feel very guilty because I was like, well, wait,
why did they get to have it. I'm also from here,
and people like me are also from here. And I
started to get really pissed off because I was like,
they don't get to like anti abortion, anti women, anti gay,
anti immigrant type people. They don't own Missouri at all.
And that actually wasn't most of the people that I
(10:35):
interacted with there. Maybe some people would say things like
that in passing, but mostly just because someone else said
it at work, Like I don't there weren't these like
strongly held convictions about politics. Yeah, yeah, where where I
grew up. So I don't know if I speak for them,
but I like them, whether we like it or not.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
Yeah, find the interesting going back home. I know, growing
up in Eastern Washington, I couldn't wait to go away,
you know, and do my thing, and then I you know,
you go back and you visit, and it's in your blood.
There's just nothing thing you can do. So I go back.
I make a wine. I have a wine business there,
a wine company. I brought you some wine by the
way today, right, let's go. And it's just and I
love going back, and I love being with the people
(11:12):
in the community. And it's you know, it's farming, it's agricultural.
But I'm like, I can relate to this, and I
really enjoy it. And it's a really nice difference from
what I do in Los Angeles or New York in
my work, you know, and I really embrace it.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
It's really interesting because I had a similar thing growing
up of like I looked around at all these people
that have so much respect for still that are just
busting their ass, like my grandpa worked on the railroad
his whole life, and you know, people that are doing
such like demanding like physical labor jobs like working in
a mill or a factory or something. And I was
just looking around and going like, I respect these people
so much, but I don't have it. Yeah, I'm not
(11:44):
cut out for it.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
I get it.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
So I got I'm either going to be so broke
or I'm going to have to go find something else
to do. And I just I think about that all
the time, Like I think about how many people have
to work so hard, and I just wonder what I
would have done if I hadn't ended up doing this,
probably that, but I wonder how I would have felt
about it.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
Yeah, yeah, I know, it's it's it's can be crushing.
I couldn't understand that the inside, what your brain does
in the situations like that. And I exactly the same thing,
because I have friends that are like that as well.
And I'm you know, but for the grace of God,
is how I kind of go, Okay, you know, I'm here,
I'm working. I got lucky out of school. I've had
a lot of success, you know what I mean, and
a lot of it has been just you know, hard work,
but also right place, right time, right connection, right people,
(12:26):
and it's you know, the machine is kept turning, you know,
kind of like that and so incredible. The older you get,
the more the older I get, the more gratitude I
have because I understand.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
What it could have been.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
You realize, geez, I nearly fell off the cliff, you
know what I mean here, just but a gust of
wind kind of kept me up, you know, so.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Very very grateful for that all the time when I
think about comedy. The best thing that ever happened to
me is I had so many jobs in my teens
and twenties. I started working when I was fifteen. I
worked in restaurants, and then I worked in offices in Chicago,
and I walked dogs, and I worked at heating and
air conditioning company. I worked at find I mean, I
did all kinds of things. And I learned more about
comedy having all these jobs that I had to have
to pay my bills than I did any comedy theater.
(13:05):
And I learned a lot at the comedy theaters. But
you're a great observer, I think, Yeah, No, I think
you are. I mean you watch we were talking. We
did we did this thing together. We talk about it.
I don't know, we talk about it. We shot this thing, okay, anyway,
it was a commercial.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Anyway, We did some work together on the thing in
New York, and we hadn't met, but I knew you overcompensating,
I knew of you. We didn't work together on overcompensating.
But I was like, I watched you work because it
was you know, you came in his role and it
was kind of thrown together. I felt a little bit
and I said, this guy's very smart. He really knows
(13:39):
how to use the camera and he's already editing. That's
what I said. I told you in my head because
I was watching you. Do you know we were doing
pickups and stuff, and I remember you repeating that the
energy that you did from them from the moment before
and actually going back and coming into it just as
an actors is this. You know, you watch somebody work
and you're like, they know what they're doing, they care,
(14:01):
actually care. Thank yous cared about what you're doing. And
I was like, ah, that's pretty cool and smart.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
Thank you, that's very very I just.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Kind of gleaned all that real quickly.
Speaker 2 (14:09):
Thank you, that's so nice. I was. I was equally
impressed genuinely watching you on set because it's this. It's
this thing that you know your people really respect you
and really really look up to you, and you could
have been you. I'm sure you know people that are
like this. I at least have met some of them,
but you could come to a thing like that and
be a.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
Total asshole and get away with it.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
You really could, because people really respect you, myself included.
And the grace and the kindness and the effort that
you gave to something like that. I was very inspired
by it because I was like, I feel that way too.
I was like, I think we're so I'm so grateful
to be here. This is a very lucky thing.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Yeah, and it was.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Yeah, I was taking cues from you as well.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
I do think that we have a kindred spirit that way.
Just in terms of your approach to the work. I
love it. Yeah, I don't care what it is I have.
I want to have fun. I want to work. I
want to create. I want to make something better than
what they have. Necessarily. I want to get their ideas
and create something special. Yeah, and that's always every day,
and I think what otherwise? Why do I mean?
Speaker 2 (15:03):
Also in part of that that gig that we did,
it was a one day thing for me, But I
when they were in between stuff, when they were like, oh,
we need another word for this, and you and I
are being like, okay, what about this that great idea?
But it was it's fun to me. That's the process
and the point I'm like, I'm here with a very
good actor, and the directors were awesome, and we've got
this great set and this whole crew of people that
are working really hard, Like we get to do the
(15:24):
fun part of being like what if what if it
was this word? Or what if what if Kyle like
held it like this, you know, and I that to
me is like the most fun of this. I'm like,
that's crazy that we get to do that for work.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Yeah, you know, I agree, And well you also, I
mean I think you said something about you have comedians,
you know, working in a comedy let you got to
let them, you got to let them run. Yeah, I
mean that's that's I feel exactly the same way. I
(15:55):
also want to congratulate you. You're on Rolling Stones five
most Influence. Now you can use your pillow. Yeah, so
how does it feel you're more influential than mister beast.
Speaker 2 (16:07):
That's really really funny. I don't think the list was
meant to be ranked. I think that was just to
happen to be numbers next to our names. I know,
I couldn't care. I mean it's so funny too, I
don't I've been reflecting because for anyone who doesn't know.
I was on a Rolling Stone list for mostly because
I have publicist, because I have an HBO special coming out.
Let's be very clear about that. There's like paid people
who were on this. Yeah, gosh, I don't know you.
(16:27):
I've been thinking about, like, mister Beast did this thing
where he like screenshotted my face and was like, the
Rolling Stones think this guy is more influential. I was like,
to be honest, he has a point. I laughed really
hard when I saw it. I was not offended in
the slightest. I was like, I don't give a fuck.
I'm not interested in like what list I'm on. But
I was like, and honestly, that guy's got like hundreds
of millions of followers. I was like, my special comes
out next month. Not bad, brother, let's let's run up
(16:49):
my name a little bit.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
Yeah. But I was like, your heat.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
Yeah. He messaged. He was very nice. He messaged me
and he was like, I'm so sorry. I don't want
to give away too much of you know. I hope
he doesn't feel that I'm giving away too much of
our conversation. But he messaged me and I was like, dude,
I thought it was funny, no worries at all. He
was like, I deleted it and I apologize, and I
was like, yeah, I'm not been out of shape about it,
but I haven't minse gratitude for or not gratitude but
empathy for that guy, because he is a level of
(17:13):
famous that I struggle with the level of attention that
I have, which is a tiny, tiny, tiny percentage compared
to him, which I guess what's his point, but he
is like one of very few people in the history
of the world that have had to deal with that
level of public comment and scrutiny about him and whether
it's founded or not, whether we like that he's doing
the wells or the prosthetic legs or whatever. I really
(17:35):
know what he's up to all the time. But I
was just telling him when we chatted, I was like,
you know, I really wish you well. I hope you
have people to talk too, because he was kind of saying,
I don't know why I got so spun up about
the list thing there for a moment. That's not my
actual beliefs. That's why I deleted it. And I was like,
of course, you don't spun up about it. We work
in an industry that's all about who's the most relevant
and who has the most attention at any given time.
(17:56):
And if you're not really really careful and really grounded
and really healthy, it's easy it gets spun up about
something like that. Yeah, so I really feel for him.
I didn't think anything of it. I thought it was
quite funny. It's honestly only goes me. I did. When
he messaged me, I was like, Hey, no worries. My
specials out next month. If you want to share it,
that's what people watch my special you know.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
But yeah, well your response, yeah, it was very It
was very generous I think when you responded to him,
and kind of funny.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
That was funny.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
Yeah, I laughed. Depending on what people say, it's like
I always just it's I responded in some way positive,
something positive. Yeah, just like or make it or make
a joke of it, or or make light of it.
Speaker 2 (18:30):
Or I'm thinking about the list and I'm like, it's
actually not a compliment to me to be called influential.
I'm not chasing influence. It's part of my job. I
want to be really good at comedy. I want to
make people laugh. I want to like hopefully do something
nice for like the people where I'm from. I try
to like do things in Kansas City to make it better.
I try to like help my friends and family when
I can. But, like I, influence is pretty low down
(18:51):
on the list of things I'm actively trying to chase
in my present minded day. Maybe it's somewhere in there.
There's certainly something wrong with me that I do this
for a little But I don't. I'm not like everybody
waiting up me. Where's my influence?
Speaker 1 (19:02):
You know? I don't think it's you know, I think
it's to bring joy to people. You seem like a
person that likes to bring joy to people, you know
what I mean, just whether yeah, humor or you're just
who you are. I feel similar. Actually, it's like I
like to have fun. I like to make people laugh,
light in their day, you know what I mean. Do
some work, hopefully the work is good. Makes you think,
you know. But it's like I don't care where I
(19:22):
am in the in the list of things, you know
what I mean. It's just because I am lucky you
get to do what I love.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
I want to be part of joy. I want to
It's not it's not like a selfless thing where I'm like,
I get on stage to make sure that nurses get
off their shift and have something to laugh about after.
You know, I want to be part of joy. It's
it's also self serving. I want to be I want
to make you laugh because it makes me feel good
to be involved in the joy of all of us laughing.
It's not like a magnanimous like you know, like gift
that I'm trying to bestow. It's like, no, I want
to be part of joy. I want to be like
(19:49):
in the equation of people having a good time. And
that's what I like about my job.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
Well you are you are super busy. You have a lot.
You have a lot. One I thought I was busy,
but you like put me to shame. No talk at
You know, there are are comedians I look back on
and for inspiration, and you must have some that you like, go, oh,
this person, that person the comedy of Like, like I
when I think of Tim Conway, he's like, he's just
a Harvey Korman together on Carobernet show. I'm just like,
(20:16):
I'm sorry, that's one of the best duos ever and
I can't stop laughing when I see him. Yeah, I
don't know who do you respond to. Do you have
any sort of favorites that you totally Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:25):
It's funny you bring up Krobernet show. I just after
before my last tour, I just I watched a ton
of Carol Burnett show.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Great.
Speaker 2 (20:31):
My last tour was a bit of a variety show,
and I was just watching and I was really like,
I hadn't watched it in a long time, and I
had never watched it in a way where I was
like paying attention to be like, what was what were
they doing? She would do that that cast would do
like an eight minute long sketch in a single location
and then go from that into a ten minute long
tap dance routine, and go from that into five minutes
(20:51):
of her sitting and singing a song. The attention span
and like the dedication to a single bit, I was
so like enamored by it.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
Yeah, comedic influences, Like I said, mostly genuinely day to
day the women in my family, but from a comic standpoint,
different people throughout different times. Rosy O'Donnell Roseum bar back
in the day, like original Roseanne, back before everything, anybody,
Queen Latifa, Monique Monique' Queens of Comedy Set. If anybody
is a comedy fan and hasn't seen Moniques Queens of
(21:20):
Comedy Set, it is so spectacular and so loose, and
so I think when I first started, have you seen it?
Speaker 1 (21:27):
I haven't seen it. I got to see it.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
She opens it, Kyle, but she like turns, she comes
out of like a turning pyramid and walks down in
like this leather like brallette kind of look, and she's
real she's still real fat at the time, you know.
So she's like coming out real fat in the sex
of lotpit and she starts out by being like every
fat bitch in here should be standing up and applauding me,
Like she's just like giving it to the audience immediately.
And then the set is very loose, and it really
when I first started comedy, I was so like, oh man,
(21:51):
you're only a real comedian if you're very tight and
you you all the you know, which is funny because
I even growing up, my dad showed me like a
lot of Carlin, a lot of Richard Pryor. But yeah,
the way she just owned the stage and kept it
very conversational and very loose, it's very very good.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Yeah. Yeah, that's that's impressive. That's that's impressive.
Speaker 2 (22:07):
Oh, Like I like I like that. I like the
idea I was.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
I'm looking at you, I'm going, why don't you host
a variety show? I mean think about that. You could
be like Share you have your show? Are saying, that's
what I'm saying. People are saying, it's an art form
that we don't. I don't think it exists, right, I
mean the variety show, Yeah is it?
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Who's doing it?
Speaker 1 (22:27):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (22:28):
I don't know who's like.
Speaker 1 (22:28):
That in that way, you know, like Sonny and share
a show or Carob Nut show or things that I
you know, I grew up watching and it was like
the different things and the skill set, the skills that
it requires, like you said, the singing, the dancing, comedy,
all of these things. I don't think. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
I don't know who's doing it. Yeah, I mean I
I love that kind of stuff. I love like and
I'm I yeah, I miss like big comedy movies too,
Like I'm missing John Candy films, you know, like like big,
like funny, just like, yeah, I don't know, I don't
know who's doing stuff like that. But my last tour
was very like that, and I had a ton of fun.
We did like pre tape sketches. We had musicians and
drag queens. I did a little bit of stand up.
(23:05):
We had an interview because it was technically my podcast.
Yeah yeah, yeah, but yeah, I like that stuff a lot.
Speaker 1 (23:10):
Yeah, I completely agree. So tell me about socially how
do you use socially mean promotion stuff? Because on your
site you have also there's all sorts of places you
can go and see different kinds of things. When I
was like, I should have this, this is what I.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
Need to do with like the link things. Yes, yeah, yeah,
ye yeah, yeah, I love that. It's really helpful for
you know, I feel like we have to do so
many things. Now you have to be you have a podcast,
and you have to stand up and you if you
want to be an actor, you good luck. And you
have to be directing and you have to be and
I get excited about that on most days. But yeah,
social media. I have a very complex relationship with it's
(23:45):
you know, I'm very grateful for it because I don't
think I would have a career without it. It's like
been very every moment in my career. Something from social
media has really like pushed things along. Even though I
didn't start on the Internet. I started doing live stuff
in Chicago, and that was kind of how I wanted
to do it.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
On stage, You're performing in front of the audience, yeah, which.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Is it's the best, and it's especially I would really
encourage people if there's somebody who, like, if they're a
young person, like a teenager or something that is wanting
to get into comedy and they're seeing the Internet as
the only route, I would say, totally do it. Do
the internet, but please develop a live skill because especially
with AI and all these things that are like kind
of destroying the fabric of some of like what we
love about entertainment. The one thing that can never be
(24:22):
taken from us is the ability to stand up in
front of a room full of people and make them
feel something.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
It is the hardest thing. Like when I think of
stand up, I think there is no genre that is
more difficult, more challenging than stand up. Like I think
of it, and I'm like, I mean, it's tough to
do a play, to be on stage, yeah, right, And
I've done two handers and three handers and that's tough.
But to carry a show by yourself.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
See, I'm so much more scared of a play I've
never done. I've never done a play in my life.
And the idea of like especially something like Shakespearean or
something super true to the text. To me at this point,
it would be so much harder because I'm so comfortable
on stage being like, if someone drops a cup, I'm
like ready to do five, you know what I mean. Like,
it's just like I'm up there, I'm changing things on
the five. The idea of being like every word of
this has to be correct, that scares me.
Speaker 1 (25:07):
It's kind of a cool it's it's yeah, I understand
what you mean, but it's there's a tension in it
that's kind of that's creative. At the same time, you
have a limit. You're limited, so you have to say, Okay,
I've got to create this world night after night after night,
and I've got to find something slightly for me. Every
night there's there's a slightly different thing that's going to happen,
and it's you know, it doesn't matter to anybody but yourself. Really,
(25:30):
the audience isn't going to know because it's a different audience.
But it's just like to keep it alive, and there's
something about it that I really love. Like when I
first when Twitter first started, right, you got a limit, right,
It's like you got to create in this amount of time.
These are the words, these are these are the characters
that you had, And I said, Okay, I got to
come up with something. It's kind of cool. Maybe a
little more unexpected, you know what I mean. But you
have to really work.
Speaker 2 (25:50):
It's like poetry.
Speaker 1 (25:51):
You got to like really figure it out. That's the
way I approached it because it became more creative and
more interesting to me. And that's kind of like doing
a play. I haven't done a play for so many
years because I like to film too. I like to
just let's try it again this way, you know, let's
do this because there's something so wonderfully creative and flowing
about just letting it roll.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
Social for me, like it's it's their things about it,
I think are very cool.
Speaker 1 (26:13):
I think you feel a responsibility when you're posting or no.
Speaker 2 (26:16):
Maybe I should, maybe I should start doing that. Oh
I mean I feel like, yeah, I do. I definitely
am aware that people like look to me for something
that they want me to I definitely had to deal
with a lot of my body stuff when I got
big on the internet. No pun intended, because so many
people started to message me about like, oh, your confidence
or your whatever, and I was like, oh, I do
(26:38):
feel that way, But I just had to be very
careful about the way I talked about my body because
a big part of my audience is like young people
who are queer or fat or you know whatever, They've
got these things about their body that they're thinking a
lot about. And I learned very quickly that part of
the reason they follow me is because they that I
just live my life happily and don't remark on that
so much, or don't remark at least negatively. Right, That
was a weird thing, but social I view it as
(26:59):
like it's become this thing that gives me the freedom
to behave how I want to behave. I don't have
to go and beg casting directors or writer's rooms to
hire me. That I've got this thing that makes money
and sells my tickets and keeps me around people and creating,
and then I get to just do the things I like.
I get to go do Benny's show for a couple
of days. I get to go, do you know any
movie that I'm excited about or whatever. It's kind of like,
(27:21):
I don't know, it's this like thing I can do
in the background. But you have such an interesting relationship
with social media to me, because I'm like, I think
a lot of people who use social media who have
the kind of career and legacy that you have use
it in a very cynical way that it's like, Okay,
my intern's making me, you know, but you really feel
so like engaged with it and actually paying attention, and
(27:43):
it's actually so delightful to watch. Well, of course they're
all here, and they're all actually holding weapons on me.
You better tell his socials good, he'll do it. Someone
has a bow and arrow, which I have. But you
do you enjoy it? I mean, you're so fun on you?
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Yeah, really do. I mean, first of all, I'm silly,
you know what I mean, And I'm embracing my silliness
as I get older. And I feel like the difference,
just generational difference between when I started, you know, and
I look back on who I you know, the people
that I admired and and sort of looked to for inspiration,
you know, Brando and Jimmy Dean and Montgomery Cliff and
all these actors. You know, it's like that generation and
(28:20):
then gave way to like Steve mcguan and some of
these other actors that were sort of more tough guy
and and these are I looked to these to these
actors and they were all like, oh, I can't be bothered. Yeah,
it's just yeah, pr I'm not going out for that. No,
they're not going to see me, you know, and they're
all just tucked away. And I was like, and I
was like, oh, so that's how you have to be.
So it was kind of a to the press. It
(28:41):
was sort of a a love hate you know, it's like, ah,
got do this. And then after a while I said, well,
I don't. I don't really feel that way. I actually
really enjoy engaging. I like going on smiling, talking to
people I like, and you know, I like, I don't
want to have to censor myself in any way, you
know what I mean, and be trying to be kind
of cool. I said, just be yourself God's sake, and
for me, social has allowed me to just be like,
(29:03):
you know what, we're letting it all hang out. And
the greatest thing about it is. This generation feels to
me like, yeah, we want that, we want we want
the authentic you. And I'm like, all right, you're happy
with that. I don't care my hair is crazy. I
don't care what it is what it is except me
for you know how you see me, And I'm like,
I think that is so freeing.
Speaker 2 (29:22):
You know, do you think that you spent any time
in your life like I think about this a lot,
like who's mysterious and who's not. I'm decidedly not. Everyone
knows everything about me and I have artist friends, especially
musician friends, who are mysterious and they have no one
knows anything about them. And I'm like God, and I
feel myself sometimes wanting to chase it. Did you ever
chase like mysterious?
Speaker 1 (29:40):
Yes? Tried, yeah, But the problem was I wasn't I
wasn't cool enough, and everyone just.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Forgot about me too.
Speaker 1 (29:47):
We didn't even know you were not there, We didn't
think I was.
Speaker 2 (29:49):
I was in the corner of being mysterious and I said,
we didn't see you, and they're like, okay.
Speaker 1 (29:55):
I'm like, I'm much more comfortable doing this, And honestly,
it was the way I was, you know before you
know any better when you're in junior high in high school,
I just was very silly and then you sort of
get like, Okay, I'm an actor, you know, so I
got serious and then all it goes goes away. Yeah,
And for me, that's been social has been that and
and you know, some of the TikTok stuff and the
Instagram stuff has been just fun and silly, and you know,
(30:18):
I enjoy it because it really suits you know, who
I am really at art, Yeah, which I love.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
I mean you seem genuinely to me interested and invested in,
like what is going on on there?
Speaker 1 (30:29):
And this is the journey of my podcast, Yeah, helping
me to understand to discuss what's happening, you know, what
that what's the creative what are the creative waves that
are coming into the shore right now, because they're different,
we're older, we're past now, we have our own sort
of thing. But what's the new stuff, you know, and
where and where is that? Where is that going? I'm
very curious about that.
Speaker 2 (30:48):
So I really hope it's going towards I'm you know,
I'm thirty, and I really hope that. I think my
fans are predominantly in their twenties and thirties. I would really, really,
really love for more people to just get out and
see something. The phones are there, like where the phones
are here all the time, we've got the option we
can always look on and see somebody doing something. There's
way too much to see on there. It's awesome, it's cool.
(31:08):
I would just love for people to go and see stuff.
Go see a movie in theaters, go see a play,
go see a stand up show, a concert, like really.
Speaker 1 (31:16):
Just go. Yeah. I feel like I agree with you
because I feel like the emotional experience that you will
have in that situation, whether it's a live show or
as you said, like it's a film in a large
theater where that's over you know, it's overwhelming, is a
different experience that is worthwhile. You certainly have an experience
here and watching TV at at home, but weah, that's fine.
(31:37):
But there's a sense of immersion that I think we
miss from this little screen that you get from a
live show where you completely lose yourself for a period
of time in what's happening, and I think that's really important, and.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Being in it with other people and are particularly strangers.
I think there's a lot of anti social behavior in
like there's so many rules now that people are trying
to like carry out on each other. That's like, I'm
not gonna go to the theater because I might hear
someone talking. It's like, of course you will. Yeah, that's fabulous,
you know what I mean. Like that's the point of
watching a movie with strangers. Yeah, they shouldn't talk through
the whole thing, you know, but also if they do,
it's a funny story, you know what I mean. I
(32:11):
just think like more being around strangers, being inconvenienced by
strangers connecting with other people. Because also if you do
hear someone talking through the whole movie, there's gonna be
like two other people in your world. They're like oh
you know yeah, and you're gonna be like thank you,
you know what I mean. Like that connection, I.
Speaker 1 (32:25):
Think something very cool, something real, is going to happen.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Well, maybe that's why you like New York so much,
because in New York, really you're engaged. Yeah, you're on
the street, you're engaged. Yeah, you know what I mean.
So it's supposed to Los Angeles. So anyway, Okay, I
want to hear quickly about well not quickly, little brother. Yeah,
and Trash Mountain. Yeah, can you talk about any of
those or is it too early?
Speaker 2 (32:45):
Don't I'm sure I can. And if they don't like it,
well they shouldn't have hired me. No little brother, Yeah,
so so fun. Matt Spicer, director is directing. They're still
making it. What Jared Paul and Andy mogule I always
get their names mixed up. I want to do their
last names different because they're writing. But they actually directed
a pilot I did for TBS years ago that didn't go.
And John Cena's in a Eric Andre Chris Moloniego wodam
(33:07):
Erry color. So funny. It's a great cast. Everyone's so
nice and it's a big dumb ensemble comedy that I
got to be a part of. And I got to
play a kind of psycho guy like a rally reality
TV producer. I think I can say but that was
really fun. I just finished that one. And Trash Mountain. Yeah,
Lily with Chowski producing, College Fara producing, depending on when
(33:31):
we get made. Chris Ray right now is set to direct.
Lily was in that role, but we lost a window,
you know how it goes. But yeah, it's a movie
I wrote immediately after my dad passed away unexpectedly. He
was a hoarder, and I had to go home and
deal with that in his passing at the same time.
So it's a laugh riot the movie. But yeah, it's
about my experience with my dad passing and me going
(33:51):
home for that. Okay, but comedy, like it's like the
way that my Yeah, it's like it's like an indie drama,
but it's it's very much rooted in, like my family's
whole deal of Like I'm telling you, my dad passed.
I got the news. I was with my family. I'd
happened to be in Missouri at the time. I wasn't
living there. I was in Kin City for a concert.
I was home within an hour, within an hour and
fifteen minutes. We were laughing, you know what I mean,
(34:11):
Like we're just dark comedy like people who laugh at
stuff like that. Yeah, and so it's kind of like that.
Speaker 1 (34:18):
Okay, so do you so I wonder because I want
to put the same thing for me. So both my
parents have gone, but when I get together with my brothers,
they're very much alive, and we laugh a lot about them.
And it's in a way it were keeping them around us,
keeping them alive by remembering the funny moments and enjoying
the funny moments that we had with them. Yeah, I
don't know if it's if it was like that or
(34:40):
if it was.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
It feels like totally it's like what my dad would
have wanted. And like also, there's just so many funny moments.
We had to go to the funeral home and there
was just the funeral director was so hilarious, like this
good old boy, like in the middle of nowhere Missouri,
and he was telling my grandma was a mass of course,
and he was telling us. We're all sitting in this tiny,
little like rural Missouri funeral home director's office. He's like, well,
(35:01):
you know, we're gonna cremate him. And they got this
new thing now where you can put their ashes into
a piece of art and hang it in your house.
And my grandma, my grandma just goes no, and we
all go what and she goes no art no, and
we were like, okay, girl, like it just things like
that where it's like that that guttural no and then
(35:21):
having to say no art was just like I know
what she meant. She thinks it's like disrespectful whatever, but
just a million things like that where you're like, this
could not have been. When someone dies, you have to
get like eight death certificates to prove that they're dead.
I'm like, there's a body, you know what I mean.
There's just so many things, so funny, so funny.
Speaker 1 (35:37):
And you were there observing because I think you're I'm
watching her, I'm paying hey, yeah, yeah, and you're like
making notes, making notes because I'm a similar way. I
watch and then I'm like, I remember that and I'll
use it for like that's a really good idea for
like something, Yeah, in the future.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
This is a great thing about being an artist, though,
Don't you think It's like when I have a good day,
it's awesome because I had a good day. When I
have a bad day, it's awesome because I got material. Yeah,
you know, it's like, this is great. My dad died.
That really sucks. But she was still alive. But we're
going to get something out.
Speaker 1 (36:03):
That's beautiful. Yeah, it keeps them alive.
Speaker 2 (36:05):
We'll see when we get it made. We're still you know,
we're doing the we're doing the dance between everybody's schedules
and the funding. But I imagine that we'll make it
in the next like half a year's I hope.
Speaker 1 (36:15):
So it sounds like I really understand and we'll learn
more about you and learn about the family and you're
where you come from, and I think that's that's wonderful. Yeah,
all right, So when we come back, we're gonna play
a little game. You have said, if you've got a
comedian on set and you don't let them improvise, you
are missing out. So we heard you, we heard you,
and we're going to honor you as calibrities. Calibrities. I'm
(36:39):
an actor. I'm an actor who prepares. Okay, we decided
to create a spin off of your truth and false segments.
So over it's so true. So we're going to play
truth or elaborate. Okay when we come back. We'll do
a little more explanation when we get back, so stay tuned. Okay,
(37:03):
So what we're gonna do. We're gonna switch off, giving
each other scenarios from each other's past. Right, So some
are true, some are not true. I will have fifteen
seconds to rant about the scenario to try to convince
each other, yeah, one of us that that is true. Yes,
And if it is true, then you get a little
thumbs up and if you don't believe it, thumbs down.
Speaker 2 (37:21):
Okay, got it, that's good. You want to go. You
want to read one first? Oka read?
Speaker 1 (37:24):
Okay, Okay, I can't wait.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
I love the build up.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
Your mother once took your PlayStation away from you, and
you told your school administrators you were unsafe at home.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
Oh yeah, well yeah, So basically I had a PlayStation
and my mom wanted to take it away for punishment.
Then I went to school and I said, well, I'm
being abused, you know, because she took my PlayStation and
that's not right and that's abuse.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
So yeah, that's all you got. Okay, I think that
I think that this is true.
Speaker 2 (37:59):
Really tried, Yeah, you got it. I really tried to
play it in either way. Okay, okay, are you ready
for yours?
Speaker 1 (38:06):
I'm ready? I'm ready.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
Okay. Actress Francis stern Hagen, who played your mother Bunny
and Sex and the City, was actually your aunt in
real life.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
It was a weird thing because we learned about.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
Would I get it ready? I gave it away, like,
let's go. I couldn't contain.
Speaker 1 (38:25):
They didn't tell me these, So that's that's that's a
real did.
Speaker 2 (38:27):
You research mine. Do you know these about me? Or
did you do research?
Speaker 1 (38:30):
I did know the first one, okay, okay, but only
because I did a deep I did a deep dive.
I say, okay, you got a perfect score on the
math section of your SAT.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
So people don't believe this, which is offensive, but I
did because I I really got had a math teacher
that actually really liked in high school, missus Limbaugh, and
she was actually so nice to me in math class,
even though I was kind of a problem. I was
always like yapping, but I actually really took to math
because of it.
Speaker 1 (38:56):
Ah.
Speaker 2 (38:57):
Yeah, so you very convincing. In fact, it's not true,
but come on, come on.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Yeah, I thought of when I was thinking of the name,
I love the miss that was so funny. That's convinced me.
He went with a name. I was like, whoa, I said, okay,
but I didn't think of rush Limba. Can you imagine
Russia a teacher looking like RUSSI female teacher looking like
rush Limbaugh.
Speaker 2 (39:22):
If they exist, they're somewhere near my school district. Okay,
you're ready, I'm ready. Okay, Okay. Over the past fifteen years,
you've become an expert in beer crafting and fermentation.
Speaker 1 (39:33):
Yes, I grew up in Yakima, Washington. I don't know
if you know, but Yakima is the hop capital of
the world, and there's all sorts of different beers that
come out of there. Hops are grown there. In fact,
when I was in high school, I worked in the
hop field. I harvested hops, which is a very strange
process where you have to ride like a ladder and
the hops grow up a chain. Do you know?
Speaker 2 (39:55):
I thought maybe because of the wine, and you did
so good?
Speaker 1 (40:00):
Was good? I tried to contutral because I know the
other one. I gave it away immediately.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
I worked hops in high school. I mean the hell yeah.
Speaker 1 (40:06):
But in fact it's a little bit of truth. I
didn't work hops, but I had friends that were hops,
and Moxi the hop capital, and I know exactly how
they grow and how you harvest them, and so yeah.
Speaker 2 (40:17):
Is Yakima are the hops capital of the world.
Speaker 1 (40:19):
Right real close. I think Mack's near Yakama, because I.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
Want you to know. That is what convinced me when
you said Yakima is the hops. You said that was
such a clarity and sincerity. I was like, that part's true.
So the rest of its tracking. That was the one
that got me. If you ever need to tell this
lie against.
Speaker 1 (40:33):
I'm going to go Yakama hop capital in the world,
whether it's true or not.
Speaker 2 (40:36):
Okay, all right, this is good. Okay.
Speaker 1 (40:39):
On the set of Overcompensating, you spilled your entire drink
on Mary Beth and the entire production was delayed six
hours until wardrobe could get a new outfit from Mary Beth.
And I know Marybeth.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
She's very picky. She is, and she wears these delicate
little sweaters and like little blouses and stuff in that show.
And she and I were enemies. You weren't there on
the day that I was.
Speaker 1 (40:57):
Was not.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
She and I were enemies, and my big enemy scene
with her got cut. But basically I improvised the thing where
I was going to like pretend to throw a drink
at her, and I did actually throw my drink at Oh.
Speaker 1 (41:07):
Yeah, it was so well done.
Speaker 2 (41:09):
Thank you. Yes, it's not true, but we were enemies
and they did cut. I was so sad, Bennie, You're
on my shit list, brother. They I had such a
funny scene with Mary Beth.
Speaker 1 (41:19):
Why they cut it?
Speaker 2 (41:20):
They had, I'm sure for time because it was Charlie's episode.
They had so much going on, but it's got bumped by.
Speaker 1 (41:26):
Demanding come on, that's funny. We're friends, so it's okay.
But what I love about that is it's always good
to sprinkle in a little bit of truth.
Speaker 2 (41:33):
Yes, that's how you. Yeah, yeah, you sprinkling some truth.
You and me two liars, we know how to really lie. Okay,
you're ready, I'm ready. Okay. When you got the script
of the Blue Velvet from David Lynch, you showed it
to your mother, who begged you not to take the part.
Speaker 1 (41:47):
Well, actually I did. It was my second, my second
screenplay that I ever read. David gave it to me
while we were filming Dune, and at that time my
family was really involved, and I sent it to my
mom and I sent it to my dad as well.
My dad read it and he said, find no problem
my mom. But she didn't respond. So she her husband
actually reached out to me and said because my mom
was she had cancer at the time, and I said, well,
(42:07):
I don't want to do anything that's gonna make her upset.
And I showed it to her and she said, she said,
she didn't say she didn't mand it.
Speaker 2 (42:14):
But she said, I'd rather you not.
Speaker 1 (42:16):
I'd rather you're not. So was it true.
Speaker 2 (42:21):
Bringing up the cancer? Really cancer?
Speaker 1 (42:25):
I thought maybe I was going too far with that.
I said, I think I've got him on the hook.
The cancer is going to set the hook or he's
going to spit.
Speaker 2 (42:31):
It out bringing up the cancer and you spit it out.
Speaker 1 (42:36):
Well, yeah, I said, I did you Well, I I
got one.
Speaker 2 (42:40):
No, I got one.
Speaker 1 (42:42):
He got two. You got one, you got to, I
got I got to.
Speaker 2 (42:45):
I think well for having experienced it, Yeah, you're right.
Speaker 1 (42:51):
And you get to keep this sign it for me. Yes,
of course that's memorabilia. I'm gonna sell that for big
money that you're gonna you're gonna be I mean you
could retire on that. Okay. So anyway, that's that's all
the time that we have. I mean, we have more
time in the day, but that's all the time that
we have. Did we figure did we figure out? What
are we even doing? I guess we've made a good attempt.
Speaker 2 (43:12):
Yeah, Well I think we're having fun. Yes, and I
think we're hanging out making wine.
Speaker 1 (43:17):
Yes, et cetera. Yeah. Yeah, and there'll be wine for
you after the show.
Speaker 2 (43:20):
Thank you, Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1 (43:21):
Yeah, what a great pleasure. Really enjoyed it. Thanks a
big fan of yours, big fan of yours.
Speaker 2 (43:25):
Thank you, It's so mutual. Thank you. Everybody Apreciate you day.
Speaker 1 (43:30):
What Are We Even Doing is a production of iHeartMedia
and the Elvis Duran podcast Network, hosted by Me Kyle
McLachlin and created and produced by Full Picture Productions Yay
featuring music by Yata and artwork by Danica Robertson. For
more information about the podcast, please visit our Instagram and
(43:50):
TikTok at w a w ed with Kyle. Please rate, review,
and subscribe to What Are We Even Doing on Apple, Spotify, YouTube,
or anywhere you get your podcasts. Exclamation Pointgrasters
Elvis Duran and the Morning Show ON DEMAND News
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