Episode 605 - Tommy Davidson / Phil Hendrie

Episode 605 • Released May 24, 2015 • Speakers detected

00:00:00Guest:Lock the gates!

00:00:09Marc:All right, let's do this.

00:00:10Marc:How are you?

00:00:11Marc:What the fuckers?

00:00:11Marc:What the fuck buddies?

00:00:12Marc:What the fucksters?

00:00:14Marc:What the fuckadelics?

00:00:15Marc:And that's it for today.

00:00:16Marc:How are you doing?

00:00:18Marc:How are you?

00:00:19Marc:Mark Maron here.

00:00:20Marc:It's my show.

00:00:21Marc:This is WTF, the podcast.

00:00:23Marc:Welcome.

00:00:24Marc:Thanks for being here.

00:00:25Marc:Got a couple of guests, I think, today.

00:00:27Marc:Yeah, Phil Hendry.

00:00:29Marc:Gonna stop by for a few minutes.

00:00:31Marc:And then after that, Tommy Davidson from In Living Color, as you'll recall, and the stand-up stage.

00:00:37Marc:will be with us here in the garage to chat about this and that.

00:00:43Marc:How are we all going to recover from that Terry Gross episode?

00:00:46Marc:Oh, my God.

00:00:47Marc:That was the top of the mountain there.

00:00:52Marc:But we keep moving.

00:00:54Marc:We keep doing it.

00:00:55Marc:Today's Memorial Day.

00:00:57Marc:I don't know what you're up to, but I hope you're not burning yourself on a grill situation.

00:01:02Marc:I hope you're having a nice outing, whatever that may be.

00:01:07Marc:Don't get too shit-faced.

00:01:09Marc:Don't burn yourself in a grill situation.

00:01:11Marc:Don't blow up a propane tank.

00:01:14Marc:Try not to drive when you're all fucked up.

00:01:16Marc:All right, be nice to your family.

00:01:19Marc:And, you know...

00:01:21Marc:Give give a little thanks to those who died in service of our country is really the intent of it all, isn't it?

00:01:28Marc:But, you know, I know some of you just this day off.

00:01:31Marc:Why not get some meat out?

00:01:34Marc:Can I push my dates?

00:01:35Marc:Because I don't think I've told you enough that I've added dates to the marination tour.

00:01:41Marc:Cleveland, Ohio on June 5th at the Playhouse Square.

00:01:44Marc:The Vic Theater in Chicago, June 6th.

00:01:48Marc:And early and late show.

00:01:50Marc:And I will be taping my comedy special.

00:01:53Marc:I'll be taping an hour at the Vic in Chicago, June 6th.

00:01:57Marc:Both shows.

00:01:59Marc:Come be part of that.

00:02:00Marc:And then on June 7th.

00:02:02Marc:You can go to Minneapolis at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis and hear me talk about how the special went.

00:02:07Marc:That should be a fun show.

00:02:09Marc:June 25th, after a little bit of a break there, you can take a vacation if you don't mind.

00:02:15Marc:The Capitol Theater in Port Chester, New York.

00:02:17Marc:June 26th, I'll be at the Bam Howard Opera House in Brooklyn, New York.

00:02:21Marc:June 27th, the Paramount Theater, Huntington, New York.

00:02:24Marc:June 28th, Count Basie Theater, Red Bank, New Jersey.

00:02:27Marc:July 10th, Aladdin Theater in Portland, Oregon.

00:02:30Marc:July 11th,

00:02:31Marc:Revolution Hall, Portland, Oregon.

00:02:33Marc:July 24th, Boulder Theater, Boulder, Colorado.

00:02:36Marc:And July 25th, Paramount Theater, Denver, Colorado.

00:02:40Marc:You got that?

00:02:41Marc:Go to wtfpod.com slash calendar and check that shit out.

00:02:47Marc:Because I'm doing it.

00:02:48Marc:This is it.

00:02:49Marc:This is the last run for a little while, probably.

00:02:53Marc:God damn, the skunk.

00:02:54Marc:It's weird with skunks.

00:02:56Marc:It smells really bad, but you get used to it, and then you start to think it smells good, right?

00:03:00Marc:Now let's focus here.

00:03:01Marc:The show, obviously, this week, Thursday night, 10 p.m.

00:03:06Marc:Marin on IFC, the first two episodes have been very well received.

00:03:10Marc:This one coming up, a little gnarly.

00:03:13Marc:It's a little gnarly.

00:03:15Marc:I will tell you that.

00:03:17Marc:I wrote it.

00:03:18Marc:I directed it.

00:03:19Marc:It's called X-Pod.

00:03:20Marc:It's about the fiction of me having my ex-wife on my podcast.

00:03:28Marc:Yeah, and we did flashbacks.

00:03:31Marc:So it was something, man.

00:03:35Marc:I was happy to have Phil Hendry drop by.

00:03:37Marc:Phil Hendry, you might recognize his voice.

00:03:40Marc:You might know him from the Radio Cowboy episode in the second season of Marin.

00:03:44Marc:He's also a genius on the radio, a pioneer.

00:03:48Marc:You can also hear his show at the relaunched philhendryshow.com.

00:03:51Marc:He just wanted to chat, say hi, alert the world that they relaunched his website.

00:03:57Marc:So I said, sure, come over, Phil.

00:03:59Marc:Come over, Phil.

00:03:59Marc:Let's talk.

00:04:00Marc:Let's talk to Phil Hendry.

00:04:08Marc:Phil Hendry back.

00:04:09Marc:What's up?

00:04:10Marc:How are you, buddy?

00:04:11Marc:I'm doing good.

00:04:12Guest:Just like I said, I was listening to the guys next door either putting on a roof or a tar.

00:04:17Guest:And it reminded me of my days when I used to work in construction.

00:04:22Guest:The guys that were the roofing guys, they used roofing tar.

00:04:24Guest:And I believe that there's something...

00:04:25Marc:something in there i think there's like crack or it's like meth or something that those guys just start dancing on the roof at like 10 a.m and maybe it's the heat man it could have been the heat the heat yeah so our episode of marin last year got a lot of great feedback there was a lot of uh did you get a lot of great feedback well i got people so i mean radio folks saw it yeah right and they but my my sense is that they thought it was kind of right on it was totally right on talent thought it was right on right

00:04:50Guest:And the management people are still, as you know, they're talking about people in denial.

00:04:56Guest:Right.

00:04:56Guest:But radio management.

00:04:57Guest:You talk to radio management.

00:04:58Guest:I talk to them as long as they want to talk to me.

00:05:00Marc:And I mean, like, about that show.

00:05:04Guest:I think in passing on Twitter, we'll have a there'll be a little exchange.

00:05:07Guest:And then I'll realize one of the one of the people I was talking to dropped off.

00:05:10Marc:Right, right.

00:05:11Guest:It's the management guy.

00:05:12Marc:Yeah, the GM guy.

00:05:13Marc:The general manager.

00:05:13Guest:The general manager guy.

00:05:14Guest:I think the thing about that, and I tell people this because they said, well, Mark was in radio, so you have the experience.

00:05:20Guest:A little bit.

00:05:21Guest:I don't claim too much experience, but I was there.

00:05:23Marc:You had enough, man.

00:05:24Guest:You were with a company, and the company was bad.

00:05:26Guest:Yeah.

00:05:28Guest:How many times do you need to have that experience?

00:05:31Guest:Not every job.

00:05:32Marc:That's what it was for me.

00:05:34Guest:I say to people,

00:05:36Guest:That radio is self-destructing, and the reason is not the talent.

00:05:41Guest:It used to be the talent, talent, talent, talent.

00:05:43Guest:They always wanted to give it to us.

00:05:44Guest:They always wanted to say, well, if you guys did this, that... No, it's the brain trust, it's the executives, it's the industry itself.

00:05:49Guest:They have destroyed our business, and now it's not even our business.

00:05:52Guest:I mean, what is it, man?

00:05:52Guest:I don't know what it is.

00:05:53Guest:It's embarrassing.

00:05:54Marc:A little bit.

00:05:55Guest:It's embarrassing to have given 40 years of my life to what, you know?

00:05:58Marc:Well...

00:05:58Marc:Well, you know, there's a transition happening, but it seems like the real talent, the people that are still hanging on to those morning parts and those afternoon parts, they're still plugging along.

00:06:07Marc:Oh, yeah.

00:06:08Marc:I just did the Brother Weez's show.

00:06:10Marc:Is Weez still pulling down some dollars?

00:06:12Marc:He's still doing it.

00:06:12Marc:Is he pulling some back?

00:06:14Marc:Well, they got him doing like nine hours almost.

00:06:16Marc:You're kidding.

00:06:17Marc:Well, no, it's like I think his show goes from like six till noon.

00:06:21Jeez.

00:06:21Marc:Like, he'll do four hours live, and then they run the first two again.

00:06:25Guest:Oh, I got it.

00:06:25Guest:It's a half a day of programming they got that old dude doing.

00:06:28Guest:Four hours, then he gets to take a nap, then they got him back in there again live.

00:06:31Guest:You know that guy?

00:06:32Guest:I know of weed.

00:06:33Guest:Right?

00:06:34Guest:Longtime Buffalo, Rochester guy, right?

00:06:36Marc:Right, Rochester, yeah.

00:06:36Guest:Longtime upstate New York guy.

00:06:38Marc:Like, yeah, but he's got all those pictures on the wall of, you know, the rock days and the dudes that used to come through, and, you know, they asked him to emcee one of the Woodstocks, you know, the new Woodstock.

00:06:47Marc:I believe it, man.

00:06:49Guest:I mean...

00:06:49Guest:Those were the days, yeah.

00:06:50Guest:I mean, like that poster right there.

00:06:52Guest:The Gimme Shelter poster?

00:06:54Guest:Who did Sonny Barger call when he needed to have his voice heard?

00:06:58Guest:KSAN!

00:06:59Guest:Did he?

00:07:00Guest:Barger was there the next day saying, you guys got this all wrong, Mick Jagger's a scumbag, my guys got set up.

00:07:07Guest:The 60s, I missed it.

00:07:09Marc:I missed it, Phil.

00:07:11Marc:All I got was the remainder.

00:07:14Marc:I got the music.

00:07:15Marc:I got the stories, the mythology.

00:07:18Marc:You got the Limp Bizkit Woodstock.

00:07:19Marc:Sure, man.

00:07:20Marc:I didn't go to that.

00:07:22Marc:When I look back at my life, these are my guys.

00:07:25Marc:But all the music that I'm into, I kind of missed.

00:07:28Marc:You're into vinyl, man.

00:07:29Marc:I got a lot of records.

00:07:30Marc:That's unreal.

00:07:31Guest:A lot of records happening.

00:07:32Guest:Do you put the needle on those vinyls?

00:07:34Marc:I do.

00:07:34Guest:I pick it up, and I put the needle right on there.

00:07:36Guest:And you do that because of the experience to do it, or you like the way it sounds?

00:07:39Marc:I grew up with it.

00:07:40Marc:I grew up with it.

00:07:41Marc:I like the equipment that comes with the idea.

00:07:44Marc:It is awesome.

00:07:45Marc:You know, I don't like to know that I'm part of a trend, but I'd like to think that I was ahead of it a little bit, but I don't know if I was.

00:07:52Marc:But I do like the experience of it.

00:07:54Marc:And as I get older, you know, and I have less to do.

00:07:57Marc:I don't have children.

00:07:59Marc:I don't have a wife.

00:08:01Marc:There's something about kind of fetishizing, ritualizing an activity that's pleasurable.

00:08:07Marc:You know, I can sit down.

00:08:08Marc:I put a record.

00:08:09Marc:I can listen to the high-end speakers.

00:08:10Guest:There is a ritual of it, man, because I remember buying records, you know, when I was like 13, the first record I ever bought was Out of Our Heads, The Stones.

00:08:18Guest:I have that one.

00:08:19Guest:You go home, you take that wrapping off, you put the record on, and you spend the next hour or two reading the liner notes.

00:08:26Guest:Yeah.

00:08:26Marc:liner notes yeah and they were written by like legitimate cats like ralph gleason and neil hefty and all these guys yeah yeah it's great and you know some records sound better than others i i do but you know to sit down and do it yeah to sit down and listen to it and i got some nice equipment that i like looking at you know some people buy cars yeah i bought some nice stereo equipment and i and i like looking at it

00:08:45Marc:So you did some more acting?

00:08:47Guest:I did, well, F is for Family.

00:08:49Guest:We just finished with Bill Burr.

00:08:51Marc:How many did you do?

00:08:52Guest:We did all of them.

00:08:54Guest:Six, and Laura Dern is in it, and Bill Burr is in it.

00:08:57Guest:And that's his show?

00:08:58Guest:Mo Collins.

00:08:59Guest:That's Bill's.

00:09:00Guest:It's an animated show.

00:09:01Guest:It's based upon, I probably am talking way out of school.

00:09:04Guest:Producers are going to just burn me an effigy.

00:09:07Guest:Oh, next season.

00:09:08Guest:You figure the year time it takes for animation, probably sometime in the spring.

00:09:12Guest:For what network?

00:09:13Guest:For Netflix.

00:09:15Guest:Oh, yeah?

00:09:16Marc:Yeah, yeah.

00:09:17Marc:You're on Netflix now, right?

00:09:18Marc:I am.

00:09:18Marc:Yeah, the first two seasons of Marin and my special is up there.

00:09:21Marc:Sweet.

00:09:21Marc:That's great, man.

00:09:22Marc:Sweet, yeah.

00:09:23Guest:Now, what's going on with the Phil Hendry empire?

00:09:27Guest:The Phil Hendry empire is like the Incans, doing well, just waiting for the Spanish to write.

00:09:33Guest:No, we're doing fine.

00:09:34Guest:He forecasted the Incans.

00:09:35Guest:end of the world exactly now it's only a matter before i'm conquered yeah exactly you know so we're taking the hearts out of virgins and having fun and frolicking through the forest there's there is a ship out there on the horizon with sails and shit and there's a guy with a helmet and yeah he's coming it's coming for all of us yeah and but i uh he says all he wants is the weed but i'm sure there's more but i i you know what we're doing is we've got a pilot that we're going to shoot in the summertime or early fall which is a uh satire that i'm really excited about i'd love to tell you more but you know how this town is sure

00:10:03Guest:And we also are... A TV pilot.

00:10:06Marc:A TV pilot.

00:10:07Guest:Oh, good, okay.

00:10:07Guest:Yeah, it's a satire based upon television.

00:10:10Guest:Great.

00:10:11Guest:And we've got our website, which is philhenryshow.com.

00:10:14Marc:And did you just... Did you make it... What happened?

00:10:16Guest:We've upgraded the website.

00:10:17Guest:Oh, yeah?

00:10:17Guest:Yeah, we've got a real cool website now, which is... A lot of it, it was inspired by you.

00:10:22Guest:And I'll tell you this.

00:10:23Guest:I said to my guys, if you go to Mark's page, there's a big button there.

00:10:27Guest:It says, here's the show.

00:10:29Guest:Yeah.

00:10:29Guest:Play.

00:10:29Guest:That's what you do.

00:10:31Guest:This is what it is.

00:10:32Guest:It's not a world of techno geeks that are all going to be excited about hitting 58 links.

00:10:36Marc:Yeah.

00:10:37Guest:And they go, oh, OK.

00:10:38Guest:So we have not as big as the button on your page, but we've got at least a button, you know.

00:10:42Guest:Yeah.

00:10:42Guest:I want my older listeners to know exactly what's happening.

00:10:45Marc:How you do it.

00:10:46Guest:Yeah, you know, here it is.

00:10:47Guest:And if you want another kind of a show, play that one.

00:10:50Guest:Yeah.

00:10:50Guest:And so we're just doing things.

00:10:52Guest:We have a couple of extra what I call bells and whistles, which is a chat feature, which my fans seem to like to do.

00:10:58Guest:They like to get in there and get into fistfights over.

00:11:01Marc:Oh, yeah.

00:11:01Marc:That's the Internet.

00:11:03Marc:Yeah.

00:11:03Marc:Fuck you.

00:11:04Guest:No, fuck you.

00:11:05Guest:Exactly.

00:11:06Guest:that's it man how many shows have you got in the archive like well we got 20,000 hours man of shows 20,000 hours yeah and what we've done is we've opened up like 30 I know you got like a hundred or so free out there 50 free 50 free always at all times

00:11:22Guest:So we have 30 and and then they go behind the paywall.

00:11:26Guest:And I figure that's a little bit better than seven.

00:11:29Guest:We only had seven out there for a while.

00:11:30Guest:Yeah.

00:11:31Guest:But I mean, how cheap do you want to be, Henry?

00:11:33Guest:You know?

00:11:34Guest:Yeah.

00:11:34Guest:So we threw that out there.

00:11:36Guest:And really, I got to tell you some work.

00:11:39Guest:That's what pays the bills, really, is the digital world.

00:11:42Guest:That's what's paying the bills for us.

00:11:43Guest:It's giving us a really good living.

00:11:44Guest:Thank God.

00:11:46Guest:Thank God.

00:11:46Guest:You made the adaption.

00:11:47Guest:You adapted.

00:11:48Guest:You evolved.

00:11:50Guest:All these radio guys are going, hey, Phil, how'd you do it, huh?

00:11:52Guest:I said, because I had to, man.

00:11:55Marc:A lot of those guys, it's weird because I've seen it happen.

00:11:59Marc:It's like...

00:12:00Marc:You get comfortable being coddled.

00:12:01Marc:You get comfortable, you know, and then you start to realize, like, you know, that shit is shrinking up.

00:12:06Marc:But a lot of them just still can't leave.

00:12:08Marc:They can't leave, man.

00:12:09Marc:Even if their salaries are cut or they're not doing what they used to or they get moved around, they're just terrified because for, you know, what, 30 years, they've been taken care of.

00:12:18Guest:Yeah, because they're not – I don't think – and if there's the difference between a guy like you and those guys or me –

00:12:23Guest:We think like producers.

00:12:25Guest:We know, okay, here's how I want to do this.

00:12:26Guest:Here are the buttons I want to push.

00:12:27Guest:Here's how I want my studio to be.

00:12:29Guest:In fact, here's the business model I want to work.

00:12:31Guest:And they were not really ever broadcasted, I don't think.

00:12:33Guest:I think they were like lawyers that got a talk show and then the money got really good.

00:12:38Marc:But it's sort

00:12:38Marc:I would have said, though, like some of them who are real... Also, there's that fear.

00:12:42Marc:You're in the game for a long time, and you want to make the jump.

00:12:46Marc:And I think in your heart, you really don't know how many listeners you really have.

00:12:50Marc:And if you make the jump... You're afraid that... Fuck yes, you're afraid.

00:12:53Marc:I mean, Arbitron books, you can spin that shit into anything.

00:12:57Marc:It's a lie.

00:12:59Marc:Yeah.

00:12:59Marc:It's always been a lie.

00:13:01Marc:So to sort of be this guy, the morning guy in wherever, and be like, all right, fuck it, I'm leaving.

00:13:06Marc:I'm doing a podcast.

00:13:07Marc:And you're like, I'm only getting 1,500 downloads.

00:13:10Marc:Yeah.

00:13:10Marc:Terrifying.

00:13:11Marc:Wait a minute.

00:13:11Marc:How am I going to make a living of that?

00:13:13Marc:Where's the advertisers?

00:13:13Marc:And also, how's your ego going to, especially a radio guy, how are you going to take that hit?

00:13:18Guest:Yeah.

00:13:18Guest:You've got to be a workman.

00:13:20Guest:You have to be a journeyman.

00:13:21Guest:You have to just, okay, I'm starting all over again.

00:13:23Marc:Desperation.

00:13:24Guest:Yeah, I'm starting all over again.

00:13:25Guest:How did you do it, man?

00:13:26Guest:He was like, well, I'm going to do this thing.

00:13:27Guest:No choice.

00:13:29Guest:Next thing you know, you've got an audience.

00:13:31Guest:I think for us, we just charged a subscription, so we knew right away how much bread we were making.

00:13:35Guest:And he had this amazing archive that was yours.

00:13:38Guest:We had the archive that belonged to us.

00:13:40Guest:And I've got to thank...

00:13:41Guest:I will thank one suit, Craig Kitchen of Clear Channel, who gave us, basically said, I'm going to give you guys the archive.

00:13:47Guest:I'm going to work it so that we get it from Clear Channel and give it to you, which was great.

00:13:51Guest:That's good.

00:13:52Guest:Yeah.

00:13:52Guest:It's the one good suit.

00:13:53Guest:I'm telling you.

00:13:54Marc:The one good suit.

00:13:56Marc:That's got to be the title of a book.

00:13:57Guest:That's the name of a book or an opera.

00:13:59Guest:One good suit.

00:14:00Guest:But I'll tell you this.

00:14:00Guest:Since then, Clear Channel ain't giving shit away, man.

00:14:03Guest:They are holding on to everything.

00:14:05Guest:They have to for the big garage sale.

00:14:07Guest:For the big garage.

00:14:08Guest:When's that going to happen, do you think?

00:14:09Guest:I don't know.

00:14:10Marc:I don't know how it looks like I don't like I have a hard time paying attention to things.

00:14:14Guest:Well, you don't have to, man.

00:14:15Guest:I guess.

00:14:16Guest:And I only do because I'm sadistic.

00:14:17Guest:You know, I mean, we're out of the.

00:14:18Guest:Well, yeah, you want the schadenfreude of seeing the thing topple.

00:14:22Marc:Yeah, you know.

00:14:22Guest:Yeah.

00:14:23Guest:Fuck you.

00:14:24Guest:I outlived you.

00:14:25Guest:Yeah.

00:14:26Guest:And I think what's happened is this is a talent friendly atmosphere.

00:14:29Guest:Now we start our own businesses.

00:14:31Guest:We do our own thing.

00:14:32Guest:The guy I was telling you about, who will remain unmentioned before, said, you know, basically we had this guy and then he split because he started his own network.

00:14:39Guest:In radio that didn't happen, cats weren't leaving and starting their own radio station.

00:14:43Guest:But now you can leave and say, thank you very much, but I got it from here.

00:14:46Marc:Yeah, you definitely feel like there is a shift happening, and I think they all know it.

00:14:51Marc:And I think that's one of the reasons, like, you know, the guy we were talking about, he's like, you know, I want to be the power on top of that.

00:14:57Marc:I want to wrangle this.

00:14:58Marc:Like there's the old guard that's sort of like the old guard with the money.

00:15:01Marc:And they're like, well, we can make this ours.

00:15:03Marc:And they wrangle that.

00:15:04Marc:Yeah.

00:15:05Marc:But they can't.

00:15:06Marc:You know, someone will figure something out, but it's not going to be that.

00:15:08Marc:It's not going to be one dude.

00:15:10Marc:There's going to be a platform of some kind.

00:15:12Marc:Whoever gets in the cars, you know, in the most efficient way.

00:15:15Marc:That's it.

00:15:16Guest:Yeah.

00:15:16Guest:Then it's done.

00:15:17Guest:And for me, if anybody's listening, it's just a touch screen.

00:15:21Guest:So you got Marc Maron and you got all these shows lined up and you just punch the button as you're driving in your car to all the little show.

00:15:27Guest:It's like maybe a hundred buttons there, but they've all got the names of the shows that you just scroll, scrolling through, man.

00:15:31Guest:And that's where it's at.

00:15:32Marc:And I think by that time, your car will be driving itself.

00:15:35Guest:So, you know, let's hope it doesn't take that long, you know, but pretty close.

00:15:39Guest:Pretty close.

00:15:39Guest:But right now I pulled up, man, I've got my iPhone and I'm listening to iTunes.

00:15:42Marc:I mean, that's easy.

00:15:43Marc:Right.

00:15:44Marc:Tune it.

00:15:44Marc:Run it right into the in the plug in that I can do it through Bluetooth.

00:15:47Guest:It's good.

00:15:48Guest:I've gotten hooked on Premier League soccer out of Britain.

00:15:51Guest:So now every day I'm listening to these freaking British talk sports shows.

00:15:54Guest:That's exciting.

00:15:55Guest:I'm listening to these cats out of London.

00:15:56Guest:They're like.

00:15:57Guest:Roy, let me say Chelsea.

00:15:58Guest:Chelsea's not what to do.

00:16:00Guest:And I understand them, you know.

00:16:02Guest:You've figured out the rhythms and the slang.

00:16:05Guest:There's two languages I really don't understand.

00:16:07Guest:Scottish English and Jamaican English.

00:16:09Guest:Both of those guys forget it.

00:16:10Guest:Scottish English is rough.

00:16:12Marc:Those dudes are.

00:16:13Guest:That's where my people are from.

00:16:14Guest:It's hard, man.

00:16:15Guest:You know, I went to Jamaica with my girlfriend.

00:16:17Guest:Her people are from Jamaica.

00:16:18Guest:She understood every word.

00:16:19Guest:I go to Scotland.

00:16:20Guest:Forget it.

00:16:21Guest:Nothing.

00:16:21Guest:Oh, I forget it, man.

00:16:31Guest:I'm dangling there from the Glasgow airport thing.

00:16:33Guest:It's heavy, man.

00:16:34Marc:Scotland's heavy.

00:16:35Marc:Did you go to Glasgow?

00:16:36Marc:Yeah.

00:16:37Guest:It's an incredible city.

00:16:38Guest:Freaking great, man.

00:16:39Guest:It's just great.

00:16:40Guest:It's beautiful.

00:16:41Guest:It's insane, too.

00:16:43Guest:Crazy castles and stuff.

00:16:44Marc:Castles and profoundly drunk people.

00:16:48Marc:I've talked about it before.

00:16:50Marc:Profoundly drunk.

00:16:50Marc:Like, I've never seen public drunkenness.

00:16:52Marc:It's just sort of like, and no one's doing anything about it.

00:16:54Marc:It's like, there's just another Saturday night.

00:16:56Marc:It's just like, there's casualties on the sidewalk.

00:16:59Marc:San Francisco's not a whole lot different on a Saturday night.

00:17:02Marc:Denver, man.

00:17:02Marc:Denver's the way.

00:17:03Marc:Now with legal pot and the altitude and the booze, on the Denver downtown on the weekend, it's like, people are going down.

00:17:09Guest:I got...

00:17:12Guest:a little bit hooked by The Onion this weekend where something along the lines of Robert Durst is overheard on a microphone that they haven't removed for three years that he's going to kill those filmmakers as soon as he finds them.

00:17:24Guest:I read this and I'm like, wait a second, it's The Onion, man.

00:17:27Marc:That was a hell of a thing.

00:17:28Marc:I just watched it all back to back.

00:17:30Marc:I didn't do it.

00:17:31Marc:I just sat down and did it.

00:17:33Marc:I got to show my girlfriend because she's completely like me.

00:17:35Marc:I think part of me believes, like most of them, that he wanted to become

00:17:42Marc:you saw him practice that's what a psychopath does they don't know how to behave as a normal human so they practice I saw that you know but also what became like in the last part when he knew the mic was live I guess he might have I don't know he is old but like but he wasn't he wasn't rehearsing he was talking to another voice in his head that was the most revealing thing at the very end okay he was like you know we're caught we're caught yeah yeah

00:18:06Marc:Like, there was a dialogue going.

00:18:09Marc:And that was where you're like, no, he's not just your run-of-the-mill psychopath.

00:18:13Guest:Well, a psychotic is talking to heads, voices.

00:18:16Guest:A psychopath is a guy who knows exactly what is sane and what isn't and just chooses to act against it.

00:18:22Guest:Well, he's got no conscience, no empathy.

00:18:24Marc:No conscience, yeah.

00:18:24Marc:Yeah, and we walk among them.

00:18:26Marc:We sure as hell do.

00:18:27Marc:Psychotics usually reveal themselves at some point.

00:18:30Marc:Some drastic action.

00:18:31Marc:They're yelling at a sign, you know, and you know, thank you.

00:18:34Guest:Although nowadays with freaking Bluetooth, forget it.

00:18:36Guest:Sure, sure, sure.

00:18:37Guest:We're all psychopaths.

00:18:38Guest:Yeah, we all look like it, yeah.

00:18:39Guest:Well, Phil, what's the website?

00:18:41Guest:Huh?

00:18:41Guest:The website.

00:18:41Marc:Oh, wait, what were you saying?

00:18:42Marc:I'll let you say that.

00:18:43Marc:I said, you're a great man.

00:18:44Marc:Well, thank you, man.

00:18:44Guest:This guy's my inspiration, Mark Maron, and that's why we do have philhenryshow.com.

00:18:48Guest:Beautiful.

00:18:49Guest:Backstage Passage, Jack.

00:18:51Guest:Beautiful.

00:18:51Guest:Beautiful, man.

00:18:52Marc:You're a good man.

00:18:52Marc:I appreciate it.

00:18:53Marc:I appreciate you coming.

00:18:53Marc:It's always good to see you.

00:18:54Guest:Thanks for having me, man.

00:18:55Guest:I appreciate it.

00:19:01Marc:Tommy Davidson's been around a long time.

00:19:03Marc:He's got a history in this business.

00:19:05Marc:He was on one of the revolutionary sketch shows, and I tried to get him in here a while back.

00:19:11Marc:It didn't work out, and I got him in here today.

00:19:13Marc:I'm going to pester him about some stuff, see if we can get some banter going.

00:19:17Marc:OK, Tommy Davidson's on tour right now.

00:19:20Marc:You can see him Sunday at Helium and Buffalo.

00:19:23Marc:Then in June, he's got dates in Houston and Austin, Texas.

00:19:26Marc:Go to TommyCat.net for dates and venues.

00:19:30Marc:Before I before I get into this talk, the Baltimore riots were still happening.

00:19:35Marc:So that's why we were talking about it like it was in the present.

00:19:38Marc:All right.

00:19:38Marc:Now, you know that now we can get to it.

00:19:42Marc:some people hate fucking cats to me the people that hate cats yeah are just not used to wisdom yeah they're just not used to just kind of dealing with them right that's true that you know they they uh you know cats are meditative yeah they gauge you

00:20:02Marc:Yeah.

00:20:03Marc:Yeah.

00:20:03Marc:And some people can't handle that.

00:20:05Marc:They're like, how are you judging me?

00:20:07Guest:Yeah.

00:20:07Guest:And they also kind of like, they do their own thing based on what you want.

00:20:11Marc:Yeah.

00:20:12Guest:And sometimes they ask for what they want.

00:20:13Guest:Dogs don't.

00:20:14Guest:Dogs say, what do you want me to do?

00:20:15Guest:Right.

00:20:15Guest:Cats just kind of ask for what they want.

00:20:17Guest:They just kind of look at things.

00:20:18Guest:Uh-huh.

00:20:19Guest:Look at you.

00:20:20Guest:It's up to you.

00:20:21Guest:This food is gone.

00:20:22Guest:You know what I mean?

00:20:23Marc:Yeah.

00:20:24Marc:Your call.

00:20:26Marc:I can't remember, like, I know we must have met at some point, because I go back to, like, I was at the comedy store back in the mid-80s, and I think I ran into you on the road somewhere.

00:20:36Marc:I am sure.

00:20:38Marc:You were the same age, man.

00:20:39Marc:Yeah, I'm 51.

00:20:40Guest:Yeah, we remember.

00:20:41Guest:How the fuck?

00:20:42Guest:Remember H.R.

00:20:42Guest:Puffer stuff.

00:20:43Marc:Yeah, sure.

00:20:44Guest:The Banana Splits.

00:20:45Marc:Yeah, I remember the Banana Splits.

00:20:46Guest:The Funky Phantom.

00:20:46Marc:Yeah, maybe.

00:20:47Marc:I don't know that.

00:20:48Guest:Funky Phantom.

00:20:48Guest:Little unclear on that.

00:20:49Guest:Yeah, it was around when the Groovy Ghoulies...

00:20:51Marc:Oh, yeah?

00:20:52Marc:I remember the group release.

00:20:55Marc:Was it Banana Splits?

00:20:56Guest:Banana Splits, yeah, the stuffed animals on the roller coaster.

00:20:58Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:20:59Guest:Playing guitars.

00:21:00Marc:Yeah, where'd you grow up?

00:21:01Marc:Maryland.

00:21:02Marc:Really?

00:21:02Marc:Silver Spring, yeah.

00:21:03Marc:I don't know where that is.

00:21:04Guest:It's close to what?

00:21:05Guest:Summer of D.C.

00:21:05Marc:Uh-huh.

00:21:06Guest:Yeah.

00:21:06Guest:And do you have brothers and sisters?

00:21:09Guest:One brother, one sister.

00:21:11Guest:My brother passed away, still with me, and one sister that still lives in D.C.

00:21:16Marc:And where were you born?

00:21:17Marc:Mississippi.

00:21:18Marc:Yeah.

00:21:19Guest:Mississippi.

00:21:20Guest:How'd you get from there to there?

00:21:21Guest:I was abandoned and then adopted by a white woman and brought to Colorado.

00:21:25Guest:She then moved to Washington, D.C.

00:21:28Marc:You were abandoned, like left on a doorstep?

00:21:30Guest:Like left in the trash.

00:21:31Marc:No.

00:21:32Guest:Yeah.

00:21:33Marc:Is that true?

00:21:33Marc:Yeah.

00:21:34Guest:That's sad.

00:21:36Guest:Well, it was a happy day for me.

00:21:38Guest:Yeah.

00:21:39Guest:It could have been sad.

00:21:40Marc:Yeah.

00:21:42Marc:That tale has turned out happy so far.

00:21:44Marc:Well, yeah, but how did you get found?

00:21:47Marc:Do you know that part of the story?

00:21:48Guest:Yeah.

00:21:48Guest:She was actually working with my natural mother about a year before.

00:21:53Guest:Your adoptive mother?

00:21:54Guest:Yeah.

00:21:55Guest:Oh, really?

00:21:55Guest:Working with her in the civil rights movement down there.

00:21:58Guest:Really?

00:21:58Guest:In Mississippi.

00:21:59Guest:Yeah.

00:22:00Guest:Immunizing kids and just trying to be a part of the movement that's going on.

00:22:03Guest:Right.

00:22:04Guest:And had left there and came back to visit.

00:22:07Guest:Okay.

00:22:08Guest:And asked about it.

00:22:09Guest:They said she left.

00:22:10Guest:Yeah.

00:22:11Guest:Took her two older kids, but I think she left her youngest child at a house that is on such a street.

00:22:16Guest:So she goes to the house.

00:22:18Guest:You know, and for some reason she's curious, and it's a drug house, and kids hanging out doing drugs, and she goes to walk out, there's a pile of trash on the side of the house.

00:22:26Guest:Yeah.

00:22:28Guest:She says something told her to look behind this big giant tire that was with all this trash.

00:22:31Guest:Yeah.

00:22:32Guest:She saw my foot.

00:22:34Guest:Really?

00:22:34Guest:Out of the pile.

00:22:35Guest:No kidding.

00:22:36Guest:And she dug the trash out, and there I was, and...

00:22:38Guest:How old were you?

00:22:40Guest:Almost two.

00:22:41Guest:Wow.

00:22:42Guest:And I was technically, I think, dead.

00:22:44Guest:Took me to the hospital two weeks, nursed me back.

00:22:48Guest:And I couldn't find the mom.

00:22:49Guest:She hustled up a legal right to take me in and then later on adopted me.

00:22:55Guest:That's insane.

00:22:56Guest:I know.

00:22:56Guest:And then she had two other kids?

00:22:58Guest:She had them currently.

00:22:59Guest:Yeah.

00:23:00Guest:So one is a month older than me, one was three years older than me.

00:23:03Guest:Oh, my God.

00:23:04Guest:And they're white.

00:23:05Guest:What did she do?

00:23:07Guest:She actually passed away.

00:23:08Guest:She was a union worker all her life for workers' rights for housing and urban development and anything else that came up.

00:23:16Guest:And was she married?

00:23:18Guest:She did eventually get married, but I was an adult by then.

00:23:21Guest:That's a wild... Single mom.

00:23:22Guest:Single mom in the 70s.

00:23:23Guest:With three kids.

00:23:24Guest:Women's lib.

00:23:25Guest:Yeah.

00:23:25Guest:Women's lib, which means the kids do all the cleaning.

00:23:27Marc:Uh-huh.

00:23:28Marc:But how did that affect you?

00:23:31Marc:I mean, did you ask questions?

00:23:33Marc:When did you learn about it?

00:23:34Guest:I didn't have to.

00:23:35Guest:Yeah.

00:23:35Guest:Got my ass kicked as soon as we got in D.C.

00:23:37Guest:Moved into Washington, D.C.

00:23:38Guest:during the riots in 68.

00:23:40Wow.

00:23:40Guest:How coincidental that that's happening now.

00:23:44Guest:Isn't that crazy?

00:23:44Guest:Yeah.

00:23:45Guest:I can't fucking believe it.

00:23:46Guest:I can't.

00:23:47Guest:I can't.

00:23:48Guest:Yeah.

00:23:48Guest:A fool would know what happened.

00:23:50Guest:Yeah.

00:23:51Guest:Yeah.

00:23:52Guest:You take enough food for 20 people in a room full of 100 people for a week.

00:23:56Guest:Yeah.

00:23:59Guest:Only a fool's not going to know what's going to happen.

00:24:01Marc:Right.

00:24:02Marc:So, yeah, I mean, I guess this has been waiting to happen.

00:24:05Guest:Baltimore actually, you know, was historically one of the notorious slaving cities.

00:24:15Guest:Turned the slave, uniquely to Baltimore, was when the laws, the international laws were passed.

00:24:23Guest:on importing African slaves in order for America to continue to get them.

00:24:29Guest:They opened up breeding farms, and the breeding farms actually were, the most of them were located in the Baltimore area.

00:24:36Marc:Breeding black people.

00:24:37Marc:Yeah.

00:24:38Marc:Oh my God, never heard that.

00:24:39Guest:And the highest rate of sexual abuse and incest among African Americans is in that area.

00:24:46Guest:Isn't that something?

00:24:47Guest:What do you make of that?

00:24:48Guest:That cause and effect is real.

00:24:52Marc:Yeah.

00:24:53Marc:And now when you moved there, so you're with basically a white mom, two white siblings, and you.

00:24:59Marc:In a black neighborhood.

00:25:00Marc:Yeah, in a black neighborhood.

00:25:02Guest:Oh my God.

00:25:03Marc:Yeah.

00:25:04Marc:Let the games begin.

00:25:06Guest:And we're underway in Super Bowl XXV.

00:25:09Guest:And what happened?

00:25:09Guest:I mean, so your mom wanted to live in a black neighborhood.

00:25:13Right away.

00:25:13Guest:She was kind of got a job there.

00:25:16Guest:Okay.

00:25:16Guest:Government job.

00:25:16Guest:Yeah.

00:25:17Guest:At HUD.

00:25:17Guest:Yeah.

00:25:18Guest:A government job, you know, at another agency.

00:25:20Guest:You know, because that's a secretary town, really.

00:25:22Guest:Yeah.

00:25:22Guest:So a lot of women, single women, were moving there during the 60s.

00:25:25Guest:Uh-huh.

00:25:26Guest:Single women.

00:25:27Guest:Uh-huh.

00:25:28Guest:For their careers and to raise their kids.

00:25:29Guest:Sure.

00:25:30Guest:And she was one of them.

00:25:31Guest:Yeah.

00:25:31Guest:But we coincidentally moved there during the riots in 68.

00:25:35Guest:So it was a mess.

00:25:36Guest:Tanks.

00:25:37Guest:Tear gassed me and my sister on the ground.

00:25:38Marc:Really?

00:25:39Guest:Yeah.

00:25:40Guest:And my brother.

00:25:40Guest:My brother looks like David Cassidy.

00:25:43Guest:Oh, really?

00:25:43Guest:But blonde.

00:25:44Guest:And my sister looks like Cindy Brady.

00:25:46Guest:And here I am, Rodney Allen Rippey.

00:25:49Guest:You know?

00:25:49Guest:Yeah.

00:25:50Guest:Just using the 70s reference.

00:25:51Guest:Right.

00:25:52Guest:And they beat the shit out of us every day.

00:25:56Guest:And we're calling this white cracker and calling me white cracker lover.

00:25:59Guest:And I actually like graham crackers.

00:26:01Guest:Yeah.

00:26:01Guest:So I was like, what is this?

00:26:03Guest:Yeah.

00:26:03Guest:I actually literally thought, you know,

00:26:05Guest:How old were you?

00:26:07Guest:Five.

00:26:07Marc:When you started to remember this shit?

00:26:09Marc:Five.

00:26:10Marc:It's crazy, man.

00:26:10Guest:Yeah, and so it's like, I don't even like white crackers.

00:26:13Guest:Yeah.

00:26:14Guest:Like, I like graham crackers.

00:26:15Guest:They're sweet.

00:26:16Guest:You didn't quite know what they were saying.

00:26:17Guest:They're sweet.

00:26:17Guest:You know what I mean?

00:26:18Guest:I finally asked my mom after getting that ass beat.

00:26:20Guest:So, finally, I asked my mom, what's a white cracker?

00:26:25Guest:She said, that's what people call, people are color that are your color.

00:26:30Guest:Right.

00:26:30Guest:And they don't like them.

00:26:31Guest:Yeah.

00:26:31Guest:I was like, color?

00:26:33Guest:I'm brown.

00:26:35Guest:She said, well, they're black people and we're white people.

00:26:37Guest:I said, no, you're brown.

00:26:39Guest:Like the crayon is brown.

00:26:41Guest:You guys are like peach in the crayons.

00:26:44Guest:And I said, well, people can be

00:26:48Guest:Aren't we the same?

00:26:50Guest:I thought because I grew up in Wyoming and Colorado on farms and mountains.

00:26:54Guest:Oh, that's where you started?

00:26:55Marc:So she got you and then took you to Colorado first?

00:26:58Guest:Right.

00:26:58Guest:What was she doing there?

00:26:59Guest:Her and her husband at the time taught at Fort Collins in the university over there.

00:27:06Guest:How old were you then when you were there?

00:27:08Guest:Anywhere from three to five.

00:27:09Guest:And then Wyoming?

00:27:11Guest:Wyoming was where she was from, so we went there often.

00:27:14Guest:Oh, really?

00:27:14Guest:Yeah, so I grew up in mountains and...

00:27:16Guest:Right.

00:27:17Guest:Streams.

00:27:18Guest:Significantly white areas.

00:27:20Guest:Significantly middle America.

00:27:21Guest:Yeah.

00:27:23Guest:All the Indians were dead by then.

00:27:25Guest:Few around.

00:27:25Guest:Yeah, few around.

00:27:29Marc:So by the time you got to D.C., you were like seven or five or six?

00:27:32Marc:Okay, so you had memories and everything else.

00:27:33Guest:Oh, yeah.

00:27:34Guest:So I'm going, what the hell?

00:27:36Guest:And it blew me away because I thought people were like animals.

00:27:39Guest:I thought they were born like animals.

00:27:41Guest:Like a cat could have a black cat, a white cat, brown cat, and a speckled one in one litter.

00:27:47Guest:You could have a black horse and actually have a brown horse.

00:27:52Guest:So I thought people were born like that.

00:27:54Guest:I thought it was a brown one.

00:27:55Guest:Right.

00:27:56Guest:And it didn't make any difference.

00:27:57Guest:Right.

00:27:58Guest:Yeah.

00:27:58Guest:And it did.

00:27:59Guest:Yeah.

00:27:59Guest:And then we moved to the suburbs to run away from that.

00:28:02Guest:And then it's the first time I heard the word nigger because grown white men were calling me nigger and get the little nigger and chasing me home.

00:28:09Guest:In the suburbs.

00:28:11Guest:In Wheaton, Maryland.

00:28:11Guest:Yeah.

00:28:12Guest:And I barely got home with my life.

00:28:14Guest:People were starting fires on a porch.

00:28:16Marc:Really?

00:28:17Guest:Yeah.

00:28:17Guest:Nigger it is.

00:28:18Guest:It was in 68.

00:28:18Guest:69.

00:28:20Guest:Was that a white neighborhood?

00:28:21Guest:Yeah, all white.

00:28:23Guest:And I asked, what is a nigger?

00:28:25Guest:And she said, that's what people call your, that's what people our color call people your color when they don't like them.

00:28:32Guest:And I didn't like that at all.

00:28:34Guest:That was the explanation.

00:28:35Guest:Oh, that's not good.

00:28:37Guest:At five, my head exploded.

00:28:40Guest:There was just a nuclear reaction like, what is this place called Earth?

00:28:44Guest:Right, right, yeah.

00:28:46Guest:I got it, I got it, I got it, I got it.

00:28:48Guest:The end of the identity crisis was when we moved to an integrated neighborhood, which was rare at the time.

00:28:55Guest:Where's that at?

00:28:56Guest:Silver Spring, Maryland.

00:28:57Guest:Oh, okay.

00:28:58Guest:On the D.C.

00:28:58Guest:line.

00:28:59Guest:Yeah.

00:29:02Guest:Some white kids did chase me down the railroad tracks we were playing on, and some black kids were standing at the end of the tracks, and the white kids ran the other way, and I ran behind the black kids, and I've been black ever since.

00:29:17Marc:That was the beginning of blackness.

00:29:18Guest:Well, then I knew.

00:29:19Guest:Okay, oh, I'm on this side.

00:29:20Guest:This is a good side.

00:29:22Marc:But you never lashed out against your own family.

00:29:26Marc:No.

00:29:27Guest:Only in not understanding and confusion.

00:29:30Guest:Yeah.

00:29:31Guest:You know, because they gave me just what a human being needs, love.

00:29:34Guest:And I thought I needed to get something from one color or the other.

00:29:39Guest:Yeah.

00:29:40Guest:When you grew.

00:29:41Guest:Right.

00:29:41Guest:Exactly.

00:29:42Guest:And love is given, you know, an undetermined amount by the individual.

00:29:48Guest:Right.

00:29:49Guest:Regardless of color.

00:29:50Marc:There was a point where you're like, you know, I'm going to be black now.

00:29:52Guest:Yeah.

00:29:53Guest:What side am I going to be on?

00:29:54Guest:Yeah.

00:29:55Guest:You know.

00:29:55Guest:And so I am...

00:29:57Marc:So did you get tense with your brother and sister?

00:30:01Guest:No, never.

00:30:02Guest:We were like the Brady Bunch.

00:30:03Guest:We were like the Parch family, Swiss family, Robinson.

00:30:06Marc:So you could go home to that, but out in the world.

00:30:08Guest:Yeah, we were together, man.

00:30:10Guest:We were the band of brothers together.

00:30:12Guest:And, you know, sons of anarchy.

00:30:15Guest:You know, my household was like the movie Billy Jack.

00:30:20Guest:You know, that was our motto.

00:30:23Guest:I grew up in a commune in Colorado because their father was a weed-smoking hippie.

00:30:28Guest:So we'd go back there and stay, and that's not no place for a seven-year-old to hang out in a commune.

00:30:33Guest:70.

00:30:35Guest:My mom was conservative and working at her office.

00:30:38Guest:And her folks were kind of- And her ex-husband was a hippie in a commune.

00:30:42Guest:Okay.

00:30:42Guest:So we ended up at folk festivals.

00:30:44Guest:Wow.

00:30:45Guest:Seeing orgies and shit.

00:30:46Guest:Really?

00:30:47Guest:When we were seven.

00:30:48Guest:Come on.

00:30:49Guest:Crazy shit, man.

00:30:50Guest:Orgy?

00:30:51Guest:Oh, yeah, man.

00:30:52Guest:That's right.

00:30:53Guest:So I have Parliament Funkadelic and the Barkays and the Commodores and Led Zeppelin and Iron Butterfly.

00:31:00Guest:All in one dude.

00:31:02Guest:Yeah.

00:31:04Guest:Well-rounded.

00:31:05Guest:Yeah.

00:31:05Guest:Found out that my grandfather, my true natural grandfather, is a pure Choctaw Indian from Mississippi.

00:31:13Marc:How'd you figure that out?

00:31:14Guest:I just, I met them in my early 30s.

00:31:17Marc:You sought out your family?

00:31:19Guest:Not really.

00:31:19Guest:My mother worked at HUD, saw the name.

00:31:21Guest:It happened to be her.

00:31:23Guest:Reunited with the family and found out that my grandfather was a pure Choctaw Indian from Mississippi.

00:31:30Guest:And naturally, my grandfather, who I raised up, who was raised by my grandfather, is a cowboy from Wyoming.

00:31:36Guest:So I have a cowboy and an Indian as grandparents.

00:31:42Guest:And my brother was a white gay male who died of AIDS, unfortunately.

00:31:48Guest:Was an activist early, in the early years when no one knew about it.

00:31:52Guest:This was your brother that you grew up with.

00:31:55Guest:Yeah, so I have a Native American grandfather, a cowboy grandfather, a gay white brother, a white sister.

00:32:05Guest:What'd she do?

00:32:07Guest:She actually was an electrician for a while.

00:32:10Guest:One of the first electricians in the area, D.C.

00:32:13Guest:area, and she's a parent now.

00:32:15Guest:Raised her kids, her first son is off to college.

00:32:18Marc:Really?

00:32:19Marc:Already?

00:32:20Marc:Yeah.

00:32:20Marc:Did you meet your mom then?

00:32:21Marc:Your real mom?

00:32:22Marc:I did.

00:32:22Marc:And what was that like?

00:32:24Guest:It was cool to get some closure, but I don't know her.

00:32:27Guest:Right.

00:32:27Guest:She wasn't there when I got stung by a bee or had bad grades.

00:32:29Guest:Right, but was she fucked up or no?

00:32:33Guest:Yeah, kind of a Bible-thumper kind of chick.

00:32:35Guest:But did you ask her, like, why'd you put me in the garbage?

00:32:37Guest:She did.

00:32:38Guest:She was an addict out there.

00:32:41Guest:She was seeing an older guy.

00:32:42Guest:Yeah.

00:32:43Guest:He had a family.

00:32:44Guest:He already had a family.

00:32:45Guest:He was 50.

00:32:45Guest:She was 19.

00:32:46Guest:Right.

00:32:47Guest:Had four children by him.

00:32:48Guest:Anna, his own family.

00:32:50Marc:She had four children by him?

00:32:51Guest:Yeah.

00:32:52Guest:I was the fifth.

00:32:53Guest:You were one of them.

00:32:54Guest:Yeah.

00:32:54Guest:And she was 19 in Mississippi.

00:32:57Marc:That's so fucking crazy.

00:32:58Guest:And on drugs.

00:32:59Guest:So she started having kids when she was 15?

00:33:02Guest:Yeah.

00:33:03Guest:So she just left.

00:33:04Guest:And she just left me.

00:33:06Guest:She left him too.

00:33:07Guest:And she's remorseful.

00:33:09Guest:I was never with him.

00:33:10Guest:I was with her.

00:33:11Guest:Right.

00:33:11Guest:And she left me, my older brother, and my three sisters alone.

00:33:15Guest:And then came back and got them and left me.

00:33:18Guest:So she was strung out.

00:33:20Guest:Right.

00:33:20Marc:Did you ever meet the other siblings?

00:33:22Guest:Yeah.

00:33:22Marc:How are they?

00:33:23Guest:My oldest brother's great.

00:33:25Guest:Great guy.

00:33:26Guest:And you got a relationship with them now?

00:33:27Guest:Yeah, got a relationship with them.

00:33:28Guest:He remembers me.

00:33:29Guest:Him and my oldest sister remember me.

00:33:31Guest:The other ones are like, wow, my brothers only live in color.

00:33:34Guest:So I was like, I don't want to get to know them.

00:33:36Marc:But the other ones, and you still have a relationship with them?

00:33:39Marc:I do.

00:33:39Marc:How many kids do you have?

00:33:40Guest:Four.

00:33:41Guest:How old are they?

00:33:43Guest:25, 21, 19, and eight.

00:33:51Guest:Eight?

00:33:52Marc:Eight.

00:33:53Marc:Surprise?

00:33:54Marc:Yeah.

00:33:56Marc:Is that a different woman?

00:33:58Guest:Yeah.

00:33:58Guest:She's a good girl, though.

00:34:00Guest:How many wives have you had?

00:34:01Guest:Three.

00:34:01Guest:Three?

00:34:02Guest:Not wives, but donors.

00:34:05Marc:I think my buddy said, do you still live next to Gilby Clark?

00:34:09Guest:I did.

00:34:09Guest:He moved just over a couple of blocks.

00:34:11Guest:We're still best of friends.

00:34:12Marc:Oh, yeah?

00:34:12Marc:Yeah.

00:34:13Marc:Because I knew his John Daniel.

00:34:15Marc:You know John Daniel?

00:34:16Guest:I don't know John.

00:34:17Marc:Gilby was in Candy.

00:34:21Marc:Before Guns Roses.

00:34:22Marc:Right, long before.

00:34:23Marc:John was the bass player in Candy.

00:34:25Marc:He's now a manager.

00:34:26Marc:He's a friend of mine.

00:34:28Marc:Okay.

00:34:28Marc:Wow.

00:34:28Guest:He must have met me over there.

00:34:29Guest:Right.

00:34:30Guest:I was always over at the house on air party.

00:34:32Marc:Right.

00:34:32Marc:He's got pool and shit.

00:34:33Guest:Oh, yeah.

00:34:34Guest:Yeah.

00:34:34Guest:Gilby is my man.

00:34:35Guest:Gilby builds motorcycles and has fun with his life.

00:34:37Guest:Yeah, and you guys are buddies?

00:34:39Guest:Yeah, he does.

00:34:39Guest:He's a guitar-playing motherfucker.

00:34:41Guest:He is.

00:34:41Guest:He's great, man.

00:34:42Guest:We're musical guys, and I met Slash through him.

00:34:44Guest:He was a good friend of mine.

00:34:45Guest:I got introduced to a real good consortium of good-ass L.A.

00:34:50Guest:musicians because of Gilby, man.

00:34:51Guest:That's cool, right?

00:34:52Guest:We played together.

00:34:52Guest:Yeah?

00:34:53Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:34:54Guest:What do you play?

00:34:55Guest:My voice.

00:34:56Guest:I know that, yeah.

00:35:02Guest:That was Boston.

00:35:04Guest:Yeah.

00:35:06Guest:Or Peter Framman.

00:35:23Guest:Yeah.

00:35:28Guest:Like I do.

00:35:33Guest:When did you start performing?

00:35:35Guest:About four years old.

00:35:37Guest:That's why the black kids like this.

00:35:39Guest:Yeah.

00:35:39Guest:All of a sudden.

00:35:40Guest:Because you put on a show?

00:35:41Guest:Because I can sing and dance.

00:35:43Guest:So you started musically, really?

00:35:44Guest:Yeah.

00:35:45Guest:And music is my first love.

00:35:46Guest:Fell into comedy by accident.

00:35:48Marc:Were you singing before?

00:35:50Guest:Oh yeah, singing and trying to do that.

00:35:53Guest:With a band?

00:35:54Guest:Bands.

00:35:54Marc:Oh yeah?

00:35:54Marc:Band on the run.

00:35:56Marc:What kind of music, what kind of band were you?

00:35:58Marc:R&B.

00:35:59Marc:Yeah?

00:35:59Marc:R&B all the way.

00:36:00Guest:I remember you got pretty famous for the Al Jarreau impression.

00:36:03Guest:Yeah, he's a great guy.

00:36:04Guest:I mean, came to a club that I used to run called Tomedy, which is a music showcase in L.A.

00:36:09Guest:Everybody came through.

00:36:11Guest:All the hot musicians came because we had a really hot room.

00:36:14Guest:That was your place?

00:36:15Guest:All my place.

00:36:15Guest:Yeah.

00:36:16Guest:Lovely place.

00:36:17Guest:When was that?

00:36:17Guest:That was probably about 2004.

00:36:21Guest:What happened to that place?

00:36:22Guest:I couldn't afford to keep it going because I had real live music and I had real sound.

00:36:26Guest:Yeah.

00:36:27Guest:No one wants to pay for that.

00:36:28Guest:Right.

00:36:28Guest:Yeah.

00:36:29Guest:Give him one speaker and sell drinks.

00:36:31Guest:That's the motto.

00:36:32Guest:That's easy.

00:36:33Guest:Yeah.

00:36:33Guest:But he had a good setup and draining.

00:36:36Guest:Yeah, great.

00:36:36Guest:And he was sick in the hospital.

00:36:38Guest:I'll come down to your show.

00:36:39Guest:I said, you want to perform?

00:36:41Guest:Nah, just watch.

00:36:42Guest:I said, okay, we'll see about that.

00:36:43Guest:Yeah.

00:36:44Guest:And boy, I got into this one tune.

00:36:48Guest:Yeah.

00:36:54Guest:There is such a lonely, and I looked over, he was on the mic, on cue.

00:37:08Guest:Really?

00:37:08Guest:Searching that's been going on.

00:37:10Guest:Couldn't stop himself.

00:37:13Guest:Pointed at me, I went, sweet tomorrow morning, bursting with the dawn.

00:37:19Guest:He went, I delight in singing.

00:37:26Guest:Pointing at me.

00:37:26Guest:I go, this arrow knows the phone.

00:37:30Guest:And then he points at me and me and him.

00:37:33Guest:We go, we both go, sweet tomorrow morning bursting with dawn.

00:37:38Guest:And we brought the house down.

00:37:39Guest:I bet.

00:37:40Guest:Yeah.

00:37:40Guest:Was that exciting?

00:37:41Guest:Oh, my God.

00:37:42Guest:Yeah.

00:37:43Guest:Still gives me, you can feel it now.

00:37:44Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah, I can.

00:37:45Guest:Was he like a hero of yours?

00:37:46Guest:Oh, of course.

00:37:47Guest:Yeah.

00:37:47Guest:My brother, when I was 15, I was listening to a lot of R&B, and he said, I'm going to expand you.

00:37:54Guest:Yeah.

00:37:55Guest:You have more range.

00:37:56Guest:Yeah.

00:37:56Guest:You got to start listening to some jazz vocalists.

00:37:59Guest:So he turned me on to him and Grover Washington.

00:38:02Guest:Right.

00:38:03Guest:You know, Sanborn.

00:38:05Guest:Yeah.

00:38:06Guest:Just Bob James, you know, Spiral Gyro.

00:38:10Guest:Oh, wow.

00:38:11Guest:Yellow Jackets.

00:38:12Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:38:13Guest:Pat Metheny.

00:38:14Guest:So I'm gone now.

00:38:15Guest:Did you sing professionally?

00:38:18Guest:At all?

00:38:18Guest:I wish I did.

00:38:20Guest:I can say I did because I got paid a couple paid gigs.

00:38:22Guest:When you were a kid though?

00:38:23Guest:Yeah, when I was a kid.

00:38:24Guest:I went out with grown bands would come and knock on the door.

00:38:26Guest:Hey, can your son come and gig with us?

00:38:28Guest:Did that happen?

00:38:29Guest:Yeah, it did.

00:38:30Guest:Like who?

00:38:30Guest:It did.

00:38:30Guest:Just the local guys that were playing Earth and Fire covers come over and say, we hear your son can sing.

00:38:36Guest:Could he come to practice?

00:38:37Guest:And she said, yeah, you can go over there for a little while.

00:38:39Guest:My brother walked me over there, and I'd get on that mic, and they said, we got to take him out.

00:38:42Guest:But I was too young to go to clubs.

00:38:43Guest:Right, right.

00:38:44Guest:So I wanted my mom to take me out and give me a record deal, because I was really, I won every talent show.

00:38:50Guest:I was just a sensation, really.

00:38:54Guest:And sang just like Michael Jackson.

00:38:55Guest:You could do that.

00:38:56Guest:And she said, yeah, Michael Winnie had a natural voice.

00:38:58Guest:Right.

00:38:58Guest:He did something.

00:38:59Guest:Yeah.

00:38:59Guest:He started sounding like.

00:39:03Guest:Yeah.

00:39:07Guest:You know, but he used to be a. Yeah.

00:39:22Guest:He had all this control.

00:39:23Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:39:23Guest:And I was, that's from that.

00:39:25Guest:Right.

00:39:25Guest:I'm from that.

00:39:26Guest:Right.

00:39:26Guest:Michael Jackson, yeah.

00:39:27Guest:Not looking out at the night.

00:39:32Guest:You know, not that one.

00:39:33Guest:You know what I mean?

00:39:34Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:39:34Guest:But the one, you know.

00:39:35Guest:Right.

00:39:35Guest:I'll be there.

00:39:38Guest:You know, the control.

00:39:39Guest:Right.

00:39:40Guest:And, um,

00:39:41Guest:Wanted her to, you know, because I saw they got minibikes.

00:39:45Guest:They had the cartoon.

00:39:45Guest:Sure.

00:39:46Guest:The Jackson 5, you know, every Saturday.

00:39:49Guest:Yeah.

00:39:50Guest:Want to do this, man, because I get a minibike.

00:39:52Guest:Right.

00:39:52Guest:Wear bell bottoms.

00:39:53Guest:Yeah.

00:39:53Guest:Get me some girls.

00:39:54Guest:Uh-huh.

00:39:55Guest:And my mother said, nope, I want you to spend time being a kid.

00:39:59Guest:And I said, yeah, but he gets a minibike and he's still a kid.

00:40:02Guest:And she said this.

00:40:04Guest:She said, Michael Jackson's going to be fucked up.

00:40:07Guest:She was right and I used to think she was crazy.

00:40:09Guest:I'm like this woman is out of her mind I can have us in a big house.

00:40:14Guest:Yeah.

00:40:14Guest:Meanwhile, we got roaches.

00:40:15Guest:We're welfare You know, I'm like I can get us out of here.

00:40:18Guest:Yeah, you know, she's like Michaels gonna be fucked up and we aren't Mm-hmm

00:40:22Guest:And he's here, he's gone, and I'm here.

00:40:25Guest:Did you ever meet him?

00:40:26Guest:I did.

00:40:26Guest:How was that for you?

00:40:27Guest:He actually called me, not even knowing him.

00:40:30Guest:Called me out the blue.

00:40:31Guest:For the impression?

00:40:32Guest:No, called me.

00:40:33Guest:He must have seen me under any little color.

00:40:34Guest:Right, right.

00:40:35Guest:When he died, one of my agents said he was your favorite.

00:40:38Guest:He would email me all the time and say, where are you playing?

00:40:40Guest:Oh, yeah?

00:40:41Guest:I never told you.

00:40:42Guest:I said, why, motherfucker?

00:40:44Guest:And so he called me at this big, giant party at his house for 5,000 people, a concert.

00:40:49Guest:He said, the only comedian I trust...

00:40:52Guest:To host it and I hosted it Wow madam nice guy nice dude.

00:40:57Guest:Yeah didn't pay for the limo I thought that was weird Something's wrong with that.

00:41:03Guest:He did I would took the limit me and my 16 year old was going at her mind took her all the way up to Santa Barbara from Sherman Oaks, uh-huh and all the way back stayed there all day and he didn't pay for the limo

00:41:15Marc:That's bizarre.

00:41:16Guest:And his assistant went, oh, I'm sorry, you don't understand, Michael doesn't do that.

00:41:22Guest:Really?

00:41:23Guest:I said, okay.

00:41:24Guest:Really?

00:41:24Guest:And I said, that's a little weird.

00:41:26Guest:Yeah.

00:41:26Guest:Something's off about that.

00:41:28Marc:Well, yeah.

00:41:29Guest:That it's a policy?

00:41:30Guest:Because he's the guy, and then that we are the world guy?

00:41:32Marc:Yeah.

00:41:33Marc:And also, just the rich fucker who asked you to host the show.

00:41:36Marc:Hosting, yeah, you know.

00:41:37Marc:Did he pay you for that?

00:41:38Guest:No.

00:41:39Guest:Oh, just add the goodness of your heart.

00:41:41Marc:It's Michael Jackson.

00:41:42Guest:I did do that.

00:41:43Marc:Sure.

00:41:43Guest:You know, and...

00:41:46Guest:You know, I thought that was a little odd and a little off.

00:41:49Guest:Yeah.

00:41:49Guest:But who am I to judge?

00:41:50Guest:It's Michael Jackson.

00:41:52Guest:Who am I to judge?

00:41:52Guest:People have judged him for worse things than being cheap.

00:41:55Guest:Yeah, I mean, the guy was, you know, he was coloring his skin and getting in an oxygen tank.

00:41:58Guest:Yeah.

00:41:59Guest:You know, I can only feel empathy.

00:42:02Guest:Sure.

00:42:02Guest:Not resentment.

00:42:04Guest:Right.

00:42:04Guest:I mean, who, you know.

00:42:05Guest:Yeah, he was a troubled man.

00:42:06Guest:Yeah, I mean, we go and, you know, we want these things in life, we think.

00:42:10Guest:Mm-hmm.

00:42:11Guest:And then we get him and then we think what, you know?

00:42:13Guest:Is that it?

00:42:14Guest:I mean, that's what the old black women say in church.

00:42:17Guest:You better watch out what you pray for because you just might get it.

00:42:20Guest:I'm like, what's wrong with getting it?

00:42:21Marc:Yeah.

00:42:22Marc:Ain't enough.

00:42:23Marc:And that's what they meant.

00:42:24Marc:Yeah.

00:42:25Marc:It's a weird thing when nothing will make you feel like you got it.

00:42:29Marc:Hey, we all been there.

00:42:30Marc:Yeah.

00:42:30Guest:I can't get no 30s vacuum.

00:42:35Guest:So when did you start doing comedy officially?

00:42:37Guest:About 86.

00:42:39Guest:Where?

00:42:40Guest:DC.

00:42:41Guest:Was asked by a friend of mine to try comedy.

00:42:44Marc:So you're like 23, 22?

00:42:45Guest:No, I'm like 19, something like that.

00:42:49Guest:And I got a new job at the Ramada Inn, and I'm happy, and I call them.

00:42:53Guest:I'm an assistant chef.

00:42:56Guest:Really, cooking?

00:42:56Guest:At 19.

00:42:57Guest:Cooking.

00:42:57Guest:Yeah, that's great.

00:42:58Guest:I've been working in the kitchen since 15.

00:43:00Guest:That's an accomplishment.

00:43:00Guest:Yeah.

00:43:01Guest:At the Ramada Inn.

00:43:02Guest:Where?

00:43:03Guest:An assistant chef.

00:43:03Guest:In D.C.?

00:43:04Guest:In Maryland.

00:43:04Guest:Uh-huh.

00:43:04Guest:I mean, in Virginia.

00:43:05Guest:Yeah.

00:43:06Guest:That's a great gig.

00:43:08Guest:Yeah.

00:43:08Guest:I recall him.

00:43:08Guest:My best friend grew up with me.

00:43:10Guest:And the first thing he said was, you're stupid.

00:43:12Guest:I was like, what?

00:43:12Guest:He said, if I was like you and I was as funny as you, I'd be out there with Eddie Murphy and then make it movies.

00:43:18Guest:Yeah.

00:43:19Guest:I had no concept of what he was talking about, man.

00:43:21Guest:He's going, if they can do it, you can.

00:43:23Guest:And so he worked at a strip club.

00:43:25Guest:Worst strip club in D.C.

00:43:27Guest:Called me and said, I talked the manager into letting you on stage.

00:43:30Guest:At the strip club.

00:43:32Guest:Was it the one above the comedy, next to the comedy place?

00:43:34Guest:No, no, that's a better one.

00:43:36Guest:Oh, okay.

00:43:36Guest:Yeah, I discovered that one later.

00:43:37Marc:Yeah.

00:43:38Guest:Called me and said, why don't you come down here?

00:43:40Guest:We're gonna get you on stage at the strip club.

00:43:42Guest:Yep.

00:43:42Guest:That's the deal.

00:43:43Guest:And I finally showed up after three months of no's, and the manager looks at me and says, is this him?

00:43:48Guest:Yeah.

00:43:49Guest:Yeah, you got five minutes, buddy.

00:43:51Guest:In between strippers?

00:43:52Guest:Yeah.

00:43:53Guest:That's old school.

00:43:54Guest:Yeah, he said, you got five minutes.

00:43:55Guest:Yeah.

00:43:56Guest:I said, cool.

00:43:57Guest:I turned to Howard.

00:43:58Guest:I said, what am I going to do?

00:44:00Guest:He said, I don't know, man.

00:44:00Guest:Just say something.

00:44:03Guest:And from the first thing I said, they laughed.

00:44:06Guest:Do you remember what it was?

00:44:07Guest:Yeah.

00:44:09Guest:He said, why don't you tell them about your house or your mom or something.

00:44:13Guest:Right, right.

00:44:14Guest:So I said, my mom used to make us, we had a lot of roaches.

00:44:18Guest:yeah and my mom said if we have roaches because we don't clean the kitchen right so we clean she made us clean the kitchen all day saturday and all day sunday which is the day we go out yeah and lo and behold monday we did not have any roaches in the kitchen right but they were eating our couch me and my sister came home from school yeah

00:44:41Guest:And we're like, wow, finally the roaches are gone.

00:44:43Guest:And then we go to watch Speed Racer.

00:44:45Guest:Right.

00:44:47Guest:And pull up the couch pillows.

00:44:50Guest:And there's like a million roaches.

00:44:52Guest:So they just switch locations.

00:44:54Marc:Sure.

00:44:54Guest:Yeah.

00:44:55Marc:And that was it.

00:44:55Guest:You were locked in.

00:44:56Guest:On, on, on, on.

00:44:58Guest:You felt it.

00:44:59Guest:On.

00:44:59Guest:Stayed there for about three months.

00:45:01Guest:At the strip club.

00:45:01Guest:My reputation just soared.

00:45:04Marc:And you're building a set.

00:45:07Marc:I'm killing them.

00:45:07Marc:Yeah.

00:45:08Marc:Killing them.

00:45:09Marc:Writing material.

00:45:10Marc:Killing them.

00:45:11Marc:Doing impressions.

00:45:12Marc:All in the natch.

00:45:13Marc:Yeah.

00:45:14Guest:So when did you start working?

00:45:18Guest:Shortly after that.

00:45:19Guest:Yeah.

00:45:19Guest:Show promoters started coming to the club.

00:45:22Guest:and putting me on huge concerts.

00:45:24Guest:So I didn't play comedy clubs.

00:45:25Guest:Like who, who'd you open for?

00:45:26Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:45:26Marc:Evelyn Champagne King, group called Starpoint, Luther Vandross.

00:45:30Marc:So you didn't do any clubs at the time?

00:45:32Marc:No.

00:45:32Marc:Because that was how a lot of guys started in the 70s.

00:45:34Marc:For the first year.

00:45:36Marc:Just opening, doing what, 10, 15?

00:45:37Marc:First year.

00:45:38Marc:In front of huge bands.

00:45:39Marc:Yeah, 10,000 people.

00:45:41Guest:That's a notoriously difficult gig.

00:45:43Guest:Not for me.

00:45:44Guest:It was just natural for me.

00:45:45Guest:And then the clubs were even easier.

00:45:47Guest:I mean, I haven't seen you in a while, but you go out with a lot of juice.

00:45:51Marc:I give you what I got, man.

00:45:55Marc:I'm like Molly, boy.

00:45:56Marc:So how'd you get set up then?

00:45:58Guest:Did someone try to manage you?

00:46:00Guest:Yeah.

00:46:02Guest:I met a guy while I was doing the Apollo contest, which was big, and it was actually a real talent show.

00:46:10Guest:The object of the game wasn't for the guy to pull you off stage.

00:46:12Guest:Right.

00:46:13Guest:It was for him to stay out there.

00:46:16Guest:And I won, and I won, and I won.

00:46:18Guest:And this guy approached me.

00:46:19Guest:He was an attorney.

00:46:21Guest:He said, I want to manage you.

00:46:21Guest:Why don't you go out to L.A.

00:46:23Guest:for a week?

00:46:24Guest:I'll set you up in the clubs in L.A.

00:46:26Guest:If you like it, we'll move out there.

00:46:27Guest:I'll manage it.

00:46:28Guest:I said, okay.

00:46:29Marc:He wasn't a manager, though.

00:46:30Guest:No.

00:46:31Guest:No, just an attorney.

00:46:32Guest:But just love talent.

00:46:34Guest:So I went out to L.A.

00:46:36Guest:and for a week I killed everyone.

00:46:39Guest:Where'd you go?

00:46:40Guest:Including Eddie Murphy and everybody else who got in my way.

00:46:42Guest:Where'd you go?

00:46:43Guest:Comedy Act Theater over in L.A.

00:46:45Guest:Which was the mecca of black comedy.

00:46:49Guest:Killed over there.

00:46:50Guest:Comedy store.

00:46:51Guest:Killed.

00:46:51Guest:Ice House.

00:46:52Guest:I mean everywhere.

00:46:53Guest:Name it.

00:46:54Guest:What year was that?

00:46:55Guest:That was probably about 87.

00:46:58Guest:Killed.

00:46:58Guest:Moved back here.

00:46:59Guest:And things slowed down.

00:47:01Marc:Move where back to East move back to L move when Becky's came back out moved out here and things slow down But you hadn't been you hadn't done so you were on the East Coast You were open killer for bands got to LA you went to the Apollo and the guy said go out there Showcased then you go back.

00:47:19Marc:He's I killed I'm moving out there and he moved out here I just I just I hit the clubs as much as you can every night and

00:47:26Marc:So you just like, you had all this fanfare, so you were loaded up.

00:47:29Marc:You're like, I'm going to be the guy.

00:47:31Marc:And then you get out here.

00:47:32Marc:It's like, well, just get online.

00:47:34Marc:That kind of thing.

00:47:35Marc:Yes.

00:47:35Marc:And what clubs were you working?

00:47:37Guest:Name them.

00:47:38Guest:Nobody would let me work.

00:47:39Guest:Ice House, you're not what we're looking for.

00:47:41Guest:Store?

00:47:41Guest:For three years.

00:47:43Guest:Really?

00:47:43Guest:The Ice House one put you on?

00:47:45Guest:Laugh Factory.

00:47:46Guest:He put you on?

00:47:46Guest:No.

00:47:47No.

00:47:47Guest:For three years.

00:47:49Guest:Mitzi?

00:47:50Guest:No.

00:47:51Guest:You're not what we're looking for.

00:47:52Guest:No one put you on?

00:47:53Guest:You're not what we're looking for.

00:47:54Guest:Really?

00:47:55Guest:That's surprising.

00:47:56Guest:We get a lot of work in the black clubs.

00:47:58Guest:Okay.

00:47:58Guest:I was like Eddie Murphy on steroids back then.

00:48:04Guest:Yeah.

00:48:05Guest:I mean, even now.

00:48:05Guest:Did you meet him?

00:48:06Guest:Oh, yeah.

00:48:07Guest:Well, you worked with him, didn't you?

00:48:09Guest:The first time I got in the comedy store, I worked with him.

00:48:11Guest:I got a call from the comedy store I got a little you know shows at the belly room and little stuff for about a year I got a call Mitzi's got you working the main room tonight which is a big deal yeah Friday and Saturday yeah who am I with Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy

00:48:29Guest:Wow.

00:48:31Guest:So my first stint in the main room was with Richard Wright and Eddie Murphy.

00:48:34Guest:Richard either went on first and Eddie last, or Eddie first and Richard last.

00:48:39Marc:I was a doorman there in 87, so Richard had already burned himself up and was trying to come back, right?

00:48:45Guest:Kind of?

00:48:46Guest:Yeah.

00:48:46Guest:Getting his feet back?

00:48:47Marc:And Eddie was hottest.

00:48:48Guest:Right, right, right.

00:48:49Guest:And that's when Stiller, Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler, Roseanne Barr,

00:48:56Guest:Seinfeld, Louie Anderson, Sam Kinison.

00:49:01Guest:This is before any of them hit.

00:49:02Guest:They were all big dudes in the big room.

00:49:05Guest:Well, these are people that were in the room when you did it?

00:49:07Guest:They were the main room people.

00:49:09Guest:Right, right.

00:49:10Guest:Jim Carrey.

00:49:11Guest:Jim Carrey, yeah.

00:49:12Guest:These are the main room cats, and I was the young cat who got into the main room.

00:49:16Guest:Right, and they saw you do it.

00:49:18Guest:Steve Odekirk.

00:49:19Guest:Sure.

00:49:20Marc:Jackson Perdue.

00:49:21Marc:Jack Perdue, yeah.

00:49:22Marc:Angel Salazar.

00:49:25Marc:Sure.

00:49:25Marc:Check it out.

00:49:27Marc:Check it out.

00:49:28Marc:Yeah.

00:49:30Marc:So when did the big break happen and how'd that happen for you?

00:49:33Marc:I mean, it wasn't like a, you know, just an explosion.

00:49:36Guest:Because Keenan was there.

00:49:37Guest:It was a buildup.

00:49:37Marc:And Damon was there.

00:49:38Marc:They were both there.

00:49:39Marc:A buildup.

00:49:41Marc:A buildup.

00:49:41Marc:Did you see them at the store?

00:49:42Marc:You used to see them at the store all the time.

00:49:44Guest:Keenan and I, yeah.

00:49:45Guest:All of them gave me the momentum for the break.

00:49:48Guest:It was Robert Townsend.

00:49:50Guest:Oh yeah, he was there too.

00:49:51Guest:Took me out of the comedy store.

00:49:52Guest:Dom Herrera.

00:49:53Guest:Dom.

00:49:53Guest:Were you in Townsend's first movie?

00:49:55Guest:No.

00:49:56Guest:I wasn't in I'ma Get You Sucker.

00:49:58Guest:I wasn't in Hollywood Shuffle, but I was at the premieres.

00:50:00Guest:Hollywood Shuffle.

00:50:01Guest:I was an in dude.

00:50:03Guest:Right, right.

00:50:03Guest:And Kenan and Robert knew me as the young, hot dude.

00:50:07Guest:Right.

00:50:08Guest:And so Robert put me on Partners in Crime.

00:50:10Guest:which was HBO.

00:50:12Guest:Mm-hmm.

00:50:13Guest:It's the first time you're seeing Blackstone Sketch.

00:50:16Guest:Mm-hmm.

00:50:16Guest:Since Richard Pryor's show back in 73.

00:50:18Marc:How many did they do of those?

00:50:20Marc:I think about seven or eight.

00:50:21Guest:Uh-huh.

00:50:21Guest:Maybe 10.

00:50:22Guest:So that was Robert Townsend's Sketch Show on HBO.

00:50:24Guest:And I did stand up.

00:50:24Guest:What happened to that dude, man?

00:50:25Guest:He's around.

00:50:26Guest:Is he?

00:50:27Guest:Real smart guy, kind of a corporate cat, knows how to make money.

00:50:30Guest:What is he doing, though?

00:50:32Guest:You know what?

00:50:32Guest:I don't know.

00:50:33Guest:I really don't.

00:50:34Guest:I think he's right now working with different networks, TV One.

00:50:36Guest:Huh.

00:50:36Guest:But he knows how to... He's a smart man.

00:50:40Marc:I know, but he was one of those guys that I haven't seen him in years anywhere.

00:50:43Guest:Yeah, but he's behind the scenes.

00:50:45Guest:Sure, man.

00:50:45Guest:Sure.

00:50:46Guest:Well, so is Keenan, I guess, a bit, but he surfaces occasionally.

00:50:49Guest:Keenan does.

00:50:50Guest:We don't know who the arms dealers are, but they're making money.

00:50:53Guest:Sure, man.

00:50:54Guest:You know good.

00:50:54Marc:I'm just happy making money there in business Well, he got a lot of juice that it was that the independent like the big that the angle on that was I I paid for this movie with credit cards the Hollywood shuffle, right?

00:51:05Marc:Yeah, that was the press angle.

00:51:08Marc:Mm-hmm He got all these lines don't make it on you don't make it in Hollywood You can always go to the post office with a right with the Jerry call the Jerry curl bit.

00:51:15Guest:That's right.

00:51:16Guest:That's funny.

00:51:16Guest:Yeah So out of that

00:51:19Guest:It was my first national exposure as a comic.

00:51:22Guest:On the HBO.

00:51:23Guest:Robert Townsend.

00:51:23Guest:On the sketch show.

00:51:24Guest:Yeah.

00:51:25Guest:And so that went so well that I actually appeared on the Arsenio Hall show.

00:51:31Marc:I just watched the recent one on the Arsenio Hall show.

00:51:35Marc:2013.

00:51:36Marc:I sizzled that down.

00:51:37Marc:Yeah.

00:51:37Marc:I killed that.

00:51:38Marc:Yeah.

00:51:39Marc:It was weird.

00:51:40Marc:I didn't watch any of those new shows.

00:51:42Marc:It's pretty wild, man.

00:51:44Marc:It's almost like a time warp.

00:51:47Marc:Yeah, it was.

00:51:49Marc:It's got the same haircut.

00:51:51Marc:All right, so you do the Arsenio Hall show.

00:51:53Guest:Yeah.

00:51:54Guest:And that gave me the national TV exposure, so I got the cable exposure.

00:52:00Guest:And then Sinbad put me on the road.

00:52:02Guest:You were opening for Sinbad?

00:52:03Guest:No, I was opening for Anita Baker and Luther Vandross.

00:52:06Guest:He couldn't do some dates, so I went on the road for 15 cities.

00:52:10Marc:So doing the opening for music.

00:52:11Guest:And I was already ready for that.

00:52:13Guest:And so from there, Eddie Murphy hooked me up with a pilot with his company.

00:52:18Guest:It didn't fly.

00:52:19Marc:So were you and Eddie friends?

00:52:21Guest:Yeah.

00:52:22Marc:Are you still?

00:52:22Guest:Yeah, yeah.

00:52:23Guest:Of course, of course.

00:52:24Guest:He's the king.

00:52:25Guest:Yeah.

00:52:26Guest:He's the funniest dude ever.

00:52:27Guest:I know.

00:52:28Guest:He's the king.

00:52:28Guest:He is the king.

00:52:30Guest:And from there, Kenan picked me up for a living color.

00:52:35Marc:Now, what was the pitch there?

00:52:37Marc:Because were all you guys writers on that?

00:52:41Marc:Was it a writer-performer situation?

00:52:43Guest:Yeah, we wrote.

00:52:44Marc:So he was just putting something together.

00:52:46Marc:He said, I'm putting a crew together to do this thing?

00:52:48Marc:Or did he have a deal in place?

00:52:50Marc:How did that go?

00:52:50Marc:Yeah.

00:52:51Guest:I mean, he had a deal with Fox to do the TV show.

00:52:53Guest:Put together an ensemble cast, which was us.

00:52:55Guest:And he just was like Professor Xavier.

00:52:59Guest:He just went and got all the best, assembled him in one team, put him in the danger room, and turned him loose on the world, baby.

00:53:06Guest:And I'm beast.

00:53:07Marc:How long did that show run for?

00:53:10Marc:How many seasons?

00:53:10Marc:Five years.

00:53:11Marc:Five years.

00:53:12Marc:Had such a huge impact on everybody.

00:53:14Marc:Still does.

00:53:15Marc:Yeah.

00:53:16Marc:Do people still come up to you like, holy fuck.

00:53:19Marc:Are you kidding me?

00:53:20Guest:It's the thing, man.

00:53:21Guest:Yeah.

00:53:22Guest:And any kids that are touched by the magic are like, oh my God, you're a legend.

00:53:25Marc:Yeah.

00:53:26Marc:Yeah.

00:53:27Marc:But they gotta be our age now, though.

00:53:30Marc:Isn't that weird, though, sometimes?

00:53:31Marc:Yeah.

00:53:31Marc:Where people come up to you and they're like 40 or 50 years old.

00:53:34Marc:Really?

00:53:35Marc:They're like, I'm watching you when I was a kid.

00:53:37Marc:Right.

00:53:37Marc:And you're 40.

00:53:38Marc:Right.

00:53:38Marc:Like, how the fuck did that happen?

00:53:39Marc:Well, you're 40 and you watch me as a kid.

00:53:41Marc:What does that make me?

00:53:42Marc:In terms of the writing and the process of Living Color, did Keenan sit everyone down and say, we're doing something different?

00:53:51Marc:Yeah.

00:53:52Guest:He said, get ready.

00:53:53Guest:You can do it.

00:53:54Guest:He said, just watch.

00:53:55Marc:Hang on.

00:53:56Marc:Because it was really the first black sketch show in a way that was mainstream, right?

00:54:00Guest:Yeah.

00:54:01Guest:It was.

00:54:02Guest:It was.

00:54:02Guest:I mean, Richard didn't get a chance to fly.

00:54:04Marc:Richard was trippy, dude.

00:54:06Marc:I've watched some of that recently.

00:54:07Guest:Yeah.

00:54:07Guest:It didn't get a chance to fly.

00:54:08Marc:Did you watch it recently?

00:54:09Marc:Have you watched it?

00:54:10Marc:Of course.

00:54:10Marc:I studied that thing.

00:54:11Guest:It's like some of that stuff is like... It's got a lot of people.

00:54:13Guest:Paul Mooney's in that.

00:54:14Guest:Oh yeah, Argus is in it.

00:54:15Guest:Uncle Dirty's in there.

00:54:17Guest:Marshall Warfield's in there.

00:54:17Guest:Robin Williams is in it.

00:54:18Guest:Sandra Bernhardt.

00:54:20Guest:Sandra Bernhardt.

00:54:20Guest:All the old store people are in there.

00:54:22Guest:Yeah, were trying to come up, man.

00:54:23Guest:And all of them ended up being huge movie stars.

00:54:26Marc:It's wild to watch that stuff though.

00:54:27Guest:I just read that biography of him.

00:54:29Guest:They were out in the comedy store that long ago.

00:54:31Guest:Yeah.

00:54:31Guest:Since like 74.

00:54:32Marc:Right.

00:54:34Marc:Right.

00:54:34Marc:All right.

00:54:34Marc:So what was the writing process?

00:54:36Marc:Because you worked a lot with what?

00:54:37Marc:You worked with Jim.

00:54:38Marc:You worked with Jamie.

00:54:38Marc:You worked with all those guys.

00:54:39Marc:David Allen Greer.

00:54:41Marc:We'd round table.

00:54:42Guest:Yeah.

00:54:43Guest:Pile up the best things for the week.

00:54:45Guest:Yeah.

00:54:45Guest:Decide by laughs and committee.

00:54:50Guest:Yeah.

00:54:50Guest:Closed door committee.

00:54:52Guest:Mm-hmm.

00:54:52Guest:Which sketches got on the air.

00:54:54Guest:We were hoping it was ours.

00:54:55Marc:So everyone wrote their pieces.

00:54:57Guest:We were hoping it was yours every week.

00:54:59Guest:He was kind of like a newspaper editor.

00:55:00Guest:Right.

00:55:01Guest:And we're submitting articles.

00:55:02Marc:Right.

00:55:02Marc:Showrunner.

00:55:03Marc:Exactly.

00:55:04Marc:No, yes.

00:55:05Marc:Exactly.

00:55:06Marc:Well, you think he's funny?

00:55:07Marc:He's a funny guy, right?

00:55:08Marc:He's brilliant.

00:55:10Guest:It's always amazing to me.

00:55:11Guest:He's the funniest dude.

00:55:15Guest:Kenan is like a different kind of funny, though.

00:55:17Marc:I used to watch him when I was a doorman.

00:55:19Marc:I'd see Keenan, I'd see Damon, and it was like two different things.

00:55:23Marc:Like Keenan's a joke guy, and Damon was like this.

00:55:25Marc:He was a brain guy.

00:55:26Guest:Keenan was like a joke brain guy, and Damon was like a funny guy.

00:55:30Marc:Yeah, physical, man.

00:55:32Guest:Like, let's do it.

00:55:32Guest:Crazy.

00:55:33Guest:Yeah.

00:55:33Marc:He'd come into the main room, and I'd go, what are you going to do, your act?

00:55:36Marc:He goes, no, I'm going to do the jazz set tonight.

00:55:38Marc:He didn't know what the fuck he was going to do.

00:55:39Guest:Right.

00:55:40Marc:And he would push the audience, man.

00:55:41Guest:Yeah, he's crazy as hell.

00:55:43Guest:They're a blessed group.

00:55:45Guest:They make you jealous.

00:55:46Marc:There's a lot of them.

00:55:47Marc:What happened to her?

00:55:48Marc:What happened to Kim?

00:55:49Guest:Kim's around.

00:55:50Guest:Yeah?

00:55:50Guest:Kim's around.

00:55:51Guest:Yeah, Kim is doing some, I think Kim was doing some plays last time I talked to her.

00:55:54Marc:And is there like a third generation away?

00:55:57Guest:There is.

00:55:58Guest:Damon Jr.

00:55:59Guest:is doing movies.

00:56:00Guest:Craig is out there doing things.

00:56:02Guest:Damien is directing.

00:56:04Guest:You know, they're all out there.

00:56:06Guest:They're all doing something.

00:56:07Marc:Now, I always want to believe that everyone's still kind of in touch.

00:56:09Marc:Do you, like, with Jamie Foxx, are you guys friends?

00:56:12Marc:You know what?

00:56:13Marc:We're friends, but we don't see each other.

00:56:14Marc:Right, right.

00:56:15Guest:And we weren't friends.

00:56:16Marc:Because you worked a lot together on the show, right?

00:56:18Guest:Yeah, but we weren't friends then.

00:56:19Guest:Friends in the sense of, I know you.

00:56:21Guest:Right.

00:56:22Guest:You know, me and Jim knew each other from the comedy store, so we had been friends for years.

00:56:25Marc:Really?

00:56:26Marc:Yeah.

00:56:26Marc:He was, like, I forget that, like, you know, that he was just this young guy.

00:56:29Marc:He was a great comic.

00:56:30Marc:Oh, of course he was.

00:56:32Guest:I just wish he'd do it.

00:56:33Guest:I know.

00:56:34Guest:Well, why don't you call him?

00:56:35Guest:Yeah, right.

00:56:36Guest:I can call him, but I can't ask him that.

00:56:38Guest:I don't know what he's doing up there.

00:56:40Guest:I'd love to talk to him.

00:56:41Guest:Oh, my God.

00:56:41Guest:He's doing well.

00:56:42Guest:He's doing well, yeah.

00:56:43Guest:He's doing really good.

00:56:44Guest:He's happy.

00:56:45Guest:He's loving what he's doing.

00:56:46Guest:He's able to do sketches on Funny or Die or put out whatever he wants.

00:56:50Marc:I saw this commencement speech he gave about a painting.

00:56:52Marc:Did you see that?

00:56:53Guest:I didn't see it.

00:56:54Guest:I saw the hat.

00:56:55Guest:yeah i think i saw him in a graduation hat uh-huh and just thought it was a sketch or something no no he's really went out there and he did some yeah it was kind of uh it was kind of trippy man yeah he's a trippy dude yeah was he always always i knew he's gonna be a huge star so after living color that's when you really took off as a stand-up and yeah it was well the day it started yeah the day it started i mean you know everybody was i was the first to star and make a motion picture and i had

00:57:21Marc:Which one was that?

00:57:22Guest:Which movie?

00:57:23Guest:Strictly Business.

00:57:24Guest:Okay.

00:57:25Guest:CB4 came shortly after.

00:57:27Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:57:28Guest:But I did probably, I toured the country probably about 10 times.

00:57:35Marc:Yeah.

00:57:35Guest:I did seven movies.

00:57:38Marc:Right, and a lot of the stand-up shows.

00:57:40Guest:Yeah, I did.

00:57:40Guest:Did you do special?

00:57:41Guest:Yeah, I did three specials.

00:57:43Guest:Three specials.

00:57:43Guest:All while doing In Living Color.

00:57:45Guest:Right.

00:57:46Guest:You were huge, dude.

00:57:48Marc:Yes, sir.

00:57:49Guest:Yes, a big billboard on Sunset.

00:57:51Marc:Yeah.

00:57:51Guest:Yeah.

00:57:52Marc:You lived it.

00:57:53Guest:Lived it.

00:57:54Marc:And then what happened?

00:57:57Guest:You know.

00:57:57Guest:I don't know.

00:57:59Guest:Well, you know, you cycle out.

00:58:02Guest:Yeah.

00:58:02Guest:You do.

00:58:03Guest:Yeah.

00:58:04Guest:You know, someone gets hotter and takes the forefront, you know.

00:58:09Guest:I went through some personal things that were good for me.

00:58:14Guest:Like what?

00:58:15Guest:You know, um...

00:58:16Guest:I would say I had some substance problems.

00:58:20Guest:On and off for a while.

00:58:22Guest:On and off for a while.

00:58:23Guest:Yeah?

00:58:23Guest:Yeah.

00:58:24Guest:And then found out that it wasn't about that at all.

00:58:27Guest:What were you doing?

00:58:29Guest:I won't say it.

00:58:30Guest:I'll just say substance.

00:58:31Marc:Yeah, because I remember when we were touring that people kind of knew that you were kind of strung out.

00:58:37Guest:Going through some things.

00:58:39Guest:Going through some shit.

00:58:40Guest:Going through some things.

00:58:40Marc:Like you didn't know what Tommy you were going to get, that kind of thing.

00:58:43Marc:Which Tommy showed up.

00:58:44Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

00:58:46Guest:Well, the thing is, if he shows up, he'll kill.

00:58:49Guest:Right, no matter what.

00:58:50Guest:Yeah, I never did it on stage.

00:58:51Guest:Right.

00:58:51Guest:Yeah, but it was part of my forging process, and Mitzi told me, I'm glad it happened early.

00:58:58Marc:The substance stuff.

00:58:59Guest:Yeah, I'm glad it happened early in your career.

00:59:01Marc:Yeah.

00:59:02Guest:That way you can deal with it.

00:59:03Guest:You don't have to wait till you're like in your 50s and like Richard and them.

00:59:07Guest:Right.

00:59:07Guest:You can get it and deal with it and have a life.

00:59:10Guest:Did you?

00:59:10Guest:Yeah.

00:59:12Guest:Like, dude, I just read that book on Richard.

00:59:13Guest:I don't know how the fuck he even got angry.

00:59:15Guest:Got a life.

00:59:16Guest:Got one.

00:59:17Guest:Got one.

00:59:18Guest:Got a life.

00:59:20Guest:You know, kids graduated from college.

00:59:23Guest:Me, I'm the best I've ever been.

00:59:25Guest:The most potential I've ever had.

00:59:28Guest:When you say it wasn't about that.

00:59:30Guest:It was about me.

00:59:33Guest:What it was was about me knowing who I am and why I'm here.

00:59:40Guest:Huh.

00:59:41Guest:And what process did you do to find that stuff?

00:59:44Guest:Just in recovery.

00:59:46Guest:Yeah.

00:59:46Guest:In recovery.

00:59:47Guest:I have a lot of people that know about it that I connected with.

00:59:50Guest:Yeah, I got 15, 16 years.

00:59:51Guest:Yeah, that taught me how.

00:59:53Guest:Right.

00:59:53Guest:That taught me how to stay clean and live happily.

00:59:55Guest:Uh-huh.

00:59:56Guest:You know, and it took.

00:59:58Guest:Yeah.

00:59:59Guest:It took.

00:59:59Yeah.

01:00:00Marc:How many times did it take?

01:00:02Marc:Took me a few.

01:00:03Guest:Yeah, it took me a few.

01:00:05Guest:Yeah, more than 10.

01:00:06Guest:Yeah.

01:00:07Guest:Double digits.

01:00:08Guest:But my cousin told me one time, he said, you went to rehab, right?

01:00:12Guest:Yeah.

01:00:13Guest:He said, more than once, right?

01:00:14Guest:I said, yeah.

01:00:14Guest:He said, then it didn't work.

01:00:16Guest:I said, no, it did work.

01:00:18Guest:Yeah, finally.

01:00:18Guest:Because if I didn't do it, I'd be out of here.

01:00:20Guest:Yeah.

01:00:21Guest:Yeah.

01:00:22Guest:Thank God I don't have to be with Farley and some other guys.

01:00:26Yeah.

01:00:26Guest:I look back on that and I never thought I'd say I'm happy that happened.

01:00:31Guest:Sure.

01:00:32Guest:But I'm happy that happened.

01:00:33Guest:Yeah.

01:00:34Guest:Yeah, because look at me, man.

01:00:36Guest:I'm like 51 now.

01:00:39Guest:But eight years old, man.

01:00:41Guest:Right.

01:00:41Guest:Yeah, man.

01:00:42Guest:You can see it.

01:00:43Guest:It's just like, yeah.

01:00:44Guest:I'm open.

01:00:45Guest:I'm connected, bro.

01:00:46Guest:Yeah.

01:00:46Guest:Silver Surfer.

01:00:47Guest:Yeah, yeah, yeah.

01:00:48Guest:Silver Surfer can go from one university to the other.

01:00:51Guest:Yeah.

01:00:51Guest:He's bad.

01:00:52Marc:He's badass.

01:00:52Marc:And do you have good relationship with all your kids and all your- Great.

01:00:56Marc:Their mothers?

01:00:57Guest:Yeah, their exes.

01:00:57Marc:Well, you know.

01:00:58Marc:Yeah.

01:00:59Guest:Yeah.

01:00:59Marc:Did you put together shit from your childhood?

01:01:04Marc:Did you ever do that shit?

01:01:06Guest:Yeah, there was a lot connected to that.

01:01:09Guest:None of it was the reason why I did it.

01:01:11Guest:Of course not.

01:01:12Guest:But I did see some of the contributing factors that would make me want to reach for something other than things that I already have.

01:01:23Guest:Now I know what I have, so I don't need anything.

01:01:25Guest:Yeah.

01:01:26Guest:So I don't have to add anything to me because I'm complete.

01:01:29Marc:Right.

01:01:30Marc:And you fucking always work, dude.

01:01:32Marc:You seem to work a lot.

01:01:34Guest:I never stopped working.

01:01:35Guest:Right.

01:01:36Guest:Through the whole ordeal.

01:01:37Guest:Right.

01:01:38Guest:I never stopped working.

01:01:40Guest:Something in me wanted life and wanted to do this bad.

01:01:45Guest:And so I'd have a setback, come back, and do something even greater on screen, something even greater in TV, something even greater in stand-up.

01:01:55Guest:I actually became a better performer as time went on.

01:01:59Guest:And I still don't think I've reached my peak.

01:02:03Guest:What's the plan?

01:02:05Guest:Today's good.

01:02:06Good.

01:02:06Guest:Made it on over here.

01:02:09Guest:We hit the traffic in time enough.

01:02:12Guest:You know what I mean?

01:02:14Guest:Maybe able to sneak in a little nap.

01:02:17Guest:I still got some chicken left from Ralph's.

01:02:22Marc:When you perform though, do you do Vegas?

01:02:24Marc:I'm around the country.

01:02:26Guest:I do clubs around the country, concerts around the country, and I do venues around the world.

01:02:31Marc:You do international?

01:02:32Guest:International.

01:02:33Marc:I've been traveling the world.

01:02:34Marc:Where do you go?

01:02:35Marc:I just came from Kuwait.

01:02:36Marc:How was that?

01:02:37Marc:I know that a lot of people go down the Emirates and whatnot.

01:02:39Marc:Really?

01:02:39Marc:Wonderful.

01:02:41Marc:What kind of crowd?

01:02:42Guest:Stand-up.

01:02:42Guest:Yeah?

01:02:43Guest:Great young Kuwaiti, you know, Kuwaiti-American friendly crowd.

01:02:48Marc:And they remember you or they know you?

01:02:49Guest:Killed.

01:02:50Guest:Yeah.

01:02:51Guest:Third time there.

01:02:52Guest:Really?

01:02:53Guest:Egypt.

01:02:54Guest:Japan.

01:02:54Guest:Egypt.

01:02:55Guest:Korea.

01:02:56Guest:Yeah.

01:02:57Guest:Singapore.

01:02:59Yeah.

01:03:00Guest:The Philippines.

01:03:03Guest:Kurdistan.

01:03:04Guest:Really?

01:03:05Guest:India.

01:03:07Guest:And where do you, where do most of these shows take place?

01:03:09Guest:Military bases.

01:03:11Guest:Oh.

01:03:11Guest:Alaska, the North Pole.

01:03:12Guest:So you're doing, you're performing for the troops?

01:03:14Guest:Oh yeah.

01:03:14Guest:Okay.

01:03:15Guest:Oh yeah.

01:03:16Guest:I went into the Red Zone and went to Afghanistan four times.

01:03:18Marc:Really they love it, right?

01:03:20Guest:They love initiative loving it.

01:03:21Marc:What do you do mostly for that show?

01:03:23Guest:What I do?

01:03:24Guest:Yeah, they love it.

01:03:25Guest:They're waiting on me.

01:03:26Guest:Yeah, I've been able to do some good things God was in I'm one base in um bag room.

01:03:32Guest:I believe yeah, and Three of our boys were shot on the outside of the base not far from where I was staying actually and one died one spine was severed and one lost his foot and

01:03:47Guest:So they knock on my door early in the morning.

01:03:49Guest:All the brass is out front.

01:03:50Guest:I'm going, Jesus, I think they better have a helicopter out there.

01:03:54Guest:And they said, would you come and say hello to the young man that lost his foot?

01:03:59Guest:And this is one of the reasons I found out why I'm doing what I'm doing.

01:04:03Guest:It's why I'm glad what happened happened.

01:04:06Guest:I'm walking over there going, what am I going to say to this kid?

01:04:11Guest:So I did my little prayer.

01:04:14Guest:Just show me what I need to do here.

01:04:16Guest:And I'm talking about everybody peeled off as I was walking towards the curtain that surrounded the bed.

01:04:22Guest:It was just me.

01:04:25Guest:Okay, they really want me to do this by myself.

01:04:28Guest:Yeah.

01:04:28Guest:So I peel back the curtains and the kid is like kind of sleep he wakes up and sits up and go and smiles man goes What are you doing here?

01:04:36Guest:And I said I was about to ask you the same thing.

01:04:39Marc:Yeah, we talked for an hour really and it was a cinch Yeah, you just needed to show up That's sweet man.

01:04:47Guest:Were you always a religious person?

01:04:49Guest:No, no, my mom was a staunch atheist, man, so I never had that.

01:04:54Marc:Really staunch atheist?

01:04:55Guest:Kind of a hippie.

01:04:56Guest:Uh-huh.

01:04:57Guest:Kind of, you know, leftist, revolutionary, you know.

01:05:01Guest:What religion was she?

01:05:02Guest:None.

01:05:03Guest:None?

01:05:03Guest:None.

01:05:04Guest:Not brought up with any?

01:05:06Guest:She believed that was the opium of the masses.

01:05:08Guest:Right.

01:05:09Guest:Which it has been used as.

01:05:10Guest:Of course.

01:05:11Guest:I get it.

01:05:11Marc:But like in terms of when you kind of get grooved into a day at a time business.

01:05:18Marc:Right.

01:05:19Guest:Well, you know, she was a spiritual person.

01:05:22Guest:Right.

01:05:22Guest:And that was the difference between a religious person.

01:05:25Guest:And I found that I'm a spiritual person.

01:05:27Guest:Sure.

01:05:27Guest:And I accept religious principles.

01:05:29Guest:yeah right be good to other people everybody got it yeah the part where I gotta kill you because you believe that yeah I don't think JC or Allah said that one right that was man's interpretation plus you know God is man's interpretation it's all yeah it's all I mean it took a man to tell another man that that exists anyway for as far as we know God never came down and said hey here I am someone made it up to give us all purpose you know what I'm saying sure God could be a Puerto Rican woman

01:05:59Guest:drinking green whiskey.

01:06:01Guest:We don't know.

01:06:02Guest:That would be very exciting to find that out.

01:06:04Guest:But we have faith.

01:06:05Guest:Faith is different.

01:06:07Marc:So what about all your kids?

01:06:08Marc:You guys all get along?

01:06:10Marc:What are they doing?

01:06:11Guest:Anyone in show business?

01:06:12Guest:They're great.

01:06:13Guest:My daughter Jillian, she's giving it a shot.

01:06:15Guest:She's starting to audition.

01:06:18Guest:Oh, acting?

01:06:18Guest:She's into the acting thing.

01:06:20Marc:How's that going for her?

01:06:21Guest:I mean, not so good.

01:06:22Guest:Yeah.

01:06:22Guest:She got to get a job.

01:06:24Marc:Yeah.

01:06:24Marc:Well, what do you tell her?

01:06:25Guest:It doesn't work unless you have a job.

01:06:27Marc:Right.

01:06:27Marc:Well, what do you tell her about show business?

01:06:28Marc:I mean, I can't, I don't know.

01:06:29Marc:Would you, obviously you can't say don't do it.

01:06:32Marc:All I can say is, you know.

01:06:33Marc:It's hard.

01:06:34Guest:I can say the things that I learned.

01:06:36Guest:Right.

01:06:36Guest:That work.

01:06:37Guest:Which are?

01:06:38Guest:Work hard and don't give up.

01:06:40Guest:Find a way to make a good living.

01:06:42Guest:Embrace your life.

01:06:43Guest:Right.

01:06:44Guest:And commit.

01:06:44Marc:Yeah.

01:06:45Guest:And give everything you got every time.

01:06:47Guest:That's my recipe.

01:06:48Marc:Mm-hmm.

01:06:49Marc:And that's what she's going to take?

01:06:51Marc:You know what I hope?

01:06:52Marc:What are the other ones interested in?

01:06:53Marc:Not the eight-year-old.

01:06:54Guest:One's a DJ downtown.

01:06:56Guest:Oh, yeah?

01:06:57Guest:He's in the DJ world, 19-year-old.

01:07:00Marc:Having a good time?

01:07:01Guest:Good kid?

01:07:01Guest:Having too good of a time.

01:07:02Guest:I want him to get a job.

01:07:05Guest:My other son's autistic.

01:07:07Guest:Doing well.

01:07:08Guest:At what level?

01:07:10Guest:What does that mean?

01:07:11Guest:He's functioning.

01:07:14Guest:He's graduated from high school.

01:07:15Guest:Now it's a job and he's taking care of himself.

01:07:18Guest:So, you know, autism is one of those things that's hard to understand and it's difficult on parents, but it's like anything else.

01:07:24Guest:You know, you see people with no legs running the Olympics, so.

01:07:26Marc:Yeah.

01:07:27Marc:So that must have been a challenge?

01:07:29Guest:Challenge.

01:07:30Marc:Yeah.

01:07:30Marc:Real challenge.

01:07:31Marc:Especially since not being with a mom.

01:07:33Marc:Uh-huh.

01:07:33Marc:Because you're not with a mom.

01:07:34Guest:Right.

01:07:34Guest:So not being able to be there every day and understand that.

01:07:38Guest:Right.

01:07:38Guest:I've had to just keep faith about the relationship and it's there.

01:07:41Guest:As long as I do my part and love like my mom loved me, I know everything's okay.

01:07:46Marc:Yeah, and you have that with all the kids.

01:07:48Marc:All of them.

01:07:49Marc:And the eight-year-old is in your house now.

01:07:51Guest:No, she lives in San Jose.

01:07:52Marc:Oh, my God, you don't hold on to any of the women.

01:07:55Guest:Yeah, but I see her.

01:07:55Marc:Okay.

01:07:56Marc:All the time.

01:07:57Marc:All the time.

01:07:58Marc:You got no woman right now?

01:07:59Marc:I do have a woman.

01:08:00Marc:Okay.

01:08:00Marc:Is it good?

01:08:01Marc:It's good.

01:08:02Marc:It's good?

01:08:02Marc:Yeah, it's good.

01:08:03Marc:But not those three.

01:08:04Marc:Not those three.

01:08:05Guest:Yeah, today's good.

01:08:07Marc:A day at a time, bro.

01:08:08Marc:I know, man.

01:08:10Marc:Look, I'm glad you stopped by.

01:08:11Marc:I'm glad we had the conversation.

01:08:14Guest:You don't come, you know...

01:08:15Guest:You don't get this a lot.

01:08:17Guest:What?

01:08:17Guest:To have the long talk?

01:08:18Guest:Yeah.

01:08:18Guest:Because, I mean, it's all automated.

01:08:20Guest:Yeah, I know.

01:08:21Guest:The music program.

01:08:22Guest:What do you got going?

01:08:22Guest:Where are you going to meet?

01:08:23Guest:The music program.

01:08:24Marc:Do that thing.

01:08:25Guest:Yeah.

01:08:26Guest:There's not a real resident DJ as a guy.

01:08:28Guest:Uh-huh.

01:08:29Guest:That's just kind of like a technician.

01:08:31Marc:Yeah.

01:08:31Guest:No.

01:08:31Guest:And you're up out of there.

01:08:32Guest:Yeah.

01:08:33Guest:Yeah.

01:08:33Guest:Satellite.

01:08:33Guest:Yeah.

01:08:34Marc:We're going to do four minutes.

01:08:35Marc:What do you want me to set you up for?

01:08:38Guest:Thank you, man.

01:08:38Marc:Yeah.

01:08:39Guest:Great.

01:08:39Guest:And now, don't forget to be a part of the match.

01:08:41Guest:You're going to be a part of the happening at the improv this week.

01:08:44Marc:Yeah.

01:08:44Marc:That's it.

01:08:44Marc:Well, it's great talking to you, man.

01:08:45Marc:I'm glad you're doing well.

01:08:46Marc:Good for you.

01:08:47Marc:Thank you.

01:08:47Guest:Good for you.

01:08:48Marc:You got what I got.

01:08:54Marc:Well, there you go.

01:08:54Marc:That was Tommy Davidson.

01:08:56Marc:This is me, Mark Maron.

01:08:57Marc:Go to WTFPod.com for all your WTFPod needs.

01:09:00Marc:Get on the mailing list.

01:09:01Marc:I'll email you every week, every Sunday.

01:09:04Marc:Go to WTFPod.com slash calendar.

01:09:07Marc:Check those dates because I'm coming near you.

01:09:09Marc:Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis, New Jersey, New York, Portland.

01:09:14Marc:It's all happening.

01:09:15Marc:Denver.

01:09:17Marc:I got the Buddha out here.

01:09:18Marc:The Buddha being...

01:09:25Marc:The Gibson ES-335.

01:09:26Marc:The Buddha.

01:09:31Guest:.

01:09:56.

01:09:59Guest:Boomer lives!