BONUS The Friday Show - Professional Tourists
Marc:Hey.
Marc:What's up?
Marc:Someone just wailing on their horn as soon as I joined the meeting.
Guest:Oh, really?
Marc:Just wailing.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Thanks.
Marc:Thanks, neighbor.
Guest:I got a bird outside that won't shut the fuck up.
Guest:That's adorable, you know?
Guest:I guess, but it's like, what are you doing, guy?
Guest:Like, settle down out there.
Yeah.
Marc:Well, usually my cats are there meowing, so I'm glad they're outside.
Guest:All right.
Guest:And five seconds.
Guest:You hear that fucking bird?
Guest:I do not.
Guest:Oh my God.
Guest:It's so loud.
Guest:Shut the fuck up, bird.
Guest:Hey, Chris.
Guest:Brendan, long time no talk, my friend.
Guest:How are you?
Guest:It has been, although our listeners are unaware of that, really.
Guest:To them, we just did a show last week, but we didn't.
Guest:We recorded that multiple weeks ago now, and in fact, I have an apology to make, because I said to our listeners, next week we will be back to our regular schedule, but we're not.
Guest:We're still taping this in advance.
Marc:That's true.
Guest:We're taping it on a different day than we normally do because of a guy named Marc Maron.
Guest:He's going to be... Ever heard of him?
Guest:I'm sure a few people have who are subscribed to this.
Guest:But he's going to be in Montclair, which is just a stone's throw away from you.
Guest:That's right.
Guest:In fact, by the time people are listening to this, he will have already done it.
Marc:That's right.
Marc:And I must say, I'm very excited to hear this goddamn tag that Chris Rock has given.
Guest:Oh, you haven't heard that yet.
Guest:Right.
Marc:The anticipation is building and building.
Marc:I cannot wait to hear this tag.
Marc:So, yeah, I'll be very happy next time you hear our voices.
Marc:I will have heard it.
Marc:And yeah, I'm sure it's going to be great.
Guest:I wonder if you're going to know which one it is.
Guest:That's funny.
Marc:Well, I mean, there have been clues.
Marc:There have been context clues.
Marc:I know it's what you all call the babysitter story, which I think is not the baby.
Marc:Anyway, it's the babysitter story.
Marc:So there's a tag to that story.
Marc:So that's what I know.
Marc:And I know it's a pop culture reference.
Guest:So, all right, well, we'll find out together during this show, which will have happened by the time people are hearing this.
Guest:Mark will be in Philadelphia tonight and and then Washington, D.C.
Guest:on Saturday.
Guest:But but that's not why we're here.
Guest:We're here to catch up on all the things that we've missed in the last couple of weeks of WTF and in and out of the orbit of Mark Maron.
Guest:Have you been taking stuff in, Chris?
Marc:I mean, I have, especially since you went on vacation.
Marc:I don't think people realize this, but when you say you're going on vacation, you go on vacation.
Marc:Phone off.
Marc:No texting.
Marc:No correspondence whatsoever.
Marc:Like, I don't know how you do it, but tell me, this must have been a conscious decision by you.
Guest:Oh, it always is.
Guest:How did you come about it?
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:I just never, I don't compromise.
Guest:Zero compromises with vacation.
Guest:In fact, you must not have emailed me.
Guest:You don't ever have any reason to email me.
Guest:No.
Guest:But if you emailed me while I was gone, my out-of-office email said, I am currently on vacation until Monday, April 29th, and not one of those I'm on vacation, but I'm working by the pool vacations, a for-real vacation.
Guest:So it's highly unlikely you will hear back from me until I return.
Guest:And anyone who emailed me got that.
Guest:You could have been in the White House.
Guest:That's the email you would have gotten from me.
Marc:Wow.
Marc:Wow.
Marc:So I'm impressed.
Marc:I am very, very impressed.
Marc:Because, I mean, I texted you.
Marc:The Mets were sniffing around a no-hitter.
Marc:And I was like, hey, did they get the Mets game in Florida?
Marc:No response.
Marc:I'm like, ooh, okay.
Marc:All right.
Marc:Either he's dead or he is taking this vacation very seriously.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:In most cases I would, I never even looked at my phone.
Guest:I mean, I, and I put all those things on, do not disturb, whatever.
Guest:So I never saw your notification until probably a day later, two days later.
Guest:Wild.
Guest:Good for you, man.
Guest:It's the only way to go.
Guest:Like I can't, you can't, it's not a vacation if you let the outside in.
Marc:I guess I don't know.
Marc:I still look at my phone at night.
Marc:I don't know how I would... Oh, man.
Guest:I completely... I wish I could throw it in the river while I'm gone.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Wow.
Marc:Good for you.
Marc:I mean, you are obviously a very...
Marc:self-disciplined person, but that is like ninja level self-discipline.
Guest:Well, I'll tell you, it went one step further.
Guest:I deleted like all like social media apps from my phone while I was gone just because for the same reason, I just didn't want the ability to even look at them.
Guest:And it was so nice.
Guest:They're still all gone.
Guest:And I went and blocked them on my desktop browser when I got back.
Guest:I will not be looking at any of them anymore.
Marc:Oh, this is fascinating.
Marc:First of all, you have to tell us, update us when the blocking stops happening because I love to know how long you can go because that is such a commitment.
Marc:Good for you.
Marc:Like, does Dawn do the same thing?
Guest:I mean, she's not on them.
Guest:I think she uses, like, you know, the Facebook feed for her friends to send pictures about their kids and that.
Guest:But she has never been on, like, you know, socials that we have been on.
Marc:Wow.
Marc:Good for you.
Marc:This is incredible.
Marc:So it sounds like you may have missed some news while you were gone.
Marc:I definitely did.
Marc:Let me sort of...
Marc:Talk about the top stories, at least what I think are the top stories that you may have missed while you're gone.
Marc:Is that okay?
Marc:Can you indulge me?
Marc:Yeah, please do.
Marc:All right.
Marc:Top story.
Marc:The first story I want to talk about, Taylor Swift debuted a new album, The Tortured Poets Department.
Guest:Oh, I think that happened the night before I left.
Guest:So I did see the album.
Guest:I did not listen to it.
Marc:Oh, you didn't listen.
Marc:That's what I was wondering.
Marc:So this album made history, Brendan.
Marc:This week, it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and was the largest streaming week ever for an album.
Marc:So that's her 14th number one album.
Guest:Things are going well for her.
Guest:Congrats.
Marc:Really well.
Marc:Really well.
Marc:Also, the Billboard Top 10, all 10 spots, all Taylor Swift.
Marc:So it was a really big week for her.
Marc:So does Mark still need, is he seeking out her permission for a song as a tag for the end of his show?
Guest:Well, I don't think he's seeking it as permission now, but I think if it gets to a point where he sells this thing as a special, then he'll have to or he won't be able to use it for sure.
Guest:Gotcha.
Guest:Okay.
Marc:All right.
Marc:Well, you didn't listen, but my favorites, just so you know for future reference, Fortnite.
Marc:Featuring Post Malone.
Guest:Let me write this down.
Marc:Yeah, yeah, please do.
Marc:Fortnite with capital F. Down Bad, Thank You Amy, which is a Taylor Swift diss track to Kim Kardashian.
Marc:Really?
Marc:Yes, really.
Marc:It is a diss track to Kim Kardashian, and it is chef's kiss.
Marc:It is beautiful.
Who's the Amy?
Marc:Well, that's just the thing.
Marc:So here's the thing.
Marc:The title is Thank You, Amy.
Marc:And the words Thank You, Amy are all lowercase, except for the K in thank.
Marc:It spells out Kim instead of... So that's her track to... And you just have to listen to it.
Marc:It is lovely.
Marc:Know that she is talking about Kim Kardashian during the song.
Marc:Right.
Marc:So it is great.
Marc:So, so yeah.
Marc:So thank you, Amy, which is great.
Marc:And then lastly, Florida featuring Florence and the Machine.
Marc:Those were by far the best songs.
Marc:Everything else is kind of meh, honestly.
Marc:All right.
Marc:I'll take your word for it.
Marc:Well, no.
Marc:Seek it out.
Guest:Okay, I will.
Marc:Tune on the radio.
Marc:I sure will.
Marc:There's a Taylor Swift channel on Sirius Radio, which brings me to the next topic that I want to talk to you about.
Marc:Joe Biden shocked the world with a one-hour sit-down interview with the self-proclaimed king of media, Howard Stern.
Guest:Mark Maron.
Guest:Oh, Howard Stern.
Marc:Yeah.
Okay.
Marc:This is why I want to bring it up to you.
Marc:So Biden was in the room with Howard talking about a wide range of topics, including how he felt after the tragic deaths of his wife and daughter in 1972.
Marc:This was a fantastic interview.
Marc:Have you had a chance to listen to this interview?
Guest:I barely knew it happened.
Guest:I saw that there was something about Howard and Biden, and I assumed it was an interview, but I didn't investigate further.
Marc:Okay.
Marc:You just thought maybe they had dinner or were playing poker.
Marc:Yeah.
Guest:Or it was like a one question thing.
Guest:I didn't know that it was a full sit down.
Marc:Gotcha.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:It was great.
Marc:And so I guess my question to you was going to be like, did Baba Booey or anyone else at the Howard Stern show ever get in touch with you?
Marc:It sounds like probably not, but you know, you are one of the few people who have had the sitting president on their show.
Marc:So did anyone from their team, you know, talk to you?
Guest:No, I wouldn't expect them to.
Guest:I mean, they they they've done this for a lot longer than I have, and they've had plenty of guests who they can, you know, who probably required more advanced work than Joe Biden.
Guest:You know, so I I don't think they need to seek out my advice.
Guest:I, you know, they they're welcome to it, but no, no need on on that front.
Guest:You know, Gary's got many years on me of experience.
Guest:Right.
Marc:And so the reverse of that is, did anyone from Biden's team reach out to you about Joe Biden being on your show in the recent years?
Guest:In recent years, yeah.
Guest:And I've always maintained the same thing we maintain with Obama.
Guest:Like, here's the deal.
Guest:Here's how we do it.
Guest:come to the garage, sit and talk for an hour and do the thing.
Guest:And I send them all the info that they require.
Guest:And then I just never hear from anything.
Guest:That's happened twice.
Guest:And, you know, it's just, I don't track it down.
Guest:I don't chase it.
Guest:We don't...
Guest:We're not in the business of interviewing presidents, but if a president wants to come on and play by our rules, we've always said, then we'll do it.
Guest:Mark said that about Trump.
Guest:He literally said, if Donald Trump wants to give us the same parameters that Barack Obama did, which is basically, it's our choice what we do, and it's free reign and...
Guest:one hour final cut for us, no influence, nothing like that.
Guest:He would do it.
Guest:Like that's, that's the way it goes.
Guest:But like, yeah, if they, you know, I, I w I don't expect people of their, um,
Guest:background to do it.
Guest:I think it's pretty cool that he did with Howard.
Guest:I think that that's probably, that owes a lot to the fact that Howard still has a lot of media cachet in a certain age cohort, right?
Guest:Yeah, exactly.
Guest:Exactly.
Guest:You know, like Joe Biden, who watches Morning Joe every day, I think it's a much easier lift for his comms people to convince him, hey, you know what would be great for you for like a loose talk that kind of shows who you are as a person and not just, you know...
Guest:80 year old politician uh go talk to howard stern he would know immediately what that means and he would do it if it were mark maron they have to sell that right remember the guy who talked to obama in his garage and he'd be like what i gotta go to a garage like you know so i i i get the howardness of it i get why they would do that i think like where did you hear it
Marc:Oh, I heard it.
Marc:I got Sirius XM radio in my car now.
Guest:In your car.
Marc:Okay.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:So I listen to it.
Guest:That's always the thing with me is it's like ever since Howard went there, you know, I don't care how many people get the thing in their car.
Guest:It's just a limited audience.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:It has a limited reach.
Yeah.
Guest:And that was one of the great things about when Obama did our podcast was like it was just instantaneous.
Guest:People could get it anywhere.
Guest:Right.
Guest:Right.
Marc:This was a slow trickle of news where people were like, oh, because it was a complete surprise.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:They didn't promote it.
Marc:And I was just like, oh, oh, he's on there for an hour.
Marc:So I was actually like listening, like in my car, like old school, like in my driveway, just listening to the president of the United States talk to Howard Stern.
Guest:Yeah, it's funny.
Guest:It's like, in a different time, it would have been such a huge deal, right?
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Because just Howard was everywhere.
Guest:He was ubiquitous.
Guest:But that's interesting.
Guest:What still would be an easier lift for Joe Biden's comms team to get him to do the Howard show is not the maximal...
Guest:audience that he would get.
Guest:He'd have better audience going on Joe Rogan, frankly.
Right, yeah.
Marc:Yeah, yeah, it's very limited with the SiriusXM.
Marc:But, I mean, I guess they're doing strategy, and they probably know who the audience is for Howard Stern, and they want to talk to them.
Marc:So, yeah.
Marc:All right, next story that you may have missed while you were on vacation.
Marc:Jerry Seinfeld sat down with the New York Radio Hour to advertise his new movie, Unfrosted.
Marc:This is a movie about the race to invent the Pop-Tart in the 60s.
Marc:During that interview, Seinfeld stated that TV comedy is being killed by the extreme, and I quote, extreme left and PC crap and people worrying so much about offending other people.
Marc:He says that comedy fans are now going to see stand-up comics because stand-up comedians are not policed by anyone.
Marc:The audience polices us.
Marc:We know when we're off track.
Marc:We know instantly and we adjust to it instantly.
Marc:But when you write a script and it goes into four or five different hands, committees, groups, here's our thought about this joke.
Marc:Well, that's the end of your comedy.
Marc:When David Remnick, the host of the show, asked, well, has this experience ever happened to you?
Marc:His response was no.
Marc:So what are your thoughts on Jerry Seinfeld saying that TV comedy is being killed by the extreme left and PC?
Guest:I don't even know what that means.
Guest:I don't even think Jerry knows what it means.
Guest:Like, the way you explain that, that answer, that it's like, he's like, oh, it's being, the TV comedy's being killed, but stand-up is free.
Guest:It's like, well, what do you want to tell all those anti-woke comics who say they can't say anything anymore?
Guest:Like, and, but they're saying it for the same reason he says TV can't do anything anymore.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Also, didn't his friend just end a 12-season show that was like one of the most offensive things ever put on television?
Marc:And he was fine.
Marc:He said that Larry David was grandfathered in.
Marc:So he is exempt from what Jerry says is killing TV comedy.
Marc:But it does feel like the snake eating its tail, right?
Guest:I'm just so bored of these old guys complaining about how everything they don't like is...
Guest:is about woke.
Guest:I hate it.
Guest:It's just like, get a new line, you dorks.
Marc:Right, right.
Marc:Well, Jerry also said during this interview that he and Chris Rock agree that a great comedian working his entire life has two great hours in them.
Marc:What do you think about that?
Marc:Do you think that's true?
Marc:I don't know.
Guest:I don't care.
Guest:This guy, like what the hell?
Guest:What are these?
Guest:I mean, that's fine to sit around the comedy cellar at the back table and say that.
Guest:What the hell does that even mean?
Guest:A great comedian has two great hours in them?
Guest:Says who?
Guest:It's just dumb.
Guest:It's like everything, all these rules that they have.
Guest:Oh no, but you have to do the joke.
Guest:How about
Guest:If you laugh, it's funny.
Guest:If you think it's smart, it's good.
Guest:You don't have to laugh.
Guest:You can laugh.
Guest:What are these rules?
Guest:I don't get it.
Marc:Yeah.
Guest:I think it just comes off as lazy.
Marc:It's just lazy.
Guest:I think it comes off as a rich guy who's been told, you know, he's great his whole life.
Guest:And so now he's got all these proclamations that, you know, he thinks are from the mount on high.
Marc:Right.
Marc:Right.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:You're right.
Marc:And that's how I feel as well.
Guest:Well, I did see, I barely saw, you know, I saw a headline of that yesterday and I didn't even bother reading what the quote was because I knew it was going to bother me.
Guest:But I did because I get like stuff, you know, emailed to me when there's a Mark Maron mention in any kind of news article.
Guest:And there was an AP interview with Jerry, I guess because he's making the rounds due to that movie and
Guest:And the person, the guy interviewing him said, you and Marc Maron had a great debate on his podcast as almost diametrically opposed comedians.
Guest:He believes in bearing his soul on stage.
Guest:You pledge fidelity to the joke.
Guest:I thought you both were right.
Guest:And Seinfeld said,
Guest:So I like that because I feel like it's a kind of argument settler for a lot of people about that Seinfeld episode where people have always been like, I think, you know, Jerry was right.
Guest:I think Mark was right.
Guest:It's like, well, here you got Jerry saying, well, you're right.
Guest:We were both right.
Guest:But I do think it was noteworthy that this guy brought it up, this interviewer, I should credit him from the Associated Press, Jake Coyle.
Guest:And Jerry was like, yeah, yeah, I get it.
Guest:We're both right on that.
Guest:That was pretty cool.
Marc:Yeah, that was cool.
Marc:All right.
Marc:Last piece of news I want to talk to you about comes from NBC Philadelphia and not, as I first thought, The Onion.
Marc:And this headline is that Dave and Buster's to allow customers to bet on arcade games.
Guest:Yes, I did hear about this story.
Guest:I heard about this story because I was the one who sent it to you.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:So Dave & Buster's will begin offering loyalty members the ability to bet on its games, ages 18 and older, to place real money wagers on arcade games with friends.
Marc:What do you think about this, Brendan?
Marc:How would you like to lose your mortgage?
Marc:Would you like to lose it on skee-ball, hoops?
Marc:For me, it's Mario Kart, honestly.
Guest:I did ask you to think about what would be the stupidest game you could die over that a bet was made on, right?
Guest:Like a game that someone that you bet against, they just like...
Guest:them losing cost them everything.
Guest:And so they immediately pull out a gun and kill you.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:And yes, you mentioned Mario cart and I imagine it happening in like the most, like, like this guy thinks he's going to win.
Guest:He's right there at the end.
Guest:And then you blast him with like, I don't know.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Turtle shell.
Guest:I mean, honestly, I think a jury might let him off.
Marc:Your honor, the banana peel is highly offensive.
Guest:Yeah, yeah.
Guest:There's nobody else in that jury that wouldn't have done the same thing.
Guest:I think it would be the big wheel.
Guest:You know the big wheel?
Guest:I don't.
Marc:I've never been to a Dave & Buster's.
Guest:What is a big wheel?
Guest:You know, like you pull on it and it goes around with numbers on it.
Guest:And when it lands on the number, you win that amount of tickets, right?
Marc:Oh, okay.
Guest:And there's this tiny little sliver in the middle that's like for like a thousand tickets and no one can ever land on it.
Guest:And I can just imagine somebody betting someone like their life that there's no way you're going to hit that thing.
Guest:And the thing is, it would tick so slowly.
Guest:Boop, boop, boop, boop, boop.
Guest:And it's like, you don't know, you know, five seconds before whether it's going to hit that thing or whether it's going to be just off.
Guest:And I can imagine, like, you just hear the sounds.
Guest:It would be like, you know, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop.
Guest:Yeah!
Guest:That's a good one.
Marc:I see they have Pac-Man there.
Marc:I can imagine a world where, by the way, first of all, I must say, I'm highly against this.
Marc:As a person who is very anti-online gaming, this is the worst.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:What are we doing?
Marc:We're now allowing people to bet on an arcade game with their friends.
Marc:Don't you see the hell that we're about to step into if we keep down this road?
Marc:Unleashed.
Marc:Like, what is happening here?
Marc:They also have a Connect Four, which I think is a great way to lose $10,000, is to lose a game of Connect Four with your friends.
Guest:There's those ones that are like Basketball Connect Four.
Guest:Have you ever seen that one?
Guest:That's a good one.
Guest:I wouldn't bet on that one.
Guest:I just can't imagine.
Guest:Like, the...
Guest:Like it's one thing to lose money on like real sports or like you bet somebody about like a three on three basketball game you're going to have.
Guest:Can you imagine like all your money is hinging on whether you can like sink a buzzer beater on like the movable basketball hoop?
Guest:Right.
Guest:These stupid fucking games.
Marc:Brendan, the year is 2050 and the remake of Color Money is out and it takes place in a Dave and Buster's.
Guest:this is this is bad yeah instead of a pool cue the guy comes in with his own like virtual reality helmet right it's like ready player one oh yeah yeah what do you call it doom no really it's called doom it plays the game doom right in here
Marc:All right.
Marc:Well, one other thing you did miss this week was me.
Marc:I was in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
Guest:Your hood.
Guest:Right near my hood.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:That's right.
Marc:I was there to celebrate my friend Ivy's poetry book tour ending.
Marc:Okay.
Marc:So I went to this fancy party.
Marc:I was in this multi-million dollar brownstone in the filet of the neighborhood out there.
Marc:And
Marc:I was very much not in my element.
Marc:I was the odd duck at this party.
Guest:It's odd for someone to say sir to you without adding you're making a scene.
Ha!
Marc:Yes.
Marc:Or or to also have this is a Wendy's after.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:So at this poetry party, attendees were asked to recite a poem or work that they wrote.
Marc:And as you know, I am very much not a poet, but I do have one story that I know backwards and forwards.
Guest:Oh.
Marc:And I was in the area.
Marc:Yes, Park Slope Food Co-op.
Marc:I told 20 or so strangers my Park Slope Food Co-op story.
Guest:Did you do it like beat poetry, though?
Marc:Yes.
Marc:Well, so, listen, first of all...
Marc:Everyone there is reading off of their phone.
Marc:And as you who just locks your phone away in a cabinet during, uh, during vacation, can you imagine just reading poetry off of your phone?
Marc:It just sounds awful.
Guest:Anyway.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:So everyone was reading off a phone.
Marc:Uh, I was not, but before I got to do my story, uh, the people before me, and I just want to point out, this is supposed to be a party, right?
Marc:It's very, very elegant sort of party.
Marc:Uh,
Marc:The party starts with a poem and song about the situation in Israel and Palestine.
Marc:And I'm like, oh boy, I might want to reconsider my choice of content here.
Marc:The next poem is about someone's vulva.
Marc:I'm sorry, what?
Guest:About their vagina.
Guest:Okay, all right.
Guest:I thought you meant like a car that's very safe.
Okay.
Guest:They love this beige Volvo.
Marc:No, no.
Marc:It was about their vagina.
Marc:And then there was me.
Marc:So I got up in front of this crowd, about 20 people, in front of this grand piano in the living room of this house.
Marc:And I began telling the story of my time at the co-op to current and former members of that said co-op.
Guest:Wait, was anyone there as someone who adjudicated your situation?
Marc:They were very familiar with the intricacies of the co-op and were not surprised by the outcome.
Guest:Oh, wow.
Marc:Yeah, yeah.
Marc:It was very, very telling, this party of people who were like, oh, yeah, I know someone who also got banned.
Marc:And yeah, or people that like, yeah, I left because it was a little too culty for me.
Marc:So yeah, it was kind of a great time.
Marc:I feel like I got the party back on track, honestly.
Marc:Right after me, I got to say, a woman got up and she told this amazing story about when she was a kid, she took a writing class taught by Charles Bukowski.
Marc:And it was great.
Marc:So yeah.
Marc:So anyway, I want to tell you, that story has legs as I'm now telling it in front of people now.
Guest:Yeah, I'm glad the legs came after the vulva.
Guest:It's how it should be.
Guest:It's anatomically correct storytelling.
Guest:That's right.
Guest:Well, that's great.
Guest:I'm glad you're getting some mileage out of it.
Guest:You got it on the record here on this show last year.
Guest:And if anybody hasn't heard that, you could go back to an episode we did over the summer, last summer.
Guest:where Chris told his story about the Park Slope Food Co-op.
Guest:It was also in our end-of-the-year Friday show special that aired around New Year's.
Guest:And speaking of stuff that has aired, did you get a chance to listen to any WTF stuff?
Guest:Yeah, man.
Marc:You have been just crushing it with guests.
Guest:Oh, thank you.
Marc:Paula Pell.
Marc:Paula Pell is delightful.
Guest:Awesome, yeah.
Marc:What a...
Marc:Your show, I have a problem with your show, honestly, is that Mark will be talking up and hyping up projects that make me want to pause the show and then just go watch that other show.
Marc:He did it with Baby Reindeer and also with Girls 5 Eva, which Paula Pell is on.
Marc:And it is great.
Marc:I'm enjoying it.
Marc:Aaron's enjoying it.
Marc:So yeah, really recommend it if you have not checked it out yet.
Marc:I think it's all on Netflix now.
Guest:Well, the amazing thing I learned about Paula Pell from that episode, and we'll put a pin in this because we're going to go back to this as a topic later in the show, was that she was in the Adventurers Club in Disney World, which I loved that place.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:That place was so great.
Guest:There's nothing like that ever has existed since like that, that, that place not being around anymore is, is a tragedy.
Guest:It was, you know, it was almost like it was too beautiful to live because there's no actual like audience for it other than like people like me.
Guest:And I'm sure it had to be just a terrible money drain to,
Guest:When you could easily just put like a, you know, rainforest cafe in the same spot and make tons of money.
Guest:But the Adventurers Club was awesome.
Guest:It was basically like interactive theater.
Guest:You went into this place and they treated you like you were like a private member of this club.
Guest:The type of club that like, you know, an Indiana Jones type would go to.
Guest:That it was like everyone here is in some way like a person who is...
Guest:an archaeologist or an explorer or a scientist and you'd go to these rooms and in the rooms there'd be magicians or they'd do a stage show and it was just great this great great thing it was like a PG version of Sleep No More
Guest:And the fact that she was a part of this was totally, like, completely fit.
Guest:I was like, oh, of course she was there.
Guest:Because that place is right in keeping with who she is.
Guest:Like, if you liked Paula Pell, that was how all the performers at the Adventurers Club were.
Guest:They were these, like, really...
Guest:brassy, fun, like very in your face performers who were quick, who were witty, who you would just kind of be like, oh, wow, this I'm glad this person's here because I wasn't going to get this experience somewhere else.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Oh, wow.
Marc:That's awesome.
Marc:I will say Powell had a great turn of phrase.
Marc:She said her therapist said codependency is pulling up on fumes in your car to a gas station and putting the gas in the other car and watching it drive away.
Marc:I thought that was fucking great.
Guest:That is a great one.
Marc:What a great one, man.
Marc:Man, what a great hang.
Marc:Yeah, so that was great.
Marc:You also had Tammy Faye Starlight.
Marc:And man, when you're talking alternative comedy, this is amazing.
Marc:This woman is alternative fucking comedy.
Guest:Well, that's, you know, it's a weird thing.
Guest:That's what I thought was.
Guest:I was like, I, I'm, I'm enjoying that.
Guest:This is a person who ultimately does not give a shit.
Guest:If, if this becomes like a,
Guest:A big thing.
Guest:She's just doing this for her own purposes.
Guest:Like, she wants to do this aggressive, aggro, in-your-face country person that's potentially offensive to a lot of people and has been doing it for 30 years.
Guest:And, you know, it's like...
Guest:There aren't many people who come on this show who are secure enough in the thing they do as an art form and do not need some type of external validation for it.
Guest:And that was what I appreciate, that she was just like...
Guest:yeah no this is what i do and you know hey it helps to be independently wealthy it sounds like there was some uh trust money there that probably allows this to keep going but like fuck i'd rather her do that than you know work at a pharmaceutical company or some shit like that right i i really loved that moment honestly like that
Marc:Mark just has this great fucking way to just throw a dart and just like cut through like someone's like entity.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:Just like, yeah, yeah.
Marc:You know, my brother died and left me money.
Marc:And it's like, now I can still do the KKK comic or, you know, all this, you know, this Tammy Faye thing.
Marc:Like it's, it was really telling and really, it was really great, man.
Marc:Mark is so good at just getting right to the, to the heart of the matter.
Guest:I liked how that one kind of sat there too.
Guest:Like that was a good, like, let this sit out a little bit.
Guest:Let's, let's see where this goes up.
Guest:There it is.
Marc:Yup.
Marc:Yup.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Really great.
Marc:Also great.
Marc:Neil Brennan.
Marc:I didn't know anything about the previous episode.
Marc:I've been meaning to, to go back and listen.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Listen to that.
Guest:Listen to that, that, that thing they did at that live show.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:I heard that at the end of the episode.
Guest:When he came back on and did a full episode with Mark, you know, a couple of years ago, they touched on that, but they mostly moved on to like who they are now.
Guest:But that live show, which I think was then followed up with like the full cast of Mr. Show, like that's a great live episode.
Guest:Um, and, uh, and, and Neil and Mark just really hash out like what happened and why.
Guest:And, uh, yeah, it was definitely like a, a, uh, you know, a thing where Mark had Neil painted in a certain box in his mind and, uh, Neil felt that he wasn't getting the proper respect.
Guest:And it's like two guys who at that time in their lives, that really chafed for both of them.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:And you can hear in this new episode like why they're so much alike, you know, and why they get each other very well.
Guest:And like so that can cut both ways, right?
Guest:Like if you get another person, then you know exactly where to poke them and hurt them.
Guest:Right.
Guest:And like the good thing is now they're at like a point with each other where they're not doing that.
Guest:They're like getting each other and relating and not like being dicks.
Marc:Right.
Marc:They're not snipping at each other and like trying to cut them.
Marc:Yeah, yeah, you're right.
Marc:Also, just Mark's monologues are always a joy.
Marc:Sometimes, you know, I would just like end it at the monologue to then...
Marc:do my work and then catch up with the interview later.
Marc:But his monologue for that episode, waiting for the right guy to die, was such a funny turn of phrase.
Marc:And it's like, oh, it crosses both political parties there.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:Which I thought it was really fucking funny.
Guest:The thing of Marx that really cracked me up this week was it was not on the monologue.
Guest:I mean, he mentioned it in the monologue, but it was how he wrote it in his weekly update on
Guest:And it was about how he had been in Albuquerque visiting his dad.
Guest:And he said, he gives his dad some little questions sometimes to see where his brain is at.
Guest:And he was like, do you remember what you did for work?
Guest:And his dad said, office.
Yeah.
Guest:And Mark was like, that's pretty close, I guess.
Guest:I think most people do office.
Guest:Good enough.
Marc:I.
Marc:I really enjoyed the bonus episodes where we hear what you cut out of monologues.
Marc:And I really enjoy you sort of dissecting or just going through the process.
Marc:And I will say, like, without you even having to introduce it, Mark calling Tucker Carlson a nerd cunt, first of all, filled me with joy.
Marc:Because that's a really fun phrase.
Marc:uh but like that whole rant reminded me of listening to him like at five in the morning like it like at air america like this is this is all funny it's edgy but like i have no idea what to do with this dude like the microphones aren't on like we are we're just two guys like just hanging out here so i mean you're wasting your time basically but yeah he is uh
Marc:he's always had that gear in him, right?
Marc:That sixth gear that's like, whoa, doggy, that is too much for right now.
Marc:So it's good that you have an ear to it to sort of trim those.
Guest:Well, speaking of Air America, I would be remiss if it didn't point out that in the...
Guest:The bonus stuff from two weeks ago where we played some of the old Air America interviews.
Guest:There also was a Mort Mortensen obit in there.
Guest:One of my favorites of all time, the Fred Flintstone one.
Guest:And a couple of weeks ago, we did an episode about things we have pulled into our dialect, our vernacular.
Yeah.
Guest:Is Yabba Dabba Dead in there?
Guest:Yabba Dabba Dead is not something, I mean, that's something I think about all the time.
Guest:That is a, that was, it's just a killer, killer joke.
Guest:But I have incorporated many times Fred and Barney get gonorrhea stone into like when I'm describing something about the Flintstones.
Yeah.
Marc:you know those old episodes flintstones you know barney and fred get gonorrhea stone you know i'll say to jim jim roll's credit i i say whenever i'm about to tear up uh it's like oh someone someone chopping onions you got a cat in here yeah yeah
Marc:Just great stuff.
Marc:Oh, Jim, he's great.
Marc:I really enjoyed that, but I will say, I can't really enjoy The Morning of Remembrances too much because I fucking...
Marc:I get so annoyed hearing Dan's laugh.
Marc:So bloody laugh.
Marc:Dan's laugh?
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Okay.
Guest:And what?
Marc:Mark Reilly's laugh?
Guest:Well, no, I mean, it's very rare that Dan was in there, but I guess there were times where he was sitting in the booth with you and laughing.
Marc:No, no.
Marc:I can remember it so fondly of me...
Marc:He was in the room with us and I have the mics very low, but Dan is like, no, no, no, jack them up.
Marc:So he wants to hear his laugh in the foreground and not the background.
Marc:I never want my mic to be on to hear my laugh.
Marc:I want it to be in the background.
Marc:Right.
Marc:But no, Dan was like, no, turn my mic up.
Marc:I want it to be in my face and laughing.
Guest:Dan had a whole theory on that.
Guest:And I'm not sure whether it pans out or not.
Guest:But his whole theory was that if you hear laughter on the radio, you will be compelled to laugh yourself.
Guest:And I don't think that's wrong.
Guest:But I do think Dan's laugh is so aggressive.
Yeah.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:He's got like one of the top five most like in your face aggressive laughs I've ever heard.
Guest:And so it's like he probably doesn't need it that much.
Guest:Although I just I do think that like especially with that Fred Flintstone one, when you hear it, it's like.
Guest:a genuine laugh.
Guest:Like he's genuinely busting up.
Guest:And like, that does get me.
Guest:Like I do, I do find myself laughing harder because I can sense that a person just really lost it.
Yeah.
Marc:Yes, I agree.
Marc:I just wish it was in the background.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Not in the foreground is all I'm saying.
Marc:All right.
Marc:But I will say when Joey Pants was on and he says that he has a love scene, Mark Reilly says an uh-oh.
Marc:Like, it's basically something you hear on a morning zoo radio show.
Guest:Yeah, that was a Mark Reilly macro.
Guest:Like, it was just like there was a button in his brain that he would press and the uh-oh would come out.
Guest:Ah-ooga.
Guest:Yeah, basically.
Guest:It was a Mark Reilly special that I haven't heard in so long.
Guest:It was just like, oh, wow, I remember.
Guest:That was part of my life.
Guest:I remember when Maren went back to L.A.
Guest:and we were in New York and I would be talking to him on the phone or something and he'd be like, how is everybody?
Guest:How's so-and-so?
Guest:How's Reilly?
Guest:And I'd be like, oh, Reilly.
Guest:And he'd go, uh-oh.
Guest:Like...
Guest:Like he already was going to say it no matter what I said.
Marc:Oh, that's great.
Marc:Also in your bonus episode stuff, I loved that you had a folder called Hot Open and Foot Stuff.
Marc:Honestly, that's a folder I expect to see on Quentin Tarantino's computer.
Guest:Yeah, totally different content.
Guest:Yeah.
Right.
Marc:But yeah, really enjoyed that folder.
Marc:I don't know why, but that tickled me.
Marc:Also, Ben Mendelsohn talking up Kurt Russell in Death Proof.
Guest:Yes, I kept that in there because I thought, hey, this is going to be pertinent.
Marc:It sure is.
Marc:I'm whetting my appetite for my upcoming rewatch.
Marc:I'll be honest with you.
Marc:I'm getting my hopes a little up for that movie.
Guest:Maybe.
Guest:Yeah, me too.
Guest:A little bit.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:So we'll put a pin in that.
Guest:Well, we should tell people who have been enjoying the Quentin Tarantino series what is in store for us with our next movie.
Guest:Because we got lucky.
Marc:Oh, my God.
Marc:How?
Marc:How did we get this lucky?
Marc:We are seeing Kill Bill, The Complete Bloody Affair, in theaters at the Nighthawk Cinema.
Marc:Like, I cannot wait for this.
Marc:And it happens the day before.
Guest:We were going to record about Kill Bill.
Marc:How is this possible?
Marc:We are the luckiest sons of bitches.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Hey, if you're the programmer at the Nighthawk and you've been listening to this and you program that for us, thank you very much.
Marc:Yes.
Guest:Although I'm pretty sure it just was a total coincidence.
Guest:But yes, thank you.
Marc:Yeah, really great.
Marc:Also, really enjoyed your explanation why you cut some stuff out of the Thurston Moore episode.
Marc:But I must say, really loved hearing like this Boston music scene sort of, you know, history.
Marc:Like, you're right.
Marc:It is like a side quest.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:And like, it could be cut out.
Guest:It always makes me feel shitty, though.
Guest:I always do feel like, God damn, if people are listening to this and they're really enjoying what he's talking about and just the kind of journey that they're going on, why not give them more?
Guest:But I do have to keep everyone in mind.
Guest:I have to keep the whole audience in mind.
Guest:And it's just a pacing thing.
Guest:It's like you can't spend 13 minutes...
Guest:on additional stuff that's or, you know, it's just piled on top of all the details you're already getting.
Marc:Right.
Marc:Right.
Marc:And you have like the best internal clock.
Marc:You just know you have like a sixth sense of like, okay, time to time to move on to something else.
Guest:Yeah, well, I mean, I thought about it after the fact when you were talking about how much you compiled from the episode and turned into that playlist, right?
Guest:Right.
Guest:And it's like, oh man, if this were here, like that would have been like an hour of extra work for Chris.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:Totally.
Guest:I would have to stop and rewind so much.
Guest:Well, yeah.
Guest:So that was, I mean, it's been busy.
Guest:You're bringing these things up.
Guest:I couldn't even remember when I did half of them because I had to get them all done before my vacation.
Guest:So it was just stuff that was totally piled up.
Marc:You know what happened?
Marc:So you were on vacation and a funny thing happened.
Marc:I got in my feed, I got two versions of the latest episode.
Marc:Oh, the
Guest:neil brennan one yeah the neil brennan one and and i was like oh that's weird and i found myself listening to a stamps.com right right that was that's why there were two because the main feed at the main feed you know everything was automated and for you know weeks ago and sometimes these things you know when i'm not uploading them the day of and double checking everything you know
Guest:Yeah, the episode went out twice.
Guest:It went out to people who get the full Marin and that in the same full Marin feed and WTF archive feed, it went the regular episode, which had an ad in it.
Marc:Gotta say, I kind of miss the ad sometimes.
Marc:Like, ads are not the worst.
Marc:Yeah.
Guest:Well, we've always prided ourselves in that, like, they're a necessary evil and we'll try to make them not evil.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:I feel like, I mean, if there's one ad that people are listening to, like, that's not the worst thing in the world.
Marc:Sure.
Marc:When I listen to like, how did this get made?
Marc:There's like a blaring.
Marc:How did this get made?
Marc:Like siren that happens.
Marc:And then they go and talk about stamps.com or whatever for like, you know, a couple of minutes.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:So like I am, I would much rather this.
Marc:This is a very gentle way to put your ads in.
Marc:And I gotta say,
Guest:I love it.
Guest:Well, then I forget everything I said.
Guest:I did it on purpose.
Guest:And I just wanted the people who get the full Marin to hear that it's not so bad to have an ad or two here and there.
Guest:Maybe you forgot.
Guest:But yeah, hey, listen, we have very set rules about ads.
Guest:We always have.
Guest:The biggest one is that no ads will ever interrupt the interview.
Guest:And let me tell you, that has not come without a price.
Guest:Like, obviously.
Guest:Oh, sure.
Guest:You know, there's...
Guest:There's a lot of real estate there that people would pay good money for, and we just won't allow it.
Guest:That's not why we do this.
Guest:Listen, I get that we make a living doing this.
Guest:We make a very good living doing this.
Guest:But I don't ever think that the thing we're doing should just be some conduit for monetizing and making money.
Guest:And Mark and I have never thought that.
Guest:And we wouldn't have been doing it if we thought that.
Guest:We've been doing something else that would have been easier to monetize.
Guest:And the idea of keeping the listening experience connected
Guest:I don't want to say pure because there's ads in it, but keeping it as unencumbered as possible, I think, and I think very strongly about this, has led to a longer duration of this show and a loyal audience sticking with it for longer than most people stick with things.
Guest:I do think that the audio experience makes a difference.
Guest:And when you're not bombarded with ads, when it doesn't sound like any old AM radio station or something with car commercials coming in every five minutes or whatever, it is a more pleasant listen.
Guest:And people give us...
Guest:a breadth of space when those ads happen to go like, okay, we'll let them do their ads.
Guest:Mark reads them.
Guest:They're kind of entertaining.
Guest:And that's that.
Guest:And, uh, I, I've always thought it's very important.
Guest:And it also has paid off for advertisers because the audience is more likely to stick around, be loyal to us, and then therefore be loyal to a product that we're advertising.
Guest:Um,
Guest:Especially because Mark feels like if he can get behind the product, that's the demarcation of whether or not we advertise it on the show.
Guest:He won't advertise something he's never used or he never saw or he doesn't know what it does, right?
Guest:So, you know, if we have those things, people can be loyal to the products and we get better response from advertisers who are like, we're doing great on your show or whatever, you know.
Guest:So I think I think about all this a whole lot.
Guest:And I do think it's very important.
Guest:But I also like the fact that there's this feed with no ads.
Guest:And that way, you know, if you pay your money.
Guest:You don't get them.
Guest:And so I do apologize for anyone who is perturbed that an ad showed up in their feed.
Guest:Although I will say it wasn't like a case where it was, you had no other option.
Guest:There was another file sitting right there with no ad in it in your feed as well.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Well, I mean, you said you saw it there twice, right?
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:So one had an ad, one didn't.
Marc:Gotcha.
Marc:Gotcha.
Marc:Well, I must say, I've always loved your show that you do feel like you're just alone with this guy in his garage, and then he brings in a guest, and you guys, there's no room for air.
Marc:You're not coming up for air.
Marc:You're not like, okay, well, here's an ad in the middle of this thing, or like, oh, they're cutting away to break.
Marc:You're just...
Marc:in there, in that moment, and it just feels so personal and so private.
Guest:Well, the personal nature of it was, I think it was Nathan Rabin from the AV Club identified this in like the, you know, it was the early years of doing the show and the AV Club was covering a lot of podcasts.
Guest:And I remember him identifying the idea that the ads almost played as like a contract with the listener, that the listener was like, don't worry, we know you're trying hard.
Guest:And we're going to tolerate some ads right now because we know that helps you keep the show going, right?
Guest:And it became this like little social agreement that the listeners had with the host.
Guest:And that was by large, that was true.
Guest:You know, there was...
Guest:There was a need to do them, and we were trying to make it as inobtrusive as possible.
Guest:And so if you could get by with an ad or two and have Mark do it and try to inject some of his humor and personality in it, the hope was that the audience would be like, don't worry, pal, we got you here.
Guest:We're not angry at you for having ads.
Guest:We get that this is important, and we'll hang with this for five minutes or whatever it takes.
Yeah.
Marc:Yeah, and I feel like the listeners are definitely still there for it.
Marc:So yeah, very cool.
Guest:Yeah, well, I think that the double episode drop in your feed was a result of me doing a lot before I went on vacation.
Guest:But as I mentioned to you, I need a vacation to be a vacation.
Guest:I don't get to...
Guest:Shut things off.
Guest:We're doing two episodes a week for 15 years.
Guest:You don't get a lot of ways to shut things down unless you fully shut them down.
Guest:So that's what I was able to do.
Guest:And the funny thing was when I told Mark I was going on this vacation and he was like, oh, where are you going?
Guest:And I said, Disney World.
Guest:he reacted like I was a serial killer.
Guest:Really?
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Like he was like, you're going to Disney world on vacation.
Guest:Like you'd like, like you, don't you want a vacation?
Guest:Like he was, he was appalled.
Guest:Like he couldn't, he couldn't understand why anyone would want to do this.
Guest:And, uh,
Guest:It made me think, like, I get that.
Guest:Like, I'm not here to, like, try to change Mark's mind, right?
Guest:And, like, if Disney is not your thing, it's not your thing.
Guest:But I do think there's a lot of... There's a mentality around certain things that they don't... That they're too touristy or gauche or, like, that they're not really a kind of...
Guest:upper echelon, high class vacation that you should take when you take a vacation.
Guest:And, you know, Mark's reaction to that, I think, is shared by people who, you know, might even have kids, might be at the age where they are taking kids to Disney World and they're just like, ugh, Disney World, why would you do that?
And
Guest:My feelings about Disney are fairly positive, and that's surprising, I think.
Guest:I think I'm generally a pretty cynical guy, or at least I have skepticism in me, and I'm generally pretty quick to push back on...
Guest:overly marketed stuff and basically money traps.
Guest:But I go to Disney, and this is now the second time I've been with my family and have been when I was younger.
Guest:It requires a lot of planning, a lot of prep.
Guest:It engages a lot of parts of my brain that I like engaged.
Guest:And then you get there and you realize the experience is...
Guest:So highly professional.
Guest:I know they're going to soak you.
Guest:The money thing is its own thing.
Guest:And sure, if it's not for you, don't go.
Guest:But it is the one area of the creative arts that is untouched by the vagaries of culture and time.
Guest:these Disney parks, particularly like the things that, you know, were like thought up by what, you know, they call the imagineers, right?
Guest:Like the park people.
Guest:It's like, I went to this land that's the star Wars land and everybody loves it.
Guest:It's this great experience.
Guest:People, you know, pay good money to go and just do the star Wars stuff.
Guest:And I,
Guest:It has a lot of stuff that's from the newer movies, right?
Guest:The movies that nobody has much affection for.
Guest:Kylo Ren and those, you know, the most recent trilogy.
Guest:And yet everybody loves this Galaxy's Edge, this part in the Star Wars, the Star Wars part of the theme park.
Guest:And I realize it's like the people behind this, making this here, are much better custodians than
Guest:of the the ip that disney acquired then the people were turning them into movies and into tv shows like you go to the to the park and you get this very pure experience of the thing that you want to be a part of whether it's the star wars land or whether it's toy story land like my kid was like i'm in toy story this is awesome the
Guest:Dude, the Avatar land was crazy.
Guest:It was so good.
Guest:And I don't care about Avatar.
Guest:I watched it.
Guest:It was great.
Guest:Never thought about it again.
Guest:And the park, the Avatar part of the park was like, I could have spent three days there.
Guest:It was so great.
Guest:Three days.
Guest:Oh, I mean, it was just like all immersive.
Guest:It was beautiful set design.
Guest:It was like, you know, remember in Avatar, they have those floating rock formations because there's like different gravitational laws there.
Marc:Yeah.
Guest:It looks like that.
Marc:Really?
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:And they designed it in such a way that the rocks, I mean, they can't just float in the sky, but they look like they are because the vines coming off of them that connect them to the other rocks are actually the steel supports that are keeping these things in the air.
Guest:But they have waterfalls coming out of them and stuff.
Guest:So you know there's some heft there.
Guest:It's not just like a balloon in the sky.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Right.
Guest:It's all high level production.
Guest:And I could appreciate that.
Guest:And I appreciate the whole park and I appreciate the whole trip.
Guest:And it got me thinking, there are probably plenty of things in your life, you who's listening to this, where you've heard about it and you've gone, oh yeah, but that's like for tourists and you don't have to do it.
Guest:And I'm here to tell you, not if you don't like theme parks and you don't like Disney in general, but if you've ever thought like, well, Disney World, that's like,
Guest:I like the movies and I like going on rides, but isn't Disney a tourist trap or ripoff?
Guest:I am here to tell you it is not.
Guest:It is a fulfilling experience if that's what you're into.
Guest:And I wonder, because Chris, you have established yourself as very well-traveled.
Guest:If you have other things that you can offer as advice for people that might not be thinking it's things they should sample out there in the world, whether it's something when they're already on the road or when they're going to take a specific vacation, I would like your advice like this.
Guest:My advice is...
Guest:If you're interested in theme parks and pop culture, Disney World is actually a great place, not a shitty place.
Guest:What's your version of that?
Marc:Wow.
Marc:Well, man, I just want to pepper you with Disney World questions, but I'll hold those up for the end, perhaps.
Marc:My picks, and as a native New Yorker, there are a lot of tourist traps, okay?
Marc:Like, so many.
Marc:Like...
Marc:You know, I would never, ever recommend going to Times Square just to be a Times Square.
Marc:But I will tell you, like, a great New York sort of experience, something that tourists do, that locals do, it's go to the Brooklyn Bridge and walk over the Brooklyn Bridge.
Marc:Especially now.
Marc:Now you're no longer sharing the walkway with bicyclists zooming past you.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:And also there are no more street vendors.
Marc:So it is completely clear just for people to walk.
Marc:It is the best experience for New York.
Guest:I think obviously that's a great one.
Guest:I think similarly, I would say anything having to do with Central Park.
Guest:Like, oh, go to Strawberry Fields.
Guest:Isn't that where all the tourists are?
Guest:Yeah, who cares?
Guest:Go there.
Guest:It's awesome.
Guest:Take a picture with the imagined mosaic on the ground.
Guest:You know, go to the ice skating rink.
Guest:All of that stuff.
Guest:Like,
Guest:Do it.
Guest:It feels great while you're there to be like, holy crap, this little oasis is in the middle of, like, one of the most densely packed cities in America?
Guest:Like, that's great.
Marc:Yeah, yeah.
Marc:Have a picnic in the park overlooking all these gigantic buildings.
Marc:It is a sight to behold, for sure.
Marc:Next one for me, Statue of Liberty.
Marc:I recommend this, like, especially early in the morning.
Marc:Get, like, the first, like, boat out.
Marc:But...
Marc:I love the Statue of Liberty.
Marc:I mean, I love it.
Marc:It's such a special place.
Marc:I've never felt more patriotic than being at the Statue of Liberty.
Marc:Knowing that people, immigrants came here and saw that in the harbor.
Marc:I don't know.
Marc:It just gives me chills.
Marc:And it's cool to run up the stairs and go to the top of the crown.
Marc:And it's just a fun view that...
Marc:Yeah, every tourist who goes to New York should do it, but you should also not be afraid to see it as well.
Guest:I have a connected one to that, and it's a big one.
Guest:And it incorporates the Statue of Liberty.
Guest:The Circle Line Cruise.
Guest:Okay.
Guest:Oh, yeah, yeah.
Guest:I can't think of something that I poo-pooed for longer than that.
Guest:And then when I took it, I was like, I should do this every year.
Guest:Every year, yes.
Marc:Oh, I'm going to take my nieces and nephews on it.
Marc:It is the best.
Guest:The Circle Line Cruise, if you don't know, it leaves from Midtown on the west side, and it circles the entire island of Manhattan.
Guest:You go all the way around, come back right where you started.
Guest:So you see everything.
Guest:And it's also, it's like shockingly affordable.
Guest:I thought it was going to be crazy expensive, and it's not.
Guest:It's a very good deal for the full day of entertainment that you get doing that, especially if you get a beautiful day.
Guest:It's a good time.
Guest:Oh, yeah.
Marc:Oh, man.
Marc:Man, a nice blue sky day, even if it's humid, like you go in the circle line and it's a great time.
Marc:Also, you know, the Staten Island Ferry, kind of cool.
Marc:And free.
Marc:Yeah, and free.
Marc:So, you know, it has that going for it, which is nice.
Marc:But yeah, so that's another one.
Marc:But for me, I would say something that is very touristy, but it is phenomenal.
Marc:And it is the national parks in the United States.
Marc:I love this.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:Have you been to any national parks?
Guest:Well, Grand Canyon.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Grand Canyon.
Marc:Awesome.
Marc:But man, there's Zion, there's Yellowstone, Bryce Canyon, Crater Lake.
Marc:There's so many things to see.
Marc:And these parks are so meticulously designed for you to experience this place.
Marc:Like, great.
Marc:Basically like it's a natural Disney world.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Like they, they, they do it in such a way and it is a stunning, it is awe inspiring.
Marc:Like to see the old, old faithful rise up and, you know, just see like the Zion and go, go on a crazy hike on the, what did I do?
Marc:Did you do those, those slot canyons?
Marc:Yes.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:I did the slot canyons.
Marc:Dude, I did this crazy hike called Angel's Landing where you have to hike up and you have to be holding onto a chain because four feet in any direction, you can just fall off.
Marc:So you're just up on a chain on this hike.
Marc:And it was fantastic.
Marc:Fucking magical, man.
Marc:It was beautiful.
Marc:I can't believe this thing is still there, but yeah, it is.
Marc:It is great.
Marc:The national parks are timeless.
Marc:Honestly, the best invention that we ever had.
Marc:Who did it?
Marc:Woodrow Wilson, I think.
Marc:Ah, fantastic stuff.
Guest:You know, I would say that, you know, national parks, one great way to experience them is to map it out with a road trip, go to several, right?
Guest:You've done that in your life.
Guest:Oh, yeah.
Guest:You've done a road trip.
Guest:What I would also recommend when you're traveling this country, stop at all roadside tourist traps.
Guest:All of them.
Guest:The dinosaurs going out to Palm Springs.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:The biggest ball of twine in Minnesota.
Guest:The giant ball of paint in Indiana.
Guest:Meteor craters.
Guest:Mark and I went to a meteor crater.
Guest:That was a blast.
Guest:I loved that.
Guest:Yes, I'm sad I didn't see that.
Guest:So yes, these things which you are likely to think are cheesy or are ripoffs.
Guest:It's like the ripoffs are great.
Guest:Like you want to experience them.
Guest:Go do those things.
Guest:When you see something on the side of the road and it says mystery spot, like that's awesome.
Guest:Go do that.
Guest:You're going to walk in a building and you're going to fall sideways because it seems like there's no, and they'll tell you there's no gravity in this house or whatever.
Guest:Like it's awesome.
Guest:Go do those things.
Marc:Yeah, those are the things you're going to remember for your life.
Marc:You know, you're not going to remember the Arby's.
Marc:You're going to remember the weird places that you've been to.
Marc:Like, I went to the dinosaur park where Pee Wee Herman went in Pee Wee's Big Adventure.
Marc:And you know what?
Marc:I'm always going to remember that because it was awesome and it was off the beaten path and it was just cool.
Marc:Like there's just cool shit to see.
Marc:And yeah, some of it is a national park, but some of it is just roadside attractions.
Marc:One of my favorite books.
Marc:But yeah, they by far are worth your time.
Guest:Yeah, I throw a shout out to Atlas Obscura here.
Guest:If you get yourself an Atlas Obscura subscription, either online or buy one of the big books, like coffee table books, those will help you chart out a very nice tour for yourself of all these crazy places to go to.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Also, I am a big fan of natural and modern wonders of the world.
Marc:I'm just like, I'm a sucker for it because the first one I ever saw was the Great Barrier Reef.
Marc:And let me tell you something.
Marc:That was a very touristy thing to do, to go to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
Marc:And you know why?
Marc:Because it's fucking magnificent.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:I remember BJ Novak saying that to Mark about going to the Louvre and seeing the Mona Lisa, that he went in there and was like, I don't need to see the Mona Lisa.
Guest:It's the smallest one here.
Guest:I've seen it in pictures.
Guest:And then he walked past the room that it's in, because you can just see it from outside the hall.
Guest:And he was like...
Guest:Oh, that's why everyone goes in there to see that.
Guest:It looks awesome.
Guest:And that's the same thing.
Guest:It's like, you see these things and you're like, uh, the thing that everybody goes to.
Guest:Oh, now I know why.
Yes.
Marc:Yes, exactly.
Marc:Like the pyramids in Giza.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:Like, yes, they're packed with tourists.
Marc:Yes.
Marc:People are going to be begging you for money.
Marc:Go to this spot and see it.
Marc:Like, I just wanted to hang out.
Guest:Bring some money.
Guest:Give people some money.
Guest:Exactly.
Marc:How many times do you see the pyramid?
Marc:You should be thrilled.
Yeah.
Marc:Yeah, like there's just something awe-inspiring about stuff.
Marc:Like the Golden Gate Bridge is another one.
Marc:Oh, totally.
Marc:It's just great to see this stuff, these like testaments to, wow, someone made this beautiful bridge, this red bridge, and it's standing here, you know?
Marc:Like it's just, I don't know.
Guest:That one's awesome.
Guest:You know what's so great about the Golden Gate Bridge is it looks awesome from every side.
Marc:Every angle, right?
Marc:It has no bad angles to it.
Marc:Like I went, I crossed over and went in the woods and you can still see it.
Marc:It looks fucking awesome.
Guest:Yeah, we stayed in that town over there, Sausalito.
Guest:Oh, did you?
Guest:That's great.
Marc:We had a meal there.
Marc:Yeah, that's awesome.
Marc:And like, yeah, I'm just big fan of Wonders of the World because I just think they are a testament to like...
Marc:just this fucking planet that we're on that is so goddamn cool.
Marc:And you know what?
Marc:We got to stop being so up our own ass about like, oh, I don't want to do the cool thing.
Marc:I want to do the thing that's, that's cool for me.
Marc:You know, I want to do something off the beaten path.
Marc:You know what?
Marc:Sometimes doing the popular thing is great because it, it's popular for a reason, you know?
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:But I will say, I will say I do have a problem though, because you don't have social media.
Marc:I have social media.
Marc:All right.
Guest:It's not like a longstanding thing.
Guest:It's like I've been like five days old.
Marc:Yeah, that's true.
Marc:That's true.
Marc:But like I have the problem with my algorithm.
Marc:I know Mark has talked about his algorithm, giving them all this weird shit.
Marc:My algorithm does not show me that stuff.
Marc:I get on my on my pages like I get girls in bikinis.
Marc:I get cocktail recipes.
Marc:I get Costco deals and like old houses in Europe for some reason.
Marc:But another thing I get online.
Marc:are these influencers that I do not follow, but they are on my page and they are always like, they have like a cheese poll where I'm like, oh, all right, I'll check out that video.
Marc:And I then go and bookmark where these influencers go to.
Marc:And guess what?
Marc:I go to them and they have a line around the block.
Marc:Yeah, it sucks.
Yeah.
Guest:it sucks hard yeah and i'm just like well this stinks but you know what it doesn't suck for the business itself well sure but i also have noticed this happening with like some person on tiktok puts a thing about the best bagel in the world and then the place at now every morning is 50 people deep so forget about if that used to be your friendly neighborhood bagel place but the bottom line is it's
Guest:It's the same bagel as I got around the corner for me.
Guest:Like all New York bagels are generally the same.
Guest:And and so it's not like a slice of pizza where you can actually make it differently.
Guest:Like a good bagel is a good bagel.
Guest:End of story.
Guest:And so you have these people who tasted it once in their life and they're like, oh, this is the greatest thing ever.
Guest:And then now the place you can't even get into.
Marc:Right.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:I saw someone have that for like this bagel shop and I'm like, oh, that's kind of interesting.
Marc:But I know a bagel is a bagel.
Marc:Like there's no like it's great.
Marc:It's in New York.
Marc:It's great.
Marc:So I can't I can't imagine ever stopping by.
Marc:But I will say I know from firsthand experience that these influencers, some of them are just pure publicity.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:They are nothing else.
Marc:It is just a publicity arm for restaurants.
Marc:It's just another way for them to do things.
Marc:And I know because I was seated next to an influencer a couple months ago, and they had their phone out.
Marc:They had this huge portable light documenting all this delicious food and drink.
Marc:Where was this?
Marc:this was in jersey this was like out in like montclair new jersey and they're they're sitting down and they're they're they're taking all these videos dude and they didn't take one fucking bite of their food right not one bite they just took photos soda can all over yes
Marc:Yes, but they pretended that they were about to take a bite and then put the food down.
Marc:And I saw their post later, and they were praising them for the food and the drinks.
Marc:Did you hop on there?
No.
Jacuzzi!
Marc:I was like, you know what?
Marc:Because I didn't want to blow up their spot because this business, I'm sure, is desperately seeking this type of attention.
Guest:I get you.
Marc:So it's like this vicious cycle of like these influencers like, oh, the restaurant opens.
Marc:They have an influencer reach out to them or they reach out to an influencer.
Marc:Then the influencer comes.
Marc:Yeah.
Marc:Influencer posts, they get money.
Marc:So it's just like this weird, vicious cycle.
Marc:But I just want to point out to everyone listening, don't believe all the influencers.
Marc:Like they are like, they're in on it.
Marc:They're, they're not doing this for free.
Marc:You know, like, like, please do your own research and, and beware of these influencers.
Guest:I really wish the person was doing like Sam Cedar in Sex and the City where he chews the food for like five seconds and then spits it out.
Guest:I don't remember that, but that's hilarious.
Guest:Sam played like an old friend of Miranda's that I think she used to date him.
Guest:And he lived in New York and he was, you know, this schlubby New York comedy writer wrote for Letterman.
Guest:And she goes out to L.A.
Guest:And I believe that's the name of the episode.
Guest:I think it's sex and another city because they're in L.A.
Guest:for the episode.
Guest:And so she goes to meet this guy and he's he looks like Sam.
Guest:He's got himself in shape and he's he's he's no longer schlubby.
Guest:He's got a hair transplant.
Guest:Yeah.
Guest:And, uh, and they go out to dinner and he, uh, takes a bite of his steak and he chews it like three bites and then takes the napkin out and spits it in the napkin.
Guest:And then he does it again, takes another bite, chews it, spits it in the napkin.
Guest:And she's like, what are you doing there?
Guest:And he's like, Oh, I'm just, this is how I eat now.
Guest:I, I, that's what I do.
Guest:I gotta fire that up.
Guest:That sounds great.
Yeah.
Guest:Well, before we go, you said you had some Disney questions.
Guest:I'd be happy to answer.
Guest:What were your favorite rides?
Marc:What were your son's favorite rides, too?
Marc:Were they the same?
Marc:Were they different?
Guest:No, I mean, I think we had some differences.
Guest:My absolute favorite was the Avatar ride.
Guest:There are two Avatar rides.
Guest:One is just like a boat ride through Avatar Land.
Guest:But the crazy ride is... Did you ever go to the ride Sorin?
Guest:in Disney World where you're like sitting on a, it feels like you're on a gondola and you're flying over the world.
Guest:And it's like a motion simulator and makes you feel like you're flying around, you know, it used to be just California, now it's the whole world.
Marc:Sound like Star Tours though, right?
Guest:Well, but you're in a thing, like you're in a wide open space.
Guest:It's not like a little box, right?
Guest:Well, this was the same concept, but they put you in a machine that makes you feel like you're on one of those Avatar flying dragon things.
Guest:Oh, yeah.
Guest:And you put 3D glasses on and it felt exactly like that.
Guest:Really?
Guest:You were in the movie?
Guest:I was flying a dragon.
Guest:No kidding.
Guest:It was the craziest damn thing.
Guest:Oh, that sounds great.
Guest:So that was great.
Guest:The Star Wars ride was great.
Guest:The newest one that they've made where you're trying to escape the Imperial ship.
Guest:Yeah, yeah.
Guest:Oh, that's cool.
Guest:It's pretty great.
Guest:And they have a new roller coaster that is Tron.
Guest:Like you're on those Tron motorcycles, you know, the light cycles.
Guest:From the 80s.
Marc:We're talking about Tron from the 80s.
Guest:I guess.
Guest:I mean, I think it's more Tron from the remake.
Guest:It's Tron, so it's those same things, but the music is all the Daft Punk music.
Guest:Oh, awesome.
Guest:It was really awesome, and it's a great roller coaster.
Guest:If you like roller coasters, that was fantastic.
Marc:Does it go upside down?
Guest:No, it doesn't go upside down.
Guest:It just goes really fast.
Marc:Yeah?
Guest:Okay.
Guest:It's one of those launch roller coasters.
Guest:You don't go up a thing and then go down.
Guest:You get fired out of a cannon.
Marc:Oh, no kidding.
Marc:Oh, that sounds great.
Guest:And there's also a new Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster that was great.
Marc:No, they didn't replace Tower of Terror.
Marc:That was always my favorite.
Guest:Tower of Terror is still there in Disney World.
Guest:It is replaced in Disneyland by the Guardians.
Marc:Oh, okay.
Marc:Did you go to Tower of Terror?
Marc:I did.
Marc:I love Tower of Terror.
Guest:Yeah.
Marc:Okay.
Marc:Didn't make your top three, though.
Guest:No, but it's still up there in like the great, great rides.
Guest:My son's favorites were, there's a new roller coaster that is the Slinky Dog.
Guest:You know, the Slinky Dog from Toy Story.
Guest:So you're like in the Slinky Dog.
Guest:And you know what the great thing is?
Guest:It's a very Disney, like great game.
Guest:attention to detail, is that the sound it's making while you're on it is like the sound of a slinky, like when you stretch it and rattle it.
Guest:So they have that happening, that little echoey tin sound while you're on this roller coaster.
Guest:Pretty great roller coaster.
Guest:I think he also really liked the Star Wars ride, Rise of the Resistance.
Guest:Uh, and he loved the nighttime show that they do.
Guest:That's like fireworks.
Guest:There's fireworks, but it's, it's, it's more than just the firework show.
Guest:It's one that's like, it's called phantasmic.
Guest:It's like out on a lagoon and there's all these fire.
Guest:It's a big special effects bonanza at the end of the night.
Marc:Uh, see, I think,
Marc:I think people who don't go to Disney and I don't have kids, so I don't normally go to Disney.
Marc:So I, I, you know, I don't poo poo it.
Marc:I'm just like, yeah, you know, I don't have kids.
Marc:Like, what am I going to do?
Marc:You know, but one of these days I will go to Disney.
Guest:Oh, you guys would love it.
Guest:You and Aaron would have a great time.
Marc:Yeah, I know.
Marc:I know he would because I've been there and the thing that people always forget is that it's not like Six Flags Great Adventure.
Marc:It's not like Busch Gardens.
Marc:It's an immersive experience.
Marc:You are, like you were saying, you are taken care of and there is attention to detail that is unmatched.
Guest:That's right.
Guest:And now here, I'm going to give you a tip and anyone else who's listening, who's Disney curious and you haven't been there yet.
Guest:There are, if you, if you go, it's always best to stay at the Disney hotels.
Guest:If you, if you, you know, can spend the money.
Guest:Um, and here's a thing I'll say, unless you're on a very strict budget, um,
Guest:there's no difference once you're at Disney world of a few hundred dollars, right?
Guest:Like every, like it's all, you're going to, they're going to get you coming and going.
Guest:So you're going to spend the money one way or another.
Guest:And if you think you've saved it on the hotel, like unless you're on a very tight budget, just don't worry about it.
Guest:Stay at the Disney hotels.
Guest:Okay.
Guest:And when you're choosing a Disney hotel, there are now five hotels that are on what they call the Skyliner route.
Guest:And,
Guest:And that is this new thing they've constructed that is like an air gondola system that takes you to two of the parks so that you're not stuck taking the buses.
Guest:Wait, are you talking about the monorail?
Guest:No, no, the monorail is still there.
Marc:They have an air gondola.
Guest:Yeah, this is like what you would take skiing, like a ski lift.
Guest:But they're little closed gondola pods that go from your hotel to Epcot Center and Hollywood Studios.
Guest:Oh, shit.
Guest:That sounds awesome.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:So stay in one of, make sure if you're trying to stay somewhere on the Disney premises, stay in a Skyliner resort.
Guest:It's so convenient.
Guest:Well, so are the buses just packed with traffic?
Guest:The buses are always hit or miss because you, you know, it's traffic.
Guest:Variables.
Guest:Yeah, variables.
Guest:You have to drive around.
Gotcha.
Marc:Right.
Marc:Awesome.
Marc:Well, thanks for the tips.
Marc:And I think I'm going to go one of these years.
Guest:Yes.
Guest:Take a three-day weekend even.
Guest:Just do it.
Guest:You don't have to kill yourself like a week-long crazy person like I did.
Guest:Listen, if you are...
Guest:listening to this and you have other thoughts about Disney World or somewhere you want to share that is a place people should go to and they might not think it's worth it for them or that it's too touristy or something hey let us know those things we will share them here on the show and that link is right there in the episode description we'll be back with more stuff next week particularly the upcoming week of WTF stuff but until then I'm Brendan and that's Chris peace