0
SPEAKER_03
The following podcast is a Dear Media production.
0
SPEAKER_01
Caffeinated sunscreen by The Skinny Confidential has launched today.
0
SPEAKER_01
If you have been following along for a while, you know I have raved about caffeinated sunscreen for, God, years.
0
SPEAKER_01
This has been a long time in the making.
0
SPEAKER_01
The bottle is phenomenal.
0
SPEAKER_01
It s hot pink neon with a buttercream lid.
0
SPEAKER_01
The sunscreen, though, that s in it is even better.
0
SPEAKER_01
So we added caffeine.
0
SPEAKER_01
Caffeine reduces the appearance of wrinkles and puffiness on the skin.
0
SPEAKER_01
I notice when I put it on, it like tightens and firms the skin.
0
SPEAKER_01
But the best part is, is while it s doing that, it s protecting you from the sun.
0
SPEAKER_01
I m someone who struggles with hyperpigmentation and sunspots.
0
SPEAKER_01
So to know that I get the element of caffeine mixed with sunscreen is absolutely incredible.
0
SPEAKER_01
There s nothing like this on the market.
0
SPEAKER_01
There really isn t.
0
SPEAKER_01
And we decided to make our sunscreen mineral sunscreen.
0
SPEAKER_01
Minerals sit on top of the skin and they reflect away the UV rays.
0
SPEAKER_01
I personally think this is the best kind of sunscreen because it lays really nice under makeup and it can go over your skincare.
0
SPEAKER_01
It doesn t like make those little balls on your skin and also there s no white cast.
0
SPEAKER_01
It gives you kind of a little tint, very dewy.
0
SPEAKER_01
You can see it on my Instagram.
0
SPEAKER_01
I wore it the entire time on my recent trip to St.
0
SPEAKER_01
Bart s.
0
SPEAKER_01
I m obsessed.
0
SPEAKER_01
I use it every single day.
0
SPEAKER_01
It s now available on the site.
0
SPEAKER_01
Go shop now.
0
SPEAKER_01
I m scared we re going to sell out.
0
SPEAKER_01
And you should know that today, April 8th, the 10th, is also our anniversary sale.
0
SPEAKER_01
So you get 20% off immediately.
0
SPEAKER_01
So you get 20% off all products.
0
SPEAKER_01
This excludes kits and gift cards, but all the products you can shop the sunscreen at 20% off April 8th through the 10th.
0
SPEAKER_01
And you can shop all our other products.
0
SPEAKER_01
I personally would get on subscription for the sunscreen.
0
SPEAKER_01
You re going to love it so much.
0
SPEAKER_01
It s just easier to be a subscriber.
0
SPEAKER_01
And then you never have to worry about us selling out.
0
SPEAKER_01
Go to shopskinnyconfidential.com and the 20% off will be applied immediately because of our anniversary sale.
0
SPEAKER_01
Thank you guys so much for the support.
0
SPEAKER_01
I hope you love the caffeinated sunscreen.
0
SPEAKER_02
I was saying to Don, well, sometimes doing two shows on one night is hard.
0
SPEAKER_02
And he said, be careful.
0
SPEAKER_02
Wait till the time when you can t do two shows and the audience only buys tickets for one show.
0
SPEAKER_02
And he s right, because that time came.
0
SPEAKER_02
With the Trump scandal, boom, no tour, no TV show, no specials, no work.
0
SPEAKER_02
I m in the freaking Guinness Book of World Records.
0
SPEAKER_02
I ve done more televised stand-up specials than any comedian, living or dead, male or female.
0
SPEAKER_02
Yet this rainy day happened, which was the Trump photo.
0
SPEAKER_02
And then I was calling upon Rickles and Joan.
0
SPEAKER_02
You know, I was hearing their voices in my head going, stay the course.
0
SPEAKER_02
Wait it out.
0
SPEAKER_02
Keep writing.
0
SPEAKER_02
Keep working on your show.
0
SPEAKER_02
Keep working on what you think is funny.
0
SPEAKER_02
And thank God I m back on the road.
0
SPEAKER_02
I can t even tell you.
0
SPEAKER_01
This one s a fun one.
0
SPEAKER_01
Not only is it the launch of the caffeinated sunscreen, but we have the two-time Emmy and Grammy award-winning comedian Kathy Griffin on the show.
0
SPEAKER_01
What I like about this episode is she is completely and utterly unfiltered.
0
SPEAKER_01
What you see is what you get.
0
SPEAKER_01
That s not always the case.
0
SPEAKER_01
You know what I mean?
0
SPEAKER_01
We have celebrities on.
0
SPEAKER_01
We have influencers on.
0
SPEAKER_01
Sometimes people hold back, and Kathy does not hold back.
0
SPEAKER_01
And this was really cool for me to see as someone who has consumed her content, to see her in person.
0
SPEAKER_01
She is exactly who you see on the television.
0
SPEAKER_01
and in her book.
0
SPEAKER_01
In this episode, we are going to talk about the picture that destroyed her career, her regrets, her relationship with Donald Trump, coming up as a female comedian, the difficulties women face today, plastic surgery, being neighbors with Kim and Kanye,
0
SPEAKER_01
having a brother who s a pedophile, getting lung cancer, and what she learned about the industry.
0
SPEAKER_01
You guys have been on this wild podcast ride with Michael and I for a while.
0
SPEAKER_01
We re almost on episode 700, and this episode will fulfill all your boxes, okay?
0
SPEAKER_01
Let s welcome My Life on the D-List award-winning comedian, Kathy Griffin, to the show.
0
SPEAKER_03
This is the skinny confidential, him and her.
0
SPEAKER_00
I am so excited to interview you because I ve read all your books.
0
SPEAKER_00
I m a big fan.
0
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God.
0
SPEAKER_02
Thank you so much.
0
SPEAKER_00
I think what I m so attracted to you with is the fact how honest you are.
0
SPEAKER_02
That s my curse.
0
SPEAKER_00
It s fun to read an autobiography that s actually honest.
0
SPEAKER_00
It s weird.
0
SPEAKER_02
No, it s like I can t stand when celebrities say, you know what?
0
SPEAKER_02
I don t have any regrets.
0
SPEAKER_02
I wouldn t change a thing.
0
SPEAKER_02
Are you kidding?
0
SPEAKER_02
I m filled with regrets.
0
SPEAKER_02
I would change at least half.
0
SPEAKER_02
What would you change?
0
SPEAKER_02
Well, I m getting divorced, so I probably wouldn t have married that guy.
0
SPEAKER_02
So there s one change.
0
SPEAKER_02
I mean, just
0
SPEAKER_02
Look I The whole time i ve been like coming up or when I was coming up or however you want to call it I got in fights with a lot of very powerful male executives because I really thought I could rule like the boys like I watched my male stand-up comedians Do their tv shows and their negotiations a certain way?
0
SPEAKER_02
And I saw what they asked for and what they backed off and I really think I underestimated the misogyny in the industry
0
SPEAKER_02
And to tell you the truth, it didn t really do me any favors.
0
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I don t know that it like made it better for the next girl, probably not even, but you know, it s been tough.
0
SPEAKER_02
I mean, ever since my Trump photo scandal, there s a lot of people in my own industry that are kind of secret Trumpers or still think I m toxic or still are afraid that their viewers or streamer subscribers or whatever will be scared of me.
0
SPEAKER_02
And so while I don t regret that photo,
0
SPEAKER_02
I still have to really deal with the fallout.
0
SPEAKER_02
Like, the fallout is real, you know?
0
SPEAKER_02
And it kind of continues to this day in some ways.
0
SPEAKER_04
What does it look like?
0
SPEAKER_02
It looks like I have a Nazi march at my show in Huntington, New York.
0
SPEAKER_02
Nazis are protesting a Kathy Griffin show.
0
SPEAKER_02
Wow.
0
SPEAKER_02
Think of the insanity of where we are as a country.
0
SPEAKER_02
I mean, because I ve had anti-gay protests at my shows for decades, and I m kind of used to it.
0
SPEAKER_02
And my audience is a lot of gay guys and women.
0
SPEAKER_02
And frankly, they go take pictures with them, and it s almost funny.
0
SPEAKER_02
But Nazis marching outside a comedy show is just wild.
0
SPEAKER_02
But I know it s because of the Trump photo because I wouldn t even be on their radar if it wasn t.
0
SPEAKER_02
And that photo was six and a half years ago.
0
SPEAKER_04
It s crazy when you think about how fast time goes and what people hang on to.
0
SPEAKER_02
hang on to.
0
SPEAKER_02
And so that photo gets recycled a lot.
0
SPEAKER_02
And, you know, it get it was turned into a meme very quickly.
0
SPEAKER_02
And it went to Iran and, you know, China and Russia within like 12 hours.
0
SPEAKER_02
And just the whole fact that I was like on the no fly list because of it.
0
SPEAKER_02
And I was investigated by the Department of Justice, two agencies within the DOJ.
0
SPEAKER_02
And they were very seriously considering charging me with conspiracy to assassinate the president of the United States.
0
SPEAKER_04
Is it just because I mean, the photo was shocking, shocking, shocking.
0
SPEAKER_02
And by the way, anybody who hates the photo, I m fine with that.
0
SPEAKER_02
And also just as a feminist, I thought he was dangerous and people were not sort of realizing how dangerous he was.
0
SPEAKER_02
And there is a great
0
SPEAKER_02
history of comedians also kind of taking stances on things.
0
SPEAKER_02
And I m not saying I m in their class, but obviously, you know, George Carlin and Lenny Bruce and they were hassled by local police in their day for their material and swearing or whatever.
0
SPEAKER_02
But I m the only comedy in history that s had the federal government
0
SPEAKER_02
you know, come after me.
0
SPEAKER_02
And it took away my ability to make a living.
0
SPEAKER_02
So I was in the middle of a 50 city tour, 25 shows in.
0
SPEAKER_02
And when you re on the no fly list, you can t tour.
0
SPEAKER_02
And so all of the shows were canceled because the theaters had death threats and bomb threats.
0
SPEAKER_02
If she s on stage, I m going to do this to her on stage and very graphic, et cetera.
0
SPEAKER_02
And it was just so blown out of proportion and so bizarre that and I m not anti-government.
0
SPEAKER_02
I m not one of those at all.
0
SPEAKER_02
In fact, I think the FBI actually saved my life because they gave me so many warnings about what was a credible threat versus
1
SPEAKER_02
is a non-credible threat.
1
SPEAKER_02
But the magnitude of it to this day blows my mind.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so in MAGA world, they recycle the photo a lot.
1
SPEAKER_02
So there ll be like Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene or Lauren Boebert or somebody, and they ll send the picture out again.
1
SPEAKER_02
And they ll say Kathy Griffin should be in prison.
1
SPEAKER_02
And next thing you know, you ve got a Nazi rally.
1
SPEAKER_00
To play devil s advocate in some kind of way, I guess, what do you think the response would be if somebody on the other side did that with a Biden mask?
1
SPEAKER_02
Do you think the people would- I don t know about that because I think the question I ve thought about is, I think it would be different if I were a guy comic.
1
SPEAKER_02
That s the one I really think.
1
SPEAKER_02
you know, just you can think of like the top five male comics.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I just don t think the reaction would have been that much.
1
SPEAKER_02
And also at the time, I wasn t with an agency.
1
SPEAKER_02
I didn t have a publicist.
1
SPEAKER_02
So I didn t have any institutional support.
1
SPEAKER_02
I didn t have a TV show on the air at the time.
1
SPEAKER_02
So it wasn t like,
1
SPEAKER_02
I had an opportunity to go and remind people, like, I m a comic.
1
SPEAKER_02
I make people laugh.
1
SPEAKER_02
In my new show, I don t even mention Trump.
1
SPEAKER_02
He just doesn t happen to come up.
1
SPEAKER_02
And typically, I wasn t really a political comedian.
1
SPEAKER_02
I was more of a pop culture person.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so it s weird that I was thrown into this era, or not era, but thrown into this narrative of being such a libbed hard, if you will, commie lightning rod.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I just never could have predicted it would have lasted so long.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I didn t think the actual president would get involved.
1
SPEAKER_02
That s never happened.
1
SPEAKER_02
And the actual attorney general.
1
SPEAKER_02
And, you know, that my career would be absolutely stopped.
1
SPEAKER_02
I mean, my whole life, I ve done commercials and tours and TV shows and have Emmys and a Grammy for Best Comedy Album, and none of that meant anything.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so I talk about it now because, you know, it still is mind-blowing that people remember it and they have such a visceral reaction.
1
SPEAKER_02
But I just want to be clear, I m still a big First Amendment warrior and I don t like it, but the Nazis do have the right to march across the street for my show.
1
SPEAKER_02
And people have every right to hate that photo, and I couldn t care less.
1
SPEAKER_02
And trust me, many of them have confronted me on the streets many times.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so, it s just a weird thing as a comic, and look, I m 63, so part of me can t believe that this all happened when I was 57.
1
SPEAKER_02
Like, I felt like...
1
SPEAKER_02
I m already like in my golden years, practically, you know?
1
SPEAKER_02
And so it s, I have to laugh, but that s why I called the tour Kathy Griffin, My Life on the PTSD List, because it s a shout out to my show, Kathy Griffin, My Life on the D-List, that was on Bravo back in the day.
1
SPEAKER_02
But I also have legit been diagnosed with PTSD, and I m giggling.
1
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I think that didn t help.
1
SPEAKER_02
I lost a lot of friends.
1
SPEAKER_02
Being interrogated under oath and being possibly charged with that crime is a very serious business.
1
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I had to take it very seriously and lawyer up with very serious attorneys.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I ve been sued by a lot of MAGA people since that photo.
1
SPEAKER_02
I still have a case in Tennessee federal court by a guy named Samuel Johnson that s a big Trump follower and I was advocating for a couple trans kids doing their prom photo shoot at a hotel lobby.
1
SPEAKER_02
He was harassing them and the kids got scared and one of the boys was in a dress.
1
SPEAKER_02
And, you know, I the video had gone viral and I made a comment and the guy got fired.
1
SPEAKER_02
So he s suing me for getting fired as opposed to his own behavior.
1
SPEAKER_02
So like it has tentacles that sort of go on to this day.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I m even in still in like the judicial system because of it.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so, you know, I talk about it because I don t want it to happen to somebody else.
1
SPEAKER_02
But like you said, to play devil s advocate,
1
SPEAKER_02
I have no idea what would have happened, because I know now that Trump has a personal issue with me.
1
SPEAKER_02
I know him pretty well.
1
SPEAKER_00
Because I was wondering if you had met him many times.
1
SPEAKER_00
Oh, many times.
1
SPEAKER_02
Because when I was at Bravo, it s owned by NBCUniversal.
1
SPEAKER_02
So when he was doing The Apprentice, I would see him at press events all the time.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I would see him when I went to New York, the guy would go to the opening of an envelope, you know, and so he d be at this event or that event.
1
SPEAKER_02
You know, one time we had a roast for the late Larry King, and I sat next to Donald for like four hours on a day, so yeah, we know each other.
1
SPEAKER_02
But I just thought he was kind of this kooky character, because he also even hired me one time to roast him for one episode of The Apprentice.
1
SPEAKER_02
So he even knows, even though I don t think I m a classic roaster, he even knows my style is kind of like, you know, get in there and kind of go a little deep and play with the blurred line a little bit.
1
SPEAKER_02
But I certainly could never have imagined when I was growing up that I d be investigated by the Department of Justice.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s not really like comedy, Matt.
1
SPEAKER_00
Right?
1
SPEAKER_02
It didn t go in my training.
1
SPEAKER_02
It wasn t part of my, like, improv at the Groundlings, Strasburg theater student, started doing stand-up, do a bunch of specials, do a TV show, and then this.
1
SPEAKER_02
But it happened, and it s my reality, and I live with it.
1
SPEAKER_01
Looking back, if you knew all this information, what would you tell yourself at the time?
1
SPEAKER_02
At the time, I would still do the photo.
1
SPEAKER_02
I would have told myself not to do a press conference because I did a press conference because I was hellbent on trying to clarify that I didn t mean to imply that obviously beheading was acceptable.
1
SPEAKER_02
I wanted everyone to know it was just a Halloween mask and it had been supported by one of my wig heads, which had been photoshopped out.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so I wouldn t have worked with that photographer, who I believe sold it to TMZ, which is very much in bed with the Trump White House.
1
SPEAKER_02
And Harvey Levin is good friends with Trump.
1
SPEAKER_02
And AMI Media, which owns the National Enquirer, they re very in bed with Donald Trump.
1
SPEAKER_02
And they were given immunity in the Robert Mueller investigation.
1
SPEAKER_02
So they re not a company that I would consider to be clean, in my humble opinion.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so, knowing the things that I know now, you know, I would have taken a different style of protest picture, and I would have used a different photographer.
1
SPEAKER_01
What is your first moment that you can remember when you were young, where you saw this sort of man s world and you called it out?
1
SPEAKER_01
What was the first time?
1
SPEAKER_02
Oh, man, I think just the fact that the TV shows were all guys.
1
SPEAKER_02
Like, I just remember being a kid and when the lineup started being Mary Tyler Moore, Rhoda, Phyllis, because until then, it had been really I Love Lucy was really the biggest female driven stand up, not stand up, situation comedy show.
1
SPEAKER_02
And then it seems like the guys kind of took over.
1
SPEAKER_02
So while I love all the classic TV shows with guys, just as a young girl, you know, like they say, representation matters.
1
SPEAKER_02
So when I started seeing that there were fewer women in sitcoms, but they were really good, I started to try to learn, like, OK, they probably had to work harder.
1
SPEAKER_02
They probably had to jump higher.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so I think at a young age, I thought you re going to have to work harder than the guys.
1
SPEAKER_02
And my dad was like a feminist without being called one.
1
SPEAKER_02
He just thought women were equal, which is the definition of feminism.
1
SPEAKER_02
So I was lucky where I had a dad that helped my mom change diapers and didn t put my mom down in any way.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I had a working mom.
1
SPEAKER_02
So that stuff kind of made me think I could do it.
1
SPEAKER_02
But certainly I would in my experience, the boys club is very much
1
SPEAKER_02
alive today.
1
SPEAKER_02
I mean, look at the guys who have been, quote, cancelled.
1
SPEAKER_02
Half of them are doing better now, if not before.
1
SPEAKER_02
Like, my cancellation was hardcore.
1
SPEAKER_02
It was, like, career-stopping and dramatic.
1
SPEAKER_02
A lot of these guys are, like, sexually assaulting women.
1
SPEAKER_02
and they have a bad six months or something, you know.
1
SPEAKER_02
So that s something that is just I know I m not being the most funny right now, but I m just saying that s just my observation.
1
SPEAKER_01
I want to see the other side of you.
1
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
1
SPEAKER_01
Like I said, I have read your books.
1
SPEAKER_01
I love when to hear this side of you.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh, thanks.
1
SPEAKER_01
Thanks.
1
SPEAKER_01
When is the first moment that you broke into comedy when you were young?
1
SPEAKER_01
Do you remember like performing for your parents?
1
SPEAKER_01
Was there like an epiphany that you had?
1
SPEAKER_01
Was there a job?
1
SPEAKER_01
It was all of that.
1
SPEAKER_02
First of all, I used to do the Kathy Griffin Show when I was a little kid, which I m sure was very good.
1
SPEAKER_02
Although I stole the theme song from The Tonight Show, which is a copyright infringement.
1
SPEAKER_02
So I apologize for that.
1
SPEAKER_02
And I would just stand there in front of the dinner table while my mom made hamburger helper,
1
SPEAKER_02
which is a dish predicated on the notion that hamburger needs help with a packet of powder.
1
SPEAKER_02
And so that was our meal.
2
SPEAKER_01
and just do whatever, songs or dances or skits from movies or something.
2
SPEAKER_01
And then in high school, I was in the drama club, and I was lucky enough to go to a really large high school, Oak Park River Forest in Illinois.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I think they have 5,000 kids there.
2
SPEAKER_01
So the drama department was actually very competitive.
2
SPEAKER_01
So like the guy who does the voice of Homer Simpson, Danny Castellaneta, he was in my class.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so it was like at a high school age, it was almost professional level with auditioning.
2
SPEAKER_02
The amount of people.
2
SPEAKER_01
The amount of people.
2
SPEAKER_01
And there was actual real talent in my high school.
2
SPEAKER_01
So finally getting to be in the plays.
2
SPEAKER_01
And then I knew I had to move to either California or New York to make a living.
2
SPEAKER_00
How much harder did you have to work with all these male comedians?
2
SPEAKER_02
And at that time, who were like the main, I guess, stand-up male contemporaries?
2
SPEAKER_02
Like who were the people you came up with?
2
SPEAKER_01
I mean, I came up with like David Spade, Ray Romano, Chris Rock.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like those are the ones where we re all doing like the clubs at the same time.
2
SPEAKER_00
Like same level.
2
SPEAKER_01
And we all started doing theaters at the same time.
2
SPEAKER_01
And are there any other women besides you?
2
SPEAKER_01
I would say the women are like Sarah Silverman, Wanda Sykes.
2
SPEAKER_02
Joan there.
2
SPEAKER_01
Joan rivers for sure, but she was one generation above but she was my dear friend and mentor So I really was close with joan and we would have the best lunches and dinners that you can imagine And we would just talk smack about everybody and everything And I learned so much from her and a big thing.
2
SPEAKER_01
I learned from her was if you think it s funny Don t give a fuck and do it.
2
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, and that s the best
2
SPEAKER_01
advice i ve ever gotten which is if you want to be funny and be in this business do what you think is funny not what s trendy at the moment or what other people are talking about and i think joan was such an original there was only one nobody was like her how much harder was it against the boys when you re coming up oh my god ridiculous i mean there would be look i remember when
2
SPEAKER_01
Craig Ferguson decided to stop doing his late show, the late, late show on CBS, and they ultimately hired James Corden.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I was dying to get that job.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so, I was told by an agent at CAA that the guy who was then running CBS, this guy named Les Moonves, wasn t considering females at this time.
2
SPEAKER_01
I said, you can t even say that in the state of California legally as an employer.
2
SPEAKER_01
So what are you talking about?
2
SPEAKER_01
But my experience with these older, powerful guys is it is their board and they are running it.
2
SPEAKER_01
And, you know, I have had some powerful enemies.
2
SPEAKER_01
So I m biting and scratching my way back.
2
SPEAKER_01
I m totally back on the D-list where I belong.
2
SPEAKER_01
I am, you know, back on tour, like I said, hustling my butt off, doing 40 cities on this leg of the tour.
2
SPEAKER_01
Then I ll have the summer off and then I m going to do the larger cities in the fall.
2
SPEAKER_01
But I get to go back in October to play Carnegie Hall.
2
SPEAKER_00
Wow.
2
SPEAKER_01
Which I ve played five times by myself, which I m very proud of.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I ll actually be breaking the record because Joan Rivers and I were tied.
2
SPEAKER_01
We had both played Carnegie by ourselves five times.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so I ll have played it as a singular female comic more than any female comic.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so I know that s silly to like brag like that.
2
SPEAKER_01
But I like watching these markers because I watched them like when Joan Rivers was the only woman in late night talk for so long.
2
SPEAKER_01
I kept thinking like, OK, OK, there s going to be another one coming.
2
SPEAKER_01
And then it hasn t been since Joan that there s been a woman in Nightly Network late night.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like it s still, you know, Chelsea Handler was on cable, which is great.
2
SPEAKER_01
Her show was great, but not CBS, NBC, ABC.
2
SPEAKER_00
Where does this drive come from?
2
SPEAKER_00
I mean, this is this is my parents are depression era, like my mom would say, use it up, wear it out, make it do.
2
SPEAKER_00
But this is a different formula.
2
SPEAKER_01
It s a burning desire.
2
SPEAKER_01
I do have a drive inside of me, and I call it a drive to hit the mic, which is, I think you shouldn t be a comic unless you feel like you can t live unless you re on a microphone.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I just love hitting the mic, telling my stories, trying out new stuff.
2
SPEAKER_01
Every show I do, I open the show with local material because there s always something funny going on.
2
SPEAKER_02
You pick on a city or whatever.
2
SPEAKER_01
Oh, I love it.
2
SPEAKER_01
I pick on them right to their faces.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I warn them.
2
SPEAKER_01
I say, okay, Red Bank, New Jersey, I m coming for you.
2
SPEAKER_01
Get ready.
2
SPEAKER_01
I ll be checking to see what you guys are up to.
2
SPEAKER_02
That probably keeps it fresh for you too.
2
SPEAKER_01
Oh yeah, absolutely.
2
SPEAKER_01
That s what I think is fun about it.
2
SPEAKER_01
I don t want to just write a two hour monologue and do the same word city after city.
2
SPEAKER_01
By the way, that s, I m actually not following the formula for success because more successful comedians do that.
2
SPEAKER_01
Their act is, it s more perfect and it s more thought out.
2
SPEAKER_01
Mine is very tangential, very improvisational, but every show is different.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I do think that s fun.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I get a lot of repeat business.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like I get people that have come to see me six, seven times, which is amazing to me.
2
SPEAKER_02
I think it s, it s,
2
SPEAKER_02
It s so interesting when you describe the styles because I think we hear stories of those comedians that they like they Get on the mics and they re like refining right every comma every period.
2
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, and I think there s an art form to that And I think on the other side it s kind of like a rickles thing where it s like it s it s like quick speed What s happening in the moment?
2
SPEAKER_01
Oh my god, you had me at rickles.
2
SPEAKER_01
We were dear friends I had him and joan to dinner many times people always ask to watch the legend
2
SPEAKER_01
that is Don Rickles.
2
SPEAKER_01
One time, I m really bragging, but I had a dinner party, and Sidney Poitier was my guest of honor, and Rickles was there.
2
SPEAKER_01
And Sidney said, about Don, this man has been making me laugh for decades.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I love that Sidney was this big movie star, but Rickles could say anything to him, and Sidney would be laid out.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so Rickles and Joan were really my mentors because, you re right, nobody was quicker than Don.
2
SPEAKER_01
And he wasn t mean, but he pushed that line.
2
SPEAKER_01
And that s what I found exciting about him, because you really never knew what Don Rickles was going to say.
2
SPEAKER_02
I think he s one of the funniest people to ever walk the planet.
2
SPEAKER_01
You ve like had a mom and dad of comedy.
2
SPEAKER_01
Seriously.
2
SPEAKER_01
That s like the best mom and dad to have.
2
SPEAKER_01
And both were alcoholics.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I remember one time I was complaining to Don because I was doing a lot of doubles, two shows in one night.
2
SPEAKER_02
They re both really good people, too, it seems, from what s come out since.
2
SPEAKER_01
Very good, generous, good, salt-of-the-earth people with real work ethics, wrote their own stuff, did it the old-fashioned way, no writers, you know, just their instincts.
2
SPEAKER_01
I was saying to Don, well, sometimes doing two shows on one night is hard.
2
SPEAKER_01
And he said, be careful.
2
SPEAKER_01
Wait till the time when you can t do two shows and the audience only buys tickets for one show.
2
SPEAKER_01
And he s right, because that time came.
2
SPEAKER_01
With the Trump scandal, boom, no tour, no TV show, no specials, no work.
2
SPEAKER_01
I m in the freaking Guinness Book of World Records.
2
SPEAKER_01
I ve done more televised stand-up specials than any comedian, living or dead, male or female.
2
SPEAKER_01
and yet this rainy day happened, which was the Trump photo, and then I was calling upon Rickles and Joan, you know, I was hearing their voices in my head going, stay the course, wait it out, keep writing, keep working on your show, keep working on what you think is funny, and thank God I m back on the road, I can t even tell you.
2
SPEAKER_02
It s so funny you say that because it s like, you know, we interview a lot of people and whenever you have like maybe somebody that s having success or even a celebrity in particular, it s like,
2
SPEAKER_02
Oh, it s so hard.
2
SPEAKER_02
I can t get any, like, away time.
2
SPEAKER_02
There s so much attention.
2
SPEAKER_01
It s like... The burden of my fame.
2
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, it s like, well, you know, look at the other side.
2
SPEAKER_02
Like, what if we just took it all away right now?
2
SPEAKER_02
Right.
2
SPEAKER_01
And I lived it.
2
SPEAKER_01
So I would now be Don Rickles.
2
SPEAKER_01
If someone said to me, oh, I have a double, I would say, well, let me tell you what Don Rickles once told me.
2
SPEAKER_01
And he was right.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s true.
2
SPEAKER_00
You have been so open about plastic surgery before anyone was.
2
SPEAKER_01
I thought everybody would follow.
2
SPEAKER_01
I did a big interview with People Magazine when I got a facelift, and I thought, okay, the stigma s going to be gone.
2
SPEAKER_01
No.
2
SPEAKER_00
The cheese stands alone.
2
SPEAKER_00
The cheese stands alone.
2
SPEAKER_00
The cheese stands alone.
2
SPEAKER_00
You ve been so open about plastic surgery.
2
SPEAKER_00
Reading about your experience, to me, it sounded like you thought it was going to make everything better.
2
SPEAKER_01
I thought that I was going to turn into Jennifer Aniston and I would be the new friend.
2
SPEAKER_01
I thought they would add a seventh friend named Kathy Griffin because I somehow thought because I ve had so many in this industry when you re a woman, they come for your looks.
2
SPEAKER_01
So I had so many guys saying, you re ugly, you re a hag, you re disgusting, you re unfuckable, blah, blah, blah.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so, you know, after a while you kind of internalize a little bit.
2
SPEAKER_01
And by the way, I think I was only 36 when I had that facelift.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like, it s crazy that I think about at 63, but I m like, why did I have a facelift at 36?
3
SPEAKER_03
six.
3
SPEAKER_03
But I really did.
3
SPEAKER_03
I thought this will be the thing that takes me from the D list to the C list.
3
SPEAKER_03
And, you know, it was fine.
3
SPEAKER_03
Did you like any of it looking back?
3
SPEAKER_03
I mean, I don t regret it, but it didn t like change my life or save my life or make it better.
3
SPEAKER_03
I don t even think people really noticed.
3
SPEAKER_03
And now as I get older, I go, actually, they come to see a comedian to hear what comes out of your mouth.
3
SPEAKER_03
They don t come to look at your face.
3
SPEAKER_03
Thank God.
3
SPEAKER_00
It s important to me that the supplements I take are of the highest quality.
3
SPEAKER_00
And that s why for the last eight years, I ve been drinking AG1.
3
SPEAKER_00
Unlike many supplement brands, AG1 is constantly searching for how to do things better at 52 iterations of their formula and counting their team is always trying to find better ways to source, test, and aim to find the best quality ingredients available.
3
SPEAKER_00
And quality for AG1 isn t just a buzzword, it s a commitment backed by expert led scientific research, high quality ingredients, industry leading manufacturing and rigorous testing.
3
SPEAKER_00
At each step of the process, AG1 goes above and beyond industry standards.
3
SPEAKER_00
I know I can trust what s in every scoop of AG1 because AG1 is NSF certified for sport, one of the most rigorous independent quality and safety certification programs in the supplement industry.
3
SPEAKER_00
Taking care of my health shouldn t be complicated and AG1 simplifies this by covering my nutritional basis and setting myself up for success in just 60 seconds.
3
SPEAKER_00
I love AG1 because AG1 s ingredients are heavily researched for efficacy and quality and I love that every scoop
3
SPEAKER_00
Also includes prebiotics, probiotics, and digestive enzymes for gut support.
3
SPEAKER_00
And of course we have an incredible offer for you so that you can try it for yourself.
3
SPEAKER_00
So if you want to replace your multivitamin and more start with AG1, try AG1 and get a free one year supply of vitamin D3 and K2 and five free AG1 travel packs with your first subscription at drinkag1.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_00
That s drinkag1.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_00
Check it out.
3
SPEAKER_01
The first thing my kids ask me for when they open their eyes is a vitamin.
3
SPEAKER_01
I m not even joking.
3
SPEAKER_01
They both want their vitamin.
3
SPEAKER_01
Zaza likes the pink and Towns likes the green.
3
SPEAKER_01
And that is all thanks to Hya.
3
SPEAKER_01
Hya, in my opinion, is the best vitamin for kids on the market.
3
SPEAKER_01
I did a lot of research with this, and this is something that I give my kids every single day.
3
SPEAKER_01
The first thing was I looked at other vitamins on the market and I saw that so many of them were filled with sugar.
3
SPEAKER_01
Hya doesn t have any sugar.
3
SPEAKER_01
There s zero gummy junk.
3
SPEAKER_01
And it also tastes good, but it s full of all the things that kids need.
3
SPEAKER_01
So there s like 15 essential vitamins and minerals, everything from vitamin D, B12, C, zinc, folate.
3
SPEAKER_01
Everything is designed to support the kids  immunity, energy, brain function, mood, concentration, teeth, bones.
3
SPEAKER_01
They thought of everything.
3
SPEAKER_01
Also, as a mom, you re going to want to know this.
3
SPEAKER_01
Everything that Haya has is non-GMO, vegan, dairy-free, allergy-free, gelatin-free, nut-free.
3
SPEAKER_01
I give my kids the main vitamin, and then I also give them the probiotic.
3
SPEAKER_01
And then at night, I give Townes the sleepy vitamin.
3
SPEAKER_01
He loves it.
3
SPEAKER_01
So that s like our vitamin circuit for the kids.
3
SPEAKER_01
And we have a special deal with Hya for their bestselling children s vitamin, the one that Zaza and Townes love.
3
SPEAKER_01
you can receive 50% off your first order.
3
SPEAKER_01
To claim this deal, you must go to hyahealth.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_01
You should know this deal is not available on their regular website.
3
SPEAKER_01
So go to H-I-Y-A-H-E-A-L-T-H dot com slash skinny and get your kids the full body nourishment they need to grow into healthy adults.
3
SPEAKER_01
One thing that I ve seen across the board as a mother is all moms, if they re giving their baby formula, want to pick the best one.
3
SPEAKER_01
And I have found a formula that I think is premium.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s A2 Platinum.
3
SPEAKER_01
So this is a premium infant formula.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s all made with high quality ingredients.
3
SPEAKER_01
Everything is just really complete from a nutritional standpoint.
3
SPEAKER_01
So the first thing that I look for in a formula is what kind of milk it s made from.
3
SPEAKER_01
And this is made from fresh, pure A2 milk.
3
SPEAKER_01
This is from cows that naturally produce only the A2 protein.
3
SPEAKER_01
And if you look into this, you ll understand why A2 is superior.
3
SPEAKER_01
This formula has all the key ingredients that babies need, and it s a clean, safe formula.
3
SPEAKER_01
So they actually received the Clean Label Project Purity Award, and they have had a truly flawless track record of zero recalls.
3
SPEAKER_01
This is important to look at because there s a lot of companies that have had recalls, and it s amazing that this company has not.
3
SPEAKER_01
So I actually know a couple of friends that have used this formula.
3
SPEAKER_01
They ve raved about it.
3
SPEAKER_01
They re obsessed with it.
3
SPEAKER_01
But most importantly, they love that it s made from pure A2 milk from cows.
3
SPEAKER_01
So if you re looking for a formula, check this out.
3
SPEAKER_01
Trust me, you want to choose A2 platinum for your little one.
3
SPEAKER_01
For a limited time, our listeners get 25% off your first purchase, only available at my exclusive URL.
3
SPEAKER_01
That s a2platinum.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_01
This is an amazing deal.
3
SPEAKER_01
Don t wait.
3
SPEAKER_01
Order now at the letter a, the number two platinum.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_01
That s a2platinum.com slash skinny.
3
SPEAKER_02
What do you think about now so much plastic surgery happening everywhere?
3
SPEAKER_03
It s crazy to me that it happens so young.
3
SPEAKER_03
Like, that s what blows my mind, is that girls are teenagers and they all want to look Kardashian.
3
SPEAKER_03
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_03
And so they get like... It s because of this.
3
SPEAKER_03
Yeah, it s because of cell phones.
3
SPEAKER_00
Staring at it all day.
3
SPEAKER_03
And by the way, I have to say, as much as we all use Zoom and it s a great tool, I don t love looking at myself during Zoom meetings, right?
3
SPEAKER_03
Don t Zoom me.
3
SPEAKER_02
No.
3
SPEAKER_02
And with the video.
3
SPEAKER_02
No.
3
SPEAKER_02
No, first of all.
3
SPEAKER_03
And don t FaceTime me because I m not picking up.
3
SPEAKER_03
I don t really want to FaceTime you.
3
SPEAKER_02
Do not surprise FaceTime me.
3
SPEAKER_02
I don t want to stare at the screen and ruin my eyes.
3
SPEAKER_02
Right.
3
SPEAKER_02
And then stare at every flaw.
3
SPEAKER_02
And my imperfections.
3
SPEAKER_02
That s what I end up looking at.
3
SPEAKER_02
I m not a Zoom girl.
3
SPEAKER_02
No.
3
SPEAKER_02
No, thanks.
3
SPEAKER_02
You are friends with the Kardashians.
3
SPEAKER_02
You live next door to Kim and Kanye.
3
SPEAKER_02
Yes, when they were together and had their first two kids.
3
SPEAKER_02
That s amazing.
3
SPEAKER_03
It was heaven.
3
SPEAKER_03
I ve never had the best neighbors in my life, and I ll tell you why.
3
SPEAKER_03
First of all, as a comedian, the material was endless.
3
SPEAKER_03
Endless.
3
SPEAKER_03
I mean, first of all, he s not a big talker, if you know what I m saying.
3
SPEAKER_03
And, you know... You go out with your coffee.
3
SPEAKER_03
Yeah.
3
SPEAKER_03
Good morning.
3
SPEAKER_03
Then Chris bought them a Rolls-Royce golf cart.
3
SPEAKER_03
So I see Kim driving with, at the time it was Little North, and I just stopped her.
3
SPEAKER_03
I said, hold on, just stop right there.
3
SPEAKER_03
I said, what s this?
3
SPEAKER_03
My mother literally got me this.
3
SPEAKER_03
I go, okay, so you know that your mother is insane, right?
3
SPEAKER_03
And she goes, yes, totally.
3
SPEAKER_03
And I go, OK, carry on.
3
SPEAKER_03
Just want to make sure.
3
SPEAKER_03
And then one time I was doing my walk around the neighborhood and Kanye was with a tow truck because the Rolls Royce golf cart had broken down within the gated community.
3
SPEAKER_03
And I just I just looked at Kanye and I went like this.
3
SPEAKER_03
I gave him the slow clap, like at the end of a movie where the little guy gets a touchdown.
3
SPEAKER_00
Slow clap from the coach.
3
SPEAKER_00
What was his reaction?
3
SPEAKER_03
He just looked at me like I was crazy, as usual.
3
SPEAKER_03
They were good neighbors, though?
3
SPEAKER_03
They were really good.
3
SPEAKER_03
Kim and I would text each other.
3
SPEAKER_03
If she was having a party, she d say, let me know if it s too loud or vice versa.
3
SPEAKER_03
And she would come over sometimes and shoot the breeze.
3
SPEAKER_03
And I d go over there every so often and shoot the shit.
3
SPEAKER_03
Did you ever eat a salad with her?
3
SPEAKER_03
I didn t do the salad shake, but I will say I never saw her eat.
3
SPEAKER_03
I can t prove she eats.
3
SPEAKER_03
I can t really prove it.
3
SPEAKER_03
You should have been nosy, like over the fence.
3
SPEAKER_00
Is that why they were filming yesterday when I was shaking the salad?
3
SPEAKER_03
It s like a signature shake.
3
SPEAKER_03
Oh, I didn t know.
3
SPEAKER_03
There must be some place in Calabasas that has been doing their salads because they get them and then they, you know, in the plastic container, they shake them and they eat them out of the container.
3
SPEAKER_03
And now it s known as the Kardashian shake.
3
SPEAKER_03
I ve had the salad.
3
SPEAKER_03
It s called half nut.
3
SPEAKER_03
OK, yes, it is called health.
3
SPEAKER_02
So what is special about it?
3
SPEAKER_02
It s a really great salad, but it s very good in the perfect shaker.
3
SPEAKER_02
OK.
3
SPEAKER_02
And then also you can get a green iced tea.
3
SPEAKER_02
That s like the best green iced tea on the side.
3
SPEAKER_03
Better than the Haley Bieber Air One smoothie.
3
SPEAKER_02
Different.
3
SPEAKER_02
OK, OK, OK.
3
SPEAKER_02
Different.
3
SPEAKER_02
I don t want problems.
3
SPEAKER_02
I don t want trouble.
3
SPEAKER_02
And you should have watched her shake the salad.
3
SPEAKER_02
I would have been like like over the fence.
3
SPEAKER_02
I mean, she is the professional.
3
SPEAKER_03
She s they ve turned that into an art form.
3
SPEAKER_03
They really have but I did um, I was on my way to a show last weekend and I was wearing kind of like a see-through black shirt For the show and then I wore like a bodysuit underneath and it was one of those ones made by chloe Good good american.
3
SPEAKER_03
They re good and the butt floss was going up my butt And so I texted her
4
SPEAKER_00
And I said, you know, haven t haven t you people done enough to me?
4
SPEAKER_00
Haven t I been through enough?
4
SPEAKER_00
And she wrote back since when don t you like something up your asshole?
4
SPEAKER_00
And that s why we re friends because they can take a joke.
4
SPEAKER_00
I think they re self-deprecating.
4
SPEAKER_02
They seem like they re in on the joke.
4
SPEAKER_00
They are in on the joke and they figured it out and they re just counting their money.
4
SPEAKER_00
They are.
4
SPEAKER_00
Maybe they re printing it.
4
SPEAKER_00
They might be printing their own money at this point.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_00
I d buy it.
4
SPEAKER_01
You are crushing it on TikTok.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh, thank you.
4
SPEAKER_00
I work so hard on my TikTok.
4
SPEAKER_01
Thank you.
4
SPEAKER_01
I love it.
4
SPEAKER_01
I have fun doing it.
4
SPEAKER_01
You re so honest.
4
SPEAKER_01
It s just like really weird to encounter someone who is so brutally honest.
4
SPEAKER_01
It s crazy.
4
SPEAKER_00
Did you see the one I made about Kanye s new wife?
4
SPEAKER_00
No, I didn t see that one.
4
SPEAKER_01
What did you see?
4
SPEAKER_02
We saw them the other day when we were running around.
4
SPEAKER_02
It was a bit of a scene.
4
SPEAKER_00
What?
4
SPEAKER_00
Here in America?
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_02
OK, what was she wearing?
4
SPEAKER_02
Not much.
4
SPEAKER_01
Well, like the pantyhose?
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_01
Oh, like the thong.
4
SPEAKER_02
It was kind of strange, too, because we were- You see nipple?
4
SPEAKER_02
We were up at the hotel- Did you look at another girl s nipple?
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_02
Well, I mean, this thing was taking up a lot of space, right?
4
SPEAKER_01
That s true.
4
SPEAKER_02
So you looked.
4
SPEAKER_02
I mean, it was kind of like- That s getting cheaty.
4
SPEAKER_02
I had to kind of like maybe only look down to not look.
4
SPEAKER_02
But that s what you should have done.
4
SPEAKER_02
This was like a family, there was like kids and families and they were just charging around the hotel like a spectacle.
4
SPEAKER_01
Were there paparazzi following?
4
SPEAKER_01
No, it was in Santa Barbara.
4
SPEAKER_01
So it was their crew.
4
SPEAKER_01
How many people were in their posse?
4
SPEAKER_02
There was probably like, yeah, but it was kind of crazy because they were just like running around all over the place and there was no rhyme or reason.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_02
We re just like, okay, this is a little spectacle.
4
SPEAKER_00
Were just like random people taking pictures?
4
SPEAKER_02
No, because I think, you know, in that area, people in Montecito... They re a little snooty.
4
SPEAKER_00
They re like, we have Harry and Meghan here.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, they re like, we do not... Right, we don t lower ourselves.
4
SPEAKER_02
I would have taken a picture.
4
SPEAKER_01
They go out of the way.
4
SPEAKER_01
You probably have pictures from when you re neighbors with them.
4
SPEAKER_01
You don t even need a picture.
4
SPEAKER_02
I was like, achoo, click.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, achoo, oops.
4
SPEAKER_00
I will tell you, one time Kanye went in the backyard and just was yelling, like, ah, and that was really fun.
4
SPEAKER_00
Wow.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_00
You could write a book on that.
4
SPEAKER_00
I know.
4
SPEAKER_00
I could just write a book called When Kanye and Kim Were My Neighbors.
4
SPEAKER_00
Sure.
4
SPEAKER_00
They d love that.
4
SPEAKER_00
They would adore it, especially Kanye because he s so centered.
4
SPEAKER_00
And, you know, like they would film there sometimes.
4
SPEAKER_00
Not a lot, though.
4
SPEAKER_00
But this was the Bel Air house where I guess they had it fully decorated.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then I guess Kanye walked in, took a look at it after two years and said, change everything.
4
SPEAKER_00
So they ended up living there longer than they thought they would.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I m sure Kim was thrilled I was her neighbor, just writing down and taking notes of everything.
4
SPEAKER_00
And one time I did have her sign my guest book and she signed her name wrong, which I thought was genius.
4
SPEAKER_01
That s amazing.
4
SPEAKER_00
Kim Karfashian or Karkashian or something.
4
SPEAKER_00
It was hilarious.
4
SPEAKER_01
You opened up about what is going on with your brother.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_01
And that s how I found you on TikTok.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_01
What is that like for you?
4
SPEAKER_01
That s where I thought you were going to say your post-traumatic stress came from.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, I had a brother that was a pedophile, and that is a heavy, heavy thing to live with.
4
SPEAKER_00
And it was, he ended up going to prison, not for that, he went to prison for assault and battery, but he was a pedophile.
4
SPEAKER_00
Your real brother.
4
SPEAKER_00
My actual oldest brother, who was also my godfather, because Catholics are a little twisted.
4
SPEAKER_00
And my parents ran out of relatives and made my brother my godfather and my sister my godmother.
4
SPEAKER_00
And in the Catholic Church, supposedly, if you re like super duper Catholic, if anything happens to the parents, the godparents take over.
4
SPEAKER_00
So luckily that didn t happen.
4
SPEAKER_00
But it was just a very heavy thing.
4
SPEAKER_00
It was very divisive in my family, obviously.
4
SPEAKER_00
I have a tremendous amount of empathy for my mom and dad because I know that my dad did not molest my brother.
4
SPEAKER_00
He was molested by a coach and a priest.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I have the most empathy for his victims, though.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I had no relationship with him once I found that out.
4
SPEAKER_00
How did you find it out?
4
SPEAKER_00
His wife told me.
4
SPEAKER_02
Oh, wow, that s heavy.
4
SPEAKER_00
Really heavy.
4
SPEAKER_00
And not everyone in the family believed her.
4
SPEAKER_00
What happened to her?
4
SPEAKER_00
She luckily got away from him.
4
SPEAKER_00
He was also physically abusive to her.
4
SPEAKER_02
How many years older is he than you?
4
SPEAKER_00
He was like 20 years older than me.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh, wow.
4
SPEAKER_00
So my parents had kids like every five years.
4
SPEAKER_00
The rhythm method doesn t work.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m what you call an accident baby.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oops, I m here.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, that was that was he was just a very heavy presence in my life ever since I was a kid.
4
SPEAKER_00
And
4
SPEAKER_00
He was a singer in, like, a cover band.
4
SPEAKER_00
So it was also weird because he was the only one in my family that was, like, leaning toward the entertainment field.
4
SPEAKER_00
So it was such a horrible thing to try to process as a kid.
4
SPEAKER_00
Also, just to be told as a 10-year-old, oh, by the way, your brother molests children and he beats me.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then he did beat that woman up right in front of me and my sister and brother.
4
SPEAKER_00
He threw her right across the room.
4
SPEAKER_00
And it was such a violent act.
4
SPEAKER_00
And it was so intense.
4
SPEAKER_00
And that was the first time my parents had to deal with that part of his personality.
4
SPEAKER_00
And... What happened to him, too?
4
SPEAKER_00
He went to prison.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then he died.
4
SPEAKER_00
He overdosed of crack.
4
SPEAKER_00
He was a crack addict.
4
SPEAKER_00
So he was homeless here on the streets of Los Angeles.
4
SPEAKER_00
And sometimes I would see him if I was going to an audition.
4
SPEAKER_00
He d be like on the freeway, you know, exit ramp with a sign.
4
SPEAKER_00
What would you do?
4
SPEAKER_00
I would keep driving.
4
SPEAKER_00
I don t support pedophiles.
4
SPEAKER_01
That is the craziest thing I ve ever heard.
4
SPEAKER_00
I think the coach and the priest molesting him is probably what made him like that.
4
SPEAKER_00
And as far as being an addict, you know, I don t know.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m in recovery for a pill addiction myself.
4
SPEAKER_00
And so I had a pill.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m going to call it a pill phase because I m in recovery now.
4
SPEAKER_00
But, you know, once an addict, always an addict.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I go to my AA meetings.
4
SPEAKER_00
And ironically, I ve still never had a drink to this day.
4
SPEAKER_00
Ever?
4
SPEAKER_00
Ever.
4
SPEAKER_00
Wow.
4
SPEAKER_00
And so I think
4
SPEAKER_00
Wait, you ve never had a sip of alcohol in your life?
4
SPEAKER_00
Never in my life.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I think that when I started abusing pills, I didn t think I could be an addict because I d never had a drink and the rest of my family drinks.
4
SPEAKER_00
And so I thought, oh, I I missed that one.
4
SPEAKER_00
I dodged that bullet.
4
SPEAKER_00
So that is also part of my PTSD.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then I tried to take my life.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh, yeah.
4
SPEAKER_00
This is going to be quite an interview.
4
SPEAKER_00
Three and a half years ago.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I went on a 51 50 cycle for three days at Cedars-Sinai.
4
SPEAKER_02
Do you know why this is going to be quite an interview, which is a bit challenging?
4
SPEAKER_02
Half the things you say I want to laugh hysterically and the other things I want to crawl up into a ball.
4
SPEAKER_02
Right?
4
SPEAKER_02
Welcome to meeting Kathy Griffin.
4
SPEAKER_01
That s what it s like to be my friend.
4
SPEAKER_01
I have to understand the timeline.
4
SPEAKER_00
Alright, Trump scandal, at home, not working, started taking prescription pills because I had a bunch laying around because when you re older they just give you pills and I just maybe just never threw them out.
4
SPEAKER_00
I don t know.
4
SPEAKER_00
Then I decide my life is over.
4
SPEAKER_00
I ve had a good run.
4
SPEAKER_00
I tried to take my life.
4
SPEAKER_00
I take like a hundred benzos, which are downers.
4
SPEAKER_00
I live, I wake up, there s blood in the bed.
4
SPEAKER_00
I don t know what s happened to me.
4
SPEAKER_00
I ve got bruises and lacerations.
4
SPEAKER_00
I fell down the stairs.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then I finally called a doctor and said, I tried to take my life, blah, blah, blah.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then he said, we ll come to the ER.
4
SPEAKER_00
We ll check you for any broken bones or anything.
4
SPEAKER_00
And what that really meant is when you tell a hospital what you ve done, they legally have to put you on a 72-hour hold, which is fine and I needed it.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then luckily, the doctor there got me really good reps from Alcoholics Anonymous, which I m a fan of because it s free and they don t have like one liter, so it s not like culty.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I ve been in recovery now for three and a half years.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then I was one year and one month sober, and then I was diagnosed with lung cancer, and I ve never smoked.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I have half a lung on my left side.
4
SPEAKER_00
I had half my left lung removed.
4
SPEAKER_02
It changed your voice a bit.
4
SPEAKER_00
It changed my voice.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then during the lung cancer surgery, I was injured.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I now have a permanently paralyzed left vocal cord and an aperture above both my cords.
4
SPEAKER_00
So when I do stand up, my voice is in a little bit of a higher pitch, which is fine.
4
SPEAKER_00
I wear a headset microphone now, like Jenna Jackson, and I feel like her in so many ways.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s interesting you say that because when you first came in, I mean, I grew up seeing you all over the place periodically all the time and was a huge Seinfeld fan also.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yes, Jerry Seinfeld is the devil.
4
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, exactly.
4
SPEAKER_02
It s a Seinfeld thing.
4
SPEAKER_02
And, you know, when I first heard you, I was like, oh, I could voice change a bit.
4
SPEAKER_02
And now this makes a ton of sense.
4
SPEAKER_00
Lung cancer, never smoked.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I have what they call the luck of the Irish, which means bad luck.
4
SPEAKER_00
But it s all turning around.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh, and I m getting divorced.
4
SPEAKER_00
I filed for divorce 72 days ago.
4
SPEAKER_00
But does that feel liberating?
4
SPEAKER_00
I m kind of still in the heart.
4
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, I m going to be heartbroken, but it s pretty, it s pretty gnarly.
4
SPEAKER_00
Like, I definitely thought I was going to be with this guy forever.
4
SPEAKER_00
So I m
5
SPEAKER_01
I m kind of nursing a heartache too, which is where the tour comes in.
5
SPEAKER_01
Because honestly, for all of my bitching that I m doing, I really do have the greatest job in the world to make people laugh.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I m so happy to be on these 40 cities.
5
SPEAKER_01
I go out there every night.
5
SPEAKER_01
I run out on stage.
5
SPEAKER_01
Something takes over my body.
5
SPEAKER_01
The men in my shoes hit the stage where I just relax.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I feel at home and the audiences have been so incredibly kind and loving.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I think most of the people that show up and almost all of them, they know either about the Trump photo scandal or the lung cancer or the pill stuff.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so that s why I call the tour my life on the PTSD list, because I really talk about all of it.
5
SPEAKER_01
This is a lot.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s a I know it s a lot.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s a lot for you.
5
SPEAKER_01
I just can t believe you ve been through a lot.
5
SPEAKER_01
I mean, this is not a joke.
5
SPEAKER_00
It s a little much.
5
SPEAKER_01
And just in the last six and a half years, like I was kind of smooth sailing till then.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so it s a lot for a short amount of time.
5
SPEAKER_01
But, you know, I got to think everything is for a reason.
5
SPEAKER_01
And every show is so special.
5
SPEAKER_01
Not that I ever took them for granted, but every show is even more special.
5
SPEAKER_01
I do two hours at least.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t have an opener because I have too much to say, and I m always changing my stuff.
5
SPEAKER_01
But I do.
5
SPEAKER_01
I do cancer jokes.
5
SPEAKER_01
If I go to one more oncologist s office and have them call me Kathie Lee Gifford, right?
5
SPEAKER_01
What am I going to do?
5
SPEAKER_01
Yell at them?
5
SPEAKER_01
I just laugh.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so, you know, I talk, I say to the audience, clap if you ve been affected by cancer in any way.
5
SPEAKER_01
Well, everybody claps.
5
SPEAKER_01
Clap if you ve been affected by addiction in any way.
5
SPEAKER_01
Everybody claps.
5
SPEAKER_01
I d not even say clap if you ve lost someone to either MAGA or QAnon, and a lot of people clap.
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh yeah, don t get started with the QAnon.
5
SPEAKER_01
The QAnon people think I went to Epstein Island.
5
SPEAKER_01
Did you go?
5
SPEAKER_01
Did you go?
5
SPEAKER_01
Let s clear it up.
5
SPEAKER_01
Did you go?
5
SPEAKER_01
And then I used something called adrenochrome, which is a made-up word, where they think I was harvesting baby parts with Hillary Clinton in the basement.
5
SPEAKER_02
Taylor, get my tinfoil hat back there.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, put it back on.
5
SPEAKER_01
Point it toward the moon.
5
SPEAKER_01
How did you know that you had lung cancer after everything that you d been through with the pills?
5
SPEAKER_01
I got an abdominal x-ray because I was having abdominal problems.
5
SPEAKER_01
And luckily the doctor said, I see a mass on your lung and I can tell from your last x-ray it s grown in size.
5
SPEAKER_01
So like when the doctor s like, and your appointment is in three hours, you know it s bad.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I got surgery pretty quickly and then I ve just been back since.
5
SPEAKER_01
But the voice stuff is hard for me to get adjusted to because I m self-conscious about it.
5
SPEAKER_01
But I shouldn t, because the audiences don t really care.
5
SPEAKER_02
I don t think you should be self-conscious about it.
5
SPEAKER_01
But when my adrenaline goes, when I do stand-up, it goes up a little bit.
5
SPEAKER_02
Do you remember, I mean you ve done so much, what was the first thing you recognized, like, okay, I gotta break here?
5
SPEAKER_02
Because comedy is so hard to break through.
5
SPEAKER_01
You know what, when I was on a TV show, because I did everybody s student film for free, everybody s play for free, but when I was on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,
5
SPEAKER_01
Finally, I was on a show where I could tell my relatives, like, I m on the show.
5
SPEAKER_01
You ve heard of it.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s on NBC.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s with this guy, Will Smith, who s the rapper Fresh Prince.
5
SPEAKER_01
It was season one of the show.
5
SPEAKER_01
Episode five of the entire series.
5
SPEAKER_01
That s so cool.
5
SPEAKER_01
Isn t that wild?
5
SPEAKER_01
That s iconic.
5
SPEAKER_01
And getting on Seinfeld was amazing because I had done my first HBO comedy special and I made fun of Jerry.
5
SPEAKER_02
Had you met him in the comedy circuit before?
5
SPEAKER_01
I never met him until I was on the show.
5
SPEAKER_02
Oh, that s interesting.
5
SPEAKER_01
And he was such a dick that I then went and told a story about him in my special.
5
SPEAKER_01
He actually, to his credit, thought it was funny.
5
SPEAKER_01
He didn t clutch his pearls and go, oh, how dare you?
5
SPEAKER_01
I m a star.
5
SPEAKER_01
So they wrote the second episode where my character becomes a standup comic whose whole act is making fun of Jerry Seinfeld.
5
SPEAKER_01
And that was amazing because just to be with that cast, they had just announced that they were quitting the entire series.
5
SPEAKER_01
So all the executives were there and they were all like, you know, talking about what it was like to be working the four of them together.
5
SPEAKER_01
This iconic, you know, group of people that were national treasures.
5
SPEAKER_00
Sally Weaver.
5
SPEAKER_01
I was Sally Weaver.
5
SPEAKER_01
That was my character s name.
5
SPEAKER_00
Seinfeld s one of my all time favorite shows.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I can watch it anytime.
5
SPEAKER_01
I still go to.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve never watched it.
5
SPEAKER_01
Well, you ve got to watch the Sally Weaver episode.
5
SPEAKER_00
I will go watch it.
5
SPEAKER_01
Is it that good though?
5
SPEAKER_01
Do I need to watch it?
5
SPEAKER_01
It s kind of addicting.
5
SPEAKER_01
I think you might like it.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s as good as Curb, I d say.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, I agree.
5
SPEAKER_02
I would say Curb Prime and Seinfeld Prime are very comparable.
5
SPEAKER_02
I think Seinfeld
5
SPEAKER_01
It does hold up.
5
SPEAKER_02
Seinfeld holds up.
5
SPEAKER_02
I think you can go back and watch Seinfeld right now.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s not dated because the joke about is they used to say it was a show about nothing because it didn t have like a traditional situation comedy plots.
5
SPEAKER_01
And it was kind of just about little things.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I think that s why it holds up.
5
SPEAKER_02
I feel like also it s very lifey.
5
SPEAKER_01
You know, I think I need to go back and watch it.
5
SPEAKER_02
We re huge fans of Larry David.
5
SPEAKER_02
Me too.
5
SPEAKER_02
But I think I could say that I like, I mean, Seinfeld maybe holds up longer, but then also it s like kind of a compliment to Larry.
5
SPEAKER_00
Wait, how was your relationship with Jerry after the second episode when you got, because you said he was an asshole and then you, the second episode was great.
5
SPEAKER_01
He was nice and then he kind of dumped me.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, I was kind of insulted.
5
SPEAKER_01
I was never asked to go on Comedians and Cars Getting Coffee.
5
SPEAKER_01
But you never did on that?
5
SPEAKER_01
I think he thinks because I improvise I m not like a real comic because Jerry really writes his act.
5
SPEAKER_01
He s a true connoisseur.
5
SPEAKER_01
And he, like I said, the commas are in place.
5
SPEAKER_01
He takes it very seriously.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yes.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I think he thinks like, oh, she just kind of like makes stuff up, which I kind of do.
5
SPEAKER_01
I improvise a lot.
5
SPEAKER_01
But, you know, but he s still, you know, an American treasure and he s one of our greats and always will be.
5
SPEAKER_00
I ve got one more question about an early show.
5
SPEAKER_00
This is a favorite of mine.
5
SPEAKER_00
So this is is you had an episode on the X-Files.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
5
SPEAKER_00
Doppelganger.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
5
SPEAKER_00
It s one of my other favorite shows, X-Files.
5
SPEAKER_01
I got to play my own twin.
5
SPEAKER_01
I got to play two Kathy Griffins on the X-Files.
5
SPEAKER_01
That s cool.
5
SPEAKER_01
And it was so big at that time.
5
SPEAKER_01
They could they were terrified of even the locations being found up.
5
SPEAKER_01
The fans were so rabid that like we shot like some of the stuff in downtown L.A., some of the stuff and like out on the West Side.
5
SPEAKER_01
And it was like this big secret where the crew was shooting the next day.
5
SPEAKER_01
And that was a really tough gig.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, I have such respect for people that do our dramas, and I also did an episode of Law & Order, and God, they work hard on that show.
5
SPEAKER_02
Outside of your own shows, obviously, which I m sure are your favorites, what is, like, your favorite franchise that you went on and guested on?
5
SPEAKER_02
What was, like, the one?
5
SPEAKER_01
I mean, just the ones we talked about.
5
SPEAKER_01
Seinfeld was incredible.
5
SPEAKER_01
ER, back in the day, was a really big show.
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh, my God, that s so cool.
5
SPEAKER_01
I had a scene with George Clooney.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I brought my mom and dad to the set.
5
SPEAKER_02
Well, that s why when I think of you, I m like, I ve seen because you ve been everywhere.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve kind of been I m one of those people.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t want everybody at this point.
5
SPEAKER_01
What was it like to know now that you were like sort of the first person to dip yourself in reality television?
5
SPEAKER_01
You know, it s so wild because it was so different than that.
5
SPEAKER_01
My show was really real.
5
SPEAKER_01
I know there was no nobody pitched ideas They just followed my life around hoping I would say funny shit and I would purposely schedule Stand-up gigs that would be akin to being funny, you know I also, you know, we went and did an episode in iraq because I performed for the troops in afghanistan off camera
5
SPEAKER_01
And then, of course, they were like, would you go to Iraq?
5
SPEAKER_01
And I said, of course.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so, the ability to do that, I don t think, I don t know if they would let me do that show anymore.
5
SPEAKER_01
Because, you know, it was in the era of Osbournes, which was totally real.
5
SPEAKER_01
That was Ozzie being Ozzie.
5
SPEAKER_02
I don t think he cannot be Ozzy.
5
SPEAKER_01
Right?
5
SPEAKER_01
Exactly.
5
SPEAKER_01
And the same with the whole family and Nick and Jessica.
5
SPEAKER_01
That was Nick and Jessica just being Nick and Jessica.
5
SPEAKER_01
And she really thought tuna and chicken were the same thing.
5
SPEAKER_01
And you can t write that stuff.
5
SPEAKER_01
But after my life on the D-list, I feel like that s when you got into like the Hills and the Kardashians.
5
SPEAKER_01
And there are more what they call soft scripted shows.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I like really real shows.
5
SPEAKER_01
I watch every docuseries there is.
5
SPEAKER_01
Oh, my God.
5
SPEAKER_01
Twin Flames.
5
SPEAKER_01
I never met a cult docuseries I didn t find fascinating because I think real people are just fascinating.
5
SPEAKER_01
But I don t think you have to, like, plow them with booze.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t think they should be getting DUIs in real life and be going to prison.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, when I see what happens to a lot of reality stars.
5
SPEAKER_02
You know, like, let s not fuck up their lives.
5
SPEAKER_01
let s not fuck up their lives.
5
SPEAKER_01
And just the fact that, unfortunately, people are so hungry and won t kind of do anything to be on TV is also a little bit of a bummer.
6
SPEAKER_03
schedule him and her podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp.
6
SPEAKER_03
Guys, it can be so easy to ignore your social battery and spread yourself too thin, especially with social gatherings picking up after the winter.
6
SPEAKER_03
What s the right amount of socializing?
6
SPEAKER_03
How much energy do you want to put out?
6
SPEAKER_03
Maybe you thrive around people.
6
SPEAKER_03
Maybe you just need some alone time.
6
SPEAKER_03
Therapy can give you self-awareness to build social life that doesn t drain your battery.
6
SPEAKER_03
Lauren and I have talked to so many incredible people over the years doing this podcast, and one of the common denominators of many high performers is that they talk regularly about their feelings, about their thoughts, and they do so with licensed professionals.
6
SPEAKER_03
This is why Lauren and I have been fans for years of BetterHelp for this audience, for ourselves, because BetterHelp brings therapy right to the home,
6
SPEAKER_03
from the comfort of your couch, your bedroom, your office, wherever it may be all at your convenience.
6
SPEAKER_03
No more long commutes to sit in waiting rooms and wait for a therapist and then figure it out if it s the right fit.
6
SPEAKER_03
What we love about BetterHelp is you can do it, like I said, all from the comfort of your own home or your office or wherever you want to do therapy.
6
SPEAKER_03
And what s also great about BetterHelp is you can get paired with thousands of licensed therapists and change at any time for no reason.
6
SPEAKER_03
If there s one thing we ve learned doing this podcast for the last eight years is that getting your thoughts out, talking to someone, communicating is so important, not only to understand yourself, but understand others as well.
6
SPEAKER_03
Again, this is why we love a platform like BetterHelp so much.
6
SPEAKER_03
I think so many people can benefit from therapy, especially with the professionals they have on this platform.
6
SPEAKER_03
So, if you re thinking of starting therapy, give BetterHelp a try.
6
SPEAKER_03
It s entirely online, designed to be convenient, flexible, and suited to your schedule.
6
SPEAKER_03
Just fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with licensed therapists, and like I said earlier, switch therapists at any time for no additional charge.
6
SPEAKER_03
Of course, we have an offer.
6
SPEAKER_03
Find your social sweet spot with BetterHelp.
6
SPEAKER_03
Visit betterhelp.com slash skinny to get 10% off your first month.
6
SPEAKER_03
That s betterhelp, H-E-L-P.com slash skinny, betterhelp.com slash skinny.
6
SPEAKER_01
You may have heard me talk about my daily non-negotiables on past episodes, one of which is a morning walk with my son.
6
SPEAKER_01
So after I wake up, I try to make the bed.
6
SPEAKER_01
I hydrate with an electrolyte water and I do my quick wellness and skincare routine.
6
SPEAKER_01
I make my kids breakfast.
6
SPEAKER_01
Then my son and I go outside for a walk.
6
SPEAKER_01
So he s in the stroller and I m doing a walking meditation.
6
SPEAKER_01
We get in our morning light and movement in and we love it.
6
SPEAKER_01
It s like a habit stack if I ve ever seen one.
6
SPEAKER_01
And during those morning walks, I m wearing Nike, specifically at my indie bra and my Nike Motiva walking shoes.
6
SPEAKER_01
The bra is so supportive.
6
SPEAKER_01
In fact, it comes in different support levels, so you can get like low, medium or high support depending on the size of your boobs or preference.
6
SPEAKER_01
Plus, the bra has adjustable straps and is so comfortable.
6
SPEAKER_01
Nike s Motiva walking shoes are smooth, they re cushioned, they re comfortable, they re great for like a daily walk.
6
SPEAKER_01
And what I like about them is they give you optimum support for every move every day.
6
SPEAKER_01
I have plantar fasciitis, and these are amazing for that.
6
SPEAKER_01
Both the Indie Bra and the Nike Motivas are the move.
6
SPEAKER_01
The Indie Bra just sculpts your body in a perfect way.
6
SPEAKER_01
I feel like we ve been talking a lot lately about tailored, well-fitting clothes, and this is it when it comes to athletic wear.
6
SPEAKER_01
Another thing that I love is they re both so durable, so you re getting high quality, flattering apparel that you can wash and wear over and over again.
6
SPEAKER_01
You ll just keep reaching for these staples just like me.
6
SPEAKER_01
Shop now at Nike.com.
6
SPEAKER_01
Again, that s Nike.com.
6
SPEAKER_01
How I like relax is with my shows and there is a new fun reality series from Lisa Vanderpump.
6
SPEAKER_01
I am a big Lisa Vanderpump fan and she has a new home on Hulu.
6
SPEAKER_01
The new show is called Vanderpump Villa.
6
SPEAKER_01
It s an escape
6
SPEAKER_01
to the French countryside.
6
SPEAKER_01
This series offers first-class luxury and world-class drama, which is like fun to sit in bed with your popcorn.
6
SPEAKER_01
I usually have my magnesium water.
6
SPEAKER_01
I like to dim the lights, watch my show, just like relax when the kids are asleep.
6
SPEAKER_01
This show is all about Lisa s staff, how they work, live and play together 24-7 while dealing with all the things.
6
SPEAKER_01
So there s romance, there s misadventures, there s like fighting.
6
SPEAKER_01
It s just like workplace drama.
6
SPEAKER_01
You know what I mean?
6
SPEAKER_01
Lisa Vanderpump has been on this show, and I can tell you she is as real as it gets.
6
SPEAKER_01
Go listen to the episode.
6
SPEAKER_01
She s the queen of hospitality, and she s the queen of reality television.
6
SPEAKER_01
She s run over 35 restaurants and a boutique hotel, and now she s a household name.
6
SPEAKER_01
Obviously, we all know who she is, and this show does not disappoint, let me tell you.
6
SPEAKER_01
If you want something that s juicy, if you want something
6
SPEAKER_01
filtered, entertaining.
6
SPEAKER_01
This is the series for you.
6
SPEAKER_01
She really does not miss a beat with this one.
6
SPEAKER_01
I enjoyed it so much.
6
SPEAKER_01
I think you guys are going to love it, too.
6
SPEAKER_01
If you want something, it s like in an old world setting, but with like a modern day fun.
6
SPEAKER_01
This is the show.
6
SPEAKER_01
OK, European luxury has never been closer and more accessible.
6
SPEAKER_01
Thanks to Lisa Vanderpump.
6
SPEAKER_01
Watch new episodes of Vanderpump Villa every Monday now on Hulu.
6
SPEAKER_01
That s Vanderpump Villa every Monday now on Hulu.
6
SPEAKER_03
You know what s so interesting, Lauren and I were talking the other day, we have a lot of people that go on those shows, come on this show, and I always ask all of them, like, why do you go on these shows?
6
SPEAKER_02
What do they say?
6
SPEAKER_03
Well, I ll tell you, but there s all sorts of things, but there s never been one of those people that have come on and said, I want to be famous.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I kind of want to say sometimes, that s totally the real reason.
6
SPEAKER_02
I know.
6
SPEAKER_03
And I kind of want one of them to just come on and say, you know, like, I want to be famous.
6
SPEAKER_03
I want the attention.
6
SPEAKER_00
And that s why I like Kim Kardashian, though.
6
SPEAKER_00
Yes, she will say she ll say I ve always wanted to be famous.
6
SPEAKER_00
Right.
6
SPEAKER_00
And and she was asked, like, are you are you mad when people take photos?
6
SPEAKER_00
And she said, I m never mad because I m so grateful I m famous.
6
SPEAKER_03
But it s always some weird like kind of let s go.
6
SPEAKER_02
Oh, I want to use it as a platform for my charity work.
6
SPEAKER_02
Oh, B.S.
6
SPEAKER_02
They want to be famous.
6
SPEAKER_02
Look, I called my show My Life on the D-List because I wanted to be on the A-List.
6
SPEAKER_00
What s the most shocking thing that you ve encountered by being famous?
6
SPEAKER_02
I think the people that would come up to me and get violent with me after the Trump photo was shocking.
6
SPEAKER_02
What do you mean?
6
SPEAKER_02
I don t like a guy.
6
SPEAKER_02
Once I was walking down the street and he came up and he pushed me and I was just like.
6
SPEAKER_02
First of all, I m walking down the street and then he just started screaming at me about Trump.
6
SPEAKER_02
He was a trumper and that freaked me out.
6
SPEAKER_02
I had a guy show up to one of my shows with a knife with a trump shirt So that s been the most shocking of reactions from people because once again, it s like you can love or hate that picture but don t be going and pushing a woman on the street like no matter how you slice it and
6
SPEAKER_02
Other than that, I, you know, I m a sucker for a compliment.
6
SPEAKER_02
I love hearing if somebody watched The D-List with their parents or have nostalgic feelings about The D-List show.
6
SPEAKER_02
I love that.
6
SPEAKER_02
I m not like, oh, that s my old life.
6
SPEAKER_02
I m proud of that show.
6
SPEAKER_02
Won two Emmys.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I certainly never thought I d win an Emmy in my life.
6
SPEAKER_02
I tell dick jokes.
6
SPEAKER_02
So that stuff is, you take the good with the bad.
6
SPEAKER_02
Your mother and you were so cute on that show.
6
SPEAKER_02
My mom was a natural.
6
SPEAKER_00
Yes, she was.
6
SPEAKER_00
She kind of was a ham.
6
SPEAKER_02
You could not script my parents because my dad was just like comedian level funny and he could be funny on cue.
6
SPEAKER_02
And my mom didn t know why she was funny.
6
SPEAKER_02
And they were drunk the whole time.
6
SPEAKER_02
They were drinking their box of wine.
6
SPEAKER_02
And, you know, after a while, if you re older and you re not driving anymore, then I say have at it.
6
SPEAKER_02
I had no problem with it.
6
SPEAKER_02
And so they really were real.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I was really flattered when Bravo said after season one, the network wants more of your parents.
6
SPEAKER_02
They re so funny.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I was really grateful that my life on the D-list was allowed to be a comedically driven show as opposed to people fighting or throwing drinks at each other and that stuff.
6
SPEAKER_00
Do you think that you ll ever retire or will you just keep going?
6
SPEAKER_00
Never retire.
6
SPEAKER_00
Never?
6
SPEAKER_00
No.
6
SPEAKER_00
You love it so much.
6
SPEAKER_00
There s always more and you re never done.
6
SPEAKER_00
That s Joan Rivers.
6
SPEAKER_00
It s very Joan Rivers.
6
SPEAKER_00
Who do you think are the next upcoming women comics?
6
SPEAKER_02
Okay, I have to confess I m really bad about knowing other comics because I ve been touring myself for so long.
6
SPEAKER_02
No, that makes sense.
6
SPEAKER_02
I get that.
6
SPEAKER_02
And even like I just did a show in Vancouver as part of the Just for Laughs festival.
6
SPEAKER_02
I didn t have time to go see anybody else s show.
6
SPEAKER_02
I flew in, did my show, then I had a show in Tacoma the next day.
6
SPEAKER_02
But I, look, I m always rooting for the girls.
6
SPEAKER_02
So naturally I want the women to be successful because to this day, if you called your local comedy club and said, read me the lineup for Friday and Saturday night, it s still probably like eight to two men to women.
6
SPEAKER_02
So I m just hoping more women get out there and enjoy standup and you better love it because the bad times are tough, but the good times are the best.
6
SPEAKER_03
Knowing what you know now about breaking into comedy and show business in general,
6
SPEAKER_03
What would you tell your younger self if you were starting?
7
SPEAKER_02
right now?
7
SPEAKER_02
Well, like I said before, I d say pick and choose your battles instead of everything is an artistic value at level 10.
7
SPEAKER_02
Like I really thought when I was fighting with these executives, I thought I was fighting for the product of the show.
7
SPEAKER_02
I thought I m fighting for this joke in the special.
7
SPEAKER_02
I m fighting for this bid in the dealers show.
7
SPEAKER_02
I m fighting for this line on Seinfeld or, you know, whatever it was.
7
SPEAKER_02
Well, I didn t start any fights on Seinfeld.
7
SPEAKER_02
Those lines were perfect.
7
SPEAKER_02
but I probably would just say just learn to be better at picking and choosing your battles and there s a time but not everything is going to be on your shoulders even if the show has your name in it and I would also be probably better at choosing people to work with
7
SPEAKER_02
Like, there were some people that I gave breaks to that weren t quite ready.
7
SPEAKER_02
There were a couple production companies I worked with that I didn t really feel like had my back.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I know other artists or comics that have worked with companies that really have their back.
7
SPEAKER_02
You know, you look at Dave Chappelle.
7
SPEAKER_02
Netflix has just stood by him and stood by him and stood by him.
7
SPEAKER_02
And you really need that to be successful.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I m not saying I m David, because he s in a class all of his own, and he s brilliant.
7
SPEAKER_02
But let me tell you, when he got, quote, canceled, it made a big difference that the Netflix boys were like, nope, he s our guy, we re sticking with him.
7
SPEAKER_00
That was a dangerous moment in time, I feel, for everybody, because I think comedy is one of, like, the last frontiers to almost fix culture when we start to get off the rails.
7
SPEAKER_00
Because you guys are like the only ones that can comment on some of the absurdities we go through as people, right?
7
SPEAKER_02
I really believe that.
7
SPEAKER_02
This is going to be a really weird story, but I had Prince Charles tell me something.
7
SPEAKER_02
His name is King Charles, because Joan Rivers was good friends with him.
7
SPEAKER_02
And so Joan took me to England one time, and we spent two nights with Charles and Camilla.
7
SPEAKER_02
I know this is a weird story, but it s true.
7
SPEAKER_02
And if you know Joan, you would know that I m not making it up.
7
SPEAKER_02
Anyway, King Charles said to me, without comedians and newspapers, who would keep us honest?
7
SPEAKER_02
And I love him for saying that because it s like, what was that like spending two days with them?
7
SPEAKER_02
first of all she s naughty camilla is very naughty and has a potty mouth which i love and you know they re old and they re kind of funny because they kind of don t give a fuck anymore and you know the we went to buckingham palace and windsor castle that was wild sure i mean it was like being an episode of the fucking crown which i now watch every episode of because i m like oh those are my friends i totally know them
7
SPEAKER_02
No, but I love that Joan Rivers, as wild and outrageous as she was, and some people think she was offensive, I don t.
7
SPEAKER_02
But I love that in her real life, she was literally running with royals.
7
SPEAKER_02
And she would go painting on painting vacations with Chuck and Camilla.
7
SPEAKER_02
I call them Chuck and Camilla.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I love that Joan had this other side of her that was like, you know, she was one of the smartest people you d ever met.
7
SPEAKER_02
She read every book, she saw every Broadway show.
7
SPEAKER_02
And it also taught me when you re a comic, you better be up on everything.
7
SPEAKER_02
Like, I can t just be up on political jokes.
7
SPEAKER_02
I got to know the pop culture jokes.
7
SPEAKER_02
I got to know those Kardashians A to Z, where they re going, where Rob is.
7
SPEAKER_02
Rob is missing.
7
SPEAKER_02
Is Rob missing?
7
SPEAKER_02
Is there an APB out on Rob?
7
SPEAKER_02
I haven t seen Rob in years, you know.
7
SPEAKER_02
Are you looking to get married again?
7
SPEAKER_02
Can we go for Rob?
7
SPEAKER_02
I think Kathy Kardashian has a nice ring to it.
7
SPEAKER_02
KK.
7
SPEAKER_02
Exactly.
7
SPEAKER_02
I could fit right in with the branding.
7
SPEAKER_02
And my dream is to stop being a human and be a brand.
7
SPEAKER_02
Because I think that s the mistake I ve made is being a human.
7
SPEAKER_02
I should have been born a brand.
7
SPEAKER_02
That s the way to go nowadays.
7
SPEAKER_00
You should start over and just do it.
7
SPEAKER_00
Brand.
7
SPEAKER_00
Right off the gate.
7
SPEAKER_02
Kathy Griffin brand.
7
SPEAKER_02
I don t understand how you don t have a podcast.
7
SPEAKER_02
You know, I was going to do one, but they wouldn t indemnify me.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I ve been sued by so many MAGA people that I just don t want to get in trouble every time I open my mouth.
7
SPEAKER_00
I mean, the production company was like, they wouldn t cover legal fees if somebody sued me.
7
SPEAKER_01
You re very good at the TikToks and being on the mic.
7
SPEAKER_01
It s very, I mean, I m a talker.
7
SPEAKER_01
Can we do the Kathy Griffin show?
7
SPEAKER_00
Well, you know what s difficult about that to play devil s advocate again?
7
SPEAKER_00
It s like you want to create an environment where people can say and do whatever the hell they want.
7
SPEAKER_00
But in order to sometimes create that environment, you can t take on all the liability because you never know what someone s going to do or say.
7
SPEAKER_02
Well, you never know what people are going to be offended by.
7
SPEAKER_02
Because trust me, I never mean to offend anybody.
7
SPEAKER_02
I m always trying to be funny.
7
SPEAKER_02
Am I offensive sometimes?
7
SPEAKER_02
Yes.
7
SPEAKER_02
I m trying some new stuff and it s falling flat or it s too far.
7
SPEAKER_02
Have I gone too far?
7
SPEAKER_02
Many times.
7
SPEAKER_02
I don t just cross the line.
7
SPEAKER_02
I move it and then I cross it.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I happen to think that s a comedian s job.
7
SPEAKER_02
Does it always work?
7
SPEAKER_02
No.
7
SPEAKER_02
But I still believe, as a comic, it s part of our job is to really test that line and see where people s heads are, see what s making them laugh.
7
SPEAKER_02
I don t mind if I get a gasp instead of a laugh.
7
SPEAKER_02
Oh my God, did she just say that?
7
SPEAKER_00
But as a comedian, don t you feel like there was almost a weird period of time, call it middle pandemic era, where comedy started playing it a bit safe in some arenas?
7
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
7
SPEAKER_00
A bit safe?
7
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
7
SPEAKER_02
Because everybody was getting canceled every five seconds for everything they said.
7
SPEAKER_02
And there s a middle ground between
7
SPEAKER_02
being a comedian who s able to evolve.
7
SPEAKER_02
I mean, look, I wouldn t do the jokes I did 15 years ago, 10 years ago.
7
SPEAKER_02
Like, seriously, I m sure I would be horrified if I looked at some of my old specials.
7
SPEAKER_02
But I like evolving and changing.
7
SPEAKER_02
But on the other hand, I also don t think people should be getting canceled every five seconds for everything they say.
7
SPEAKER_00
I watch kind of some of the reactions to some of the things where it s like you can tell there are certain audiences that have deemed certain subjects to be off limits.
7
SPEAKER_00
Right.
7
SPEAKER_00
And I think that is a dangerous place to be in for comedy because those are sometimes the funniest things to discuss.
7
SPEAKER_02
I actually talk about my suicide attempt in the show.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I know that sounds out there, but I really think I ve been able to frame it in a way where the audience is actually laughing because it was so crazy and so over the top.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I tell them I was out of my mind on pills and I would never do it again.
7
SPEAKER_02
But I love to think I m going to get people laughing.
7
SPEAKER_02
And like I said, whether it s the topic of cancer, it s not like this is a new topic, but there s things that sometimes we re afraid to laugh at.
7
SPEAKER_02
But as someone who s gone through, like you said, a lot, humor got me through all of it.
7
SPEAKER_02
If I wasn t laughing through the last six and a half years, I don t know what I d be doing.
7
SPEAKER_02
How are you going to get through your divorce with humor?
7
SPEAKER_02
I have to.
7
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
7
SPEAKER_02
I mean, I just the idea of me dating at 63.
7
SPEAKER_02
Are you kidding?
7
SPEAKER_02
What am I going to go on?
7
SPEAKER_02
What am I going to go on Tinder?
7
SPEAKER_02
Raya?
7
SPEAKER_01
Well, I m no swiper.
7
SPEAKER_01
I m too famous.
7
SPEAKER_01
Can t be going on Raya.
7
SPEAKER_01
There s some pretty famous people on Raya.
7
SPEAKER_01
Who?
7
SPEAKER_01
Tell me famous people.
7
SPEAKER_01
John Mayer s on it.
7
SPEAKER_02
John Mayer s a whore.
7
SPEAKER_02
Well, I don t want to catch something.
7
SPEAKER_02
What s your taste?
7
SPEAKER_02
My taste is guys who like me.
7
SPEAKER_02
It s a low, low bar.
7
SPEAKER_02
No, what s your real taste?
7
SPEAKER_02
Just honestly, I like a nice guy who can be comfortable with the fact that I
7
SPEAKER_02
I m in the spotlight.
7
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
7
SPEAKER_02
And that s the hardest part is honestly, we ve got six guys that are fantastic.
7
SPEAKER_02
I, I find that the gender politics is still a real thing.
7
SPEAKER_02
And what, what I, one of the things I like about Taylor Swift is never in the history of pop music.
7
SPEAKER_02
Have you seen a female star with literally the football player, like cheering her on in the front row with his dad, like fist bumping.
7
SPEAKER_02
I mean, you talk about the greats like Cher or Stevie Nicks or Dolly Parton.
7
SPEAKER_02
They never had that.
7
SPEAKER_02
You never saw Dolly s husband like front row at her shows.
7
SPEAKER_02
He s like missing, you know, and then Cher s boyfriends would always be called Mr. Cher.
7
SPEAKER_02
And so I hope things are changing for the better.
7
SPEAKER_02
But in my experience, it s I have found that most guys have an issue with me having some money, which I ve earned some money over the years.
7
SPEAKER_02
and me kind of being in the spotlight.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I m a ballsy chick, you know, I m an acquired taste.
7
SPEAKER_01
You need someone that lets you shine and doesn t want to dole that to make himself feel better.
7
SPEAKER_01
Someone who s quietly confident.
7
SPEAKER_01
Right.
7
SPEAKER_01
That s what I like.
7
SPEAKER_01
Quiet confidence.
7
SPEAKER_01
The quiet confidence is so hot.
7
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, I agree.
7
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, it s hard to find.
7
SPEAKER_02
I know, but that s kind of my type.
7
SPEAKER_02
Like if you were going to say, like quiet and confident and secure.
7
SPEAKER_00
I m not threatened by your career.
7
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
7
SPEAKER_02
Look, I am on the road a lot.
7
SPEAKER_02
And I come home in between shows.
7
SPEAKER_02
So I ve never gone for that long and come with me sometimes.
7
SPEAKER_02
It s fun.
7
SPEAKER_01
And, you know, we ll see who s game.
7
SPEAKER_01
I m going to put it out there that the next time you come on this podcast, you re going to find a quietly confident guy who s comfortable in himself that can last long
8
SPEAKER_02
than three minutes.
8
SPEAKER_02
Sorry, Taylor.
8
SPEAKER_02
Kathy, where can we go watch you on tour?
8
SPEAKER_02
Where can we get a ticket?
8
SPEAKER_02
Tell us all the things where we can follow you, TikTok, everything.
8
SPEAKER_00
Oh, please follow me on TikTok.
8
SPEAKER_00
Please go to Kathy Griffin dot com for tickets.
8
SPEAKER_00
I am coming to a town near you.
8
SPEAKER_00
Forty cities on this leg.
8
SPEAKER_00
And then I ll be doing more cities in the fall.
8
SPEAKER_00
So check me out and come with an open heart and an open mind.
8
SPEAKER_00
Can I ask one request?
8
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
8
SPEAKER_02
Can you write another book?
8
SPEAKER_02
Because there s a lot of stuff that I feel like we talked about that needs to be a book.
8
SPEAKER_00
Yes.
8
SPEAKER_00
So I haven t had any offers, but that s something that I would like to do because, like I said, the Trump thing alone with the DOJ investigation, it has so many layers.
8
SPEAKER_00
I would love to write about that stuff in a way that is relatable to folks and hopefully make some giggle, too.
8
SPEAKER_00
So I wouldn t write a serious book.
8
SPEAKER_00
I would make it like half funny.
8
SPEAKER_00
Why don t you self-publish?
8
SPEAKER_00
David Goggins self-publishes book.
8
SPEAKER_00
I might, but I made a movie called Kathy Griffin, A Hell of a Story, and it cost me about a million dollars and then nobody distributed it.
8
SPEAKER_00
So it s actually on Amazon.
8
SPEAKER_00
You can see it for free.
8
SPEAKER_00
And I m very proud of it.
8
SPEAKER_00
It got really good reviews, but people were kind of still afraid of me.
8
SPEAKER_00
So I don t know if I want to self-publish, but we ll see.
8
SPEAKER_00
We ll see.
8
SPEAKER_00
I m open.
8
SPEAKER_00
I m open.
8
SPEAKER_02
I d love another book.
8
SPEAKER_02
Okay.
8
SPEAKER_02
Kathy, thank you so much for coming on the show.
8
SPEAKER_00
Thank you guys.
8
SPEAKER_00
What a delight.
8
SPEAKER_00
That was so fun.
8
SPEAKER_01
We are giving away three bottles of the caffeinated sunscreen.
8
SPEAKER_01
All you have to do is tell us your favorite part of this episode with Kathy on my latest post at Lauren Bostick and make sure you re following at the Skinny Confidential on Instagram.
8
SPEAKER_01
And don t forget, we have a 20% off anniversary sale, or you can also grab the caffeinated sunscreen at shopskinnyconfidential.com.