Jack Grazer

How you doing out there. It's me Tigger and Duc Wayne Duck. It's
me Bunkers Deep Bobcat. All right, y'all, did it great? Your
favorite firefly you desire? Hold the old knock guy. My name is Jim
Cummings and welcome to tuned In. All right, welcome back everybody. This
is tuned In with Jim Cummings. Today we have Otis Rushka that Jack Brazier.
But thanks for coming out to play this morning. All right, you're
having thank you, thank you, thank you. We're here a beautiful Salt
Lake city for another yet another conventional con yep, and uh we're just here
being unconventional. That's what we do best. It is formula. Obviously you've
got this to do today. Well, I just turned twenty, so there's
probably a few in my lifetime that I got ahead my next hills. I've
been writing a lot of screenplays and working on a few right now that I'm
very passionate about. I'm not gonna get into too much detail. Once I
started on the restor you don't want to jinx it. I don't want to
drink anything. Oh gosh, yeah, that would be that would be a
terrible thing. Thank you, fake bamboo something just in case that's real.
Yeah, but lots of writing, lots are just mental exercise, trying to
be as creative as possible and productive despite this strike and all that. But
I'm also I'm living in Nashville and I'm playing lots of music and that's been
a great creative vice and super inspired. Well, you can just walk down
the street in Nashville and it's music's coming up, the music sei Yeah,
yeah, yeah, man, that's the old wazoo joke. I used to
play wazoo in high school anyway. But uh yeah, well that's got to
be a great place for you, man, very fertile, totally fertile,
yeah, supple land, you know, you know well that too, but
mentally and spiritually without yes, yeah, Oh my goodness, it's amazing.
It's it's such a it's it's so strange the difference that waking up in the
trees and waking up in nature can do to somebody. I've like, I
wake up and I feel I don't really like using the word kid, I
wake up and I feel so peaceful, all right, I saw a peace.
I feel so unaffected, like uh not like contrived. But where I'm
at you know what I mean, And that's a really nice thing. It
kind of just feels like a great foundation. And maybe it is something about
the land or the neutrality or something. I don't know. I just really
dig that place. Yeah. Good for you, man, Yeah I like
it too. We're thinking of moving somewhere like that or maybe there. Do
you have any houses for rent in your neighborhood? I got four? I
think. Okay, well, yeah, to check his watch, it's not
wearing and that is from our party last night. I see you're still there.
You get it off? I nodded off. Oh, like a like
a rabbit dog, feral beast. Yes, that's exactly well. I feel
like a feral beast this morning. Hi. Everybody would just Sayaz is a
feral beast? Oh, I would tas very feral definitely, Like God,
you're good, Oh man, I could I can easily do Taz at this
time of day. That's a new one for you. Yeah, that's a
new one for me. Yeah. He's the anti pool. Yeah you know.
But but I'm just glad you're here. Man, This is great,
This is great. Did you grow up watching Disney Big Time? Yeah?
What was your favorite show? Third show. I don't know, I've heard
show. I mean watching We Need the Pooh, the Huffle Up Halloween just
because of your hero and brain. And that was one of my favorite movies
that I watched that back to back to back to back to back. The
candy looks so good in that movie. And I'm my mom used to read
me all these Winny of the Pooh books and that's saint and stuff, and
I loved I love that stuff. I also watched a lot for some reason.
My dad used to put on a lot of mash and happy Days and
cheers and uh oh yeah sure, Family Ties. I was. I talked
to briefly, super duper briefly Michael J. Fox, and I said,
uh, I think all I said was I loved you and Family Ties Alex
P. Keaton And then he was like, oh yeah, yeah, yeah
that was a pretty good. That was a really good Michael. Yeah,
yeah, very sincere, yeah yeah, sincerity, yes, yes, his
lack of contact and so, how many of the conventions are you doing these
days speak of him? I don't know, maybe do you four or four
a year? I don't know, it differs. Yeah, I've been doing
more of them recently, as well might as well, right, I got
nother Yeah, but I have fun at these things. I noticed that that
although after like the weekend, I'm kind of drained and went out, I
also feel super duper fulfilled. Like m hm, it's such a meaningful it's
such meaningful work. And I don't want to sound like a a privileged dude.
No, no, go ahead, but I love acting. I love
any self expression, whether it's music or playing dress up and putting on a
voice or doing whatever it is. That's so, that's like, that's why
I think I'm here on this planet for a big part of it. But
then to get to meet these people and here there their opinions and their how
they were moved in their aspects and their stories and and and and then you
understand, like wow, so so much individuality in each of these people are
such a valuable asset to this world. And there's just so there's so much
sweetness and so much honesty here. And I walk away and I'm like,
man, this is that's like the cherry on how that's the icing on the
cake, because I mean it's kind of like it's kind of like an applause,
like you if you've done theater. It's like we're we're doing this because
I mean, at least for me, like I'm doing this almost selfishly because
I need It's like a compulsion. I need to. I love to play
pretend. And if I'm not playing pretend on a stage, which is like
the appropriate format for it, then I'll probably be doing something and freaking people
out and getting in trouble. But exactly, I would never. But no,
it's great. The validation is nice. It's nice. How old,
I agree? How old were you when you realize like this was your passion?
Being creative was your passion? I don't know when. I still don't
know if i've packed you well, I know for a fact, I don't
know when that age was, when that actual moment was that, like you
didn't have a light bulb moment, so to speak. Oh you know what,
No, I think I I think it was probably when I was like
ten years old and I played Gavroche and lay miss or. There was a
time when I played reped Heavy and Fiddler on the Roof when I was a
kid, and I had to memorize all those and like it's not easy.
How old were you when you were? Yeah, I was really young,
like shot like a jokingly young. Okay, yeah, like sardonically young.
And I was like maybe nine or something. And I remember I walked to
the audience and it was amazing. And then it goes into tradition. That's
it starts tradition, and that was awesome. And I remember I heard my
mom laugh in the spotlight wentunk like right then when it goes on tradition,
and then I was like, oh my god, I heard my mom laugh.
I heard the director of the theater the play laugh. If I can
do this for the rest of my life and I can make people happy,
that's what I've been trying to do. And maybe I've been doing it and
sort of let like not the hell's theest ways like, uh, you know,
maybe I'll lie to make somebody feel better about something. But it's just
so much I don't know, I don't know. I found it very valid,
valuable. And I also this I got in elementary school. I got
in trouble a lot. It was always in the principal's office, you too,
huh A big time? Oh yeah, I was just going around.
I guess, jeez, thanks for a long time. The same the same
thing, you know, something of the water. I got to know system
Mary Agnes very well, did you? And I didn't want to. Yeah,
I didn't want to. I knew it way too well. Well,
my problem was that all the nuns, like when I was coming up,
also taught my mom God Rest her soul. And she was like Saint Sally.
She was, Yeah I cut and I remember mother Brendan. She was
from Ireland, and uh, and I was just a horrible kid. I
was just a terrible kid. And she said, I can't believe you're Sally
while it's his boy, won't it be me who's making a novena for your
poor mother who has to put up with the likes of you? And so
I like, that's pretty good, pretty good. Yeah, Okay, I
must be on something, doing something right here getting Jesus' attention through this fiendish
nun. Anyway, but memories, wow, good old memory. It is
beautiful. But it worked out for us both, Yeah, Bunky are paid
off. Yeah, which I mean it's some of the most impressionable and I
mean obviously maybe this isn't obvious, but like the most like what what do
you call it, like fundamental developmental use. I think they shape your adulthood
big time. Oh yeah, yeah and absolutely yeah. And the cool thing
about it was that I found that all the stuff I was getting in trouble
for at school, I was getting praised almost like applauded for uh in theater
And that was like what WHOA if I can so? If I can do
are amen? Amen? And yes, okay, I know. That was
like, wow, I think that breakthrough. I was like, if I
can do this and not harm people and I make my mom made and upset
and worry that I'm gonna get kicked out of school, Oh my god,
it's horrible to see her cry and all this stuff. Yeah, if I
can do it and I can see her cartiers of joy because I'm standing in
and living in trying to access my big greatest potential and be the best whatever
it was, be my authentic self, Yeah, then I can make her
proud of them. Yeah. I always said that I learned more in the
hallway being punished and told to stand out there than I did on the other
side of the thing, sitting in the classroom because I made this stupid mistake
of God. What was that movie, Oh, Peggy Sue got married?
It was and there was a point where I was actually stupid enough to tell
sister Ellen Rose speak, well, we're really having a lot of nuns today.
But I told you know, I was in algebra and I said,
uh, and I got an F or whatever. And she says, what
are you doing here? What the hell? You're not the dumbest kid.
Uh. I was close, but but she said, you can do better
than an F. And I go, you know, you're right. I
was shooting for a D minus. She goes, what what do you mean
you were shooting for a D. No, you can't shoot for a D
minus. You shoot for an A. And I go, no, no,
no, I know for a fact that I will ever use algebra in
this universe, no matter I could live to be five hundred years old,
never do one more algebra problem. I'm shooting for the lowest grade you got.
She goes, oh, really, you know, And then I could
see the horns coming, so I just got f's. You know. I
should never have told her that, but it reminded me that I think when
Kathleen turned and was Peggy who got married, but she went back and she
had a flashback or something, and she was She goes, I happen to
know for a fact I'm never going to use algebra, and I was thinking,
yes, me too, and oddly enough I don't still. In fact,
I yesterday I spent the whole day not doing algebra. Me too.
Wow, what are the odds you had another thing we have in common?
Too painful about you still do algebra in your day to day? No,
no, not so much. Yet, not so much. I try and
find the opportunity where I can. What school subject do you think you apply
most in your day to day adult Life's probably math, really, I would
say math bro math. I don't know if I learned it. Oh of
course I learned it, it's right, right, But it's also the math
I used. Kind of we're common. No, somebody asked me, hey,
Jack, where's the square sixty four last night? And I said eight?
And they're like, whoa, he's not, he's not actually that messed
up? Like that's I think an easy one though, right, Yeah,
that's an easy one. Yeah, I actually knew that one classic party track
algebra. Yeah yeah, yeah. Well we were talking about skateboarding last night,
right, you skateboard? I love it? Yeah? Yeah, that's
what are your passions? Right? Big time, big time, big type
I do skaters, I don't even know. Yeah, as well as I
used to. I used to just be I went through a phase where I
was like, it doesn't what does it matter if I get hurt, Like
what, Yeah, I just get hurt, like I break my arm or
whatever. That's kind of funny as long as I get it on camera,
which is kind of not a great way. As long as I get it
tape, then he's an actor. I don't know if we mentioned that that's
kind of a burden. And then I was like, Okay, you know
what, I'm gonna start just skating for me. And then I was like,
I'm gonna put them for that case. I'm just gonna do less impressive
stuff because I'm just gonna because you're already impressed with yourself. Yeah, oh
my god, be un belief. No, I don't know, but I
guess I do love skatering. I love the culture. I think it's a
brilliant thing. And that's surfing as well. And I love the board stuff.
Yeah. No, yeah, And I didn't know that we had Sonny
Souljak on the podcast. Awesome. Oh yeah, I mean it was great.
Yeah, it was crazy. I love that you know, we've been
doing these and it's fun to learn all these things about people that you know,
you know them, but you don't know them. Yeah, and here
we are. Yeah, but it was cool stuff. Yeah. Yeah.
I think that's one of the coolest things about podcasting is like it's such a
collision of worlds. Like you'll see people from such different walks of life,
you know, come together and find commonality, and you know, it's just
it's a conversation. You know, it's like it's so casual and like you
can get to know somebody on a podcast and like, you know, what
do William Shatner and Steve O have in common? You know, Oh,
that would be a really wack up conversation. Yeah, Shatner was on Steve
O's Wild Ride. Yeah, you talked to Pauli Shore. How do you
think that conversation would I don't know. I have the gymzoughs. Yeah.
But we actually did a movie together, uh, which is really a Hollywood
thing to say. And boy in mind, never know a Hollywood guy.
No, he was in a Goofy movie. Goofy movie. I love that
movie. I love that movie too. Okay, that's another one I love
and me so sad. God. Yeah, if anybody makes me sad in
the Disney, uh, make him as universe universe. Uh it's Goofy.
I'm always feeling real bad for Goofy always, and like even in yeah Mickey's
Christmas Carol. Oh yeah that one. Yeah, yeah, you run that
one, I think, I think so I love that. Not the old,
old old one from that but the one from like the eighties. Yes,
that's the one. Yeah, that's one. Yeah, I was peed
on that one. Oh my god, it's a big one. Yeah,
that's the one when you go in his room and he's like get in the
grapes and oh no, no that's not true. He's one of his cigar
and all that stuff. Yeah, yeah that's him. I understand now.
Yeah, I'm making it. Don't try that at home, kids, So
that's bad for you. Yeah, I would know. It's so is skateboarding.
But yep, you're going to do it anyway, so how can you
do? Yeah? Yeah, those are cool, cool times. Yeah,
and you know what, it's cool Like you said, we were talking about
this last night. Actually a little bit I think is like we're talking about
music, and then there's so many like subliminal subversive like forms of language or
communication within even like instrumental music, or if it's anything like fashion like self
expression or or is it skateboarding or surf or whatever it is or uh I
think feels a little bit obvious, like that's a communication tool. Sure,
yes, but it's really cool. I don't know. And a lot of
a lot of it is sort of kind of acting under the broad scope,
like telling stories. Yeah, yeah, we're all doing whatever it is,
any creative pursuit. Well that's what that's where it all came from. I
think, right back when we're all sitting around campfires. Ah yeah. And
then and then that's kind of where where Shavez was born. Yes, right,
that's the silver screen wasn't quite there yet, but it was on its
way. Oh yeah yeah. And I like to say myself, you know,
I love acting because like storytelling is like literally in our DNA, Like
yeah, I's saying, yes, you know, storytelling is older than language.
You know, you go into a caveman's cave and they had cave drawings.
They were telling stories before they had written language, you know, and
it's like it's fascinating and I think it's so important and so many lessons and
cultures were passed down through stories. Oh yeah, you know, like a
lot of the times, you know, people bock at Hollywood these days and
blah blah blah. But I think it's really like not to sound too like,
well, but I really do think it's like an important thing to have.
God, I agree. Well, you know, I read somewhere or
maybe I heard him say it, but I think Steven Spielberg doesn't call himself
a director, a producer, author, but he's a storyteller, you know.
That's and that's what he's really good at. Yeah. So yeah,
so here we are. Yeah, stories please please. You're STEVENS. Bilberg.
Have I ever met him? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, it was
a couple of times because of animaniacs. But I did this movie. I
was I was the bad guy in Ah. That's why I'm a one in
the Kevin Bacon game. By the way, Kevin Bacon was Balto in the
six Kevin Bacon Yeah, yeah or whatever is it sick? Yeah? Six
degrees that's right. Wow. Yeah, I'm one. Now you're a two.
You probably were one anyway, but yeah, but I ended up being
the bad guy in Balto and they had they had cast it like three times,
and Steven Spielberg it was his movie, and uh, he was just
tired of having to, you know, go through this actor or that actor
this. I won't name the other guys who were before me, but they're
famous, they were on camera famous and uh, and so they finally he
called up ic M, where I was at the time, and he said,
can you get me somebody who can act wet in the shower for God's
sake or something like that. So they sent me over there and I got
the gig and then I spent the day with him, and he said,
Okay, I'm gonna do this right, I'm going to direct this new bad
guy. And so I spent the day with Steven Spilberg. So that was
pretty cool. That's really cool. Yeah, you get a phone call I
was just about to say, and he's sitting there and he's like, oh,
okay, excuse me. Oh yeah, my agent Jeff Danus a cool
guy. He said it was the only time he ever went to work with
me. He goes, wait, Steven's gonna be there all day, and
I go, you know what, I'm gonna go with you. And so
he went and hung out, well, hung out with Steven Spielberg and all
day long, and and he's going, oh, you know, I got
to take a phone call. Yeah, yeah, hey Bill, Yeah,
oh god, yeah yeah, Schindler's List. Yeah, I'm doing it right
now. I'm not doing it right now. I'm actually doing an animated feature.
But oh yeah, oh yeah, say hi to Hillary. Yeah,
tell her. I said, hello, Okay, yeah, oh the kid
too. Oh that's crazy. I gotta go, I gotta go. I
got this guy staring at me and we're trying to get this cartoon movie made.
So uh. And then then he goes and then he gets off the
phone with President Clinton, and I go, okay, this is you know,
excuse me, the president's calling. How many times have you said that?
A few? But yeah, yeah, but it was the president of
the local supermarket. Yeah, so that was my one brush. That's amazing,
pretty cool. That's we should get him on the pick. Yeah,
well him too. You know what, Let's do them both, and surely
you have their number. Give him a jingle, we'll take a break,
we'll be right back. Okay, maybe not, but yeah, that that
wouldn't suck. Man. Have you done any voice acting or cartoons? I
love it? Yes, I know a few I didn't. There's one of
this picture movie I did call Luca that that's that was good. That was
a good one for me. And I love doing that. That's just amazing.
It's I kind of love doing voice work. It's I don't want to
make the comparison between doing live action and for stuff. It's a whole different
beast for sure. Yeah, but I like that you don't have to memorize
your lines. That's a very good thing. Do you like that? Ding
ding ding ding ding. That's the best part? Oh, that is absolutely
And how do you find it? How many times you ask this question in
your life? How many times? I mean, do you find it difficult
when you're acting to do dialogue with somebody like a fifty to fifty or whatever
and the person's not there? And it's oh yeah, I do that all
the time. I know, So do you care the time? Well?
I always like the privilege of being able to talk to another actor in the
room. Oh yeah, oh yeah, yeah, plenty, that's nice.
Yeah. We did all the Star Wars Clone Wars, oh yeah, and
uh and Rebels, they were all everybody was there. I like that.
I like it better now since COVID, they really don't do it, no,
you know, so, yeah, I'm not crazy about it, but
I think before COVID was a real total, I mean, totally different.
Maybe I can't remember how different it was. Yeah, but I really prefer
it because if you add lib which I do, it either screws up or
enhances the line after you yeah, you know, and they and if that
person's not there, you know, what are you gonna do? I love
to see how involved you are in that in the creative process, since you're
such like you know, you're a seasoned veteran in this that's code for olds
for old antiquated. Yes, yeah, yeah, it's a lot of fun.
Well, you know, I like throwing curveballs. Yeah, you know.
The best example was Don Carnage from Tailspin Old Show, and it was
everybody when they think of a pirate, they always think of a crusty old
booger which out the sea like that and so, but instead I made him
from Gula or more crazy like in the Cyan, and uh, they thought,
Okay, that's weird. Let's do that weird guy. Yeah, so
I got the gig. That's awesome. So you know, you throw them
a curveball. That's so great, you know. I love that. It's
so much fun to take risks and calculated risks. That's what thing makes a
lot of the greatest. I mean, one of my favorite actress of all
time is Jack Lemon, and I always I can always tells I like them.
Yeah, I love I mean, man, but there's I mean,
there's not actors who can like Richard Burden is another my favorite actress. They're
very different that, you know, Gary Cooper is also, I don't know,
there's a thing about like when when they take these like calculated risks that
are like it feels very theater derived. That's something that's so impressive and I've
always wanted to implement that in my work. But sometimes I'm like, am
I being a dick? Like I want to jump up I'm doing a scene
in the high school thing I want I want to jump up and smack the
ceiling fan just because I'm I'm an actor and like, yeah, I want
to do the cool. I'm gonna do the weird thing that's not maybe not
worth it, I don't know, Yeah, but you gotta find that sweet
and I do sometimes and it feels just like, you know, the dip
in a beautiful roller coasters like good belly laugh or something. It feels Oh
that's cool. Yeah, yeah, what do you think the biggest risk you've
taken is? I mean, besides being I do like sometimes I'll do actually
like physical comedy gags. There's a bit when I'm supposed to I did this
show, this HBO show, uh, and I jump over a fence and
I love doing. I'm like so good at falling because there's a skateboarding I've
gotten some better at falling than than actual skating. And so I did like
a thing where I tripped on the thing and smacked my face in the sand
and I was like, oh oh. And then I had one thing where
I had a sugar glass bottle, but but the dresser didn't know that it
was sugar glass. Oh come on, he because that the prop guy.
They had the bottles, and they had sugar glass bottles because the thing the
bottle is supposed to break earlier in the scene. But then I did a
thing that was really funny. I had like this this intense conversation with this
guy. Then the show there's this guy who's been trying to get with my
mom or whatever. But he doesn't know that my mom is a lesbian and
all these things. And I take that. But he walks without a song,
walks away, and then I'm like and then I bring the bottle up.
This it felt really cool to me. I put the bottle to my
face and I was like, well, no, no, no no,
And I was like talking to him as if I was talking to the bottle,
as if it was the guy. If you keep turning like mumbling,
and then I punched the bottle and in my hand and I was ah,
and I thought that was kind of ouch. Yeah, but it didn't hurt
that bad. It was like whatever was italy this water? It makes me
realized it was a bullying pin yow. Yeah. Ouch. Well you have
you have stunt people for that, right, for bottle punching? Yeah,
this separate person. Yeah, I have a different stunt. That's good stuff.
Ye ouch excuse me. Well another connection between you guys, Jim,
you play Winnie the Pooh of course, yes, who carries a red balloon
a lot? You know, right, and that's true. You were in
something with a red balloon. I'm not yes, you know, I'm not
gonna go too deep into that, but you know, there's a little red
blue connection there, right, that could be red. Yeah, you like,
what do you what do you think about red balloons? I say,
the more red balloons, please, That's what I say. And then every
now and then the blue just to break it up, just bring it up.
Oh man, did you go to the State Fair as a kid?
Yes? Yeah, well I went to the where'd you grow up, by
the way, Youngstown, Ohio. It's a great place to be from.
Yeah, I mean, but in order to be from there, you have
to leave. Sorry, anyway, You're great place to bring it up,
how about you. I'm from Los Angeles. I'm from San Monica area.
And that explains the skateboard thing. That explains the pretend and the guitar and
the guitar. I want the guitar to be more of a Nashville extension of
me. But I started, you know, where I started playing director was
in Atlanta. But there's something that I mean, I don't know, man,
I never there was something about the South before I moved there that I
was like, I don't know, I really don't know if I could do
it. I love the we I love the water and the and the the
ocean and the mountains and all that stuff very much in California. Geographically,
it's an incredible place. But then I was in Atlanta and I felt like,
oh my goodness. I was working there and I felt so I don't
know, I just like it's something soulful or something about the people and the
kindness and there's I don't know, And yeah, yeah, I felt that
way about New Orleans. Yes, I moved there, right. I got
out of high school and I moved to New Orleans. Great, and it
was I just loved it. I told my parents I was going to go
down and I went to Marty Grass with the buddy of mine from he'd gotten
out of the army and he was a little older than me. And I
said, well, I'm just going to go to Marty Grass. And then
Marty Graus was over, and I called my parents, so, okay,
Marty Gras is over, and I go, you know, I'm just gonna
stick around. Anyway. I lived there for like ten years, and then,
you know, I just never went back, you know, to Youngstown.
And I moved from there New Orleans to California. And here we are.
How's your Creole Cajun accent? He's not too bad. Well, I
had a few though, Yeah, what's that, it's a few different Yeah,
oh god, yeah, Well I don't want to bore anybody with the
story he's heard. But uh, you know, I was one of the
first cartoons I ever did was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and I was a
bad guy named Leatherhead. I was a leather alligator who got mutated the way
the turtles did yank and uh. And he was a Cajun alligator. And
so I just used the the tugboat captain from my very first river run,
you know, I was on the old Dutch was the name of the boat.
And his name was Leon's le Blon and he goes from my day then
Napoleonville, Louisiana, and that's how he talked, and so and I said,
jeezus, okay, dude, your leatherhead. Yeah, and I could
I always I wondered, if you know, because it was like a couple
of years later. It wasn't that long that, you know, I was
from being a deckhand to being a cartoon guy. Uh. And I wondered
if his grandkids are sitting around going, hey, Grandpa, come on in
here. You know this this alligator right here. You know that because it
will just Hi, I stole his voice, and so I think, and
that's one of my philosophies. I don't know if you care about it.
Use this in your angle, but if you do a perfect compression of somebody
that nobody knows, it's a new character, definitely, so you steal it.
How don't you recycle voices for brother? You know, you have to
have a certain amount of credits in between those two projects where you can do
that for years or something. Oh oh, you mean like recycle the character
the voice. Yes, well, I've never used him for anybody else.
I mean, thank god he does not do books on tape. It was
the best of times. It wasn't the worst of time. You don't want
to hear, don't want to know, you don't want to hear that guy.
Yeah, well you like Xataca music and Doctor John and whatnot. Yeah,
it was a lot of fun. Oh yeah, well, you know,
I used to live a stone's throw and I mean, like not not
even a frisbee throw from the racetrack, which is where New Orleans Jazz Fest.
That was the first music, live music I've ever seen in my life.
Oh yeah, four years old. Yeah, jazz Fest, jazz Fest.
Wow, And I like apparently had this spastic attack, but I was
like four years old. I took my shirt off and I was like,
Mama, this is the most amazing thing ever. And I just started shaking
about and she's like, wow, you were right, you were right.
Yeah, oh god. Yeah. Well New Orleans, you know there's music
seeping up from the crack so much soul. Yeah, and I would think
Nashville's got that same groove. Definitely, Yeah, yes, definitely, definitely.
So maybe it's a little different, maybe it's a little more contained in
question. Yeah, but that's a pretty hip I don't know, like it's
a it's a melting pot. I think a lot of different cool idea uh
uh, creative things, I don't. I think a lot of people are
doing lots of cool stuff, and lots of people leaving Hollywood also and going
and making like building sound stages and whatnot, and yeah, a lot of
cool stuff like that. Yeah. Yeah, Well it's a good place to
be from, yes, if you leave. Yeah, I'm not from there.
It'd be a lot cooler if I was, though it would be a
little more exotic. I don't know. Being from Los Angeles and then being
an actor is so predictable. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's the same
with me in Youngstown's so predictable. That's predictable. Yeah, that's working in
a steel mill. Wow. I can't recommend it, but somebody's got to
do it. I did. Wow. Oh yeah. Do you forget any
injuries on your paws or anything? Uh something like that? Yeah, I
got to burn here. Once it's gone. Now it's cleared up. Oh
no, there it is. Anyway, Well, this is riveting footage mutage.
Yeah, I don't know. You worked in the steel mill? Yeah
for six months? Okay. It was a pin of ass. But I'm
glad somebody does it. That's not a job for a fpian. Yeah.
No, No, I was acting like I knew what I was doing.
That's cool though, Yeah, of course, and I did. I was
truly acting at that point, I'll tell you. Yeah. Oh god.
Anyway, we were talking about impressions, Jack, Do you do you do
any impressions? Do you have a favorite one? You do? I don't
know, know, I can't think of a single one right now. Definitely
it'd be so I'm doing you really well? I know. That's probably that's
one of the harder ones. But whatever, I do it all the time,
so I have a lot of practice. That's a cool, actually cool
idea. Actually, you know, I read this book I used to there
was a time in my life when I felt not to change the subject,
but I gave me an idea. There's time in my life when I was
like, oh man, I think I might have been fifteen or sixteen,
and I was like, okay, which one's the real me? Like I
I know that I'm like a caredic, extroverted maybe dude sometimes but sometimes I'm
not And sometimes I want to be quiet and sometimes is that does that mean
I'm sad? Does that mean I'm lost? Is that? Does that mean
that's okay? Because if you're lost or more vulnerable to being found, what's
going on? And then I read this book called We or No Sorry,
called Us by Carl Jung, and he talked about masks and what's it called?
So we all have them, and we all have we all wear masks,
and they're all extensions of ourselves and there or or like. But then
there's also those people that you can find in your life where you can be
completely maskless around and you can feel okay in that space and you're not being
fake or you're not being right to yourself or any airs. Yeah. But
even if you're wearing one of your masks, like if you're going to,
like say, the party that we went to last night, I probably wouldn't
interact with a lot of the people that were there the same way that I
would interact with a buddy I've had for ten or twelve years. You know
that. Well, yeah, yeah, I amended that. No, that's
so true. The trip, but that's that's that's life. Yeah, yeah,
I'm pretty sure. Yeah, I've heard of it. Yeah, I'm
getting into it. I'm really into this life thing now. Yeah, so
very cool man. Yeah, what what is the very next thing? For
you? Are you? Are you conning every weekend? I think I asked
you. I'm conspiring every weekend, That's what Conning says, right, Conning,
Yeah, I'm conspiring. I'm going to Manchester at some point. You
Wow, No, I don't think so. I'm going there for a con
and then I got to go to Paris for something else. But that doesn't
that's that sounds terrible, I know for you, I know, I never
heard anything I want. I don't want to go to Paris. I wanted
to go to Milan. No, I guess I got a movie coming out
which I kind of like this one. Actually, it's just a movie called
Downtown Owls, based on a book Owl Owl and it's cool. It's it's
founded in Minnesota, from the Minneapolis I don't know if you know who Hamish
link Later is. He's an incredible, freaking genius actor. It was kind
of under the radar. And he's a comedian. He's just such a smart
such a smart dude, and he writes an incredible theater and we talked Shakespeare
like total nerds all the time. And he's just a really cool guy.
Oh that's great, Yeah, super great. And that's a cool movie that
should be that's coming out. I guess when's that coming. I think December,
early December, December, coming to a theater near you. Yeah,
ladies and gentleman, were you that guy? Do you know the guy?
You know that the in a world guy? What's his name? Oh?
Well, yeah, Don la Fontaine in the World. Yeah, yeah,
he was a good guy. My mom used to like I slirt with him
or something. Oh yeah, on the rocks in Hollywood or whatever. There
you go, wow, in the world so great they never made Yeah,
yeah, I was one of those guys. But plus I think I have
a sore throat from touretting at these cons. You know, you just you're
yelling, you're doing this and that, you know which, I have to
stop doing that. I have to preserve my instrument. Of course it is,
yes, it is. It's your livelihood. Yeah, why did you
develop that deep, that deep rugged rasp. You don't smoke cigarettes? No,
no, no, no, no, I never smoked cigarettes. I
think my voice is just right smack in the middle. It's not very high
and it's not very low. So to go a little higher, to go
a little lower, isn't that big of a trip. That's a blessing.
Yeah, I think so that's a great gift you guys. Yeah yeah,
knock on wood. But it didn't work out because I really wanted to be
a mime. So I'm a huge failure. So that show you might have
made that up. I wanted to be a rodeo clown. Oh oh downgraded
Yeah yeah, for like ten minutes. Then you tried it once in the
bull you said, no, Yeah, that's where I found it. That's
where I was like, oh my god, if I could do this for
the rest of my life. Yeah, and that became an actor, which
when the rest of your life said, one of those damn things hits you.
So you're after the con for the for the day. I'm after the
con for the day. I'm very excited, very excited for these days.
I have a lot of fun. And we're here in beautiful Salt Lake City.
You've been st City before? Yeah, I've never been my first time
in Utah. Yeah. Oh yeah, Wow? Did you have us a
Mormon? Uh? No, you neither. I'm a Cathololic. Catholic.
Sorry, yeah, I'm a I don't know. I'm a man of the
world. I'm a man of the world, deeply spiritual past regression and the
sensor deprivation tanks and healing crystals, healing crystals, manifestations and yes, I
have me and Hubbard or good friends. You say your intentions every morning every
Yeah, no, I should start doing that. I said prayers. I
say like a morning prayer. I said before I eat, before good bed.
That's funny because I prayed before you eat too. Oh good? Yeah,
why do I feel like praying real? He's obviously getting red eat.
It just comes over. Is it just making that special? No? No,
just you. Wow, that's really nice and Landy Kravitz. Oh good,
I'm so glad to be involved in that. I don't have any idea
why I said that. That's a good name though, to pull out of.
Yeah, who's your it's crowded in that wazoo. Who's your favorite or
like most inspiring person that you've ever worked with? Hmm, that's a good
one, and go first. I bet you have got a better repertoire than
me. I bet I wonder here, but you got a better repertoire than
me. No, no, no, no, no, no you you
you you know. It was great, Actually was super inspired. John Letched
was a good one. Yeah, black guy's really it was really cool.
You just had a lot of really cool with you and the guy on the
show Night Court. And also he was had a succeed in business who was
he? And had a succeed in business with the trying he was the what's
his name, the big the big stripes stripes he was in stripes too,
stripes also yeah, but yeah, yeah he's a good guy. He's from
New Orleans, yes he is, speaking of and he smoked picky youn cigarettes,
which are like cancer on a stick on a They're just the big,
fat all tobacco. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I've never smoked by you.
What was it about him then? Inspired you? I'm a huge like
he he spoke a lot about I've always been a I don't know if you're
familiar with Babylon, the kind of anger book and that whole world. I'm
obsessed with that stuff like that's oh my gosh, I love it. Anyway,
he was talking to me about He told me some stories. He told
me a story about what's his name, who's the DP for freaking anymore?
Acona all the time? Come on, oh, Dante Spinote. Dante Spinote
here from Italy and he tells me these incredible stories, like he got this
agent. That's some that's a big thing. This is when the gramins of
the TC Chinese Theater used to be, Uh, we have the big elephants,
the big ivory elephants. Do you know that they shipped them from freaking
India. This was like Hollywood used. Yes, yes, freaking Hollywood Land.
I love that stuff too. Yeah, it was a whole something.
Texture, the texture, Yeah, the tambra. I love anyway, this
is amazing story. So he gets his agent, and the agent gives him
a call across the seas or whatever, or sends him a letter or something
and says, when you get here, you will arrive to find that the
streets are paved with gold and and your name will be written on all the
big YadA yadas and whatever. And so he's like, wow, my god,
I guess I got a lot of great and waiting for me in Sunday,
California, sunny Los Angeles, Hollywood. And he gets there, and
not too long after arriving, he realizes that he's the streets aren't paid with
gold, but he's gonna have to be the one to pave them. And
John Leck can tell me this story or that it was his job to be
the one to pave them with gold and that and that just felt so delicious
in it, and it added like that they kind of that like I love,
I love there's so much about movies and things that I love. But
I mean, I love the acting part. I love. I mean,
I love self expressing and telling stories. But also there's this this thing about
like when I was a kid, I remember watching movies get honored at the
Oscars in such a way that I don't know if if it feels the same
way anymore, to be honest with you at all, but there was like
such a steem in regard. It was like so velvety and decadent and it's
red satin, and I was just like, that's a beautiful whirld, Like
wow, yeah, and they're n'ting something really meaningful, something that is like
making movies. And then I watched the movie Babylon and there was this bit
in that movie when Brad Pitt's but he's super drunk, remember that bit when
he's about kiss the s girl and they can't get him up the hill and
spiked Joe just playing maxiwon Stronheim and or Max uh what's his name? Yes,
thank you, Austrian guy. And there's this bit when everybody's panicking and
then everybody's been and the freaking there's filming out in the middle of the desert
and you know, it's nineteen twenty seven or whatever, and they're filming three
hundred movies at the same time on the same day in the same place.
Because there's no sound, they can do it anyway. They're losing light and
he says his line, and he and he kisses the girl, and then
a butterfly comes and lands on his shoulder. Man, I mean, there's
something that I think is super cosmic. I'm going on a tangent now,
I guess, but there's something that something that happens I think in the unifor
I don't know. Maybe it's God. I've found it to be. I
guess. We're like when there's all these like minded individuals collaborating or creating together
in the same place, it's almost like when you have a deja vu and
it's like, Okay, right place, right time, Wow, should be
here, you know. Yeah, something think like miracles happen, Like these
these unbelievable, like extraordinary things happen when all these people are doing what they're
meant to be doing in the same place, trying to bring their dreams into
the fabrica of reality and tell these stories and bring color to the it's just
even there's so much co light. That's true. I know exactly what you're
talking. Remarkable, remarkable thing. What's that butterfly doing in here? Get
out of anyway? Yeah, that's great, Get out of here, scramki
b oh, we got rid of that. Yeah, when we were just
talking about something similar to that just the other day. You know, like
when you bump into somebody that you know and you're like across the world.
You know. We were just in Italy and we were walking down the street
and I literally bumped into my scene partner from Vancouver. Wow. You know,
we're on complete opposite side of the world and like literally into each other,
and we were like, what what do you do? Could that be?
Yeah? Exactly, you know, like to your point, like I
really do believe, like there's this there's this energy, this frequency god yeah,
wah, whatever it is, you know that we don't really like fully
understand, but it's like there, it's the presence. We can feel it,
you know. And like I love seeing your passion. You know,
you're so passionate about this, and I think that's what really fuels this industry,
you know, is passionate people like both of you, and it's it's
awesome to see and like, yeah, I really agree, like right place
at the right times. Like yeah, it's really funny though, man,
I've become so dulled. I don't know adults the right word, but like
used to serendipities and mind blowing synchronicities. For some reason, they just happen
all the time, like that's life, you know something. It's like,
oh my god, this is this a coincidence? Or are they like God's
plan? What is this? This person called me. I was just talking
about them. Then I saw them driving in the car the red light.
What the heck is going on? Yeah? Well what's that? Luck is
being prepared or good fortune is being prepared when when opportunity knocks. Yeah,
you know, you got you got to answer that door, you know,
accept it. Yeah. Always, that's brilliant, That's exactly right. Yeah,
tune in that frequency. Excuse me, because you know we've all had
those things, you know where if like you know, when you're getting ready
to go and you're getting ready to board the Titanic and you'd missed the gang
plank, missed it by that much, it's it's okay. You know,
those little things happen and it's going to be fine, especially if you were
going to on the Titanic. Oh yeah, that would have sucked. So
I mean, not necessarily the movie, because I understand it did well.
Actually anyway, Yeah, my favorite good stuff I wish I got on No
Zark. Yeah, no, uh Zark, he's a good guy. Yeah,
yes, And then then you you're pulling out a port and you're looking
and the unicorns are standing there going oh yeah, yeah, yeah, they
didn't make it on poor guys. Well, should we show the guitar some
love? Yeah? What do you think, Jim? I'm gonna let you
say, what kind of genre do you want to say? You were saying
a bluesy kind of blue. My pipes are rusty. Same and also,
my brain feels really dumb today. I can't even come up with a better
word than dumb. You don't try this at home. Actually, go ahead.
Tasty, that's a good one. I like that riff. What is
beautiful? One of my favorite chords ever. Hold on, this is a
you pay music you play. Last one was beautiful. This is an E
minor seven AD four. I love that court so much. That is beautiful
And this one, you know this, you know this little ref like whatever,
that's tasty. I don't think so that, you know Al Stewart Oh
yeah, Cat, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, brand and yeah rather
cat yeah yeah, it was such a god. That's that's an old what's
the kind of to describe Al Stewart asshole. Uh dipstick yahoo, you know
I have no idea. Yeah, well we're heading to the con later on.
Come on by, bring lots of money. We'll pile it up to
the sky. Maybe that's my bargain base with Johnny Cash. Yeah yeah,
ladies and gentlemen. Well you need to do one more. Do something about
tuned in. This could be our Oh yeah that's true. Huh oh bell
tones ye oh, baby tasty. You're a great guitar player. Man,
that's awesome. I mean yeah, but you got them pretty chords. I
love pretty chords. Oh, stay, tune tune on and that is so
good. I tried doing that and I can't even no, I can't not
at all. No, Please, I would. I would grab drumsticks if
you handed me that, and then it would. I'm not very good at
drums. I don't want drums for a movie. Actually, yeah, for
that one, I was, of course you are, but I'm not good.
I could play stuff in four four five yeah, five four, that's
throw me a crazy time signature and I won't know what over eleven? Please?
Yeah? What yeah? Yeah, exactly to reacheat music? Uh not
anymore? You ever heard about the Black Page, the Frank Zappa. Oh,
I don't know, but I like Frank Zappa. Love Frank so much.
Man, me too. I'm a little pimp with my head, guys.
I love paying me my shoeshine black gotta little lady walk down street telling
all the boy that she gave me be oh mans, I can't believe you
know that. I love that. Yeah, and supposedly he had like a
three octave range, and I was thinking, no, youdn't even range?
No, yeah, yeah range him half hot, yeah, exactly him and
Tom Waits love Yeah, Tom Waits for no one. I love him.
Yeah, this is we took a real turn here. That's crazy. That's
good stuff though. Yeah. Yeah, and stay tuned in. Spell it
with two oh's not a U n E. Stay tuned in with us,
tuned in with Jim comings in Chris sometimes sometimes. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely,
that's awesome, man, thanks for coming out today. I really appreciate
it. It's a blessing, truly. Honestly, this is a gas and
now we're late for the calm. We have to go. Okay, okay, yeah,