Introducing: Laugh With Me Podcast | Tiger King Joe Exotic (Network Drop)

00:00:00
Speaker 1: Hey, film Spotters, we're back with another episode that's part of a network promotion we wanted to share with you. This one comes from Laugh with Me. It's a comedy podcast hosted by stand up Jeremy Odom and the reason we thought it was worth dropping into this feed is that, even though the tone is quite different from what we usually do here at Film Spotting, it's definitely built around storytelling and I think it's safe to say trying to use storytelling as a way to try to make sense of chaos. That's what Jeremy tries to do. Take the everyday stuff that spirals out of control and talk through it, honestly. So it's a change of pace. But we hope you enjoy this episode and it might take you in the way back machine all the way to twenty twenty and a name maybe you haven't heard in a while, Tiger King, Joe Exotic. Here's Laugh with Me, which you can get wherever you listen to podcasts like the one you're listening to right now.

00:01:00
Speaker 2: When I came back from from North Carolina doing cancer treatment, they flew me to Oklahoma City and.

00:01:08
Speaker 3: Then they this call was from a federal prison.

00:01:11
Speaker 2: They drove me in an unmarked police car, uh, you know, down to Fort Worth, and I was sitting in the back seat, you know, and they were They didn't handcuff me or anything. And I was just sitting on the back seat of this white car. And one out of three cars that passed this slowed down and took pictures. Yeah, right, And it didn't matter if they were eighteen or eighty. It was crazy how people recognized So I was sitting in the backseat of a car.

00:02:03
Speaker 4: Oh, we're certainly gonna need a beer for this one. Welcome back. It's a brand new episode. This has Laughed with Me a podcast with Jeremy oh To, I'm your Home, Jao. We are. We're in for a treat today, folks. We are in for a treat. We have a special guest calling in from prison today. That's something we don't get a lot on Laugh with Me. I can tell you that right now. Johnny, my producer, Johnny Palermo, he's been with me from the beginning. He also there was a brief period of time that Johnny was not producing the show. We're not gonna get into that. We're not gonna get into the whys and hous of it. All we know is he came back home and he has been crushing it here for season four, we have guests after guests after guests lined up for you. And if you are listening now and you don't subscribe, please go ahead and hit that subscribe, hit that follow because we are gonna have some bangers for you, including today, including today, as we have the one and only. You know what, You can't duplicate this guy. He is a one of one that's said a lot, you know, like in sports sometimes in music you'll try to replicate it, but you just you cannot. There is a one of one of this individual. He is the Tiger King Joe Exotic. He is joining us today live from prison. Thank you, Johnny for getting us, getting us lined up with the Tiger King, and I'm excited to see where he's at. He's currently in prison for a number of charges. Okay, a number of charges. Let's actually let's run through the charges that we know of here. Okay. He's currently serving a twenty one year penalty for conspiracy to commit murder for higher violation of the Lacy Act, eight counts of that, and nine counts of violation of the Endangered Species act. Now, if you watched The Tiger King on Netflix, as most of you did during COVID twenty twenty, you know all that, Like, you know why he's in prison, or at least why allegedly he was put in prison. Right he claims he was wrongly accused and in prison for it. That's the case that he's fighting today. More and more evidence pops up that backs that up, and he's certainly putting it out there in hopes that the President of the United States sees it and goes ahead and gives him a pardon. He's that's his main focus right now. So we're gonna we're gonna certainly ask him and see kind of where he's at on on this pardon. Also talk about The Tiger King, I mean the show itself. This came out in twenty twenty, Okay, he was picked up in twenty eighteen, so he was going through the legal process while this show was being put together, and then when it came out, he was already sitting So I'm sure the world and he has no idea what the world thinks of him. I mean, frankly, he probably has an idea, but there's no way he knows exactly the impact that he has had in pop culture in the last in the last five years. So I'd just really interested to hear his perspective on that. And he's newly remarried. For those of you didn't know, he just this year is newly remarried. As you saw on the show on Netflix. He was married two times over at the same time. There was an unfortunate incident with one of his husbands and then the once he was in prison, then he separated from another. But he has since remarried this year in twenty twenty five. So I don't know, we don't know a lot about We don't know a lot about his husband, so that might come up as well. I'm just interested to kind of see where his brain's at and what's this top of mind. I mean, it's tough, it's tough. You know, he's probably very very focused. I would imagine very one track. This is this is what I'm working on, this is where I'm going out. He has an Instagram Joe Underscore Exotic. You can find him on Instagram, and I mean there's plenty of content. I don't know who's running it for him or if he has the ability to do that from inside, but he does have a very active Instagram account that is kind of a fun follow to see, kind of see what's the top of mind, which I think is the part of it, because I'm seeing a whole lot of that as he does his best to try to get the word out. So what I don't know is how much time I'm gonna actually get with him. This was very not put together the last minute. I mean we've been we've technically had communication for at least a couple of weeks. It's just a matter of one word answers. So it's not a not quite sure how much time we're going to get with Joe exotic here today, but pretty damn excited. I'm a fan, you know. I love The Tiger King. I was just as excited to watch it in twenty twenty, and it's become one of my comfort shows when you just need to throw something on and sometimes and it's just kind of there and you're entertained and it's not something new. So definitely something I've probably watched no less than five six times since twenty twenty, maybe more. I mean, in bits and pieces you know, you can still find on Netflix, and it's one of those shows that I'm sure still ranks fairly high because it constantly's popping up on Hey you like this, watch Tiger King. It's like, yeah've watched it one hundred times. But I'm sure a lot of people get that thrown at him in the old algorithm. I'd like to know what you have to watch in order for that to pop up. Maybe some criminal shows, some I don't know, if it be animal show be kind of odd. Well, we are here, it is ten thirty. That was our set appointment time. So now the clock is on for mister Joe Exotic. Let's see, let's see how on the nose he can be. This is exciting, This is exciting if he hits it. If not, this episode is going to be the what could have been? What could have been? Yeah, but Johnny, I'm you know, I'm proud of you man. You're you're booking guests and uh making things happen for the audience, and the audience continues to grow week after week. Thank you so much for listening and downloading the show. It's allowing us to be able to grow the show and hopefully have some muh further opportunities. Here we go here we go. Hello, Johnny, we have solved all of your holiday shopping stress your needs because the holidays will sneak up fast, but it's not too early to get your shopping done and actually have fun with it. Uncommon Goods makes holidays shopping stress free and joyful with thousands of one of a kind gifts you can't find anywhere else. Uncommon Goods looks for products that are high quality, unique, and often handmade or made in the United States. Many are crafted by you independent artists and small businesses, and because they're made in small batches, they are the best fines. But they can sell out fast, Johnny, what I found here. And I'm telling you, Johnny right now, if you use a promo code, I'm gonna tell you that in here. In a second, this is what I want for Christmas? Okay. Uncommon Goods has a recycled skateboard display stand so it looks like a skateboard to just sit on your desk, sit on the bookshelf. I can put my laptop on it. I can work on the show, Johnny, I could be working. I could do your job frankly, and uh, look like uh, I got a little skateboard. I got a little skateboard to work off of which you know I love, I love. Even though I'm getting older, I too love a good skate But this recycled skateboard is so cool and it's just one of the many unique items that you can find on Uncommon Goods. It has something for everyone, from moms and dads to kids and teens. From book lovers, history buffs, eric talking about you and die hard football fans to foodies, mixologists and avid gardeners, you'll find thousands of new gift ideas that you won't find anywhere else. When you shop at uncommon Goods, you're supporting artists and small independent businesses. Many of their handcrafted products are made in small batches, so shop now before set. They out this holiday season, and with every purchase you make at uncommon Goods, they give back one dollar to a nonprofit partner of your choice. They've donated more than three million dollars to date. So shop early, have fun, and cross some names off your list. To day get fifteen percent off your next gift. Go to uncommon Goods dot com slash laugh with me. That's uncommon Goods dot com slash laugh with me for fifteen percent off. Don't miss out on this limited time offer uncommon goods. We are all out of the ordinary. Johnny. If you haven't told everybody this is how you're doing your holiday shopping, you really missed the boat. I mean, that's what That's why I told my family.

00:12:47
Speaker 5: This call will be recorded and subject to monitoring at any time. To accept this call, press five to block this call, and all you may begin speaking now hear me?

00:13:00
Speaker 4: Hello, Joe, Hey, what's up? Hey? How are you doing?

00:13:03
Speaker 2: Sir? Hanging in there? Man?

00:13:06
Speaker 4: I appreciate your time and coming on laugh with me today.

00:13:09
Speaker 2: Well, I appreciate you having me at Yeah.

00:13:12
Speaker 4: I just saw on your Instagram today's day two thousand and five hundred and three of being wrongly imprisoned. Do I know today? I just saw on Instagram today's two thousand and five hundred and three of you being wrongly imprisoned.

00:13:29
Speaker 2: Oh, I said what they put up there?

00:13:31
Speaker 4: Yeah, that's uh, that's crazy. I know you're you're working on the part in and getting that uh just kind of out there and hopefully in front of the president like where we at on that.

00:13:45
Speaker 2: Well, you know, it's it's hard to tell because you know, everybody thought it was going to happen in twenty twenty, and it didn't. So who knows what he's going to do when he's gonna do it. But lest to hear it was about a week ago left. I heard it was supposed to happen sometime in the next three to five weeks. But who knows.

00:14:08
Speaker 4: Wow, So what's that process like? Is that something like paperwork? You file and then you just you don't get updates. You just kind of hope and wait.

00:14:16
Speaker 2: Let's see, I had a pardon application filed in his first term, and see, every time a president leaves office, they deny them all, okay, So then I had to file one for Biden. And then on January the twentieth of this year, that one got denied, so I had to file it again. So now I've got another one in the US parton the Attorney's office, and it's just a matter of who he picks and chooses. Wow.

00:14:49
Speaker 4: So then do you have like some champions in Washington, like anybody who's a fan of yours?

00:14:55
Speaker 2: And then is maybe you know, I have congress Woman Lauren Bobert that's out there stomping the pavement for me, and I've got Congressman and Eric Bruison, Joe Rogan, bea White, Matt Gates, I've got, I've got, I got some of the biggest names there is, you know, out there shooting for this. But do you know, you know how Trump is. He'll do what he wants when he wants.

00:15:26
Speaker 4: Oh. Absolutely, But you've got his favorites. I mean, you've got the folks that's got his ear.

00:15:31
Speaker 2: Yeah. And and the people that have been, you know, telling me that it's coming are direct friends of Donald Junior.

00:15:41
Speaker 4: So okay, yeah, I don't know if you remember the movie Beatle Juice, but I know Lauren Bolbert's a big fan of Beetlejuice. Oh yeah, yeah, you have to if you ever can't get an opportunity to talk to her, ask her about Beatle Juice.

00:15:55
Speaker 3: Okay, Uh.

00:15:57
Speaker 4: Do you think it's possible that Trump knows about this and that he's just waiting to use this as like a distraction and it's going to help you, but it's going to be used to distract from something else.

00:16:10
Speaker 2: Well, I know for a fact he knows about this, because he was confronted by Steve Steve Nelson from The New York Post during a live White House briefing. So Trump hasted in my name, and then TMZ called out Alice Johnson the other day on Bruld Television about whether or not she's going to recommend my pardon. So they know me, they know who I am. Yeah, you know, that's what everybody says. He'll use it when he needs to use it, you know, but right now his best opportunity to use it would be now to kind of distract a little bit away from this Epstein stuff.

00:16:54
Speaker 4: Yeah, he could use the distraction for sure.

00:16:57
Speaker 2: Yeah, because you know, you know, when you when you got Dan Bongino upset with you, Yeah, and Ash Patail upset with you, that's telling the world that you're hiding something.

00:17:08
Speaker 4: Hey, let's get you on the record right now that you are not on the Epstein list.

00:17:14
Speaker 2: Now I don't even know. I didn't even know who Epstein was, Okay until all of this hit the news.

00:17:21
Speaker 4: That's funny.

00:17:21
Speaker 2: Well, now, whether or not Jeff Lowe is on the Epstein list, that could that could be possible, That could.

00:17:27
Speaker 4: Be possible that that'd be what put him down for good. Yeah. Well, it'd be hard for Trump not to know who you were. I mean, in twenty twenty, Tiger King came out of Netflix. Thirty four million people watched it in its first ten days of release. Right, you unfortunately were in prison for all of it. What do you even have a grasp of, like your stamp on pop culture?

00:17:52
Speaker 2: No, man, Yeah, the only the only thing is that I'm saying out in the world is when I came back from from North Carolina doing cancer treatment, they flew me to Oklahoma City and then they.

00:18:09
Speaker 3: This call is from a federal prison.

00:18:12
Speaker 2: They drove me in an unmarked police car, you know, down to Fort Worth, and I was sitting in the back seat, you know, and they were They didn't handcuff me or anything. And I was just sitting on the back seat of this white car. And one out of three cars that passed this slowed down and took pictures. Yeah, Breck, And it didn't matter if they were eighteen or eighty. It was crazy how people recognized. So I was sitting in the backseat of a car. What So it's going to be kind of if I'm making out of here alive, it's going to be kind of crazy, because you know, I've never been prepared for this kind of notoriety.

00:18:51
Speaker 4: Well, No, and it's hard to even accliment yourself back into society anyways, and you're going to come out of out of it one of the most part clear people in America.

00:19:02
Speaker 2: You know. You know, though, I wish President Trump would understand the fact that when I, you know, before I this all happened. Uh, you know, my my big thing was fixing little kids's faces with Operation Smile. That was that was my favorite fundraiser. Wow, and fading the homeless, Okay, And I just wish he would understand that. If he would, he would be honorable enough to just let me go home. The platform that I do have out there, the amazing things I could do to fix more little kids' faces and take care of more homeless people would be phenomenal.

00:19:44
Speaker 4: Well, yeah, you'll have the opportunity to do ten x one hundred x times better, you know, good than what you have before.

00:19:52
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:19:53
Speaker 4: So, now you've been in your your ultra popular in America, do you get like offers? I mean, is there been movie offers? I mean, I guess there's got to be people wanting to tell your story even further.

00:20:06
Speaker 2: Well, I have three good movie offers on the table now, but nobody wants to do anything and left him out. Okay, you know because Tiger King was filmed while I was in prison. Okay, I didn't film for Tiger King, right. They took all of my footage that I was filming for my reality show and used it without me knowing it. I never saw Tiger King until about six months ago.

00:20:34
Speaker 4: Holy cow. So wow, I guess I didn't realize that all that was after you'd already been put in prison.

00:20:39
Speaker 2: I thought, Yeah, I was arrested in September seventh of twenty eighteen, and they filmed that through eighteen nineteen and early twenty.

00:20:50
Speaker 4: So all those interviews and all the testimonials from your staff and your family and friends, that was all after you were already put in prison.

00:20:56
Speaker 2: That was all after I was already putting in prison. And the producer Eric Good of Tiger King paid We have videos of him now paying them very large sums to cash to talk shit about me and make that show.

00:21:11
Speaker 4: Yeah, holy cow, so you were It's pretty sad.

00:21:14
Speaker 2: I didn't get a dime from Tiger Yeah.

00:21:15
Speaker 4: I wasna say you didn't get paid at all?

00:21:17
Speaker 1: Then?

00:21:17
Speaker 2: No? None.

00:21:19
Speaker 4: So do you own the name Tiger King, Then I.

00:21:22
Speaker 2: Do own the trademark, but it takes it takes money to hire lawyers to sue anybody, you know what I'm saying. That's why everybody, everybody on the internet is selling Joe exotic Tiger King stuff, and there any damn thing I can do because I'm broke.

00:21:37
Speaker 4: Oh man, what about the music? I mean you your music came out before prison. Have you were you able to I guess I'm sure more people were streaming your music.

00:21:50
Speaker 2: I do get some royalties from my music now. But see what happened while I was in prison, is instead of Tiger King the people on Netflix doing the right thing and working with me to do everything, they've done everything the cheap way, and they got some clown out there named Vince Johnson to claim that the music was his, so they paid him, and then it took me three years to sue him. I just got done last March in Florida suing him because I finally found a lawyer that would do it pro bono, and I took him to court and won a judgment. You know, so now I've got a quarter order proven that the music is mine. But you still have to sue Netflix. You have to see the producers and health. BBC even has copyrighted some of my music. Everybody, everybody has taken advantage of Joe being in prison and not being able to fight for myself.

00:22:54
Speaker 4: Once you're out.

00:22:56
Speaker 2: Oh you bet, you bet, you bet? Yeah, yeah, I'm going to keep some lawyers fully employed.

00:23:04
Speaker 4: So they were the past.

00:23:05
Speaker 3: It's from a federal prison.

00:23:07
Speaker 4: Over the past six years or so, have you been writing new music?

00:23:10
Speaker 2: Like?

00:23:10
Speaker 4: Is that on your radar?

00:23:11
Speaker 2: Two? I, you know, I have. I kind of had a bad mind blocked there for a while. Yeah, uh that. You know, I've got married and you know, he got out of prison and he got deported to Mexico. So my music writing capabilities have came back, you know, politic separation, anxiety, I guess, yeah, but I've I have wrote some and you know, and I'm not gonna lie see anybody, my people, my my girls out in the world. I send them the songs and then I guess there's a very awesome music AI program out there, yep that has put the words in the sound to it until I get out so I can sing of myself. But yeah, they're they're apparently all on iTunes.

00:24:05
Speaker 4: The uh AI abilities right now are insane.

00:24:09
Speaker 2: Like, it's pretty scary. It's very scary TV that they showed on TV of what people are making Trump too. It's pretty crazy.

00:24:20
Speaker 4: Uh have you performed at all, like for your for your fellow inmates or the guards or anything. No, no, no, yeah, I don't blame him. So you remarried, and you said he got out and then was was he immediately deported?

00:24:35
Speaker 2: He was? He got out on May the seventeenth. He was supposed to have a detention hearing on the nineteenth and the US government picked him up on the seventeenth, and they dumped him and makes you call on the eighteenth, and he didn't even get a good to his hearing.

00:24:53
Speaker 4: Holy cow.

00:24:55
Speaker 2: Man.

00:24:56
Speaker 4: Well you're you're certainly one of like the rare people that have ever found love like that in prison. I would have to.

00:25:03
Speaker 2: Imagine, you know, it's it happens. You know, you can't pick when, where and who and why when it happens. But he's amazing. Uh, And I can't wait to get out. I intend on going to Mexico. And you know, just like I've I've had in the press several times. Uh, Trump, let me out of here so I can go to work and buy one of your five million dollar gold cards so I can bring him back to America.

00:25:35
Speaker 4: Your fellow castmate on Tiger Tiger King, Doc Annil, he was just sentenced to a year in prison.

00:25:43
Speaker 2: Pretty pretty crazy, is it.

00:25:45
Speaker 4: Would you call that karma? It's just kind of a matter of time for him?

00:25:50
Speaker 2: Well, I would, I would call it. I mean, not not as much karma as you know. Uh, I'm ashamed of the government of you know, because she muggled and traffic human beings, okay, in order to pay for those expensive animals to make a living and live like he lives. And that just goes to show you that the United States government, they want to bitch about all the illegal immigrants in here and the trafficking and everything, but they just showed an example of a man that was smuggling human beings to profit for himself. Only got a year and Joe Exonica's in here for twenty one, right, Okay, So go figure that out.

00:26:44
Speaker 4: So before, long long before, years and years ago, when you were taking your zoo on the road for like petting zoos and showcases or whatnot, right, did you ever come through Nebraska?

00:26:57
Speaker 2: I did many times, many times. We did some shows in North Platte, Nebraska. God, yeah, we did a lot in Nebraska.

00:27:09
Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm I'm I live in Omaha, Nebraska.

00:27:12
Speaker 2: Yeah.

00:27:13
Speaker 4: And I was just very curious. I thought that would be a pretty cool show, if you know, if that ever came through.

00:27:19
Speaker 2: But you know, I did. I did my magic show on the road in front of probably a total of four or five million people. And uh and I still get letters from people that weren't my show. Eighteen twenty years ago. There were little kids that are growing to have their own family. Now, Hey, Jeremy, this thing is going to hang out any second because it just beaped. I want to thank you so much for having me kill everybody to get on Joey's on acofficial dot com, look at the evidence and do some shopping. Help me out because the lawyer bills are stacking up. But tell somebody out there. I send my love, George sends his love and.

00:27:57
Speaker 4: H there we go, Joe Exotic. That was fun. He seems like he's in good spirits. Honestly, doesn't he sound like he was in good spirits? Johnny? I mean he sound like a guy that he Obviously he's been there long enough. He kind of gets the deal. He's acclimated, but he's fighting. You know, he's fighting. It's crazy to me that he was talking about he has no idea just how popular he is. I mean, it's you know, I've had family, you know, they're they're inside, they come out and it's you know, it's different. You gotta get used to being around people again, being able to just kind of move around. Oh, that would be so hard. And then he's going to have the whole world wanting to talk to him, you know. And he's a showman. Rights, he was a showman for many, many years, even before any of any of this. Right, he's used to that. He's used to talking in front of people and being on stage and being the center of attention. But it's been so long and so secluded for so long. I did want to ask him about his health. I mean, he did mention that he was in for a cancer treatment in North Carolina. Yeah, I know, that's one of his biggest fears. I've read in press clippings that one of his biggest fears he's going to die in prison before his sentence ends, and he just wants to do good out in the world. Man Joe Exotic. That was exciting. We had the Tiger King here on laugh with me, Johnny, good job. I just want to tell you publicly you did good buddy. But yeah, you heard him. You can go. You can find his instagram, Joe Underscore Exotic, all kinds of stuff on there, and then Joe Exotic Official dot Com. It sounds like that's the website, so let's actually let me, let's Johnny, let's pull that up so that we know we got it right, damn Joe. Yeah, Joe Exotic Official dot Com and uh, you can know exactly what's going on with the case. It looks very updated. It looks like we're getting new FBI information on there, any and basically anything you would need to know about Joe. Oh, well, wow, we got we can shop all kinds of stuff here to help them out. The Joe Exotic underwear. That might be what I what I get. I want to help my guy out, Joe. If you listen to the episode, thank you so much for coming on the show. And uh, you're welcome back anytime before or after you get out. This is exciting, Johnny, Johnny, Joe Exotic Official dot Com, thanks for listening. Everybody.

00:31:05
Speaker 2: Restoryspory do restory replace,