The Adam Carolla Show: Carolla Classics – Jimmy Kimmel + Carson Daly
Date: September 19, 2025
Podcast Network: PodcastOne / Carolla Digital
Host: Adam Carolla with Donnie, Mike August, and guests
Highlight Guests: Jimmy Kimmel, Carson Daly
Episode Format: Retrospective compilation, focusing on classic moments and key guest segments
Episode Overview
This Carolla Classics episode is a celebratory compilation highlighting Adam Carolla’s long-standing friendships and collaborations with Jimmy Kimmel and Carson Daly. It’s structured as a walk down memory lane, featuring classic clips from early podcast appearances (primarily from 2009), behind-the-scenes stories, and the raw chemistry between Carolla, Kimmel, and Daly. Central themes include the unlikely rise of blue-collar guys in Hollywood, showbiz survival, nostalgia for old-school comedy/porn, and brutally honest takes on pop culture, parenting, and personal growth.
Fans get a unique look at how Carolla and Kimmel’s comedic partnership developed, why their friendship endures, and how figures like Carson Daly drifted into radio/TV fame. The tone is unfiltered, improvisational, fast-moving, and laced with Carolla’s signature rants, running gags, and observational humor.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. The Origin Story: Carolla & Kimmel's Path to Showbiz
[00:46–05:30]
- Host Giovanni sets up a mini ‘oral history’ about Carolla and Kimmel: both had blue-collar beginnings; Carolla in construction, with years in improv comedy, and Kimmel as “Jimmy the Sports Guy” on LA’s Kevin & Bean radio show.
- Their first real meeting was over a radio boxing stunt where Carolla (hoping to break into broadcasting) volunteered as a trainer. The two connected immediately.
- Key Insight: Their rise involved a mix of hustle, timing, and relentless self-deprecation.
“Eventually, Jimmy saw how funny Adam was and wanted to help him get on air and do something… They became a huge hit. Dr. Drew heard those bits... and that's how Loveline happened.” — Giovanni [00:45–05:00]
2. Carolla & Kimmel Banter: Unfiltered Friendship
[05:30–61:00]
Life at the Carolla House
- Jimmy Kimmel and Adam share absurd stories about gift exchanges (animatronic pony scares), child-rearing, and ridiculous punishments.
“If my kids went, 'I came home from school and the animatronic pony Jimmy Kimmel gave us was making love to my mom,’ I feel like everyone’d have to go, you know what? That’s nowhere near as bad as being called 'Briefcase Joe.'” — Adam Carolla [08:17]
Children’s Literature Roast
- They mercilessly lampoon “Where the Wild Things Are,” poking fun at clunky prose, weak themes, and children's book logic.
- Noteworthy comedic riffing on Dr. Seuss and simplistic subject matter.
"That's a page, right?" — Donnie reading the famously sparse text.
"It's kind of creepy. So far, it sucks, right?" — Adam Carolla [09:55–10:55]
Parenting, Privilege, & Overcompensation
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Adam’s mega-garage obsession and childhood lack of resources: “Life just turns into this. You have something you want to do when you're young, don't get to do it, then you spend the rest of your life overcompensating.” [41:08]
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Honest talk about raising privileged kids and fearing they'll be “ruined.”
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Running joke: Adam’s Batman-like garage is overkill and possibly hiding criminal activity.
3. Nostalgia for Early Porn, Comedy, and Strip Clubs
[16:42–31:35]
- Riffing on how old porn was more appealing (more “civilian” and real), contrasting “retro” porn with present-day, extreme, “X Games”-fueled productions.
"I want to roll it back. I want a simpler time. I want civilian porn. I want no tats. No fake boobies..." — Adam Carolla [31:19]
- Creatively (and hilariously) speculate on opening a strip club with “normal” women in regular clothes as a more exciting fantasy.
4. Growing Up, Bizarre Jobs, & Ralphing on Stage
[32:56–63:37]
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Tales of odd jobs (e.g., Carolla’s friend overseeing a Pussycat Theater, Daly’s first radio gigs) and the absurdity of finding community in odd places—like the old porn theaters.
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Nostalgia for pre-internet resourcefulness: “Our minds were our DVRs back then.” [36:39]
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Extended riff on animal mishaps onstage, leading to long Seigfried & Roy/Siegfried and Roy being gay gags, and a priceless description of elephants urinating on Japanese businessmen. “People were diving under tables. I mean, it was really like a Japanese horror monster film.” — Donnie [63:26]
5. Jimmy Kimmel Drop-Ins – Radio Days & Handcrafted Vomit
[101:17–188:09] (Clips from Adam Carolla Show episodes 106 & 107, 2009)
- Kimmel provides ‘inside baseball’ on TV/late-night mechanics: late night as “restaurant world”—if you stay open, you’re winning.
- Ratings demo talk: “After 49 [years old], you don’t exist to advertisers.” [103:30]
- Anecdotes on DIY sound effects: Kimmel is proud of his in-studio “vomit sound,” crafted with buckets and water.
"I made that vomit sound effect in the studio. I got two garbage pails, filled them with water... It really was a horrible sounding and very graphic sounding vomit sound effect." — Jimmy Kimmel [82:57]
- Discussion on how little production tech in radio had changed for 85 years, then went digital overnight.
6. Carson Daly’s Comedy of Errors Origin Story
[67:19–99:30]
- Daly explains his accidental entry into entertainment, failed aspirations as a pro golfer ("I made a nine on a par five. And that was that.” [70:44]), and serendipitous friendship with Jimmy Kimmel (their first meeting: a Catholic priest-hosted mass on a Maui beach when Carson was 12, Jimmy 17).
- Insight into radio’s old-school grind and the necessity of “air check tapes,” making vomit sound effects, and sending tapes written in crayon as a prank.
“That's the only thing I've done on my own. I would...make radio, as you well know.” — Carson Daly [77:30]
“If you could learn to edit this tape by splicing it together, you will be very helpful around here.” — Jimmy Kimmel [79:45]
7. Pranks, Pizza Ovens, & Citizen of the Month
[123:26–139:43]
- Classic Jimmy Kimmel prank: fakes an official “Citizen of the Month” letter to friend Mike August, complete with a voicemail and setup at Burbank City Hall, only for August to attempt to double-cross Kimmel via the police.
- Extended riff on pizza oven one-upmanship and which LA pizza is best.
- Playful ribbing over Adam’s “man show” chair, ostentatious garage, and “burnt orange Lexus.”
8. Call-In Questions, Stand-Up Advice, & The Importance of Preparation
[151:47–179:27]
- Fans Skype in: best advice for aspiring young standups—Carolla and Kimmel stress “hunger,” stage time, and not getting a girlfriend too soon (lose the “eye of the tiger”).
- Panel notes why some comics stay sharp (Steve Martin, Will Ferrell) while others rest on old material (Jeff Altman).
- Both joke about the lack of preparation in showbiz/real life (“I used to love watching People's Court...you didn’t know that you were attending court this morning?” — Adam Carolla [177:52]).
Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)
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Carolla on parenting/privilege:
"Life basically just turns into this. You have something you'd like to do when you're young, you don't get a chance to do it, and then you spend the rest of your life overcompensating.” [41:08] -
Mocking ‘Where the Wild Things Are’:
“So far, no lessons learned, nothing interesting, and nothing even rhymes.” — Adam Carolla [11:44] -
Jimmy on the late night game:
"I'm number one now." — Jimmy Kimmel [102:39] -
On aging TV audience:
"After 49 you don't exist to the world of advertising." — Donnie [103:30] -
Kimmel’s pride in his DIY work:
"The thing I was most protective of was my vomit sound effect." — Jimmy Kimmel [82:52] -
Carolla on porn's 'evolution':
"I want to roll it back. I want a simpler time. I want civilian porn. I want no tats. I want no fake boobies." [31:19] -
On the thrill of a great prank:
"If Mike was really being presented with the Citizen of the Month award in Burbank, there's no way I would miss it." — Jimmy Kimmel [132:28] -
Advice for new comics:
"Try it out and see if you like it…If you've got a girlfriend already, there's not nearly as much a reason as for you to go to all the crappy little clubs in town." — Donnie [162:07] -
On the cocktail of hardship and creative hunger:
"The genesis of comedy is loneliness and misery...when you're nailing everything, you're happy. And when you're happy, you don't think, I gotta write a joke about getting laid too much." — Adam Carolla [164:21]
Highlighted Segments with Timestamps
- 0:45–5:30 — Origins: How Adam met Jimmy/Kevin & Bean/Loveline backstory
- 5:30–15:42 — Carolla & Kimmel roast children's books, adulting, and upbringing
- 16:42–31:35 — “Retro” porn and strip club fantasies
- 32:56–63:37 — Tales from the old porn theaters, Siegfried & Roy, animal mishaps
- 67:19–99:30 — Carson Daly's accidental entry into radio and Kimmel’s mentorship
- 101:17–188:09 — Kimmel’s showbiz insights, radio pranks, Citizen of the Month scheme
- 151:47–179:27 — Call-in standup questions, showbiz preparation, and comic hunger
Overall Tone & Takeaways
The episode is a window into the authentic, loose, and anarchic chemistry between Adam Carolla and his close circle. It’s packed with playful mockery, “inside baseball” on showbiz and radio, candid admissions about failure and insecurity, and a celebration of the absurdity of the entertainment business. Beneath the relentless riffing, there are sharp observations about creativity, ambition, and how true friendships form the backbone of any successful career.
Fans and first-timers alike will laugh, cringe, and come away with a sense of how much serendipity and self-sabotaging honesty have propelled Carolla, Kimmel, and Daly from the fringes of LA down into podcasting legend.
Episode Closing:
[188:26] – Giovanni wraps with a tease of more Kimmel content in upcoming episodes and Carolla's signature “Mahalo. And get it on.”